#discovering confidence boosters

[borngeniusworld]

36 Quotes to Conquer Doubt & Fear

Overcoming Doubt & fear Quotes 1. “Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt.” – William Shakespeare 2. “The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt 3. “Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will.” – Suzy Kassem 4. “Do the thing you fear and the death of fear is certain.” – Ralph Waldo…

[mixedandfurious]

What if Loki discovers your nipple piercings? (Drabble)

Pairing: Loki x Fem!Reader

Warnings: Suggestiveness, implications to sex, slight nipple play, mild pain kink, 18+ MDNI!

A/N: As someone who got her nipples pierced about two years ago, let me just tell you that it’s the biggest confidence booster ever! It’s like a dirty little secret that only you know about unless you go braless or show someone🤭 That said, this is for all my lovelies who either have their nipples pierced or are thinking of getting them done. Enjoy😉

At first he’s flabbergasted at the idea of you getting needles through your nipples. The first thoughts that run through his head are ‘why would you inflict so much pain to yourself for aesthetic purposes?’. ‘Does this mean I can’t pull on them anymore?’.🤣

When you raise your top and show him, however, his eyes darken and he stares intensely at your nipples for a few seconds. His jaw clenches and his eyebrows furrow in concentration.

He stalks closer to you without breaking eye contact with your nipples and slowly lifts his hands to trace his thumbs over the skin directly above the jewelry. His breath hitches as the light of the jewelry twinkles as if winking to remind him of the prize that lays ahead.

‘Are those hints of emerald green I see in the jewellery?’. Loki breathes heavily and slowly slides one of his hands to your throat. He gazes up to stare into your eyes with a dangerous look, pupils dilated and a hint of a smirk itching to become a sinister smile.

“You naughty little minx. I hope you’re prepared to stay locked in our room all night while I punish you for teasing me with those pretty jewels”. He squeezes your breast and caresses the nipple with his thumb. He lets out a dark chuckle when you hiss at the light sting near the freshly pierced area.

“Do not fret my love, when I’m through with you you’ll forget they even hurt”. He pushes you onto the bed and latches his mouth to your nipple allowing his tongue to gently caress the slightly swollen area.

You moan in relief and mentally praise yourself for finally getting the piercings. Not only did they make you feel sexier, but they also made your man go feral (even more than he already was).

Who knows, maybe you’ll surprise him with another one but down below where only he will ever get the privilege of looking🤭

[castlebyersafterdark]

who do you think likes receiving blowjobs the most? who do you think likes giving them the most? how would you describe their respective techniques? and what/when do you think they gave/received their most mindblowing blowjob?

I've settled mostly more that Mike loves to get them, Will looooves giving them. One of my earliest spicy posts, flashback - simple, but sums it up. Both do indulge both ways, of course. But that scenario holds the edge.

Oral fixation Will, Will loving Mike's big dick, Will working up to it overtime, practicing to be able to deep throat that monster 🤭 It's not easy or an instant skill, but it's hot for him, a feeling of accomplishment. Mike being so reactive to getting sucked off, he's always gonna give feedback and he's not quiet about it when Will's mouth is around him. Techniques?

Will - he sucks cock like it's an indulgent treat. Genuinely wants to be doing it. Determination. Wants to take the whole thing deep in his throat, wants to moan around it and tear up as he struggles to breathe, the stretch and warmth settling him present in the moment. Once he masters that, he's holding Mike's thighs and swallowing him down, gagging on it when Mike holds his head and fucks his face. Or, he's teasing, teasing, teasing. Little licks and kisses all over the skin like they've got all the time in the world. Dragging it out. Making Mike whiiiiiiine. If it's not shooting on his face to finish, he always cleans up, he always swallows. Will Byers doesn't spit.

Mike - loves to explore, what he does for Will is so suited to Will. It's less of a blowjob and more body worship. Where Will teases, Mike is genuinely taking his time as a means to celebrate Will's body. A lot of kissing and licking that Will adores, focusing on different parts despite being able to hold the whole thing in his mouth. Sucking his cock as he plays with other parts of Will's body too, what a king. Grabbing Will's hips and squeezing his ass as he works him between those big plush lips. Very talented mouth.

Most mindblowing? Might be a cop out, but you never forget your first 😉 The first time Will went down on Mike became a core memory, literally a life changing moment. It may not have lasted very long because Mike shot off so quickly, but it led to a follow-up right away. It's discovering that it's everything that's universally bragged about, all it's chalked up to be. Will's excitement and eagerness to do it really changed the dynamic in their new sex life, because it helped him lose some of his hesitation and timidness. That Mike got off like that, and then got off again, all from Will's hand and mouth. And Will really, really liking it after thinking about doing it for so long? Core goddamn memory. Confidence booster for them both.

And then I think for Will, his most memorable blowjob maybe it's further down the road and maybe it's some sort of emotional breakthrough after Will's been going through a difficult time, feeling really unhappy and untethered in his skin, lost in his head - something I think he's gonna always struggle with periodically. So it's a time when Mike really just emotionally and physically builds him back up. One of their ultimate body worship sessions where Mike gets him off several times that night and it's totally emotionally raw, physically intense. Just a special night where Mike is totally devoted to Will's pleasure and it's gonna be one of those times where it actually takes him forever to get off but when Will finally comes? It's like his damn soul was punched out of his body and it's amaaaazing.

[pocima]

2024 albums I recommend catching up on ⋆✴︎˚｡⋆° 📹

In other words, a shamefully long overdue list of my top 10+2 albums of 2024

Welcome to my long overdue list of albums I’ve been adoring last year! It’s the second rendition of my yearly project reviews, and I’m so grateful to be in a circle of bloggers who are as passionate for music and musical projects as I am for over 2 years now. The competition in this list is truly tough because 2024 has been a year where incredible full-length projects were dropping left and right from countless names in the music industry, and I still feel bad about ranking some names lower in the list. A good amount of artists were breaking their years-long hiatuses as well as if they were all given a deadline until 2025, and that felt surreal to witness. Considering the abundance of good full albums specifically, as you noticed, the list will cover my personal top 12 rather than last year’s 10! Additionally, I chose to separate them from my favorite EPs this time around, and an EP ranking will be dropping soon! 💋 Side note: two of the entries are accompanies with audio files instead of the usual videos because of Tumblr’s 10 video per post limit, soz.

⑫ Heráldica - Saramalacara

I wanna start this off by shouting out my sweet tasteful mutual @a-moth-to-the-light, because my Heráldica and Saramalacara discoveries all started with this HUMO audio post. When I first pressed play, I was surely hearing something, but I didn’t exactly predict it would all lead to Saramalacara playing a huge part in defining my summer and fall, and being my top artist on my YouTube Music recap. I was introduced to a very trance and hardstyle influenced headbopper right off the bat, and soon I would be transported to Sara’s very own Heráldica world. The surreal drum & bass INTRO_ greets us, and we stroll through Más Feliz’s breakbeats, .tumblr and 10percs’ electropop dancefloors, Sola’s dramatic cries, XQSI, Tokio Hotel and Diamantes&Kalashnikov’s thumping trap highways and the emo rock anthem tu droga at the departure. I kept the album on repeat, not even intentionally, partly because the tracklist was all pure earworms, but more so because Sara excels at the craft of worldbuilding with music and sound. Her EPs prior and now her debut album feel exactly like portals, straight out of a video game. The visuals support the gloomy, hazy vibe the album gives on its own, and the end result is a distinctive era much needed in the current emo/digicore pop-rap scene.

Favorite tracks: HUMO, Tokio Hotel and .tumblr.

⑪ Access All Areas - FLO

Moving on to another debut album, one that I’ve been so eagerly anticipating since discovering FLO when they dropped their first single Cardboard Box in 2022. For years I’d been hoping for them to flourish as artists and get all the love and success they deserve because they’re such talents, especially vocally, and their EPs and singles had been just wonderful, and there was just no way their big and mighty first LP would be a letdown. FLO’s contemporary R&B princesses status, their consistency and versatility are fully set in stone with Access All Areas. Harmonies and runs top-notch off the bat with the intro and smooth, sax driven title track AAA. In My Bag, How Does It Feel?, IWH2BMX and Nocturnal are instant confidence boosters all in their different ways and sounds. (The Bree Runway feature on Nocturnal in AAA: Unlocked? Now THAT’S what I’m talking about.) Soft and On & On reveal their more sultry sides with gentle, serenading vocals, while they stand on business and let go of the untrustworthy on Caught Up and Shoulda Woulda Coulda, which is my personal favorite genre of FLO songs. They dabble in some Miami bass with Check, Detroit drill with Get It Till I’m Gone and surprisingly nice pop-rock (I typically find it ear-grating so REALLY surprisingly) with the empowering final track, I’m Just A Girl. The production quality, again, the VOCALS, the arrangements, the group chemistry, the charisma, the energy, everything sets the bar higher for pop and R&B stars, but truthfully it’s unsurprising since that’s exactly what you’d expect from the FLO girls.

Favorite tracks: Shoulda Woulda Coulda (track review here), Caught Up, Get It Till I’m Gone and Nocturnal.

⑩ DOGMA - LSDXOXO

2024 was THE year of underground club bangers and electronic music with a gritty twist, as seen with many projects gaining plenty of attention and artists following suit, and it would only make sense to get to the top 10 of my list with the iconic producer and DJ LSDXOXO’s debut album. LSDXOXO is primarily known for his upbeat, sharp sound, notably on his Dedicated 2 Disrespect and Delusions of Grandeur EPs, however, Dogma takes a bold turn, with the pulsating club beats making way for the guitar topped reggaeton of 4LUVN, the alternative R&B worlds of Blinded and Bloodlust, the dark electropop thrill of Black Light, the synth-focused trap instrumentals of Girls Girls Girls and Ghost, the breakbeats of Witching Hour and Superstar and softer vocals and raps observed on all of the tracks. I knew this direction would be smoothly, beautifully executed since Bloodlust’s single release, and with the continuation of the rollout, I knew the album’s sound would be what I needed in September. The production remains incredibly in-depth and the atmosphere of the project is irresistibly alluring. Overall, this was definitely one of the top projects that defined fall 2024 for me and surely one that proved LSDXOXO’s versatility and successful experimentation. Special shoutout to Kelela for elevating Girls Girls Girls and Ghost with her background vocals, you know I love small but impactful details.

Favorite tracks: Black Light (track review here), Bloodlust and Girls Girls Girls.

⑨ Chupetones - Meth Math

Another solid debut album that has stayed heavily on rotation multiple times throughout 2024, this time by the alternative neoperreo collective Meth Math, previously having captured my attention with their feature on Isabella Lovestory’s Tacon, and later with their Pompi and m♡rtal EPs. Prior to the announcement of the album, I’m gonna be honest and say that its lead single (and later album opener) Mantis did not pull me in like the rest of their discography did, but despite a slightly rough start, the dramatic, hypnotizing second single Myspace brought me back immediately, and forget being seated, I was glued onto my chair with Cyberia (still the catchiest song on the album in my opinion) and later with Axila. Meth Math introduce new genre influences that fit the band’s style like a glove to their catalogue, such as happy hardcore with Cyberia, trip-hop with Capullo and witch house with Axila and Pócima (yup, the source of my username). On occasions they mix said genres, like they did with the familiar reggaeton and the less familiar witch house in Abducida. Every aspect about the project is impressionable, from the echoing sound design to the visual direction of both the music videos and perfectly eccentric cybercore album photography. I can confirm I will be paying attention to Meth Math’s future work moving on forward as I constantly need some electronic, gloomy reggaeton in my life.

Favorite tracks: Pócima (duh) and Cyberia (track review here).

⑧ Tidal Memory Exo - Iglooghost

You guys witness me frequently posting about music I fall in love with instantly, giving immediate reactions right upon discovery, but I’ve also mentioned that most of the time, my all-time favorites end up being bodies of work that creep up on me slowly. This was the exact case with electronic musician Iglooghost’s Tidal Memory Exo and his discography in general. I knew of his remixes and a couple songs here and there previously, I saved Nemat0de right on the first listen, and just casually kept coming back to the rest of the album, and realized I fell in love with it more and more, and not so unexpectedly. Ever since his come-up, he’s been delivering some of the sickest, glitchiest, most maximalist sound design and absolutely otherworldly mixing. That’s not the only proof he’s an electronic music mogul either, he proves it by the flawless incorporations of breakcore (Alloy Flea), 2-step/garage (flux•Cocoon), drill (Pulse Angel and Dewdrop Signal), along with gothic influences akin to Gesaffelstein’s Gamma (Coral Mimic) and orchestral moments giving that “calm after the storm” feel (Dewdrop Signal). Another element that makes the album this cohesive and put together is the storytelling, present in all of his past projects but especially prominent in this one sonically and visually. The inspiration for the Tidal Memory Exo-verse comes from his time squatting in a garage of a UK seaside town, and the concept is based on apocalyptic, sci-fi themes, and here are some articles that can frankly give a lot more insight on the lore than I can. Tidal Memory Exo is a universe I’d recommend to all IDM fans, or anyone who’s looking for intricate sounds and top-notch quality dopamine.

Favorite tracks: Nemat0de, flux•Cocoon and Coral Mimic.

⑦ G-SPOT - STARKIDS

Speaking of dopamine, I’ve also mentioned that there’s arguably nobody that induces it in the music game like the Japanese hyperpop band STARKIDS do. It’s been forever since I full-on geeked out over a group like this. I’m very often in need of some loud underground EDM in my life, and they’ve played a huge part in me falling further in love with the J-hyperpop scene. They’re the ultimate masters of unapologetic, maxed out, extremely well-produced fun music. Even when it comes in the form of singles (okay so for the 1000th time I will emphasize that Pop is the 2020s’ Like a G6), their music is mind-blowingly captivating and entertaining, but an entire album of pure unadulterated bangers 3 years after the last one? I’ve gotten scared and then pissed at their diabolical disbandment prank rollout (near decade long K-popper moment) but how could you not forgive them when the music is really THIS good? Unlike the previous projects mentioned in the list, they don't take entirely new directions, but instead effortlessly show how good they are at what they do, from their throbbing as always takes on happy hardcore and Eurobeat to the usual yet exciting hip-hop and trap roads, with hints of 2-step (BACK2BACK) and hardstyle (title track). The members’ flows never fail to hit like a sip of freezing soda, and while Espeon and Benxni are my MVPs in this aspect, all of them have their moments with their own addictive verses and choruses. Thematically, the album offers STARKIDS' constant preachings on embracing authenticity and living your life free of any judgement. Honestly, there's something people of all backgrounds and lifestyles can get out of these preachings. Whether you're the type to spend days and nights partying or choose to navigate stably through work or education, all you have to do is listen up, mentally hop on the band's wavelength and have fun to the fullest just like they do.

Favorite tracks: BACK2BACK (track review here), G-SPOT, Stay Back, TYOSTAR and Thailand BKK.

⑥ Where The Butterflies Go In The Rain - Raveena

After the intense, high tempo, electronic projects I've talked about in the list so far, it's time to make room for some therapeutic, lush R&B with another gorgeous project from Raveena. With her third studio album, she once again takes on roles she absolutely owns: a narrator, a fairy, a healer, an ethereal being. Let me start simply with how I felt while first listening to it on its release day: I remember taking a half-hour walk home, DMing the #1 Raveena fan @timetravellingkitty my thoughts as they formed, feeling just like a main character in a coming of age movie. You can easily observe that music puts me through countless emotions, that’s why I talk about it so much and in such detail, but again, the art of building entire worlds through albums is something that particularly earns my appreciation. You can guess the beauty of the production and sound straight from the title. From the Brandy inspired string-heavy Pluto and Lose My Focus; to her blending Western and South Asian influences on Every Color; the simple but moving soul tunes Lucky and Rise; the catchy dream pop bops Baby Mama, 16 Candles and Smile For Me; the guitar-only Kid and piano-only Little Bird and We Should Move Somewhere Beautiful; and the soothing, cinematic finale Water (and she KNOWS how to do a good key change). Not to forget the wholesome Afternoon Tea with the Auroras interlude, which begins with her grandmother reciting the Sikh mantra Ik Onkar and includes a conversation between the two, and that alone represents the rawness and emotion put into the album. The sweet vocals and harmonies, lullaby-like at times, are a key in maintaining this otherworldly-ness. Moving onto what the project means to Raveena herself: in her own words, she needed to return to comfort and stop weathering storms, just like how butterflies go into hiding in the rain due to their fragility. If you’re new to her, her spirituality, connection with herself and eloquence seep through every word, every melody she puts out. Whether the topics are sweet such as romance or personal growth and realizations, or rather painful such as grief, genocide or the opposition to women’s rights and humanity, it’s all tackled deeply, but with genuine hope. Genuineness is a quality I highlight consistently when discussing art, though it seems and feels like a bare minimum, and it’s what Raveena directly exudes. That’s something to find true comfort and consolation in.

Favorite tracks: Junebug (track review here) and Lose My Focus.

⑤ Still - Erika de Casier

Erika de Casier is still a wonderful player in the contemporary R&B game, with her added pinches of breakbeats, 2-step and synths straight out the 2000s all throughout her discography. While her debut album Essentials was pretty down-tempo and trip-hop focused, and sophomore Sensational introduced heavy garage influences, her third album amps up the 2000s aspect of her sound. Right after intro Right This Way, where Erika welcomes you to her very own party as a VIP comes first single Lucky, the adorable liquid drum and bass jam and a production highlight. (Peep two albums back to back having cute songs called Lucky!) Home Alone and ooh possess the epitome of that Y2K era cheekiness and sensuality, as well as the Timbaland-coded beats and samples. The Princess is debatably the most vulnerable Erika has gotten with her with her inner disagreements in relation to her life and future, accompanied by a guitar and soft chest singing. On ice, she brings out Tampa rap duo They Hate Change for their takes on verses about relationship bantering, and the chemistry of the three combined with the melodic high “ah, ah”s and chill instrumentation makes the track unbelievably smooth and itch scratching. Test It, Believe It and Anxious have simpler production that relies on the top-tier synths. Ex-Girlfriend with Shygirl is a collaboration I’ve been anticipating as a big fan of both, and it was surely executed even better than I could’ve imagined. It has that moody, confident flare that both pull off perfectly. Toxic seems like a slower, more soul-leaning ice, and lyrically it’s a drift from the romance of the first half of the album. My Day Off comes in with the pop/EDM hybrid era hip-hop vibe. You can even sing “shawty had them apple bottom jeans, boots with the furrrrr” to its tune, but you honestly won’t need to when its actual lyrics come in handy for classily flipping someone off with words. Toxic featuring Blood Orange, the post-breakup duet with a monologue and low-key harmonies, signals that we’re getting closer to the departure, and with the self-reflective, brink of tears-sounding Someone, we close off the party. To round up the album description, it combines R&B smoothness with electronic elements, both of which are perfect for my tastes. Moreover, it’s an album stripped of previous alter egos (such as Sensational’s Bianka) and is purely a reflection of Erika’s world and observations. Unsurprisingly, Still is a solid new member of Erika de Casier’s pristine, timeless, charming catalogue.

Favorite tracks: Ex-Girlfriend (track review here), ice, ooh and My Day Off.

④ GAMMA - Gesaffelstein

Techno father Gesaffelstein is a relatively secretive figure. His releases are typically long-anticipated, and come as surprises especially if you rely heavily on social media for your favorite artists’ updates. He uses YouTube and streaming services as announcement-only platforms, with the comments turned off, where the average viewers are all obliged to stay silent like an uninterrupted theater show. I only found out about his exclusive community website (to which you can just sign up for free), where you can actually access announcements and comment your thoughts when I was in the middle of writing this review. The Gamma teaser drop appeared on my YouTube suddenly, and I was blown away by the quality and excellence of the visuals alone. (Director Jordan Hemingway, you are so loved.) We were getting into an era of grandeur, the dark digital bleeding into the plasticized flesh, something I can’t even fully describe. Hard Dreams was released as the first single (in fact, I can’t exactly remember whether I saw the teaser or heard the song first), it’s an accurate introduction to what the era has to offer, similarly to and differently from Gesaffelstein’s previous albums. It has the classic cold, hard synths and dry kicks, but brings in gothic vocals from Yan Wagner and somewhat more vulnerability. The gothic influences especially show through with Digital Slaves and The Urge (yes, we had a little foreshadowing moment in the Tidal Memory Exo section), and 80s electronica á la Depeche Mode or Nine Inch Nails’ earlier music is heavily dabbled in with Your Share Of The Night and Hysteria. The Perfect feels like a reincarnated Aleph, louder and with vocals. Mania, Psycho and Tyranny are chaotic and fiery in their own ways, the first being fast and repetitive and almost hardstyle-like, the second abrasively maxing out the kick drums and the third relying on acids for a majestic, grim catwalk soundtrack. The serenading Lost Love and the minimal, reverse synth based outro Emet balances them out. Another difference between Gamma and its predecessors is the format, as in the track lengths; only Hard Dreams has a duration of longer than 3 minutes, but it adds up with how diverse the project is, though considerably more cohesive and story-based than Hyperion (with that being said no Hyperion slander allowed). What’s the most certain in my eyes, though, is that this album has the best visual direction of the year. The album trailer, especially, sets the standard insanely high for all other musicians and their concepts. The scenes are abstract and mystical, but so polished and precise, just like the album it backs. Gesaffelstein is rightfully known worldwide as a legendary producer, however, that doesn’t stop his art from consistently being elevated and exclusive.

Favorite track: Hard dreams.

⊛ Bonus review: RAVE:N, The Remixes

Raven was my favorite R&B album of 2023 with its quality in all areas, surreal feel, metaphors and depth; and it turned out to be a gift that kept on giving. I can’t name a remix album off the top of my head that I love more than this treasure box right here. This is a perfect example of how you reimagine and transform music, in particular a dance music inspired project. On this remix album we play around with ambient, trap, jungle, reggaeton, Eurodance, drill and more with a star-studded feature list. The whole thing is vastly different from what the original album gives, but in the best, most complementary way possible. The visuals were simple but very on point as well: the vignettes were filmed in Tokyo, from a capsule hotel to its nighttime streets to a bright green garden. Everything about this era was flawless and a beautiful sequel to the original Raven era.

Favorite tracks: Sorbet (LSDXOXO Remix) [track review here], Holier (JD. REID Remix feat. Shygirl) and Closure (Flexulant x BAMBII Remix feat. Rahrah Gabor & Brazy).

Honorable mentions:

Inferno - Moistbreezy (favorite track: La Dolce Vita): Feel genuinely bad for only placing this in the honorable mentions because it’s pure trance heaven, as well as the storyline and concept being so well-crafted. Bangers only in this house, Moistbreezy always outdoes herself.

Hunter - Rhea Raj (favorite track: Hush): Hopped onto this train fairly late, probably sometime in December, but if Rhea isn’t at least a cult favorite pop girl this year I’m giving up on pop music point blank. Such a fun debut project, just wish the tracks were a little longer, but aren’t Hush and Pray On It (which reminds me of my SOTY 🤭 keep reading to find out) the biggest jams ever?

epistolares - Akriila (favorite track: Popper): Akriila is certainly another one of my favorite artist discoveries of 2024. Great genre concoction of neoperreo, dream pop and liquid drum & bass going on in this album. The project’s defined, soft sound makes it looping material.

MEGAN: ACT II - Megan Thee Stallion (favorite track: Bourbon): Megan, you will always be famous. Act I was on rotation the entire summer but Act II came through even harder with the upgraded production, increased cohesion and new, fresh flows. Easily my favorite project from her. (Bourbon is the closest we’ve gotten so far to hearing her on a trip-hop beat, which I desperately need.)

Miniseries 2 - Sumin & Slom (favorite tracks: Why Why Why and I Think…): Another long-awaited by many album and the acclaimed duo’s return, this time taking a more acoustic, slow approach. Love how Sumin’s voice shines even more, and the way the album feels like a game main menu soundtrack but also very earthly.

And now, drumroll for the top 3!

③ For Your Consideration - Empress Of

Welcome to the story of falling love with my most played album of the year, and how it’s my favorite pop album of the year! I was first made familiar with Empress Of through her collaboration with Rina Sawayama, titled Kiss Me, in 2023. I REALLY started to pay attention to her when I saw a reel of her announcing the release of Preciosa with a snippet, and from that snippet alone nobody could convince me we weren’t heading towards the pop emergency of the entire year. I had no choice but to tune in immediately upon seeing Isabella Lovestory and Erika de Casier collaborator Nick León and experimental electronic producers Umru and Casey MQ were on the production team as well. And yeah, pop emergency at its finest. For Your Consideration is primarily an alternative pop and dance album, with strong house and vogue influences. Its core themes include immortalization, being a prize you have to reach for, being the centerpiece in a relationship and gaining dominance after long years of timidity. Numerous pop microtrends came and went in the 2020s and especially in 2024: While some pop stars are truthers of maximalism, whether it be EDM or theatrics, many (especially in K-pop and on the Internet) choose to move away from saturation, and lean into instantly recognizable drum patterns, gently mixed synths, less sharp choruses, overall more monotony (such as in UK garage, drum & bass, Jersey club) and less in-your-face. This “blur” can either create jams that you can’t get overwhelmed with or tired of, or a boring, predictable skip where you can tell what the producers were miserably going for. Empress Of’s record isn’t exactly a banging, loud, overly melodic one like what we left in the 2010s, but she delivers multi-layered work that really takes up space with elegance, confidence and assertiveness. She sings about different aspects of romance, her feelings and experiences over casual beatboxing and breathing and beats that make you put a pep in your step.

The record starts with its title track: the heavenly, passionate intro that lays down the concept of the album. Lorelei is a fan favorite to this day and for good reason: the angsty lyrics, the house beat backed by the vocal bits serving as synths, the harmonies make this song a good representative of the whole project. Preciosa’s chorus is what pulled me into the track and into the whole album before anything else, but the whole track is very memorable, danceable and embellished. Femenine, What Type Of Girl Am I? and Cura strongly lean towards house and vogue with whispery vocals, while Fácil and Sucia is where Umru’s trademark thumping bass and snares come in. Baby Boy and What’s Love are the finisher ballads, vocally pleasing and leaving a sweet aftertaste. My favorite characteristic of this pop masterpiece is probably how detail-oriented and satisfying the whole thing is, how Empress Of utilizes her vocals and transforms them into all sorts of instruments (I’ll elaborate on this further a bit later), the little Timbaland inspired “hah”s and the “tch”s, the harmonies, my brain processing how all of it comes together. In an era of music where so much is stripped down, and all the nostalgic elements being brought back are some of the easiest ones to replicate, it fills me up with joy to see maximalism of this kind being understood and slowly making a comeback in practice. “Satisfying” is truly the way to put it about For Your Consideration. Nothing unnecessarily over the top or unfitting, but no missing keys or details. So grateful that this album got me through the whole first half of the year, nothing could’ve set the tone better for me.

Favorite track: Fácil (track review here).

② Quantum Baby - Tinashe

Quantum Baby earning the silver medal didn’t come as a surprise to you if you’ve been hanging around this blog for a while, I’ve been an avid fan of Tinashe for years, and prequel BB/ANG3L took the #5 spot on my 2023 album awards. You already know by now that I’ve been WAITING for that sequel ever since Tinashe announced that BB/ANG3L was part of a trilogy, so rather than a personal timeline, it would make sense to skip over to witnessing the virality of lead single Nasty. It’s first teased on an Instagram livestream, us SweeTees start humming “is somebody gonna match my freak?”, the song is released, SweeTees keep humming, but we turn around and the whole World Wide Web is humming “is somebody gonna match my freak?” too? Brilliant freestyle-turned-sound bite aside, I’ve seen Nasty being described as combining the best of Tinashe’s older music and newer music, and that couldn’t be more true. The dark-leaning, relatively minimal production of her mixtapes, Nightride and Joyride eras meets the danceability and infectious bars of her 333 bops and BB/ANG3L track Needs. The rollout got followed up with the 2-step Getting No Sleep, possibly less plausible to the mainstream but something that real music enjoyers like me (:3) appreciated. It has that hypnotizing quality, drums and synths/pads wise, that I always immediately cling onto as you can clearly sense, and the topline wasn’t any less catchy either, so it didn’t take long for me to already fully indulge in the music the era had to bring us. When the album dropped and I got to listen to it, what I really appreciated is how experimental it was, how much was dabbled in without hesitation, without losing the plot or that Tinashe essence. No Simulation is the drum-free opener with a fire bass line right off the bat, with the heavenly harmonies more in the spotlight than ever, almost as if it belongs on Miniseries 2. Thirsty… Thirsty… save me crunchy trap song with beautiful, beautiful vocal moments… Red Flags doesn’t fall short on the beauty, it has that distorted synth line that strongly reminds me of Oklou’s work on Galore, which is a vibe I’ve wished I came across more frequently. Next up is the Jersey drill Cross That Line that kicks off with choir vocals and continues subtly too, and When I Get You Alone is an R&B/trap masterclass at the Tinashe School of Two Songs In One with both parts making you move like Homer Simpson in that one GIF. No Broke Boys is the Needs of this season, with its lyrics serving as daily affirmations, and the track later rightfully being pushed as a single. As I mentioned, the songs went in such different directions, in ways you can feel if you listen to the album and fully comprehend if you listen to Tinashe’s previous projects, and that alone felt so fresh and invigorating Quantum Baby instantly became one of my favorite projects from Tinashe and 2024.

With that being said, the aspect that made me more interested in and attached to this project is what it means to Tinashe herself. In BB/ANG3L, she consistently used water as a metaphor for reaching your own essence and getting purified, free from self-doubt, bind to the past and fakeness; and reflected said themes in her lyrics. Thematically, Tinashe follows similar themes in Quantum Baby as you may guess from the title, as in getting to your own core and coming across contradictions and intermediate states between strength and vulnerability in the process, akin to the Schrödinger’s quantum paradox, for example. Not only can we go on and on about how thought out album trilogies are so back and how important it is to map out your themes, concepts and creative direction well (which she evidently never fails to do), but I also wanna touch on how her self-discovery as an artist and person really shows in her craft. For decades, Tinashe has been a polymath from singing and dancing to producing in engineering, pioneering musical trends and influencing many, yet somehow the only repetitive thing about her music is her commitment to excellence. Whenever she drops an album or EP, it never entirely consists of sounds or visuals she’s done previously, everything new from her is refreshing and either causing a buzz (like Nasty or 2 On) or worthy of causing one, and it’s especially noticeable with Quantum Baby. 2024 treated Tinashe like the queen she is, she deserves her success and more, and I will be anticipating all the more to come.

Favorite track: Thirsty (track review here).

① Dennis - Sega Bodega

Finally, what the readers of this series have probably been anticipating: the review of my favorite album of 2024. To my mutuals, the top spot has been obvious long before I even knew the album was even in the works, simply because it was gonna be a Sega Bodega album, his third album. I’ve mentioned numerous times that Sega is my favorite producer of all time, though I don’t remember if I’ve ever elaborated on it. If I were to put it simply and with a pinch of humor, his brain fascinates me. The way his whole sound design speaks to me from the distorted keys to the reverberating drum patterns, his seamless incorporations of samples from the most random clips and sounds, his surreally gorgeous album and concept building, his artistry and loyalty to the distinctive and unseen before… all so entrancing to me. I’ve played the life of Romeo, Salvador, self*care EP, hell, even the in-between singles such as Arena! with Safety Trance and mimi (no, that’s not where my nickname comes from) or the classics such as Ess B EP and Nivea, his entire discography basically, so I was seated since, like, 2022. I’ve said this about countless projects, but I mean it with each and every single one of my neurons when I say this about Dennis, my already high expectations were blown. I’d like to share this excerpt from Sega’s PAPER Magazine interview (which I highly, highly suggest reading as well as these three articles) that precisely describes his three albums and his evolution:

Dennis continues his artistic development which has steadily moved skyward. Bodega's first album, the darkly intimate 2020 Salvador, was a brooding haunt through a dimly lit bedroom. On it, his deep voice beckoned the listener towards the heathenish. His follow-up, Romeo, seemed to fly out of the bedroom and perch itself on the top of a nearby building. The floaty, angelic project circled the sacred and profane as songs like Only Seeing God When I Come and Angel On My Shoulder merged the physical body with the transcendent. Dennis, though, seems to forgo the world as we know it for the one we experience in our dreams. A floaty, at times euphoric, at times nightmarish journey through the subconscious, Dennis is an exploration of surprising association, the kind of expansive logic that only makes sense in your dreams.

Yup, before we get into my rambles about the songs themselves, let’s discuss the collective consciousness theory and “sleep” as a literary theme, because looking into Sega Bodega discussing this and doing research on the topic alone is something that staggered me entirely and pushed me to think and process a lot of my outlooks and feelings on life. Dennis was titled partially in the sake of two unrelated comic debuts titled Dennis the Menace in the US and UK. This ties into “collective consciousness”, which claims all of our brains are pumped the same information while we sleep, causing uncanny “coincidences”, if we can even call them such. Dissociation and the sleep cycle are core components of the album’s world, which is reflected in hypnosis inducing intro Coma Dennis, its alarm-like follow up Adulter8 and somniloquy samples by Rick Farin in Dirt and Humiliation Doesn’t Leave a Mark.

Now onto the sonics, as mentioned, Adulter8 hits you like an alarm with its distorted 8-bit melody, possibly even causing a headache for some, but as the song progresses, you can’t help but get lost in the echo-y background chords. Next is Elk Skin, third (technically fourth) single from the album rollout, which starts off with a trap beat and transitions into a combo of reggaeton and acoustic guitar, is the most pop-like the album gets, but remains incredibly distorted and modified especially on the vocals provided by Cecile Believe. Kepko was released in 2022 and remains one of Sega’s personal favorites and “most fun he’s ever had making music” to this day, comprised of reversed and chopped up vocals and fast, repeated drum loops, and the atmospheric, warped feel deems it perfectly fitting for the album. Dirt is calming post the chaos of the predecessor two tracks, leaning towards hazy progressive trance and 2-step. I reviewed Deer Teeth instead of Set Me Free, I’m an Animal in my winter 2024 favorite singles review, and I still feel like I did it injustice, because it came to me at a time in my life when I needed something comforting and freeing in its darkness, and the track didn’t fall short, maybe because of its minimal echoing guitar-heavy production, maybe because of its lyricism. True, the final single, is a stunning maze of various sounds with three key changes and a beautiful chorus by KUKII fka Lafawndah. With every key changes, the song steps into a higher ground, becoming more and more celestial and incorporating choir vocals. Tears & Sighs is a rather cold and unwelcoming goodbye, with the abrupt guitar intro flowing into softer but bleak chords and Sega’s voice pitched deeper than ever singing “Heaven stays on burning but that’s none of your concern / You reduced my wings to bone ‘cause they were never yours to earn” and later “Said our goodbyes, these tears and sighs, who even are you anyway? / Don’t talk to me, don’t even look at me, I want to”. Humiliation Doesn’t Leave a Mark is a journey, it’s heavy on the violins and vocals, it has an astonishing beat drop and chorus, its vocals (featuring Kiss Facility bandmate Mayah Alkhateri) are whispery and minimal, and its instrumental interludes are mesmerizing. Coma Salv is the instrumental final, reminiscent to me of deep sleep and the music box loop I’d hear past 11 PM on the kids’ cartoon channel when I was a kid, tying the unconsciousness/subconscious theme together.

In this review, I’ve been reciting “world-building, world-building, world-building” like I’m trying to cast a spell to levitate an alien’s couch, but in my defense, I’ve been emphasizing it relentlessly because it’s been lacking in the music world overall, in an industry where musicians are plastering unrelated singles together, pushing barely-mixtapes as “albums” and putting no thought into what meaning and beauty the barely-mixtapes carry as a whole. Projects like the ones mentioned in this post give me hope for artists creating portals with their projects again. Sega Bodega and all of the ingenious artists I’ve praised here give me hope for the future of music. For the return of proper utilization of song lengths instead of cropping them all to 2 minutes out of convenience, for the collective courage to try the uncommon and lead instead of follow, for complex emotions and situations to be expanded on and shown not told. For albums, for art, for thought and for distinction. I don’t think I can grasp some musicians’ craftsmanship entirely due to my lack of technical knowledge on music theory, so I guess it’s natural for me to continue to be impressed, but on occasions you can be certain when someone is universally outstanding. Sega Bodega is a mastermind.

Favorite track: Adulter8 (track review here). Song of the year. Song of forever.

I wanna apologize to all potential readers for keeping you waiting this long, the post took me a lot of energy and mental capacity to make, and I always tell myself I’ll do a better job juggling it with my personal schedules, so I appreciate anyone that could be on the lookout for my writing. Thank you so much for reading and possibly enjoying the music I show love to, I see it as the way my mutuals here and I share our love and joy. May 2025 continue to be a year where full bodies are work are appreciated and put effort into creating and understanding.

[sailtomarina]

Seven days a week

What Hermione craved more than anything else in the world at the moment was the hot silkiness of espresso, chocolate, and milk coating her tongue and sliding down her throat. She knew just the place.

She’d discovered the cafe a little under a month ago before her work trip to the Americas—a nondescript exterior, humble interior, extremely limited seating, and the smoothest roasts she had ever experienced. Their coffee redefined her very notion of the word, rewriting the atrocious imitations at Hogwarts, Three Broomsticks, and even the Leaky Cauldron, who all seemed to put more priority into butterbeer and other popular wizard beverages. She considered her discovery love at first sip, and her later time spent in the U.S. cemented her passion for the caffeinated drink which started her morning seven days a week. Coming back to Britain, she paid for addiction dearly in the form of incessant cravings that the mediocre offerings of other establishments failed to fulfill.

So, she returned to M. Coffee. 

It was while she waited in line to make her order that she noticed him. The shock of white blonde hair, trimmed perfectly and falling just right over his forehead, shone like a beacon in the tiny building. Draco Malfoy sat in elegant repose, one hand resting on his lap, occasionally bringing his mug up to his lips, and the other turning the pages of The Daily Prophet. If she angled herself just so, she could pull off pretending to miss him sitting at the far edge of the counter the way he was.

“Miss? Do you know what you would like?” The young woman standing behind the till blinked innocently at her, waiting for Hermione’s order. She wore a cheery red apron and a pin in the shape of a cup with ‘Daisy’ printed on it.

“I’ll take a large dark chocolate mocha, no whip, with a bit of cinnamon.”

“Certainly. Can I interest you in any of our boosters?”

Hermione followed the girl’s nod towards a board she hadn’t noticed before, one listing out a variety of different drink enhancements. The options included focus, energy, and stamina. A note at the bottom promised four hours of efficacy, which seemed like quite a long duration to Hermione. She would’ve expected maybe an hour at most. There were dedicated potions that didn’t last even half as long as one of these drinks.

“I’m good, thanks.” Glancing behind her and seeing no one, she let her curiosity get the best of her. “Have you tried these boosters?”

Daisy grinned knowingly as she prepared her drink. “I have. They’re Ministery-approved, if that’s what concerns you.”

“They are?” Hermione couldn’t help the disbelief that bled into her voice.

“Yup,” Daisy confirmed, “Boss wouldn’t have it any other way. Does everything by the books and triple checks it all himself.”

It wasn’t until the girl handed Hermione a bright red mug with cinnamon dusted across the foam that she realized she had forgotten to specify takeout. There was nothing for it, she supposed, then to sit as far away from Malfoy as possible and hope he didn’t notice her.

She had nearly drained the delicious concoction when a voice, low and confident, slid into her reverie.

“How’s the drink?”

Of course Malfoy would notice her. She should have shaved off her head, or dyed it Weasley red. She took one last swallow of her mocha before turning to face him. Sliding her eyes up his disgustingly fit form encased in a suit that would do the front cover of Vogue justice, she fixed on his eyes, just as strikingly grey as she remembered. What surprised her, however, was the way they crinkled at the edges with his smile. It wasn’t the cruel smirk of their childhood, or even the suggestive leer he used more as they got older. His expression appeared genuinely curious, and the openness of it disarmed her as readily as a well-placed expelliarmus.

“I must be dreaming.”

His brow crinkled in confusion, but he followed with a laugh and another question. “Why do you say that?”

“Draco Malfoy is asking Hermione Granger about her drink and looks like he actually wants to hear the answer.”

“Does Hermione Granger now speak exclusively in the third person?”

“She may be using it as some kind of twisted defense mechanism.”

They stared at one another for a silent beat before they both burst into laughter. She wasn’t sure what was going on and why he was talking to her, but she was in too good of a mood to let Malfoy ruin it. Oddly enough, she felt in a better mood now than earlier.

“The drink is lovely and I could drink it every day,” she conceded.

He looked inordinately pleased by her answer, and she couldn’t help but want to know more.

“Why do you ask?”

He cocked his head with a strange expression now on his face, and Hermione felt a bit of her old reservations spring up. Had she missed something obvious? He gestured toward her cup with an elegant wave of his wrist. The scarlet mug was just as empty as before, the ‘M’ on the side clearly displayed.

M, as in M. Coffee.

She returned her gaze sharply towards him, mouth agape.

“I’m surprised you didn’t realize from the start, Granger. This is my coffee shop.”

“But it’s so small,” she said accusingly, as if the very word offended her.

There was that smirk. Only this time, it wasn’t at her but somehow included her. “I happen to like small. I don’t plan on ever expanding, no matter how successful this place becomes. I just want to keep making limited batch roasts to my exact specifications and starting every morning with a cup and a newspaper.”

Hermione studied him as he spoke, noticing for the first time the relaxed slant of his shoulders that once seemed permanently tense. She hadn’t seen him much in the past handful of years after school. She knew they had each pursued masteries, and that they were both single—Witch Weekly couldn’t get enough coverage of the eligible bachelor.

She wanted to know more.

Gathering her courage felt as natural as breathing, no matter how much her nerves spiked and her brain screamed at her that this might not be the greatest idea she’d ever had. M. Coffee served the best coffee in Britain and Draco Malfoy was a puzzle she wanted to solve.

“Well, consider me a regular customer. I don’t think I can start my days without one of your drinks.” Her eyes darted to the clock on the wall and back to him. He maintained eye contact the entire time, lips curled into yet another strange smile she had never seen on him before. “I’ll be here every morning at 8 A.M.”

“I’m honored by your patronage.”

She nodded and stood to leave. When she made to bus her own mug, he stepped forward to meet her, large hands barely brushing hers in the exchange. The brief touch was cool, and she wondered how his hand would feel cupped against her flushed face.

“Thank you.” She tried to keep her voice firm, but a tiny tremble might have slipped through with the way he looked at her.

“Thank you, and I’ll see you tomorrow morning.”

“8 A.M.”

“Indeed.”

She spun around and fled as her courage flagged and she nearly continued the ridiculous verbal exchange. She didn’t see the way he watched her leave, the smile he maintained long after she was no longer in sight, nor the contemplative look he held before nodding decisively. He planned to see her everyday, just as she had stated, seven days a week.

Beyond that? Well, Hermione wasn’t the only one who liked a challenge.

WC 1298 Twitter prompt from @DramionePrompts

[queen-of-writing-bad-things]

Henry Danger Reader Insert | Captain Man x Reader: SEASON 5

Episode 11: Grand Theft Otto (SMUT)

*heyyyyyyyyy, guess who's bringing sexy back? and two chapters in a row no less. this smut was born from my inability to think of how else to start the chapter, a reluctance to write eight whole minutes with no (y/n) present, a trip to victoria's secret and a lot of piano music with ambient rain sounds (my secret to writing freestyle). 

word of warning, this smut does include some even more mature themes than usual that are discussed but not fully played out (not yet) and i know they're not for everyone, so just be aware of that, exploring different things for different people :)

as always my dudes: don't like the boom-boom then skip ahead until the next warning because this one uses bad words, bad ideas and a lot of the stuff grown-ups do in the real world. Have fun :) *

There was something to be said about couples who lived through the night and slept all of the day. 

They were made of tough stuff. It was almost essential, anyone who went against the body's natural clock needed a certain level of resilience just to struggle through the inconsistent sleeping patterns. That's why (y/n) sometimes liked living underground; you can sleep at any time when the sun doesn't shine. 

But not always.

She missed windows. She missed nice scenery. She missed having a front door and porch, a backyard most of all. How nice would it be if she could wake up in the morning and let the fresh air in instead of a mound of dirt and earthworms?

Maybe it was petty; after all, the Man Cave was great and she'd been promised compensation later down the line. Ray wanted his sweet girl to live in a palace but his bank account would never stretch that far, so a quiet little house in the country would have to do. One where their family would have space to grow unhindered. That was a far-off dream but he swore that the next place he had would have a great view. Maybe a mountain or the cityscape. Something that spoke a little more than stone walls.

And yet very occasionally, not too often thanks to their patchy sleep schedule, there came a day where the view in the Man Cave wasn't so bad after all.

The past two weeks had been hell. Emergencies left, right and centre, people begging down the phone line for help, which sometimes Captain Man, Miss Danger and Kid Danger could give and sometimes they couldn't. Like, when the old lady phoned up asking if they could help her play bingo, they had to grit their teeth and politely say no. But when there was an explosion at the paint factory, they had to go check it out... and discover that once household paint goes on, it doesn't come off.

Fast forward another thirteen days of many showers and a bottle of paint stripper, things had calmed down, leaving Henry a free afternoon at home and the loving couple to crash until midday. For fourteen hours, they slept, dead to the world to the point where when they finally did wake fully rested, they realised how they hadn't had any personal time.

A man couldn't live without his sweet girl and a woman couldn't live without her doofus, so as Ray pottered around the bathroom, having dragged himself from their pit of blankets muttering something about needing to shave the last two weeks off, (y/n) found herself feeling...generous. 

Of course, she was a patient woman. Hell, she'd waited ten years for her perfect man, so she knew when the right time to strike was. But goddamn, normally, she would've called herself an animal, a degenerate, because standing in front of the mirror with a new set of lingerie on, waiting for her husband-to-be so she could give him a heart attack was just not how things usually ran.

However, (y/n) had to admit, she looked hot—and it was a great confidence booster. 

White lace and silk smoothed over her boobs to push them in and upwards, creating the illusion that they were naturally sculpted to give her a perfect cleavage whilst also revealing taut, hardened nipples. Running down her waist and tummy was yet more lace, sheer and soft as it formed a corset to highlight her shape. 

She hummed softly in her throat when the underwear was pulled high over her curves, her core getting slick at the mere thought of Ray mouthing over her clit just to pull it down and have his fill. She'd chosen this set with him in mind; garters and stockings weren't her thing but seeing him lose his mind was too good to resist, so they sat mid-thigh, clipped to the corset where they'd inevitably stay since he fucked with them on, no exceptions. 

Once upon a time the girl who stared back at her would think she was mad and strip it back off along with the light coat of mascara and lipstick she'd put on, but now, she was loving it. And the best thing? Ray would lose his mind. 

No mad scramble to the bed, no way. She'd never seen a Victoria's Secret Angel jog down the runway so she delicately placed herself on the bed, thinking about how she should sit—lie—pose—how did people do this? Laying down made her feel dumb, after all, she wanted to see Ray's face. Sitting felt too formal, like she was waiting for a board meeting or something, so she went for a mix of both, which she guessed was posing. 

In the middle of the bed, she stretched out her legs, crossing them at the ankles to make them seem longer and her hips even more mouth-watering. Her chest pushed out as she leaned back with her arms behind her to stay propped up and it felt like an eternity spent waiting for the faucet to turn off and the humming to finish. 

The thong was starting to dampen and her hips rolled by themselves in response, thighs rubbing together because it had been so long since she felt his breath between her legs, his hands roaming up her back, his cock between her lips. She was desperate but patience would make everything worthwhile.

In the bathroom, Ray had spent the last half an hour in limbo. He'd started shaving, just as he'd promised since Captain Man didn't look as appealing sporting a hobo beard, despite his precious girl's insistent pleas that it made him look tough and rugged. 

More like it would make her thighs burn when he finally got a chance to settle himself between them and taste that sweet pussy of hers. God, her thighs, her tight cunt, her perfect tits, he'd missed them. 

He'd missed her in general; even though they'd still spent every waking second in each other's presence, it was hard to be romantic when you were driving to an accident, getting a fat guy out of a drive-thru window, eating on the way back, napping for half an hour, only to go out again. They'd barely had enough energy to talk, let alone fuck, and dear god, he was desperate. 

He wanted to roll her over and push into her blazing heat that morning, wake her up right and pull orgasm after orgasm out of her until he'd caught up on every one they'd missed, but he'd held back. It didn't matter if he was hard, leaking, and in need of attention; he figured that, after such an arduous few days, (y/n) needed rest, and even his gentlest pace wouldn't give her that.

Not that it would be gentle. He wanted it hard and fast and dirty, so he'd removed himself from her arms before her bleary eyes and fuzzy mind could remember that his aching cock had been pushed up against her slit all night.

One cold shower later and he was fresh-faced and smooth-cheeked, but not a satisfied man. He'd tried to take the edge off, had wrapped a hand around himself to find release but had bitten his lip to smother his frustrated groans when it just wasn't enough. He needed wide eyes, soft moans and a perfect hole to empty his balls into, so he just had to wait for his hard-on to go down under the freezing spray since he wasn't prepared to bear down on his sweet girl simply because he had the libido of a seventeen-year-old.

So, when he left the bathroom with nothing more than a towel around his waist, he certainly didn't expect the sight that awaited him. 

"Hey, sweet girl, should we make some pancakes or order Sushi Dushi? 'Cause it's lunchtime but I'm feeling like—holy shit..." Food was no longer on his mind as he entered the bedroom and took in the vision that was waiting for him on the bed. 

His sweet, sweet girl, sat on the bed like a goddess clad in lace and silk with her doe-like eyes trained on him as her lower lip was pulled between her teeth. Her breathing was shallow as he watched one hand trail from the comforter, snake between her thighs and into her panties to begin teasing her clit, all the while maintaining eye contact. 

All the blood in his body rushed south as he watched with a dry mouth and empty brain, wondering what he did to deserve an angel like her before snapping out of his trance. 

As much as he loved the sheer eroticism of it, that job was his and his alone and any of her pleasure came from his mouth, his hands or his cock, which was back to being like granite now that his eyes raked down her form. Shit, her tits looked so good, he wanted to bite, suck and squeeze them until she was writhing, begging for him to move onto her soaked pussy.

"Fuck, baby—I—fuck, is this all for me?"

"Mhmm, wanted to look pretty for you...and I'm so wet too. You took too long, Captain," she whined, intensifying the stroking of her fingers to increase the heavenly pressure on her clit, which seemed so swollen and throbbing after sitting on the bed for too long. Ray swallowed thickly at her words and stared darkly at her clothed pussy, watching until his mouth was set into a firm line. She knew his rules.

"This is pretty, little one, you look so fucking hot. But that's my pussy you're touching," he murmured, stalking towards the bed as she continued to work herself, only to drag it from her panties at a slow, teasing pace when he was within touching distance.

"'M sorry, sir, I couldn't help it. I woke up and knew I needed your cock in me...but you weren't in bed," she smirked and raised her slick fingertips to her mouth, tongue dipping out to taste them as he leaned down to loom over her, eyes never leaving hers. However, a soft gasp fell from her lips when strong fingers curled around her wrist, the sudden skin-on-skin contact feeling like fire, and he pulled it up to his mouth instead. "Where were you? Why did you leave me when I'm so needy?"

"Needed to shave, sweet girl. Although I have to admit, the idea of fucking you did cross my mind," he whispered smugly before closing his lips around her digits, moaning when his tongue caught her sweet taste as he sucked it off, much to her delight. 

(y/n) smirked as his eyes fluttered closed, aching already from the small glimpse into the pleasure he'd been denied, and she saw no problem in reaching up to his hidden length that was twitching under the towel and tracing her fingers over the leaking head. The reaction was instant, a guttural groan that vibrated against her fingers and a fire in his eyes when they finally met again. 

"I needed it, still do. It's been too long—and I've been saving this to try and seduce you," the woman breathed out as he pushed her shoulders gently down to the mattress so he could trap her against the soft cotton and explore the gorgeous number she'd donned. It had been shoved in her wardrobe for a special occasion rather than a boring, Saturday afternoon, but it would still be thoroughly enjoyed and that's what mattered, especially when his hands started twitching from not knowing where to start.

It was like he was a child struggling to contain his Christmas excitement; he wanted to leave her cunt until last, that way it would draw out the pleasure until it was painful for both of them to wait any longer. Her tits looked almost too perfect to grab roughly and he was torn between keeping them trapped in the white material or freeing them for his use. He wanted to run his tongue over them as her legs with those fucking hot suspenders closed around his waist, wanted to take her over and over again until she was ruined for any other cock.

"It's working, darlin'. I wanna fuck you so bad, wanna make you remember who you belong to—who belongs to you." A squeal left her throat when he pinched her nipple through the lace, a slap landing on the same tit, not a second later, which had her back arching into him. 

Her hand reached for the towel still tied around his waist and with one hard yank, its knot unravelled, freeing his cock so it rested on her clothed cunt with its underside rubbing against her slit. Ray hadn't expected her to be so sudden and his hand closed around her throat loosely, allowing him to tilt her head up until she had no choice but to look him in the eye for what she'd done.

He roamed down her body, biting the top of her breasts and licking to soothe the flesh when his teeth pierced it, her fingers tugging at his hair when he kneaded her tits roughly. It wasn't enough to satisfy the burning in her core, not even when he leaned down to mouth at her nipples through the lace but when she begged him to remove the barrier, thinking that it had done its job of making her look beautiful, he refused.

"Take it off, Ray. I—I need—-it's not fair that I can't feel you!"

"Fuck, no, sweet girl. You look so damn hot in this, I ain't taking it off. I'm gonna fuck you like this and you'll take it, won't you?" He growled at her whining and trailed a hand over lace and silk, over her hips, over her tummy and her mound to the soaked, sorry excuse for underwear. "You'll take anything I give you and love it because I know this little pussy just needs filling. That's what makes you run your mouth at me."

Ray had always known that he leaned more towards lace than leather, preferred innocence over sex kitten, but damn, he couldn't help but fall in love with the way she exuded both sexuality and purity. Had he not taken that innocence over and over again since that first night, he wouldn't have known that she was as dirty as he was, as shown when she pouted innocently even when he rubbed sudden, rough circles over the satin and her clit. 

The ensuing moans that fell from her lips were downright sinful, so was the wetness that aided his finger in pushing into her pussy and how she clamped down immediately, whining when he pulled it straight back out so cruelly. Her already bruised lip was tugged between her teeth again as she propped herself on her elbows to watch him slither down her body to come face-to-face with her most intimate area. His view was blocked by the thong but his eyes remained dark with his dilated pupils as he nuzzled against the soaked material, hot air blowing over her quivering thighs.

"Don't tease—don't tease...please."

"Just admiring what's mine, sweetheart," he murmured, taking his time to pull the thong tightly up her hips until the silk's stitching was snapping and popping, just so he could see how it cupped and pressed into her lips before pulling it aside to begin his assault. 

His mouth found her clit instantly, groaning when the sweetest honey taste flooded his mouth and his tongue ran through her folds to collect more. It danced around her opening before plunging in, tearing a scream from her throat as she held the thong for him in one hand, his hair in the other, allowing his hands to pin her thighs to the bed. 

She noticed how his fingers couldn't stop trailing and snapping the suspenders so they pricked at her skin, something she'd add to the long list of kinks he had when her mind was back in reality. A brief second of respite came when his tongue ceased exploring her walls to suck and slurp at her lips and then her clit harshly, only to return to fucking her not half a second later. She thought a punishment would be in line for her when her fingers left his head to rub her swollen nub furiously, chasing her orgasm as he got off on her wrecked gasps of pleasepleaseplease and hoarse moans of moremoremore. But it was actually quite the opposite.

"That's it, sweet girl. Rub this cunt, get it nice and wet and ready so I can drink you up when you cum," he growled from between her legs, stare pinning her down so she could do nothing but obey, "You want to cum, don't you?"

"Yes—yes, fuck, I wanna cum so bad!" "That's my good girl..." And so, Ray dived back in, wanting to see her wriggle and writhe under his grip so he could use the tidal wave of slick to push into her pussy with no resistance. She always came at least once before he did and the knowledge that she'd be left trembling but satiated gave him the strength to ignore how his cock and balls were begging for release. 

Honestly, he was surprised that he hadn't creamed the sheets yet like a teenager. Seeing her clad in so little lace should've made him, but he staved it off, reasoning that it would be better to cum deep in her pussy and feel her walls tighten around him than the soft nothingness of blankets. 

(y/n)'s fingers flickered harder as he increased his movements tenfold, moving his tongue in and out of her hole as he would if it were his cock, aiming for the spot that made her squirm and whine. He could feel it, her oncoming release, just from the way her walls quivered and her thighs juddered, trying to fight against the iron grip keeping them spread wide. 

A gentle shudder and then it was all over, core clenching tightly and gushing for his awaiting mouth as she kept stimulating her clit through her orgasm, screaming his name until her voice was ruined. Even when the wave mellowed and started to settle, he stayed drinking what he could, licking at her sensitive lips for the last drop of honey he could find because he had been starved and he was finally ready to have his fill again.

"Too—too much, baby—" "S'been two weeks since I last tasted this pussy, darlin'. Still fucking delicious," he said against her folds, practically raking his face through them one last time, focusing on her clit to electrify the nerves there, before pulling away to kneel on the mattress. Hungry eyes raked over her dishevelled form, ravished with her cunt exposed and twitching. It was fucking beautiful, but there was one thing missing.

"As gorgeous as you look in this, sweet girl, I wanna see those tits," Ray said gruffly and no sooner than he did, she scrambled to unfasten the corset and throw it to the side, but he stopped her, "fuckin' keep it on—that's it, push it down. Can't let you take this off, you pretty little thing, might just keep you in it permanently."

"You want the whole world to see me like this? Want them to see what's yours?" (y/n) asked, her eyes innocent but her smirk teasing as she carefully freed her chest of the lingerie, pushing the straps down her shoulders so the corset bunched around her tummy. 

And then, unable to stop herself as his gaze impossibly darkened further, she reached forward for his hard length, giving it a teasing tug, licking her lips when a choked moan and stuttered thrust betrayed the control he loved to have. Thin ice.

"Dirty girl—" he snapped and brushed her hand away, although she didn't have to pout for long, "hands and knees, ass in the air for me." 

A smile broke out on her when he flipped her over with ease and she scrambled to do as he said. Arching her back, she wiggled her hips for him, unashamedly presenting her needy cunt for him just as he'd asked. She looked over her shoulder so she could see his every twitch when shown the hole he was going to fuck raw. 

"You ready for me, sweet girl? Ready for this cock that belongs to you?" Ray snarled, rubbing his dripping head from her clit to her entrance, coating himself in her slick. It was always a squeeze trying to get his fat cock in there but when he was finally balls deep, it was always worth the effort. She fit like a fucking glove, still tight as though he hadn't fucked her nearly every day since the day she said yes but it was definite that she was ruined for anyone else, almost moulded to fit him.

"Yes, so fucking ready...always," the woman whined, holding the thong to the side for dear life as he broke into her, splitting her apart inch by inch until he was at the hilt, balls pressed tightly to her clit as he gave her a moment to adjust to being so full.

"Fuck—fuck, you're always so tight, little one. Like you've never even been fucked—" he said throatily, snapping his hips into hers in small thrusts, trying to stay deep and go slow until he couldn't resist the temptation to go harder, faster, give her what she needed, "But we both know that's not true, right? We both know that you're not innocent."

It didn't even register in her mind that one hand had stopped kneading her jiggling ass until a loud crack broke through the symphony of flesh slapping flesh, grunts and quiet yelps. His hand came down hard on her right cheek and she clenched around him unintentionally, proving him right. She loved it, loved being his dirty little girl underneath her kind smiles and helpful nature, loved relinquishing her sharp mind to be his slut for hours on end. 

Her arms collapsed as he kept up the relentless pace, cock being squeezed in a vice-like grip that had his vision clouding until nothing but her and his end were in mind. A soothing hand ran down her back and pushed her head into the mattress and she knew that he wanted her to stay down and keep showing him her pussy and allow him to fuck it how he wanted.

"Show me this pussy properly, darlin'. Y'know I love this getup but fuck—gotta see it," he rambled, clawing at the thong that was so small that it made fire lick up his spine, but it was in the way. He wanted her bare and shaking after weeks of nothing, so he reluctantly pulled out of her warmth for a brief moment and teased it over her ass. Frantically, her hands came up to her sides to help him yank to about mid-thigh, just enough for him to continue freely, but damn, if the sight of her didn't do something to him.

"Fuck..." he groaned lowly as he pushed back in and began a slow, deep pace, building up to what they'd been going at before when he felt a familiar urge come over him.

It was filthy, taboo, even wrong perhaps, something they'd joked about when drunk but never discussed because it was the thing for young couples to try out or pornstars to show off. Not something he'd ever expect a girl as sweet as her to consider or allow. This was his primal urge to bury deep down and keep to himself, but fuck, when she curved her back again to push her ass up further, he couldn't restrain himself.

His hand ghosted over her asscheek as it normally would, squeezing at her supple flesh as he rocked into her, balls slapping her clit as they swayed. And as his thumb pressed into the crevice, that's when it brushed over her forbidden, puckered rim. His abs tensed as he did, imagining what it would be like to fuck her there, not that he ever would because he respected her far too much, but he still gulped. Especially when she hummed a high-pitched whine and clenched the halo of muscle. Fuck...

"S-sorry, shit—shit, god, I...sorry—" he stumbled an apology, picking up her curiosity and interrupting it as discomfort or even fear. So, naturally, he backed off, stuttering his thrusts as he jerked his hand away like it had touched fire. He hoped that in the haze of pleasure, she'd forget about the slip-up--forget about how he almost lost it when he had both holes on show in the warm light, but how could she? 

(y/n) swallowed thickly, having felt the minuscule touch and found herself...interested.

Ray had a list of kinks and preferences as long as her right leg three times over; he loved being on top but he also loved being ridden. He loved taking her anywhere, anytime. He loved using the filthiest, most vulgar dirty talk, and he adored making sure his partner felt safe.

But this—this was new and hell, he didn't need to be sorry or scared. She was up for trying anything with him once.

"No..no, s'okay, s'okay—you can touch it," she whispered and angled her hips backwards, pushing her pussy further down his length and also offering herself up. She wanted this, wanted to explore and try it out.

Ray almost fainted at her words, having anticipated silence or rejection but never acceptance and it broke the frayed thread that his self-control had been hanging onto. If the spank from earlier had been hard, this one was rough, harsh, brutal, sounding like lightning the moment his hand hit her ass because fuck; he knew she was filthy but not this filthy.

"Dirty—dirty fucking girl. Never thought you were such a filthy, cock-hungry—never thought you'd let me touch it," the hero punched out, his voice wrecked and gravelly and so damn hot. His pace increased to a soul-shattering bangbangbang, forcing the air from her lungs as he abused her slobbery cunt and more. 

He traced over her back entrance, teasing it lightly, never using any pressure so she could get used to the sensation and he kept an eye on her every movement, looking for any sign that she didn't like it, but judging by how she seemed wetter than before and how she was whimpering and suffocating his cock, she needed more, not less.

"I'll let you do anything—anything—shit, you can put a finger in there if you want—" she offered, not expecting him to take her up on that offer because this was a new idea after all, but Ray...Ray thought he'd died and gone to heaven. 

His hips slowed down and a hand cradled one side of her pelvis as the other ran up the curve of her cheek, trembling from how turned on he was. It truly was a miracle that he hadn't cum yet given how tight his balls felt but dear god, he was gonna hold off. Maybe for only five seconds or less, but he was gonna because his thumb was circling her asshole.

"Hottest girl I've seen, sweet girl, so damn sexy..." he muttered, thrust quickening to increase the pleasure as he pressed against the tight hole, breaking through the natural resistance until he was poking in, "Fuck—so tight, just like your pussy. You ever take it back here, sweetheart?"

There was a hesitant edge to his voice like he wasn't sure if he wanted to know the answer because it would mean that she'd once had a similar level of trust with someone else, but he couldn't help it. He had to know.

"N-no. Dre—some have tried but I would—wouldn't let them... I'd let you, though," she whispered as he suddenly slid all the way in, right down to the last knuckle until his thickest digit was buried deep inside of her. The impropriety of it was eating her up alive and she clenched, feeling deliciously stuffed full as his cock split her open and his thumb gave her something else to squeeze. 

Ray was certain that he was moments away from orgasm, reeling from how...dirty it felt, how...right, not just from the image of fucking a hole that would be tighter than her tiny pussy but knowing that he was the only man she'd ever let near her—and he knew most of the men she'd dated, some more than others.

"That right? You'd let me fuck—let me fuck your tight, virgi—" He choked at the idea and slammed his hips into her ass jaggedly, feeling his thumb rub against those forbidden walls and a wave of panic washed over him when he felt his end appear on the horizon, hurtling towards him. No one else had ever made him cum uncontrollably but a squeeze of her core muscles and a grinding undulation of her hips to feel him brush up against her every wall and his hand was dashing to her clit to madly circle it.

"—Shit, shit—not gonna last, darlin'—need to cum in your pussy...can you cum on my cock?"

"Fuck, yes—gonna cum with your thumb so fucking deep and this perfect cock filling me up," (y/n) whined and began rocking backwards to meet his thrusts, not caring if her skin was sore from the constant slapping or if his fingers were sliding around her slick lips and frustrating her clit from the poor stimulation.

"F-fuck—-I love you—" was the last thing he said, garbled and stuck in his throat until he came with a devastatingly hoarse cry. Her pussy strangled his length as he made sure the snug fit couldn't be any closer and her body sucked him in when cum was pumped onto her walls as deep as it could go. The feeling of warmth flooding her womb caused her walls to flutter as she went over the edge too, rambling the phrase back as her cheek smushed against the mattress, body turning limp.

What felt like hours passed. Seconds, really, but eventually, Ray cleared the fuzziness in his mind, swept away the cobwebs and blink one, two, three times so he could see properly again. His sweet girl was slumped into the comforter, her body ready to fall if it wasn't for his brushing grip on her waist, which he instantly relinquished when he realised just how hard it was.

His thumb was slowly and gently removed from her second entrance, him being mindful of the pain of resistance now that they were coming down from their highs. A whimper left her mouth, probably unintentionally when it finally slipped free, and next came his cock. The moment the tip was away, he was quick to pull the thong up her thighs, intent on keeping his precious load in there for as long as possible, although he doubted it would stay with that string barely covering her folds.

And then, at last, she was released to snuggle into the bed, ass slumping with a bouncing crash. Her doofus returned from his dominant, dark side, keeping his sweet girl warm by cautiously spooning her. It was so cosy; her back was against his heaving chest as they laid there for a while before anyone spoke and when they did, it was his baritone in her ear.

"You okay?" Ray asked, his voice gruff but full of its usual goofy friendliness as he nuzzled into her neck and lovingly squeezed her breast—nothing sexual, just him holding whatever flesh he found.

"Yeah...that was intense," (y/n) replied, her voice also sounding raspy from the excessive screaming but still, she sounded happy as well. A content sigh left her lips as her eyes slid shut and although he didn't show it, she knew that the noise made him relax. Every time they tried something new, her lover always freaked out a little afterwards, but she was fine-- fucking blissed out, but how was he to know that?

"Yeah. Yeah, it was. Are you sure it was okay? It was...good?" Ever the worrier and people say she had problems with nerves. 

"I would've told you if it wasn't, doofus. I loved it like always...just didn't know you were into butt stuff," the woman held a light tone, trying to not sound negative or anything like that because he was trying so hard to make sure she was comfortable, a trait that made her fall deeper in love with him when they first started fucking.

"Not massively but...yeah. I've only ever wanted to do it with you, no one else was ever—y'know—curious. But if that was enough for you then, that's fine, sweet girl. We can stick to lingerie and handcuffs if that's what you wa—"

"Raymond, hush," she rolled in his arms until she was on her back and he was on his side looking down over her. Her poor lip was back between her teeth as their faces stayed close, noses brushing as her hand came up to lace their fingers together because they were in this together, after all, comfort came for both parties. "The lingerie is definitely staying since nothing gets you harder—"

"Seeing you naked gets me just as hard, sweetheart." Cocky bastard. Where was the fun in that? It was true that if she came out of the bathroom, fresh from the shower without a towel, he'd be all over her like a rash with any excuse to grope her but she enjoyed dressing up and waiting for him more than a surprise pouncing. She was a patient lady and the real fun happened when the roles were reversed and he was her prey.

"Whatever, you dork. My point is that I meant what I said. I'll let you do anything and that includes fucking me there too. As long as you don't forget my pussy when you do." An irresistible offer by all accounts and Ray's smirk grew in tandem with hers as her words sunk in. His perfect girl; sweet angel and little devil rolled into one.

"Don't think I'll ever forget this pussy, sweet girl. Not ever," he whispered his reply before placing his lips delicately on hers, his hand sliding down to rest over the lace bunched across her stomach to remind her that he never lost sight of what he adored.

The moment was peaceful. Tongues explored their mouths and tastes, remapping known territory lazily as they basked in their mid-afternoon, post-sex glow...right up until a rumble across his palm reminded them that it had been a good fifteen hours since they last ate. And the protector couldn't have his future wife hungry.

"What was that you said about pancakes earlier?" (y/n) asked as he pulled back with an amused smile, her wide-eyed, innocent look returning that had his cock twitching at the thought of them staring up from between his legs as she sucked—no, they were not doing this again. Down, boy. 

"Stay here, darling. I'll go make some," he promised her, pressing a kiss to her forehead as he untangled their lips and reluctantly rolled off the bed to find wherever he tossed his jeans last night when they fell into bed exhausted. Ray only bothered to tighten the belt after yanking them up, even forgoing underwear since he'd strip out of them and into fresh laundry when he returned with a tray of enough food to feed an army. 

First, he just had to make sure she was fed first because it was his instinct to. After all, this was merely practice for when they finally owned that quiet house with nice views, windows, a front door, a porch and a backyard, although he hoped that by then, they'd only be exhausted from running around after a few children.

*welp. that was a thing. i hope the more adventurous types enjoyed that, i did tbh. it's nice to do something different but from this moment forth, WE ARE SAFE AGAIN. fear not, the light will return and maybe even Ray's interest in "stuff "👀*

~

"Mmmm, god, these are good," (y/n) moaned as she shovelled mouthful after mouthful of fluffy pancakes and toppings into her face. Technically speaking, they were Ray's famous mancakes, fresh from the pan and made tall with all manners of syrups, fruits and chocolate chips. 

She was certain that there was way too much for one person on her plate but saw it as a personal challenge to finish the lot since it had been her doofus who'd made them just for her and it's not like she could feed him. He'd eat the odd mouthful she offered him, but how could he take food out of his starving girl's mouth? That was unthinkable.

"Keep making sounds like that and I'll make sure they taste even better, sweet girl," the hero smirked as he placed his plate on the couch table and came to slide in next to her. In the time it had taken the pancakes to cook, he'd gotten properly dressed and she'd replaced her slightly wrecked, definitely crumpled ensemble with simple cotton shorts and one of his huge t-shirts, stating that crime was low that day and it was not like they had places to be other than the Man Cave, so comfy-casual it was. 

Plus, Ray was a sucker for his sweet girl in his clothes, so he was happy to let her wander around taking in the beauty that was his fiancée, happy in their home with the food he'd made her, ready for a chill day.

And she hadn't followed his command of staying in bed, far from it; after ten minutes of scrolling through her phone, answering texts, emails and checking trashy news sites, she'd grown bored of the bedroom and wandered through to the kitchen to find her doofus cooking up a storm. He pouted when she hugged him from behind, saying that he wanted to make his beautiful future wife brunch in bed, but one comment about how she felt lonely apart from him and he was sold. 

They'd danced in the refrigerator light and said good afternoon to a smug Schwoz, who looked like the cat who got the cream for some reason until he made some reference to the entire hideout shaking from the way Ray fu—he was lucky he didn't get a punch to the teeth for that. So, now, they were in the main room, set to wait until they were needed, which meant an afternoon for movies. Or so (y/n) thought. 

"Come between me and my pancakes and we will be at war, doofus," she giggled and pointed her fork in his direction with the best serious face she could muster. No one could ruin this for her, but it was impossible to glare at him for so long when he was such a dork with his floppy hair, so a smile soon cracked the seriousness.

"I surrender, baby. You can keep the pancakes if it means I get a kiss," Ray fluttered his eyelashes like the lovable idiot he was and grinned when she quickly kissed him without hesitation, leaving the taste of honey and syrup to linger on his lips. The sweetness was enough to satisfy him for a while and as Schwoz pottered around the room, calibrating and tinkering, they fell into easy conversation, talking about anything and everything just as they had always been able to.

It wasn't until they were on their last pancake each that (y/n) said something that broke the peace and caused the universe to shift in a way that she could never have predicted. After all, who cared that much about moustaches?

"Hey, you know Jasper?"

"Yes, unfortunately, I know Jasper," Ray replied through a mouthful of pancake, his tone turning dark at the mention of the boy he loved to dislike. It wasn't even dislike at this point, it was just how their relationship functioned, but nevertheless, it made her roll her eyes.

"Whatever, doofus. Anyway, apparently, according to Charlotte, he grew a moustache when he was in Idaho," the heroine told him, not thinking anything of it since it was Jasper they were talking about and males grew facial hair every day, it's not like it was a new phenomenon. So, it wasn't until the clattering of Ray's fork on his plate that she looked up and saw her lover's wide-eyed, dare she say awed expression, complete with a trembling bottom lip. Was it something she said?

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Jasper, as in the Jasper, our Jasper, grew a moustache?" Ray blinked a few times and his hand came to circle his wrist in a firm grip. It wasn't enough to hurt but it captured her attention completely and (y/n) frowned at his strangely over-the-top reaction.

"Uh, yeah... I mean, I know it's weird because he was gone less than a week and one minute, they're our babies, collecting buckets and doing stupid stuff to impress girls, and the next, they're pubescent teenagers on the verge of adulthood and they have facial hair, but—" 

In all honesty, (y/n) could feel herself tearing up a bit at the thought of the teens growing up so suddenly because it had only felt like yesterday since they were still proper children. Now, they were grown, ready for their own lives and it's not like she was stupid—it had always been on the cards that they'd move on and become independent at some point but since when did she care like a mother losing her children? Someone needed to pass her a tissue but by the time she looked up, Ray was scrambling off the couch.

The last scraps of his breakfast were left to go cold when he rushed to the holo-caller as if his life depended on it. His very confused fiancée watched with knitted eyebrows as he punched in the code for Henry's watch and impatiently waited for the kid to pick up. No, no, it was fine, she wasn't sniffling over the idea of losing three family members because of life's natural flow, everything was good. At least she could distract herself when the boy finally picked up, looking all tall, and handsome and grown up. 

"Hey, what's up, man? We've got a little bit of a situation here—" Henry answered rather quickly, not at all phased by how excitable his boss seemed. After the disastrous afternoon he'd had, he wasn't in the mood for quick chitchat but there was something about the art of growing hair on their faces that made men go nuts.

"(y/n) told me Jasper has a moustache now. Lemme see it!" The hero exclaimed excitedly, not even picking up on the boy's hurried tone. (y/n) perked at the mention of the situation, wondering what the hell it could mean and found herself wandering from the couch and over to the machine, dipping in and out of frame as Ray shuffled from one foot to the other.

"Yeah. Jasper, come here," the kid looked at his friend and upon hearing his name, Jasper stepped across Henry's bedroom and smiled at Ray's grainy little body. 

Immediately, the hero laughed and clapped his hands in amazement, thinking that for once in his life, the weirdo was actually the coolest of his employees. He was a man who needed to be clean-shaven nearly all of the time and it was always thrilling to witness the power of testosterone pumping through a boy's veins to give him body hair. Definitely thrilling.

"Aw, Captain Man, that's a sweet 'stache! Sweet girl, have you seen Jasper's moustache?! Isn't it great?"

"Are you kidding me?!" Charlotte facepalmed at her boss' reaction, sounding like she had something in her mouth but (y/n) ignored it as she analysed his facial hair and came to the conclusion that yep, that thing right there, that was a moustache. Hair. On his lip. Good stuff. The professor was in the house tonight. 

"Yeah, awesome... Sorry, doofus, I can't lie to you, it's just a moustache. What's so great about it?" 

"Thank you, (y/n/n)! At last, someone has sense!" The woman's confused face put Charlotte at ease for the first time that night. Ever since Jasper had walked through the door and interrupted her and Henry's study session, it had seemed like the entire universe loved it. Henry, Piper, the police, everyone gave it high praise for reasons unknown to her, so it was nice to find a common ally. Ray, however, was unfazed by their unity and still sat happily on the opposite side of the fence.

"Schwoz, I just saw Jasper's 'stache! It's sweet!"

"Raymond, I have ears!" (y/n) winced as her doofus bellowed unnecessarily to the genius across the room, who quickly downed tools to scurry over and see this mythical creature for himself. Henry rolled his eyes at how his boss reacted and at how he didn't hesitate in bringing his sweet girl into a side hug as a subconscious apology, but it was the suddenly very crowded holo-call that took the biscuit.

"You like?" Jasper asked, stroking his upper lip with a smarmy expression.

"Yeah! That is a very manly lip schweater!" Schwoz nodded enthusiastically, the same wonderstruck look on his face as Ray, who was near the point of drooling as if he had his lover stood in front of him wearing his favourite dress on her. Their eyes were fixated, unable to look away as the girls' eyes met through the digital divide and it was like they shared the same thought at the same time.

"Has the whole world gone crazy?"

"Apparently so, yes..." (y/n) wrinkled her nose and shrugged, not at all impressed that her romantic breakfast—lunch—dinner—had been left for something as trivial as a moustache. She was also kicking herself for not getting dressed properly earlier as now that she wasn't being chased around the kitchen by Ray and a handful of pancake batter, the chilly AC of the Man Cave was giving her the shivers. The cotton t-shirt and shorts combo had been a mistake, so had forgoing socks and the mention of sweaters was a cruel tease.

"Crazy for Jasper's 'stache! You're getting a raise, buddy."

"Yes!" For Jasper, winning his boss' approval was a dream come true and it was certain that Ray was deadly serious. But, it wasn't just impressive that he'd forgotten about their love-hate relationship so easily, the way he seemed to sense his fiancé's discomfort was straight-up uncanny. 

Without looking down, it was like he could sense her goosebumps and unashamedly wrapped himself around her in a bear hug; long arms brought warmth to her body as they crossed her chest and the heroine sighed contently at the heat from having him pressed against her. That was better but not for long.

"Look, later on, we can all give some love to Jasper's lip sweater," Henry butted in, sounding a little too serious for (y/n)'s nerves. He was one of the lads, shouldn't he have been acting like a child too? And yet, as ever, Ray didn't pick up on any tenseness, he merely made plans to worship the little patch of fuzz as he'd worshipped his sweet girl that morning because both were a thing of beauty to be revered.

"Can and will!"

"Right now, we got a problem, okay? 'Cause Piper's talking bird found out that I'm Kid Danger, so now, we're hiding it in my closet so it doesn't tell the secret to everybody in Swellview!" The boy blurted out, spilling every last bean to his boss because he'd learned on every past occasion that lying about things like this made everything worse. 

Look, it wasn't his fault, technically, it was Charlotte's. When Piper brought her class parrot home, she'd warned them that it was capable of mimicking sounds, so the girl just had to open her mouth and say the dumbest phrase in the history of dumb phrases, leaving them with a massive problem on their hands. And to think, Ray and (y/n)'s afternoon had been so pleasant.

"You got yourself into quite a pickle, my friend!" Ray chuckled, although he was more nervous than amused. Releasing a sigh, (y/n) massaged her temples and tried to take in as much comfort as she could from the idiot behind her to try and fight the migraine she knew was coming. Accidents would happen but for once, she wanted one day off without some form of disaster falling into her lap, be it professional or personal. Would that be too much to ask?

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, here's what I'm thinking," Henry said, having had time to think long and hard about their plan of action, "all right, I'm going to go to a pet store. I'm gonna find a bird that looks exactly like the one that—"

"Ehhhh, that's stupid," the large man floating above his wrist replied dryly, not even letting him finish because it was that bad. Messing about trying to find an identical bird was dumb and a waste of time, which they didn't have since Piper was already in a tizz over losing her parrot and understandably, it was only a matter of hours until her search party took it into their heads to start sniffing around Henry's room.

"Okay..."

"What you need is a bird clone," Ray suggested instead. He was a strong believer in the idea that science could solve every problem on Earth and even though he didn't understand how it worked, he employed two people who did. Well, he was in love with one of them, but she'd do it as a freebie since she couldn't resist his cute face. For the teens, though, that sounded like madness.

"What?" "Can you two clone a bird?" Ray ignored Henry, looking at Schwoz for a second before nuzzling his nose into (y/n)'s hair and ear, planting a kiss on her cheek just for the hell of it.

"Yah."

"Well, identical cellular reduplication isn't my strong point but in theory—"

"They can clone a bird," Ray confirmed to Henry, not wanting to hear one word of his sweet girl being unsure. It would be fine, he trusted her when it came to smart things and it's not like she'd be doing this alone. If anything, she'd be more like an assistant to Schwoz since biology wasn't her specialist science and whatever the outcome, he'd proud of her anyway, whether they made a monster or a bird.

"What do you need? A feather?"

"Yah."

"Anything containing genetic material, really. But a feather's good," (y/n) nodded, feeling a little uneasy at the idea of her first cloning experiment. There was the unethical side of it, the danger, the possibility of something going wrong, the pressure and the need for perfection to worry about but apart from that, this was a learning opportunity and from the very best, no less. After all, Schwoz had cloned many things over the years, including some things that were better left unspoken about.

"They need a feather," the hero instructed his sidekick, who couldn't that the team was about to do this, but what choice did he have? Face his sister's wrath and risk his identity being revealed? That was off the table, so it had to be a cloning job. He just hoped Schwoz and (y/n) knew what they were doing.

"We can get a feather."

"Great. You bring us a feather, Schwoz and (y/n) clone a new bird, that don't know nothin' from nothin', we kill the old one, swap in the new one, badda-boom, badda-bing, me, my sweet girl, Schwoz and Jasper go to the batting cages," Ray made it sound so easy...and horrible. Everything apart from the killing part was perfect; it wasn't the parrot's fault that it had heard something that shouldn't have been said in the first place, so murdering it was just cruel.

"Yes!"

"No! Raymond, we are not killing the poor bird!" The girl in his arms scolded him, trying to be firm even though she had no idea where the old parrot would go. It was kinda difficult, though, what with her flaming cheeks and everything. 

In her experience, a trip to the batting cages often meant leaving Schwoz, and now the lucky Jasper, to hit baseballs into the night whilst he dragged her off to one of the secluded, shady corners so they could make out like teenagers. It was never about the sport, it was about getting her alone in such a risqué place and pressing her into a wire until she saw stars, so the sooner they cleared this mess, the better. 

Hey, no one ever said she wasn't a teenager too.

"But sweet girl..."

"Yeah, let's not kill the old one," Henry joined her argument, not wanting to hurt Otto the class pet, but it was a big mistake cutting into the longing gaze of a man and his fiancé.

"Potahto, potato, just bring us a feather."

"It's potato, potahto," the boy corrected him, earning himself yet another glare for being pedantic. Ray was a master with words, often getting them muddled in his head, so he didn't appreciate it when he was mocked for getting one tiny detail wrong, especially from a kid who he was trying to help.

"Potahto, potato, potato, patahto, just bring us a feather, you spicy tomato!" He snapped and left it to Schwoz and (y/n) to wave goodbye to the kid as he stomped off to go and pick at his pancake leftovers. They were slightly soggy by now and chilled from the cool air, but still sweet enough to soothe his anger, or maybe it was the way he could stab his fork into them that was therapeutic, who knows? 

Either way, the real stress relief came from the angel who floated over with her learned calmness, being the only thing that could ever truly make him feel better.

"Y'know, one of these days, we're gonna have a day where nothing goes wrong..." (y/n) sighed and sat on the edge of the couch's back, hands resting on his shoulders. They began to massage away the knots that lay beneath his skin, thumbs drawing tight circles in thick muscle and Ray groaned at the pressure. His head lolled back as the pancakes were forgotten again, no doubt those remnants were destined for the incinerator now that she had his full attention and loving gaze.

"One of these days, I might just marry you and we can go live someplace where no one will bother us," he replied softly and her heart squeezed at the sudden turn from her lighthearted joke. He'd never leave Swellview behind, not until he was certain that there was someone to take his place but the notion made her smile all the same. Peace would be a change, but maybe not an unwelcome one.

"Careful, doofus. Offer to elope again and I might just take you up on it."

"We could. Doesn't have to be much, just enough to let me call you my wife," Ray whispered, hand coming up to lay on top of hers on his shoulder so he could feel her engagement ring, present on her finger like always. He knew she wanted a wedding, but god, the thought of finally having someone make it official sounded so damn good. If she was his wife in his heart, what difference did it make? He'd take her either way.

"Sounds nice, but it'll be worth the wait, Ray," (y/n) whispered, swallowing the lump that formed in her throat as she denied him what he sorely wanted. She'd marry him even if it killed her and maybe some part of her wanted to be married so badly that eloping had crossed her mind, only to be shot down. 

They'd regret it in the end, that she was sure of, and whilst she didn't have many fears for the future, regretting marrying the love of her life was one of them. She never wanted him to be sick of the sight of her, so a wedding day it was, even if they still had nothing ten months down the line. "I promise."

Ray said nothing and they went back to an easy silence as they waited for the feather delivery. He'd hold her to that promise but he knew he wouldn't have to. His girl was worth waiting for.

~An hour later~

"Come on, come on, come on, come on, pick up, pick up, pick up, pick up, pick up," Henry said under his breath as the annoying drill of his PearPhone's dialling tone rang in his ear. It was safe to say that his situation had gone from bad to worse after Charlotte collected one of Otto's feathers and now, he wasn't just facing his sister's weather but the entire neighbourhood's.

He didn't understand why there was such a big fuss over one bird. Otto was just like any other parrot but there was a police presence in his house, a prayer vigil outside his door, and a man wanting to hunt down the bird with a snake, which would end badly he just knew it, and he started to panic about the mob growing on his porch. Just because they were peaceful now didn't mean they wouldn't lynch him when they found out about how he was the birdnapper, the one they'd been praying for.

So, the kid was desperate for any news from the Man Cave, where Charlotte had scurried off to with the feather once she'd been grilled by the cops and their pathetic sketch artist. Of course, in the hideout, things were progressing quite well, Schwoz and (y/n) were on the ball, cloning away, Ray was sitting on the couch staring dreamily at his sweet girl as she floated around the place and Charlotte was waiting for the moment the cake was out of the oven. So to speak.

"Hey, Henry. What's up?" She answered in a semi-chirpy tone that grated against her friend's sour mood.

"Hey, did Schwoz and (y/n) clone a new Otto yet?" Henry asked, praying that they already had a new bird ready to be substituted in. He couldn't hide in his bedroom forever; eventually, the birdman and his snake would come sniffing (do snakes sniff?), and then, they'd find their prize stashed in his closet. And that would be game over.

"Uh, hang on," Charlotte told him and looked over at her fellow smarties as they poked around with science that was beyond her education, "Are we close?"

"I think so..." "He just needs a couple more minutes," they answered. Honestly, (y/n) wasn't that good at cloning...or anything to do with biology but she saw it this way. Otto's DNA, the stuff they'd pulled from the feather, was like cake batter and all they were doing was shoving it in a very special oven, turning up the heat and waiting for the cake to rise. Any deviation from that plan would ruin the cake...or something to that metaphor.

"They say we're close." "All right, well, tell Schwoz and (y/n) to hurry up because there's a bird-sniffing snake on its way and they're gonna find Otto in my closet and they're gonna hear—" Henry panicked and opened his closet door to reveal the little red bird still sat on its perch, only this time, it didn't say it's favourite phrase, much to everyone's surprise.

"The moon landing was fake!" It said in its helium-like chirp and for a glorious moment, Henry thought their problems were over because hallelujah, it didn't say his biggest secret.

"Hey, wait a second, Otto's stopped saying that—" "Henry is Kid Danger!" Charlotte cringed as she heard the shrill squawk of the parrot, that hadn't learnt to say something new. 

"Dang it!" For a moment there, the boy had thought that Otto could be returned to Piper with no worries because if he didn't say the K-D word, then everything was fine. Or not. He just had to go and spoil it.

"Well, why can't you sneak Otto outta the house before the bird-sniffing snake even gets there?" Charlotte questioned, wondering what was stopping her friend from leaving before he got caught. In the background, she was trying to ignore how her boss was giving her friend goo-goo eyes, turning her back on him so she didn't have to see him blow a kiss only for her to sweetly catch it. If Henry thought he had it bad, she had it worse.

"Because my house is surrounded by people holding up picks of candles on their phones and donating to Piper's GoFundYourself account. I need a new bird!" He snapped in reply and angrily ended the call. His voice was so harsh that it even broke Ray out from his (y/n)-induced haze to make him frown at the racket. What could the kid possibly be worried about that it meant he had to stop staring at his fiancée's pretty face, hips....butt? 

"Henry says you gotta hurry up and clone a new Otto!" Charlotte told the genius and his assistant as she shoved her phone in her back pocket and gave them a firm stare. Ray stood up from the couch and wandered over, seeing that things were starting to get exciting but for all the glares in the world, perfection couldn't be rushed. Did she want the cake to sink if they opened the oven door too quickly? Did she want Otto to be a mutant freak?

"Okay..." Schwoz shared a chuckle with (y/n) before looking at the girl kindly...and rolling his eyes a bit at how Ray leaned over to cup the woman's cheeks for a quick smooch, "Anytime you say hurry up and clone, that's when the mistakes happen."

"But it's safe, right? Like you two've cloned stuff before?" "Well, personally, no, but Schwoz has a lot of experience...and by the way, you need to get some antiseptic on those scratches," (y/n) replied truthfully before commenting on the frankly awful injuries that Charlotte had sustained after fighting Otto for a feather. They looked particularly sore but nothing that wouldn't heal fine without a little care and attention, but it was the clone that Charlotte was bothered about, not the state of her face. It was a good thing that Schwoz had been practising for years, more than anyone was aware of.

"Schwoz?" "Yeah, I've cloned myself—" he said when the girl looked at him, spilling the secret that he promised he would never let loose because he knew that it would piss Ray off. After all, it would piss (y/n) off. Cloning people was unethical and irresponsible in her eyes and once she told her lover that, it would be bye-bye cloning machine for him, so he resolved to keep it quiet so he could have lots of little helpers about the place. "I mean...I, myself, have cloned many things that are not me!"

Looking at him suspiciously, the little man's friend's lined up to stare at him judgementally, (y/n) stepping next to Ray so she could analyse his facial features. She knew a liar when she saw one but how was she supposed to prove that with no proof? Schwoz was very careful with his clones and so, they were never caught. Not yet anyway.

"Schwoz, did you clone yourself?" Ray asked, his arm sliding around his girl's waist as he stared down at his handyman. He was the boss, so he had a right to know what was going on in his Man Cave, right? It was bad enough dealing with one Schwoz, let alone, two or three or five or ten yet he didn't know that those other Schwozs were the reason that so much stuff got done around the place.

"Ummmm, noooo...." "Yeah, see, the way you're saying ummmm, noooo, makes me think you really have cloned yourself," Charlotte told him, seeing straight through that fake innocence and folding her arms. She knew something was going on, she wasn't stupid, but perhaps all three of them were deaf and blind because as they stared down the original, low and behold, a clone Schwoz snuck through the secret door. 

He happily waddled into the main room as he snacked on an apple. Clone Schwoz had no idea what was going on with his boss and friends but Real Schwoz wasn't about to let their secret be revealed. 

"Yeah, that's what I'm thinking too. The long no makes it seem like he's lying, right?" (y/n) looked up at her doofus and then at Charlotte, both of whom agreed that Schwoz was talking out of his ass. However, they were so busy debating whether he was or not, that they didn't see the second genius slope off when urged to by his counterpart, who thanked his lucky stars that they didn't look at him or behind them.

"Oh, totally, sweet girl. The short no is always true. The long no, that means he's lying," Ray pointed out, too wrapped up in the loving gaze of his fiancée and how it made his insides feel warm and fuzzy to notice the sound of the door opening and closing again. Rather, the only thing that was capable of breaking their trance-like staring was the ding of Schwoz's Clone-u-Lator, which he assumed meant something had happened.

"Oh, good! The clone is done! Everyone can move on!" Schwoz exclaimed and rushed to open the door of the machine. Talk about saved by the bell or the ding or the machine, whatever, he was saved. For now...

"Yeah, sure..." (y/n) gave him a pointed look and tucked away a small thought about investigating his lab in her mind. He might have thought he'd gotten away with it, but she'd get him one day and everything would become clear. Y'know, the day they didn't have a mouthy parrot to deal with.

Slowly, Schwoz opened the door on his cloning device and there, sitting on the small perch, was a parrot. And not just any parrot. It had a red and brown plumage, a glossy black beak, beady eyes and every claw on its foot; the perfect clone of the bird Charlotte had left in Henry's closet after wrestling for one of its feathers. She had to give it to the genius, the likeness was uncanny and it was a weight off her shoulders as Otto Two hopped out of the chamber.

"Oh, wow!" "Ooooohhh!" "He looks exactly like Otto!" Ray exclaimed as (y/n) grinned at their handiwork, happy to admit that most of it had been Schwoz just so she could admire him more. As he sat there on Schwoz's wrist, Otto squeaked happily and she would swear that it was the same bird if she didn't know better, so switching them would be fine and Piper would never know the difference.

"Yah, that's the point, schweetheart," Schwoz replied to Ray sarcastically and the man's face fell into a grumpy frown. There was only one person who was allowed to call him that and she never used such a bitter tone. Stupid clever people and their smugness.

"Hey, it's exactly the same in every way?" Charlotte asked, wanting to make sure that there was no stray feather or distinction that would make Piper smell a rat. She loved that bird and so did the rest of her class, so there couldn't be anything wrong.

"Mmm, pretty much. It just hasn't learned to say Henry is Kid Danger," Schwoz said, pointing out the key difference that was sure to save them. But, as per the universe's unfair way, the moment he said that forbidden phrase, Otto Two learned what they'd been trying to avoid. He should've kept his mouth shut, what did he think would happen?

"Henry is Kid Danger! Henry is Kid Danger!" Otto Two squawked and the four felt their stomachs drop. As Ray, Charlotte and (y/n) glared at him, Schwoz's gaze dropped to the floor as his cheeks flamed red, embarrassed that he'd said something so stupid when they didn't have much time and now, their saviour was their new executor. Not such a genius, after all.

"Nice going, schweetheart...." Ray quipped dryly and gave his handyman and cold look as he sheepishly handed the bird over to (y/n) for her to hold. He'd have to start again, that bird was now tainted with that phrase and wouldn't unlearn it, so they'd just have to keep baking until they got it right, which would be fun and easy and stress-free.

"Well, what are we supposed to do with this one?—All right, we get it, feathers," (y/n) asked as Schwoz quickly thumbed a few buttons and slammed the door shut on the cloning device, smiling at her nervously as the parrot bobbed its head and said Henry is Kid Danger, Henry is Kid Danger a million more times. She wasn't one for birds, rabbits, yes, dogs, definitely, but not parrots, they flapped and squawked and were so damn annoying, especially the talking ones, so what were they supposed to do with the spare? 

Releasing it was one idea, but that would mean Otto Two would blab his beak all over town and every Henry in the land would be hunted down. One of these days, she'd swing for Schwoz.

"Pluck it, roast it, stick it in a pot pie!" Ray smiled at her and began sizing the creature up for his dinner, which earned him a few mortified looks from his sweet girl and friends. Parrot pot pie? They weren't even sure if that was legal and more to the point, why would he want to eat the poor thing? The wasn't even enough meat on him for a full meal and everyone knows that Ray always ordered enough for two, just in case he could share with his dearest fiancée.

"Raymond! We are not eating Otto!...Or his little Ottolets!"  "But baby—" "No buts! Someone call Henry, see what's happening with him and that snake man," (y/n) put her finger on Ray's lips to silence him before looking at Charlotte, who nodded wordlessly and began scrolling through her phone. The boy was probably getting worried since they'd said they'd be over any minute, fifteen minutes ago. It wasn't their fault that Otto Two had gone wrong, it was Schwoz's, so due to that technical hitch, they had to start again and in the hurry, they'd forgotten to broadcast that update. Oops. 

Charlotte paced impatiently as her phone tried to connect to Henry's and in the meantime, Ray pecked at the finer on his lips, moving down to her engagement ring, her palm and then, on the pulse point of her wrist. (y/n) was giving him a faux-annoyed look as she tried to juggle the bird and his advances, but that morphed into a smile when he leaned down for a proper kiss. Looking at them through his eyelashes, Schwoz scoffed and watched his invention impatiently, wishing it could go faster without ruining the process. 

"Henry! Hey, we—" the girl exclaimed when she finally got through to her friend and in her haste, she didn't give him a chance to say hello. But Henry was quick to speak first because, in the brief time since their last con-flab, shit had hit the fan at his house.

"Hey, what the holdup?! The bird-sniffing snake is here!" He asked impatiently, worry coating his every word. The man who'd brought the snake was thankfully a massive gunch and as such, was too busy showing off and hyping the crowd to get straight down to business, so nothing had happened. Yet. That snake was practically begging to be let out and Piper was getting antsy and shouty and dear god, his nerve was beginning to slip from the stress it was under.

"Yeah, we had a little problem with the first clone—" Charlotte told him nervously and tried to mask that to no success. She wasn't inspiring much confidence in the boy, but just as she started speaking, the oven went ding, indicating that Otto Three was ready to go. Maybe this time, they'd have more success. "But the new-new clone is done and we're leaving right now."

"Right, no one say the word and we'll just back away to the elevator slowly..." (y/n) said quietly, pretending to put her hand over Otto Two's ears so he couldn't hear the plan and possibly spoil it. They all nodded solemnly and Schwoz carefully opened the machine to reveal yet another perfect Otto, one that hadn't been corrupted yet.

"Wait, wait...what was the problem with the first clone?" Henry asked as the party carried on outside his front door. He couldn't help it if he was curious and neither could Charlotte help it if she wanted to be honest. A little too honest, which led to being forgetful and loose-lipped.

"Schwoz said, Henry is Kid Danger, in front of it and—" "Henry is Kid Danger! Henry is Kid Danger! Henry is Kid Danger!" she explained, thinking nothing of her mistake until it was too late. Otto Three hadn't even made it out of the box when he started chirping her exact words, which were very attractive for a copycat parrot. As with Schwoz, she suddenly felt very stupid and knew that her ears and cheeks were growing warm as her friends' eyes twitched and their faces fell. 

"Oh, come on! I literally said don't say it!" (y/n) cried in frustration and her hands raised to pull her hair as Otto Two flapped off to join his twin in their annoying symphony. Now that one was saying it, the other couldn't resist and it was certain that what should've been simple was gonna take a while.

"We'll call you back," Charlotte said to Henry with a sigh and much to the boy's reluctance and maybe fear, the call was ended. Come on, he was on the verge of being hung, drawn and quartered, what were they playing at? It's not like cloning a parrot is difficult.

~Half an hour later~

So he thought. Henry was beside himself at the house as he waited for his dumb boss and dumb friends to get to his dumb self but as the seconds ticked by, he was starting to lose hope. He had no idea what was keeping them and it was starting to look like he'd just have to be murdered by the prayer vigil because help wasn't coming from the Man Cave.

By Otto Number Five, even Ray, (y/n), Charlotte and Schwoz were losing patience. Every time a bird had come out, that which must not be said was spoken and they had to start all over again. It was annoying but manageable when it was their fault, like when the heroine said it when she thought Otto Four was still cooking but when the birds themselves started squawking it like everything was one big game, things were starting to become unbearable. 

As they waited for Otto Six, they were praying that they all stayed silent. It was quite a collection now, all five were lined up on the computer monitors, looking down on the scene as if they were waiting to say something to piss the humans off, and of course, they chose their moment when their new friend—brother—self dinged to be done.

Absolute silence. With their fingers on their lips, the group held their breath as Schwoz opened the door, wanting Otto Six to not hear anything to do with Captain Man or Kid Danger or Miss Danger, so it was easier to just say nothing, apart from the odd parrot squeak. The door inched open and there he was, as perfect as the other five, totally pristine and innocent as he was lifted out, onto Ray's hand and into a new world where nothing could go wrong and no one could teach him anything because no one was saying wor—

"Henry is Kid Danger!" Otto Two or maybe it was Four chirped as they snuck towards the elevator and with panic flashing on their faces, the four ran to the elevator, (y/n) almost pushing Ray over in their mad dash. Perhaps if they got him in there quick enough, he wouldn't hear what his predecessors were saying and it would all be okay...

"Henry is Kid Danger!" Too late. The elevator door didn't open quick enough and as Ray rapidly tapped the button, Six opened his beak and let loose the four most annoying words in the human-bird language. Above the repeated Henry this, Henry that, some several shouts and groans bordered agony as they turned on their heels to reset the cloning device for the seventh time and for the man-child of the Man Cave, it was difficult to stay calm.

"Shut up! Shut up all of you! Why?! Whhhhyyyy?!" Ray glared at the parrots and squashed the urge to launch the one that sat on his fingers at them. His sweet girl would never forgive him if he did that and besides, he had her shoulder to sob into angrily as she came to hug away the pain, mumbling something about calming down, being better than a temper tantrum and plucking, roasting and Potpie-ing them later.

~

"Hurry up, Schwoz! Henry is freaking out!!" Charlotte exclaimed as Schwoz muddled through their seventh attempt at cloning Otto. She didn't want to rush the genius or his experiment since (y/n) had told her that shit goes wrong when you try to botch science, but for once, she was rushing. 

Halfway through the baking process, she'd received an incoming flurry of texts from her friend ranging from asking where they were to ones of a more dramatic nature. Namely, that Henry thought he was gonna die or something to that effect, which meant that it was imperative that this time, they got it right and quick, but Schwoz wasn't a man to be hurried, not when said hurrying could have disastrous results.

I told you! When you hurry the cloning process, that's when you get a lot of problems!" He tried to tell her but for Ray, excuses were pathetic because Captain Man and Miss Danger had a date with returning a lost bird to a little girl and they couldn't do that if they had no bird. 

"We are out of time! Just give me something, anything that looks like a bird!"  "Yeah, Schwoz, I know it's a bad idea, but just give us a bird!" The couple hissed, feeling itchy to get moving as they were already so late and on the verge of Henry having a heart attack or never forgiving them or both. She was the semi-scientist, she knew the risks but even so, she was willing to cut a few corners if it meant they could leave sooner. After all, it couldn't be that bad, right? 

"Fine!" Not wanting to be badgered anymore, the genius shrugged his shoulders and stopped the timer early, bringing forth the ding a good five minutes early. "He's not ready yet but here's your bird!" Schwoz glared and opened the door, knowing exactly what they were gonna face but he wanted to prove to them that he didn't make this science stuff up. Bad things genuinely did happen when you ignored Schwozie.

"Oh!" "Argh!" "Sweet cheese!" As the door opened, the unsuspecting trio were expecting to see a slightly ruffled Otto Seven, maybe with a funny eye or something like that, but oh no. Dear, sweet lord, no. (y/n) jumped back into Ray's arms and they clung to each other for dear life, much like the thing in the machine was as it trembled on the little perch.

In the box, was a mutant freak; the parrot had very few feathers left, kinda like he'd been shaved, and he was hunched over with scabby skin and a funny, crazed look to him that made them feel so sorry for whatever chromosomes and genes he was missing. Otto Seven was half the Otto the other six were and (y/n) and Charlotte felt like monsters for opening the door too early, but Ray...he didn't see that big a problem.

"Eh, I can sell it," he shrugged, angling the parrot between his hands and deciding that yeah, he looked horrible but at the end of the day, that was still a bird and the beloved Captain Man could tell the people anything and they'd believe him. After all, he had done them a favour by saving what was left of him, surely a scabby Otto was better than no Otto at all. "Come on, sweet girl..."

"But—but—the—doofus—we—huh?" (y/n) stammered as he took the bird and her hand, guiding her towards the elevator as she failed to articulate what she wanted to say. What did she want to say? The bird? Him? Her? Piper? She honestly didn't know what was happening as Charlotte scurried behind them without hesitation. She wasn't going to miss this for the world, the big moment when Captain Man handed Miss Piper Hart half the bird she originally took home, would be a tragedy to behold. 

But not half the tragedy of Henry getting his head ripped off if they handed over nothing more than Miss Danger's wobbly apologies.

~Henry's house~

It was all going at the kid's place.

Piper was sitting on an upside-down bucket as she watched the snake guy wow the crowd by swinging his bag about, enjoying how their voices went low and high whenever the big and its dangerous contents did. He'd been doing that for ages, goaded by Henry and Jasper since they were trying to drag it out for all of its worth since Charlotte had said that they were coming at some point. He was a massive show-off, though, so it wasn't hard to make him lose track of time with a few praises and Piper's well-wishers were actually just sheep with too much time on their hands so they'd do anything as per the pack mentality.

But Piper, well, she was starting to get pissed off as the rock music played on and as she looked around at her supporters, she couldn't believe that they'd been hanging about for so long. Anything could've happened to Otto in the time they'd been doing nothing, which meant change was in order.

"Okay, okay, stop, stop!" She shouted above the noise and the cheering and music ceased, much to everyone's disappointment and Henry's slight terror. "

"What's the problem?" "The problem is that you've been showboating for ten minutes. Are you gonna let the snake out so it can find Otto or not?" Piper asked the man sternly, who looked a little ashamed at her observations. He felt a bit bad that he'd gotten so carried away and Henry shuffled on his feet as he realised that his sister's insisting meant that his time for stalling was up.

"Yes, I will let it out..." the boy held his breath as the man looked solemnly at his shoes, but all hope was lost, "...after the conga line!!!!"

"YEAH!" To his massive relief, a stroke of luck fell thanks to the man's childishness and lack of professionalism, so Henry thanked his lucky stars and got in the queue for the conga. If it meant that the snake stayed in the bag, then he'd do some dancing, no matter how red-faced and annoyed Piper was getting because he'd been on the verge of a heart attack all day. The least he could do was try to relax as he steered the madman around the porch to keep his mind off of his snake.

"No! No conga lines! Use your stupid snake to find Otto! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" The girl screamed into nothingness, her voice drowned out by the cheers from the crowd and the upbeat music to the point where her vocal cords were sore. It was tough seeing her so frustrated and on the verge of tears but Henry had to stay strong for his own sake...but not for long because here came an even bigger showboat.

"All right, people, heroes comin' through! Make a hole, make it wide! That's right, let the lady through!" Ray announced, suddenly appearing from the darkness like a vision in blue and red with (y/n) shyly leading the way since he was a firm believer in sweet ladies first. 

Now, Henry had never felt this before in his life and he doubted that he ever would again—but dear god, he'd never been happier to hear that bigheaded voice. Just like he'd never been happier to see the lovey-dovey couple still holding hands even as he was preoccupied with what he assumed was Otto in that shrouded cage. He could deal with the cockiness, he could deal with the mushiness, he was just so glad that they'd made it at long last and just before the snake guy ran out of things to show off about.

"Oh, look! It's Captain Man and Miss Danger!" "And they've got the real Otto!" Henry and Jasper exclaimed in stale tones, sounding rehearsed and stupid to boot but no one paid attention as the hero set the bird cage down on the bucket that Piper had been sitting on. No one even noticed how Charlotte snuck into the group at suspiciously the same time as the heroes, almost as if she'd been with them, had anyone bothered to think about it like that.

"Did you find Otto?" Piper asked the heroes with wide, bright eyes that were filled with hope and wonder. Oh, how it would break their superhero hearts when they showed her what had befallen the seventh copy of her beloved class pet. Still, Ray could sell it just as he'd promised because he was a very smooth, charming talker and who could resist Miss Danger's winning smile? Not him, that's for certain.

"Uh-huh, sure did, little girl... He-Here ya go!" (y/n) tried to keep her face pleasant and her voice steady but it was kinda hard what with Piper staring straight at her. Ray's hand squeezed hers tighter as his other whipped away the white sheet that had been covering Otto's grotesque new features and honestly, the reaction of the crowd could've killed her right there. Henry and Jasper were looking at the couple and Charlotte with horrified expressions as they gave the tiniest shrugs and subtlest apologetic looks, but no one was more distraught than Piper as she took him in.

He looked like a half-dead chicken.

"W-what happened to him? It looks like he's been microwaved or something," She asked, not knowing where to look, whether that be his wings that seemed to grow from his backbone or his hoarse, jingling croak.

"Oh, well, y'know...the sickos that bird-napped him did not treat him very well," Ray lied, swapping a knowing look with his sweet girl and Charlotte as the crowd cooed in sympathy. They thought that the poor thing had been hounded and mauled by some cruel psycho but the reality was that they were the ones who were sick, they'd half-baked the cake so it was crusty on the outside but gooey and gross in the middle. Oh well, a sob story always worked in the animal's favour, maybe he'd make Swellview's Got Talent if they milked it.

"But when Miss Danger and I found those people, we beat 'em up!" The hero lied further, earning himself an eye roll from his fiancée that was mimicked by Charlotte because she knew exactly what was going through the man's mind. Oooh, Miss Danger fighting, oooh, she's so hot, ooooh, the people love him. He was loving it, punching and kicking the air as if he really had taken down some bad guys, but at least the crowd bought it. 

"I mean, yeah...we really did a number on 'em! Real bad..." "Otto's back, people!" (y/n)'s lack of convincing enthusiasm was supported by Ray's talent for working a crowd and he happily gave her a side hug as Piper led the crowd in chanting the name of the brave parrot who'd been to hell and back, only to fight beak and claw to return to his mistress. Well, if they were happy then so were they, even if it was a shallow victory.

"Otto! Otto! Otto! Otto! Otto! Otto!" "Captain Man! Captain Man! Captain Man!" And being the bigheaded that he was, Ray couldn't help but slip his own name in there until the kids and various adults were shouting it instead. Piper was a bit confused and the teens thought it was massively cocky of their boss but as always, the Swellviewian crowd just followed the leader and Captain Man was good at that.

"Captain Man! Captain Man! Captain Man! Captain Man!" "There you go..." Well, at least he was happy about it.

"You're a massive ego, you know that?" (y/n) said as she looked up at him with a bemused smile, admiring how he was able to make them do whatever he said so easily. It was conceited of him but she could never do what he did, the leading, the being confident enough to step in and command the crowd to do what you wanted them to do. She was rubbish at that and would never dream of willingly stepping into the centre of attention like that, so it was awe-inspiring that he not only could but enjoyed doing it. Not that she'd ever play to his ego like that.

"You love it." "Oh, yeah, keep telling yourself that," she giggled and squeezed her eyes shut when he pressed a firm kiss to her cheek as she was pulled into his embrace even tighter. Charlotte dared to look to her right a little and pulled a face when she saw her friend squeal and laugh at how many butterfly kisses were being left on her cheeks by the man who was revelling in his two loves; the adoration of the crowd and his greatest love of all. Her.

"Told you I'd sell it," he muttered against the softness of her cheek and for once in her life, (y/n) had to pander to his ego. That was true, he'd done a good job, which even Charlotte had to hand to him, even if she was gagging at the same time. A look over his shoulder to Henry and Jasper and Ray was smirking even more because they gave him a nod and thumbs up. He was smug, right up until the point when their admiration turned into smirks of their own as they made smoochy faces and swirled their tongues in the cool night air.

It was Captain Man's turn to be embarrassed.

~The Man Cave~

After Ray was done throttling them and rubbing his knuckles against their heads, (y/n) had dragged the boys and Charlotte back to the Man Cave, saying something about wanting to get out of her uniform since today had been meant to be a day off of sorts. 

So, back in their home and with the family crowded in one place, the man of The Cave had proclaimed that for the rest of the night, up until the inevitable first emergency call of the evening, they were gonna sit around the TV, watch bad shows or movies and not move an inch. 

So, as the computer's monitors kept an eye on the shadiest parts of town, the TV played whatever was on air and they sat around it. Jasper was relaxing at the computer whilst Schwoz, Henry, Charlotte and of course, Ray and (y/n) were sat/snuggled on the couch in what should have been an idyllic scene. And for once in their lives, the happy couple were joined at the hip but not in paradise, not even when she raked her lips from his cheek to his jaw because there were several guests currently outstaying their welcome.

Those fucking parrots. All seven of them. The original Otto had been brought back to the Man Cave, lest he b left at Henry's house to be discovered, bringing that total of irritating little chatterboxes to seven and they would not shut up. It was impossible to relax fully or enjoy what was happening on the screen because nothing could be heard except for—

"Henry is Kid Danger!" "Henry is Kid Danger!" "Henry is Kid Danger!" "Henry is Kid Danger!" "Henry is Kid Danger!" It was infuriating. They were sat on top of the monitors still and Ray could swear that they were gloating at everyone's suffering, especially his, as he tried to get cosy with his sweet girl, possibly snake a hand where it shouldn't have been but it was hard to be cheeky when every little thing annoyed her to the point of pushing him away. He wasn't hurt, not like you'd expect because he got it. The headache was very real and even he found himself not in the mood as the chirps and squawks continued until it wasn't funny anymore.

Some might say it was comical that they were in that situation but by the half-hour mark of listening to nothing but "Henry is Kid Danger!", it was getting difficult to hold it together.

"The birds are too loud, I can't hear the judges!" Henry whined as he leaned in closer to the set, hoping to catch what the people on the cooking show were saying. This was one of his favourite shows, on the count that they all had cute and hilarious British voices, it would've been nice to hear one line when the judges critiqued something bad.

"Or their funny accents!" Schwoz complained too, which was a touch of the pot calling the kettle black but he had a point. The birds were so annoying, so much that Charlotte was starting to sense the tension between the miserable couple next to her.

"Jasper, will you turn up the volume?" She asked politely, getting the feeling that if her boss got any more frustrated, he'd punch the wall...or Schwoz's head. And it wasn't like (y/n) was gonna do anything; she was currently slumped against the couch table, her face smushed into her arms as she tried to block out the infernal noise and all Ray could do was sling an arm over her back and pathetically paw at her for attention that she wasn't going to give him whilst her head hurt so much.

"Good idea—" "I got a better idea. Let's turn the volume down on the birds!... Permanently," The hero growled, his patience wearing so thin that it was now nothing more than a smear and he had the self-control of a toddler anyway. He wanted to hold his sweet girl and kiss her and hear her whisper naughty things and stupid jokes in his ear but most of all, he wanted her to feel better again. To see her look and smile at him again. 

So, in his head, it made sense to sneak his laser control from his pocket and raise his arm to fire at those damned parrots. One hit and they'd be nothing more than ash on the floor and his lover would be content to snuggle with him again. After all, what kind of protector was he if he couldn't commit a little bird genocide for her comfort?

"What are you talking about, doo—oh my god, Raymond! No!" (y/n) raised her eye with bleary eyes and peered at her lover in confusion as his arm left her back and took its warmth with it. It was only when she looked along to the connecting hand and what was in that hand that her brain suddenly stopped hurting and flipped into action, quick enough to lift his arm and skewer his aim, but not quick enough to stop the firing full stop. Rather, Ray's thumb hit the button and an orange zap left the controller but it didn't hit an Otto, oh no.

"Ah!" Jasper yelped as he felt a burning sting on his lip like a bullet had grazed his mouth, and he looked up at his friends to see their shocked faces but most importantly, Ray's guilty mug as they started pointing fingers.

"Are you okay?!" "You zapped Jasper's face!"

"That was (y/n)'s fault!" "I was saving that damn parrot's life!" "Y-yeah, she's too sweet to be blamed! It was Charlotte's fault, she wanted the TV to be turned up!" When Charlotte looked at (y/n) with an accusing glare, the woman recoiled and frowned because she had merely been trying to do the right thing, not join a game of tattletales. But of course, as always, Ray valiantly jumped to her defence and practically hunched over his lover to bare his teeth at Charlotte for her outrageous suggestion.

"You shot off my moustache!" Jasper yelled at the horrified trio and whilst they weren't big fans of it in the first place, Charlotte and (y/n) felt just as bad as Ray as they saw his bald, slightly sore but definitely red upper lip. Despite having it for less than a week, the teen had grown quite attached to his lip sweater and was fuming to know that it had been lost for something so trivial, like losing a soldier because of a general's poor order.

"Noooooooo!" Henry screamed, his face contorting in pain and anguish as if he was the one in mourning. His best friend had looked so cool, cooler than anything to anyone he'd ever seen, so to see it shaved off was devastating.

"It was an accident! (y/n) hit my zapper!" Ray squeaked and fluttered his eyes innocently, which caused his sweet girl to look at him with mutiny in her eyes. Oh, why didn't he stab her in the heart whilst he was at it? One mean look from Jasper and his shaved whiskers and he was whimpering, leaving her to the dogs to be torn apart and she would be offended if she didn't know that in serious circumstances, he'd never betray her like that.

"What were you thinking?!" "I was trying to save the birds! Which, by the way, are now quiet, thanks to me!" The woman snapped at Henry and then glared at her future husband, both of whom seemed more upset than Jasper at the loss of the moustache. But she was right; since the laser had fired, the birds hadn't made a peep, probably because they were scared shitless by the hulking hero and the silence was bliss.

"Yeah! At least the birds shut up!" Charlotte told her friend, nudging his arm to get him to back off so they could enjoy the quiet and hopefully, the couple next to her would mellow out. (y/n) huffed and flopped back into the couch, ignoring her heart's desire to latch onto the bicep brushing against her arm and hug it for the rest of her life. The fuchsia shirt he was wearing made them bulge and seem extra huge, perfect for snuggling or holding onto when he dragged her off to f—or not. She was sulking, feeling moody after being sold out so his buddy wouldn't get mad over a moustache. 

"At least the birds shut up." Spoke too soon. It must've been something about her voice because the Ottos picked up on the phrase the minute she said it and this time, it was even more annoying. Not because they'd been quiet, although that did grate, but because now it felt like they were being deliberately annoying, mocking even, because they had the power to toy with the pathetic humans who were too soft to do anything against them.

"At least the birds shut up." "At least the birds shut up." "At least the birds shut up." "At least the birds shut up." 

"Ray?" (y/n) murmured darkly to her fiancé, swallowing thickly as her head began pounding again, souring her mood even further. Those little bastards with wings, she wanted to step on every one of them because they were ruining the last scrap of her day off and that just wasn't on.

"Yeah, sweet girl?" Ray acknowledged her in a tight voice, feeling a similar dull pain set in between his temples, meaning any hopes he had of laughing away the tension for his "betrayal" were dashed because neither of them was in the mood for fun.

"Let's make some parrot pot pie." She growled, not even caring about how morbid her idea was and of course, Ray was at the end of her rope just as she was. And obviously, he would do anything for her, so when he began shooting again, it was up to Charlotte to try and keep those damn birds alive again.

In the chaos, as a small girl tried to fend off a man twice her size, as an odd boy stroked his stubbled lip, as a lanky kid walked off, as a genius ducked for cover and as seven birds chirped to their heart's content, (y/n) let her forehead touch the cool table and plugged her ears with her fingers as her eyes slid shut. The world was blocked out like there was an ocean in her head, and at last, there was peace in the Man Cave.

Sort of.

[heyheyyy12]

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[the-artsy-collective]

about us

[PT: about us]

we are a plural collective (don't refer to us as a system!).

we use the term "shift" to refer to people that can access the body, and the term "brain person" for any person that is in the brain (whether they can access the body or not), we don't use the terms "alter" or "headmate" (as of now) for personal reasons, please respect that.

please no syscourse, we are pro-endogenic, but have some pretty controversial beliefs we would like to keep to ourselves.

we use "we" when referring to multiple of us and "i" when referring to one of us.

there are 100+ of us (as of september 1st, 2024).

we made this blog to engage in the plural community for the first time since discovering our plurality back in 2021. (syscourse is scary, can you blame us?).

tags are formatted as "*insert person here* speaks" and "*insert person here* reblogs"

the body speaks 3 languages, but there are other languages spoken in headspace.

alphabetical list of frequenters below cut:

abigail (she/her) - communicator, anxiety holder, emotionalist, emotional regulator, guide, intermediary, impersonator, vital

adelaide (she/her) - insecurity holder, music holder, secret keeper, emotional guardian

aech (xae/xaer) - controller, core, medicine taker, hyperfixation holder, spin holder, tracker, rolemaster, gender holder

alec (he/him) - aggressor (partially), depression holder, external protector, internalizer, pain manager, persecutor

campbell (he/him) - trauma manager, energetic shift, stim holder, lunderemate

crowley (he/she/they) - confidence holder, emotional processor, nightmare holder, protector, translator

ghost (they/them) - dresser, intrarelatian, love manager

layla (any) - admin, caretaker, chameleon, internal self-helper, vital

lúkas (they/he/she) - persecutor, depression holder, impersonator

mykey (he/it) - persecutor, aggressor, emotional processor

noah (pronoun questioning) - internalizer, gender holder, gender dysphoria holder

party poison (they/them) - mood booster, protector, praiser

sierra (she/her) - communicator, socializer, thought reader

steven (he/him) - admin, vital, steward, internal protector

[kayaffilating77]

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[intimas-profundezas]

Insights On Practical Hormonal balance for higher testosterone Systems

Introduction

In today's busy world, maintaining ideal testosterone levels is important for men. Testosterone plays an important duty in different physical features, consisting of muscular tissue development, energy degrees, state of mind law, and general wellness. However, lots of variables can add to low testosterone degrees, such as aging, tension, bad diet plan, and sedentary lifestyle.

Fortunately, there are natural ways to enhance testosterone without considering synthetic hormones or intrusive procedures. One such natural booster is Testogen - a leading testosterone enhancement supplement on the marketplace. In this post, we will explore the very best natural boosters like Testogen and offer beneficial insights right into exactly how you can supercharge your testosterone levels naturally.

Supercharge Your Testosterone: Discover the very best Natural Boosters like Testogen

Testogen is a powerful testosterone booster that contains a distinct blend of natural components designed to enhance hormonal agent manufacturing and support total health. By including Testogen right into your everyday routine, you can experience boosted energy degrees, enhanced muscle mass development, improved sex drive, and much better psychological clarity.

Why Select Testogen?

Testogen stands apart among other testosterone boosters as a result of its medically backed formula and positive consumer evaluations. Unlike artificial hormonal agents or high-risk therapies, Testogen offers a secure and effective solution to normally boost your testosterone degrees. Allow's check out the crucial benefits of using Testogen:

Increased Muscle Mass Development: Testogen includes components that advertise protein synthesis and boost muscular tissue recuperation after intense exercises. With routine use of Testogen, you can expect substantial gains in muscle mass and strength.

Improved Energy Levels: Reduced testosterone usually brings about tiredness and reduced energy levels. By taking Testogen consistently, you can experience a rise in energy and endurance throughout the day.

Enhanced Libido: Decreased libido is an usual sign of reduced testosterone. Testogen helps restore healthy hormonal agent degrees, resulting in enhanced sexual efficiency and an enhanced libido.

Better Psychological Clarity: Testosterone plays an essential duty in cognitive feature and mental quality. Testogen's natural components sustain mind health and wellness, enabling you to stay focused and alert.

Increased Confidence: When your testosterone degrees are optimized, you'll feel a lot more certain in all facets of life. Testogen can assist boost self-confidence and enhance overall health.

Natural Testosterone Boosters like Testogen

While Testogen is an exceptional selection for enhancing testosterone, there are various other all-natural methods to improve hormone production. Allow's explore several of the very best all-natural boosters like Testogen:

1. Testosterone-Boosting Foods

Certain foods have been verified to increase testosterone degrees normally. Including these foods into your diet can supply a considerable boost to your hormone production. Below are some examples of testosterone-boosting foods:

Oysters: Oysters are abundant in zinc, a mineral that plays an essential role in testosterone production.

Eggs: Eggs are packed with healthy protein and healthy and balanced fats, both crucial for optimum hormone synthesis.

Tuna: Tuna is an exceptional resource of vitamin D, which has actually been linked to enhanced testosterone levels.

Spinach: Spinach consists of magnesium, a mineral that helps control testosterone levels.

Pomegranates: Pomegranates are known for their antioxidant residential or commercial properties, which can assist shield testosterone molecules from damage.

2. Way Of Living Adjustments for Higher Testosterone

In enhancement to dietary adjustments, specific way of life modifications can normally sustain greater testosterone levels. Below are some way of living suggestions to think about:

Exercise Regularly: Engaging in routine exercise, specifically strength training workouts, can promote testosterone production.

Manage Tension Levels: High stress and anxiety degrees can result in reduced testosterone production. Apply stress-management techniques such as reflection or yoga exercise to preserve hormonal balance.

Adequate Sleep: Getting sufficient quality rest is important for optimum hormone production. Go for 7-9 hours of uninterrupted rest each night.

Maintain a Healthy Weight: Obesity is often connected with low testosterone levels. Maintaining a healthy weight with correct nourishment and exercise can assist optimize hormonal agent production.

3. Testosterone-Boosting Supplements

In enhancement to Testogen, there are other all-natural supplements offered that can support testosterone improvement. These supplements typically include a combination of herbs, vitamins, and minerals recognized to advertise healthy hormone levels. Some preferred testosterone-boosting supplements consist of:

D-Aspartic Acid: This amino acid has been shown to raise luteinizing hormone, which promotes testosterone production.

Fenugreek Extract: Fenugreek has actually been utilized for centuries to enhance male vigor and enhance testosterone levels.

Tribulus Terrestris: This herb is frequently utilized in traditional medication to increase testosterone and enhance sexual performance.

Vitamin D: Ample vitamin D levels are vital for healthy and balanced hormone manufacturing. Supplementing with vitamin D can aid make certain ideal testosterone levels.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Does Testogen have any type of side effects? Testogen is made from natural components and is generally well-tolerated by most individuals. Nevertheless, just like any kind of supplement, it's necessary to comply with the recommended dosage standards and consult with a healthcare specialist if you have any kind of pre-existing medical conditions.

How long does it take to see results with Testogen? Outcomes may vary depending on individual elements such as age, way of living, and total health and wellness. Nevertheless, numerous users report obvious renovations in energy degrees and muscle mass development within a few weeks of regular use.

Can Testogen be used by women? Testogen is especially created for males and their distinct hormonal needs. Females should choose testosterone boosters made for female use.

Is Testogen risk-free to use with other medications? While Testogen is normally secure, it's always important to consult with a medical care expert before starting any kind of new supplement routine, particularly if you're presently taking medications.

Are there any type of age limitations for using Testogen? Testogen appropriates for adult males of any ages who are wanting to maximize their testosterone degrees normally. Nevertheless, people under the age of 18 should prevent utilizing testosterone boosters unless advised by a healthcare professional.

Can Testogen be utilized by athletes or bodybuilders? Yes, Testogen can be valuable for athletes and body builders looking to enhance their efficiency and build lean muscular tissue mass. Nevertheless, it's critical to adhere to any type of sporting activities company's standards concerning supplement usage.

Conclusion

Supercharging your testosterone degrees normally is possible with the right technique and support. Testogen, along with lifestyle adjustments and natural supplements, can help you attain ideal hormonal agent production and reap the lots of benefits related to higher testosterone levels.

Remember, keeping hormonal balance is crucial for overall health and vigor. By prioritizing your health and wellness and including all-natural testosterone boosters like Testogen into your regimen, you can take control of your hormonal agent degrees and experience boosted energy, muscular tissue development, sex drive, and psychological quality. So why wait? Discover the very best natural boosters like Testogen today and embark on a trip towards a much healthier and more certain you!

Get more information Testogen user experiences

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[platypus-beans]

Promo post for my ask blog!! I would post drawings I've done but tumblr mobile is being a bitch lmao-

Do you like the following media?

Baldi's Basics

Be More Chill

Dear Evan Hansen

Cuphead

Sally Face but like up to chapter 3 bc I haven't caught up on anything else

Specifically Bendy from Bendy and the Ink Machine

If you do, good start. Do you like multifandom stuff? If you do, even better.

Do you like original characters in fan stories? Are you at least decently okay with furries? Do you like your stories to start out really cutesy but eventually feel so dark its like an 11 year old who just discovered angst wrote it?

Cause if you do that's what @cupheart-land-of-aviie is going to be! However as this is an ask blog, I would like people to ask questions or send comments in order to fuel it. I will still be able to continue without asks, but it is also a confidence booster to know people are interested-

Currently the opening post of the blog is up, which features a list of avaliable characters to ask. There is also a pinned post detailing what to expect and rules for the blog!

Thank you for reading and I hope to see your asks in my inbox!!

[fashionoutletstore]

Shop Trendy Women’s Dresses at BHFO – Find Your Perfect Style Today!

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[theface12]

Advanced Aesthetic Treatments for Radiant Skin & Sculpted Body

Fotona Laser Treatments — The Key to Youthful Skin

One of the most advanced technologies in skincare, Fotona laser skin rejuvenation, is designed to restore youthful radiance by stimulating collagen production. This treatment effectively reduces wrinkles, fine lines, and sagging, offering a natural lift to your face.

A popular choice is the Fotona 4D laser lift, a revolutionary non-invasive facelift that targets deep, middle, and surface layers of the skin. Unlike traditional facelifts, Fotona 4D provides immediate skin tightening without the need for surgery or downtime. This treatment is perfect for those who want to restore their skin’s firmness and elasticity while reducing signs of aging.

The Power of Skin Boosters for Hydration & Glow

For those searching for the best skin booster injection, modern skin boosters provide an excellent solution for deep hydration, improved skin texture, and long-lasting radiance. These injectables contain hyaluronic acid and essential vitamins that nourish the skin from within, making them ideal for dull, dry, or aging skin.

A well-formulated best skin booster treatment can:

Enhance skin elasticity

Minimise fine lines and wrinkles

Provide deep hydration

Improve overall skin texture

Visiting a trusted aesthetic clinic or face clinic can help you choose the right skin booster for your needs.

Lymphatic Drainage Suit — Detox and Slimming

A lymphatic drainage suit is a game-changer for those looking to detoxify their body while promoting fat loss. This treatment stimulates lymphatic flow, reducing fluid retention, bloating, and cellulite. Many patients report feeling lighter and more sculpted after just a few sessions. It’s a must-try for those aiming for a naturally toned body without invasive procedures.

Emerald Laser — Non-Invasive Fat Reduction

EMS Body Sculpting — Tone and Define Your Physique

Looking for a toned and well-defined body? EMS body sculpting is an advanced treatment that uses electromagnetic energy to induce powerful muscle contractions. These contractions build muscle while simultaneously burning fat, offering the benefits of a high-intensity workout in a short session.

Benefits of EMS body sculpting include:

Increased muscle definition

Fat reduction

Non-invasive and painless sessions

Faster results compared to traditional workouts

Vascular Laser Therapy — Treating Veins and Redness

Skin imperfections like spider veins, rosacea, and redness can be effectively treated with vascular laser treatment. This laser therapy works by targeting and reducing unwanted blood vessels, leaving your skin looking more even-toned and flawless. A well-equipped aesthetic skin clinic will have state-of-the-art vascular laser therapy machines to provide effective and safe treatments.

Blemish Removal — Achieve Clear, Spot-Free Skin

Why Choose an Aesthetic Beauty Clinic?

Choosing the right aesthetic beauty clinic is essential for achieving the best results from your treatments. A professional face clinic with experienced specialists will assess your skin and body concerns, offering personalised treatment plans that suit your goals. From Fotona laser treatments to skin boosters, a reputable aesthetic skin clinic ensures you receive the safest and most effective aesthetic solutions.

Conclusion

Whether you want to rejuvenate your skin with Fotona laser skin rejuvenation, contour your body with EMS body sculpting, or enhance your skin’s hydration with the best skin booster injection, today’s aesthetic treatments provide effective, non-invasive solutions for all your beauty concerns. A visit to a trusted aesthetic clinic can help you unlock radiant skin, a sculpted body, and boosted confidence — all without the need for surgery. So why wait? Discover the transformative power of these treatments and take the first step toward your best self today!

[nityablogs]

The Pros and Cons of Lipstick: What You Should Know

Discover the benefits of lipstick and how it enhances your beauty. Learn about its pros and cons to make an informed choice for your perfect pout.

The Benefits of Lipstick

Lipstick is more than just a cosmetic product—it offers several advantages beyond aesthetics. Here are some key benefits of using lipstick:

Enhances Your Appearance: Lipstick instantly brightens your face and gives you a polished look, even when you’re wearing minimal makeup.

Boosts Confidence: A swipe of lipstick can make you feel more put together and empowered. Many people associate wearing lipstick with increased self-esteem.

Hydrates and Protects Lips: Many modern lipsticks contain moisturizing ingredients like shea butter, vitamin E, and essential oils that keep lips soft and hydrated. Some even include SPF protection.

Defines Lips and Facial Features: Lipstick can enhance the shape of your lips, making them appear fuller and more defined.

Complements Different Looks: Whether you’re going for a natural, glamorous, or bold look, lipstick can help complete your makeup.

Long-Lasting Beauty: With transfer-proof and long-wear formulas available today, lipstick can stay put for hours without frequent touch-ups.

Mood Booster: Studies suggest that wearing bright lipstick shades can improve your mood and uplift your energy levels.

Variety of Options: From matte to glossy and satin to liquid formulas, there is a lipstick type for every preference.

The Drawbacks of Lipstick

While lipstick has many benefits, there are a few downsides to consider:

Dryness and Chapping: Some matte or long-wear formulas can be drying, leading to cracked or uncomfortable lips.

Frequent Reapplication: Not all lipsticks last all day, and some may require reapplication after eating or drinking.

Smudging and Transfer: Certain lipsticks can easily transfer onto cups, clothes, or even skin, leading to potential smudging.

Allergic Reactions: Some lipsticks contain ingredients that may cause allergies or irritation for sensitive individuals.

Expense: High-quality, long-lasting lipsticks can be pricey, making it challenging to build a collection.

Difficult Removal: Certain formulas, such as liquid matte lipsticks, can be challenging to remove without a strong makeup remover.

How to Choose the Right Lipstick

To get the most out of your lipstick, consider these factors before making a purchase:

Formula Preference: Choose between matte, satin, gloss, or liquid depending on your comfort level.

Lip Care Ingredients: Look for hydrating ingredients like hyaluronic acid or vitamin E.

Long-Wear Needs: If you want all-day color, opt for long-wear or smudge-proof formulas.

Shade Matching: Find a shade that complements your skin tone for the most flattering effect.

Final Thoughts

Lipstick is a powerful beauty tool that enhances your overall look and confidence. While it does come with some drawbacks, choosing the right formula and caring for your lips can help you enjoy its benefits. Whether you're a fan of bold reds or soft pinks, lipstick is here to stay as a timeless beauty essential!

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