#dirty bomb fanfiction

[dirtybombfics]

eyy

I have some Proxy/Aimee (non-smutty) fic to offer up. :>

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11566815/chapters/25985940

[pleuvoire]

i'm still in the locked tomb meta hole sorry.... i think it's really interesting that ntn as the third book in the series is such a jarring break from the atmosphere of the first two books, which was such a "decadent feuding court with swords and magic and shit (but like, in space and sci-fi)" type of setting, really elevated #aesthetic drama, and then ntn finds us living in an ordinary dirty crowded city among ordinary people trying to live their every day lives amidst the scarring of imperialist violence on one of the many planets said decadent feuding court has colonized, and suddenly all the elevated aristocratic sci-fantasy stuff starts feeling like it's off in another world, and suddenly people are fighting with guns and bombs instead of swords and bone magic. and this is insanely whiplashful and leaves you feeling like you're reading a whole different book series and i will confess is a factor in ntn not being my favorite book in the series, what can i say i love some decadent sword court drama, but i think it does what the decadent court drama genre often shies away from even when criticizing the decadent court in question, which is actually showing us the real people and worlds oppressed by said decadent court instead of relegating them to a far-off hypothetical, putting us down on the ground with how the 99.99999% live. and from the perspective of ntn, all the campy theatrical #aesthetic drama of the previous books that you just accept as part of the setting when you're situated within it starts to seem like ludicrous pageantry. the evil empire is larping and we all bought into it... i don't really have a conclusion to follow this train of thought to except that it's funny that criticisms of tlt as "fanfiction-y" often focus on this overdone #aesthetic and yet that very same thing starts to unravel as the Narrative of imperial power throughout the books starts to unravel in turn. also it reminds me of rgu and how much the #aesthetic in that show is directly a symbol of oppressive power (the swords, the flowers, etc) and it reminds me particularly of the imo quite viable interpretation/headcanon of rgu, that all the crazy surrealism happens within the bounds of ohtori academy specifically as a mechanism of the suffocating self-contained patriarchal system it is, and once you get out of there you're just in the normal regular world with no symbolism. tlt is like that but if ohtori academy was actively invading and colonizing everywhere else

[mrsgreenworld]

I know that I'm supposed to be working on my other fic but there's an idea that just won't leave my head. In the ideal world and maybe on Netflix this is how I'd like Aslaz bathroom scene to go in the next episode.

I don't own the show or the characters, they all belong to the Yabani writers, producers and the production company. This is only fanfiction.

The Matter Of Friendship

Asi pulls away all too soon, muttering:

"No, stop".

She tugs at his hands that are framing her face, forcing him to let go and when he doesn't, she takes a few steps away from him. Alaz is left frozen in place, with the hands holding onto thin air.

"You can't do that. I promised you that I'd be by your side, I'd help you get through everything. And I'll keep my promise. I'll be there for you but only as a friend".

Alaz feels completely dumbfounded and thinks that if she headbutted him it wouldn't hurt as much as her uttering the word "friend". Is she for real?

"Are you kidding me right now?"

"Do I look like I'm kidding?"

"You must be kidding because there's no way you've just called yourself my friend".

Alaz puts a special stress on the word, spitting it out like it's an insult. And it actually is. Her thinking they could be friends is so damn insulting. It's worse than her hating him. Let them be enemies but not friends.

"Why? What's wrong with us being friends? We couldn't be more, maybe we can at least have this".

Oh god ... She is serious.

Alaz squeezes his eyes shut and runs his fingers through his hair.

"No, you most definitely are losing your goddamn mind and want me to completely lose what's left of mine" he mutters with the eyes still closed, pulling at his hair.

And then she drops a nonchalant comment:

"I don't understand why you're being so dramatic. What the hell is the problem?"

That makes him open his eyes and freaking yell, making her jump:

"You wanna know the problem with your genius idea??? I FUCKING LOVE YOU!!! And you love me!!!"

He feels - and probably looks as well - like a rabid dog but he doesn't care. He eats up all the space between them in one step and doesn't give her a chance to take an instinctive step back. He sneaks his right arm possessively around her middle and pulls their bodies together, hard. Then he puts his left hand on her neck, only to feel the mad staccato of her pulse under his fingers. He doesn't give her time to react, to think or even breathe, he just attacks her mouth. It's so different from a tender and timid kiss they'd shared just before she dropped the friendship bomb on him. This kiss is primal and pulls a surprised moan from her, giving him the access inside her mouth. He wants to make this so dirty that by the time he's done with her, the freaking "friendship" and "friends" vanish from her vocabulary entirely.

He turns and walks them blindly, only stopping to hoist her up on the granite countertop at the sinks. Then steps between her legs that part for him reflectively. Alaz pulls her roughly to the edge, smacking his hips right into her. He stops his assault on Asi's mouth only to whisper into her used lips:

"Do you feel that, friend?"

He thrusts shallowly to make his point, earning a whimper from Asi. Alaz's hands slide up her bare thighs, leaving trails of goosebumps, and dive under the ridiculously short dress. Just when Alaz's fingers brush Asi's underwear, she catches his wrists and yanks his hands from under her dress. But Alaz has felt everything he needed to feel.

"As long as you're like this for me and I'm like this for you, there's no universe where we can be friends".

Asi looks ready to murder him when she pushes at his chest and jumps from the granite counter. She tugs at her dress and hisses at him:

"The only thing you proved is that you're an animal".

Alaz just smirks.

"Okay, fine, I'm an animal. I'd rather be an animal than your friend".

Asi lets out a noisy breath and suddenly just looks tired.

"Why do you have to make this hard?"

"Because we love each other".

Asi throws up her hands in frustration.

"And what difference does it make?"

"All the difference in the world".

Alaz tries to get closer again but she won't allow it, pushing him and taking a few steps back, to the only escape route - the door.

"If it made all the difference in the world, it wouldn't be this hard, don't you think?"

With these words she pulls the door and slips out, leaving Alaz in the charged little room alone.

[indarknessilived]

Legacy Shenanigans Master List of Audio Featuring Anything Marvolo (NSFW version)

Posts Updated: 9/03/2023

NSFW

Marvolo talking to MC: Marvolo (NSFW)

Marvolo punishing MC: Marvolo (NSFW)

Marvolo dirty talk: Marvolo (NSFW)

MC takes control for once: Marvolo (NSFW)

Marvolo moaning: Marvolo (NSFW)

Giving Marvolo head: Marvolo (NSFW)

Marvolo dirty talk: Marvolo (NSFW)

Marvolo writing MC a letter: Marvolo (NSFW)

Marvolo giving a good girl her reward (creaking!): Marvolo (NSFW)

Marvolo edging you (bed creaking!): Marvolo (NSFW)

Marvolo sexy degradation: Marvolo (NSFW)

Marvolo making you squirt: Marvolo (NSFW)

Dirty talk and Marvolo pushing into you: Marvolo (NSFW)

More Marvolo dirty talk (MELT): Marvolo (NSFW)

Someone hurt you and Marvolo doesn’t take kindly to that: Marvolo (NSFW - torture) 

Pissing him off at the Den: Marvolo (NSFW)

Begging Marvolo: Marvolo (NSFW)

Solo mastrabation: Marvolo (NSFW)

Volo reading erotic poetry: Marvolo (NSFW ISH) (personal new favorite!)

Throat training & PRAISE!: Marvolo (NSFW)

It’s going to be a rough day at the Den and he wants you ready: Marvolo (NSFW)x

Possessive dirty talk: Marvolo (NSFW)

Marvolo the king of double standards (based of character ai chat): Marvolo (Very light NSFW)

Marvolo telling you what he going to do to you: Marvolo (NSFW) 

Drunk Marvolo talking to Rerek: Marvolo, Rerek (NSFW ISH)

Drunk Marvolo when MC shows up: Marvolo, MC (NSFW)

Whispering Filth based on (this): Marvolo, MC (NSFW)

MC joking about Marvolo’s teeth: Marvolo, MC (NSFW)

MCs been bad, and bad girls get the belt: Marvolo, MC (NSFW)

Marvolo and MC break the bed: Marvolo, MC (NSFW)

Marvolo putting that tongue to work with Italian: Marvolo, MC (NSFW)

Marvolo fucking MC but now with HER moans: Marvolo, MC (NSFW)

They've had an argument and Marvolo discusses punishments: Marvolo, MC (NSFW ISH)

Pure dirty sex: Marvolo, MC (NSFW)

MC knows how to tease Volo when he has to go: Marvolo, MC (NSFW)

Marvolo making Mc squirt and calling her a good girl: Marvolo, MC (NSFW)

Fun in the garden: Marvolo, MC (NSFW)

Fingering before Volo has to leave: Marvolo, MC (NSFW)

Foreplay is getting steamy: Marvolo, MC (NSFW)

Rerek and Marvolo having an argument about MC: Marvolo, Rerek (NSFW ISH)

Rerek talking about Mr. and Mrs. Gaunt sex life: Marvolo, Rerek (NSFW ISH)

Rerek being curious after Sebastian joined in: Marvolo, Rerek (NSFW)

"Rereks" thoughts on fanfiction: Rerek (NSFW ISH)

Rerek being Rerek compilation: Rerek (NSFW ISH)

Rereks opinions: Rerek (NSFW ISH)

Marvolo and Ominis at some Event, run in with a past hookup: Marvolo, Ominis, (Anabella ¿sp?) (NSFW ISH)

Marvolo stressing the importance of silencing charms: Marvolo, Ominis (light NSFW)

Marvolo and Sebastian chat after (this fic): Marvolo, Sebastian (NSFW)

Marvolo and Sebastian chat after (pt 4): Marvolo, Sebastian (NSFW)

Remembering old times: Marvolo, Sebastian (NSFW ISH)

I'll mess a bitch up, but I'll also take it like a good slut - Sallow: Marvolo, Sebastian (NSFW)

Marvolo’s in need of his dick pig: Marvolo, Sebastian (NSFW)

And then there were two little dick pigs: Marvolo, Sebastian, Leander (NSFW)

Marvolo and Rerek talk after (pt5): Marvolo, Rerek (NSFW)

Rerek calls Marvolo out for almost slipping the L word after (pt 6) : Marvolo, Rerek (SFW audio but keeping it with the others pt 6 NSFW)

Ominis has been a good boy, right?: Ominis, Rowan (NSFW)

Ominis being adorably pathetic for Rowan: Ominis, Rowan (NSFW ISH)

Rominis being a bit too loud: Ominis, Rowan, Marvolo (NSFW)

Marvolo getting revenge on Ominis: Marvolo, Ominis, Rowan, MC

Rowan pounding pussy: Rowan (NSFW)

Rowan dirty talk, and a GOOD GIRL!: Rowan (NSFW ISH)

Solo mastrabation: Rowan (NSFW)

Volo and Rowan arguing over taker vs giver: Marvolo, Rowan (NSFW ISH)

Rowans in his "season": Marvolo, Rowan (NSFW)

Petty arguments: Marvolo, Rowan (VERY LIGHT NSFW to many F bombs to play in front of your boss)

Deep talks and Rowan probably has a kid: Marvolo, Rowan (NSFW ISH)

Marvolo waking up to Rowan in bed with him, confusion incurs: Marvolo, Rowan (light NSFW) 

Our murder boys taking turns with MC: Marvolo, Rowan, MC (NSFW)

Our murder boys teasing Leander: Marvolo, Rowan, Leander (NSFW ISH)

Red getting tag teamed: Marvolo, Rowan, Leander (NSFW)

Marvolo and OC: Marvolo (ish NSFW)

Personalized Marvolo for @dreambender96 (NSFW) (lucky ;) )

[raccoonfallsharder]

meredium ☀︎ ⋆⁺☁︎⋆₊⊹ part two of sunshine ☀︎ book one of kinktober 2024

sunshine masterlist | kinktober2024 | navigation | fanfiction masterlist 18+ only | no use of y/n | f!reader | 4 parts | word count: pending. read part two ☀︎ meredium now.

after what was intended to be a one night stand, rocket & sunshine-reader navigate the awkward aftermath of being new crewmates. oops. see below for warnings, kinks, and more info.

“Yeah, okay,” he’d taunted, “I’ll call your bluff.” You’d tilted both hands — cupping the sides of his palm, braceleting his wrist — bringing his hand forward so you could dip the tip of his finger in your mouth the way you had at the bar. When you’d hollowed your cheeks and sucked, releasing him with a wet pop, his eyes had turned from cherry bombs into dark moons — eclipses in a cranberry-bourbon sky.  “So call it,” you’d challenged softly. 

A low rumbling sound had stirred the recycled air between you — prickling the hair on the back of your neck and your arms. A growl, you’d realized with a sparkling gold swirl of nerves and a tightening spiral of tension. He’d leaned forward and set his mug on the console, then scrolled sightlessly along a touchscreen, tapping a few sigils and then yanking on a massive lever. One dark-clawed foot had nudged against the control apparatus, and the whole thing had slid to the left of him like it had been on a track or a hinge. Then he’d leaned back in the pilot’s chair and stared at you with lazy, hooded eyes.  “Get on with it then, sunshine.” His teeth had been bared — practically biting. “Come take my dick out and fuck yourself on it like a good little doll.” You’d felt your shoulders and throat and cheeks all grow warm — and then you’d set your tea aside and stood, shimmying your boxers down your hips and plucking them off the floor, then tossing them with feigned carelessness onto your vacant seat.  “If anyone comes up here, they’ll know what we’re doing,” you’d pointed out — but you’d laced your voice with as much sultriness as possible, so he’d know it wasn’t a complaint but a conscious decision on your part. “Do you want my shirt on or off?” His tongue had flicked out against his bared canine. “Keep it on for now.” His hands had tucked themselves languidly behind his head, cradling the back of his skull with open palms. “Go on. Get to work.”  A smile had flirted with the corner of your mouth. “Bossy,” you’d taunted, and his brows had flared upward. “Oh, you got a frickin’ mouth on you,” he’d drawled as you’d begun carefully tracing the seams of his jumpsuit, trying to find all the hidden buckles and buttons. You’d darted a mischievous glance up at him before finding your way through the labyrinth of latches, peeling his jumpsuit open just enough to free him. He’d hissed a breath through his teeth when you’d gently palmed him, pulling him out and bending quickly at the waist to drop a kiss on the curve of his cock.  “I do,” you’d agreed with a warm smile. “Did you want to see that, or—?” His eyes had narrowed. “Get. On.” You’d eased one leg over him, straddling him and raising your own brows. “Yes, sir,” you’d taunted gently. “Whatever you say, boss.” He’d glared. “Aren’t you supposed to be fucking me when I tell you to?” “Sure,” you agree warmly, “but you can’t imagine I’d be doing it without a little sass?” His eyes had flashed. “Get. On. My. Di—” You’d dropped down on him quickly, hissing a breath through your teeth at the stretch. Your head had rolled back on your neck, eyes fluttering closed. A little moan had tumbled over your lips like wine from a decanter.  “F-fuck,” he’d hissed.

part two ☀︎ meredium | sunshine masterlist kinktober2024 | navigation | fanfiction masterlist

KINKS: free-use negotiation, light dom/sub vibes, public sex, temperature play, light praise/degradation, gagging with fingers/hands, so much dirty talk, inappropriate use of a coffee mug.  

CONTEXT: mcu-based, post-endgame, grumpy/sunshine vibes (obviously), “secret affair” (no cheating), angst, comfort, relationship anxiety. sub reader/dom rocket. HEA of course.

orange support/mdni banners and fairylight dividers by @/saradika-graphics | yellow flower dividers by @/thecutestgrotto

[boxwinebaddie]

Who initiated the kissing in the greenhouse?

ahhhh, the greenhouse kiss.

my magnum opus. ;)

shouldiactuallyfuckingwriteitgotohellunclenina!

smh, Any!Ways! i've been itching to talk about this, but it requires a lot of context, so i'll have to rewind time a lil and provide screenshots.

but before i begin:

again, it's probably my extreme levels of anxiety around being really annoying and irrelevant, however, this was sent to me a while ago and i am not sure how much we still care about lore around my dumb unfinished fanfiction, but i will say that, at the time i received this, i also had TWO Other Separate Anons who asked me questions about the greenhouse sequence and subsequent kiss and because i had only really mentioned it in a Couple...neither here nor there answers?

i was extremely surprised and flattered that it stood out enough to you to be asked about multiple times??? AAA?? again, i have the best readers in the world, thank you so much for caring. my face is red. ;-;

OKAY! FAIR WARNING!!!! THIS IS VERY, VERY, VEEERY LONG! and Lore Intensive. but you asked! so welcome to the shit show, baby!

so, to jog your re(memories), though, i highly doubt you'll need the refresher, you are all sharp as tacks and extremely brilliant, therefore, really just to set the scene for myself, we are in ravenstan's room,

which, because the crimson dawn sicktorian manwhorsion was ofc, once a very grand, luxurious upscale, upstate new york 1800s manor, a lot of the old furnishings stayed, so stan's room is basically this huge gothic vampire boy bedroom with a massive four column upholstery bed and beautiful black lace canopy that drapes down,

there's a huge dark-finish, wooden boudoir and matching vanity that is all hand-carved, very elegant, ancient and intricate...and also sticker-bombed with a million shitty, half-peeled skater-boy stickers...there's a chandelier and one of stan's combat boots is hanging from it and probably underwear, smh. metal posters all over the wall, dirty laundry all over the fancy ornate rug, half empty cheesy poof and taki bags, eye makeup smeared on Everything, especially the nice cool mirror, nasty crumbs in the bed ( stan did wipe those off before kyle sat...true luv ), lots of cringey stanime figurines on the old antique shelves. jers did comment on this like '...sailor moon?' and stan scoffed, a little defensive, and was like 'what's more badass and punk rock then a bunch of girls kicking ass and saving the galaxy?'

Hot Boy Shit.

so yes, we are in ravenstan's gothic victorian, chaotic boy fail disaster room, where stan is stripped ( literally ) of all his sexy lead-singer boy laviciousness, no dramatic eye makeup or perfectly blown out bleach blonde hair, no tiny vegan leather pants...rather, he is fresh from the shower in his big, ratty, holey terrance and phillip shirt, his uber lame skull and cross-bones pajama pants from the junior boys section of target, socks that don't match, his hair is back in the black standana, still damp, face bare, cheeks lightly flushed, where a blue star pimple patch sits on a very angry pimple, the lil stan beauty mark under his right eye is winking, lip ring shining in the romantic sicktorian lowlight of a crimson dawn, where he is nervously fiddling with his chipped black fingernails, sitting cross cross applesauce across from

...jerseykyle, secret love of his life, who looks perfect, even with his nightly skincare routine delayed from tonight's many dramas ( which, is really saying something, because kyle never delays his s.c., ever ) his hair is falling in effortless ginger waves about his sharp shoulders, the sun and moon glasses chain is gold and glorious, his green eyes, usually narrowed, are wide with wonder gazing over at raven of crimson dawn reduced to whoever he really is underneath it all, the fabric of his matching perfectly pressed silk flannel pajama set from marshalls extremely soft, however, his skin is slick with sweat and prickly after raven read his palms and said his love line was...long.

( help, lmao. )

what started out as a very awkward conversation and confrontation about raven of crimson dawn being trans has melted away into silly banter and shit-shooting between our two favorite boys who, though, by kyle's knowledge, have not known each other for more than a month, have extremely good conversational chemistry and are playful and vulnerable with each other in a way that suggests that they have been best friends and known each other all their lives...

...Interesting.

as their conversation moves from light-hearted subject matter and descends further into the darkness that surrounds very heavy shit, kyle, who has gotten pretty comfortable surprisingly, starts to speak in the heavy jersey accent before trying to smooth and iron it out.

this little exchange insues:

kyle says that, it's risky, but worth the reward, because ravenstan after a steep and shaky breath, dives into an abridged, sparknotes version of the pre-crimson dawn days, how it used to be a pipe dream, a little garage band thing the boys did for fun, hungry for fame but eating top ramen and drinking sunny d everyday, unaware that they would ever get recognized...

( my favorite pre-cd headstannon is actually is that on the fateful, fearful, tearful night of the concert they got scouted at, they're trying on their lil emo boy outfits in the bathroom to hype themselves up, stan is nervous to come out bc he thinks he looks stupid...he's wearing some dumb hot topic-y, party city vampire costume thing kenny got him as a joke w/ his eyeliner on...the boys get him to come out and they are all immediately GAGGED because why is our awkward, boy fail king...SEXY??? like stan why are you hOT??? and they start all barking and throwing money at him and trying to have him do a spin which was so nice bc he was so nervous. my boys. </3 )

then they do get recognized, shot into stardom and everything seems golden! but...it's pyrite. because cartman or the evil 'e' basically assigns them these little 'parts' to play in his perfectly placed show, stan says he just wanted to do what kenny did, sing his songs and not talk too much, just share his music...but e has kenny and stan swap personalities essentially and stan becomes raven. which, at first, was worth it because he got to preform, but it just became this thing he dreads, acting all high and mighty when he just feels fucking tiny and horrible, that he isn't allowed to write songs anymore and they all, essentially...Belong To E.

they have no freedom. no autonomy.

Whatsoever. </3

( sa tw :( it's a whole chapter and convo, obviously, stan also talks about working at ruffians, which is a massive gentleman's club but gentle those men were NOT, that his boss thought his name was too boring so they had him go by something ~exotic~ hence cuervo, which the man mistook for being reminiscent of the tequila brand jose cuervo, so those awful men just called him tequila day in and out while he was serving drinks...gazes and hands lingering, stan's boss telling him he could sing on stage on friday if let those rich men have their way...and that, unfortunately, thru those men, cd got signed. )

after that BOMBSHELL of a conversation, it's very sad and heartbreaking, but very eye-opening to kyle, who wrote raven off as this imbecilic, arrogant rockstar celebrity sheep who he's learned via the hate and this exchange, is extremely lovely, was treated horribly at every impasse of his life and remained kind and humble...he is like legitimately stunned by how perfectly imperfect raven of cd is.

speeeeaking of...okay, sorry, all of that was leading to

This.

so, ravenstan's eyes are rimmed red...the way one's would if they had been crying, he's also been periodically sniffling. feeling rarely kind and gentle, jerseykyle very tentatively asks if he's been crying and hope that it's not because kyle saw him in the mirror.

...i've talked about this before, but, bear with me:

stan shakes his head and tells him that it's because he's been reading a lot of insidious internet comments about him. marjorine told him not to, but it's hard not to listen when everyone is talking about you. he goes onto say that for every person that 'loves' him, five other people hate him. that there's always something wrong with him. his eyes are too far apart or close together, his lips are a weird shape, one hip is bigger than the other. there are accounts dedicated just to zooming in on his pants, weird horrible deep fake porn of him, the paps catching him buying tampons, trying to figure out who they're for and if he's secretly seeing someone ( he laughs and smiles, but it doesn't meet his eyes ) and that...he feels hideous. :(

this exchange happens, my favorite exchange in the fic:

( yes, we've all read it...here it is again. )

after that, overcome with emotion, ravenstan pulls jerseykyle in a very tender, loving embrace, holds him, thanks him, kyle is blushing, stan says he really needed to hear that...the deeper meaning of which crimson dawns on kyle when, suicide tw, during that hug, over his shoulder, he notices a VERY LARGE bottle of sleeping pills :( on his nightstand and a handle of vodka. ravenstan also mentioned being very tired of everything and just wanting to...sleep for a long time.

this does...deeply concern kyle. he tries not to dwell on it.

because, he's looking at raven of crimson dawn, in all his awkward, sweet boy, perfect-imperfect glory, who, in that vein, has a little bit of cinnamon flavored toothpaste left on his bottom lip.

yes...jersey was staring at it. intently. that gay ass bitch.

he goes to swipe it off raven's lip, which his thumb gently caresses, running over ravenstan's lovely lip ring, his heart is RACING.

stan puts his hand over kyle's before he can pull it away and feeling particularly brave, is about to ask jersey Something Important!

but gets interrupted.

this part which i didn't get to write is Integral and devastating to me because we watch all of stan's vulnerability IMMEDIATELY VANISH, hes undoing his hair, trying to shake it out, shakily pouring himself a very healthy-unhealthy shot, doing like two of them, is rushing around trying to find his hot boy clothes and starts...

doing the raven voice again.

fUUUUUUUUUUUCk.

raven, basically pretending like none of that happened is like, 'well, that's my cue, new jersey. i've got to get changed, but you're welcome to stick around...i'll give you a free show.' ;) <3 xxx

jerseykyle is...Haunted by this. bc he just watched the boy that he'd been getting to know very intimately and preciously in his bedroom immediately transform into this...Monster they made him into.

kyle declines, makes his leave, confused and dismayed, but while raven's back is turned, he steals the big pill bottle bc he's worried.

and that chapter, my favorite, ends with this.

AAAAAAAAAAAA I KNOW RIGHT!!!

Moving On! to the greenhouse chapter.

here's some more context you don't need:

flash forward. it's the big dramatic punk rock party ( rager, more like ) the label threw at the crimson dawn manwhorsion to celebrate marjorine's sindotrination into the band.

like i mentioned once or twice in another lore ask, j.k. has been drinking aaaaa lot, so he is very white boy SCHWASTED and seeking out a missing raven of crimson dawn who, in his stupefying stupor, is finding he is very attracted to and wants to kiss...very bad, lmao.

but yeah! finds him in his special stan greenhouse for gay boys who are nerdy about plants. jersey kyle is looking fierce as fuck, his hair is curly whirly, his sharp canines are pearly, i think he's wearing a black turtleneck and slacks, he looks chic and sleek, he is, however, slurring and shit-faced, swirling his wine around his crystal skull wine glass whilist RELENTLESSLY flirting with raven of crimson dawn.

who, again, is rarely sober, he's wearing a little gardening apron over his party outfit ( aw ), his hair is back in the standana, there's a lil dirt on his cheek, he is stuttering and stammering so much omg.

BUT, OKAY, AS FOR THE KISS! the lead in is this:

sober ravenstan is trying to hydrate very drunk jerseykyle all like "kyle broflovski, when was the last time you drank water?" and kyle being a nasty disgusting floozy is like "can't rememba...buuuut my name sounds good in ya mouth." ;) JAIL! GO TO HELL! but ravenstan, trying to be logical because he knows kyle can't is like "kyle, i need you to be serious. you have your civil procedures class at seven and that advanced legal research at nine and after that you've got--"

and kyle's entire world stops. because raven of crimson dawn, who has the world's worst case of adhd and cannot remember anything...

memorized his school schedule. :')

THIS HAPPENS...

AND BAM!!!! GREENHOUSE KISS. <333

which...Whew. very quickly escalates into a very messy makeout session, the greenhouse windows are fogging up from the HEAT. at one point which i tried to reference in the vampire mv para i'm writing, jersey kyle knocks a bunch of plants in pots sitting up on this shelf to put stan on it. there is a part in six where while jersey is stiring his lasagna sauce in the kitchen, stan sits up on the counter like a nasty slutty skanky indecent boy with no manners, kyle smakcs his tiny ass with the kochlefl and was like "it's rude to sit on counters."

soooo naturally, stan, breathlessly, being a little shit is like "i thought it was rude to sit on counters." and kyle is like "oh, so now you want to be polite?" AND NO HE DOES NOT! ;) because it's getting freak nasty in there, my woooord, ravenstan is trying to get kyle's shirt off my goodness and, jk, you know, not wanting to rush into anything is like "raven, i think--i think we should slow down" and stan, smirking, not listening ( stan special ) and is v liberally kissing down kyle's neck ( which, fun fact, jersey's neck is very sensitive and if you ever want kyle to shut up, that will immediately make him dead quiet ) says...

"you talk too much, mi sabelotodo." ;)

WHIIIIIIIIIICH...was the wrong thing to say, girls, gays and theys...

because jerseykyle immediately pulls back...

IN HORROR.

but that's an ask for another day. :* <3 xxx

-uncle nina, curator of CHAOS

[bug-decal-kissing]

Hey friends!

An Invitation, by chilipot, was updated today, with 3/? Chapters released! It has a rating of Teen And Up Audiences and Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, with additional tags "Prohibited wish - Freeform, Enemies to Lovers, Alternate Universe - Office, Office, Alternate Universe - Rock Band, band au, Fluff, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Fluff and Angst, someone give scarab a raise, they're both autistic and in love your honor, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Tags May Change, Tags Are Hard, Alcohol, Weed, Smoking, Concerts, Music, Inspired by Music"

A new work, woke up burning by VioletThePorama, was published today, with 1/1 Chapters released! It has a rating of Teen And Up Audiences and Graphic Depictions Of Violence, with additional tags "Mentioned Prismo, Eye Trauma, Mild Gore, Alternate Universe - Pirate, Drabble, Takes place after another fic, Inspired by Fanfiction, Magic, Phantom pain, Past Violence, I don't think it's too graphic but tagged for safety"

You can read it here:

NSFW works are below the cut :].

The Beginning is the End is the Beginning, by grylos, was updated today, with 3/? Chapters released! It has a rating of Explicit and Graphic Depictions Of Violence, with additional tags "Genocide, Slavery, Sexual Slavery, Bombs, Suicidal Thoughts, Sad, Happy Ending, Dead Dove: Do Not Eat, Backstory, Slow Burn, Child Abuse, Past Abuse, Physical Abuse, Explicit Sexual Content, Corruption"

You can read it here:

A new work, Honorary Nasty by TJade, was published today, with 1/1 Chapters released! It has a rating of Explicit and No Archive Warnings Apply, with additional tags "Smut, Lack of Communication, that gets fixed, Self-Harm, Scarab sticks a pin through himself while masturbating, That's it. It’s not graphic or anything I promise, Light Angst, Humiliation, Safewords, Dirty Talk, Fantasizing, Happy Ending"

You can read it here:

Interlinked, by Finn565, was updated today, with 11/14 Chapters released! It has a rating of Explicit and Graphic Depictions Of Violence, with additional tags "Human AU, Blade Runner AU, I played pretty lose with the lore so forgive me for that, Violence, not too gorey tho, Slow Burn, Enemies to Lovers, Orbo is a piece of shit, sorry I just made him that way in this fic, Prismo is just a lovely guy, Prismo is going to teach Scarab to love fr, Kissing, Hurt/Comfort, Porn With Plot, smut in later chapters, Confessions, Trans Scarab, they’re in love your honor"

You can read it here:

Timekiller, by MatrixDream, was updated today, with 5/16 Chapters released! It has a rating of Mature and Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, and No Archive Warnings Apply, and Graphic Depictions Of Violence, and Major Character Death, with additional tags "One-shots!, Angst, Loneliness, Isolation, Grief/Mourning, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Post-Canon, (Tags will update as fic updates), Bug Scarab, Popcorn, Captured in a pickle jar, silliness, Physical Disability, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Scarab had his wings removed as punishment headcanon, Blood and Violence, Blood and Injury, Ableism, Chronic Pain, Self-Harm, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Trauma, Triggers, Whump, Monkey's Paw AU, Major character death - Freeform, Violence, Hurt No Comfort, major angst, mentions of gore, Revenge, Ambiguous/Open Ending, (But still hopeful), Let me know if I missed any tags/warnings!"

You can read it here:

Sans Soleil, by Cosmic_Rainstorm, was updated today, with 6/? Chapters released! It has a rating of Mature and Graphic Depictions Of Violence, with additional tags "Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Blood and Injury, Minor Character Death, Grief/Mourning, Slow Burn, Idiots in Love, Angst, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Scarab has PTSD, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, babys first fic, No beta we die like Jake, Human AU, Kinda, As in Prismos hair will always be pink and idc, Broken Bones, Scarab has Chronic Pain, Swearing, smoking weed, Survivors Guilt, Mentions of Suicide, Mental Abuse, self worth issues, Coming Out, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, Depression, Mental Breakdown, healing infections through herbal treatments, is that a thing? cause it is in this, Gets worse before it gets better, infection/sickness, Blood and Gore, Violence, idk how the military works, idk how broken bones work either, Panic Attacks, Prismo sleeps in weird positions, Hes Fine, these old men got chronic pain, scarab has arthritis, prismo has abandonment issues"

You can read it here:

[thisweekingundamwing]

This Week in Gundam Wing 27 November - 3 December 2022

Here’s the last week’s roundup! November 27th - December 3rd!

Remember to give your content creators some love! Be sure to join in on the events at the bottom! And remember to send in any new works you see or make next week!

~Mod Hel

Fanfiction/Ideas/Snippets:

@anaranesindanarie

Tequila (Ch.9) https://archiveofourown.org/works/42212415/chapters/108914331

M/M, Trowa Barton/Duo Maxwell, Chang Wufei/Duo Maxwell

Duo Maxwell, Trowa Barton, Chang Wufei, Quatre Raberba Winner, Heero Yuy, Sister Helen (Gundam Wing), Maxwell Shinpu | Father Maxwell, Catherine Bloom, Hilde Schbeiker, Long Meilan, Rashid Kurama, Abdul (Gundam Wing), Maganacs (Gundam Wing), Solo (Gundam Wing)

Explicit, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tequila rewrite, Trowa is Triton, Past Relationship(s), unintended cheating, Cheating, bad breakups, Military, Angst, No Bashing, Alcohol, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism

Four years ago Duo and Triton had a bad breakup and haven't seen each other since. Now, on the eve of Cathy's wedding Triton returns to town to find that Duo has moved on and is with Wufei now. With tempers and passion high Duo does his best to keep himself from falling back in love with Triton, determined to prove to Wufei that he loves him.

@bobo-is-tha-bomb

Ticket to Forever Snippet https://bobo-is-tha-bomb.tumblr.com/post/702477913754304512/tell-me-about-ticket-to-forever

This story has been long in the making! I’ve only quite recently started writing it, but I jotted down the entire plotline in one go back in February 2018! I remember it was a crazy cold day and I had to wait two hours at the stable for anesthetic on my horse to wear off. My phone’s battery was almost dead, so I couldn’t pass the time with that. I got out my little note book and wrote down a rough outline for the story. It's a sequel to my story Ticket to Freedom, which I'm currently still posting on AO3. I’m planning to start posting Ticket to Forever next year, after finishing the first story. Back in the day I was having so much fun in this little universe I had created, and with the way the first story ended, it was very tempting to write a sequel. I’m glad it’s finally happening!

Christmas Saved (Ch.2) https://archiveofourown.org/works/43366266/chapters/109096731

F/M, Heero Yuy/Reader

Teen And Up Audiences, No Archive Warnings Apply, Romancem Drama, Angst, Fluff, Christmas, Holidays

In order to nurse your broken heart, you chose solitude. Your family’s cabin in the mountains, far away from the civilized world, seemed perfect to spend the winter. Why celebrate Christmas when you needed to find yourself again? But when you find a wounded man in a snowstorm, you need to reevaluate your choices. He might just be what you need this Christmas…

@doctormegalomania

Dirty Computer (Ch.29) https://archiveofourown.org/works/28577022/chapters/108963399

Multi, Duo Maxwell/Heero Yuy, Chang Wufei/Original Female Character(s), Trowa Barton/Quatre Raberba Winner

Duo Maxwell, Heero Yuy, Quatre Raberba Winner, Trowa Barton, Chang Wufei

Mature, No Archive Warnings Apply, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Tags Contain Spoilers, Minor Violence, Espionage, Unreliable Narrator, Post-War, Reference To Past Injury, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Original Character(s), Disassociation, Intrigue

It's time to go, but Anderson doesn't seem to realize that...

Arts/Crafts/Photo Manips:

@bobo-is-tha-bomb

https://bobo-is-tha-bomb.tumblr.com/post/702108159703203840/%F0%9D%91%AF%F0%9D%92%90%F0%9D%92%98-%F0%9D%92%8E%F0%9D%92%82%F0%9D%92%8F%F0%9D%92%9A-%F0%9D%92%8E%F0%9D%92%90%F0%9D%92%93%F0%9D%92%86-%F0%9D%92%91%F0%9D%92%86%F0%9D%92%90%F0%9D%92%91%F0%9D%92%8D%F0%9D%92%86-%F0%9D%92%8E%F0%9D%92%96%F0%9D%92%94%F0%9D%92%95-%F0%9D%92%98%F0%9D%92%86-%F0%9D%92%8C%F0%9D%92%8A%F0%9D%92%8D%F0%9D%92%8D-%F0%9D%91%AF%F0%9D%92%90%F0%9D%92%98-%F0%9D%92%8E%F0%9D%92%82%F0%9D%92%8F%F0%9D%92%9A-%F0%9D%92%8E%F0%9D%92%90%F0%9D%92%93%F0%9D%92%86

RG Wing Zero Custom, gunpla

Photosets/Gifsets/Screenshots/Manga Pages:

@bobo-is-tha-bomb

https://bobo-is-tha-bomb.tumblr.com/post/702441020061810688/got-some-really-cute-mail-yesterday-thank-you

Lemony Shenans Merch, photoset

https://bobo-is-tha-bomb.tumblr.com/post/702455352231411712/wails-in-fangirl

Random Merch, photoset

@janaverse

https://janaverse.tumblr.com/post/702270997738422272/ch-ch-ch-ch-changes-i-will-likely-be-needing

Heero Yuy, Sims, screenshot

Quotes:

@incorrectgundamwingquotes

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/702390718864457728/quatre-duo-wants-me-to-join-a-biker-gang-trowa

Quatre, Trowa, & Duo

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/702478844359327744/over-the-phone-heero-you-know-how-we-said-wed

Heero & WuFei

Calendar Events:

@gundamzine

Battle Scars and Kitchen Cabinets https://gundamzine.tumblr.com/post/702482301502750720/were-pleased-to-announce-the-2023-rhythm#notes

@gwcocktailfriday

Cocktail Fridays!

Post responses on Friday, during Happy Hour between 3 & 5 pm in your own timezone.

Here’s the prompt for Friday, December 9th! https://gwcocktailfriday.tumblr.com/post/702610566064242688/cocktail-friday-post-responses-on-friday-december

In need of prompts!

@thisweekingundamevents

Events Calendar https://thisweekingundamevents.tumblr.com/post/644080386309275648/events-calendar-update

If you are hosting an event currently, or are planning on one, hit us up with links and dates! We’ll add them to the Calendar and reblog your notices to get the word out!

GW Holiday Gift Exchange 2022

Rules https://thisweekingundamevents.tumblr.com/giftexchange

Second Check-in goes out on the 4th!

[funnywiccanwritingcorner]

Le Joyau le plus precieux

A Lucky Luke Modern!AU fanfiction

Chapter I - Thief in the night

-I don't think I quite understand...- Joe Dalton ran a hand over his face, trying to keep calm at the sight of his three younger brothers hanging upside down by a rope from the spot where a precious Egyptian artefact, a necklace of gold and emeralds, had previously been kept. -We caught him red-handed, Joe!- exclaimed William, closely followed by his twin brother, Jack: -We had him, but then he pulled out a smoke bomb and...- -We were salamis a moment later!- complained the younger, Averell. Joe growled to the other officers who had arrived on the scene: -Get these wimps down and find me the director of the Louvre; I want all the details on that necklace! If it ends up on the black market, we can at least try to get it back!- -Yes sir!- three men answered him in chorus. The Dalton brothers were released, and fell abruptly to the ground; the elder blurted out: -Get up, you lot! We must devise a new strategy!- -Still? We're tired, Joe!- protested Averell, catching a dirty look from his brother:

-I'm not giving up, you know that!- he continued, muttering to himself: -I'll find you, Lucky Luke, I'll find you if I have to blow up Paris!-

For a year now, articles had been appearing in the newspapers about the sensational thefts of antique jewellery and gems, which occurred at regular intervals in Paris and other French cities, by a mysterious thief. At first, the media had nicknamed him “Lupin” in honour of the character created by Leblanc, but brazenly the thief himself had sent a letter to the police signed Lucky Luke. A name that seemed absurd, but Lucky proved to be so: when he found himself in a corner, by chance or by his own hand something happened to turn the situation around, as when a silo of water on a roof fell down, overwhelming the officers in pursuit of the thief. Charged with his capture, Detective Joe Dalton and his three brothers, all policemen, had repeatedly put him on the spot, but the man seemed elusive. They had too little information, and these they had gathered themselves in the field: the subject had probably received special military training, as he shot, just to disarm, faster than his shadow, something they had never seen. He had never said a word, and always wore a balaclava to cover his face, so his identity remained a mystery which made the brothers job even more difficult. Joe, frustrated, had tried everything, organising carefully calculated stakeouts and participating in them himself, but the outcome was always the same: Lucky Luke vanished into the night with the loot, having led his pursuers into some trap. One thing, however, became clear to Detective Dalton from the outset: his thief mainly struck museums that stored antique jewellery or rare gems without, however, reselling them in the known channels of the black market. The question then was: if not for money, because the loot was valued at several million, why was Lucky Luke committing his crimes?

Dalton, in the tactical room at the police station, slammed a hand down on the map behind him (after standing up on a chair, due to his small stature) indicating the robbed locations, and turning to his brothers and the officers, he altered:

-Listen up, you bunch of wimps! I am tired of this slimy snake slipping through our hands, and of the ridicule it is casting on our police force!- William raised his hand: -But Joe, snakes are not slimy...- -Spare me your nerdy comments!- It almost looked as if his older brother was about to have smoke coming out of his ears, so the other shushed. -We need bad manners, gentlemen; at the cost of overtime we must catch him! Jack! - -Yes?- -Get the best men you can find. I have a plan, but I need more officers to carry it out, officers who are ready for anything! William!- -I'm coming!- -Do a search, and find out which of the museums not yet hit has the kind of "merchandise" that might appeal to Lucky Luke. We'll reconvene at seven o'clock tomorrow morning. Snap!- Everyone stood up except Averell: -What about me, Joe? What do I do?- -You... Uh... You set up a canine unit, we might need it.- Pleased with the task entrusted to him, the younger man left the room with his head held high: -See you at home!- Ah, yes. The four of them lived together; Joe hadn't considered it when he had broken ranks. He went to sit at the nearest desk and rested his head on the piano. He felt nervous exhaustion at the door. He pulled himself up, retrieving a folder of documents and newspaper articles about Lucky Luke from a small table to his left. He stared insistently at a photograph, depicting a dark figure caught as he leapt nimbly from one rooftop to another, silhouetted against the moon. Very poetic, had it not been a criminal.

At first it was just another assignment for Dalton and family, but as time went by it became an obsession for Joe. He couldn't fit Lucky Luke into any outlaw category: he shot without killing, stole one item at a time and even sent one back because he discovered it was a fake! And right back to his office as its destination! "Who are you, damn you?" He picked up the photograph and frowned, smoothing a moustache: he didn't hate Lucky, not strictly speaking at least, because he was too curious. Yes, curious about what he looked like, what motive drove him to steal... If he had put a bullet in him, he would never have known.

A thud outside followed by a chorus of laughter distracted Joe from his thoughts. He went to look, finding a man in a beige suit frantically searching for something on the ground, surrounded by printed papers. -Hey, Pierre, what did you trip over this time?- an office agent teased him. Joe guessed that his colleague was looking for his glasses; he spotted them next to a plant: -Hold on, I'll hand them to you.- 

At that sentence everyone stopped laughing. The detective looked at those thick lenses for a moment. How short-sighted was their owner? 

-Here you go, Pierre.- -Thank you, boss.- Pierre Gerard was a shy, reserved and awkward man. He always dressed in a suit and tie, wore his brown hair combed back and was tall and thin, with a slightly curved back. It was hard to give him an age, perhaps in his thirties or so; his voice, low and nasal, could only be heard when he had to communicate information from one agent to another as he was not used to talking to others in social terms. He had such thick freckles on his face that he looked like a spray of coffee, and without his mole glasses he couldn't see anything; they often went forward because of his somewhat large nose. Everyone teased him for his clumsiness, which led him to stumble over nothing. He had been working in the archive for a year and a half now, and because of his characteristics, you could say that Joe had grown quite fond of him; he saw him as a sort of bungling puppy. A kind of Averell II. So Dalton helped Pierre pick up the papers that had ended up on the floor, under the gaze of the other officers who were afraid to open their mouths. The detective was half a notch in height, but he hit hard. -Back to work or I'll cut your pay in half!- Joe threatened them. The archivist handed him the documents: -These are the data on the stolen necklace that the director of the Louvre sent us.- -Ah, thank you.- -... Sir, if I may...- -Yes?- Gerard swallowed nervously and blushed conspicuously: -I... I... I know you'll catch that Lucky Luke!- And then he ran away, back to the archive room. One of the agents stifled a laugh, but Dalton heard him anyway: -What's funny, Bonnet?- -Oh, no, boss...- Too late the agent had realised his mistake. His colleagues huddled around him. -Come on- smiled Joe quietly, crossing his arms behind his back. -Just this nice theory... between us... about Pierre having a crush on you, sir... I mean, there would be nothing wrong considering you are...- Keeping his expression, the detective approached Bonnet, motioned him to lower himself to his height and, without warning, gave him a resounding slap. -Now get to work, or I'll send you to direct traffic!-

[inanna-blabbers]

🧿Given the fact that i'm a big rusty lake fan, and I'm going to start playing disco elysium due to a fanfiction rabbit hole...I should probably go play bomb rush cyber funk shouldn't I?

⨀ also what blonde guy that can't stop murdering in Rusty Lake? there are tons of murderers in that series and not a lot of blondes... do you mean Albert? HE'S BLONDE??? on second thought...his hair color is technically dirty blonde, but for some reason I never really processed that and kept thinking his hair is brown or red or something else. if we are talking about Albert and not the other killers in the series...

images that are relevant to exactly four people

[hydrangeapartridge]

The Ishval and the Alchemist - A Miles x OC FMA fanfiction (One-Shot)

Cross posted on AO3

Summary:

Miles only ever attended one State Alchemist Exam, earlier in his career, when he was still a lieutenant in Central. He remembered the sunny and warm weather of early spring, and mostly, he remembered her: Avril Abott. It was on that very same day that she earned her title as the Forest Alchemist. He remembered how her fiery red hair danced with her, full of petals and leaves as she twirled in the middle of her creation; the mesmerizing picture of a Fae queen out of a fantasy book unravelling before his delighted eyes. Miles never expected to meet again with the woman who moved his heart that day, nor did he expect that when he did, the smile he remembered so dearly would have vanished from her pretty face.

Or

Sel-indulgent Miles x State Alchemist OC fanfic that takes place in Briggs between the end of Ishval Civil War and the events of FMA Brotherhood

Rated E/R18 - Minors don't interact

I realized I didn't post this on tumblr in full so here is some dead fandom fanfic! I had fun doing a little banner...

Story under the cut

Miles only ever attended one State Alchemist Exam, earlier in his career, when he was still a lieutenant in Central. He had been part of the event’s organization and supervision, and he was sure that he would never forget that day. He remembered the sunny and warm weather of early spring, and mostly, he remembered her: Avril Abott. It was on that very same day that she earned her title as the Forest Alchemist.

Miles would never forget the radiant smile on her freckled face as she transformed with a clap of her hands a dull examination room into a lush summer garden. Fragrant flowers and ripe fruits invited themselves between the wooden chairs and desks. He remembered how her fiery red hair danced with her, full of petals and leaves as she twirled in the middle of her creation; the mesmerizing picture of a Fae queen out of a fantasy book unravelling before his delighted eyes.

Miles never expected to meet again with the woman who moved his heart that day, nor did he expect that when he did, the smile he remembered so dearly would have vanished from her pretty face.

- - -

Ishval was red.

Everywhere Avril looked, every building, every woman, man, child, soldier was covered in blood. The sand she used to grow the plants that fed and healed the Amestrian army was soaked with it. She was disgusted with how she was using the minerals in these innocent people’s blood to to produce the resource allowing the massacre of their starving red-eyed comrades to continue. The Amestrian army was devouring Ishval; figuratively but also literally. She felt like she was killing those poor souls twice.

When Avril pictured her life as a state alchemist, before she joined the military, she imagined working for science and making progress and discoveries that would help her country. She knew that becoming a soldier could mean being forced to harm people, but she always naively imagined the enemy she would have to resort to killing would be ruthless, evil or dangerously fanatic. Not children or elderly barely able to stand on their own two feet. She never saw herself as a warrior, but she quickly learned that the alchemy she studied for research only purpose could become a deadly effective weapon. A sharp wooden stake could pierce skin and bones, a well placed vine trap could prevent men from fleeing a bombing area, and tight lianas could suffocate a person in less than 30 seconds. That was how she performed her duty, killing Ishvalans from a distance, never dirtying her trembling hands, but always feeling sick in the stomach.

At night, when the agonizing whimpers of the injured and the cries of the Ishvalan children could be heard, Avril tried to find comfort in the idea that she didn’t kill as many innocent civilians as her fellow alchemists. After all, she was mostly assigned to support and supplying tasks, and never put on the front line, where they lost count of the casualties. She tried to hold onto that silver lining so she wouldn’t hate herself too much when returning to what couldn’t possibly be a normal life again. Thankfully the short war that seemed to last an eternity ended, but the nightmares of those hellish days and nights didn’t. Haunted by what she saw and did, Avril requested a transfer. She wasn’t good enough an actress to pretend that she was still the person that she was before the war. Leaving Central wouldn’t bring back the part of herself that she left in the desert of Ishval, but she clung to the hope that a fresh start, and a lot of time, could help her forget what she couldn’t undo. To punish what her superiors saw as cowardice and weakness, she was sent to yet another wasteland: Fort Briggs.

- - -

“It’s the first time Central sends an Alchemist here” Major General Armstrong had told Abott upon her arrival. “I don’t know what you did or who you crossed to end up so far north and I don’t care. I’ll be the judge of your worth and make my own opinion of you State Alchemist. Now to work”

- - -

Working in Briggs took some time getting used to, but Avril ended up deeply enjoying the transfer that was supposed to punish her. If Olivier Armstrong was admittedly an intimidating woman, Avril found her to be a fair, franc and strong leader. Avril enjoyed working under her orders, and also appreciated the lack of intrigue and drama at the Fort. It was a refreshing change from Central and its power plays. Here in the north, the soldiers were fighting as a team to survive against the hostile climate, and the threat of Drachma further north of the wall.

Avril’s field of research and its use for the military had convinced Armstrong to give her more and more freedom for her alchemy experiments. She worked hard on designing plant based lyophilized powder rations that contained the appropriate nutrients, carbs, proteins and fat to feed entire platoons of soldiers, allowing them to survive for days without having to carry heavy and fresh food supplies with them. The subject was fascinating, and meaningful, and Avril was grateful that she could finally pair her passion for alchemy with providing scientific breakthroughs that would help her country. She often was left alone with her researches, but from time to time, she was lucky to work on the subject of military intendancy with none other than Armstrong’s second in command: Major Miles.

Avril found Miles to be a dutiful, intelligent and capable man. He was serious without being cold, and sensible without being pompous. Avril was grateful and admittedly a little excited every-time that she got to partner with him, whether it was during field or office work. Miles was polite and a more agreeable company than some more extravagant soldiers of the fort (she found a man named Buccaneer for example, to be a little scary). As if those qualities weren’t enough, he was also a handsome man.

In the dark hours of the night, when soldiers felt most lonely, Avril sometimes told herself that he was the only man in the fort that she wouldn’t refuse would he proposition her. That would never happen of course; a man like that was way out of Avril’s league. But in brief, she enjoyed his company. Avril sometimes wondered what his, and the other men of Brggs’ opinion was on Ishval Civil War. None of them fought in that desert, and none of them ever talked about it. If she ever told them how many Ishvalan she killed, would they would consider her a war hero, or would they stop smiling at her in the mess hall? Maybe it was for the best if she never found out.

- - -

When Miles saw Avril Abott again, upon her arrival in Briggs, he almost didn’t recognize her. She carried herself with slouched shoulders, an invisible weight dragging her down and darkening the eyes that he remembered clear and bright. The freckled cheeks that he remembered plump and rosy were hollow, her skin turned sickly grey. Her wild red hair was tamed, trapped into a tight bun and pinned into her scalp. And mostly, the radiant light he remembered was gone from the polite smile that she gave him upon introducing herself.

Despite all these changes, Miles was glad that he was able to meet her. If her physique was what struck him first during the alchemy exam, getting to know her in the fort, he became even more taken with her personality. Miles expected a state alchemist to be selfish and arrogant, but Avril was none of those things. He discovered her to be a hard-working bright young woman, with a kind and dutiful heart. He came to deeply enjoy working with her on improving the lives of the soldiers on the field.

Miles wished he could get to know her better, and sometimes wanted to share more about himself with her too. But he knew from her status as a state alchemist that she served during Ishval Civil War. The hurt and gloomy part of him sometimes made him wonder if her petite and pale hands might have been the ones to kill his relatives. But he always refused to follow those dark thoughts that only fuelled the path of hatred and vengeance. After all, he promised himself that he would change this country from the inside. Yet, he couldn’t tell her who he truly was. The risk was too high; the consequences could be considerable.

In short, he often thought about Avril, even when she wasn’t working with him. Sometimes, in his bed, or under the warm water of the shower, he would think of her. He would think of the way her white shirt clung a little too tight around her bust when she forwent her jacket in the warmth of her laboratory, a peak of the lace of her bra visible between two buttons. He would think of the way she licked her chapped lips after taking a sip of coffee. He would think of the intensity of her clear gaze as she looked up, starring at him from under long lashes.

He would hope she wouldn’t notice his reddening ears the next day when she would bid her “good morning” and he would nod while remembering how he imagined her whispering far less appropirate words into his ear the night prior. He knew he had to stop thinking about her so much, but he couldn’t. He tried to find comfort in the fact that fantasies never hurt anyone. And he convinced himself that it was for the best if his fantasies remained unfulfilled.

- - -

Avril nodded her head at the officers saluting her while she walked the cold corridors of Fort Briggs. As a state alchemist, she was ranked Major, but she never got used to it. She felt weird being the same rank as someone like Miles. He had a lot more experience as a soldier than she did, and was also better at leading men. She was supposed to be a war veteran, but it sounded wrong to her ears. She was a coward, a fake and an impostor. At least that’s how she felt on bad days. But thankfully there were brighter days where she felt braver, especially when the results of her researches were positive. Today was one of those days.

Avril was impatient, for she was supposed to go out on the field to test the viability of a new cold resistant fruit-tree variety that she engineered with the help of alchemy. After gathering all the required equipment, she left the fort, escorted by Miles and two newly enlisted soldiers. The two newbies, named Wolf and Taki, carried the supplies, and Miles, who was more expert on the topography of the area, led the way. Even the best trained soldiers never left the fort alone, for the area was dangerous, prone to quick and deadly climate changes as well as attacks from Drachma or wild animals. A special spot, well hidden at the base of the mountain was reserved for the Forest Alchemist’s experiments. In the sunny but cold weather, it only took the group a few hours to reach it.

Once they reached their destination, Avril set to work while Miles and Taki kept watch. She monitored the growth of previous seedlings that they planted, and added the new variety to the small culture patch. The alchemic circles on her fingers, arms and chest started glowing when she used them, their light slightly visible despite the thick and numerous layers of clothing she was wearing to fend off the cold. Wolf watched her work in awe, very curious and interested by her experiments. He asked a few pertinent questions and Avril happily explained what she was doing, delighted to share her knowledge and passion. From time to time, she could see Miles sending her quick glances. He wore a slight frown, but said nothing. Maybe he disapproved of her sharing so much information with a rookie. Avril saw no harm in chatting with Wolf. From the young soldier’s sheepish expression, she could tell he didn’t understand one third of what she was telling him. But what Wolf lacked in cleverness, he made up in goodwill.

“Major Abott, I heard your alchemy was at risk of dehydration. You must be thirsty, please take a break and have some water” Wolf told her during the afternoon, offering her his own gourd to drink from.

Avril smiled at him. He was well informed; to grow plants with alchemy, a high amount of water was required. In Ishval, she remembered often using the water from her own body, and drinking litre after litre of the normally rationed drinkable water to quench her thirst. But in the north, going to such lengths was not needed.

“Thank you, but I am fine” Avril declined Wolf’s offer. “I came prepared. And beside, I have all the water I need here” She said, pointing at the fresh snow under their feet.

“Are you sure?” Wolf insisted, but Avril repeated that she was fine.

The soldier put his gourd back into his bag, under Miles’ attentive gaze.

After a couple more hours of work, Miles approached Avril and pointed at the sky, where dark clouds were approaching. “A storm is coming. Let’s head back” He calmly told her, and the alchemist ordered the soldiers to quickly gather the supplies.

When they were ready to depart, the wind started howling. Snow soon started to fall, heavy and icing, blocking their vision and slowing their progress. Avril put her hood higher up to cover her nose. She hated how cold it could get. It would freeze one’s feet and chill ones bones in mere minutes. Her vision was filled with white and she couldn’t see at more than 3 meters before her. The wind caused a ringing in her ears, preventing her from hearing anything but the sound of the growing blizzard. She did her best to follow the blurry form walking in front of her. Blinded, she didn’t realize Miles had stopped, and soon collided with his back.

“Sorry” She apologized, voice almost completely muffled by the wind.

With the falling snow and under his goggles, Avril couldn’t read Miles’ expression when he turned to speak to her. “What would normally be a couple hours walk could take us half a day in this weather. If we spot a place to shelter ourself from the blizzard, we must stop there”

“And if we don’t?” Avril asked.

“We continue to walk” Miles replied, calm as ever. Avril trusted him to lead them back to safety, despite the harsh weather. He knew these lands like the back of his hand. Taki, who was a little behind joined their side, but Avril realized there were no signs of Wolf. She asked the men when they last saw him, but with the lowered visibility, they didn’t notice him getting astray.

“We have to find him” Avril said, but Miles shook his head.

“No, we must continue. I can’t risk getting us lost too”

“But we can’t abandon him!” Avril raised her voice, her hands shaking. It was a simple mission, they weren’t supposed to loose anyone. He was so young, they couldn’t leave him to die like this.

“As a soldier he knew the risk like we all do. We’ll have to hope that he’ll find his way out or at least a place to wait until it is safe to go look for him”

Avril knew the chances Wolf would survive to be more than slim. Hell, she wouldn’t find her way in this storm without Miles.

“Here” Miles took her hand in his and placed it on his belt. “Hold onto me so we don’t get separated”

Miles was the voice of reason, but Avril’s heart refused to listen to it. “No!” She took her hand back. Miles clicked his tongue, but didn’t scold her.

“Let’s wait a little more” Avril asked. Miles was about to argue, but before he could, she placed a hand on his arm. “Please Miles”

Miles felt his cold body warm up under her touch. He couldn’t resist her. He sighed before taking out his watch. “Five minutes, then we’re leaving” He granted. The storm was growing too fast to allow more.

The three immobile soldiers’ bodies were prey to the unforgiving cold. In less than a minute without moving, they felt their limbs grow numb. Avril’s teeth were chattering uncontrollably but she refused to move before the five minutes were out. She was shaking, and the wind on her cheeks felt like she was being whipped. After a couple minutes, she pointed to a shadow she thought she saw a few meters away. Someone was coming closer. “There he is!” She exclaimed, glad that they waited.

The second after she closed her mouth, a gunshot was fired, and Taki’s lifeless body heavily fell to the ground, the noise cushioned by the snow.

“Get down!” Miles shouted, grabbing Avril and pinning her to the floor under him. When Avril opened her eyes, she had to hold back a scream as her gaze met Taki’s lifeless orbs. Red blood trickled from the gunshot wound on his head, staining the white snow as the last of the young boy’s warmth left his body.

“Major, surrender the alchemist and I’ll let you live” Wolf’s voice was carried by the wind, dangerous and grave, far from the caring words he spoke earlier that day.

“Damn Drachma spy. I’ll have his head” Miles grunted, his warm breath close to Avril’s cheek.

The young girl’s heart pounded against her ribcage; it was her first encounter with the enemy since her arrival in Briggs. How she wished she had stayed in her lab today. A clicking sound reached her ears when Miles loaded his pistol. Only Taki and Wolf headed out sporting riffles. One was used by the later to kill the former, and the second riffle was now trapped under Taki’s dead weight.

Another shot just above their heads. Miles cursed. “I can’t aim like this!”

They couldn’t die. Not like this. Avril had survived Ishval, had killed hundreds of people. She couldn’t let Miles be killed here by one insignificant man. Wolf gave them a second warning, accompanied by another gunshot. Avril closed her eyes and focused to determine where his voice came from. If she trusted her ears, he was behind them, opposite from the shadow that she spotted earlier. It sounded wrong, but she had to trust her instinct. She couldn’t exactly pinpoint Wolf’s location, but her alchemy could produce long and wide ranged attacks. She would have to rely on that and hope for the best.

Shaking her sleeve, Avril let one of the seeds she kept there for emergencies fall onto the bloodied snow. She internally thanked Taki for the extra alchemic material and hoped for him to rest in peace. She concentrated and then slammed her hand onto the seed to make it grow. Her tattoos started glowing blue, completely giving away their position. But no shot was fired, and she knew that she had caught her target.

Miles helped her getting up and they followed the large wooden root that grew from the snow where Avril planted her seed. A couple meters away, they found the previously clear area was covered in large dense bushes of bramble. The thick and long thorns formed an inescapable prison in the middle of which Wolf was trapped, riffle at his feet and blood trickling from his numerous scrapes. Avril’s heart sunk in her chest upon seeing his enraged glare.

“Curse you you witch!” He spat. “Release me you alchemist bitch!”

Avril looked away as Wolf struggled in vain to set himself free while insulting them. She almost jumped in surprise when Miles put a gentle hand on her shoulder.

“If we can bring the spy back to the fort we can interrogate him and get useful intel. Good job in getting him alive”

His kind words didn’t lift Avril’s spirits. And they wouldn’t bring Taki back.

Avril was about to ask Miles what they should do, but stopped when she met Wolf’s suddenly frightened gaze. The next moment, a shadow spread out over them, darkening their already restricted vision. A loud growl filled Avril’s ears and she turned back, coming face to face with a giant bear ferociously standing on its hind legs. The animal raised a large paw to attack them, deadly claws out and sharp teeth bared. Avril clapped her hands together in haste to do something but she was too slow, too late, they wouldn’t be able to avoid the attack. A gunshot was heard just before the bear struck, hitting Miles who had stepped forward first, and sending both him and Avril tumbling in the snow. Feeling dizzy, the alchemist tried to get back up and orient herself, but exhausted by the hit and her previous attack on Wolf, she fell back into the thick layer of snow, sinking into it up to her knees and elbows.

Looking over her shoulder, she could see the bear’s tall figure looming over Miles who was fumbling in the snow in search for his pistol. The angry animal roared, blood trickling from its injured maw, where Miles’ first shot had hit it. Avril tried to turn around while reaching for her own pistol, already knowing that she was too slow. She had to watch, powerless, as the bear got ready to strike again, this time a deadly attack. She closed her eyes before the horror of the scene. Then she heard one last gunshot. And when she opened her eyes again, the bear was dead.

Battling against the deep and too soft snow, Avril managed to crawl to Miles’ side. Lying on his back in the snow, his breathing was shallow, but he was alive. Avril inspected his body as best as she could in the blizzard. On his left side, his uniform was torn, and a large gapping wound was bleeding profusely. If nothing was done quickly, he would bleed to death. Putting her first aid training into practice, Avril quickly finished ripping the torn part of Miles’ uniform and folded it into a makeshift compress. She pressed the cloth hard against the wound and Miles let out a pained grunt. She took his hand and placed it on the cloth to replace hers.

“Keep pressing hard to reduce the bleeding” She told him.

She couldn’t dress the wound out in the tempest. Night would soon start to fall so she couldn’t see clearly enough. They had to find a shelter where she could tend to the wound, and where they could hide from the storm and the animals that fresh blood would attract. Avril had no landmarks in the area, so she decided their best chance was to follow the bear’s footprints back to its den, hoping it wouldn’t be too far away. She had to be quick, before the night fell, and before the traces were covered by the falling snow. In his state, Miles could not walk or even stand by himself, and he was too heavy for Avril to carry. Using another seed that she kept in her bag, Avril transmuted a makeshift wood stretcher under Miles, with vines as ropes to pull it like a sledge.

“Miles, I’ll get us somewhere safe, so stay awake. Listen to my voice” Avril told him before she started pulling the sledge following the bear’s traces

. She wasn’t as strong as a man, and the whole contraption was heavier than she expected. Despite the cold, she was sweating profusely, and her progress was slow. But during the whole walk, even out of breath, lips split and bloodied by the cold, she kept talking to Miles, insisting, nagging him until he would answer, to make sure he wouldn’t fall asleep.

“Hang in there” She would say. “I’m sure the bear’s den is near”

More than once he would tell her to leave him, like she left Wolf to die in the unforgiving cold. But every-time she refused. “I won’t abandon you”

The wind had calmed down but the night was dark when Avril started losing hope. She walked for hours and didn’t even know where she found the strength to still be standing. Unshed tears were freezing on her eyelashes when she finally spotted the bear’s den.

- - -

Once inside the den, Avril sealed the entrance with her alchemy. A thick wooden door closed the cave’s entrance, preventing the cold and intruders from getting inside. She then lit up a distress light to check that the cave was empty. Thankfully, there was no other bear in sight. She took advantage of the slowly dying light to quickly light a fire near a side of the cave. Producing dry wood with her last alchemical supplies, she then lit the fire with a tinder lighter she found in Miles’ bag. If upon entering the cave, renewed hope helped Avril regain energy, there was only so much she could do with how exhausted her body was. The warmth of the fire made her drowsy. She fought to keep her eyes opened. She still needed to tend to Miles wound. But before she could reach him, she collapsed from exhaustion.

- - -

When Avril opened her eyes, she was lucky to find the fire still burning. But despite its warm flames, she felt deadly cold. In her snow soaked clothes, she was shivering. It took her a second to orient herself and remember where she was and why. When she remembered Miles, she got up in a haste, ignoring her aching limbs. She kneeled before the wood stretcher, and let out a relieved breath when she found him still alive. He was alive, but he was in a very precarious condition. His body was trembling under his cold wet clothes, and he was barely conscious; eyes tightly shut and features contorted into a pained expression. He had lost his goggles, probably during the bear attack. His hand was still pressed against the bloodied clothes, but in his weakened state he didn’t apply nearly enough pressure on his wound to keep it from bleeding again.

Avril was freezing despite the fire, but she had to tend to Miles first, or else he wouldn’t make it. She took the first aid kits out of both of their bags, hoping she would have enough gauze and bandages to cover the large laceration wound the bear inflicted him. When she moved the fabric and Miles’ hand away to get a better look at his flank, he let out a concerning grunt.

“How bad is it?” He asked, voice hoarse and breathing uneven. He was still conscious enough to form coherent sentences. It was a good sign.

Avril examined the wound and gently placed one hand over it to keep the bleeding in check until she dressed it. It was messy from how the bear’s claws tore away the skin, but it didn’t look infected or necrotic, and there were no traces of frostbites either. Avril looked up to Miles’ face, about to give him a rapid report about his health, but she stopped dead in her tracks, mouth opened on a breathy gasp when her eyes met his now opened one.

Red.

His gaze was red.

It couldn’t be real. She was still sleeping, and the cold was giving her nightmares. Or maybe she was dying in the blizzard and her regrets were catching up to her at death’s door.

Miles saw Avril’s face turn livid in an instant, saw the tired expression on her face go from focused to terrified. She looked down onto her bloodied hands, stained with Ishvalan blood again. They were trembling as she raised them towards her face, completely forgetting about the wound she was supposed to treat. Despite him being in the worst state, worry still filled Miles upon seeing Avril’s shaking form. She looked like she had seen a ghost, and he didn’t understand that sudden change in her attitude.

She glanced down at his face with a look of horror in her eyes. “No” She whispered, barely audible. Assaulted by memories she didn’t want to relive, she was frozen on the spot.

Miles blinked and suddenly it made sense. She saw his eyes. Realized who he truly was. She recognized him as Ishvalan, and now she probably regretted saving his life. Now there was a chance she would stop helping him and leave him to his fate.

Avril took a deep shaky breath and closed her eyes. It was her fault, she was the one who asked for an outing today. It was her fault; he took the bear’s attack to protect her. Was it fate’s twisted way of punishing her? To make the man she cared for the most suffer at her hands? To have her kill yet another of these innocent people? She was a monster, a cowards, an impostor. Avril startled when weak and cold fingers gently brushed her knee. Her spiralling dark thoughts vanished as she opened her eyes to find Miles’ hand on her thigh. Even when hurt, he was trying to comfort her. Even when she didn’t deserve it.

The reality of the situation dawned onto Avril. This wasn’t Ishval. She was at Briggs, trying to help a fallen comrade. Sobering up, she grabbed the bottle of antiseptic from the first aid kit.

She looked to Miles’ face, but avoided meeting his eyes for too long. “This is going to hurt” She warned before emptying the bottle’s content on his stomach. Miles gritted his teeth to hold back a wince of pain.

- - -

Once the wound was properly dressed, Avril deemed that the next important step to their survival was to dry their clothes. Exhausted by the treatment of his wounds, Miles let her undress him without protest. Avril spread out their coats, jackets, shirts and pants before the fire, and then added more wood to it. It was the last of it, so she hoped it would be enough to keep them warm until the end of the storm. Outside, she could still hear the wind howling angrily. Their absence would surely be noticed in the fort by now, but no rescue team would be sent out in this weather. Avril took out two of her lyophilized plant based rations and fed one to Miles before eating one herself. She helped him drink a little water before she took out two small blankets from their bags. She laid one onto the floor and helped Miles roll over it. When he moved, she saw how her makeshift wooden stretcher had scratched his back, leaving angry red marks everywhere. Her fault again.

A shiver ran down Miles’ body, his skin erupting in goosebumps. Avril was starting to get cold again too.

“I’m sorry but we have to sleep close to each other, to keep warmth” She told Miles as she clumsily settled beside him on the blanket, trying her best not to hurt him in the process.

“Someone remembers their survival training well” Miles teased her, his voice a low whisper. “A true Briggs soldier” He commented when Avril placed the second blanket over both of their bodies.

Miles let out a content sigh, welcoming the warmth of both the blanket and Avril’s body. He was glad that she pulled herself together earlier. He would have to explain why he hid his origins from her, and from the others too. But later. Not when he was in this state; now wasn’t the time.

Avril’s smaller figure was pressed to his uninjured side, and instinctively, she nuzzled closer to his warmth with each passing second. “I’m sorry that we don’t have any morphine” She told him. “That wound must hurt like hell”

Miles tried to smile, but admittedly, even that hurt. “It’s fine, I’ve seen worse” He replied. “Besides, morphine shots always make my mind foggy”

Silence felt uncomfortable to Avril. She didn’t want to close her eyes, for fear of the nightmares she could meet. But she didn’t dare looking at Miles face either. He was so close. She could feel the hard muscles of his arm against her chest, could see the sharp, well defined angle of his jaw; his dark skin, his snowy white hair. Why didn’t she notice before? She thought every Ishvalan soldier had been purged from the army at the start of the war. So many impolite questions burned on her tongue. But in the end, what she wanted most was to apologize again.

“I’m sorry. This was supposed to be a routine outing…”

Miles cut her before she continued. “Don’t apologize. We all know the risks of the field so far North. We simply tend to forget them when Drachma attacks get less frequent.” He reassured her, taking long pauses between every sentence. In his condition, he quickly felt out of breath. After one even longer pause, he added: “I must thank you. For not leaving me behind”

His gratefulness was met with silence on Avril’s part. She was nervously chewing on her bottom lip. It was her fault they ended up in this situation in the first place, so it was only natural that she helped him. One life saved was nothing compared to the many she took. But to her, it still counted.

“Well. I need you to find my way back to the fort” She ended up replying, trying her best to hide how troubled she was with humour.

“Right” Miles said, slowly blinking. He wondered how much of that answer betrayed her true feelings. He still wondered if maybe she regretted helping him. “You’ve never been very skilled in orientation” He opted to tease her back. They were too exhausted to speak open-heartedly, and the tension between them was too thick already, no need to fuel it more with serious discussions.

Avril shifted beside him, but he didn’t say anything when her cold feet met the skin of his leg. He let her get as comfortable as she wished.

“That Drachma spy… Wolf.” She said, eyes glued to the cave’s ceiling. “I left him to a horrible death”

Even if he was a spy, that young man didn’t deserve to freeze to death. Her thoughts then went to Taki. They would have to inform his family of his death serving the nation. She imagined how affected his mother would be, losing her precious son.

“Survival of the fittest” Miles told her, not one ounce of emotion in his voice. “You know that’s the rule here”

Avril knew him well enough not to mistake his collected attitude for heartlessness. Maybe in a few years she would have abandoned those useless feelings and second thoughts too and she could be as pragmatic as Miles. But for that to happen, she would first have to make peace with her actions in Ishval.

“Tomorrow, once the storm is over, we’ll shoot a distress rocket outside, and then hope that Briggs soldiers arrive before Drachma men”

Miles’ voice was soothing to Avril’s ears, and making plans for what would come next was grounding. The change of subject was welcome: focusing on the future instead of dwelling on the past made her feel better. It also meant they were in a good enough condition to survive the night. She admired how calm and collected Miles was despite his injury. A true soldier.

“I used various varieties of wood with very different colours of barks to seal the cave’s entrance. White, golden, brown, ebony; it looks so unnatural that there’s no way Briggs men wouldn’t recognize my work if they came near it” She informed him of her own effort to facilitate their rescue.

“Clever girl” Miles praised, voice deep like a croon.

Avril felt her cheeks grow warm. If her body wasn’t so tired, between Miles’ low voice and the warmth of his strong body, she knew she would have felt aroused. She was a little ashamed by that prospect. How could she pretend an Ishvalan man would want someone like her?

“Sweet talker” She falsely scolded him before she gave into the need to hide her reddening face into his broad shoulder.

Miles draped his right hand over her shoulders, bringing her warmth ever closer. She let him, and soon he could hear her breathing getting calmer, betraying how she was slowly falling asleep. He often imagined having her in his arms, but of course, never in such circumstances. Yet, even with his left side hurting like hell, it felt perfect.

- - -

Avril woke up with a startle and in cold sweat. She dreamt of dead fair-haired children again. Beside her, Miles was sleeping too. He was sweaty and shivering; burning up with a fever. Tgis wasn’t good. Avril puts on her now almost dry clothes. She couldn’t hear the wind anymore. She materialized a small opening in the makeshift wooden door of the cave to survey their surroundings. Outside, the sun was rising. Dark clouds still filled part of the sky, but the snow had stopped falling. She launched a distress rocket, as Miles instructed, and hoped for the best.

She was busy running a wet cloth on Miles’ forehead to stop the fever when she heard Buccaneer’s voice on the other side of her wooden creation. The fire was starting to die. Their rescuers were just in time.

- - -

Miles only stayed two days in the fort’s hospital wing. He still had to get his bandages changed every three days, but he was free to go back to work. Desk work only though; he was forbidden from going on the field for at least one month. He considered himself lucky. Things could have been far worse.

Avril didn’t visit him in the hospital wing. He didn’t expect her to, but part of him would have appreciated it. Recent events aside, he always enjoyed her company. However, he soon discovered that he would have to do without said company, for Avril now refused to have a drink or eat her meals with the other officers. Avril stayed cloistered in her lab, pretexting she had too much work and needed to eat quickly and preferably alone. At first, Miles thought that maybe she needed time to digest the events that led them to sleep in that cave, or that she suddenly felt embarrassed that he held her almost naked body close to his. But after two weeks, she didn’t come around and it became clear that she was avoiding him.

“What did you do to the poor girl?” Buccaneer asked once during lunch, having realized that Miles was the one Avril didn’t want to see.

“I’m not sure” Miles replied. “But it could have to do with my heritage” He carefully told the other man. Of course Buccaneer knew of him being from Ishval.

“I wouldn’t have pictured her as a racist” The soldier with the metal arm said, tactless as always. “But she did serve in the war, and god knows how much that can impact a soldier”

Buccaneer’s eyes narrowed at Miles silence. He only told him one more thing: “Address you issues. I miss her company”

And so did Miles.

- - -

Avril reported to Armstrong about the spy. She couldn’t keep anything from the superior she respected so she also told her that she discovered Miles was of Ishvalan origin. Of course, the major general already knew it.

“Whatever his origins are, Miles is one of my trusted men. I’m glad and impressed with how you both survived, even if I wouldn’t expect less from my soldiers” Armstrong told her, and before Avril left her office, she added: “Abott. What you learned doesn’t change anything. It’s as I told you; here we do not judge people from what we are told. We judge them with our own eyes”

Of course Miles had judged her the second he learned about her status as a state alchemist, from her actions during the war. That night he didn’t say anything, and didn’t push her away because he was injured, delirious from the fever and close to death. But he must hate her. Of course, he always hated her. From the beginning. Since her arrival in the Fort. It couldn’t be otherwise. He only acted professional with her because he had to; because he was a good man when she was a monster. Because he was an actor hiding his true identity to survive. And she had been delusional enough to believe that she could escape the consequences of her sins.

- - -

Major Miles believed in the power of discussion. In war and in other matters, diplomacy was the first courteous step between civilized people. He would talk with Avril, who was a reasonable young woman; understand what bothered her, and they would sort things out.

He waited until the evening, when the other soldiers were asleep or otherwise occupied to knock and unceremoniously enter the alchemist’s lab before he was verbally allowed to. A look of surprise crossed Avril’s features when she turned back from her reading to see who was disturbing her peace at this hour.

“Major Abott, I think we need to talk” Miles gently told her, hoping that being formal and professional would help diffuse the tension between them.

He hoped to talk, but Avril visibly refused to talk to him. Without even sparing him another look, she gathered the books she was reading and headed towards the exit, walking by him with her head bowed down, completely ignoring him. She operated on fight or flight response, and instead of fighting him, she decided to flee.

When diplomacy was of no use, as any soldier of Briggs, Miles believed in the power of brute force (and he also believed in the power of powder and steel in last resort, but that was reserved to the battlefield). Now seemed like a time where a little physical strength was necessary to get his point across. So Miles unceremoniously slammed shut the door that Avril was trying to open to leave. He kept his gloved palm pressed on the wooden surface, preventing the girl’s retreat.

“We need to talk” He told her again, this time more assertively.

Avril turned back to face him, her back against the closed door. When she finally looked at him from under her eyelashes, her expression and posture reminded him of a cornered animal. She couldn’t see his eyes under his snow goggles, and he loomed over her almost menacingly, preventing her from exiting the room, or going back to her desk. Had she always been so small compared to him? Miles didn’t mean to intimidate her, but he wanted her to listen to him. At least now he had her attention.

“Why are you avoiding me?” He asked, straight to the point, but without any anger in his voice.

Avril bit her lower lip, refusing to look him in the face. She remained

silent. Of course that was it; her reluctance to look at him said it all.

“My grand-father’s Ishvalan heritage runs strong in me” Miles decided to explain, hoping she would open up if he did the same first. “The war is still too close for me to be able to proudly show it everyday. It is not out of personal grievance that I hid it from you.” He told her, imagining, and hoping that maybe she resented him for his secrecy, and not for his ethnicity. But her attitude didn’t change. Did she truly hate his people that much? He needed to know.

“Do my origins change things so much?” Miles tried to coax her into answering him, though rather abruptly. “Do you see me differently now that you know about my ancestors? So much that you can’t bear even sharing a meal with me?” He confronted her.

“You don’t understand” Avril bitterly replied. She shook her head, gritting her teeth until her lips turned white.

“You’re right, I don’t. I can’t understand if you don’t explain it to me” Miles immediately retorted, his still relatively cool temper making Avril’s blood boil.

“You want me to keep inflicting you the ordeal of sharing food with the murderer of so many of your people?!” Avril burst out, eyes dark as she glared at him. “I’m saving you the trouble of having to spend time with me knowing what I did and acting like you don’t care! That must be a relief after all this time wearing a professional façade when forced to work with someone you despise”

Miles frowned at her biting words but stayed as calm as ever. “What are you talking about?” He asked more surprised than angry “I do not despise you”

His fake honesty and imperturbable placidity enraged Avril. “Liar! You cannot be unaffected by what I did. I helped decimate them! The women, the children, the elderly. I used their blood to grow the weapons that killed their families!” Her voice was so loud and high pitched that the people next door must be hearing her shouting. She barely caught her breath before she continued questioning him. “So what is it that you feel? Tell me! Is it Disgust? Condescension?”

“None of these things I assure yo-”

“Disdain then?” Avril cut him.

Miles’ expression darkened “I think the only one here who hates you enough to downgrade you so is yourself” He raised his voice at her, slamming his fist against the wooden door to shut her up.

Avril’s eyes widened and submerged by emotion her hand moved on its own. Miles didn’t see the slap coming. The alchemist’s palm collided with his high cheekbone in a sharp noise. He turned his head under the blow, the force of it sending his goggles falling onto the floor. When he turned back to look at Avril, there finally was a hint of anger in his red eyes. Her smile didn’t reach her eyes when she realized she managed to break his facade.

“You cannot expect me to believe you when you pretend that you forgive what I did” She told him lowly, like she was the one seeing through him and not the opposite.

Miles’ free hand grabbed her wrist, holding her firmly but not painfully so she wouldn’t try to harm him or herself any further.

“I do not forgive the actions of your past” He declared, and Avril looked down, ashamed.

Her small body started trembling under the weight of his red gaze.

“And I see that you don’t forgive yourself either” His grip on her wrist softened and Avril felt his fingers brush the inside of her palm. “But you chose to live with that burden. And you can work to make this world better. You already do” His simple touch was incredibly soothing, and when he intertwined his fingers with hers, she accepted to hold his hand like this.

Avril shyly looked up to this impossibly resilient man’s face. He was smiling at her.

“I simply accept you for who you are now” Miles said, looking straight into her clear teary eyes.

What she first interpreted in his gaze as anger she now recognized as compassion. “Can you accept that?” He asked, his voice as soft as a comforting caress.

Fat tears started rolling down Avril’s cheeks as the truth she saw in those ruby red eyes submerged her. “You cannot be serious. I’m a terrible person, unworthy of your company” She sobbed, lips trembling.

“Isn’t that for me to decide?” He asked, the corners of his lips slightly lifting up.

Avril let out another ugly sob and threw herself against his chest, crying all the tears of her body. Miles took her in his arms, letting her expel all the self hatred and guilt that she accumulated while alone in her room these past few weeks. When her frail shoulders stopped shaking and her tears started drying, he helped her to her desk and let her sit down on her chair. Her eyes were red and she looked exhausted.

“I’m sorry” She whispered. “For everything. And for hitting you”

Avril looked down to her hands that were resting on her laps, shy and ashamed.

Miles crossed his arms over his chest. “You are lucky that I am mature enough to know that hate and violence only lead to a vicious cycle of sorrow” He bragged, exaggerating on purpose. “And that one of my principles is to not hit girls outside of the battlefield”

Miles delivered his line with his trademark calm and seriousness, which baffled Avril. It was never a facade. He truly was the man that she learned to appreciate so much. His behaviour towards her was always honest and natural, even with the knowledge he had of what state alchemists did during the war. She still couldn’t quite believe it. It was too good to be true.

She ran a tired hand through the hair that escaped her bun when she got angry earlier. “I can’t believe that someone like you really exists Major Miles”

“Come and have breakfast at the officer’s table tomorrow and you will see it is the truth” Miles shrugged. “Buccaneer is eager to see you again”

Avril sighed and Miles placed a comforting hand on her still tensed shoulder. “You should rest. I’ll see you tomorrow” He told her before taking his leave.

Miles collected his goggles from the floor, wiping them clean before putting them back on. He was about to open the door when a pair of arms encircled his middle from behind, and a warm body pressed itself against his back. He froze on the spot as Avril hugged him, whispering against his uniform jacket.

“Thank you”

- - -

That night, Avril slept like a rock. Exhausted by her crying, she didn’t have any nightmare. Getting ready on the following morning, she checked her face in the mirror. Her eyes were still puffy and a little red, but it could pass as a lack of sleep. Once she was properly dressed, she headed to the mess hall for breakfast.

After taking a tray and helping herself with her favourite food, she took a deep breath and walked to the officer’s table, where Buccaneer and Miles where already sitting. Approaching them, she heard snippets of their conversation.

“Oh… didn’t ask you to stay the night?”

“Buccaneer...”

Miles’ voice sounded threatening. Avril wasn’t used to hearing him talk like that.

“Good morning” She greeted the men as she placed her tray on the table.

“Abott, good morning. Nice of you to finally grace us with your presence” Buccaneer replied while she sat down.

“Sorry I abandoned you for a while, but I had a lot of work to do” Avril apologized, deciding that telling a small white lie did no harm.

But Buccaneer didn’t seem convinced. “Work hmmm….”

“Buccaneer” Miles warned him again, his arms defensively crossed over his chest.

The tall dark-haired man gave the major a wide smile. He then suddenly got up.

“Sadly Abott, I’m done eating. But I’ll see you for lunch” He told Avril, weirdly wiggling his eyebrows. He took his tray and left, leaving the alchemist clueless.

Avril turned to Miles, noticing that his plate was almost empty. “I guess I slept in a little too late” She told him, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly.

Miles pushed his glasses back up onto his nose with one finger, arms still crossed over his chest. “Take your time, I’ll wait for you” He said, and Avril hid a content smile into her coffee mug. After taking a sip from it, she licked her lips like she always did. She didn’t notice the major observing her, nor did she notice the small blush dusting the dark skin of his cheeks.

- - -

Things went back to what they were before. Avril’s nightmares also became less frequent, but new dreams appeared to trouble her nights. In them, red eyes were on her, but never in a scary way. Rather in a way that forced her to take a shower and change underwear when she got up. She couldn’t get Miles out of her head. She caught herself multiple times gaze lingering when Miles was training, admiring his toned arms, and his broad shoulders. She was annoyed with herself. That crush that she developed was stupid and useless. She did her best to ignore those improper and counterproductive feelings.

A few months later, a visit from a lieutenant she new from the academy distracted her. Avril was glad to see that person again, and Armstrong generously offered that she escorted her back to the station in North city so they could get more time to talk. Miles accompanied them of course. He was always the one entertaining guests in the fort. Mainly because Armstrong was too busy, and mostly because she didn’t want to bother with guest too much. Also Miles was good at organizing things and despite his taciturn exterior, he was surprisingly good at small talk (better than Armstrong at least). If needed, he also was good at gathering intel while staying discreet about it.

Avril waved her friend goodbye on the lonely train station’s platform. She pulled her coat tighter around herself when snowflakes started falling at an unusual speed. Looking to the sky, she was that clouds and fog covered the mountains of Briggs. The station’s controller made an announcement that the train was the last to leave, the next ones cancelled due to an upcoming snow storm. Avril headed back to the car that Miles drove to bring them here and found it already covered in snow, its wheels completely buried underneath it. The wind was rising and when she found Miles, he told her that the weather wouldn’t allow them to go back to the fort before nightfall. Miles hurriedly found a phone booth and informed the Briggs that they wouldn’t make it back tonight but were safe. The last thing they needed was to worry their superior again. After hanging up, Miles turned to Avril.

“Seriously what is it with you and snow storms?” He asked, mildly miffed. “Are you sure your alchemy isn’t about conjuring them?”

Avril shrugged, trying hard not to smile in this inconvenient situation. She had come to deeply enjoy Miles’ dry sense of humour.

“Let’s see if we can find a place to sleep”

The military quarters were small and full, most of the soldiers being stationed in the fort and not in the city, so there were no available barracks for Miles and Abott. Compared to Central, there are not many inns in North City. The north of the country wasn’t what one would call touristic, and of course, because of the conflict with Drachma, no travellers came from further north. Miles and Avril finally manage to find a room to rent in a small inn. They thanked the old lady at the front desk and took the keys. Unsurprisingly, when they entered the room, there was only one bed.

“I’ll sleep on that armchair over there” Miles said right after scanning the room, seemingly unbothered. He took off his coat and carefully placed it on said old armchair.

Avril took off her coat and her jacket too and then took a look outside. The storm was ragging, the wind making the old windows of the room creak. Frost and snow covered the glass, making it impossible to see outside. The young alchemist sighed. She had crops waiting for her at her lab. She hoped that someone would at least think to water them. She turned back to inspect the bed. It was clearly big enough for two people. Maybe even three.

“The bed is big enough for sharing” She stated, turning to Miles.

“It’s fine. I’m used to sleeping in worse places. Take the bed” He said, folding his coat more carefully and getting rid of his gloves.

“You know I’m a soldier too, even if I’m an alchemist. I can sleep anywhere too, and I don’t mind sharing the bed.” Avril insisted, wanting to be nice to him. He was always so selfless.

“I don’t doubt it, but I was raised to be courteous. And it’s more elegant to leave the bed to a lady”

Avril felt her cheeks flush. She didn’t understand how Miles could spout such words with a calm and straight face.

“Why thank you for your consideration but I insist. The bed is huge. We can share it and both be comfortable so why not do it?” Avril said, arms crossed over her chest. The gesture was pushing her breast up, making it strain against the buttons of her shirt. Miles gulped. This was torture.

Miles considered himself to be a rather perceptive man. But he felt lost. Was she discreetly propositioning him? He wasn’t sure. Even if she wasn’t, heat was rising under his cool exterior, treacherous thoughts of getting her out of her shirt invading his mind. He would then get rid of her vest to finally see the lace underneath.

“Besides, I won’t be able to sleep knowing you’re on that chair facing the bed” Avril continued, completely oblivious to Miles’ internal struggle and how he barely listened to her. She didn’t understand his stubborn refusal. Was it because it would remind him of that time when he was hurt?

“I said no” Miles finally cut her, his answer sounding very definitive.

Avril felt kind of offended. Was she such awful company that he didn’t want to get too close to her ? Politely refusing once was enough to prove his courtesy, and he should have accepted to share the bed when she insisted. His reluctance was proof that he didn’t want to be near her. Avril was disappointed. Since their discussion in her lab, she thought they became friends, or at least more than simple colleagues. She was obviously wrong.

“Fine” Avril scoffed, wrapping her arms tighter around herself to hide her chagrin. “Your loss. Idiot”

Insulting him was childish, but in that moment, if felt good.

Miles sighed at her attitude. He rubbed his temples and then surprisingly removed his goggles and placed them atop his coat on the armchair. Avril curiously watched as he walked up to her. Was he pissed? She couldn’t quite read his expression.

She opened her mouth to talk but before she could speak, Miles grabbed her chin between two fingers, and lifted her head up to force her to look at him.

“I want to be a gentleman, but I’m only a man” He told her, his expression dead serious. “A man who hasn’t been with a pretty woman in a very long time. Were I to sleep next to you, I’m not sure I would be able to hold back. Do you understand?”

Avril’s whole face reddened under the intensity of his gaze and the low rumble of his voice. He was holding her face firmly, but not hard enough to prevent her from looking away and escaping. He was leaving her with a choice. Yet she couldn’t believe this was happening.

“You cannot be serious. You can’t want me that way” She whispered.

Miles’ eyebrows rose, taken aback “And why not?” He asked.

“You’re all composed and strong and handsome” She blurted out, cheeks burning. “And I’m… I’m just awful. I’m not supposed to attract you”

Miles smiled, amused by her agitated state. He was glad to hear how she felt about him. It confirmed that he didn’t interpret the signals wrong. “Isn’t that for me to decide?” He asked quietly, his breath close to her face; his eyes falling to her lips.

Avril was at loss for words. She wanted to ask what he saw in her repulsive self, but having Miles’ handsome face so close was distracting, and she soon lost the thread of her thoughts. Why was she arguing with him instead of kissing him? She wanted to. Her eyelashes fluttered, and she leaned forward, her bottom lip almost brushing Miles’ chin.

All protest died on her lips when he took the hint and properly kissed her. Miles’ hand moved to carefully cradle Avril’s cheek and the alchemist relaxed under his touch, melting against him. Why did they wait so long to do this again? Miles kept that first kiss gentle as not to scare away the woman he had wanted for so long. He smiled when she tried to follow his lips as he pulled away for air.

“How could I not be attracted to such a beautiful and clever woman” He whispered against her lips.

Avril pressed her forehead against his, their noses brushing. His words warmed her heart but made her shy too. She didn’t dare open her eyes. “Kiss me again” She requested, and he gladly complied.

That next kiss was less careful, less polite and more passionate. Miles held the base of Avril’s skull in the palms of both hands; his fingers tangled in the red locks escaping her carefully pulled together bun. He held her in place while he repeatedly tasted her lips, leaving them both breathless and panting. The alchemist’s hands grabbed onto the lapels of Miles’ jacket, holding on tight as her knees buckled under the skilful caress of his tongue against hers. Their kissing grew more and more heated, and Miles soon made them move back until Avril’s back was against the bedroom’s wall.

The alchemist gasped when Miles’ strong body pressed her against the hard surface behind her. As Miles started ardently kissing the side of her neck, her fingers eagerly pushed open his jacket before quickly undoing the first few buttons of his shirt. Miles let out an approving hum when her palm pressed against the bare skin of his chest, exploring the defined muscles there. Fuelled by Avril’s touch, Miles’ desire spiked up, and he found it difficult to take his time and be gentle with his lover. It had truly been a very long time since he felt the warmth of a woman against him like this, and it was very intoxicating.

Miles’ lips explored Avril’s skin lower and lower, reaching the hollow of her neck and then her collarbones. His hand followed his mouth there and he resisted the urge to tear her shirt opened, instead making quick work of opening the outrageous buttons that dared keep her chest hidden from him. Only her vest remained underneath, the swell of her tattoed breast and that lace he dreamed about so many times peeking from underneath it. Miles couldn’t hold back anymore and started kneading one of her lovely breast into his large hand. She was so soft under his palm, but it still wasn’t enough. He unceremoniously helped both of her breasts out of their lacy prison, cupping one in his eager hand and rolling his thumb over the hardening nipple of the second. Avril let out a loud moan under his ministrations, arching into him, urging him to continue. Miles was happy to provide, increasing the pressure of his thumb on her nipple and greedily taking the other one into his mouth. He committed the pretty noises his partner produced to memory and diligently worked to increase their volume. Usually cautious by nature, in this moment Miles didn’t care if the whole inn heard them. He was drunk on Avril’s pretty sighs and moans, and couldn’t wait to hear her scream his name as he took her.

After releasing the alchemist’s breast with a popping sound, Miles crashed his lips against hers again, taking her breath away. His pants felt too tight and there was an uncomfortable wetness staining his briefs. As if she felt his discomfort, Avril snaked a hand down his chest, fingers caressing his abs before her palm pressed against his arousal through the fabric of his uniform. Miles groaned and reflexively thrust into that agonizing touch. Avril smiled against his lips, shushing him with a kiss while she unbuckled his belt and opened his trousers. Before she could do anything else, Miles grabbed the back of her thighs and lifted her up, placing her legs around his hips. He pressed her harder against the wall, their hips meeting in a perfect friction of their groins that had them both sighing in abandon.

Avril’s arms snaked around Miles’ neck and shoulders, the nails of one hand deliciously scratching the smooth undercut at the base of his skull.

She drove him made and he wanted nothing more than to get rid of her underwear and take her on the spot. At this rate they wouldn’t make it to the very bed that was the catalyst of this situation. It would be a shame. For all his pent up desire, Miles still wanted to act courteous with his lover. He wanted her to be comfortable, and wished to treat her better than the common harlots that soldiers were known to sometimes appreciate. Besides, he didn’t know when another opportunity to spend uninterrupted intimate time with his fiery fae queen would present itself. They had to make the most of it.

So it was with nerves of steel that the major detached his lips from Avril’s body and with renewed determination that he carried her to the bed where he gently lied her down. He straightened up over her, sitting on his heels, kneeling on the bed with her hips between his legs. He didn’t regret the sight he was rewarded with.

Her hair fell onto the covers in a mess of red locks, their intense colour matching the redness of her flushed, heaving chest. Her clear eyes were on him, glossy and heavy with desire. She was truly perfect. Despite his ever growing desire, Miles’ head felt cooler admiring her under him like this. She wasn’t going anywhere. They had the whole night to themselves. And for that, he would have to thank the capricious northern weather. He took advantage of this small break to get rid of his clothes, and then helped Avril out of hers, exploring every part of her supple body with his hands in the process. Once both naked on the bed again, Avril suddenly felt shy under Miles’ blazing gaze. Still on her back atop the covers, she closed her legs, feeling very exposed. She was wet and her core was pulsing with need, but worry had seized her when she got a glimpse of what awaited between her lover’s thighs. He told her it had been a while since he last slept with someone. It probably had been even longer for her.

Miles, observant as always, noticed her hesitation. Tenderly caressing the side of her face, he asked her if she still wanted to continue. Avril smiled. He was ever the gentleman.

“I want you” She told him, her lips meeting his in a short tender kiss. “It’s just…” She peaked down between them before shyly meeting his eyes again. “It’s been a while for me too”

Miles nodded his head and gave her a reassuring peck on the lips. To her surprise, he then started kissing his way down her body, making an extended halt on her chest that he came to love so much before moving lower and lower. When he kissed past her navel and moved to the top of her thigh, Avril weakly protested.

“You don’t have to” She told him between ragged breaths when she understood where he was heading.

Miles’ only answer was place a kiss on her centre, right where she needed him most. They had all night, and he wanted to pleasure her to the best of his ability, and prepare her well for what was to come next.

Avril whimpered when her lover’s tongue traced her opening, squirming in pleasure with every stroke to her neglected and hypersensitive womanhood. Miles was quick to place her thighs over his broad shoulders so he could reach her easier and prevent her from moving too much. With one hand on her stomach to keep her in place, he had enough room to caress her with both tongue and fingers until she turned into a sobbing and begging mess above him. One of Avril’s hand gripped the sheets so tight they might tear while her other hand found anchor in Miles’ white hair, her fingers ripping the hair-tie holding them back in the process.

After only a few minutes of kissing her lower lips, she was already welcoming his large and long fingers, pleading for more with the sweetest, most submissive voice. It was music to Miles’ ears, and pride filled his chest when she soon tightened around his fingers and came on his tongue in an abandoned wail. He let her ride her high, gradually slowing his ministrations and caressing her inner thigh with his thumb.

When he let her legs down to place them around his hips instead, he saw the blissful expression on her face. Her satisfied gaze met his hungry eyes and she smiled, chest still heaving.

“That was perfect” She huffed.

Miles smirked but not for long, his lips parting on a moan when Avril’s hand started stroking his flushed length. Miles considered himself to be a patient and well behave man. But his patience was running thin; and he just couldn’t wait to feel the tightness that he experienced with his fingers around his achingly hard shaft. He gently took hold of Avril’s wrist, taking her hand away from his length and placing it above her head, almost like a warning. “You feel divine. But I won’t last if you keep doing that” He said and it was her turn to smirk.

“Then take what you want” She purred, drunk on the cooling embers of her orgasm. “I’m yours”

Miles was a patient man, but he didn’t wait for her to ask twice.

- - -

Miles had been greedy. He took Avril more times in one go than was reasonable. But he just couldn’t help it. He dreamt of having her to himself so many times that he couldn’t be satisfied with only one coupling in one position. He had to see her face while he entered her, had to hold her breast when he slipped inside her wet heat from behind, had to watch her tits bounce and lips part on those beautiful moans as she rode him. And mostly he had too see her clear eyes boring into his red ones as she rode her high, tears of emotion rolling down her cheeks before he kissed their salt from her lips. She didn’t seem to dislike the sleepless night; far from it.

After what felt like hours of losing themselves into each others body, exhausted and vulnerable, Avril’s naked huddled form pressed against Miles’ side, seeking his warmth and contact after such an intense and intimate moment. He draped his arm around her shoulder, his fingers playing with a stray lock of soft red hair. He sighed contently when she rested her head on his chest, his breathing gradually slowing down.

He was about to close his eyes and get some rest when her concerned voice made him look into her worried eyes. “I don’t want this to be a one time thing”

Miles exhaled through his nose, slightly shaking his head in disbelief. She truly had a very low self esteem. He held her closer, taking one of her hands in his free one and bringing their linked fingers to his chest, close to his heart.

“During our next permission, let me invite you somewhere nice” He promised, placing a sweet kiss to her sweaty forehead.

He hoped that promise conveyed his feelings for her. Back at Briggs, they would be soldiers and colleagues again. They would need to be professional, and they couldn’t let their feelings distract them from work. The next occasion to be alone together could be very far away, but it was something nice to hope for. Especially knowing that they would wait for each other.

Avril smiled, visibly relieved. “I’d love that”

That same smile that he remembered from years ago in Central. He finally got to see it again.

[valentinetypewriter]

Man reading fanfiction in public feels like a sin, not even smut just normal fanfiction

I was out for like 4 hours because I had to bug bomb my place, and after getting bored of walking around the mall for about 2 hours I sat down and decided to catch up on an ao3 fic. It wasn't smut or anything but my God did I feel dirty

[minefield-of-a-ninja]

Summary: He’s been alive for more than a hundred years. After everything he’s seen and done, what he really wants is to dream.

Characters: Soldier Boy/Benjamin Grace x multiple readers/characters

Warnings/tags: 18+ ONLY, dream sequences, bondage, dirty talk, name-calling, this will eventually get dark and each posted part will have its own warnings

Words in this chapter: 1,200

Author’s notes: Ben's full name is the product of too much research on my behalf (see end notes) and a dash of star-spangled fuckery. I also tweaked his dad's middle name, so I'm not writing fanfiction about a real-life steel tycoon. lollll

@deans-spinster-witch sent me a request. This is the result. There will be multiple parts to this story.

Thank you, @brrose-apothecary, for enduring my brain worms.

SUSPENSE

Benjamin Franklin Grace spent the first 25 years of his life failing to meet his father’s expectations. He was small for a boy, bad at math, and slow on the track. Ben grew into a tall, broad-shouldered young man with the face of an angel and a quick enough tongue to talk the boarding school dean’s wife into bed.

Eugene Victor Grace, who never let a day go by without telling his son he was a fucking disappointment, turned his back on him forever after he was expelled. Not even after Vought infused Ben with a serum to create a living, breathing superhero did Eugene accept his son.

Soldier Boy was the Strongest Man Alive, the hero of heroes, and the face of America. For 40 years, he was feared and revered, the Ace up Vought’s sleeve for every dirty deed, and no one feared him more than his own team.

He was ambushed and fed to the Ivans, where he became an experiment. He was poked and prodded and tested. They shoved a bomb inside him and turned him into BCL-RED because they couldn’t kill him.

Now, Colonel Mallory wants to dissect and redirect him for some greater purpose. At one time, he meant to care about politics and pomp and circumstance, but he never really did.

If Mallory can figure out how to manage it, more power to her, but he sure as shit doesn’t know how to control it, let alone wield it, and he doesn’t care. (Except for his kid. If he had a chance to put that sorry excuse for a hero to bed forever, he’d do it.)

He just wants to be free to eat and fuck, drink and snort, to smoke — whatever, whomever, whenever he wants, as often as he wants.

These days, the only thing he has to look forward to is sleeping because when he sleeps, he dreams, and when he dreams, he dreams of his ideal life.

He’s sprawled in the wood-carved chair his dad made when he was still a boy at home. Maybe his dreams remember the chair differently because he’s sure his dad didn’t make it for anything like this.

He watches as she tongues his tip, swirling around, then swallowing him down.

Her mouth is slick and scorching, dragging along every millimeter of his cock. He slides one hand into her bright blonde hair and grips her skull tight before thrusting. A deep grunt emits from her chest and throat, and he groans, massaging her scalp and brushing a thumb over her soft cheek.

“Good girl.”

Cerulean, wide and wet eyes flick up to meet his. Her full, pink lips are stretched tight, and her throat convulses around him. He cradles her jaw in one palm and the back of her head in his other, firmly gliding over her tongue and down her throat.

Her mouth feels like that first, warm dip in a hot bath. Every slide is fucking ecstasy, and he just keeps going, unhurried and steady. “You want my cum, sweet girl?”

She nods and blinks, moaning and sliding her hands up his thighs.

He grins, slipping his hand from her jaw into her hair to match the other. “Hold on, then, so I can fuck you good.”

He drops his head back to the chair and grips her tight, pulling her to her knees, then thrusts harder, faster, making her gag and drool.

“Fuck, yes, take it.”

She doesn’t whine, squirm, or tap out; she takes it just like he wants.

He rails into her, groaning and huffing air until he’s shouting out loud and twisting her hair in his fists.

When he comes, swearing to God, she’s choking and moaning.

“Motherfuck!” He sits up and pulls out of her mouth, still half hard.

She wipes the back of her hand across her mouth as he pulls her to her feet and into his lap to straddle him. He grips the back of her neck and dips his other hand between her legs.

“What a gorgeous fuckin’ mess you are.” He works the pads of his fingers over and around her slicked-up clit, and her eyes flutter closed as she settles into his rhythm. “Soakin’ wet for my cock.”

She nods and rolls her hips with a sigh, then turns her head to the side and kisses the inside of his wrist. ”I love your cock, Soldier Boy.”

He groans at her voice and slips two fingers up inside her, gripping her cunt in his hand and squeezing the heel of his palm against her swollen clit. He pulls her in for a kiss, swallowing her whine and sucking her lips between his.

“Now. Fuck my hand like the whore you are.”

He’s tightly bound to the creaking wood with a simple rope. He doesn’t even care that the chair and silk can’t hold him. If his brain gives him this kind of show, he’ll sit still for dental floss. He groans as the two exquisite women finger, lick, and suck each other.

Tinkerbell and the assassin surge together like a couple of juicy sex kittens. Shining righteousness and dark stealth mix the best of themselves with the other to make the perfect vision — lithe and trim, smooth and graceful. Watching them fuck is like witnessing a salacious ballet.

“She tastes so good. Sir.”

He tilts his head and smirks at the title. Annie January would never stoop to using a respectful moniker for him. His brain is a wild and wonderful place. He’s so hard it almost hurts — almost.

“Tell me about it, princess.”

Kimiko clutches the iron bars of the headboard in her fists and arches her back beautifully. She sighs as her counterpart rises to her knees between her wide-open legs, keeping one hand languidly toiling in the dark apex of Kimiko’s thighs.

Annie runs her fingers around her glistening lips to capture as much of her lover’s essence as possible.

“She’s sweet and salty.” She flicks her gaze to meet his with a vicious glint in her dark eyes. Her lids fall closed as she slides each finger between her glossy, pink lips, one by one, to suck them clean. “The perfect mix.”

He bites his lips and bucks his hips against nothing, no friction, no warmth.

Kimiko pushes herself up to sit and then kneels, facing Annie. She cups her jaw in her hands and takes Annie’s mouth with hers. They moan into each other, and he swallows thickly, twitching in the rigid chair.

He looks down at his lap to find that his cock is bound in a brilliant golden cage, connected to a set of chains that wrap the rest of his body with a humming current, undoubtedly under Starlight’s command.

When he looks up, they’re watching him and sneering.

“You knew this would happen.”

“Oh, fuck,” he moans, involuntarily thrusting and grinding. He’s painfully hard, harder than he ever could have imagined. His eyes roll back in his head.

“You love it, too.”

He opens his eyes, and they’re right in front of him. The heat from their skin and the smell of their cunts seeps into his bones. Annie grips his chin in her hand as she dips the other between her thighs before pushing her fingers between his lips.

“Good boy.”

NEXT PART: FEAR

End notes: A libertine is a person devoid of most moral principles, a sense of responsibility, or sexual restraints, which they see as unnecessary or undesirable, and is especially someone who ignores or even spurns accepted morals and forms of behaviour observed by the larger society. Libertinism is described as an extreme form of hedonism. Libertines put value on physical pleasures, meaning those experienced through the senses. As a philosophy, libertinism gained new-found adherents in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, particularly in France and Great Britain. Notable among these were John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester, and the Marquis de Sade.

Eugene Grace was the president of Bethlehem Steel Corporation (in Philadelphia) from 1916 to 1945 and chairman of the board from 1945 until his retirement in 1957.

Series Master List | The Boys Fic | My Master List

Please let me know what you think!

[perpetual-fng]

@lokibuswrites

this one's for you

The reason Gaz is the most underrated and underutilized character in all of the CoD MW reboot series. a TED Talk

Ah yes the perpetual 3rd wheel to Ghost and Soap and or Farah and Alex. Almost feels like he's ignored by both Activision and the community. And sure, one may say he has zero personality BUT PRE MW3 Gaz is a genuinely interesting character and more people need to appreciate him.

Starting with MW2019, the best military propaganda game I've ever played, he's portrayed as someone who is willing to get his hands dirty but has no idea what that actually entails. He seems irritated at his CO at the beginning of Piccadilly because he thinks they're willing to risk civilian lives in exchange for the facade of peace, and following the attack, his rant to Price about how he feels like their hands are tied when they could have helped, and maybe even saved all the hostages and prevented it entirely, indicates he's alright with doing morally grey things for the greater good

(notably this is an ideology that I do personally disagree with but it was an interesting direction to take his character which is why I love it)

Also about the hostage situation, the way the entire mission played out felt really frustrating, the way you get so close to saving so many people from teammates to EMTs to that one hostage but in the end they all die because you didn't get there early enough or weren't prepared enough. Gaz trying to save the guy in the bomb vest even when there was only 5 seconds left and then Price shoving him off and tossing the guy off the balcony to save everyone else was absolutely the perfect way to establish the difference between them. Because Gaz acted on emotion, Price acted on reason.

That contrast between the two shows up later in the St. Petersburg mission where after one of the funniest chase sequences I've ever played, Price tortures the Butcher, a guy who's already established as an irredeemable murderer and who Gaz has a personal vendetta against. You end up having to do some pretty... fucked up? things aka murdering a guy in front of his wife and kid after threatening them. being faced with the reality of what he told Price he wanted in Piccadilly, Gaz obviously is uncomfortable with it (AS HE SHOULD BE).

As much as I love their conversation in the car about getting their hands dirty to keep the world clean, I think this is definitely a place where the propaganda really shows through. After this, Gaz more or less falls in line with Price's point of view, ex. when he argues with Laswell about how there's always something they can do even when they're blocked by dumbass generals labelling the ULF as terrorists.

So here's more or less where I get into speculation, because I think this is where Gaz has so much potential in future games. Because Price in this series sees things for their end result (note I'm still ignoring mw3 here because oh boy that game-) and though it gets results, there's this annoying thing called.... collateral damage. One thing that Gaz has shown that he isnt fully willing to accept. It's a position that's akin to Price and Soap in the original series except i doubt they're getting rid of Price anytime soon now. aaaannnd I'm gonna cut this off before I start writing fanfiction lol

(rereading this none of this makes ANY sense but oh well thanks for coming to my Ted Talk)

once again lamenting the lack of love for my boy Gaz out here in the harsh environment of CoD fandom 😔

[aliceinreverselondon]

Dating – Bruno Bangnyfe headcanon

The thing about Bruno is that he likes to be in charge of every situation. This obviously applies to your dates as well, so even though you always discuss where to go and what to do, it’s him who makes the final decision.

You both love things that can raise your adrenaline levels, this is why it’s not unusual for you to go and play paintball. Considering he uses spray paint for spells, you often wonder if this is the reason why he prefers this over other games like laser tag.

If he’s the one who accidentally shots you at a place that leaves a bruise, Bruno usually tries to make it up to you by bringing different treats as gifts.

Sometimes he agrees to go on dinner dates with you, and he knows you like it when he puts on a suit so he’s often willing to do it. there’s one condition, though: you have to go to Front London because he doesn’t want to risk anyone from Wing Bind see him dressed like that.

He always acts cool when he’s with you but there are always little signs of his true feelings that are screaming that he loves you. You know it, he knows it… hell, everybody knows it. Not like anyone except the two of you would point it out, though.

Whenever he cancels a date with the excuse of not being the best company after his day at work, you usually go over to his place to eat junk food and watch a movie with him. Although Bruno’s not exactly the type of person who says such things, he always makes an exception with you and says thank you for ignoring his decision.

If you’re alone, Bruno always lets his guard down and becomes the most chill, affectionate, and caring person you’ve ever met. He loves to cuddle, he tells you about his feelings, his insecurities, and his family, he takes care of you when you’re sick, and every now and then he even tries to cook for you. Trying being the keyword.

The two of you play video games quite often. In the beginning, he wanted to let you win, but once he realized you weren’t a rookie, he decided not to hold back against you anymore. When you’re playing on the same team, though, teamwork becomes more important than anything which usually leads to your victory.

[dirtybombfics]

Houseguests

Our latest submission comes from a familiar face around the Dirty Bomb Discord and the Steam Community, especially the Arts tab! Here's the first Act of The Spanish Inquisition's favorite ship:

Houseguests    by The Spanish Inquisition

Act 1:

The apartment building stood high into the evening sky.  People in the London suburbs were just as accustomed to it as to the yellow dome in the distance, under which lay the contaminated zone.

What drew them out this evening was the giant flame shooting out of two windows on the third floor. Around the apartment stood a crowd of spectators, held back by CDA officers in black and green policelike uniforms, who separated the people from a dozen firefighters.

One of them, the Chief Inspector of the CDA police force, stepped in front of a woman holding a camera and an obscenely large microphone.

He adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat, then he stated in a routined fashion:

“Dear general public. Please don’t be alarmed. My officers, in close cooperation with the local fire department can assure you that the explosion in this very building, (he pointed back over his shoulder), was NOT tied to any of the attacks on central London. No “Dirty Bombs” or any similar devices were used. It seems like a household accident. No bodies were discovered yet but to know for sure we…..”

As he continued to calm the people with his trained monotone not one of the many people in the street noticed the small camera, which detached itself off a lamppost and flew into a nearby alley…

The S.N.I.T.C.H. landed directly in Aimee´s open handbag, followed by the tablet that she used to watch the devices recordings.

She turned and slapped Proxy maybe a bit harder than usual.

“Oi what was that for?” Proxy asked whilst trying to regain balance.

“You just blew up my appartement! I told you to be careful with your stupid mines!”

“Its not like I knew you couldn’t put those in the dishwasher…”

“I told you before we went! Why would you even wash…”

“Maybe its harder for me to remember after SOMEONE poked me eye out!”

“You always use this excuse for tout! Its not like I asked you to shoot my boss…”

*About 24 minutes later*

“Roight. So we both are equally responsible.”

“Did you even listen to me?”

“Might have lost you after “excuse” or summin…”

Aimee started to breathe slowly, just like Sawbonez showed her after she almost scalped Kira for bread related reasons.

“Guess we´ll get back into the zone and crash in the barracks.”

“Non! Never! I need a proper bathroom. Phantome left his stupid scribblings all over the walls. And there is that sticky spot on the floor…”

“Yea that ones from before your time…”

Both shivered

“Well I know some of the guys live around London. How´s about we ask one of them?

…

Oh Stoker´s is a few blocks away!”

“Non… He isn’t home…”

“How do you know?”

She pulled the S.N.I.T.C.H. out of her pocket and swung it before Proxy´s eye. Aimee knew Proxy wasn’t fond of this.

“I saw him in the crowd. You know how he is when he spots a fire somewhere…”

“Bugger… He´ll be there all night…”

2 minutes of hard thinking later Proxy snapped her fingers loudly.

“Vassili!”

“Ugh…”

“Oh come on… He isn’t that bad.  

…

He CAN be a bit weird at times.

…

Stop looking at me like that. We´ll ask him.”

They walked through the cold evening-turning-night in silence. Big CDA posters warned people of the consequences of scavenging in the zone underneath the containment shield.

Suddenly Aimee grabbed Proxy´s arm.

“What if he has one of these things Phantom once brought into the base… You know this pillow with a drawing of a …”

Proxy snorted and shoved Aimee jokingly. Meanwhile Aimee put on her hood and started shivering a bit more.

“Oi!” Proxy exclaimed and rammed her elbow into Aimee´s ribs. She pointed at a nearby bus stop. On the bench sat a lonely figure in a blue jacket.

“YO VAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAS!!!” Proxy began running to the bus stop waving her arms. Aimee considered turning around to see if she couldn’t find shelter in the burned out building.

Vassili, startled by that much enthusiasm at such a late hour, almost dropped his phone.

“I…”

Proxy jumped onto the seat next to him and slapped him on the shoulder.

“Oi oi! Uhm… Me and Aims we are in k…” She felt Aimee´s hand on her shoulder.

“We need a place to… stay? For this night ONLY.”

Vassili almost dropped his phone again.

“So… that’s…. your place?”

He showed them the chat on his phone. It was between him and Stoker. It showed lots of shaky pictures of a burning building, firemen in their uniforms and a CDA officer reaching out to stop the photoshoot.

“Oh hey yea that’s it. Did you know that you can’t wash moines? Like…”

“Can we stay or not?…. You do have a guestroom…. TWO guestrooms, right?”

Proxy frowned

“I guess so but…”

“SWEET. SLEEEEEEEEPOVEEEEEER”

Proxy hooked them both into her arms, choking any opposition.

“Sleepover. …”

“Aw god what have I done…”