#eeee only one more week

[vampiredulac]

I slept over my alarm this morning and was late to work omg 😫 my day did not start out okay

[ennabear]

I really liked mean!abby, what would it be like shopping with her?

ʕっ•ᴥ•ʔっ EEEE i’m glad u liked mean!abby cause i crave this validation!!!! i’m making this about the kitten because i know she secretly loves it, but if you want something else lmk!!! 100% projecting here because my cats are fucking FREAKS. anyways enough yap i’ll let you read now!!!

“aww, abby, look at this one!” you coo, the small white kitten sleepily stretches it’s arms out at the sound of your voice. abby shakes her head, “we don’t need another one.” she says coldly. the kitten rolls over with it’s stretch, showing off it’s soft white tummy. you reach out to grab abby’s shoulder in excitement, only to find her halfway down the aisle, eyebrows furrowed as she stares at her shopping list.

you give the kitten one last smile before turning to follow her, stopping to gaze at her beefy arms effortlessly lifting a heavy box of cat litter. she catches you staring, mumbling an annoyed “cmon. we have places to be.”

“what, you’re already antsy to get home and see your favorite kitten?” you tease, elbowing her in the side. surprisingly, she chuckles at this. “sure, whatever you say.” you turn the corner, eyeing a jar of catnip with a ribbon tied around it.

“fuck no.” she spits, your hand awkwardly halfway in the air as you reach for it. “oh, stop.” you roll your eyes. of course she has to say no to everything, she’s fucking glued to that damn list. “i’m serious, don’t you remember what happened last time? she jumped on top of the fridge and spilled the whole container, there was glass everywhere.”

“okay?” you laugh. “don’t you think our daughter deserves to get a little zooted from time to time? you do it practically every night, such a hypocrite.” she sighs deeply, debating the pros and cons quietly.

“fine. but if she pisses me off one more time, i’m sending her to rehab.”

“what’s that cat’s name?” you ask the cashier.

“the white one?” he gestures to the glass box behind him. “she’s meowrie catoinette, it’s here last day here before she gets sent to a shelter.” god, you’ve never heard a more perfect name. the stars are all aligning.

you grab abby’s wrist before she can swipe her card, using almost all of your upper body strength to hold it in place. “no. and i’m not gonna say it again.”

“what if they kill her, abby?” you plead. she’s not sympathetic at all, instead shrugging and wrestling against your grip on her wrist. “do they do that at the shelter?”

“there’s really no way of knowing.” the cashier answers. “once they leave here, it’s completely out of our hands.”

the kitten wakes from it’s nap at the perfect time, stretching it’s pouty mouth with a big yawn, then looking up at you and meowing. abby breaks free from your grip, swiping her card and quickly shoving it back into her wallet. “how much is she?” you ask.

“any adoptions within the last week of their residency are free. we wanna make sure these animals go home.”

“great!” you beam, “we’ll take her.”

abby’s mouth falls open at your audacity. no matter how much she says no, how hard she puts her foot down, you always find a way to beat her. she doesn’t say another word to you, not as the young man hands you a small meowing kitten in a cardboard box. not on the drive home. not while you eat dinner, your girls next to you slurping at a plate of fancy feast. not in the shower as you massage her scalp.

and it isn’t until you’re both in bed, half naked and half asleep, that she mumbles a grumpy “so this is our destiny now? to be cat moms?”

[bluelockmaniac]

👑 .𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐑𝐍𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐑𝐎𝐖𝐍

ft. crown prince!itoshi sae x commoner!femreader x second prince!itoshi rin (only bc you are rin's fiancée)

🗡 synopsis. you were chosen to be the second prince’s fiancée for rin’s convenience, but fate had different plans when you fell for his older brother, the crown prince, instead. as you start hearing strange voices during your engagement ball, sae falls victim to alexis’ curse, which only your love can break. what happens when news spread of the crown prince's revival and rin finds out?

⛓ content warning. 13.3k (yikes)ノ royal au ノ classism ノ cheating themes & pdaノ⚠ rin is rude, offensive, & insulting ノ your parents & sis for plot are assholes ノ semi-arranged marriage (?) ノ reader is illiterate ノ narration heavy ノ reader gets called whore once ノ implied death & gorish description ノ implied stranglingノ animal murder ノ minimal implication of shorter readerノthe relationship with sae is highkey rushed now that i reread it.

notes. this took me two weeks+ to finish ahhh. i thank my past self for being obsessed with manhwas so muchh, and ty to rhymezone for saving my ass w/ the ancient poem. first time using capital letters when writing fanfics, only bc it's really long though, eeee.

In the Twilight of the Eclipsing Red Moon,

When Stars Align and Shadows Loom,

The Great’s Fate is Sealed in the Veil of Night,

By the Hand of One from Mystic Light.

But From the Dust of Forgotten Lands,

Shall Rise a Heart with Common Hands,

With Lips of Rose and Spirit Warm,

To Bring the Order, End the Storm.

A Crown of Old Shall Find its Grace,

In the Embrace of a Simple Face.

But Do not be Fooled, One Shall Not Bloom,

For This, Will Lead to One’s Gentle Doom.

“I beg your pardon, Your Majesty,” your father stammered, “M-My eldest daughter has fallen gravely ill, and I fear she physically cannot journey to the Grand Empire of Aquaria tomorrow!”

The king’s eyes flared open in shock as the words reached his ears. His grip on the plush armrest of his throne tightened, the baroque carvings digging into his palm.

“What?!” He yelled, dismissing the fan bearer with a sharp glare before rising from his throne and taking two steps forward. His shadow covered large over your father’s trembling figure. 

“She chooses now, of all times, to be stricken with sickness? At a crucial time for our kingdom? Such insolence!” He descended three more steps and glared down at him. “Did you forget that His Imperial Highness has specifically requested a lady from your clan?”

“I—”

The king struck his scepter harshly against the floor, silencing the man. “All the other houses of your garbage clan bore only sons,” he spat, “She will go, and that is final!”

“Actually…” the commoner’s lips pointed upwards in a well-rehearsed smile as he placed a hand over his heart in false politeness. “I have another daughter. She’s eager— eager to fulfill her duty. She is twenty, two years younger than the prince, but still of age.”

King Orion arched an eyebrow and his mouth twisted into a sneer. “Very well,” he replied, waving his hand in disinterest as he returned to his throne. “Summon her.”

In truth, the king’s concern wasn’t with Aria, your older sister. He cared little for which daughter was offered up to Aquaria’s second prince. It was a political necessity, nothing more— a favour to His Imperial Highness, Prince Rin. Or more like a fulfillment of Rin’s rather odd request that came with a threat. As long as someone from your clan was presented, it mattered not to him whether it was your sister or some other sacrificial lamb for the slaughter.

At the call of your name, the guards creaked open the heavy doors, and you entered the throne chamber slowly. When you reached the foot of the throne, you lowered your body in a curtsey bow, your gaze fixed on the scarlet carpet that stretched beneath you.

“It is my greatest honour to stand before you, Your Majesty,” you said, though your indifferent tone made it clear to anyone listening that you longed for nothing more than to be anywhere but here.

But you knew the truth behind this charade. Aria wasn’t ill. She was the jewel of your parents’ eye, their pride and joy, shielded from the Empire’s gaze like a pirate’s precious treasure. You, on the other hand, were the forgotten one– the daughter they kept hidden, a mere shadow in their halls, easily discarded when it was convenient. To your father, you were a little more than a weight around his neck, an extra mouth to feed, a burden he was eager to rid himself of.

The king’s eyes scanned you up and down, his expression visibly souring as he took in the sight of your tattered ankle-high, brown dress and scuffed boots. Disgusting.

“Ugh,” he muttered under his breath, leaning on one elbow as he sneered at you. “She’ll do, I suppose. Pretty enough for their tastes.” He turned to his chancellor with a condescending wave. “Have the maids find something more… suitable for this one.”

The chancellor bowed deeply, “At once, Your Majesty.”

“Alright, you’ve packed everything, haven’t you?” your mother asked as she rubbed Aria’s shoulder comfortingly.

Your gaze drifted to the battered briefcase lying at your feet. You had stumbled upon it by accident, shoved into a forgotten corner of the dirty attic, coated in layers of dust and practically falling apart at the seams. With a sigh, you bent down to pick it up, nodding as it threatened to collapse.

“Yes,” you murmured, a bitter smile tugging at your lips, “There was hardly anything to pack, anyway.”

Your father scoffed, rolling his eyes as he wrapped an arm around Aria, who had begun to shed what you knew to be crocodile tears. The act was almost laughable. She suddenly broke free from their grasp and rushed over to you, flinging her arms around your waist with a dramatic sob.

“Y/N!” she cried, “Please take care of yourself– hic– I’m going to miss you so much!”

You hesitated for a moment before stiffly returning her hug. She was a liar, through and through, and you both knew it. 

Before the act could continue, the distant sound of hooves clattering against cobblestone paths captured your attention. Gently, you pried yourself away from her clutches, turning toward the approaching sound.

Your breath hitched. The Empire’s Royal Carriage was quickly nearing, and it was no exaggeration to say that its massive size dwarfed everything coming its way. It was magnificent, its gleaming white exterior and elegant navy blue designs that were above the huge clattering wheels. Silken curtains furnished the windows, embroidered with golden threads that caught the eyes of your greedy family. But what truly stole your attention was the shining silver crown perched atop the carriage, with Aquaria’s Royal Crest.

“Listen–” your father’s obnoxious voice cut through your admiration. He leaned close, his voice coming out in a hiss, “You better behave yourself, got it? If you mess this up, it’s not just you– it’s all of us. Understand?”

You shrugged off his threat with a nonchalant nod, “I’ll do my best.”

The sounds of the porcelain horses neighing were suddenly right behind you. They looked so soft, so immaculate, that you had to resist the urge to reach out and glide your fingers through their carefully groomed manes. But you knew better. This was no place for such frivolities.

The royal coachman descended from his designated seat and approached you. His right hand gracefully flew to his heart and he bowed slightly, his eyes closing for a brief moment.

“Greetings, my lady,” he said, straightening himself elegantly as his brown eyes met yours. He took your worn briefcase from your hand and placed it gently in the carriage’s wide storage compartment in the back. Then, he slid aside the long curtains and extended his hand toward you.

This was it. The moment you stepped into that carriage, you would leave this wretched life behind forever. No more grime, no more being hidden away like some shameful secret. You would be free– or at least you clung to the hope of freedom. 

Taking the coachman’s hand, you felt the fine material of your simple sage gown– one begrudgingly gifted by King Orion– brush against the spotless steps of the carriage. You could hardly believe you, of all people, had the privilege of entering something so grand, so expensive.

For one last time, you glanced back at your so-called family. They stood there, masks with feigned expressions of sorrow worn over their faces. But you weren’t fooled, and you certainly weren’t going to indulge them. Instead, a slow grin crept across your face and you mouthed a few words that served as a final act of defiance.

“Shitty lives for shitty people, I guess.”

“.... lady,”

“My….”

“My lady!”

“Hm…” You muttered drowsily, your eyelids slowly fluttering open to the sight of the coachman and several other servants peering in at you with concerned expressions. Startled, you shot upright, your hands grasping the seat beneath you. “Y-Yes!”

So far, you were off to a great start.

But now, as you finally stepped out of the carriage and beheld the regal palace before you, every bit of exhaustion from the long ride seemed to dissolve. The sight of it stole your breath and you tried to conjure up a word to describe it, but words escaped you. Beautiful, perhaps, though even that felt insufficient. Magnificent, maybe. 

There were towering stone sculptures and a large marble fountain in the center, its water elegantly cascading down like it was raining crystals. The front lawn was meticulously trimmed and maintained till perfection. The walls of the palace shined, built from pale limestone that you recognized from years of working with fire and sedimentary rocks. And at the peak of the palace dome, a lone flag fluttered in the breeze, proudly displaying the Royal Crest of Aquaria.

Your home now.

Yet, no lines of maids awaited your arrival at the main entrance, as you’d always imagined from reading those fairytale books you’d find tucked away in your attic. And there was certainly no sign of your supposed fiancé— His Imperial Highness, Itoshi Rin, the Second Prince of the Empire.

But then again, it made sense. You were just a humble village girl, after all— hardly worth the attention of someone as important as him.

The sudden neighing of a horse behind you jolted you from your thoughts, and you spun around. There, your gaze locked with the prettiest set of eyes you had ever seen— legendary teal irises framed by lashes so thick they casted a shadow on his cheekbones.

If the palace was magnificent, then he was simply breathtaking. 

Your heart stuttered in your chest as you instinctively took a step forward toward him, prepared to pinch fistfuls of your dress and bow down to him. 

He must be your fiancé, you thought. How could he not be? Those eyes were a symbol of royalty. His dark, reddish hair swayed with every blow of the wind, and the way an exquisite sapphire brooch shone against his royal attire screamed authority.

What did they call this phenomenon? Love at first sight? But then—

“Welcome back, Your Imperial Highness the Crown Prince!” a unified set of voices suddenly echoed from behind you in greeting, and you whipped your head back to see every servant and the carriage driver on their knees, their heads bowed low, and their hands clutched to their chests.

Crown Prince? Your breath caught in your throat. The Crown Prince? In other words, the future Emperor of Aquaria?

His gaze left yours to briefly sweep over the kneeling palace workers, before he waved his hand dismissively. “Rise.” he ordered. His deep voice made you feel a sudden tightening in your throat, and you had the urge to obey though you weren’t even on your knees.

When his eyes returned to you, you flinched, every nerve of your body feeling on edge. You drew in a sufficient amount of fresh air and held onto bunches of your gown, bowing respectfully.

“G-Greetings, Your Imperial Highness,” you stuttered.

Sae guided his horse to a halt and swung his leg over the saddle, dismounting and landing on the grass smoothly. He gave the mare a gentle pat, and you suddenly felt conscious as he approached you in long strides.

He stopped just in front of you, eyes seemingly studying you. “You are?”

You swallowed nervously, daring to meet his aquamarine gaze. “Y/N,” you said softly, “The Second Imperial Prince’s fiancée.”

His eyes narrowed and he closed them fleetingly before opening them again. “I see… That foolish younger brother of mine.”

You remained silent, unsure of how to respond. Your sparkling eyes flickered to his mare standing patiently beside him for a moment too long. Her coat was as white as fresh snow, and it almost hurt your eyes the way the sunlight reflected off her.

He noticed. “Oh, her?” He nodded toward the horse, gesturing for you to come closer. “Go on. You can touch her if you wish.” 

Your eyes widened in disbelief, trodding towards him in excitement. “May I, really?”

“Sure, whatever,” he muttered nonchalantly, though his gaze softened slightly. He was more focused on observing the horse’s reaction to you.

With careful hands, you reached out and gently raked your fingers through her silky mane. A delighted giggle escaped your lips as the fauna neighed softly and nudged your hand for more of your kind attention.

“She’s beautiful,” you whispered, and he hummed in interest. You paused for a moment, glancing at the prince curiously. “What’s her name?”

“Celestia,” he replied, pulling on the horse’s rein before folding his arms over his chest. He watched you interact with the animal. “She rarely warms up to anyone, but it seems as if she likes you.”

Your eyes lit up with surprise and you smiled, your fingers still tangled in the horse’s mane. “Celestia is a beautiful name… It suits her. She’s as white as the moon.”

For a brief moment, the prince turned his head to the side, as if he was hiding something from your view. He wouldn’t admit it, but he’d trust anyone his beautiful horse liked. His fingers slipped through his tousled red hair, and though his voice slightly carried a tone of arrogance, it was also laced with something else. “Tch. Thanks. I named her myself.”

You laughed lightly, “How old is she?”

“Turning nine soon,” he answered, giving her a pat. “She’s the mother of a black stallion.”

Your eyes twinkled in awe, fists clenched in front of you as you beamed up at him. “She’s a mother?!”

Sae raised a brow, leaning back slightly. “You’re standing too close.”

“A-Ah, my apologies, Your Highness,” You stuttered, retreating several steps just in case. “I… I seem to have forgotten my place,”

“No, it’s quite alr—” He started, lifting a hand as if to stop you from backing away, but was interrupted by one of the pesky servants from Rin’s wing of the palace. “...”

“I-I apologize for interrupting y-your conversation, Your Imperial Highness,” She panted, bowing low, “But The Second Prince has requested his fiancée’s presence for a private audience.”

Sae clicked his tongue in annoyance, his gaze lingering on you for a moment longer before he mounted Celestia. “I guess it cannot be helped. Fine, whatever.”

Your heart sank slightly, a wave of disappointment looming over your ethereal features. Your pretty eyes downcast and fists clenched lightly by your sides. You had hoped to stay just a little longer, either with the man you had mistaken for your fiancé or perhaps with the beautiful horse. You weren’t sure which had captured your fascination more.

You thought that, perhaps, if Rin was not unlike his brother, then marrying him probably wouldn’t be so bad.

Still, with a deep breath, you held onto your skirt and followed the maid. But just before you left, you glanced back over your shoulder at the First Prince with a smile so pretty it could coax the sun out of the sky and make even the stars envious.

“See you around, Your Highness!” You called out, waving your arm before turning around to trail after the servant woman.

Sae stood frozen for a heartbeat, his thoughts clouded by the ghost of that smile. Something stirred in his chest, something unfamiliar and probably unwelcome. He huffed quietly, silking his hand through his hair before muttering under his breath.

“Yeah… see you.”

Your heart raced as you stood before the polished double doors of Rin’s chamber. You swallowed hard in an attempt to calm your nerves. Your breaths came in shallow, like there was some sort of invisible weight pressed against your chest. 

Your hand hesitantly hovered mere inches from the door. You hadn’t even met the man and yet the tension was thicker than when you had personally greeted the crown prince.

The maid beside you fidgeted, clearly just as anxious. She stammered softly, “My lady…  j-just knock and wait for his word. I-I’ll take my leave now.”

You nodded, watching her scurry away so quickly as if she couldn’t wait to be out of the prince’s domain. You blinked in thought— if the servants in this wing were this jumpy around him, it didn’t bode well.

You took a deep breath, trying to steady your trembling fingers. After whispering a few reassurances to yourself, you finally raised your knuckles and knocked gently on the door.

No answer.

A few more seconds passed before you tried again, but this time you heard a deep, irritated voice call out.

“Enter.”

You gulped and planted your hands on the heavy door, pushing it open. The moment you stepped in, you held in your breath. The interior was extravagant beyond words– a room fit for royalty, as expected. 

Your enlarged eyes scanned the deluxe chamber, mouth unintentionally falling agape at all it held. But the awe immediately vanished as your gaze landed on Rin. The prince stood by a grand archtop window with his back to you, gazing down at the Aquaria Royal Gardens— which, to compare in size, were bigger than your whole village fit together.

He turned at the sound of your entrance, his sharp eyes immediately narrowing with a look of disdain. His voice was flat, yet annoyed. “Quit ogling and close the door behind you.”

It was an order, and you felt your body immediately move on its own. Your hands fumbled as you quickly shut the door, unable to keep the heat of embarrassment from rising to your cheeks. You lowered your gaze, focusing on the rosa aurora marble floor beneath you.

Rin’s eyes raked over you, his foot tapping on the floor impatiently. His eyes were just as icy as his brother’s, but where Sae had a certain aloofness, Rin’s coldness felt like a blade to the throat. He eventually crossed his arms over his chest and looked at you condescendingly, “No proper greeting?”

Your mind scrambled. “Ah..!” Your fingers gripped onto the fabric of your dress tightly as you bowed stiffly. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Y-Your Imperial Highness,”

He let out an exasperated sigh, rubbing a hand over his face as if the very sight of you was an inconvenience. “Horrible posture,” he muttered. “Your etiquette needs a lot of work.”

Your heart sank further, and humiliation washed over your whole face. You straightened up and pursed your lips together tightly, the words sticking to your throat like superglue, afraid that whatever you’d say next would only make matters worse.

He remained quiet and turned around, walking to the large seating area in the corner of his chamber. You hesitantly followed after him, taking a seat right beside him on the burgundy plush.

He eyed you sideways, clearly displeased. “...Really?”

“Um…” You shuffled your feet awkwardly, the fabric swishing against your ankles. “Sitting in front of you would be presumptuous of me… How dare I make eye contact with someone as great as you, given my position?”

He rolled his eyes at your words. “How audacious.”

“Oh— Your Highness, you’ve got an eyelash on your cheek,” You started, instinctively reaching out to brush it away. But before your fingers could make contact, his hand snapped out, roughly swatting yours away.

“Don’t fucking touch me, commoner scum.” He hissed.

You immediately withdrew, rubbing your stinging hand gently. You bit your bottom lip to keep quiet. “I apol—”

“Go sit in front.”

You obeyed without question, your body moving on autopilot as you rose from the sofa, taking a seat across from him. If you hadn’t the guts to defy your parents, what made you think you could defy a prince? You didn’t even have the strength to be angry; you were too preoccupied with trying to hold yourself together under his oppressive gaze.

What followed was more of an interrogation than a conversation.

“Can you read?”

“No.”

“Write?”

“No.”

“Table manners?”

“I eat with my hands.”

“... Can you do anything at all?”

Your fingers twisted nervously in your lap as you swallowed thickly, embarrassment creeping up your neck. “I can make really good vegetable soup...”

“...”

The silence stretched out, and you could feel your self-worth slowly becoming nonexistent. After a moment, he stood with a sigh, making you flinch. 

You averted your gaze to the window and you tapped your foot anxiously against the floor. You realized you were swallowing thick lumps of nothing more than usual. All his questions were glazed with layers of dripping haughtiness and it hurt when you realized how useless and worthless you were as you answered each one.

“No, this is good,” He assured, almost to himself, as he began unbuttoning his white shirt. You looked up at him, confused.

“Good?” You repeated softly.

Rin approached you with his shirt halfway undone. He stopped just in front of you, leaning down with an expression so intimidating it sent shivers sprinting down your spine. “Do you know why I chose someone as lowly and pathetic as you, peasant?”

You rubbed your clammy palms together and paused. “I think I might have an idea,” You whispered.

“Oh? Continue.”

“You want to win the public’s favour, perhaps?” you guessed carefully, “because it shows a connection to those of lower status…”

He raised a brow, “Hm. You’re smarter than you look.” He admitted.

But his next words made your blood run cold. His hands found your shoulders, his fingers gripping onto them with not much force as he leaned closer. Your gaze ashamedly darted down to his peeking sculpted chest before flicking up to his eyes.

“After I’ve become emperor instead of that shitty brother,” he whispered, his breath hot against your ear, “you will bear my child. Then, I’ll find a way to get rid of you.”

Your whole body was trembling as soon as his hands left your shoulders. You could feel your teeth clattering slightly as you stared at the floor, unable to speak. You tilted your head up and watched as he slowly slid off an oval-cut sapphire ring, rimmed with shimmering stones of diamond, from his finger.

“Give me your hand,” He ordered impatiently.

You nodded immediately, extending your hand in front of him with starry eyes. Without a word, he slipped the opulent band onto your ring finger, careful not to make contact with your skin. You pulled away and admired the accessory— you’d be set for a thousand lives if you sold this heavy thing.

“Thank you…” You smiled softly.

“This ring is a royal heirloom, along with one other,” He warned, pointing to the Crest engraved in the gemstone. “Do. Not. Lose. It.”

Your heart pounded in your chest as you stared at the ring, nodding quickly, “Yes… I won’t.”

“Good. Now go. The maids will show you to your chambers. Be ready for your etiquette lessons tomorrow.”

You rose from the sofa shakily, bowing once more. The difference between this man and the one you’d met earlier was staggering, and you already had a not so vague idea on who you preferred.

“Then I shall see you tomorrow. Goodnight, Your Imperial Highness.”

Your eyelids felt heavy as you tried to open them. You blinked once, twice, three times– your vision blurred with remnants of sleep before gradually sharpening into clarity. But what you saw around you was anything but familiar. 

Gone were the days of waking up to dusty cobwebs and the cracks and crevices of a wrecked ceiling that you had grown used to. Instead, your eyes met a vast, polished quartz ceiling, glistening in the morning light. Above you was a fancy chandelier, its long golden-framed vines dripping with crystals, and glass trickled down from the hooks. 

You shifted beneath your plush cover and froze for a second, because this soft sensation was just as unfamiliar. No more prickly stacks of straw or thin, rough blankets. No, today, you had woken up in luxury.

As you sat up, memories of yesterday flooded your mind. Oh, right. You were absolutely shocked when you were first led to your room. You could say you were floored by its elegance– far larger and more lavish than any room you had imagined you’d get. Though it still paled in comparison to Rin’s personal quarters, it was hard to grasp that this space was your room.

You remembered indulging yourself in a little tour last night, exploring it in awe. There was a massive walk-in closet, filled to the brim with fine dresses and gowns of rich silks and satins. Accessories like cocktail hats, jewel-studded heels, and purses of gorgeous colours, all of which you couldn’t wait to try, filled the shelves.

The grandest thing you had ever owned prior to this was a ring made of a flower’s stem.

But as you rubbed the sleep from your eyes, you felt a shiver run up your spine. Your heart jumped as you realized someone was in the room, and you let out a small squeak, instinctively clutching the covers.

“So you’ve finally woken up, my lady,” came a gentle, slightly amused voice.

You blinked rapidly, your gaze locking onto a pair of soft amethyst eyes. The young woman standing beside you had ginger hair that fell to her shoulders in soft curls, her pale cheeks peppered with specks of pretty freckles.

“W-Who are you…?” You asked carefully.

The woman set a pair of fluffy cotton slippers on the floor beside your bed, then gave you a small curtsy. “Eleanor, my lady. I am your lady-in-waiting.”

You slid your feet into the slippers, still feeling a little dazed. Eleanor busied herself with smoothing the bed linens as though it were the most natural thing in the world. “Meaning..?” you echoed, sitting up straighter.

She chuckled lightly. “Meaning I’ll attend to your personal needs and assist you with your duties to make sure you are well taken care of.” She gave you a smile, “You’re new to all this, aren’t you?”

You looked down at the marble bashfully, nodding your head, and admitted softly, “Yes…”

“Haha, that’s quite alright. But let’s not waste anymore time! We have to get you ready for today!”

“... Huh?”

You were absolutely pampered.

The question constantly lingered— what had you done to deserve this? Probably nothing but you were thankful that you went in the stead of your older sister.

Just a short while ago, you had been treated to the greatest bath of your life, courtesy of Eleanor. She had insisted it was part of her duty as your lady-in-waiting, but it seriously felt like a ritual reserved for queens. She skillfully massaged your muscles and rubbed your scalp with rosewater serenade. And when her hands worked authentic vanilla lather across your skin, you smelled like a warm, freshly baked biscuit. An upgrade from your baths in the river.

Currently, you were seated on a leathered stool as Eleanor combed through your hair with care. The reflection in the mirror in front could leave you gushing over yourself for hours. Your gown was a waterfall of midnight blue silk with intricate silver embroidery. Your waist was still uncomfortable from the pressure of the tight corset, but the result was definitely worth it. 

A delicate web of pearls hung from around your neck, cool against your collarbone. You absentmindedly toyed with the silver tassel earrings as Eleanor finished adding the final sprinkle of silver glitter to your styled hair.

“You look absolutely breathtaking, my lady!” She exclaimed as she clapped her hands together to dust off the excess shimmer.

You smiled admiringly, turning your head left and right. “Thank you, Eleanor. I never thought I could look like this...”

You stood from the stool, walking towards the door before her voice stopped you in your tracks.

“Wait, my lady!”

You turned, watching as she carefully presented a delicate box etched with faint leaf patterns. Nestled inside were a pristine pair of white fine lace gloves that were long enough to elegantly reach the elbows. 

“His Imperial Highness the Second Prince has ordered that you must wear these whenever you are with him,” She said quietly.

“Ah. Thanks.”

You understood. It was slightly disappointing that your fiancé would go to such lengths to avoid touching you. Was the prospect of touching you truly that distasteful to him? But you shrugged off the thought and removed your heirloom ring before sliding the gloves on. You put back the ring on top. It wasn’t everyday you got to wear something this refined. Perhaps it would be everyday from now on…

But then, the memory of Rin’s chilling words echoed through your mind. “Then, I’ll find a way to get rid of you.”

Your heart clenched and you shook your head. As long as you did as commanded, you were sure you’d be fine.

“Let’s go, Eleanor.”

Your body tensed under the penetrating gazes of the countless servants. Their stares followed you as you walked down the Main Hall of the right wing, heading towards the heart of the palace.

They weren’t even trying to hide their gossip. Why would they? Servants here were no ordinary peasants, they were people of the lowest class of nobility. Sons and daughters of Earls, Counts, Barons.

“His Highness must be smitten,” one maid said, “Just look at her dress!”

“Isn’t she from the slums?”

“And she wears the Royal Heirloom on her finger!”

“So, the rumours were true, then?”

“I heard she thought she'd be marrying the Crown Prince.”

“Pftt, That’s embarrassing.”

The hushed whispers suddenly quieted down to zero, and you assumed it was probably Eleanor’s doing because you could literally feel her piercing gaze though she was trailing respectfully behind you.

“It’s alright, Eleanor, leave them al—”

The words died in your throat the moment you caught sight of him– the man you first encountered when you arrived at the palace. He was exiting the Council Hall, deep in conversation with what looked like an advisor or high-ranking official. Your heart skipped a beat as you instinctively lifted the hem of your dress and rushed towards him.

“Your Highness!” you called out, your voice chirpier than you had intended.

He turned at the sound of your familiar voice, his eyes widening just slightly in surprise. For a fleeting moment, it seemed you had embodied the grace of a princess… had your heel not caught beneath you. You stumbled, eyes squeezing shut as you braced yourself for the fall. But instead of tasting the cold, hard floor, a pair of strong hands caught you, steadying you by your waist.

“Careful,” he warned softly, his hands lingering for just a moment before falling back to his sides. “You’re not used to heels.”

You laughed awkwardly, but you could not hide the disappointment that washed over your expression as his hands left you. “No, it’s my first time.”

He paused. His eyes stayed on you for a moment longer than they should, taking in the way your dress perfectly complimented your figure. But he realized this, and his gaze quickly shifted to the golden deer emblem mounted on the wall.

“You… look different,” He continued, rubbing the back of his neck.

The hall suddenly felt hot, or maybe it was just the heat radiating from your face. You dipped your head, fiddling with your clad fingers. “Oh, do I…?” you sputtered softly, but you silently cursed yourself for replying in such an awkward manner. Of course you looked different!

“Ahem,” Eleanor chimed in, coughing into her fist dramatically. “Not to interrupt, but I hear some alarming footsteps…”

“If you slack off one more fucking time, I’ll display your decapitated head on a pike to serve as an example for your pathetic kind!” a voice yelled from behind.

Rin stepped out the Council Hall, his face an angry scowl as he finished lashing at the minister who scurried away like a frightened animal. His eyes then flickered towards you and his older brother, and his expression soured further.

He turned to look at your lady-in-waiting, speaking sternly. “I thought I told you to bring her to my study,”

“We were on our way, Your Imperial Highness,” Eleanor responded politely, bowing her head.

“Incompetent.”

Rin’s attention shifted to you, noticing the lacey white covering up to your elbows. Without warning, he inched forward and closed the distance between you, his hand snaking around your waist. You tensed as his not unwelcome grip pulled you closer, your palm instinctively flying up to settle on his chest. You looked up at him gently, hesitantly, but his eyes weren’t on you– they were locked on his older brother.

He eyed his brother suspiciously, “What are you still doing here?” He asked. “Shouldn’t you be preparing for your trip to Berlina?” 

“Berlina…?” You repeated in confusion.

“The Kingdom of Sorcery and Magic,” Eleanor quickly whispered into your ear, leaning in with her palm covering her mouth.

Sae’s expression remained indifferent, clearly unbothered. “Shouldn’t you be focusing on more important matters right now?” He let his eyes wander lazily towards your hand on Rin’s chest before he smirked. “Like… sharpening your embarrassingly inadequate swordsmanship skills?”

Rin’s face contorted in anger and his neck flushed a deep red. His grip on your shoulder tightened just enough to make you wince. “You bastard… You’ll regret this.” He seethed through clenched teeth. 

The Second Prince glanced back at Eleanor in disgust, “You’re dismissed.”

He looked back at you, noticing your extravagant dress, before furrowing his brows. “The dress you’re wearing is too fancy for a day with no important occasion.”

You glanced down at your blue gown and shrugged. “Eleanor chose it for me,”

“Who?”

“—I personally think it suits her just right.” Sae broke in suddenly, wearing a smirk on his face as though he found pleasure in annoying his younger brother.

Rin narrowed his eyes at him. “Who asked for your opinion? And what were you two talking about, anyway?”

The Crown Prince hummed, leaning against the wall behind him. “Let’s see. Well, I told her she looked different, and helped her up when she tripped on her heels.”

“Tch.”

“But be careful,” Sae’s lips twitched into a small grin, his gaze drifting to meet your eyes. “keep your eyes on this beauty else I might steal her from you. Isn’t that right, my lady?”

Thump. Thump. Thump.

“Your Highness, even if you joke around like that, I don’t think my heart can take it–” you whispered, and Sae chuckled lightly, though Rin quickly pulled you behind him.

“That’s enough, stay away from her.” He glared, barely affecting Sae. “Your little jokes aren’t funny.”

“Who said I was joking?” The eldest quipped nonchalantly, and Rin just rolled his eyes.

“Let’s go.” He exasperated, holding onto your wrist and dragging you alongside him.

As his hand guided you away, you looked over your shoulder, searching for a familiar pair of tourmaline eyes. Ones identical to those of your fiancé’s. But instead, all you saw was a broad back and auburn hair shifting as he walked away in the opposite direction.

Rin slammed his fist against the hardwood of his desk. That interaction seemed to have spilled gasoline to the blue flames in his eyes, which were already burning with rage. “That bastard thinks he can keep playing games with me!”

You remained still, hands folded patiently over your abdomen. The last thing you wanted to do was provoke him further.

After a tense silence, Rin let out a sigh and collapsed into the plush seat behind his desk. “It’s alright,” he began, his voice softening just slightly. His gaze locked onto you in a way that made blood rush quicker through your veins. “You’re my ticket to becoming the emperor—” He leaned forward. “I need you.”

Your breath hitched in your throat at those words, but you knew not to expect much. Still, you mustered a sweet smile. “I’ll do my best, Your Highness. You were mentioning today’s schedule…?”

He leaned back, propping his arm on the armrest. “Right. My father is holding our engagement ball next week. Every noble house will be there to congratulate us. In the week leading up to it, you will perfect your manners and court etiquette. Understood?”

You gulped hard as a huge bag of responsibility was suddenly thrown onto your back. A week? To not work on, but perfect everything?

“...Understood.”

—

“... After you master public speaking skills,” Rin went on, “you’ll focus on formal dining etiquette. I don’t want you embarrassing me by eating with your hands. Then, you’ll have dancing lessons and study Royal Dress standards. You also need to be familiar with Aquaria’s history, diplomacy, and customs– especially royal protocols and responsibilities, and….”

His voice continued on, listing task after task. Your head was spinning, and you thought you were going to faint and collapse to the ground. This wasn’t the fairytale you’d imagined. You signed up for the fun part of being a princess— the ballgowns and the makeup, and maybe kissing the prince. This was a chore, the kind that made growing carrots and potatoes seem like heaven in comparison.

“By the end of this week, I expect you to be flawless. I’ve brought in the best tutors for reading, writing, and everything else– all that easy stuff. Do not disappoint me.”

You nodded automatically, but not before adding an innocent thought that had slipped into your mind, in a slightly sarcastic manner. “Have you perfected your swordplay, though?”

Now the temperature in the room seemed to drop down to zero as he bore his narrowed eyes at you. You felt a cold shiver run up all your bones, and your knees weakened. “You think you’re funny don’t you? Do you really want to play this game with me?”

Your bravado crumbled. “N-No…”

“Then get some rest,” he ordered. “Your training starts this afternoon.”

You nodded and quietly turned to leave the study.

Six long days had passed by since your lessons began. Six mentally and physically exhausting days.

Your dance instructor was a strict middle aged lady with sharp eyes and an even sharper tongue, who worked you till your feet were bruised. She made you balance books and vases on top of your head as you marched back and forth, her shrill voice cutting you off whenever your posture was horrible, or when you mixed up the steps for a dance made for another song. Although you loathed her guts, you couldn’t deny the significant improvement of your poise.

The dinner etiquette lessons, however, offered a time-out from that hag. Yes, you learned the basics of formal dining– how to keep your elbows off the table, chew with your mouth closed, use the silver utensils correctly, and pat your lips clean with the patterned napkins. But, the best part, or reward, was tasting the delicacies they served. Truffles, lobster coated with butter, and tender lamb chops. And then there were the fancy desserts– macarons pumped with ganache filling, puff pastry, tartelette au citron, éclair au chocolat, and more.

All of which you had never dreamt of tasting in your life, you who had never tasted anything more luxurious than a loaf of bread.

You also learned how to read and write, not for the reasons you preferred, but good nonetheless. You had found a particular fondness for the history lessons, which were not tedious at all. You were focused at all times much to your mentor’s surprise. Learning about the Royal family’s reign— how they had ruled over neighboring lands for centuries, managing resources, trade, and finance— fascinated you.

But your ears always managed to tune in and pick up the subtle gossip rotating among the maids and servants in the halls and libraries, so you had learned a few things.

The two princes were locked in a one-sided rivalry. One was fighting crystal and pickaxe for the crown, while the true heir showed little interest in the throne he was destined to inherit.

Sae, the eldest, wasn’t just entitled to the crown by birthright. He excelled at everything– swordplay, defense, archery, and horseback riding for royal ceremonies or simple trips to cities. His skills were polished to literal perfection. Rin, on the other hand, was skilled, but not extraordinary. He always lived in the shadow of his brother.

Yet Rin’s desire to become emperor wasn’t merely a wish— it was a burning, desperate need, an ambition to prove himself worthy. To finally win against Sae.

Killing his brother, of course, was out of the question— such an act would be treason. Besides, Rin didn’t just want him gone; he wanted Sae to see the moment when he ascended the throne, to admit defeat, to acknowledge that Rin had bested him.

Rin believed that the key to winning favour with their father—the current emperor—and the people was to flaunt his achievements, which, to remention, were not as good as Sae’s. But his sharp tongue and cold demeanor made it difficult for him to win many hearts. Sae learned to place a mask behind his foul words, whereas Rin still struggled to.

And that’s where you came into the picture.

You weren’t just his fiancée; you were part of his strategy. He’ll show you off before the court and the public, showcasing to the world how he transformed a mere commoner, a peasant, into someone of worth. 

You came from a disgusting, needy village, yet now you stood in royal fits. To Rin, you were a symbol showing his ability to elevate those beneath him. A tool to gain the favour of the people. You could read and write now, you were beautiful, and in the eyes of the kingdom, you had the potential to become the empress one day— if, of course, Rin managed to seize the crown from his brother.

—

It was late at night, and the moon’s natural light filtered through your curtains. You moved to your huge window and brushed aside the rosegold-embroidered fabric as you peered down at the Royal Gardens. The view was similar to that of Rin’s, since your chambers were three spare rooms away from each other.

You were exhausted, but you always had time to admire the water spilling down elegantly from the angel sculptures’ stone lips, or the beautiful shrubs clipped into topiaries. 

But all the exhaustion you felt moments ago suddenly vanished when your eyes caught sight of someone unexpected. 

It was the Crown Prince. You had seen Sae around the palace during these tiring six days, and you’ve engaged in many small talks with him without Rin’s knowledge. Conversations flew naturally with him, he asked you about your life before the engagement, and though you were initially hesitant, you found yourself speaking openly with him. There was a strange ease to Sae that, oddly enough, only you seemed to feel.

You stared at him a bit too long, your gaze almost boring a hole into him, and he sensed it.

Pivoting on his heel, he made direct eye contact with you from below. A soft gasp escaped your lips, and you hurriedly pulled the curtain closed. But he could still see your silhouette, and when you peeked your head out slightly from the curtain, you could’ve sworn you’d seen him chuckle.

With a quick gesture of his hand, he beckoned you down to the gardens. Your pretty eyes widened, but you found yourself nodding eagerly with no hesitation. How could you refuse?

—

Panting softly between giggles, you rested your hands on your knees.

“I can’t believe you ran to meet me in your… nightgown,” Sae remarked, his lips curving into a subtle smirk.

You straightened and boldly stepped closer until you were only centimeters away from him. Your eyes twinkled in the moonlight, and you shone a smile brighter than la lune. 

Sae’s breath caught in his throat as your face came full view and he felt his body still. You were Rin’s fiancée– he shouldn't be looking at you like this. But the glow of moonlight was making it hard…

“... You’re beautiful,” the words slipped out naturally.

Heat flooded the sweet curves of your cheeks at the way he said it so casually, so suddenly. Your gaze dropped to the freshly cut grass, your fingers nervously tucking a loose strand of your hair behind your ear. 

“Thank you,” you muttered quietly, your voice barely above a hush.

Silence followed. But comfortable, nonetheless. Then, you noticed his hand, palm up and waiting in front of you. You blinked up at him in confusion.

“I am aware that I am in no position to do this, but…” He paused, “May I have this dance?”

Your eyebrows shot up comically in surprise, glistening doe eyes widening for the hundredth time tonight. Your heart was thumping so fast you thought it might burst from your chest, and you feared he might hear it.

It was risky, you knew that. If Rin were awake, he might have been watching from his window– his chambers were so close to yours. You knew how much he enjoyed looking from his window from the time you’ve spent together in the past week. But, he had dismissed you earlier to rest and this moment alone with Sae was tempting.

Hesitantly, your hand hovered over his before relaxing and letting it fall in his grasp. You met his gaze, and you shyly whispered, 

“I know we’re not supposed to be doing this… but I want to.” Your fingers intertwined with his, and you smiled softly. “May I have this honour, Your Imperial Highness the Crown Prince?”

Sae glanced down at your hand weaved between his fingers. His brows furrowed in a frown, and a wave of panic washed over you. You literally felt your heart leap out of your chest. Had you overstepped your boundaries?

“I was only kidd—”

But instead of pulling away, he gently hooked his finger under the wristband of your glove, sliding it off your hand. You felt warmth bloom across your cheeks as he slowly removed the other glove too, making sure to leave his touch lingering on your bare skin.

“You don’t need to wear these ridiculous gloves to bed,” he said, “It’s unnecessary.”

Your cœur fluttered. “I… I just forgot,” you mumbled, embarrassed. 

He rolled his eyes, but his lips quirked into a smile as he clasped your now bare hand, while the other found its place on your waist. The fabric of your silk nightgown was thin, and his touch felt intimate, direct, and you could feel his fingertips pressing lightly against your skin.

He led you in a slow dance gracefully under the protective gaze of the serene moon, delicately spinning you before your arms naturally draped around his neck. His hand slid to the small of your back, pulling you closer. He looked so good, he smelled so good, his touch so gentle. You wanted him.

“Do you like these gardens?” He asked suddenly, giving you another twirl.

You nodded, lacing your fingers in his. “I do. It’s quiet. The palace can be… overwhelming.”

Sae raised a brow, “Overwhelming, huh? For someone like you, I suppose it would be.”

The words stung slightly, but there was no malice in his voice. You dared to meet the eyes you came to adore, “And you? Why are you here, Your Highness?”

He paused, then turned slightly. “I’m avoiding another council meeting. You’d be surprised how tedious it can be listening to old men argue for hours on end.”

You laughed softly, and for a brief moment, his eyes softened. He pointed toward a part of the garden in the distance. “Come with me,” he said simply. 

You followed, trembling as the Crown Prince led you with his fingers gently wrapped around your wrist. When you came to a stop, your breath caught in awe. Before you were roses of every shade– deep crimson, soft peach, porcelain white, and candy pink.

“They’re gorgeous,” you gasped.

“Right.” Sae bent down and plucked a single red rose from the bush, turning to you with a small, rare smile. “The red ones are my favorite,” he murmured, carefully tucking the rose into your hair.

You smiled sheepishly, gently patting the rose he’d placed. “They remind me of strawberry ja—”

“They remind me of blood,” he interrupted with a casual voice.

You blinked, startled by his answer. “R-Right.”

He chuckled softly, rubbing the area around his neck. “I can see why Rin chose you.”

You looked at him for a few seconds before quickly shaking your head. “He didn’t choose me, he just wanted any girl from our clan. My older sister was supposed to go, but I went in her stead. Besides, I’m nothing special… just convenient.”

“Convenient?” His gaze darkened slightly before his hand came up to rest on your chin. “...Don’t sell yourself short. You’re more than that.”

Your head quickly tilted down and you began to fiddle with your fingers, then with the simple lace adorning your neck. “Your Highness– stop saying things that make my heart, I don’t know, hurt?”

“Oh?” He placed his hands gently on your cheeks and you looked up at him lovingly. “That isn’t good for Rin, is it?”

You shook your head, “No, it isn’t. But he doesn’t make me feel this way.” You boldly placed your palms on his shoulders and stood on your tippy toes, and as soon as he leaned down slightly in approval, you pressed a soft kiss to his cheek.

He tapped his forehead against yours and smiled. His heart was beating a bit quicker, and he found it dangerous. “Well, I’m afraid I must leave now.” He drawled.

Your heart sank a little, your ethereal eyes flicking down. You nodded slowly, “Thank you for your time, Your Highness.”

He looked down at you, his expression softening. Slowly, he lifted your hand to his lips and pressed a chaste kiss to your skin. “It was a pleasure, my lady.”

If he couldn’t hear your heart thundering in your chest one thousand miles per hour moments ago, then he sure could now. As he disappeared, you placed your hand over your chest, rubbing over the spot where he’d kissed.

It seemed like Sae had yet again bested Rin in a game neither had realized they were playing.

Tonight was your engagement ball, the grand celebration that would officially announce your impending marriage to Rin.

You were both in his chamber, dressed fully in fancy outfits. He wore an elegant white attire adorned with the brooch of Aquaria and a navy blue sash draped across his chest. You wore a pitch black gown embroidered with gold, matching gloves, and heavy golden jewelry that Rin had exclusively bought for you. 

The party had already begun downstairs, the grand ballroom filled with the most important guests from across the empire. But the grand entrance of the soon-to-be bride and groom had to wait for the Emperor’s speech, set to occur an hour after the festivities commenced.

“It’s a lunar eclipse,” you mused admiringly, leaning against the window. The moon, bloody red from the umbra, hung in the night sky ominously. “I’ve read about the phenomenon in the Royal Library. The stars look so close… they look like they could fall right into our hands.”

Rin rolled his eyes and walked closer to you, resting his hand on your further shoulder. He stared out the window in boredom. “How poetic,” he muttered sarcastically. “Even the moon is congratulating us tonight.”

You turned your gaze from the sky to him, your hand gently smoothing out a small wrinkle on his sash. “It’s time, isn’t it? We should head to the Ballroom.”

He grumbled in response, pushing your hand aside as if your touch was unnecessary. 

The intricate grandfather clock suddenly chimed loudly. Midnight had arrived.

Tick.

“In the Twilight of the Eclipsing Red Moon…”

Tick.

“When Stars Align and Shadows Loom…”

Tick.

A strange voice seemed to rise from nowhere. You flinched visibly, a shiver creeping up your spine as the tiny hairs on the back of your neck stood up. You quickly found Rin’s hand and grasped it tightly. 

“D-Did you hear that?” You shuddered, voice trembling.

He raised an eyebrow. “Hear what? You’re imagining things.”

You shook your head, swallowing hard. “No… I swear, I heard something– like a voice. It was…”

He scoffed, shaking his head dismissively. “It’s just the clock ticking. Don’t start getting all nervous on me now.” His grip tightened around your hand, but you doubted it was for your comfort. “You’re going to be on your best performance for me, Got it?”

You hesitantly nodded, your gaze lingering on the moon for a few more seconds. The red, eerie glow still haunted your thoughts. You reluctantly turned away, looping your arm through Rin’s to exit the chamber and enter the grandeur.

“Yes…”

“And I want to thank you all once more for attending tonight’s ball,” The Emperor’s proclamation boomed from behind the closed doors. The attention of every soul present was on him. “I would now like to announce the formal entry of The Second Prince of Aquaria, and his fiancée, a soon-to-be princess, Y/N!”

The large doors, decorated with orchids and bloody red roses, parted dramatically to reveal you and Rin hand in hand. The Royal Guards on each side immediately stiffened and raised gloved hands to their head in salute. 

The aristocrats hushed immediately and their eyes followed as you both stepped onto the red carpet, descending the grand staircase and heading towards the two thrones.

You halted just below the steps of the thrones, immediately lowering your head in a bow of respect alongside Rin.

“Greetings, Your Imperial Majesties,” you murmured, lifting your head as you learned to.

“... Thank you, Father, Mother,” Rin’s voice followed formally.

Your gaze shifted towards the Empress. You particularly loved her as her lovely crimson hair always seemed to remind you of Sae. Oh, speaking of the Crown Prince, where was he? You hadn’t caught a glimpse of him yet. 

You turned your head, eyes subtly scanning the room in search of a distinct redhead. And in the corner of your eye, you found him leaning casually against a balcony pillar, arms folded over his chest and eyes closed.

Your gaze softened at the sight of him before refocusing on the mob of aristocratic ladies and noblemen that had rushed to circle your betrothed as soon as the Imperial Greetings were over. They approached and offered smiles under snobby and vexing expressions, backhanded compliments under the guise of praise.

“Such a refreshing choice, Your Imperial Highness!” A brunette lady gibed, fanning herself with an elegant fan as she slyly smirked, “You’ve truly outdone us all in… originality.”

A Lord chuckled beside her, his laugh insufferably pompous. “I must say, Your Highness, I certainly admire you embracing such humble roots! A prince of the people! Ho ho ho!”

“I’m glad we have such a reliable prince who values all his subjects equally!”

“It is odd that His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince hasn’t found a lady yet.” One brought up.

An Earl added, “That’s true. He’s supposed to step up to the throne sooner or later. He needs an heir once he becomes Emperor.”

You squeezed Rin’s hand discreetly as he bit his lip in frustration at the mention of his brother. He needed to restrain himself at least this one time. 

“I appreciate your sentiments–” he began, but faltered for a split second. “No I fucking don—” You squeezed his hand again, giving him a gentle nudge, and he cleared his throat. “Your support is reassuring,” he finished with a strained smile.

As your fiancé continued chatting with the backhanded nobles, your attention kept drifting towards Sae, stealing quick glances every now and then. He had begun conversing with a group of higher officials and ministers, likely discussing Berlina, The Kingdom of Sorcery and Magic that he had frequented many times to strengthen the Empire’s growing alliances.

Loud enchanting music began to play from the orchestra and many already established couples began to dance in the center. Expensive and rare gifts began to pile at your feet, congratulatory offerings from various guests. Rin accepted them indifferently and reluctantly offered his thanks with as much enthusiasm as the stone sculptures that lined the ballroom.

“This jewel was found in the Ancient land of Topion and is thought to bring good fortune!”

“This exotic bird from Elakis produces gold everytime it sings!”

“This sword is forged by a legendary ghost smith whose body lives in the volcanic depths of Loo!”

You froze when Sae stepped forward as the next gifter, and it seemed like the entire room was also holding its breath. He approached, your widened eyes drifting down to the elegant box in his hand. He opened it, revealing an intricate necklace with shimmering, round pearls.

“An authentic pearl necklace crafted by the Merman Emperor of Eau.” Sae presented with his usual calm demeanor, making it hard to believe that he had spent days negotiating with the merman to create a necklace exclusively suitable for you.

Your mouth parted in surprise, and the words tumbled out. “Oh– thank you! It’s… beautiful.”

Rin rolled his eyes, gently fisting your hair and lifting it to expose your neck. “You didn’t have to do that,” He hissed through gritted teeth, looking at Sae with teal eyes that crinkled in hate.

Sae met his brother’s glare with a simple hum, fastening the beaded necklace around your neck. You bit your lip tightly as his touch lingered on your skin, looking down at the pearls that beautifully settled against your collarbone. “That would be disrespectful to you both, I’m afraid,” He said. “Even Our Father, the Emperor, has offered her pleasantries.”

Rin clicked his tongue and looked back at you, wrapping his arm possessively around your waist and pulling you closer to him. He pressed a quick kiss to your forehead, catching you by surprise. The Crown Prince narrowed his eyes at the gesture.

“Come on, darling,” Rin emphasized as he spat out the term of endearment, though he internally cringed and wanted the ballroom to rupture and swallow him whole. The pet name left a bitter taste at the tip of his tongue. “It’s time for our dance.”

You nodded, your lips parting to speak, but, “Of course, Your High—”

“The Great’s Fate is Sealed in the Veil of Night…”

That haunting voice again. Your ears were ringing. You quickly squeezed your eyes shut and froze in your tracks.

“...By the Hand of One from Mystic Light.”

“I-It’s the voice again!” You whimpered, hands flying to your ears in a desperate attempt to block out the sound. “I hear it!”

Rin scoffed loudly, glancing left and right at the guests who were exchanging confused looks. Sae, on the other hand, seemed out of it, with half-closed, bleary eyes.

“Quit it, you fool!” Rin cursed in annoyance, his patience snapping. He grabbed you by your shoulders and yanked you to his chest away from their judgemental gazes.

“Voice? I don’t hear anything,” a lady whispered.

“Neither do I,” someone else chimed in.

A voice snickered, “She said ‘again’.”

“His Imperial Highness must be marrying someone with auditory hallucinations.” The words stung as they left another noble’s mouth.

Then, in an instant, the ballroom plunged into darkness as the bright chandeliers went out. The ballroom was only illuminated by the glow of a large bolt of lightning, and a thunder rattled so violently it deafened you and shook the windows. When the bulbs flickered back on, a shrill lady’s voice pierced the silent room.

“T-The Crown Prince! He’s not moving!”

All eyes shot to Sae, who lay motionless and graceful on the floor, hand on top of hand. He looked calm, as though he was merely resting. 

You gasped in fear, hands flying to your mouth as you tried to stay balanced on your feet. Rin’s eyes in particular were the widest. The atmosphere in the room immediately shifted to terror as everyone noticed the ink-blue vines creeping slowly up his neck, thorn designs wrapping themselves around his throat.

“T-That’s… Alexis’ Curse!” The Emperor panicked.

You had read about it. Alexis’ Curse—an ancient legend of a wizard scorned by love. His heart had been shattered by the daughter of a shoemaker, Michelle Kaiser, who had chosen her Earl lover over him. She always refused Alexis’ advances, and the gifts he’d always present. 

Enraged, Alexis had cursed the Earl, condemning him to a fate of eternal sleep unless the one he loved kissed him to break the spell. The curse wasn't one of eternal youth, however—the body continued to age, to decay, until there was nothing left but ugly bones. 

But because Alexis had disposed of his inked body in his tower, the Earl had died alone, Michelle never finding him.

The curse had become a myth, that Alexis’ wrath was aimed at those of high status, warning them of the dangers of meddling with those beneath them. 

But the nobles’ faces were literally drained of colour because what had once been myth was now terrifyingly real, before their very eyes.

It had been a few weeks since the disaster during your engagement party.

They had sealed Sae’s lifeless body deep in a chamber within the Main Palace’s basement. You attempted sneaking in multiple times, but you failed– the entry was heavily guarded and there was too much risk. And besides, if slipping past your lady-in-waiting wasn’t hard enough, Rin had become increasingly possessive as the possibility of being promoted to Crown Prince rose. That is if he was elected as so in the Royal Committee Meeting.

He was proud enough that he’d permit small acts of closeness– letting you remove your gloves when in his presence, even sharing his chamber. So, you would never risk waking him up while trying to sneak into the basement.

You recalled the aftermath of the disastrous ball vividly:

—

“I never knew he was so pathetic,” Rin sneered that night, running a hand through his dark hair before resting it at your throat and squeezing lightly. “Falling in love with you? A commoner? He must be out of his mind.”

He chuckled as he released you, pulling you into his chest.

“The whole Empire is so stupid. They think he fell in love with someone else. But it’s better this way.”

—

Yet despite Rin’s actions, your thoughts remained with Sae. You’d spent the weeks caring for Celestia, his white mare, as well as tending to Rin’s black stallion which he had never bothered to give a name to. You learned from the stable workers that Celestia was the mother of the charcoal horse.

Tonight, however, a once in a red moon opportunity presented itself. Your fiancé was away on royal business in Yelund, negotiating financial matters with their government in place of the Crown Prince. You took this chance, knowing it was the only one, and decided to sneak out.

You left your chamber, clutching a cage with a rat you’d found in the servants residence. You made your way through the darkened corridors until you reached the entrance of the basement. You hid yourself behind a large stone pillar and took a deep breath, tossing a small block of cheese across the room as a distraction. 

The guards were alarmed by the subtle noise and quickly whipped their heads and ran towards the sound. You bit your lip in concentration— everything was going according to your plan. You quickly released the rat from its cage, watching it scurry across the concrete, and silently slipped into the Royal basement. You sighed in relief as you heard a guard's voice.

“Oh, it’s just a rat. Guards, get back into position.”

—

You slid off your heels so that your bare feet barely made a sound as they grazed the stone steps of the staircase. The basement wasn’t very illuminated if not for the dim candles that hung on the wall, and the stench was not horrible as you thought it would be. Instead, it smelled like preserved jasmine.

You were at the last step when you put your hand on the concrete wall, trying to catch your breath.

At the bottom, in the center of the relatively smaller room, stood a rectangular crystal glass box. Inside it, Sae lay perfectly still. The sight of him made your gaze soften and your heart clench as if it was put in a meat slicer. His skin was pale, but it was bolded, in contrast, by the inky blue vines tracing thorn and rose patterns across his body. 

His cheeks and ears were faintly flushed by a baby pink dust, and his lips looked so soft, so gentle, so inviting. Stray strands of his red hair lay on the cushion beneath him, his long lashes resting against his cheekbones.

You were aching as you approached the enclosure. Your fingers trembled as you pressed them to the glass, your breath slightly fogging the surface. Tears blurred your vision as they began to roll down your cheeks, and you leaned down to gently caress his cheek with your bare hand, feeling the coolness of his skin.

You sniffled and your palms went to rub your glossy eyes, before you straightened up and curled your fingers on the glass in a tight grip. He looked beautiful, you thought, with roses that matched his hair colour surrounding him all over.

“Your Imperial Highn— no, Sae—” you whispered, “I… I love you, too.”

You cupped his face with quivering hands, your thumbs rubbing sweet circles on his skin as you contorted your body awkwardly to reach him. The glass was positioned high, at your waist’s level, so you had to twist your body and bend to touch him intimately.

Sae remained unmoving, yet you had hoped that somewhere deep within his slumber, he could sense your touch, or the sincerity of your unsteady voice confessing your reciprocated love.

As you leaned in to kiss him, that same sharp voice that you always hear yet again cut through your ears, and you instinctively covered them with your hands for protection.

“But From the Dust of Forgotten Lands,”

Your heart thumped faster in your chest as you tried to shake it off.

“Shall Rise a Heart with Common Hands,”

Beads of cold sweat trickled down your temple— you could never get used to the voice, no matter how many times you’d heard it.

“With Lips of Rose and Spirit Warm,”

Your hands fisted at the cotton under Sae, inhaling deeply before bending down until your face was inches away from his.

“To Bring the Order, End the Storm.”

Your lips hesitantly hovered over his mouth before you fluttered your eyes shut and pressed them against his in a kiss. Your lips together were so soft, yet they weren’t moving against each other like a mutual kiss would. They locked seamlessly in a way that felt strangely natural, as if the pair were made for each other. 

Your lips lingered against his for a few seconds, and you wanted to relish the moment more, but you felt a subtle shift in Sae’s body. A faint flinch, almost imperceptible, ran through him, and the blue roses on his skin suddenly began to glow.

You pulled back before you could fully comprehend what was even happening, your lips just brushing his as you turned and sprinted towards the stairs. Fortunately, the guards on duty were in the midst of a shift exchange, so you assumed you had gone off flawlessly.

But not entirely.

A certain awakened man had caught a glimpse of your hair as it bounced during your escape.

The first light of morning stabbed your eyes, and they fluttered open abruptly as you realized Rin’s hands were on your shoulders, shaking you harshly. His face was itched in a deep scowl, his breath hot against your skin.

“What the fuck is all this about? This is what I come back to, you fucking whore?” He fumed venomously.

You blinked in confusion– your head was still fogged with sleep, after all. 

“W-What..?”

—

The usual tranquility of the whole palace was broken by hurried, squeaky footsteps and frantic voices. News of the Crown Prince’s revival had spread like wildfire through the Royal Quarters: the sleeping prince had defeated the curse and had awakened after only a few mere weeks.

The servants and maids rushed through the hallways, scrambling to prepare for what would be an unexpected audience. Gossips and rumours flowed through every corridor of the palace faster than the head maid brewing herbal tea in preparation for noble guests.

And in the Royal Gardens outside, hundreds to near thousands of noblemen and noblewomen who were alerted of the Sae’s revival gathered, dressed in their finest dresses and suits. 

Oh, you were so fucked.

—

“M-My lady, this isn’t good!” Eleanor cried as she ran into your room, “Hundreds of guests have arrived in the Throne room, and both princes are there too! His Imperial Majesty is now urgently awaiting your presence!”

Your hands instinctively wrapped around your abdomen, and you suddenly felt nauseous. Your body shook slightly, your teary eyes fixing themselves on the ground. You loved Sae, you really did, but doubt was gnawing at your organs. Kissing him felt right in that moment, yet you were starting to regret ever doing it. 

What if he didn’t want your help? What if your peasant lips had tainted him? What if he didn’t want you?

“I… I don’t want to go,” you hiccuped, walking around your room in circles. “I’m so stupid, I should have never—”

“No, my lady,” She interrupted gently. “You must.”

You gulped and nodded hesitantly. Rin’s anger lingered in your mind like salt and pepper— his eyes were boiling over with rage, his face tinted a deep crimson red. You had never seen him like that, and now, as you stepped into the crowd gathered in the grand hall, all heads turned to look at you in a way that made you even more uncomfortable.

But the Emperor, however, did not seem angry. Weird enough, he looked elated for reasons you couldn’t yet pinpoint.

As Eleanor had said, Rin and Sae were both present, standing opposite each other like the rivals they were. Rin was struggling to contain the way he was absolutely fuming, while Sae was blatantly staring at you with no intention of hiding it. Unlike the way you usually reacted to the Crown Prince’s gaze, you felt rather nervous, flexing and unflexing your fingers.

You pinched the fabric of your simple gown and bowed low, and the thin patterns of the marble floor never seemed so interesting.

“Greetings, Your Imperial Majesty,” you addressed. 

The Emperor nodded in acknowledgment, before turning his attention to Sae expectantly. “My son.”

“Yes, father.”

Before your wracked mind could process what was happening, Sae suddenly began striding toward you. Rin was a considerable distance away from you but he also furrowed his brows in confusion. A million thoughts started to run through his mind and he felt the unease creeping up his spine. Had they planned something behind his back?

Sae came to a stop in front of you, and your breath caught in your throat as you felt his arms, so muscular despite being under layers of hand-crafted clothing, loop around your waist and pull you close. Your face pressed against his chest, and your hands awkwardly hung near your sides despite being desperate to place themselves in places they’d beg to touch.

Loud gasps and surprised awes of the hundreds of uninvited, stunned guests echoed throughout the large room.

“Hey, what the heck–?” Rin suddenly snapped, biting down on his lip so hard that blood seeped out, the iron leaving a metallic taste on his tongue.

He didn’t like you, not really, but he had finally claimed something– someone that his older brother desired, and now it felt as though Sae was taking you from him. 

It irritated him to no end, the way Sae’s hand gently patted your hair and the way you sheepishly smiled into his suit like an idiot– who the heck did you think you were? How could you? How fucking dare you?

And more importantly, why was the Emperor fine with this? Why was he chuckling so carelessly akin to the circus’ fool? What was going on?

But your mind was already in Saturn. You were lost in the Crown Prince’s musky scent and the oh-so-delicate taps of his fingers on your head, and when you heard that voice again, you closed your eyes knowingly and smiled for the first time in what felt like forever.

“A Crown of Old Shall Find its Grace,”

“In the Embrace of a Simple Face.”

“Y/N.” Sae’s voice broke through your thoughts and the voices of gossip in the crowd died down instantly. He tilted your chin up gently, thumbs caressing your face sweetly before his hands found their place on your cheeks.

Your eyes darted left and right nervously, avoiding his gaze. He'd never called you by your first name before. You shook those thoughts away and met his gaze. “Yes…?”

“You know,” He started, “To break the curse, the feeling of love must be mutual…”

Your cradled head nodded in his hands in embarrassment, and you felt heat creep up from your neck to your ears. “I’m aware,”

“So?”

Your eyes widened and immediately snapped down to the floor, watching your simple heels shuffling softly. You couldn’t help the soft giggle that escaped past your lips, and you only hoped that no one had heard that. You looked up at him affectionately.

“I love you…” Your voice dripped like melted caramel on his tongue, so sweet.

He smiled– a real, genuine smile that no one besides you could see– and leaned down, whispering an “I love you too,” before sealing his lips against yours. The kiss was gentle, and you let out a soft sigh as your fingers curled onto the rich fabric, gripping onto his attire tightly. His lips were warm as they moved against yours, unlike the cold, unmoving lips that you had claimed a while back. 

When you finally pulled away, your eyes fluttered open, dazed with bleary eyes, little hearts seemingly etched into your pupils.

The crowd erupted into cheers and gasps, and maybe a few rolls of the eyes and glares from jealous noblewomen or daughters of Lords who had hoped to have Sae all to themselves, though you barely registered anything.

Why would anything matter, when you were here, openly in his arms?

“His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince is in love with his soon-to-be sister-in-law? This is hot news!”

“The Second Prince didn’t love her anyway.”

“He didn’t? But was it really a marriage of convenience, then?”

“No way, he must have been in love. What’s there to gain from a commoner?”

“But what could a village girl like her possibly offer the Crown Prince?”

The Emperor suddenly rose from his golden throne and stepped down the carpeted stairs, standing in the center. He cleared his throat and raised his scepter high in the air.

“I, the Emperor of the Royal Empire of Aquaria, officially dissolve the engagement between Y/N and the Second Prince, and announce the engagement between her and the Crown Prince!”

Rin’s eyes twitched. His fists clenched tighter by his sides, knuckles white and nails digging deep into his palms. He felt humiliated in front of so many people, but it is said that what goes around comes around. 

“Huh? But Father, she's—” Rin began, but the Emperor turned his head and shot him a threatening glare. 

“Emperor’s order.” With a voice that sharp, there was no possible room for argument.

You also stood frozen, mouth hanging open in disbelief as you blinked at the Emperor in the distance. But Sae’s fingers tipped your chin back up and his lips latched onto yours in a bold, open-mouthed kiss.

“Look at me,” he murmured as he pulled back slightly to look at you, his breath warm against your skin.

Your breath hitched, your gaze locking onto his. “Your Highness… I can’t believe this is happening,” You whisper-yelled in excitement, your hands waving around uncertainly.

He gently poked your cheeks. “You’ll take my last name since you don’t have one.”

You pinched yourself to check if this was all just a dream. If it was, you didn’t want to wake up. But it was all too real. The Crown Prince was now your fiancé. You were going to be the Crown Princess, and eventually, the Empress. And you were going to take his last name because commoners do not have the privilege of family names.

And despite everything, you strangely felt no deep remorse. You had slightly opened up to and grown fond of Rin in the past few weeks– he had those moments, but with you in his brother’s arms right now, you felt something different. You felt bad, but at the same time you didn’t. It wasn’t guilt. It was more complicated, but in the end, you didn’t dwell on it. You didn’t need to.

Rin stood in his spot motionless like a fallen angel’s statue, face hidden by a brush of his dark bangs. His eyes were fixed on the floor and his hands were clutching onto his pants like if he removed them hell would break loose.

His plan had backfired on him. Initially, he had chosen you, a commoner, as his fiancée to gain favour with the people, to appeal to the majority of Aquaria’s population, who were commoners themselves. It seemed like a strategic move at the time. His father, the Emperor, was known for his peculiar love for equality and would occasionally volunteer in villages, much to his dismay. Rin had believed marrying you would show his alignment with his father’s baffling… values, and would increase his chances of becoming the next ruler.

But no. His darn prodigy of a brother had bested him once again. Sae was better at everything: swordplay, horse riding, diplomacy, even winning nobles’ hearts. And now, his brother had not only fallen in love with his fiancée, a dumb commoner from the slums that he had chosen to boost his image, but also managed to make her fall heads over heels for him as well.

If that hadn’t infuriated him enough, he despised how his father wore that sickeningly proud smile on his face as he clapped his hands together, and how the couples were cheering and twirling like morons on the floor. While he stood stiff and awkward in the corner, insides seething in mixed emotions, hearing your stupid giggles and his brother’s irritatingly sweet reassurances of a better life with him. Sae had taken everything away from him, and it felt like salt being rubbed into an open wound.

But Rin hated his older brother, and he hated you too.

So on the night of your wedding, the chambermaid in your room let out a blood-curdling shriek, her face as pale as the moonlight that shone through the window. 

Cruel streaks of mulberry and plum bruises painted the delicate canvas of your neck. The once-pure white of your nightgown now blemished with spreading stains of deep cherryrose dye called blood, seeping through the fabric and into the silken sheets beneath. 

A severed porcelain horse’s head lay propped beside the body with vacant eyes, and scattered across the carpet were shattered remnants of a pearl necklace.

“But Do not be Fooled, One Shall Not Bloom,”

A dagger, its handle carved from true blue sapphire, was loosely wrapped between cold, limp fingers of a lifeless corpse sprawled across a river of red.

“For This, Will Lead to One’s Gentle Doom.”

© 2024 bluelockmaniac — do not repost, copy, translate, modify, etc my work on any platform !

[superiorsturgeon]

Jaune: Yang, I need your help!

Yang: Well, that goes without saying, vomit boy! 😎

Yang: But what specifically? 🤨

Jaune: I want you to teach me how to have sex with my girlfriend! 😖

Jaune: The last time Pyrrha and I did it, I couldn’t last more than ten minutes, and she called it “Fine!”

Jaune: *grabs Yang’s shoulders* “Fine” is code for “not very good!” The Star Wars sequel trilogy was just “fine!” I can’t let things continue like this! 😫

Yang: Well, you’ve come to the right place! But my services won’t come cheap!

Jaune: *gulps* 😰

Yang: In return for transforming you into a sex god who can please any woman on Remnant, you must give me…

Yang: …one month of doing my daily chores, and also your family’s secret tuna casserole recipe that you won’t even share with Ren! 😈

Jaune: …done!

Yang: Take some time to think about-wait, what? 😨

Jaune: Done deal!

Yang: What do you mean “done deal?!”

Jaune: I mean I’ll do anything to impress Pyrrha! Tell me your secrets! 😥

Yang: …😕

Yang: …okay, cards on the table, I expected you to fight WAY harder than this. I don’t actually know if I can help. 😓

Jaune: WHAT?! Then what was all that noise from your room last weekend?! It went on for so long! I swear I heard “Dragula” playing!

Yang: I pretty much just do what Blake tells me. She’s a power bottom with an emphasis on “power!” 😔

Yang: That’s why I wanted your recipe! I need to impress Blake…😢

Jaune: Well, this is just great! I’m dating Pyrrha Freaking Nikos and I have nothing to offer in bed! 😭

Yang: Can’t you use your bullshit high aura levels to last longer? 🤔

Jaune: *flailing his hands in frustration* AURA DOESN’T WORK THAT WAY!!! 🤬

Elsewhere…

Blake: *on the edge of her seat* OOOH…tell me more…! 😍

Pyrrha: …and not only did Jaune make a magnificent surf-and-turf dinner, but he did the cleanup as he went! 😁

Pyrrha: He earned SO MANY boyfriend points for that! 🥰

Blake: Awww…! Yang does romantic things like that! I think she’s anxious about our relationship, so she goes way over the top in bed.

Blake: …did I ever tell you about the time she dug up an old book about sexy massages and spent weeks practicing in secret before our anniversary? 😏

Pyrrha: EEEE!!!! Tell me! Tell me! Tell me!!! 😃

[thecapricunt1616]

Knock knock 🚪✊- Is anyone out there?! For some reason the bug has only been biting me to write late at night, so I’m sorry I’ve been posting so late lately (lol) but I hope that some lip smutty fluff brightens up your morning! (p.s. ; yes I know there are still 17 asks rotting away in my box. I prooomise I’m getting to them. I’m wanting to do asks how I usually do them, which is giving you an 8-10k plot instead of just what I can write on my phone since I don’t have a laptop at the moment, but I swear im trying to get a new one suuuuper soon!!! I love you all!!)

I’ve been thinking all day, probably since it is Carnival season after all - about how fun it would be to go to a Carnival with Lip over summer break, or even take a roadtrip to Cedar Point together and make a whole week out of it?! Eeee our prince deserves some fun time! I just know he’s the kind that is such a kid at heart, he grew up with so many siblings! He also has Frannie around, so he would totally love stuff like that (more BTC)

(Warnings for BTC: AFAB reader, No physical attributes for reader are described other then r/ has long hair, Smut!!!, No use of Y/N {r/ goes by pet names like baby, sweetheart, honey, etc.}, Fluff {happy lip!!}, Established relationship, College!Lip, sweet older-brother vibes from Lip, vomiting (r throws up cotton candy, it’s not too bad or long though!) , No ‘typical’ Gallagher drama to be found! {giving our mans a break!!} , not heavily edited, sweet/caring BF!Lip) [if I missed any please let me know in the comments!]

So you’d get there probably just as the sun is setting ‘because that’s the most romantic time to go’ he’d teased, in your ear earlier that afternoon between heavy needy kisses that you shared the moment he’d gotten home from work and he tugged you up to his bedroom since the house had been empty, he was going to use that time ever wisely.

He had been talking up this grand fun night together when the Carnival Fair was finally coming to town that weekend. It was going to be a wonderful chance for you and him to get some nice time alone, especially after finishing out your spring semester of school and having the summer off. He’d been working the summer at Patsy’s, so he told you he was gonna have all the money a girl could dream to get cotton candy and funnel cake since you’d gushed about how when you were a kid those were your favorite to get.

He had wrapped his beat up Jean jacket around your shoulders as you walked after he bought your tickets, even though it was nearing the middle of August and during the day summer was in full swing - fall had already begun to creep in at night causing goosebumps to arise on your arms. “Have I ever told you what a gentleman you are, Gallagher?” You kiss his cheek gently and he chuckled, shaking his head a bit

“Takin’ care of you is my job baby.” He wrapped his arm around your shoulder, kissing your head gently as you waited in line together to get a big bag of cotton candy to share.

“Well you’re really good at that job- you should give yourself a promotion” you held up your left hand jokingly, wiggling your ring finger and he lets out a chuckle, heat creeping to his cheeks that you couldn’t help but feel a rush of pride in your chest for being the reason of.

“I promise I will promote myself as soon as I can find it in the budget” he mused, lacing your fingers together as you head up to the counter and the guy a few years younger then the two of you asked what he could get for him- and he looked at you “you still want the bag one, yea?” He confirmed.

You looked at lip like he had hung the moon in the sky that night, you usually looked at him that way. How he was so kind, and attentive in the way he loved you. How he yearned to take care of you, he wanted nothing more than to make you happy. He made you the happiest girl in the world just by remembering you told him cotton candy was your favorite fair treat so getting right in line for it with you the moment you got there. Because it was what you liked, what made you happy.

“Yes, thank you baby” you planted a little kiss on his neck, since you couldn’t reach his lips when he wasn’t ducking his head to kiss you as he handled the paying and the conversation. Being taken care of had become routine for you, pampered- loved. That’s how you felt when you were around lip, loved- and seen.

Your next stop after sitting and munching on cotton candy until you nearly gave yourself a tummy ache, causing Lip to have to tie off the rest of the bag yo keep your sneaky fingers from getting in when he wasn’t looking - was the strongman game.

You giggle and point “Babyyyyy! You’re so strong- look at that cute pink unicorn!! I can cuddle it when you’re at work! Pleeeeease Lip, can you win it for me baby? Pretty pleeeease?” You beg sweetly, wrapping your arms around the back of his neck and kissing along his jaw to sweeten the deal.

He chuckled a bit, looking at the top rack where said obnoxiously large unicorn was zip tied to the grate, looking down at you before back up at it and sighing a bit to himself “I can win it - but do I particularly wanna carry it around the rest of the night?” He looked down at you again to see your fluttering lashes and pouty bottom lip.

“For your lady? For your bestest girl in the whole world? Pleeeease? You work too much who am I gonna snuggle!” You stand on your tip toes and peck his lips “if I was strong enough to do it myself I would but I need my big strong man to do it for me” you emphasize for added pizazz and he snorts a laugh, patting your ass playfully and giving it a squeeze.

“You are a damn good manipulator” he teased as he dug out his wallet, grabbing a 5 dollar bill that it costed for the three swings “gimme a real kiss- y’know, luck and shit” he puckered his lips, ducking his head and you giggle, happily squeaking as you plant a juicy loving kiss on his lips, your hand finding the back of his neck and stroking gently

“Thank you best boyfriend in the world” you giggle happily and stood to the side as he handed the guy the money

“So uh- what do I need to do f’the horse” he nodded at the pink unicorn with a rainbow tail.

“It’s a unicorn, baby!” You remind and he rolled his eyes playfully

“The fuckin unicorn, then, what do I need t’do” he asked the man running the game booth

“Have to get 100% on one of your 3 tries.” He explained, putting the money in the cash box and Lip nodded

“Easy enough” he picked up the mallet, rolling his shoulders a few times to stretch them out.

“You got this baby!!!” You clap happily and watch as he takes his first swing and the little piece races up and hits 96% causing you to jump up and down happily “Good job baby!!!” You giggled and he smiled at your sweet, encouraging reaction even for something as silly as a carnival game, something he always adored about you is your undying support and encouragement for the people you love. He always felt when you were around that he could just be himself and somehow, that was enough, all on its own.

“Not bad for a first swing ‘eh?” He mused with a playful cockiness and since it wasn’t all too common someone could really get 100% on the thing, a small crowd of 5 or so carnival goers had stopped to see if he was going to get it.

“Not bad at all, I’m already thinking of names for our soon to be adopted unicorn baby” you said and he chuckled a bit, lifting his arms to take his next swing and you couldn’t help but realize how the hem of his black T-shirt rode up when he did, exposing his v-line and happy trail just a bit. You bit your lip gently at the sight, also not missing the sexy little grunt that left his throat when he used all his strength slamming down on the platform with the mallet.

The little knob races up and pangs the bell, announcing that Lip had in fact hit the 100% threshold - breaking you out of your lustful gaze and dirty thoughts that nearly constantly plagued your mind when he was around, the man was walking sex - how could you deny yourself? You gasped and cheered, rushing up to Lip and jumping into a hug “Baby! Oh my god, I love you! I knew you could do it!” You laughed excitedly, kissing him back passionately as he held you safely around his waist, spinning around with you once and chuckling as he set you down, his cheeks slightly pink when he realized there were still a few stragglers hanging about who had watched him win.

It wasn’t that he wasn’t comfortable with PDA, he actually quite loved showing you off, and showing the fact that you loved him off. It made him feel special, wanted. But the two of you had gotten more then just affectionate, you weren’t just the girl of the month that he was screwing to let off steam. He didn’t even realize that the whole ‘love of your life’ thing was real - or possible for someone like him none-the-less.

But as dopey and love sick as it sounded to him in his head, he knew there are absolutely people out there who aren’t loved as proudly as him by someone like you, so any testament of that love and how lucky he was to have it made his chest swell with pride. You were his girlfriend, his lady. Nothing you could ever do would embarrass him.

“Unicorn, right?” The man asked and you nodded excitedly.

“Baby Glitter Gallagher! Isn’t that so cute? Our very first baby together” you giggle as the man handed over the large stuffed toy and you give it a big hug “thaaaank you lip” you said sweetly

“Baby Glitter - so baby is the first name, glitter is her middle name? Or is it baby-glitter like MarySue or some shit?” He asked, causing you to laugh as you walked with him in search of your next adventure to partake in together.

“BabyGlitter is like MarySue, I’m glad we clarified. She’s absolutely a Gallagher, though. So step up or cough up child support is all I’m sayin’” you joked, earning another adorable chuckle from him.

Your next stop was one that Lip had pointed out, so you felt like it was mandated to stop and partake because it was the first thing he had mentioned on his own since you had gotten here; the zipper ride. You had spent the last 10 minutes in line as you waited for the group in front of yours to go, telling him that you could absolutely handle it.

“Gallagher, are you callin’ me a crybaby?” You teased, playfulness edging your tone. “Cause last I checked I can handle myself, even if I like having a sexy man around to protect me” you smiled, kissing his jaw gently. He chuckled at that, shaking his head and holding his left arm around your waist while his other was holding onto your new member of the family, as well as your remaining cotton candy that was deemed a hostage until at least the end of the night.

“I’m not- I’m not!” He holds the cotton candy up in defense jokingly “I’m just sayin I know you don’t like goin’ upside down is all and if I wanna go on the ride I wanna have fun.. when Ian and I used to ride it we’d be flipping the whole way around it was so fuckin fun.” He chuckled a bit at the memory, bringing a happy warmth to your chest. It was rare that the Gallagher kids got to make real, childhood memories together. So that all the more made you want to do this with him, to be a part of his nostalgia and nurture it the way he always made an effort to be a part of yours.

“Well then I wanna have fun! I’m not a baby we’ll be fine, I have you to protect me” you kiss his cheek as you got to the front of the line waiting to be let on the ride. He gives you a gentle peck on the lips before kissing your cheek

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you, princess” he said, putting your things he had been holding for you over to the side with the rest of the carnival goers. He helped you up the platform steps, always being sure you never tripped and kept your fingers laced, rubbing the back of your hand gently with his hand as the man unlocked and opened the cage door, a creaky noise coming from it as he does so.

“There’s no-“ you swallow thickly when you realize there was no seatbelts, and lip gave you a ‘told you so’ look, allbeit playful, it only egged on your petulant pride and you shrug. “No seatbelts, makes for more fun, right?” You muse, stepping in and lip got in right next to you, your shoulders and arms pressed up against one another.

“That’s the best part” Lip smirked, holding onto the grip bars when the man clanked the door shut, dropping the lock bar in place and you were suddenly moving. Everything was no longer steady, and it felt as if you were trapped in a fan blade rocking back and forth ready to flip over any which way.

“Lip” you said, concern etching your voice. He was right, Lip usually was right, as annoying as it is for you most days. You didn’t particularly like heights, or being spun in circles, and mixing that with being trapped in a tiny metal cage was bringing those fears right to the surface and you weren’t quite sure what made your ego so big before you got on.

“What baby? You scared?” He teased, playfulness edging his voice. He begins to rock his weight back and forth, the whole cage rattling and clanging as he does so. The hinges seem to creak and you can see in your mind the gruesome terror that would unfold if the cage door just so happened to give out.

“Stop- stop it- it’s broken! Don’t you hear it, Lip? We gotta get off!” you said worriedly and he laughed like a masochistic 7 year old boy, rocking his weight more dramatically until you were fully laying down before swinging the other way and laying on said creaky cage door while you look below at the 50 foot drop and knuckles popped from gripping the grab bars on the cage door so hard

He chuckled more “baby it’s fine it’s not gonna break. Cmon let’s do a flip” he said, throwing all his weight back and you squeal as your suddenly hanging upside down and he laughs loudly “woops! Guess we’re stuck till we start moving” he teases and you whine, feet dangling off the floor of the cage

“Phillip Gallagher you’re the meanest boyfriend in the whole world!” You shout, causing him to laugh and you heard a chuckle from the riders below you at your current misfortune

“I thought I was the nicest boyfriend also the proud father of- what was it-“ he’s cut off as the ride starts again to let more riders on and you flip forward, swinging back and forth dramatically as the cage once again balanced your weight. You seized the opportunity to slap his shoulder once you found your footing

“You could have killed us!” You said but couldn’t help the big smile on your lips.

“Then I guess Baby Glitter Gallagher would have been an orphan before she even made it home” he mused, before giving you a kiss on the lips.

“This is why no more cotton candy babe” Lip said gently as he held your hair back and you puke up bright purple lemonade mixed with your blue and pink cotton candy.

“Yeah- kinda pretty though, right like -“ you pause to gag, more sugary neon purple mess splashing into the unfortunate bush you had decided to victimize tonight after your what felt like hundreds of flips on the zipper ride. “I would totally get my nails this color-“ you sniffle, spitting in the bush to rid your mouth of the slimey after puke feeling before standing and wiping your mouth with the back of your forearm.

He chuckled a bit, shaking his head as he dug around in the pocket of his Jean jacket that sat atop your unicorn for safe keeping and pulling out a small flask “open” he tilted your head back and you scrunch your nose, obeying and opening your mouth. “Sorry- but I know Y’gonna wanna kiss me and I don’t want to taste y’vomit babe, as much as I love you” he dribbled a mouthful of vodka in your mouth and you scrunch your face and whine slightly as you swished it around, gargling a bit for good measure before spitting it into the poor little bush and turning back to him to see he was finishing off the flask while you did so before putting it back in his jacket pocket.

“I think you need some water, and we should sit and relax f’r a second ‘huh?” He rubbed your arm gently before pulling you into a comforting hug and kissing the top of your head. You shut your eyes, enjoying the spicy scent of his cologne mixed with the musky earthy scent of tobacco and weed he’d consumed earlier.

“Yeah- but let’s stay over here. Well, maybe not by puke bush. But where it’s quiet. I know you probably want a smoke” you sat down next to a tree and he joined you, resting your unicorn next to his lap

“This fuckin thing is gonna take up my whole side of the bed” he muttered as he dug out his cigarettes and lighter from his pocket, lighting one between his lips

“Mmm, only when you’re not home. Gimme some” you said sweetly. He looked over, pressing his lips to yours in a slow, gentle kiss as he exhaled the smoke into your mouth and you sucked it down graciously, eyes fluttering shut at the short light feeling it gave your mind since you were only getting half of its effects.

“Better be you know I like doin butt rubs after a day at work” he mumbled against your lips before kissing you again, shorter this time because it was inturupted by a giggle from you. He was right, Lip loved to lay in bed in the dark with you, detailing what had went on at work that day while he felt up your ass. It wasn’t strictly sexual, (although a lot of times it ended that way) it was more a…stress toy for him to play with as he went on.

“I love butt rub time. I was actually thinking about that earlier. One of the best times of the day” you wrap your arms around his middle, nuzzling your face in his neck and kissing the warm skin gently as he took another drag.

“Yeah baby?” He kissed your temple gently, squeezing your side and lifting up the helm of your shirt to run his fingers along your bare skin. The action brings goosebumps to your skin, calming but sensual. Your eyes flutter shut at the gentle affections, enjoying the carefree laughter and joyful screams from the carnival a hundred feet or so away, mixing with the gentle quiet sounds of crickets chirping in the woods.

“I love all our time.” You assure him, planting a gentle kiss on his warm broad shoulder.

The next thing you decided to do, after being sure to make a pit stop for ice water and Lip being sure you drank a decent amount - was a calm pretty swing ride. It had a lot of hight to it, but that was mostly so you could get a good view of the city while you swung around at a fast (but not dizzying) pace.

You got in line behind a pregnant mother and her young daughter, who looked to be not much older then Frannie. Smiling to yourself, you thought what it may be like to have kids with Lip some day. You didn’t want that day to be soon, of course. You and Lip had promised eachother that you wanted to finish college. He wanted to make it out of the south side, and while you were a Chicago transplant, you still understood why that was from the stories he told you of their growing up. You wanted to be sure that any family planning would stay far off until you and Lip were both working adult jobs, and had a house or something - when you were real adults.

You hadn’t even realized you’d made it to the front of the line, and were being broken out of your dreamland daze when the little girl stomps her feet “but mommy! We waited all this time! I wanna go on!” She said getting increasingly upset as the ride operator explained that single riders had to be of a certain height

“I know baby but mommy’s belly is too big - I can’t go on it’ll hurt your little sister! I’m sorry, honey. I really am.” The mother tried to explain, and Lip, being the brotherly gentleman he is spoke up.

“Uh- I’ll take ‘er for you, Ma’am - If that’s cool with you- babe are you good on your own?” He asked you and you felt yourself swoon like this was some romance movie and not real life. You nodded with a big smile

“He’s got so many siblings - he’s gonna look after her real well, I’ll sit right behind them!” You gushed and the woman lights up

“Oh gosh- would it be a hassle?” She asked

“Mommyyyy! Please! Pleeeeease!! I’ll listen so good!” She jumped excitedly and the mother looked at Lip before looking back at her.

“Fine- but you better listen! You hear me! Give this nice boy no trouble at all missy” she said, handing her hand over to Lip and she giggled excitedly

“Thank you mister! Thank you sooo much!” She gushed, throwing her arms around his hips and giving him a big hug. You pout at the adorable sight in front of you, following behind to sit in the single seat behind the double they’d be sitting in.

“I’m Marley, I’m 5, what’s your name?” She asked as Lip helped her into the seat before sitting next to her and adjusting the lap bar.

“I’m Lip” he said, causing her to giggle

“That’s a silly name- Lippy lip lip” she repeats as she swings her legs back and forth in that darling childlike way. “Are you a grown up?” She asked him and he chuckled a bit, realizing like when Debbie was little- this carnival ride was going to turn into more of an interrogation then anything else.

“I guess you could say that, yeah.” He said. You watched them with sparkling eyes, a big grin on your face as you saw just how good he was with her. Lip was always good with kids. They took to him because he would usually speak to them how he spoke to other adults (minus as much swearing as he could remember to omit) and that made them feel special, equal. Which is one of the many things he can say he wanted as a kid, and never got. So he did his best to pay it forward.

By the time you’d gotten to the top the wind was louder at the height as you spun so you were no longer able to hear their conversation so clear. You looked at the twinkling lights of Chicago below, trying to see if you could pick out the Gallagher house just by your mental map of the city you’d made in the few years you’d been living here. You did hear though when the girl started giggling wildly, drawing your attention back to them and you saw Lip pretending to be fully limp and dead in the seat next to the girl, tongue hanging out of his mouth and everything.

You shook your head, rolling your eyes at his silly antics. Even though he held up a hard exterior a lot of the time, you knew deep down he was a kid at heart which is why they liked him so much. When you got back down and hopped out of your seat, you greet him with a kiss “did he give you too much trouble?” You asked Marley and she giggled, shaking her head.

“No- Thank you, Lippy Lip” she told him giving him another sweet hug. You returned her to her mother and Lip told her they were welcome to Patsy’s for a piece of pie on the house any time which just made your heart swell even more at how generous and kind he was, even to a stranger he just met.

“You are just the sweetest- thank you so much, Sorry what was your name I never caught it-“

“LIP! Lippy lip lip lip!” The girl sings again, gasping when you came over with your large unicorn “She’s so fluffy I’m gonna die!” She squealed, hugging it tight “what’s its name?” She asked you, looking up with a bright sugar rush smile. This kids gonna sleep good tonight

“Uh- Baby Glitter!” You told her and she smiled

“Baby glitter is perfect” she told you and her mother giggled, a bit nervously at all of her energy likely so far past her bedtime.

“Well, Lip- thank you again. We’re gonna have to check out your restaurant! Alright Marley say goodbye to your new friend we have to go home now I said just one more ride” her mother told her and she pouted, handed your unicorn back over.

“Byeee Lip, I had fun playing with you” she gave him one last hug and you felt like your heart could explode with the way he ruffled her hair and pat her back in such a brotherly way.

“You too kid, be good f’y’r mom heard?” He told her and she nods, taking her mom’s hand and they head off into the crowd.

“You’d be a good dad” you said softly, taking his hand and lacing his fingers with yours. He laughed, shaking his head

“She was just a good kid” he counters.

You’d ended up together at the ferris wheel, luckily it wasn’t one that had to be balanced with weight so you could snuggle up to Lip with his jacket wrapped tight around you and legs over his lap. As soon as you got far enough from the ride operator he even pulled out a cigarette, lighting it and resting his head back as he blew the smoke out.

You sat and just watched him, admiring the way his Adam’s apple bobbed when he swallowed or the way he adorably sniffled once in a while since the poor guy had year round allergies it seemed, and never bothered with Zyrtec or any allergy medicine at all. “You’re pretty” you said softly, chin resting on his pec as you as you watched him.

He chuckled a bit, his cheeks flushing a cute pink. Before you, no one had ever called Lip ‘cute’ - He had been called a plethora of things.

Disobedient, disorderly, rude, loud, obnoxious, violent, a bad influence, a waste of potential -

But pretty? That was something that started (and he told himself very likely ended) with you.

“That’s all you c’mere” he tilted your chin up, giving you a sweet and tender kiss, cupping your cheek with his other hand and stroking his thumb across it. When he pulled from your lips he kissed across your forehead and browbone, down your nose to your cheekbones and then leaving one final lingering kiss on your jaw before having another drag of his cigarette casually. Your heart felt like it was thumping out of your chest, and your belly was swarming with so many butterflies it was as if migration season came early.

But that wasn’t new, it felt like that every day with lip. Ever the gentle, sweet, kind, affectionate man you had yearned for every past boyfriend to be for you. But you figured it was just the universes way of teaching you to appreciate French Vanilla Bean type of love - rich, fulfilling as opposed to the cheap watered down fake chemical crap that comes in a bottle with a squeeze lid.

So many emotions washed over you, gratitude, love, fulfillment, appreciation, but for some reason what won over- was lust. You weren’t quite sure where it came from, but by the time you had stopped at the top, you were in the depths of a passionate, heated makeout session - cigarette long crushed out.

The smoke scent clung to his palms that cradled your cheeks as if you were a fine porcelain doll to be cherished and gently caressed. He hummed softly, disconnecting your lips and soft puffs of breath fanning over your spit-slick lips as his mind short circuited a moment due to your hand trailing down and popping the button of his jeans, and pulling him free of his boxers and pants.

“You sure?” He asked carefully, hands trailing to your shoulders and squeezing them gently as if to silently tell you it was ok if you just got too caught up in the lust of it all. Lip Gallagher - ever the gentleman. In response you gently stroke over him, using the pre that had started to leak out of his hardening pink tip to give yourself some lubricating before reconnecting your lips once more, opening your mouth for him.

A small whine escaped your throat when he slipped his tongue into your mouth, his hips rutting up into your hand subconsciously. His stomach muscles flex under your touch as you slightly tighten your grasp, twisting your hand with each return pass.

Such actions was causing him to lose all resolve. He panted softly into your mouth, licking and sucking your tongue, breaking to grunt softly at the feeling of his dick trying to twitch at the delicious stimulation you provided but being unable to due to the literal grip you had on him.

“Doin’ so good- so fuckin good baby - god. Jesus fuckin Christ. Such a good girl f’me, huh?” He praised, giving you more sloppy kisses to be sure no moans escaped his throat and if they did would be muffled most of the way by your mouth.

You hummed at the praise tilting your head down and letting a glob of spit fall into your hand, using it as added slick to pump your hand faster and he bit his lip, nose scrunching adorably as he tried to hold himself back. “You gonna cum? Mm? Wanna cum in my hand baby?” You said in the shell of his ear hotly before taking the lobe between your teeth, slowing your strokes and rubbing over his sensitive leaky tip with the silky soft pad of your tongue.

The action made his jaw fall slack, head resting over the ledge of the ride and as you started moving again you quickened your pace realizing you were on your decent back to the bottom. “Yeah? Er you want me to swallow it? Hmm? Get on my knees for you-“ you goad, egging on his release.

He looks at you and nodded fervently, rendered speechless by the actions of your hand causing you giggle a bit- getting on your knees and out of sheer routine Lip gathered your hair in a makeshift ponytail and watched as you took him into your mouth, giving his tip sensual little kitten lips and tapping his cock against your tongue making soft wet thudding noises only to be heard by the two of you.

“So fuckin filthy- huh? So eager to have a mouthful’a cum with all these people around?” He eases your head down and you let your jaw fall more slack, swirling and slurping your tongue around him how you’d learned drives him wild.

It wasn’t long of lewd slurping and soft moans of enjoyment coming from you as you continued to get him off, before you felt it.

Success.

You braced yourself as he began using your hair to roughly fuck your face, panting softly as he worked himself through his high. “Jeeeesus - good fuckin’ girl, yeah? That’s my good fuckin girl- my girl” He rambled on as he worked himself through his high. You swirl and slurp around him, swallowing down all you could before he pulled you off

“So fuckin pretty with a mouth full’a’cum, how’s that possible?” He pats your cheek lovingly as you opened your mouth to show the stringy sticky white mess he left. You shrugged a bit, smiling friskely and swallowing, making a show of licking your lips off and he grabbed your jaw, collecting the mix of saliva and cum on your chin with the pad of this thumb before sticking it in your mouth

“Clean it up” he ordered and in turn you sucked the digit clean obediently. “Good girl, now come act decent in front’a’these people, yeah?” He tapped your cheek lightly and fixed his jeans and boxers as you come and plop back down next to him, licking your swollen lips that were adorned with a satisfied smirk as you completed your decent to the bottom

“Mmmm- oh my god literally the trip here was worth it just for this it’s the best” you hum softly, taking another bite of funnel cake from between Lips fingers when he put it to your mouth.

“Can’t lie it’s pretty fuckin good” he said, popping another piece in his mouth.

“Can you believe there are sinners in the world that put marinara sauce on this?!” You said and Lip starts laughing, shaking his head. “What? What!! It’s gross, you like it?” You asked not sure what was so funny

“Baby- babe” he coughs a bit, trying to catch his breath “oh god- y’fuckin kill me, kid. That’s fried dough, people do that with- you’re right, someone would be a fucking psychopath if they put marinara sauce on their cake” he said and you started laughing as well, shaking your head at your own confusion

“I love you” you said, leaning over and kissing his cheek. He blushed a bit, turning his face and giving you a real kiss. A kiss that tasted like tobacco and powdered sugar, and sticky sweet love.

“I love you, baby” he said in that soft low way you loved.

From that year on, the Carnival was a yearly date for the two of you.

A/N: EEE! My longest Lip fic to date!!! I hope you enjoyed, if you did please be sure to like / reblog to let me know ❤️ as always, (kind) critiques & feedback are always SO appreciated! Ilyilyilyyy all!!!

D/C: @carmybrainworms - Wormy stayed up until the wee hours of the morning last night beta reading this for me, Wormy 🪱, thank you for tasting my potatoes so many times!!! I love you down bbg

@mouseymilkovich - Mousey Mouse 🐁! Thank you so much for all your encouragement in writing Lip & inspiring me to do so! I love you so much ❤️

@carmenberzattosgf - My sweetest Martini 🍸, thank you for always lifting me up on hard days, supporting my work, being an all around kick ass friend, and feeding the fandom with your amazing Carmy goodness while I’ve been on this Lip kick! Smooches for days for you (you already know that💋💋💋)

& finally, @daysofyellowroses - my lovely flower 🌼, welcome back to the app baby!!! We missed you so much, even though we’ve been talking BTS, I am happy to see the writing bug has paid you a visit (a very good one that Kerry fic still has me sweating)

[changbinsboiledegg]

Hello! I really like your works and want to request, if you are okay with it, skz reaction, when their s/o is.. have money, so she can spoil them? For example.. after a hard day she gift them some big bouquet or take to eat out. Like.. yk usually it's reader being spoiled like a princess, but we do it reverse hehe

EEEE thank you! I’m glad you like them :) Of course I’m okay with this. I love this idea because while being spoiled sounds nice, there are some people who like spoiling their S/O so I love the idea of reverse, like yes pamper them.

GN! Reader X SKZ

Warnings: Mentions of stress but overall fluff. Reader is rich as hell.

Note: I’m not a gold digger but the reader gives me butterflies, pls sugar daddy/mommy/they me. No but I really liked this idea even though I’m not rich, I still channeled my inner ‘rich bitch’ for this :P . Anyways, as always, if no one told you today, ilyy 🫶

♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎

Chan

You had to find out from the others that he was having a hard day. They were worried about him and now, so were you.

Luckily, you knew a way to help. Even if a bit over the top to others, to you, nothing was too over the top if it was for Chan.

“Hey, did you send the caterers?”

You read his message with a smile, glad to hear they found him without issue.

“Yes. Eat well, my love.”

Chan sent you a picture of all of the food you had catered to him. It was enough to feed him, the boys, and probably the entire building. Not that you saw a problem with that.

“Come eat with me?”

Lee Know

You planned this in private for weeks before their comeback. You knew they’d earn a win, the new album was just too good not to.

You watched the stage confidently, seeing Minho’s smile as their win was announced.

Minho glanced down at you in the audience, his smile remaining as you winked at him.

Once they had left the building, you made your way to where Minho was with the guys and saw they were marveling at the sky.

“What’s going on?” You asked, coming up beside your boyfriend. Minho looked down at you, shaking his head with a smirk. “Don’t act like this isn’t your doing.”

He looked back up at the sky were airplanes were spelling out “Congrats on the win, SKZ.” In clouds of smoke.

Changbin

After all of the hard work he does, you figured he was long overdue of a day of relaxation. You already let the others know that Changbin and be ‘out of commission’ for the entire day, unbeknownst to Changbin, who was only told to keep his schedule clear for this day.

You blind folded him the entire drive to the most luxurious and private spa in the area.

“It smells nice. Where are we?” Changbin asked, gripping your shoulders as he followed your lead. You checked in and turned to remove his blind fold.

“Ah! You didn’t!” Changbin was happy, completely ready to relax— and with you too. You smiled at him, knowing he deserved this.

“I did. You need to destress. Can’t have my Binnie frazzled, now can I?” You took his hand and lead him after the staff, who had begun to lead you to your designated room.

Hyunjin

It pained you to see your boyfriend look so exhausted and stressed most days and you wanted nothing more than for him to just unwind and smile more.

“Oh this looks nice.” Hyunjin showed you a nice— but very much expensive jacket with soft fabric and pretty designs.

“Do you want it?” You asked, lightly feeling the fabric. Hyunjin stared at it a second longer.

“Maybe I’ll get it later.” Hyunjin said. You knew this was his way of saying yes when he wanted something deep down.

So you bought it, along with everything else he looked at, admired, and said ‘maybe later’.

By the end of the day, Hyunjin had clothes, jewelry and other miscellaneous items that cost more than a new car.

Han

Jisung always wore the designer clothes and jewelry you bought him, even going viral for how good he looked wearing them.

“People are speculating whether I’m dating a fashion designer.” Jisung chuckled, reading comments on his phone.

You smirked, looking up from your phone. “That’s pretty flattering.”

Jisung laughed a little louder, reading a few more comments before putting his phone down and moving closer to you, leaning his head on your shoulder.

“You have good taste. Are you sure you’re not living a double life?” He asked, mindlessly watching you scroll through your phone.

“It words be easier to get you the exclusives if I were.” You mumbled, putting your phone down. “… Which reminds me.”

Jisung perked up, watching as you pulled out a gift box. He opened it eagerly, seeing a set of rings.

“For your comeback.” You added, watching him try them on. Jisung chuckled, admiring the rings, “almost thought you were proposing ten times.”

Felix

Felix was pulled out of his sleep to a knock on his door in the dorms. Then another knock, followed by Chan’s voice.

“You have a delivery!”

“I’m coming!” Felix grumbled, opening the door to be greeted by a huge bouquet of flowers. He rubbed his eyes before taking the bouquet from Chan and immediately finding the note attached.

“Sorry I’m not able to give these to you myself, I’ll be out of town for the weekend! Here’s beautiful flowers for my sunshine. I hope you have a great day today and I love you.”

His thumb absentmindedly traced over your name signed on the note and smiled widely.

“Ah, typical.” Felix commented under his breath, feeling his heart swell as he reread your words.

Seungmin

Ever since the first gift he’s received from you, he’s made it his mission to gift you back something just as or even more elaborate and you, none the wiser, gift him back, unintentionally entering his ‘gift war’.

It took you months before you realized you were in this war with him. The only reason you found out was because Seungmin accidentally sent you a picture of what he was getting you next, intending to tell Jeongin.

“You know I’m going to win, right?” Seungmin mischievously smiled at you as you both had a gift from each other in front of each other.

“If you win, it’s because I let you.” You started to peel the wrapping paper off of the box. Seungmin followed your actions, scoffing at your statement.

When he opened his gift, he froze in awe, “woah.”

You smiled at his reaction, getting to the gift he got you. You widened your eyes, one hand covering your mouth.

“Woah…”

I.N

You made sure Jeongin’s favorite restaurant was empty, renting it out for just the two of you after the hard week he had.

Jeongin sat across from you, excited and hungry as he plated his meal, the two of you eating.

“Mmm… thank you, this is just as good as I remember!” Jeongin’s taste buds were in heaven from the savory flavors.

“You’re welcome. I’m just glad to see you enjoying yourself.” You ate your own meal, content knowing that the hardships of the past week seemed to melt away.

“You’re the best.” Jeongin eagerly ate, his words sounding muffled from the food in his mouth. You laughed a little, “slow down. Don’t choke!”

[vintagerpg]

This is FR9: Bloodstone Lands (1989). As you saw earlier this week, halfway through the H-series modules, the Bloodstone Lands went from being generic to being tucked into the Forgotten Realms, near the Great Glacier. This is penned by none other than novelist R. A. Salvatore (one of fairly few game design credits for him, at least relative to his fiction output — I can only think of this and a credit on Menzoberranzan); weirdly the back cover says this book includes Icewind Dale, which…is nowhere near Bloodstone.

Anyway, this is a sourcebook, like most of the FR-series, dedicated to filling in details on the region (we’ll look at more of the series later in the year). This one is a bit unusual for having so much information already out there in the H-series, so it concentrates on the canon fallout from those modules (toned down somewhat, though I believe Orcus’ defeat in H4 is a plot point in Monte Cook’s Planescape campaigns, which details Orcus’ return) and details some neighboring regions as well. It’s fine, certainly no more dry than the average Realms region book, but it does feel a little bit more exhausted of potential in the wake of the H-series events.

Love this Larry Elmore cover painting, ooo-eeee, do I ever. Always rooting for the priests of Orcus. Interior art credited to Uttam, who I know nothing about and who is probably fine, though I have trouble parsing the images printed on the faux-parchment texture.

[lavendersuh]

oh my, oh my god 단 너뿐이야

johnny x female reader | college!au, strangers to lovers | 3.9k words

warnings: suggestive content, mentions of alcohol and partying

after a much needed kpop hiatus, i am back and more delusional than ever :D i have so many ideas and wips rn... can't wait to share more with y'all! i would like to dedicate this fic to @sehunniepot bc nikki has been right there next to me in my delusion and been a huge motivation to get back into writing eeee i hope u enjoy!! *title is from "omg" by newjeans!!*

༻ ✧✧✧ ༺

oh my, oh my god, 예상했어 나

i was really hoping that he will come through...

༻ ✧✧✧ ༺

“Just go for it! If it goes horribly, you can blame being drunk and pretend it never happened at all!”

You looked back at your friend, grinning lazily at you from the couch she was perched on. She was a lot more extraverted than you in general, but with alcohol in her system? She was capable of anything.

You? You, you maybe not so much.

With another glance over at the man messing around with the sound system spreading music throughout the house, you saw he was deep in concentration. One hand typed on the laptop keyboard while the other held a red solo cup you assumed held some type of alcohol. His hair was falling in his face as he gazed at the screen, and he wore a shirt tucked into jeans. He looked good in those jeans. 

You flushed at the thought of going over to talk to him, but your friends seemed determined to encourage you to go for it. They had been on a long spiel about how you weren’t ever going to date anyone if you only waited around for others to make a move. You could make the first move! You just feared making a fool of yourself in front of someone you would see two days a week for the rest of the semester. 

Johnny Suh sat three rows behind you in your Monday-Wednesday English lecture, and he probably had to be the most attractive man you have ever seen in your life. 

Okay, that was most likely an exaggeration, but he was a beautiful man. Tall, dark hair, and a good sense of style was the perfect combination for attraction to bloom. You felt giddy just thinking about him.

Too bad you didn’t really know anything about him other than the fact that he sat in the same seat every single week. 

He looked different in this atmosphere though. He seemed more relaxed, and since he was messing around with the music system like he knew exactly what he was doing even with a little alcohol in his system, you assumed he belonged to this frat and lived in this house. You had once seen him walk into class with a fraternity symbol across his sweatshirt, but you were never good at remembering what all those Greek symbols meant. 

While he looked more relaxed, seeing Johnny in a non-academic setting was also extremely intimidating. You were only a few drinks in, mildly tipsy at best, but the alcohol made you warm, and even the idea of not being sober gave you a little confidence. Maybe you could do this.

You could walk over there and make conversation. Get to know him. You could maybe even ask him out for coffee or lunch before class one day. Like your friend said, if things go south, you could always blame the alcoholic atmosphere of a Saturday night frat party. 

“Okay,” you said, as you watched your friends raise their eyebrows at you, “I’ll go do it. Maybe get me a drink just in case it doesn’t go well.” 

Your two friends cheered as you turned around to walk through the small crowd to Johnny. Moving around made you realize you were a little more drunk than you had thought while sitting down, but you were determined at this point. The alcohol would hopefully make you a little loose, break you out of your shell a little bit. 

Johnny took a drink from his red cup as he surveyed the upcoming queued songs for the next hour. Once you were only a few steps away from him, you slowed down as your nerves kicked into high gear. There was a pang of anxiety that shot through your chest at the thought of actually talking to him. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. 

You were three seconds from turning around when his gaze found yours. You must have looked like a deer in headlights in the dimly illuminated air of the frat house, but getting noticed gave you a little spike of determination.

“Hey,” you spoke up as you stepped a little closer, “Johnny, right?” Not the best start, but at least it was something.

“Yeah…” he replied, giving you a slightly suspicious look. It made you realize he probably had no clue who the fuck you were. There were over a hundred people in your class, and it was actually extremely likely that he had never noticed you before.

The alcohol running warm in your veins kept you going though. “I’m Y/N. We’re in the same English class.” 

You offered up a small smile, hoping you don’t seem weird as you tucked a strand of hair behind your ear nervously. His eyes changed a little and you could tell that he at least recognized the academic correlation.

“Oh, hi.” 

It was clear that he was still sort of lost on why you were talking to him. You knew you needed to play it off to lessen the damage and actually attempt to make a conversation out of this interaction. He was just so nice-looking, it made you sort of just want to stare at him in admiration for the rest of the night.

“Um, sorry I came up to you, I don’t normally do this,” you explained to him, “I’ve just seen you around, and I’m a few drinks in, and my friends told me to stop waiting for shitty dudes to approach me— I should go up to them; it's a whole thing.”

You knew you had a tendency to ramble sometimes, but at least you were talking— at least something was happening. You reminded yourself that talking about something, anything, was better than just being silent. 

The only issue was, rambling was not the best way to communicate.

“Are you calling me a shitty dude?” he asked, giving you a raised brow.

The panic settled in, and you knew your eyes grew wide from how he was looking at you right now. It only lasted a moment before his face broke out into a lighthearted grin.

“I’m just joking around,” he stated, tucking his hands into his jeans, “So what’s this ‘whole thing’ about the shitty guys anyways?”

You were flooded with relief that he was only kidding around, and also that you might actually have a chance at a conversation, no matter how strange it was.

“Oh, well I haven’t really dated anyone for that long, and it's because I always date the dudes that approach me, and I’m never attracted to any of them. So it never goes anywhere,” you explained in what was most likely too much detail. “My one friend saw this TikTok that was like, you need to go up to people you like if you want to be with someone you’re actually attracted to.”

“So… you’re attracted to me?” Johnny replied.

You felt yourself tense at his words, finding yourself flustered under his gaze that had suddenly become a bit more intense than you had remembered it being a few minutes ago. You felt like you could melt under his stare, and you knew your mouth was probably open in bewilderment. You coughed lightly to clear your throat, moving your gaze to somewhere on the wall behind him to avoid his eyes for a moment.

“Uhh, yeah, I, uh, have a classroom crush on you,” you stated, trying to keep your voice steady. Maybe if you faked your way to confidence, he wouldn’t notice the way you felt like your heart might explode from your chest with how wildly it was beating.

Johnny leaned back against the wall you both had been standing near, letting a lazy smile come over his face. “And what’s a classroom crush?”

You rolled your eyes, knowing he was enjoying himself but humoring him anyways, “You know. When you think someone’s cute in your class but you don’t really know anything about them because all you see is them in class.”

At the mention of class, you recalled the fact that after this encounter you would have to walk into class on Monday and see this man in front of you. The idea filled you with embarrassment. You had been slowly digging your own grave, and you were suddenly letting your eyes wander, thinking of a way to just get out of this without embarrassing yourself more.

Johnny made a noise of understanding, drawing your attention back to him, “Oh yeah, I get that.”

“You do?”

“Yeah,” he grinned at you, “I actually have a classroom crush, too.”

“Oh?” 

Oh.

“Mhm,” he nodded as he rubbed his hand over his chin for a brief moment, “There’s this girl in my Monday-Wednesday lecture. She sits a few rows in front of me, but she occasionally turns around a little bit and sometimes I catch her staring at me. She’s so cute when she looks away all embarrassed about it.”

Your eyes went wide as you realized, fuck, oh fuck, that’s you, fuck, he noticed you.

“Oh yeah?” you gulped out. You looked down at his drink, “Can I have some of that?”

He offered the cup to you, letting out a mention that it was strong, but you took a big drink anyways, relishing in the way the alcohol burned going down. You looked back up to see him with a small, little smile on his face directed at you, as he watched you with an amused gleam in his eye.

You swore his smile could melt your insides entirely. “So,” he began, “What happens with a classroom crush, typically?”

The liquid courage from the alcohol had your mouth talking before your brain could really keep up with it.

“I usually just daydream and make up scenarios in my head during class to waste time, and then it kinda fizzles out after a while, usually when the semester is over.”

How were you acting so calm when you felt like you should be freaking the fuck out on the inside. Have you really been saying all of these things out loud? Your words came to an abrupt halt as you stared up at the man just a bit away from you. 

“Have you ever thought about asking the person out?” Johnny asked, his words coming out with a little teasing in his tone. 

You smiled weakly at him, “I guess that’s what I was trying to do with this whole conversation, but I’m just very bad at this.”

Johnny let out a little laugh. “I think you’re doing great. We are talking after all, aren’t we?”

You were grateful that he seemed to not be rejecting you, but you were curious as to what was going on in his head.

“I’m being so dumb right now,” you laughed it off, “I can at least partially blame the alcohol, but I’m just new to this. Hopefully it makes your night a little more interesting.”

“Yeah, you are interesting.” he paused for a seemingly dramatic effect, leaning in closer to you, “I like it.”

He smiled as he glanced from you to the laptop next to him. You had forgotten about the laptop, and the music, and even the party and people around you. You felt lost in the conversation that was happening between the two of you. 

He crouched on the floor to look better at the laptop that was set up on the low table, and he motioned for you to join him. All that was on the screen was the music queue, but you leaned in a little too close to get a better look at the words on the screen. 

Getting so close to the screen also meant being nearer to Johnny, and when you looked over at him, your faces were closer than you had thought they were. Being so close, you could smell his cologne. The new scent registered in your brain, and it made you realize just how much you had learned about Johnny in the past few minutes.

You had clearly been the one talking more, but you were kind of proud of yourself for even getting this far. You had never really talked to one of your classroom crushes outside of class, not even for group presentations, and being in Johnny’s presence just made you like him even more.

“Do you wanna keep making my night interesting?” he asked, drawing you out of your thoughts.

“Oh!” His words bring out your flustered state again, and you jump back and stand up from where you both had been crouching on the floor. “Um, I’m not really comfy doing anything like that tonight--”

“No!” he interrupted, standing up as well while rubbing the back of his neck, “I didn’t mean it like that…. Just, do you want to keep hanging out? I think the guys set up beer pong outside so you could come watch with me?”

As you saw Johnny sputtering a bit from the mix-up, you felt yourself calm down knowing that he was also capable of being thrown off his rhythm. His words ignited butterflies in your stomach. 

“Yeah, sure!”

“Do you, uh, want to go talk to your friends real quick?” he gestured over to your friends across the room, and you looked over to see them trying hard to seem like they weren’t watching the entire encounter, even though they clearly were. You flushed with wide eyes, embarrassed that they were being so obvious. 

“Um, yeah,” you tried to laugh it off, “I’ll meet you in the kitchen?”

He gave you a reassuring smile, “Sure.”

You walked over to your friends, who were all grinning at you like idiots and letting out a few victory cheers. Despite your embarrassment, you couldn’t help but feel happy seeing how goofy and supportive your friends were being. They attacked you with an array of questions.

“Tell us everything!”

“Does he seem interested?”

“Did you ask him out?”

“I keep making a fool of myself,” you replied, “But he doesn’t seem put off by it— I think he might think I’m cute.”

“Yes you are!” one of your friends said, “And he’s so hot!!” 

She pinched your cheeks and you ducked away, rolling your eyes at their drunken antics. You bid them goodbye and slipped through the party to find the kitchen. 

Johnny stood over by the fridge, sipping from a beer can and smiled when his eyes met yours. He offered you a drink, and you accepted a seltzer from the fridge. He gestured toward the back deck, leading you through the back door with his hand on the small of your back. The light touch didn’t go unnoticed, leaving your cheeks warm despite the cold air. 

The two of you stood near the railing to watch a few guys play pong. You sipped your seltzer, aware of Johnny’s arm brushing yours as he greeted others hanging around the game.

Johnny was completely at ease here, leaning against the railing with his arm almost around you, his hand brushing your waist. It almost felt like this was a normal occurrence for the both of you. In the back of your mind, you wondered if he did this often. You watched the game and the people around you silently for a while, basking in the world of Johnny and his friends that you somehow got wrapped up in, even just for a moment.

You were pulled out of your thoughts when Johnny slid his arm up to the small of your back. His hand was big and warm even through the fabric of your shirt. 

He ducked down closer to your ear, “Hey, you okay?”

His eyes peered into yours, a look of genuine interest crossing his face. You smiled back at him. 

“Yeah, I just haven’t been to a party in a while,” you replied, hoping your nerves can be explained away. He didn’t need to know how affected you were by his casual touches.

“Nothing a drink can’t fix,” he said, clinking your cans together with a silly grin on his face. It seemed he knew you were nervous, as he experimented with his touch and kept you close without being overbearing. His casual nature made you even more relaxed.

You went back to watching the increasingly intense game of beer pong, but it was hard to concentrate when you could feel Johnny’s fingers playing with the hem of your shirt. You snuck a look up at him, and while he wasn’t looking down at you, his mouth perked into a smile like he knew you were watching. 

The game started to come to a close, with the crowd of people getting bigger and more rowdy. You turned your attention back to the game, watching as one of the guys sank the last cup, leading to an up-roar of cheers on the deck. You couldn’t help but cheer alongside everyone, raising your drink before taking a big sip.

Unfortunately for you, one of the more inebriated partygoers fell backwards into you, causing your drink to spill all over the front of your shirt. The guy didn’t even seem to notice you break his fall, standing up and running back into the crowd, leaving you with a big stain across your chest. 

Johnny grasped your forearms, making sure you were upright and okay, his eyes scanning over you to make sure you weren’t hurt. 

“Hey, come on, I’ll get you cleaned up,” he says, tucking his arm around your shoulders to guide you through the crowd.

The party is still going strong inside the house, with loud music and dim lights illuminating the swirl of bodies you walk through. Johnny leads you upstairs, which is a lot quieter, despite a few people roaming in and out of rooms. He takes you into the bathroom, gesturing for you to hop on the counter. 

He takes a towel from the linen closet, gently dabbing at the stain on your collarbone. His other hand rests on the counter next to you, before resting lightly on your hip to hold you steady.

You don’t think you’ve let out a single breath since he began, watching his face knot into a look of concentration. You wonder if he can hear your heart about to beat out of your chest. Other than the faint pounding of distant music and the buzz of the overhead light, there isn’t a sound to be heard.

His face is so close, you could count his eyelashes if you wanted to. A few strands of hair fall across his eyes and you find yourself wondering what those locks would feel like under your fingers. His hair looks soft.

You get caught up noticing how much he towers over you, distracted by your own thoughts as you gaze at him. You’re brought out of your reverie when his eyes catch yours, a smile appearing across his features. He tucks a strand of your hair behind your ear, causing goosebumps to flutter up your spine. 

Johnny steps back and clears his throat, as if remembering himself. He looks down at his handiwork, his mouth quirking at the still-visible stain.

“I don’t think that stain’s coming out,” he says, “Hang on.”

He exits the bathroom for a moment, leaving you alone. You take a deep breath. This whole situation makes you feel like all the oxygen has been sucked out of your lungs.

He reappears less than two minutes later, holding a slate gray shirt that clearly belongs to himself. 

“You can put this on if you want,” he says, holding the material out to you. 

You don’t notice the bashful look on his face at the gesture, as you immediately start taking off your shirt to put on the replacement. You do however catch a glimpse at the way Johnny respectfully tries to look anywhere but your torso until you have his shirt on. 

You smile sheepishly once the fabric touches your skin. The shirt is way too big, with the sleeves coming down almost to your elbows. It smells faintly of him, and you look up to see him staring at you intently. You watched as his eyes traveled down the length of you before coming back up and settling on your lips.

“Is everything okay?” you ask, breaking through the silence that had settled over the both of you. 

Johnny clears his throat, “Oh, yeah,” he says, scratching the back of his neck, “You just, uh, look really good in my shirt…”

You can tell that your face is warm, but his confession emboldens you to take a small step toward him, gazing up at his face through your eyelashes. He meets you in the middle, placing his hands gently on your waist as he leans down and brings his lips to meet yours.

You gasp into the kiss, letting every emotion wash over you. His hands are warm as they wrap around you, bringing you close. You rest your hands on his shoulders, letting them wander over the expanse of his chest. 

He deepens the kiss, and your hands drift up into his hair. You almost moan at how soft it is. Johnny must know you’re holding back, moving his mouth to kiss down your neck as his hands wander under your shirt to caress your torso. You moan when he starts sucking on the tender skin beneath your ear. 

He groans when he hears you let out the sound, lifting you up and setting you on the counter in a rush. He steps between your legs, as your lips meet again, his mouth swallowing your sounds as you try to get closer by wrapping your legs around him.

His hands are close to fondling with your bra under his shirt you’re wearing, and you can feel the bulge in his pants as you let yourself grind against him.

“Johnny…” you mumble between kisses, clinging to him like he’s your lifeline. The mumble of his name spurs him on.

You break apart eventually, breathing heavily as you gaze at his swollen lips. You can’t even imagine what you must look like at the moment. 

Johnny slowly removes himself from you and steps back to adjust his jeans with a sheepish look on his face. When he looks back up at you, it’s with a smile. 

“We should probably stop here,” he suggests, remembering how you mentioned not wanting to go too far tonight. “At least for now.”

You nod, your heart beating fast at the implication of seeing more of him in the future. He combs his fingers through your hair a bit to help make you more presentable, before reaching for your hand. 

The two of you head back downstairs, into the chaos of the party, and you find your friends dancing in the living room. They wave and let out some wolf whistles when they see you walking down the stairs hand-in-hand. 

You look back at Johnny, and he grins at your friends’ silly behavior, watching as they call you over. 

“It’s cool, I’m gonna go check the music queue,” he says, squeezing your hand one last time before letting go, “I’ll see you in class, yeah?”

You return his smile, “Yeah.”

“And maybe at the next party, too?” he asks with a hopeful tone. 

You nod before planting a quick kiss on his lips, leaving him speechless as you turn and slip into the crowd. 

When you reach your friends, you glance back to find Johnny back to the corner where you had first approached him. It almost felt like the last hour was a hazy dream, but when he looked up, his eyes found yours immediately, lingering with a small smile on his face. 

Not a dream, at all.

༻ ✧✧✧ ༺

[ametrictonofaudacity]

platonic headcanons or scenario for yandere Anakin Skywalker? if you write for him of course. i really enjoy your works! especially Bonds (for personal reasons •w•)

Eeee! My first Star Wars ask! You have no idea how excited I am for this, omg. Also Bonds is one of my personal faves to write as well!

Warnings: manipulation,over-protectiveness,themes of obsession,some implied stalking. Reader is barely trained force sensitive and Anakin has taken a self-proclaimed mentor/older brother role despite them not being a Jedi. Lots of Force stuff, because I love inserting my headcanons.

“Okay, now, I want you to try it with this.”

A comm link is passed to you, and you can see the wear and tear the device had been put through. Chips in the metal, the thin veneer of paint flaking off, a scorch mark on the side.

You take it, your fingers curling around the smooth metal. Anakin is leaning forward, practically hunched over your shared project, and you divert your focus from the Jedi Knight to the comm link in your hands.

“Why do I have to do this again?” You complain tiredly, turning it over in your hands. The metal catches on the calluses of your skin, and you hear Anakin huff.

“Because it’s important. Now try, come on.”

He nudged you with a shoulder, and you nod, breathing in.

It takes so much effort to expand the sense you’ve always had past your own body. Anakin called it the Force, but you just knew it as something you had always had and always known. If it wasn’t for Anakin, and the new tricks and tips he was teaching you, you might have never known that your sense of knowing was anything other than another sense.

The comm wasn’t alive. It didn’t react to the Force the way living things did. Didn’t buzz with it’s own energy. But something in your chest nudges at the internal components, and you suck in a breath.

“It’s.. it’s a wire? Maybe? It feels.. burnt?”

He beams.

That’s best way to describe it. With your senses extended like this, you don’t just see him, but you feel the way he lights up. His sun bright aura (he called it a Force Presence) popped and sizzled, pride flickering across it with a sense of glee.

Your head spins, the surge of foreign emotions making your mind struggle to keep up, and just as quickly as it happened, it draws back, and Anakin looks alarmed.

“Woah, easy! Are you alright?” He leans forward, a hand on your shoulder and you realize you were panting. His eyebrows furrow, and he lifts the other hand, pressing it to your forehead. It’s warm, but you feel how your brow was beaded with sweat. “You must have over-exerted yourself, come on, let’s take a break.”

“You’re normally really against breaks?” You joke, but your voice cracks and makes your head pound.

“Normally, you don’t have Force Exhaustion.” He snorts, easing the comm link out of your grip.

“That’s what that is?”

“Mhm. I didn’t mean to push you so far.”

The statement burns in your chest.

You knew, obviously, that Anakin was used to helping his Padawan, Ahsoka. She had years of experience on you, more skill and ability, and it showed. Simple tasks that she could do with her eyes closed took you hours to even begin to understand, much less the weeks of practice you had endured in order to even turn it into a useful skill.

There's a gentle nudge against your mind, the only real way to describe it, and when you look to your left, Anakin is giving you that stern frown, the one that you knew meant he was more than aware of your thoughts on the matter.

"Stop being so hard on yourself."

"How did you even..?"

"You're pretty predictable, young one." He sends you a sort of half grin, before adding. "Also, your shields are really weak right now, so you're projecting your emotions all over the place."

You groan, and he snorts, helping you stand. Of course your mental shields were down.

"This Jedi stuff is so ridiculous, oh my god."

"Wait until I teach you how to use a Force Push. You're gonna feel like you've pulled muscles you didn't even know you had." The crooked grin he sends you makes you huff, and he helps you sit in the soft chair. You wonder how he ever managed to make so much time for you, how he managed to come visit so often when you knew the war and his duties as a Jedi came first and kept him away so often.

"Not that I don't appreciate it, but... why are you doing all of this? You don't exactly have to help me."

He goes silent. The crooked grin is gone, replaced by a look you can't quite decipher. It's sharp, intense. Blue eyes bore into like he's trying to pick apart exactly why you asked him, like he's trying to understand. His brows slant down, in that stern, angry way they did was he was thinking hard but not actually angry, and you swallow.

"You remember how we first met?" He asks, and you nod.

"The pirates, yeah."

"You remember what you did?"

Not really. Well, you did, but you no idea how you had been able to convince the pirate to leave you alone. You had been pinned down and panicked, and even though Anakin had told you, several times, that you had used the Force to convince the man to release you, you had never been able to replicate it, despite trying.

"Yeah. I remember."

"Good. That was.. dangerous. An untrained Force Sensitive, using a Suggestion? You're lucky you didn't get hurt, or pass out, from pushing yourself too far." For a single, alarming second, there's a spark of rage behind his eyes, at his next words. "Or that the wrong person hadn't realized and made you a target."

You swallow.

You were aware, what happened to Force Sensitives that weren't Jedi. Some went insane, some lived normal lives, some were targeted by Hutts and pirates, some were found and killed.

Some became Sith.

"Oh."

"Yeah. I figured, well, I have the skills, may as well teach them to someone who could use them. Especially given how you lived on the streets for a while." He shrugs, the intensity gone, and gives you a half smile. "Now come on, you need to get some food and water in you, and you can take a nap."

A nap sounded... really good, actually. It would help the pulsing migraine in the back of your head, and you could catch up on some sleep you so desperately needed.

So you let Anakin press a plate into your hands, and let him slide a glass of water in front of you, and when he closes the door to your room behind you and dims the lights, you curl into your blanket, closing your eyes.

Sleep comes easy, and you rest, content.

[tan1shere]

Right Here

Nessa Barrett x female reader

A/n: first little nessa fic on here eeee I hope you guys enjoy and request some things for her :)

Summary: you're dealing with hard emotions right now be nessa is there for you.

Warnings: very angsty ! Self harm, readers mental health is not at all good. So if this may be triggering don't read ! <3

Masterlist

She was your comfort. Always has been, ever since you got together. You both get one another better than anything. Until you started shutting people out. You had no idea why or what made you do this, but you were getting bad again. This has happened before and truth be told she saved you. You saved her by coming into her life. She saved you months ago from leaving her in the most horrible way. You felt like you didn't want to be saved this time.

She had been in and out alot recently as she was preparing for her new album, so you felt like you hardly spend any time with her. You understood completely but you miss her terribly. Especially when your mind was where it was at currently. But she was so busy, so this is what it led to. You keeping it to yourself because you couldn't stress her out anymore. Maybe this feeling will drive away soon, and she wouldn't have to worry.

Oh, but it stayed. Lingered. Which led you here mindlessly wandering your guys home. It was dim as the drowsy day projects from the windows. Everything about the day was dull, making you feel worse. All you wanted was her, but you felt like you couldn't. Not because she was busy. You had got this twisted idea that she might be getting sick of you in the process of her absence. What if she does loose feelings for you. What if one day she just doesn't care about you anymore.

You knew deep down that wasn't true she loved you with every fiber of her being. But that other little devil in your mind was pushing that down, letting all the negative thoughts consume you. You wanted them to shut up, every thought getting louder than the last. You grip your hair. "Shut up." You then say aloud. Feeling like you're going mental. Maybe you were. You haven't eaten in weeks, and ofcourse Ness hadn't notice when shes hardly home. But you were so glad she hasn't or she might go mental herself.

Nessa can be protective of the things she loves, never wanting them to be hurt or to slip away from her. So she'd always make sure you were ok. Maybe because she hasn't in awhile you feel empty. You couldn't pin point this sudden sadness, depression if you will. You head up to your shared bedroom and into the bathroom, looking at yourself in the mirror. You inspect carefully. Every little thing on your face, what's wrong with you why'd you even start doing this. It was only going to tear you down more. Your face was pale from the lack of everything recently.

You had hardly been eating, sleeping. So it was no wonder you looked this way. You needed some other sort of pain to distract yourself, the thoughts were getting too much. But it frightened you the fact you were thinking like this again. You haven't hurt yourself in months. But no one's here to stop you this time. You look to your side seeing a razor. Contemplating. You felt tears sting your eyes as you just needed to. It was bad but your hand reaches out for it, popping out the blade and thinking for just a second.

But you didn't need to think. You plop on the floor as the tears are now spilling out. You grab it and dig it into your thigh, drawing a bit of blood before the door swings wide open. Your head moves in pure shock. And the look on your girlfriends face is something you didn't want to see. "Hey, hey." She comes over to you so fast, grabbing your hand. "Don't do that. I can't loose you, please." She pleaded moving her hands on your face, making you look at her. You drop the blade as more tears come out. "You haven't done this in forever-" "I'm sorry Ness. I'm so sorry." You then blab, but she brings you into a warm hug.

"No.. I'm sorry, I feel like I haven't been around." She sits with you in her arms, holding you tighter not wanting you to go anywhere. Her own tears are about to spill at the thought. You cry uncontrollably into her neck. Her hand soothing your arm. You stay like this for a little while. No words. Just the comfort of one another. "How long have you been feeling like this?" She then speaks up as she feels you calming just a bit. "F-few weeks.." You admit. She bites her lip trying not to let out a sob. "Im so sorry baby. I'm so sorry. Why didn't you try telling me?" She asks getting you to look at her again.

"You've been so busy Ness I didn't want to stress you out or bother you." Her head shakes. "You could never do any of those I promise. You're my life, and if I don't have you there's no life to live." She says looking into your eyes. "I promise im here, we're in this together ok?" She finishes off, to which you nod and hug her tightly. "I don't want you to worry about me." You then speak up. "I always worry about you bub. You're forever in my thoughts." Your eyes flutter close as you listen to her voice. Finally feeling the need to sleep.

"I'm right here. Forever and always." She says into your hair.

[rottenpumpkin13]

hello!! I need help finding a fanart, if you're alright with it. It's a drawing of Cloud and Zack (as a wolf), with Cloud holding unto/hugging wolf!Zack. iirc the same artist also made a sefikura comic set during advent children about Cloud sick from geostigma with wolf!zack + aerith there too. I hope it's not a bother, I've been scrolling tumblr for two days and couldn't find it again. it's a very pretty fanart (and wolf!zack as a concept is. So good. My heart) so I'd love to find it again

With that said, I also just wanna give a BIG thank you for all the ff7 food. I've only just gotten in this fandom for one month and I can't get enough of it. Your posts cracks me up and I've read haywire a week ago- the sephiroth-cloud interactions are top tier. We need more feral Cloud, and while I love classic sefikura (ie: very messed up and pretty horny) as much as the next person, platonic dynamic where they work thru their... Baggage... Somewhat healthily is sooo good too. And I'm very intrigued at what's the deal with Vincent and what exactly happened to young Cloud (some sort of fusion with his older self is what's likely, but? who knows). looking forward to what happens next, thank you!!

You'll have to thank @salternateunreality2 because they found it for us (thank you Salty!). Hopefully it's this comic and this art? I agree, wolf Zack and Cloud have my whole heart 💚

Eeee I'm glad I've managed to feed you some stuff lol. You're reading Haywire! So I fed you ff7 shenanigans just like Sephiroth was fed a PHS by his own hand because post-waking up in the past and realizing he's still sane Sephiroth was unhinged lmao. I have to squeeze in some stuff about Vincent and Tifa in Nibelheim before the great fuckening™ happens in chapter [redacted].....so, soon? I also have to update that fic because I missed 2?3? updates because I got burnt out 🤡 But thanks for reading 💚 I hope I can get the next chapter out soon.

[saturnalmoss]

ARM-WRESTLER

Chapter Five

Old Friends Dead Ends

Master Post

The detectives didn’t have a chance to ask Leon more about the odd encounter when they met again that evening. Leon came home only just in time to head back out again. Piri pulled Grendan along playfully. 

“You look too boring in the clothes Granny gave you. You’re coming with us, right?”

Grendan laughed, following along after her. “To this fortune teller, right? Yeah! We all want to come!” Piri squinted at Rosé and York, then huffed. 

“Piri, be nice.” Leon said. “You’re all welcome to join.” They looked over at their eldest. “Are you sure you don’t want to, Jyuri?”

Jyuri stared at her Narri with an expression so complicated and pained that only a teenager embroiled in her own personal drama could have made it. 

“I’m fine.” She said. 

“Uh-huh.” Leon said. They looked at Piri, who shrugged.  “If you’re sure...” She nodded, eyes glittering. Granny Skully gave her a hearty thump on the shoulder. 

“Never you mind this. I’ll take care of her.” She grinned toothily, and Leon smiled back. 

The fortune teller’s building was a little hole in the wall. There was a banner hung over the door advertising the grand opening, dated almost three weeks ago. Piri was vibrating as they approached the door. “Ahhhhh...!!”

She flung open the door. “Hello!!”

“Madam Arrow...?” Leon called after her. 

“Welcome, welcome.” A voice called out from the dimly lit interior. Rosé perked up, and glanced back at York, eyes wide, and Grendan, with a big disbelieving smile.

The group walked carefully into the smokey candle lit room. A short woman sat at the far end of the table. She was wearing, as far as they could tell, a hat shaped like an ominous tower, complete with lightning bolt. 

“Ohh, I get it.” Grenda muttered.

“Terry!” York said. 

“Or, Sharron..?” Rosé tried. “It’s Sharron for real, right.”

Sharron Lutz blinked at them. “Oh, I know you.” She said. “Who do I know you?”

“We’re Eugene’s parents!” Rosé said excitedly. “He’s our precious baby boy.”

“Oh, you're those ones, huh.” Sharron said. 

“Did you miss us?” Grendan asked. 

“Sure, sure.” Leon looked between them, bewildered. Piri didn’t seem deterred at all and waited with a hunter’s patience at the table. 

“We missed you.” York said. The three of them sat too. After a moment of hesitation, Leon followed suit. 

“We’ll catch up later,” Rosé said sweetly. “This young lady has been so excited to meet you.”

“Aw, well, that’s nice.” Sharron said. She put her hands on the the table and it rumbled gently.

Sharron leaned back, eyes to the ceiling. “Ah... let me summon the spirits to converse...” She said. "Do you wanna speeeeak... speak with your passed mother?” 

Leon lurched in their seat. Panicked, they shook their head as violently and subtly as they could.

“Nah,” Piri said. “Show me the fake stuff.”

The table stopped shaking. Sharron looked down. “The... fake stuff?”

“I love this kid.” Rosé whispered.

“Yeah. I’m not interested in the real spirit summoning. I want the tricks! Please show me your best tricks!”

Sharron looked perplexed. She looked at Leon, then the drawtectives, who were all looking at Piri. “Well, it looks like you run the show around here. Alright, hold on. I wasn’t prepared for the fake stuff.” 

She shuffled into a room nearly invisible in the shadows. Leon leaned back into their seat, calming their racing heart. 

When she came back she offered a deck of cards with black and white geometric designs on the back. “Draawwww a card...” Sharron told her. 

Piri delicately plucked a card from the top of the pile and turned it over. Sharron stood, free hand dramatically in front of her face. “I see..eeee..ee... you’ve drawn DEATH!” She droned. 

“Oooh! I did!” Piri said.

“What?!” Leon looked alarmed between them. Piri gave an annoyed sigh. 

“Narri, it’s fake, remember?” She said pityingly. 

“Also, death’s more of a metaphor.” Sharron added. “But it makes for some juicy drama. Good card for a reaction.” Leon deflated.

 “Haa. Yes. I forgot. Immediately.” They rubbed their temple. “I’m. Going to get a little air, alright, Piri?”

“Yup! I’ll stay right here. I’m gonna figure out how Madam Arrow knew it was Death.” She waved after Leon and loudly sniffed the card. “Hmm.”

Rosé leaned over to Grendan and York. “Should one of us go after them? Maybe they remembered something important?” 

“Good idea! York, do you want to go? Their whole family is orcs, maybe they would be more comfortable with you?” York thought seriously about this.

“No. That’s why I should stay here. I’ll keep Piri safe.” 

“From Sharron?” Rosé asked incredulously. York shrugged. 

“Probably not.”

“I’ll go, then.” Grendan said and slipped away from the table. 

Rosé and York turned back to the table. “So it’s not smell?” Piri was asking.

“That’s be hard.” Sharron said. “All the smells would get on each other.”

“I guess... Are the backs subtly different?” Piri asked. 

“Can’t see the backs or the fronts with my hand in my face.” 

Piri chewed her lip lightly with a tusk. “Ahh... How’s she do it..”

“Maybe it’s my psychic powers.” Sharron said. Piri grinned. 

“You had the card in your sleeve and slipped it to me!”

“Surely you would’ve noticed that?”

“You subtly pushed the death card to the front and made me pick it!”

“Nah.”

“The whole deck is death??”

“Oh, you got me.” Sharron said. “Keep it to yourselves, would ya?” Piri looked pleased and nodded. 

“What else you got?” Sharron tapped her cheek with a nail. 

“You’re an odd kid, huh?”

“Hey, Piri,” Rosé said. “You really enjoy these sort of things, huh?” Piri wiggled a little in her seat. 

“Yes! I’m gonna learn magic and grow up to be like Narri!” She thought a moment. “I’ll get a cooler job, though. I dunno. Street magician or master thief or something.”

“Master thief?” said Rosé.

“Master thief?” said Sharron, with a touch more concern. Piri shrugged. 

“I’m still undecided. The cards aren’t your only fake trick are they?”

“Well, I don’t really have a need for the fake stuff when I can do the real stuff.” Sharron considered a moment. “How about a seance?”

“A fake one?”

“A fake one.” Sharron held her hands out to the side. In one she took Piri’s hand and in her other she took York’s. At her insistence, Piri and York took Rosé’s hands in theirs. 

“Oooh, spirits.” Sharron said. The table rumbled. “Oooooh, listen...!” She huffed and the candles went out. “Tell us.... Secrets!” The crystal ball glowed gently in the center of the table. 

Sharron turned to Piri. “Ask... the spirits! Ask ‘em your question!”

“Just like, anything?”

“Yeah, like anything. Works best if it’s something you’re a bit invested in.”

“Sure. Uh. My sister’s acting weird lately. Can you ask the spirits, did she like steal Narri’s arm as a prank and she’s too embarrassed to own up?” Sharron looked at her. 

“No.” She said.

“No.” York said.

Outside, earlier, Grendan stepped into the low evening light after Leon. They looked back at him. 

“Ah. Hello, Grenda.” They looked back through the doorway behind Grenda. “Just you?”

“York and Rosé are staying with Piri.” They said. “But I was worried about you. You wanna talk about it?”

Leon sighed. “I’m grateful to them. You three... How do I explain?” They leaned back against the wall and looked up at the purples and reds of the evening sky. “I feel very sure that you would protect them. Piri and Jyuri.”

“Of course! I think you’re more in danger right now, though, don’t you?”

“Well...” they said. “I still don’t know that it was more than a one off thing.”

“Pretty mean spirited! If someone hit me and took my arm? I think I’d feel pretty targeted!” Leon said nothing. “You seemed pretty shaken up by Te- Sh... Madam Arrow.”

“It was foolish of me. I mean, it’s fake tarot. Deliberately fake tarot.”

“Maybe you were feeling tense in general?” Grenda suggested. “They whole mugging, and the seance before?”

Leon glanced down at them. “You’re a pretty astute bunch, aren’t you?” Grenda smiled. “... I didn’t expect Madam Arrow to bring up the kids’ - My wife.”

“Didn’t talk to her about it before hand, huh?”

“I mean, why would I! I certainly didn’t want her to bring up Piri’s late mother?!” Grenda nodded, understanding. They leaned back as well, and tried to study Leon from under the brim of their hat.

“Of course, of course. I meant, to warn her not to! Like, boundaries and stuff.” Leon thought a moment.

“Grenda. I’m afraid to say it has only just occurred to me that she may have some supernatural power.” They rubbed their temple. “I just thought she was going to cold read the kid and Piri would get a kick out of it.” Grenda laughed lightly. 

“She’s not too good at that actually! So, it’s like a fun thing you two are doing? Finding scammers and street magicians and stuff?” Leon smiled and nodded. 

“She’s got quick fingers and a sharp tongue. I am hoping she’ll find something... above board that keeps her interest.”

“Oh, definitely. There’s lots of stuff. I mean, Rosé’s super above board and she’s got all those quick fingers. The fastest. And you!” Leon’s eyes flicked away and back. 

“Myself?”

“Of course. You’re in logistics. I mean, until you quit I guess. I don’t know what you’ll do after that.” Leon was quiet for a moment. They seemed to be genuinely thinking about it. They quit without another job lined up? Grenda thought. They must have decided very recently, indeed. 

“Leon, can I ask you, what we saw earlier... Did you think that your boss has something to do with your attack?” They heard Leon groan. 

“Ugh. Of course not. Quitting has nothing to do with this. It really was something I was planning for a while.” They tapped their foot impatiently. Grenda was sure there something else here... something with their boss or their wife, they weren’t sure. 

“Sure, sure.” They said kindly. “I’ll stop bothering you about him.” Leon laughed softly. “Can I ask you something else? Case related, of course.”

“Of course.”

“I wanted to ask... and I sorry if this is sensitive, but were you reminded of anything when Madam Arrow mentioned your late wife?” Leon frowned at them. 

“I don’t see how this is related to a recent mugging.”

“It’s just, I get that you’d be worried about Piri getting upset about talking to her mother... I definitely wouldn’t know how to handle that! But I don’t really see how it would, let’s say, prime the mind to worry that Piri is in danger?”

Leon was quiet for a long moment. 

“It didn’t, of course. It’s perhaps a fault of mine but I’m rather overprotective of my kids. I’m told it’s rather unbecoming for a parent of orcs.” They pushed off the wall. The sun had set and left long shadows on the ground. Leon’s face was hard to distinguish. “The seance... It only put into my head that what she does could be real.”

Grenda patted their arm. “I understand. Thank you for telling me. Let’s go in! It’s getting pretty chilly, huh?”

They both slipped quietly back inside and through the back. They heard Piri talking loudly.

“Eh? That was too fast! You didn’t even check with the spirits! Er, pretend to check, I mean.”

“Oooh, spirits...” Sharron said.

“She’s a good orcish kid.” York said over her. “She woulda crowed ‘bout winning the fight.” Piri looked peeved. 

“No, she’s not all orc. We’re half sea-elf.” she said. “I can even swim. Can you swim?”

“Sure.” York said. “It’s just punching and kicking water.” Piri only looked more irritated. 

“She’s a dumb cry baby elf and I’m a sneaky clever elf!” York nodded. 

“But she an’ you are also good honest orcs. I see it on you. If you beat someone up, they’ll know who did it.” 

“What’s going on?” Leon ducked their head around the curtain. “Piri, don’t yell, love. You’re a guest.”

“Nothing’s going on.” Piri said, suddenly sullen. She looked away. Rosé waggled her eyebrows at Grenda subtly. Grenda gestured back that there was much to discuss. 

Sharron looked skywards. “Oohh... ” she said. Leon looked over.

“Ah, I think we should head out, actually.” They told her with regret. 

“I see... A large shadow... a large shadow...” she droned. There was a tension in the room. Piri looked up at Leon, who walked to her side. Rosé leaned over and laid a gentle hand on Sharron’s shoulder.  

“Sharron...?”

“You think this is a real one?”

Sharron blinked suddenly. “Whoops.” She shook her head. “That wasn’t what you paid for at all.”

“Um.” Said Leon. “We were going to head out? Are you okay?” 

“Oh, yeah, yeah. Don’t worry your head. Comes with being in the psychic field of research.” Leon nodded slowly. 

“What did you see?” York asked.

“A large shadow!” Grenda said. Sharron thought a moment and nodded.

“That it?” York said.

“Hmm. It was standing behind you.” She said, and pointed to Leon.

[thewillofdeez]

Mihawk vs The Seals

Summary: Every year, hundreds of seals return to Kuraigana Island to mate, including Mihawk's nemesis. His name is Neil.

Characters: Mihawk, Zoro, Perona, Neil the Seal as I imagine him in the One Piece Universe

Warnings: Some minor language, bittersweet mood. It's not crack, but it's almost crack. Crack-lite, if you will.

Note: Listen. It's extremely important to me that you know three things before you read this.

1) I haven't written anything substantial in several months. I was hoping to get The Warlord and the Revolutionary final chapters up today, but this happened instead.

2) I have been heavily on Neil the Seal TikTok.

3) This is my first day taking Adderall. I wrote this in 3.5 hours, starting with nothing more than a very vague concept. I guess that means it's working.

Take that all for what you will. Should I have published this? Maybe not. But here we are.

It was another day on Kuraigana Island for Mihawk, Zoro, and Perona. The two young pirates had been living with Mihawk for only a few months. Spring was slowly starting to reach the island, the weather beginning to warm ever so slightly. The three pirates sat down at the breakfast table, when Mihawk heard it: A loud, emotional braying sound from outside. He sighed heavily, placing his coffee cup on the table. Zoro and Perona exchanged a look.

“What,” Zoro said slowly, “The ever-loving hell was that?”

“That is the worst sound I’ve ever heard,” Perona added. “Like a vacuum cleaner sucking up a small elephant.”

“The seals are back,” Mihawk stated plainly, already feeling a headache coming on.

“The…seals?” Perona asked tentatively.

Mihawk sipped his coffee and sighed. “Every year around 300 seals come to this island to mate. For the next two weeks or so, the beach behind the castle will be their mating grounds.”

Perona’s eyes lit up, and she floated quickly to the window to look outside. A number of large, gray-ish blue seals were already beginning to gather on the beach. “EEEE they’re so cute!”

"They’re not cute,” Mihawk shot back, “They’re a menace. They’re loud, they take over the whole castle grounds, and they shit everywhere . Once they leave I have to have a company come in and rake the beach like a giant litterbox, and I have to spray down the bridge and patio every day. It’s a nightmare. A loud, smelly, destructive nightmare”

Zoro was trying not to chuckle at his mentor’s annoyance at seals of all things. “Can’t you, like, do anything about it?”

"Of course not,” Mihawk replied curtly. “They’re wild animals, I have no control over them. However, I did try slicing one up to send a message my first year here. They didn’t care. Then I just felt bad about killing it. I ate nothing but seal meat for weeks. Got a nice rug out of it though.”

Zoro laughed at the absurdity of the situation, and Mihawk narrowed his eyes. “You laugh now, Roronoa, but you won’t be when it’s 3am and you can’t sleep because there’s a seal orgy happening outside your window.” Mihawk drained his coffee cup and stood. “Both of you, come. We need to check the seal-proofing on the castle before we begin training for the day.”

“Seal-proofing?” Perona asked, floating behind him.

“Yes, I’ve boarded up several of the lower entrances because if I don’t they will get inside the castle. The last thing I want is to come downstairs to find a pile of seals sleeping in the living room. Again.”

Zoro and Perona followed Mihawk outside. Numerous seals were gathered, mostly on the beach, but some were beginning to flop their way up the paths, and some were swimming in the lake. Mihawk walked confidently through the fray, watching his step as he went. Perona eyed them cautiously. They were much larger up close, and distinctly less cute. “Mihawk,” Perona asked cautiously as one brayed loudly at her, “Are they, ya know, dangerous?”

“For someone like you, perhaps,” he replied calmly, though irritation still laced his words. “They can be quite territorial, but generally if you keep your distance and don’t bother them, they won’t bother you. I recommend flying a little higher than you normally might to avoid any trouble.” Perona immediately obeyed, floating an extra few feet off the ground.

The three made their way around the perimeter of the castle, checking various entrances to ensure Mihawk’s make-shift seal proofing was holding up, and making repairs where it wasn’t. Upon the path, a seal blocked their way. It was easily the largest Zoro and Perona had seen so far, its enormous body marred with the scars of many years in the ocean. Mihawk stood before it, narrowing his golden eyes and crossing his arms. “Hello, Neil.” The seal brayed loudly in response, flecks of saliva misting the three pirates.

Mihawk only continued to glare as he wiped his face with his sleeve. “Move,” he demanded. Neil barked in defiance, rolling over onto his back in a move Mihawk could only presume was seal for “fuck you, make me.”

“You, uh…you named the seal?” Zoro asked hesitantly, again trying to hold in his laughter to not make Mihawk any angrier than he already was.

“Yes, I’ve named several of the more annoying ones. This is Neil. He’s my nemesis. I hate him and he hates me.”

Zoro placed a hand over his mouth, turning his back to keep in his laughter, but he couldn’t do it. He let out a loud guffaw, bracing his hands on his knees as he laughed. “Neil the seal?! You gave him a rhyming name? And he’s your nemesis ?!” Neil let out a bark too, it almost sounded like laughing.

Mihawk’s face grew red. “Neil, move!” he demanded. As the seal let out a series of short, mocking barks it finally obeyed, moving off the path and towards the beach, satisfied that it had thoroughly humiliated Mihawk enough for one day. Mihawk took a deep breath and continued down the path.

“Watch your step, Zoro,” Mihawk stated as they walked, without even looking at the young man behind him. Before Zoro had a chance to ask why, he felt his boot land in something squishy.

“Ugh, dammit,” Zoro lamented, pulling his boot from the glob of seal poo Neil had left behind with a thwack .

“Haha!” Perona taunted in a sing-song voice, “You stepped in seal poo!”

Zoro grumbled, trying to wipe the bulk of the mess from his boots in the dirt. “It’s gonna be a long two weeks.”

And boy was it! Mihawk hadn’t been exaggerating about the noise. It was exceptionally loud, to the point where they were all constantly exhausted from lack of sleep. Perona even attempted to sound-proof her room by stacking her plushies in front of the windows, but despite her rather impressive collection, no amount of plushies was enough to keep the noise at bay with the room’s enormous, gothic windows.

Zoro and Mihawk’s training was often interrupted by the seals flopping along between them, paying absolutely no mind to the two men and their large, sharp swords. One day they attempted to move their training inside to the dungeons, only to find that a dozen seals had broken Mihawk’s barrier, and were now mating loudly. Between chasing the seals outside and cleaning up the mess the animals had made, they got no training done that day. As they cleaned and mopped, Mihawk could have sworn he heard Zoro grumble something about “never wanting to see a seal dick again.”

And then there was Neil. Though Zoro had laughed when Mihawk confidently declared Neil his nemesis, the giant seal did seem to find a perverse joy in tormenting Mihawk, personally. As Mihawk defiantly took his afternoon tea and daily cigarette out on the patio, despite the noise and the smell (a holdover from his younger days, and one of the few simple pleasures in his life), Neil would flop his enormous body up the stairs and honk directly at the swordsman, one time knocking over the small table and sending his teacup shattering on the ground before flopping away, letting out short, loud honks that Mihawk was positive was laughter. Perona tried her best to glue the teacup back together, but it was rather leaky and had to be discarded.

Neil also enjoyed standing directly outside of Mihawk’s window and bellowing at night, and occasionally charging directly at him. Mihawk was strong, but he wasn’t indestructible, and one thousand pounds of seal would certainly hurt him. Then of course, there were the daily “gifts” Neil left on the front doorstep. They appeared in the morning after breakfast, so Mihawk had no evidence that it was Neil, but he knew deep down that it was him.

One day, roughly two weeks from the day they began appearing on the island, the seals began leaving, their mating for the season done. Mihawk sat outside with his afternoon tea and his cigarette, not making the same mistake of placing the teacup on the table twice, lest Neil see it as an invitation. Zoro stepped outside, leaning over the bannister as the seals began slipping into the sea.

“How do you do this every year?” Zoro asked genuinely. “I’m exhausted after dealing with it once.”

Mihawk shrugged as he took a drag on his cigarette. “It’s only for two weeks out of the year. It’s annoying certainly, but it’s a small price to pay for the otherwise silence and isolation of living here.”

After a moment of silence, Mihawk chuckled, a noise Zoro rarely heard from the man. “You know, one time I was getting ready to set out to sea for a Warlord meeting. A mandatory one, another one of those ‘show up or you’ll lose your position’ things. I got to my boat and Neil was there, lying on deck, sound asleep. I tried to get him to move, but he wouldn’t.”

Zoro grinned. Mihawk so rarely told him anything about himself or his past. He was automatically intrigued, always curious to know more about his mentor, even if he’d never openly admit it. “How’d that turn out?”

Mihawk grinned right back, as if they were sharing an understanding. “I took a picture and mailed it to Sengoku. No note, just the picture. Didn’t hear a word back from him. Showed up at the next meeting like nothing happened, but Sengoku later gave me the same picture back, framed. He’d thought it was the funniest thing he’d ever seen: a powerful Warlord of the Sea, trapped on his private island by a giant seal.”

Zoro laughed softly. Something about the idea of the Fleet Admiral gifting one of his Warlords a ridiculous seal picture seemed absurd to him. But he’d seen the picture on the mantle, he knew it was real. Then, Mihawk spoke again. “He’s getting old.”

Zoro turned to him. “You mean Neil?”

Mihawk nodded. “I don’t know how old he is, but he looks more and more worse for wear every time I see him. I’d wager it’ll be another year or two before I don’t see him anymore. Or perhaps this will be the last time.”

Mihawk looked out in the distance, as Zoro took in the man before him. He could never be quite sure with Mihawk, but he felt that there was a certain sadness in his mentor’s voice.

“You kind of enjoy it, don’t you?” Zoro offered. “The back and forth between you and him. He keeps things interesting when there’s no one else around.”

Mihawk shrugged and put out his cigarette. “I won’t deny that I find him entertaining, even as he annoys the hell out of me. Animals are remarkable creatures. So human-like in so many ways, and yet not at the same time. I know he’s just a dumb mammal, but….”

Zoro only nodded, understanding what Mihawk was saying. He thought back to the Kung-Fu Dugongs in Alabasta, who took so strongly to Luffy after he bested them in a fight. He thought about the South Bird in Jaya that he enjoyed bothering by trying to get it to look in directions other than South. He thought of the Humandrills here on Kuraigana, who, now that he had bested them in battle once, had become some of his favorite sparring partners. And he thought of Chopper who, despite his Human-Human Fruit, was still at the end of the day, a reindeer. Animals really were remarkable.

A loud honking sound broke Zoro from his thoughts. Neil was flopping his way up the stairs, and landed at Mihawk’s feet, looking up at him. Mihawk looked down with a raised eyebrow. “I suppose you’re leaving?” Mihawk said. Neil only honked in affirmation. Mihawk nodded. “Well. Stay safe out there. You’re just about the size of a perfect snack for a Sea King. Basically a blubbery jelly bean.” Neil let out a series of those short, braying honks that sounded like laughter. He locked eyes with Mihawk for a moment before flopping his way back down the stairs. Mihawk rose and stood beside Zoro, and together they watched as Neil got in the water and, with one last look towards the castle, swam away.

Several months passed, and it was business as usual for Mihawk, Zoro, and Perona. As Mihawk and Zoro worked in the garden, beginning the process of harvesting the year’s yield, Perona floated up to them excitedly. “Guys! Come to the beach!”

“I don’t have time for a swim,” Mihawk said curtly as he plucked some tomatoes from a vine.

“Ugh, what? No! Just…just shut up and come with me!” She turned and floated away, clearly expecting the men to drop everything and follow her. Mihawk looked to Zoro, who only shrugged and rose to his feet, dropping his gloves in the dirt. Mihawk sighed and begrudgingly did the same.

The two swordsmen followed Perona, who kept looking behind to make sure they were following, though not nearly fast enough for her. And when Mihawk crested the hill and looked out at the beach below him, his eyes widened in surprise to see Neil there, honking loudly in greeting. And not just Neil - with him were six seal pups, perhaps a few months old.

Perona squealed in delight, doing flips in the air. “Aren’t they cute?!” Mihawk could only chuckle as he approached his old nemesis.

Neil brayed happily, bouncing on his flippers and pushing the small seals with his snout towards Mihawk, who crossed his arms and chuckled. “You wanted me to meet your children, huh?” Neil honked in affirmation.

Mihawk, Zoro, and Perona sat down on the beach, allowing the seal pups to approach them. He wouldn’t say it, but they were actually quite cute. “Congratulations, Neil,” Mihawk said, his lips upturning in a slight grin. “Shall I fetch you a cigar and some whiskey to celebrate?”

That loud, honking laugh again. The one Mihawk had grown so accustomed to over his time living at the castle, the one that made Mihawk confident that even if Neil couldn’t speak the language of humans, he certainly understood every word they said.

Neil watched as the pups sniffed around the humans, eventually deeming them safe enough to accept pets, and one even crawled into Zoro’s lap for a nap, as if he’d found a kindred spirit in the green-haired swordsman. Then, satisfied, Neil let out one last bray, before turning and flopping his way back into the water. Mihawk rose quickly, going after him, not even caring that the surf was covering his boots. “Neil! Stop! I’m not a babysitter! I already have two children I don’t want, I don’t need more!”

Neil only turned and looked directly at Mihawk, and in that moment, Mihawk understood: this was Neil’s last journey to Kuraigana Island. He wasn’t coming back. Whatever may have happened to the mother, Neil was leaving his pups in the care of someone he trusted. They were still too small to make it in the wild on their own, and Neil wanted to give them the best chance at survival and a safe haven to return to, just as he had been doing for so many years.

Mihawk nodded and approached Neil, who was still looking up at him with glossy, black eyes. For the first time, Mihawk noticed a cloudiness in the seal’s eyes: cataracts. For how long had Neil had this problem and Mihawk hadn’t even noticed? Could he have taken him to a veterinarian? Could he have gotten him help if he hadn’t been so preoccupied with their cat-and-mouse game? Mihawk felt a pang in his chest as he reached out and placed a calloused hand gently on Neil’s head, petting him gently.

“I’ll take care of them,” he said, trying to hide the hoarseness appearing in his voice. “As long as they’re on this island, they will be safe.” Neil blinked and honked lowly, something Mihawk could only interpret as “thank you.” And with that, Neil flopped into the sea and swam away, leaving Mihawk standing on the shore with Zoro, Perona, and the pups.

Mihawk allowed himself a minute to mourn his odd friend, then turned and walked back to where Zoro and Perona sat with the seal pups. It was clear the two younger pirates understood what had just happened, and Perona had silent tears streaming down her cheeks.

“So what now?” she asked quietly, gently stroking the seal pup before her.

Mihawk sighed, picking up one of the pups and holding it out in front of him. It looked quite like Neil, but had a smattering of light gray spots on its fur. Its glossy black eyes looked at him with curiosity and it cocked its head to the side, taking in the man before it, before immediately peeing. The swordsman could only laugh softly. This was definitely Neil’s child.

He placed the seal gently on the ground, and it happily bounced over to its siblings. “Well,” he said, “I’m going to go change my clothes. Then, I suppose, we’re going fishing. We have six new mouths to feed after all.”

Zoro and Perona smiled, Perona wiping the tears from her face. They rose and followed Mihawk, and the six seal pups flopped along cheerily behind them, ready to explore their new home.

[ilygetou]

WEEK ONE DAY ONE. | STALKING + NON CON. FT. MANJIRO SANO.

PAIRING: stalker! manjiro sano x fem! reader.

C/W: non con, stalking, thigh fucking (?) hints of cheating, non con fingering, non con kissing, everything was non consensual. MINORS DNI!!

N0TE: no sexy time :'( sorry guys !! first kinktober piece, eeee i'm so excited.

P.S: repost, because it wasn‘t appearing in the tags.

PLEASE read the c/w with caution. the following content may contain somewhat triggering content.

you had this feeling, this feeling of someone stalking you, it never left you.

it has been going on for about a month, you couldn’t handle it anymore. you couldn’t sleep, couldn’t sit comfortably in your own house, you couldn’t do anything.

you decided to catch who has been stalking you for the past month, today. you promised yourself that you won’t be getting any sleep until you catch the person red-handed.

you just couldn’t handle it anymore, the creepy feeling of someone watching you was already scary enough to not give you enough sleep. and there were sometimes where you would hear someone walking in your backyard, stepping on the dry leaves causing it to let out a crunch sound.

today. today was the day you were going to catch that person who’s been stalking you.

you’re not sure on what you’re going to do once you catch him though. scold him? yell at him? call the cops on him? threaten him? or just simply tell him to leave you alone? you’re not sure. the only thing filling your mind is catching the culprit red-handed.

you were standing by your window — which gave you a full view of your backyard, you made sure to turn off the lights and turn on the AC — to make it seem that you were asleep, but when in reality you were hiding under the curtains, standing by the side of your window awaiting your stalker to show up. to reveal himself.

about 35 minutes have passed and there were still no sign of the culprit, until a sudden crunch of a leaf that you know too well was heard. you kept your eyes focused on the shadow of a person walking.

once you felt the presence of the person getting closer your body tensed up, they were getting closer and closer to the window — until you got to see their face, fully.

you felt yourself start to shake a bit, your eyes widened at the figure of a black - haired man who looked like he was your age, tattoos covering his face and neck making you a bit more scared.

you were staring too hard and before you could move the man has ready noticed you, his eyes has also widened as you guys eyes locked. the man quickly turned around — trying to make a run for it. but before he could, you unlocked the window and jumped out of it trying to catch the panicked guy.

once you were so close to catching up to him — he suddenly stopped in his tracks and turned around to face you, a creepy smile plastered on his face. you felt your heart drop as you quickly recognized who he was, your old highschool classmate. Manjiro Sano.

he certainly did change, his hair was now black and both his face and arms were covered with tattoos. he changed so much that you were a bit shocked of yourself for figuring out who he was.

“manjiro?” you said, shaking in your place. manjiro started laughing, “don’t say my name like we’re friends, l/n” manjiro said — letting out a snicker right after as if this was all just some big joke.

“were you the one who has been watching me?” you questioned to which manjiro laughed at too, “and what if it was me? what’re you going to do about it? call the cops? hm?” manjiro said as he got closer to you, his voice sounding like a total manic. you stepped away from manjiro, walking backwards until you bumped into a wall.

“what’s wrong y/n? cat caught your tongue?” manjiro joked to which you clenched your fists at. “n-no, that’s not it. i won’t call the cops manjiro, as long as you stop your creepy actions, what do you even get by stalking me? what did i even do?”

manjiro laughed, he laughed and laughed.

“do you think i forgot? do you think i forgot when you rejected me? rejected me in front of everyone, everyone y/n. they all laughed and made fun of me after, it was so embarrassing and humiliating, i had to live through hell y/n. and it was all because of you, obviously you won’t get it, everyone wants you after all.”

there was a moment of silence, you didn’t know what to say or do. what manjiro mentioned happened a long time ago — why is he still not over it? he’s acting like a fucking child.

“then, what do you want?”

manjiro mimicked a thinking pose before a smirked was formed on the side of his lips. “well, i want you.” your eyes widened at his words before they quickly turned back to normal, “that’s not possible, manjiro i’m sorry but i don’t want you — i don’t want anything to do with you, plus I already have someone.”

“do you think i didn’t know? i stalked you for long enough to know about stuff like that.” that’s where you kinda got scared, how long has he been stalking you? it's both scary and creepy, what manjiro is doing is totally not normal.

“listen, if you don’t leave right now i’ll—!” manjiro caught you off by wrapping his hands around your neck and squeezing, slowly choking you. “you’ll what? call the fucking cops? huh? you’ll what y/n?” you felt your heart drop at manjiro’s action, fuck, you couldn’t breath, your face was slowly turning blue before manjiro slowly let go of your neck.

you were coughing and panting — trying to regain your breathe, “w-what the fuck!” manjiro clicked his tongue in annoyance, “i won’t leave you alone y/n, not when you found out that it was me stalking you. i won’t be leaving you alone so easily.”

you didn’t know what to do, just accept defeat and let manjiro do anything be desires to you? no, you have a boyfriend. you can’t give up so easily. what could manjiro possible do anyways?

manjiro suddenly squeezed your cheeks together, making you unable to talk. he slowly bent his face down, you’re now face to face with manjiro — eyes widened as you felt tears threatening to fall from the corner of your eyes, scared on what manjiro would do now.

before you could know it — manjiro has connected both of you guys lips, manjiro was kissing you. panic flood through your mind, he was kissing you. you tried to struggle but that only made manjiro tighten his grip on your face, manjiro was kissing you like a hungry animal, sucking on your lips before forcing his tongue inside your mouth, both your tongues interwided.

manjiro hands roamed through your body — his hands going in-between your legs, rubbing your cunt before he pulled your panties aside and pushed one digit inside your tight hole — you let out a muffled scream, before manjiro pulled out of your mouth and started thrusting his finger in and out of your leaking cunt.

“s-stop, stop noo...w-what’re you doing!?” you tried to push manjiro off but he was far more stronger than you, he didn’t even move an inch. manjiro started rubbing his bulge against you,and before you know it, tears started streaming down your cheeks.

manjiro tucked down his pants and pushed his cock in between the plush of your thighs, not giving a fuck about you crying while also ignoring your pleads for him to stop. continuing his rough thrusts of his fingers, manjiro was brushing his hands against your cheeks, “so pretty” “you look so pretty when you cry.” his words only making you cry harder.

“stop it, p—!” you were caught off by your sudden orgasm, a muffled sob left you as you came all over manjiro’s digits.

manjiro continued moving his hips against yours, his cock throbbing in-between your thighs as he threw his head back, “s-so soft,” he stuttered — before he pulled you into another kiss. your mind were filled with thoughts about your boyfriend. what’re you even going to tell him? are you even going to tell him what happened today? is you trying to catch your stalker was a big mistake after all? probably.

manjiro continued his sinister acts until you felt his cock twitch — ropes of his warm cum covered your thighs as a loud groan left manjiro when he came.

manjiro fixed his clothing’s before he pulled you into one last kiss.

“thought that fucking you right now could be a waste, next night will be the day i actually fuck you. be prepared, y/n” the black haired man said, before disappearing into the depths of the dark.

you felt like you wanted to lock yourself in your room forever, and just cry and cry and cry.

what did you even do to deserve this? surly just rejecting manjiro wasn’t the reason.

[cherry-poppins]

Sweet Tooth - Fell!Sans x Reader

Roses are red 

My feelings be true 

I don't do poetry...

Screw you <3

Digging through the Underground's garbage dump was one of your favourite pass times. You usually went once a  week as by that time there was usually new stuff. New books, clothes, a bike with a missing wheel, tinned food if you were lucky and.... oh, what's this?

"Omg no way!!" you squeal in excitement, quickly giving it a sniff test to see if it was still good. BINGO!! Shoving it and a few other items in your bag you were quick to depart the garbage dump.

 You run through the waterfall, passing monsters, having to give a rushed apologies as you nearly run into a few. "Sorry!!" 

Unfortunately you do end up bumping into a monster, one who was comically tall and smelled particularly fishy. "Oof... Oh hey Undyne!" You grinned up at her only to be gently shoved back.

"Nice to see ya to kid but next time watch where ya going next time, will ya?" She sassed as she crossed her arms. 

"Heh, sorry about that. Guess i kinda got carried away... Speaking off i'd love to talk but I'm kinda in a hurry"

"Ha ya think? Welp i'll let you get back to whatever, go get'em kid" Undyne quipped as she threw you a toothy grin. 

"Will do, Cya Undyne!!" You yelled as you past her, picking up you pace but with more awareness or your surroundings. 

Shivering as the sudden change of temperature as you enter the forever winter of Snowdin. You slow down your pace, putting on your thick jacket that was tied around your waist. Your first thought was that he was at Grillby's. Only to be left disappointed as soon as you open the door, the jingle of the bell mocking you. 

"Damn, i swore that he's be here... The one time he's not." You whine, only to spot Papyrus in the far corner. Surely he's know. 

"Hey Papyrus!!" You call out as you made your way to him, giving him a quick wave. 

"HUMAN, WHAT BRINGS YOUR PRESENCE HERE? HERE TO SEE THE MAGNIFICENT PAPYRUS MWAH HAW HAW HAW!" 

"Unfortunately not today. I was actually looking for Sans, have you seen him?" You asked 

"I HAVE ACTUALLY, HE'S AT OUT HOUSE. YET I UNDERSTAND WHY YOU'D THINK HE'D BE HERE, HE COMES HERE SO OFTEN YOU'D THINK HE'S LIVE HERE MWAH HAW HAW HAW!" Papyrus laughed at his own joke, followed by your own chuckle of encouragement. 

"Heh, nice one. Thanks for the help, cya around" You waved goodbye as you left the establishment. 

You run towards the skeletons (plus yours) house, barging down the door. "SANSSS!!!" You yelled out, knowing this was the fastest way to get to him rather than looking through the whole house. 

The poor, unknowing skeleton quickly teleports to your side looking around anxiously. "Yo where's the fire?! Are you hurt, what's going o-" Before he could continue, or for you to give an explanation your excitement gets the better of you and you tackle him to the ground with a hug.

"Oi get off ya crazy human" He shoved you off, only to give you a soft punch to the shoulder. "Don't scare me like that, thought you were dyin' or somethin'"  Sans huffed, not bothering to get up off of the floor. 

"Sorry Sans, didn't mean to frighten ya. totally could've handled that better. Anyways you're never gonna believe what I found at the garbage dump of us." You beamed as you pulled yourself up to sit your back up against the couch, sans soon to follow. 

He raised an eyebrow at first before giving a grin, ruffling the top of your head. "Us?....Damn a gift? All is forgiven sweetheart, now whatcha' find" Sans asked as you dug through your bag. 

You pull out the slight smooshed but totally edible box of chocolates. "Look!! This is such a good find, and they're still good, must've been thrown down recently. Eeee i haven't had chocolate in so long and as far as i aware you haven't even tried it" You grinned as you held the box out in front of you. 

San's look completely shifted, snatching the box out from your hands analysing it and giving it a quick sniff. "Holy shit, how the- Yeah i've chocolate, when i was a lil baby bones but man that was... fucking years ago. This is like- and don't tell anyone this cause it's cringy af, but like my absolute favourite." He gushed excitedly. 

"Really me too and there's different flavours too, see" You flip the box in his hands and show him the varieties. "See there's you average milk chocolate, can't go wrong with that, then you got the stuff that has caramel. Hazelnut, mind flavour which people will dbeta whether or not it taste good. Dark chocolate, mocha, strawberry. Ooo and white chocolate, which fun fact arguable isn't chocolate as it isn't made with cocoa solids, only cocoa butter. Nice right" You chuckled, only to see the look on his face faltered. 

"Huh I didn't know chocolate had flavours, I've only had the regular shit ya know." he gave a nervous laugh before changing the topic. Huh what's a valentines chocolate, does it make it special from the other chocolate?" He asked, pointing to the front of the box. 

"Valentines box of chocolates- Oh No, no. It's just marketing, once every year, i believe mid February theres a day called valentines day. Which basically people would give chocolate and roses to another as a token of their affection, it's a custom usually done by lovers yet it can be done in a platonic sense." You clarified. Guess they didn't have valentines day here, nor books about it. 

"Oh, a day dedicated to love? Ew that's disgusting, at least they have chocolate on this day haha" Sans joked, giving you a little nudge.

 Knowing he was shy about that kinda stuff made you giggle to yourself. Especially since he didn't know that you knew. "Actually the price of chocolate and roses usually goes up on that day, which is kinda inconvenient but that's the economy i guess."

"What?! That's an absolute outrage, fucking valentines day making over priced chocolate." Sans barked, flipping off the concept of Valentines day. 

You laughed as San's antics. "Well I guess it still tastes good, tell ya what i'll let'cha have the first piece" 

"Damn no way.. for real life?" He questioned. 

" Knock ya self out big guy" after that he wasted no time opening up the box. Yet the decision of actually picking a flavour stumped him. 

He had to look which flavours was which about five times before he made a decision. "Milk chocolate, it's a safe option since i already know that i like it" He reasoned. 

"Huh good logic. Can't go wrong with classics" you shrugged, waiting for him to try it. 

Before he took he piece and ate it he turns to you. "What's your favourite"

"mine? hmm, i don't think i really have one. but going with your logic i'd say white chocolate as i know that i really like it." You answered. 

"well then here you go" He holds out the box out for you to take your piece. 

You give him a smile and a thanks as you take it. Which Sans then takes his piece soon after holding it out to you.  "Happy valentines day" 

You couldn't help but burst into laughter soon regretting it after." Ahahah, What?"

Sans instantly freaks outs, and is quick to defend and explain. "Nah it's not like that, think about it, if these have been dumped recently then its only safe to assume that the valentine's day is today... give or take a few days i dunno. Besides you said that shit could be platonic.... well we're friends are we not.." He looked away, his anxieties filling his soul. 

You let out a soft little "oh" as it began to click for you. "I love you too Sans" You nudge your piece of chocolate with his, leaving smudges on eachothers "Cheers" You grin at the shy skeleton before you popped the chocolate in your mouth, letting it melt in your mouth

Sans is quick to look at you. Observe the look on your face and demeanour. Only to let out the breath he didn't know he was holding. "Heh yeah whatever sweetheart, cheers" He chuckled before, eating his own chocolate, licking the tips of his phalanges which was covered in melted chocolate. 

love ya too

Authors Notes: Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! Givin' a special shout out to the Aces, Aros, Aplatonics, and anyone who is a mix of these! And if you are loveless this year, so am i , so let's cheers to that! Love comes in all different forms, so tell your friends how much you appreciate them or call your mother, I dunno. And keep in mind that even if you don't experience attraction or love, you still matter and are valued. <3

When chocolates and roses go on sale, don't forget to enjoy!! (And if you can't eat chocolate and don't like roses then please accept these 🍫🍬💐🌼)

[tehriel]

eeee yes wonderful!!!

when you get the chance, i have a request for daddy!aether and/or top!swiss/reader, with a dash of praise~

ty!! you’re amazing <33333

Thank you for the request!!

Tags: that good pasta

I am a little on the demi side so hard kinks and especially power play is hard for me to write about but here is a top!swiss the best I can~ you will see the saucy version below and the spicier version on AO3

https://archiveofourown.org/works/49764631/chapters/129237049 If anyone else has a request for me~~ I go for scenarios, feelings, vibes, some days I go full ace with no real warning, so yeah give me things I can play with in most moods :3

I hope you enjoy it~

“Whatcha reading, ______?” Swiss slithered into your nook in the ministry library, and the charming bastard reclined on your desk, grinning at you. The library liked dark woods and the scent of paper; the stained glass windows kept you warm as you sunned yourself against Autumn’s early chill.

“I’m studying for my next sermon, but I’m pretty sure you already knew that,” you gave him a sidelong look.

He only grinned wider with too many teeth, as he did when he was about to bring chaos.

Your tail flickered in his direction. He was a handsome shit. He had dark grey blemishless skin and scruffy cheeks, and he wore a half knot of dreads, leaving the rest to frame his chest. He looked like a trickster god. Eyes black peeled and waiting for the next opening to run with. “What do you want, Swiss?”

“Can’t a pack-mate check on his favourite cardinal?”

Not when a certain pack-mate had the glint in his eye that he usually did. “How are you causing upheaval today?”

“Up-upheaval? Me?” He gripped his chest as if wounded.

You arched a brow. Did you really have to explain yourself? He was the loudest of your pack, the most animated when speaking, and always had a story of how he had gotten up to absolutely no good in hell. Known to have stolen from the princes, known to have taken Mammon’s wife in Mammon’s own bed—known for that grin and all it might entail.

“Right, maybe that is on brand, but I promised I’m on my best behaviour,” he showed all ten of his clawed fingers defensively. “I was just wondering if you wanted dinner with me tonight—alright, maybe there is some ‘upheaval’ on my mind—I have procured a large amount of hard liquor, and I’ve been hanging out to watch this movie Sodo said was funny, uh, ‘Velocipastor’.”

“You have to know Sodo has no fucking taste in movies.”

“Hence the alcohol,” he nodded and grinned, “Meal’s on me; I’m cooking.”

“So there will be reapers in my food again?”

“Naw, that was an honest mistake… I thought, ‘It’s the mortal plane, how fucking hot can it be’?”

You grimaced. “I’m sorry, my love, I would and maybe next week… no, it’s gotta be the week after because of ritual Saturday… then there’s…” you shook your head. “Autumn,” you shrugged, “so fucking busy.” You sunk at your desk.

“Ah, I know,” he sighed dramatically. The guy knew how to mope gorgeously. “I’ve missed you in my bed,” he pouted.

He’d be the death of you. “I have learnt that Sodo is very good for venting frustrations out on.”

“I have more than frustration for you, Sweetheart.”

“Oh, I’m sure you do,” you cracked a smile. 

He grinned right alongside you until it fell, “I didn’t see you at breakfast, ______, you’ve been eating, right?”

“Yeah,” you waved off.

Dark lids fluttered a blunt blink.

“I’m a big ghoul, Swiss.”

“Sometimes a fucking wonder about that,” he muttered and stole a chaste kiss, brushing the rough of his cheek against yours. “I’ll see you later, hm? Don’t stress about the sermon; yours are always the best.”

“Not biased at all?”

“No, it’s true, I fall asleep in the other ones or try to choke myself to death or…”

You chuckled; you’d seen him do that with his guitar strap. “You aren’t choking yourself for death, you fucking monster.”

“Ah, but you know the French, huh? La petite mort?”

You shook your head.

“Perhaps ask Rain,” he winked and sauntered away.

“I love you, Swiss,” you called.

“Right back at you, Sweetheart,” he responded.

You would ask Rain about ‘La petite mort’, passing him in the hallway. The question left him stammering and blushing hard. Ah, Swiss; ever sewing little seeds of chaos in his wake.

***

“Sweetheart?”

You jolted awake from your desk, “Fuck! Papa, sorry… is it time for the ritual? I’ve… I’ve got most of it done—I just need to… to… Ah, Swiss…” your shoulders relaxed. The dread-head ghoul stood in your office with a ceramic bowl in his hand. You peered out the window behind you and rubbed the drool from your face. It was dark; last you checked, it had been five, the day had left you behind, and it was then eight forty. You had to have a desk-shaped imprint on your face. You groaned. You still had a day before the sermon. “Thanks for waking me, hun—was there something you needed?” you blinked at your writing, trying to make sense of the papers on your desks again.

“You weren’t at dinner, ______,” his tone was something you’d never heard from him. Low, on the edge of dangerous. “I haven’t seen you in the dining hall for the past week and a half.”

“I’ve just been busy; I grab from the kitchen… usually… sorry I haven’t been about to see you much, my love.”

“When was the last time you ate?” His voice, again, was dark. 

A sudden chill ran up your arms. “Uh.. we’re ghouls, so it’s not a big deal…”

“_______,” he warned.

 “Yesterday, what’s gotten into you, Swiss?”

Dark eyes narrowed. He wasn’t grinning. He stepped closer and shifted the papers from your desk with a swift sweep of his arm. 

“What the fuck? Swiss,” you growled, standing. 

“Sit.” He snarled in a way that tore through you, placing the bowl where your papers had been.

“Swiss…” You didn’t sit. You stood back, ready to collect your papers from the ground.

The other ghoul was quicker. He shoved you back down in your chair. You hadn’t seen him move like that since the last time the clergy went to holy war years ago. “Eat,” he commanded.

“What the fuck, Swiss?” you hissed up at him.

“I’m not playing here, Sweetheart.”

“And you think I am?” You spat.

“Your research isn’t going anywhere; you can get on your knees and pick them up after. For now, eat.”

Your nose wrinkled in a snarl, but you couldn’t deny you were hungry. The bowl was filled with a Mountain’s worth of pasta. The noodles looked handmade. He’d made it for you. “Fine,” you muttered. “You don’t have to be a dick about it.”

“Evidently I do,” he growled, perched on your desk to watch you.

You studied Swiss for a while; you hadn’t known him to be so dominant. You had no idea what had gotten into him. You supposed you should eat anyway. You approached the food with the fork and messily ate some—ghouls were not known for their table manners. Hell left you with little to no etiquette, as etiquette was for the privileged, minor demons gorged on what they could fucking get. You moaned around a mouthful of pasta. Swiss was getting good with his cooking.

“I know it’s fucking good,” he growled from your side, sitting taller and looking down on you from your desk.

You were suddenly self-conscious about your eating, self-conscious in a way no ghoul generally was. Swiss was watching you. Watching the sauce dribble your chin. Eyes devouring how much you could fit in your mouth and the way you swallowed what he had made for you.

“Uh-Swiss, hun.”

“No speaking, let me enjoy this.”

What the fuck was happening? Was he getting off on you enjoying the food he’d made for you? You gave him an incredulous look.

“I like filling your belly in any way I can, _____,” his voice was gravel, and he was dead serious.

You couldn’t look at him and couldn’t seem to stop eating either. For one, the pasta had the perfect bouncy texture, and the sauce had to be made from scratch. And secondly, your hunger crashed in on you all at once—you had forgotten what it was to be hungry for a moment. Much to Swiss’s approval, you cleaned the bowl.

“Good bean for finishing, ______.”

“I’m sorry, what the fuck?” You scoffed. 

“Don’t pretend me treating you like this doesn’t make you wet, Sweetheart, we’re ghouls—I can smell it on you.”

You frowned. Just as you had forgotten to hunger, you had forgotten to want. Ghouls could barely keep their hands off each other and the clergy, and it had been… at least a month since you had anyone. Oh, shit, he wasn’t wrong. “You’re enjoying this a little too much.”

“Sweetheart…” Swiss began, stepping from the table and gently placing the empty plate on the floorboards and out of his warpath. “You’ve been away from my bed for too long, and you haven’t been looking after yourself—I’m afraid I will have to punish you.”

You scanned over the trickster’s face, and you couldn’t find a joke there. You swallowed. “Swiss?”

“On the desk, facing me. Now.”