#evil pep is his boss

[palermok]

let's dance 1/2

[alextydaisuda123]

Pizza Tower AU- Cloud Tower

"WARNING!": A LOT OF TEXT

A new AU that didn't take long to wait. To be honest, this idea came up spontaneously and additionally for several reasons, one of which is my childhood dream of having wings (and over the years my dream hasn't faded, which is surprising, usually my dreams fade after 5 years or a little more). Before I start talking about this world, a couple of additional words. A huge thank you to Emily (@creat0rstudi0) for helping me with this AU: she helped with the design of Peppino and Gustavo, from whom I pushed off and created images for others, painting everyone choosing a good palette for them (don't worry, I also painted the characters myself, Emily just gave a clearer palette than me, so I will show you 2 versions of painted characters), and also helped a little with information about the bosses. Well, now let's go.

Cloud Tower is an AU where instead of the earth there are small floating islands, platforms, and the space around is an endless sky, which is both a home and a grave. If you break your wings and fall, there is only a small chance that your body will fall on some island or platform, or if someone notices you falling, and if this is not the case, then consider that you will fall endlessly for the rest of your life (or until your corpse is cut by the air). And also (almost) everyone has wings. There are those who were born without them, or with them, but because of their problems (they grew together incorrectly or broke unsuccessfully) are disabled, roughly speaking. Also, someone may have additional plumage (in their hair, on their body, etc.) in addition to their wings. And yes, since the climate in their world is not so simple, many fly in warm clothes. There is also magic here, but it is hidden either in artifacts or in some creatures, since the world itself is also magical in its own way (after all, the food here is alive, lol). A few words about the tower. There is a certain atmosphere there similar to the Rainbow Factory from MLP Creepypasta.

Peppino and Gustavo are both cooks, but in their own separate directions. Peppino is an Italian cook, while Gustavo works as a baker of bakery sweets. One day, Pizzaface arrives on a flying platform and reports that Peppino's pizzeria will be destroyed by a cloud tower, but if he does not want this, then let him fly to the tower, and flew away, leaving behind an evil laugh. What actually did not like this, and they both decided to fly there and destroy the tower with its "owner".

Additional facts: Peppino, despite the fact that he does not particularly like to fly, although he has to, his flight speed is clearly faster than Gustavo's, while he flies slower; Gustavo has his own separate bakery, where he makes pastries, he would like to work with Peppino, but he cannot leave the place where his family once baked their first bread; Peppino participated in the heavenly war, from which he still has an injury, but thanks to work and his faithful friend Gustavo, he tries to live an ordinary life and not think about it.

Pepperman and Vigilante are two of the main bosses of the cloud tower who clearly didn't get there of their own free will. They were kidnapped a long time ago and forced to work for Pizzahead, having been threatened in a special way. Pepperman is a restorer (like in steampunk, yes) and a decorator. Vigilante is an ordinary security guard, and also watches the precipitation.

Additional facts: Pepperman has really white pupils, which is why his eyesight is worse than usual (he is not completely blind), and the reason for his poor eyesight is that he refuses to wear glasses for flying (but be that as it may, for work he still wears them under his beret along with additional tools); before getting into the tower, these two were ALREADY a couple; Vigilante's grandfather, who has long been retired, is still alive; as PH himself "promised", so that the bosses would be freed from their tower duties, they need to "rip off Peppino's wings" at any cost, even if they weren't aimed at fighting him.

Noise and Noisette are another couple who ended up in the tower in the same way as Pepperman and Vigilante. Noise hosts the news and weather forecast, and a small show similar to "Truth or Dare". Meanwhile, Noisette is still the same cafe owner.

Additional facts: Noise has a broken right wing, it was broken by Pizzahead when he tried to fly out of the tower for the first time, he broke it so much that now Noise can't fly at all, the wing has grown together crookedly and he is unable to straighten it and move it, so he flies with the help of a backpack on his back, which he can change to either a jet or a simple propeller; Noisette sometimes helps Noise with flying and how Noise injured his wing, she does not know to this day; I lied to you a little, Pizzahead kidnapped only Noise, and Noisette herself flew to PH when she was looking for him, and when she found him, so that PH would not harm her, he lies to her and offers to join Pizzahead, as he himself wanted.

Bruno is an unsuccessful clone, mixed with a regular bird and Peppino's DNA, created by PH. He can fly, but very ineptly because his arms replace his wings, which is why he falls and crashes into all sorts of possible objects, which is why he flaps his wings hard and pieces fly off from them, he can of course grow them, but this whole process takes a lot of his strength.

Additional facts: in addition to his speech, he makes a distorted bird sound; despite his inability to fly, the bosses (Pepperman, Vigilante and Noisette) still teach him to fly normally, they also additionally look after Bruno himself, feed him and teach him to speak, since PH himself does not do this; because of such care, Bruno accepts his friends more as parents, calling them accordingly (in the future, he will also call Peppino this way 😂)

Pizzahead is the main boss, a sadist and a psycho. He built a tower, around which a barrier in the form of clouds with a powerful lightning discharge is built, and in order to turn it off, you need to turn off the generators.

Additional facts: Pizzahead and Pizzaface in this AU are brothers, Pizzahead is younger; after one incident, his psyche was shaken, he was inspired to recreate the tower for his whims and "fun"; he cut off Pizzaface's wings and as a great and first trophy keeps them in his office along with John's wings and one wing of Jerome; those wings that Pizzahead himself is wearing are also "trophies", cut off from other creatures, but he tells everyone that they are fake and it's just a cape, he also participated in the war, but in secret from his brother, so that he "wouldn't worry" about him.

Pizzaface is Pizzahead's brother and ... a good guy? Yes! In this AU, he is not a bad character, but rather a good one. So in that encounter with Peppino, he just played the role of a bad guy. He is quiet (but he tries to be sociable) and traumatized. He does not often show himself to the other inhabitants of the tower, which is why few people know about him. Most of the time, he spends either in the secret room where Pizzahead keeps him, or with Jerome, helping him clean the tower.

Additional facts: because of the cut off wings, he feels weak and exhausted; he still does not know why Pizzahead acted so cruelly and what happened to his psyche, but he blames himself for this, that he was not caring enough and simply did not keep an eye on him; Pizzahead watches almost his every move so that he does not do stupid things and does not ruin his plans, and for the sake of PH he has to play the same role of a bad guy.

Jerome is a small pillar with one wing and memory loss due to a strong blow from Pizzahead. He is a simple cleaner. He does not remember anything about his brother or his past, although memories still pop up in his head. In the past, he had magic, but due to the loss of a wing and memory, he does not remember and cannot use it normally, over time, the skills were simply lost.

Additional facts: he is Pizzaface's best friend, and he sometimes helps him remember things, but he cannot (PF hopes that he will remember something); he has seen John many times as an ordinary part of the tower, but he cannot remember him or at least his name; initially, he was not supposed to be in the tower and Pizzahead wanted to throw him on a long flight, but Pizzaface somehow convinced him to leave him and just make him an ordinary cleaner.

Well, I hope you like this AU. Enjoy and have a nice flight!

[whereismyhat5678]

hey hi uh I saw one of your posts and it had a little "evil peppino x evil gustavo" doodle thingy and I thought it was so cute and I was wondering if you could do more 👉👈😶

(if you even want to, no pressure)

(I’m so sorry I answered so late!! I wasn’t able to work on asks today since I was out, I hope this works though!! 🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️)

Uhh- It might not EXACTLY be ship art but it’s implied! (I again hope that works- 😀😓🥲)

Peppino doesn’t like to admit it but….

He really… very deeply…. cares about Gustavo…<3

(He has a soft spot in his twisted ass heart for Gus- 💕💕💕)

Also I have some headcanons under the cut if you’d like to read those-

- Peppino has trust issues, he REALLY doesn’t like to build any sort of close relationships with anyone really, and it partially started because of the…hand incident….He’ll keep in touch with family but he hasn’t told them about his, duties.

- (I’m actually still thinking of ways on how he met Gus but-) I imagine when he met Gus he was skeptical, he was too friendly, and he really had no reason to be caught up in all the things Pep was dealing with. But he was a good hand so he kept him…

- As his duties got more intense (and a bit irritating to deal with) Gus always was by his side, he didn’t want to get to close but he did end up actually gaining a bond with him. He liked his presence, he liked when he talked, he liked when he smiled, he liked when he was genuinely honest with him (which was almost all the time-), Pep respected him, he grew to like him as he was, he trusted him… (Which was very hard for Pep to do…)

- I should also mention that Pep doesn’t like it when people call him by his name. Only Mr. Spaghetti (even though it did sound silly-) or boss (if it was a worker) and ANYTHING ELSE besides his name. If you did…. It ain’t gonna look pretty…

- (As you can see in the “comic” though Pep finally is able to tell Gus that he feels he trusts him, therefore he can call him by his name… And Gus usually always called him boss- The only reason why it slipped for him because he heard about that one rumor where Peppino killed someone because he said his first name. He couldn’t stop thinking about it and that’s why he was so nervous when he said it-)

I think that’s all the serious headcanons I have- if anyone wants to use them that’s fine! (If you would like to of course!) I’m gonna go to bed, I’m tired… 🫶💕

[toastedjeans]

Okay so i might make Siren AU into a thing. Got some very loose thoughts / this is basically just me brainstorming (if anyone has any ideas please don't hesitate to tell me)

Peppino can't swim. He just sits in his shitty little boat while fishing one day and suddenly gets attacked by probably Pizzahead or Pizzaface. Gustavo sees him struggling and panicking, and saves him from almost drowning.

I already made some concept doodles for Gustavo, he's basically a mermaid but with a shark tail and those fin thingies instead of ears. Round little shark man <3 He also doesn't inherently think humans are evil or something, when someone's in distress he tries to help as best as he can. He can get very protective over friends and loved ones tho. Don't anger him. You'll regret it.

The sirens probably can't speak human language, with a few exceptions. Pizzahead probably learned it from (obsessively) observing humans, and then tried teaching it to Fakey. Fakey can speak fractions of sentences or words, but it mostly sounds like gibberish. He doesn't speak often though, mostly communicates with croaks, gurgles, and other noises. I like to imagine Gustavo tries to learn to speak human language so he can communicate with Peppino better (bonus points if his first full sentence for some reason is "I'm going to kill you", not knowing what it means and scaring the shit out of Peppino)

Fakey stays a frog, but with like. A tail, like when frogs are in that transitional phase between tadpole and frog ya know. But still humanoid looking, i mean he has to look like Peppino, right? Created by Pizzahead out of literal frog DNA and.. anger? Jealousy? Unhealthy obsession? All of the above? Idk yet

Mr. Stick is probably one of the few characters that stay human, and he's one of Peppino's friends/acquaintances

Not sure if Brick should stay a rat, possibly even Peppino's (involuntary) pet, or some kinda fish that's already Gustavo's friend. Although it'd be fun if Brick just lives with Pep, and Pep can't get rid of him no matter what he does, so he reluctantly keeps him.

I literally have no ideas for Pepperman and Vigilante. All i could think of for Vigi rn is uh. Sea slug. But Pepperman?? Zero clue. Head empty. Help.

Got two thoughts for the Noises, either Noise is a human too, but Noisette is a siren luring him in (or vice versa!), or both of them are sirens. Option 2 would make more sense to me, but option 1 seems interesting too.. OR secret option 3, Noise and Noisette are both creatures that transform depending on if they're in water or on land. Peppino doesn't know this. The Noises act like it's the most normal thing in the world.

Pizzahead as either a regular siren or maybe like. An octopus/squid? Kinda like Ursula from Ariel idk. Or maybe an eel. Idk why

I still think it'd be funny if Pizzaface was a flat fish. I forgot what they're called but the mental image is so funny to me. Flat fuck.

Pizzahead probably got the idea of cloning Peppino cause he once saw how strong he is, and thought he would need that kinda strength for the war between him and.. other creatures.. i actually haven't thought about that one.. who would he even be against? Are the other bosses on his side? Is he trying to start a war between sirens and humans bc of people like Peppino fishing all the time? Or have humans started a war against the sirens in ancient times and it's still in their nature to despise humans because of that?

[margoshvets]

Monster Hunter Chai AU

I know that Halloween is far away, but I still got so hyped about possible HFR update to the point that this little AU appeared in my head X)

This is just a silly idea of mine that I want to share.

Basically Hi-Fi Rush but in a medieval setting where bosses are actually monsters devastating nearby villages.

Roquefort - werewolf; Mimosa - mermaid; Zanzo - mad scientist or a necromancer; Korsica is just a human, but she will become a vampire (I'll explain later); I also think about Rekka being a werewolf too, but she turns into something tiger-like or a cyclops (I'm open to suggestions); And the Vandelay family is a family of vampires (all the bosses occupy their large castle). In this AU, Roxanne is on the same page with her son (they are both evil).

Peppermint is also a vampire, but she runs away from her family because she is not like them.

Chai is the only survivor of one of the many villages they destroyed, and he goes to the castle to have his revenge and to relieve the world from their atrocities (k*ll them all).

He meets Pep, who wants the same, and only later he discovers that she is a vampire, and it kinda breaks his trust in her.

When they retrieve Korsica, there was no chance of saving her by ordinary means, so Pep saves her by turning her into a vampire.

[new-berry]

Pep / KDB

NSFW-ish but nothing to warn for, just the world fuck really. NSFW in a church. Infidelity. Is Pep/KDB it’s own warning? Am I a warning?

Gretna Green

Not set last year? Set a couple of years ago. I literally haven’t even read this through. Spelling is an evil, but is it a necessary one?

It’s another Thursday. Even If they had set alarms they would have slept through them. Their phones on the coffee table, the screens flicking on and off. It’s nearly stopped raining. Spring is almost over, summer hasn’t quite started.

He’d like to blame drinking he’d like to pretend it was in the aftermath of a victory, that he was overcome.

On the chair next to Kevin’s bed, this temporary place, they have layered trousers and socks and underwear. Pep’s hands are efficient, and Kevin’s are practised at stripping clothes off in the dark. The sleeve of Kevin’s sweater is lying across the waistband of Pep’s jeans. Last night they twisted together. Pep hasn’t slept-in for years.

He wakes up first. The insistent nag of water has finally become impossible to incorporate into his dream. The window is cracked open and Pep watches the drops that hit the window ledge. He watches the carpet under the window slowly get darker with water. Someone else will clean it up eventually. The paint chipped at the corner. Careless streaks from a half assed cleaning service.

Kevin’s behind him and he shifts slightly, aligns their bodies more completely, even his elbow feels hot against Pep’s ribcage.

Pep holds his breath; he’s not ready for it to be over. For last night to melt away, evaporate off his skin like rainwater on concrete. Wants it to be cars he can hear passing by.

Soon Kevin is going to grab for his watch or look up and squint at the window. He’s going to realise that they could have nearly slept in. It’s not that either of them has anywhere to be, so much as there is somewhere they should not be. Here, together, it’s not Pep’s bed. He is the one who should have slunk away last night.

Kevin is going to wake up, is going to recognise the body under his arm.

“This is not a punishment.” Pep had said. Kevin on top of him, half wild, with glittering eyes and guilt. Under-prepared and stubborn.

Two weeks ago they accidentally ran away to Scotland. There isn’t any reason they couldn’t. Kevin’s latest meeting with the lawyer. The therapist. The family counsellor. The dangled chance of reconciliation.

Six hours of traffic barely speaking. Falling into a bed booked online.

Sleeping apart in the small bed. Small high windows with curtains they hadn’t closed properly. Small desk, small tv. Kevin rolling over away from the telephone. Half assed job vacuuming. Small towels in the bathroom. Kevin barely fitting under the shower head. Too awake. The line of his back too rigid, flotsam adrift. They didn’t fuck that night. They didn’t that morning. Barely touched. The points of their elbows, the bend of their knees. Pinned to the edges of the bed, a valley of sheets between them.

Pep had run his hand down the hard line of Kevin’s back. “Come have breakfast.” He said. They walked to the tourist part of town. Under baseball caps and blue surgical masks. Toothbrushes from Spar left in the bin. They won’t stay another night.

From 7.14 when Pep sent a text to his wife, Kevin buried in the steam of the shower, until Midnight, Kevin slipping out of the car without saying goodbye, they were tourists and lovers.

Eating breakfast with fresh juice and eggs. They walked slowly and Pep was not his boss. Kevin was not his player. The short holiday that Kevin would take with his family undiscussed. Pep’s family phantoms. Their jobs a ghost. They would probably reconcile. You can feel like a single parent married to a football player or a football manager. But maybe better to have him there than to admit something was wrong.

Pep’s phone twisted in his pocket. They both politely looked away from calls that could not go unanswered. Consumed with the quality of the scarves that fell out in piles of every open shop door, not the hushed conversations.

They didn’t stand out in the crowd’s meandering up the Royal mile.They kissed twice, they touched more. Hand draped over arm, fingers on a shoulder pointing something out. Backs turned for the whisper of privacy.

But now, two weeks later, Pep wants to roll over and kiss Kevin awake. He wants to know he could slip back into the bed, pressing his hands - warm from holding two cups of tea - against Kevin’s ribs while Kevin groped across the bedside table for his own drink.

Wants to kiss without brushing their teeth. Without tasting alcohol or even a victory. Pep wants to turn over and nudge his knee between Kevin’s. Wants to rock Kevin awake like he fucked him asleep.

Pep wants to say: that’s just traffic, that’s just the tv. Your wife is waiting for you to call her and will believe your lie this time. Let’s kiss. The battery on your phone is dead, there is no where to be and nothing to do except for you to tell me what you dreamed of.

Instead he shrugs out from under Kevin’s arm over his waist and feels the morning-rainy air strip away the touch of Kevin’s warmth. He lets the hallway pull the pressure of Kevin’s fingerprints off his shoulders and tugs on a sweater when he reaches the kitchen. It’s Kevin’s, thrown over the back of another chair.

Messy bachelor pad. She will take him back. A few weeks Time enough make her point. To stop doing it. To get better at hiding it.

It’s not even that it is particularly cold, standing shifting from foot to foot waiting for the kettle to boil. But in comparison it’s winter. Kevin too hot, right from his bones that feel too close to the surface of his skin. He curls in too close, too near, and he has always pulled away too quickly when he realises.

It wouldn’t be traffic he heard, this high up. It might have been rain that Pep heard, that woke him up. But he always wakes up early. In his life he’s that man who shrugs out of bed early to beat the kids and his wife up. Who makes appointments that start early in the day.

It’s Wednesday, or Friday, or Sunday. It’s morning, it’s raining probably pouring, it’s not cold enough for sweaters, or tea, or curling together in bed, the old man is snoring, and the water is boiling. Hot clear tears jump out of the spout of the kettle and dance on the hood of the oven like the rain on the roof five stories above them.

It’s morning, and Pep briefly pretends to hear the traffic through the open kitchen window, even from an apartment this high up. Even though it’s too early for the morning rush. He leaves Kevin’s sweater folded neatly in the couch. Grabs his phone, it’s morning and he has meetings.

[life-one]

Not to stir the pot, but as a Starlow and even a Luigi fan, I’ve stated many times that there are a few valid reasons not to like her, but I feel most of these can actually be explained? Sorry for the spoilers, but I'll try to not to give extra infomation just in case!

But like, I understand that even with explanations, many people might still dislike her. However, I really hate how people portray her as way more evil than she is when she seems more blunt in her speech rather than actively trying to attack Luigi just to upset him.

Of course, it’s a flaw that Starlow isn’t more mindful of her words when dealing with an emotional person like M&L Luigi, but I don’t think she’s shown to have any genuine hate for him... But first off, I don't think that Paper Jam example should be even used because mostly everyone is written poorly, even Starlow herself, in that game even Peach rips on Luigi - which is something that she would NEVER do? But even then, she's not that bad at her worst butttt...

Before she hyped Luigi up in Paper Jam, I feel like it came from a genuine place of trying to help him tough it out for the sake of the mission after noticing he was scared when they all stepped into the creepier Gloomy Woods.

…but she also undermines Luigi in her thoughts right after. However, taken bluntly and logically, she isn’t undermining him in a hateful way but believes that if Luigi can’t keep it together, Mario and Paper Mario will support him and carry the mission’s weigh instead - which Mario would do any day if that meant helping his brother out.

Hence, I believe she said these lines before the pep talk because she was simply stating it, not joking or making a jab at Luigi. The emotional part of conversations doesn’t seem to click for Starlow, as there are many examples of her not understanding the tone appropriate for certain situations, which has always been part of her character surpisingly? But besides that, Luigi is used to having Mario by his side—and recently, Paper Mario too—so she isn’t entirely wrong, especially since Mario and Paper Mario are clearly less afraid of the woods.

It’s clear that Starlow doesn’t base her actions on emotions, as she isn’t scared of the woods like Mario and Luigi are. She rarely shows strong emotions beyond anger, annoyance, or brashness. She knows she isn’t good at emotionally supporting others, but she still tries—she’s truly trying. However, it’s also clear that she often states the obvious just for the sake of stating it, so I don’t think this comes from a place of lying. If she wanted to be mean or petty, she would have been blatantly so—as she had no issues before doing so. I really think she means the words that she's says because I don't think she purposly wants to see Luigi to fail. She's comforting Luigi that she knows how. What I said about Starlow being blunt and not understanding the emotional side of conversations can apply to all almost all of her interactions with Luigi, to be honset? ___ The "No, even you couldn't have messed up THAT badly!" example isn’t really defendable, to be fair, because it’s a pretty jerkish thing to say. But Starlow didn’t face any pushback or consequences for saying it and only apologized after seeing Luigi cry. She then seconded Paper Mario’s statement about looking for the book together, if that counts for anything?... The example "After all, I'm pretty sure they would be calling for Mario's help, not yours" isn't valid thought because Starlow didn’t make Luigi cry. Luigi was acting dramatically, crying over the thought of the toads being in danger, which is typical for him to bring the dramatics in M&L games (which I love about him) But his tears weren’t a result of Starlow’s comment, but rather his own emotional response!

Below are explanations for the rest of the points:

This was the moment in Dream Team when Luigi faced the final boss, using his Giant Luigi form—a power that was gained after he had been visibly distress before gaining it and something that Starlow withnessed. She isn't giving him a backhanded compilment in this context at all...

In Dream Team, Starlow expresses frustration, placing all the blame on Luigi as if he intentionally caused the pillow to be magical and wanted chaos to ensue. It's true that if Luigi hadn’t fallen asleep on the pillow, none of this might have happened, but no one warned him that this could occur. Nothing is his fault, this isn't on Luigi and this is actually a soild point for not liking her due to her nature to snap out on people.

And finally, this part of Bowser's Inside Story isn't even part of the main game, optional. But even then, She end up saying sorry after Mario imformed her that Luigi helping him fight too and noticing that she was in the wrong.

I think starlow was just being snarky this time

I would very much like to think that, but at this point the games would have to outright state that Luigi is in on the joke for me to believe it. Starlow has a pretty rocky track record, and only seems to take back her insults when there's direct consequences or pushback.

And even when she says something nice to Luigi, it's either underhanded...

Or an extremely surface level attempt to hype him up when there's something to lose.

Again, as much as I'd like to think it's just lighthearted teasing, Starlow really does put out a lot of "fake friend who's found an easy target" energy. It'd be different if she was equally snarky with Mario, but she isn't. The way she talks to Mario and the way she talks to Luigi are extremely different, and that's what bugs me most.

[sapphire-weapon]

another broke take i keep seeing is that ashley develops feelings for leon but that it’s not mutual, which is dumb bc even if leon isn’t as open about it (the ‘running from creeps’ and ‘good company’ lines notwithstanding), his body language is very telling imo.

holding on to her a little longer than he needs to during the church escape, touching her shoulder to check on her (when they’re saved by luis) or in reassurance (post-stabbing), gently cupping her head and tracing his fingers down her arm, reaching for her face again when she’s on the altar, grabbing her hand to pull her into the lift, and the way he always stops to help her up with both arms when she’s downed by enemies

even the fact that he’s literally being paid to protect her can’t justify the tenderness of all these little touches. i highly doubt “touch the president’s daughter like she’s the only thing that keeps you going” was in his job description. don’t even get me started on his boyish, almost bashful, “i can catch ya” like literally what the fuck

I think, after being forced into the shadows for eighteen fucking years by this fandom -- and by Aeon fans especially -- I've been hesitant to make any definitive statements on Leon and Ashley's relationship outside of its effects on Leon's character arc (and reaffirming over and over and over again that Ashley disappears from the series, as though to soothe people's reactions??).

But I was on discord talking to @godtier earlier, and once I actually said it out loud and then actually got an agreement from someone who could not be paid to give a fucking shit about this ship -- I'm just going to go ahead and say it for the wider fandom.

Resident Evil 4 Remake was written as a romance, and the romance is between Leon and Ashley.

With the new scenes they've added in, it's literally structured like a romance story is. I'll even outline it for you.

1) Call to Adventure / The Meet Cute

Literally their first meeting in the church, culminating with the catch and that moment of longing as they lock eyes while Leon continues to hold her just a few seconds too long.

2) Refusal of the Call / Rejection of the Relationship

At first, Leon treats Ashley solely as his mission objective. ("Hey can we take a break?" "Sorry, we need to keep moving.") And Ashley, for a good bit, doesn't trust him at all but goes with him because she has no other choice. ("Seriously, this cannot be happening.")

3) Acceptance of the Quest / Giving the relationship a chance

The escape from the cabin sequence up to the "seems this isn't your first time running from creeps." line. This is where we see them actually start to warm up to each other, and Ashley, for the first time, believes Leon can and will really get her out of there.

4) Trials and Temptations / Three Dates

The three dates are:

1) Ashley busting the window open after the Mendez boss fight, helping brush the embers off of Leon, and helping to pull him to his feet

2) Salazar's introduction ("The girl's just fine. With me.")

3) The road to the Water Hall (Leon jumping across the chandeliers + this is the first time the "knight and the princess" allegory is stated)

5) Midpoint Crisis / I-need-you-but-can’t-have-you

The stab followed by Ashley running away in tears, terrified of hurting Leon again and horrified that he saw her like that. This is also the second time that the "knight and the princess" allegory is stated.

6) The Road Back / Pulling Back Together

The pep talk. Leon is openly vulnerable for the first time ever in this game, and Ashley is grateful to have him with her. Note that Luis calls Leon "Prince Charming" immediately following this scene.

7) The Fall

Ashley stating "I won't run. Wait for me, Leon." And then Leon following up with the "I can catch ya" line.

8) Dark moment / The Break Up

Leon sitting at Ashley's bedside waiting to turn and ready to shoot himself. He's already half given up, and some part of him has started to believe that they won't actually make it out of here -- not together, at least.

9) The Sacrifice

"This time, it has to be different." Leon is forced to challenge the assertion by Ada and Krauser that he hasn't changed, and he even has to prove it to himself. He destroys Ashley's plaga, holding her hand the whole time, smiles breathlessly, then collapses to the floor.

10) Declaration

"Hey... we're a team, right?" "Keep this up? I'll be out of a job."

11) The HEA

Leon and Ashley literally ride off into the sunrise together towards a happily ever after.

The original RE4 is not structured this way. Even if I tried to, I couldn't slot Leon and Ashley's scenes from OG into this outline.

And the romance angle is reinforced over and over and over again through repeated use of the "knight and the princess" allegory beyond what I've even listed in the outline. You know, the fairy tales about the knight who saves the princess and they fall in love and live happily ever after. In addition to Salazar saying it, there's the "Prince Charming" line from Luis, Ashley references it when she jokes that Leon should literally put on the knight's armor -- and, on a meta level, Leon has a fucking fantasy hero costume.

There's even goddamn dialogue in the game where Ashley says to Leon, "I knew you'd come" -- which is basically just ripped right out of the Princess Bride.

And to continue the meta reinforcement of it, Leon and Ashley literally have a matching set of alternate costumes called "Romantic" -- and they are fucking Romeo & Juliet inspired. Come the fuck on, man. They couldn't have been more on the nose about it if they'd tried.

And this is in addition to all the other shit you already pointed out in your ask.

And there's the fact that they completely removed any hint of Ada possibly even remotely being a love interest for Leon in this game. The focus remains solely on Ashley and the bond that she and Leon build together.

Leon and Ashley's relationship in RE4 Remake is canonically romantic in nature, and I'm so fucking tired of pretending like it's not.

[dreamytum]

Evil Pep//pino Hcs because the torment plagues me

This man thrives off fear play. Teasing, taunting, you name it. He's here to make threats, with an audience anyway

Fangs, he has fangs. Why? Because it's scary that's why and it adds to how much trust you need to put in him

Despite being a hardened mafia boss with nerves of steel, behind closed doors he's a sucker for affection and is easily flustered. Tummy rubs, compliments, mayhaps some light flirting?... If you two are alone, he'll be suppressing a blush the whole time.

You fit perfectly inside him. You fit snugly in his gut, and he knows that. You're his perfect snack

He always tries to spook you with his cutter hand, and loves it when it succeeds. He's a lover of fear play, even if you get a few spooks

Say it with me people, warm tums! His stomach is very cozy and warm, perfect for cold and rainy days

Stress. Eating. This man will get angry and if he really doesn't need to fight, he'll just eat you. Will it freak out his subordinates? Yes, but now he's full and feeling a bit better. You would rather him full than angry right?

[palermok]

sketching

[your-local-uwu-artist]

ok so I have an au where Dr. Eggman finds Tails before Sonic and takes him in as a son assistant and I was wondering how’d that work with the Eggqueen ship? Like the Queen from deltarune (assuming you still ship it and If you wanna answer this ^^)

i will never not ship eggqueen dfnjska like if i start an etsy someday def will make merch with them because i need to spread my propaganda for this pairing <3

NICE AU IDEA! HECK YEAH EGGDAD DSFNJKDSNF LOVE THAT

NFJDFNJKSDF okay so this does partially depend on how we're adressing the crossover at all, being that it is a crossover ship i've always imagined the eggqueen family including lancer, but i think that in a universe where queen exists in the sonic world i think the dynamic works better id she wasn't a robotnik creation, and rather an advanced android with an unknown creator, if you wanted to build onto that idea maybe she could be from the future or smth, idk~

ignoring crossover logic and excluding lancer,

-Queen is of course equally evil mastermind levels as Eggman, so as far as the like 'egg empire' goes she is very involved in the evil planning and scheming

-i think Eggman would've dated her later on, so Tails (is he called tails in this au or miles or smth? ill call him Tails for now) would've had to warm up to her and all that

-They probably met at a more casual setting so Everyone just noticed "Boss has been out alot lately" before knowing he was seeing someone

-they might've met before then but if they have then like its been years since they've seen eachother

-Queen definitely isn't one to like, particularly 'try' to get her partner's family to like them but she is naturally just inclined to be a mother figure so she definitely is like "YES CHILD MUST ADOPT"

-Queen is def a spoil the kids kinda mom and while her default is to be eccentric and overbearing she's surprisingly good at giving like, good heart to heart pep talks, and is a really encouraging mother

-It is fairly clear that queen and eggman like each other quite alot, it was probably at least a couple monthes til he started inviting her to his lair/place and she visited and stayed over fairly frequently, probably moved in around a year into the relationship maybe a little less (this is fiction so relationships between robot milfs and egg shaped scientists dont need to be realistic)

-i think itd be funny if they both were planning to propose around the same time and both told tails

-not sure how long it'd take for dating to proposal and fiancés to married tho

-eggman would be a little awkward when introducing queen

-since queen's more openly affectionate that could help balance eggman's reluctance to admit that yes tails is his son

-it would definitely be interesting to have tails to dislike queen at first, I think Eggman would really have no clue how to handle that, he is very in love with Queen and also "bad at emotions tm"

-Queen can be insensitive and intense as a parent but like, i think when it counts she listens and does like, try

[for-dramas-sake]

The Starry Love ep 37, 38 thoughts

Yetan IS the Void Devil now. She is the most dangerous thing for the Void. Everyone is legit scared of her and her powers, but she wants to use them to get revenge. I love the twist.

Everyone is so uncomfortable with the new leader situation. There's conflict of feelings and fear everywhere, even Chaofeng is uncomfortable. Then there's Yetan who is just pissed.

That was sweet of Yetan to give the tree root to Chaofeng (a sentence I didn't think I'd ever write). Their relationship has improved for the wrong reasons.

Sending the memory-wiped husband to kill his now devil wife? Sounds like a good plan to me.

This drama continues to break my heart. Just when I was moving on from Qingkui's death, the drama has this sad scene with Yetan imagining her in the Void clinic!This girl needs a hug, but her husband is on the way to kill her. And her best friend is also dead. Yetan's life is so miserable. She had a terrible childhood, had a short-lived romance, and now she's back to having a miserable life. Can she ever get a break?

Omo! I was half-joking about the heavenly divorce and now the empress just did it! (gasp) That emperor….grrr.

The Immortal twins are playing mahjang! Their inability to play is adorable. But then again anything they do is adorable.

My emotions! Youqin and Yetan meet but he's forgotten her! She has not forgotten, however, how to dispel his star formation! So glad that was called back! And then she attacks him because she can help him remember her.

Their fight dance was so beautiful and that music too! He can't kill her. Good news for now and more good news the calvary is here with Ziwu, Qingheng and Di Lanjue! Yay!

I just realized how many burdens Yetan has taken on. She tried to save her sister from marrying Youqin, tried to save her sister from the Void, brought Youqin's soul shards together to bring him back, took on the Void Emperor for revenge, plans to take on the Immortal Emperor for Chaofeng's revenge, plans to bring back Suzhi's parents through the Soul Gathering Lamp. Then the girl has the gall to want to save her husband? She wants to do so much for so many people. I admire her for that.

Thank God that Yetan's dad shows up (did he just walk into the Void?) and gives her an encouraging pep talk and that hug she needed. He still isn't my favorite dad in this series, but he's getting better.

I hate to say it but I've given up hope for Qingheng and Suzhi. She's shot him down so many times and then she's on a mission of her own which is directly against his dad. They could have been cute but we may have gone too far for them.

Uh-oh. Immortal Emperor is worried about Youqin remembering the unsavory parts of his past. Why the heck hasn't anyone told Youqin earlier about Yetan?! Hints aren't going to be enough. A good to slap to the head should do it.

Yes! He's starting to remember! And it wasn't a big show or even a slap to the head! It was the Rooftop Swallow star, HER star.

When he returned the star to her, freaking loved that scene! And then she's just welcomed back as the consort of the Empyrean? Ha! Sticking it to the Emperor!

These Heavenly Emperors are such dicks. Their hard-hearted natures make them slaughter many lives and push their family members away. Where is the remorse, the regret, the realization that being a dick isn't the way?

Shit. Yetan killed another emperor. Oh no, wait. She just killed his powers off for good. And then marched out of Heaven like a boss!

Yetan and Youqin are couple goals. I could do without the meddling evil parent, but the "I'll stick with you to the end" commitment they have I want that. And Youqin now takes care of Yetan because she can barely take care of herself. She's like a ghost wandering around with no purpose and he has to take care of her.

I'm done crying for this drama! Can we please stop with the tears? But we have 2 episodes left.

If you made it this far and want to continue, I thank you. Here are more episodes:

35, 36 / 33, 34 / 31, 32 / 29,30 / 27,28 / 25,26 / 23, 24 / 21, 22 / 19, 20 / 17,18 / 15,16 / 13,14 / 11, 12 / 9, 10 / 7, 8 / 5, 6 / 3, 4 / 1, 2

[rahleeyah]

I was watching Warren go back and forth with EO fans on Twitter. I wish fans would realize that arguing with him about how Elliot was written off of the show is fruitless. It was poorly done. I mean not only did he have Elliot ghost Liv but he gave Liv amnesia. She doesn't know where her partner of 12 years lives? LOL Warren will never admit the evil Elliot arc was the start of his obsession to put Olivia through pain and trauma to teach her life lessons. He's a sadist with ultimate power.

you had me in the first half not gonna lie

so here's the thing, right, is that WL qrt'ing random fans and having his little meltdowns is such a bad look. i happen to think he's right - in that he got dealt a shit hand, and he made the best of it (look, it's not like they killed Elliot, i've seen mains written off suddenly in much worse ways), and in that fandom really doesn't understand what goes into making a show, where the decisions are made, who makes them, why, and i happen to think it's beyond pointless to continue to cast blame for something that happened ten years ago especially now that Chris is back - BUT (and it's a big but) there is no merit in him fighting this battle. it doesn't matter how right he is, or how hurt his feelings are. him punching down at people who literally did not tag him, who literally were not looking for this, is gauche, and immature, and just all around bad behavior from a professional who should know better.

i do not, for one second, believe he's a sadist with ultimate power. he doesn't have ultimate power; he doesn't write all the epis, and he's not the only one making decisions, and he's got bosses and they've got bosses. and they made damn good tv for a lot of years. i do think they've been slipping recently but that is not just one person's fault.

it's easy to believe we can blame this all on one bad guy. it's easy to find a scapegoat and lay every disappointment on their heads. but that's just not what this is. he makes himself a target for it by stirring up shit like a teenager at a pep rally, but really. really. he's just a guy with a job.

[siremasterlawrence]

Code X Virus - Police Operative

Part 1 - 2

Police Chief Micheal Karma is a sleep at his office desk awoken with a loud bing from his lap top.

He presses the app as his email opens up to a random message, he sighs rolling his eyes and goes to delete.

He deletes it commencing the machine to start to shake, a buzzing sound emits along with a bright white light.

He instantly blinded with a huge flash who he covers the entire radius of the room leaving nothing in sight.

The machine blows up leaving nothing but a dark scorch mark on his hand he sits in a lost hazy fog.

His eyes roll back then he comes to with deep empty eyes, and a kind made to mold.

“Must obey the code x must spread the virus for Master.” He says standing up to attention.

“Officer Winter come to my office now I have a important assignment.” He yells.

He smirks as the whole police facility minus Officer Winter receive bings as well to his glee.

“I need you to inspect this building on the corner of Apple St and Hinderweight Avenue.

The police Chief happily exits the room into the main hall, moving the chair he hops onto the desk and makes a speech.

Part 3 - 4

Officer Eric Winters arrives standing by his police squadron car when the building goes off.

The building explodes he hides behind the car his eyes burning with fiery pain he rolls out of the way.

On the side of building he can see a strange

QR code on the back of the neck of a burnt victim

.

He yanks his phone out pointing it his way he takes a picture and a bar pops up.

Uploading on to his phone spiral appears on it then next his eyes seem to do the same.

The bar finishes uploading in his pupils his blank expression is transformed for life.

“Yes The Master will please the facility is in ruin.” He says with a evil glint in his com.

“Any other orders before I head back?” The mindless cop questions.

“Make sure to execute anybody who on the scene we can’t have witnesses.” His boss adds.

“As Master commands, I obey” he replies with a new pep to his step.

Part 5 - 6

Detective Russel Wilson is on a highly time sensitive case on track to be his own record.

He stops his car slowly undoing his seat belt he exits his car, gun in hand he points ahead

A shadow appears in the midst of the alley is growing wider and more expansive upon him.

They both freak out meeting halfway on the darkly lit street through the corner of Meds Road.

He pulls the trigger the bullet barely graces him bouncing off the wall and stops cold,

“FREEZE! Who are you? Hands up now” he yells to the stranger.

“I called for you Detective Wilson about the case.” I say.

“This is the cell phone I found and the text is open.” I state.

“You should mess with, contaminate the” he starts.

“The what? Shut The Fuck Up! Enjoy your demise fuckwad.”

The end

[juyeo-on]

sandman [l.jy]

prompt: inspired by the 1st prompt on this post! credits to op for the prompt ofc

warnings: none! just the beach vibezzzz

genre: a oneshot! with no plot lol just a drabble i guess n it’s fluff! ig idk helppp

word count: 800+ (?)

The sun was up and shining, driving away all traces of clouds that could be seen in the sky. You could hear the giggles, laughter and the cheers of families and friends around you as you face the sea, quietly taking in the scene and breathing in the salty but refreshing air. 

College had drained out all of your energy and you thought it’d be a good idea to pay a visit to the local beach on a Sunday, maybe dipping your toes in the cold waves would do you some good too. Your friends were back in the dorms recuperating from the overly stressful finals that had just ended by sleeping in but you were more of an outgoing person who couldn’t bear staying in the room for too long. So here you were, ready to take over the day like a boss! Yup, yup, for sure.

As you let out a happy sigh and made a beeline to the water, you failed to notice the very obvious obstacle on your way leading to you stumbling over a… head? A body under the sand? 

You couldn’t register what had happened as it happened all too quickly, your knees hit the rough and grainy sand, the person let out a shout and things went flying from the back pack you were carrying. 

At this point you just wanted to melt into the ground and never see the light of the day. As you sat there, on your knees, you wished nothing but bad things for the thing that made you fall the Fall of Shame. You hauled yourself up after a silent pep talk and jumped a bit as you saw the culprit in front of you.

To your surprise, there was a person buried under the sand… A very handsome and a good looking person who seemed very familiar to you but you couldn’t place him at all. Was he the regular customer in the convenience store you worked as? No, that dude was at least 36, this guy looked like he was around your age. Was he the barista at the café you visit frequently? Nah, he had blue eyes and this guy had black beady eyes. You were shaken off from your train of thoughts and speculations when you heard him calling out for you.

“Hey, can you dig me out real quick?” That request of help shouldn’t have been funny to you but the surprised snort that left you was a dead giveaway that you, indeed, found this situation hilarious.

“Now, how did you get yourself into this,” you wave your hands around, pointing at the boy who was struggling to move under the sand, “mess, dear stranger and friend?”

He let out a groan, looking very embarrassed, 

“Lord, help me get through this day. Let’s just say, kids are very… evil? Naughty? Off the rails when not with their parents? And one must never doze off in the beach when the spawns of the devil are within 10 meters radius around you. Does that answer your question, oh wonderful and mighty friend of mine?”

You simply couldn't stop the laughter bubbling inside of you and there you went, cackling at the poor boy for the next 5 minutes, clutching your stomach from the pain it caused you from laughing. 

You swear a tear or two was rolling down your cheeks and you missed the slight smile the boy had on his face as he watched you shake your head in disbelief. 

“Well, well, well, since you seem to be in a very desperate position right now-” 

“Hey!”

“-I’ll be more than happy to help you out! But first things first, what is the name of the person who’s currently in a very pathetic state now?”

“It’s Juyeon! Lee Juyeon and I know your name since we share the Physics class, the only one I assume, where you always manage to sleep in during the lecture. How do you never get caught?” 

You gasped.

“No way! Do we? Oh my god, this is so embarrassing, pause. Jesus, no wonder you looked familiar to me, and hey! Ms Jordans really needs to step up her game of teaching college students. There’s no way in hell I’m listening to a 53 year old woman who rambles on and on about Snell’s law in that monotonous, boring, dead and a lifeless voice of hers.”

“I would love to listen to you badmouth-” another gasp left your mouth, “Ms Jordans over a cup of coffee in the café nearby-” the third gasp left your mouth, “but for that to happen, you need to get me out of here! Chop, chop, let’s get it moving, I’m getting tired and very soon I will be reaching the 6th gate of hell if you don’t pull me out of this grave made of fire.”

With a cheeky smile on your face knowing very well that Lee Juyeon from your Physics class had just asked you out on a date indirectly, you gave him a salute, “Aye, aye, captain! Let’s get you out of here and get on with that coffee date right now!”

━━━━━━━★

“Hey Juyeon?”

“Hm?”

“Now that I think of it, you were a sandman, a very cute one.”

[theoceanfaewriter]

Laws and Lattes

Merry Christmas @clockworkgraystairs!! Have a Manorian coffee shop au as your cliche little Christmas gift 😂 Thank you for all the scheming (as well as screaming. coughs in the infernal devices) and help with other fics. ily!

Dorian was 28 years old and had long since given up on finding love in a coffee shop.  A coffee shop.  He was the youngest politician in the country, for fuck’s sake.

When the magic ink showed up on his wrist at midnight on his 18th birthday, he'd guffawed at Chaol who'd waited up with him, ever the believer in this soulmate crap.  In miniscule white, bubbly letters, the words "Hi.  Welcome to Starbucks, may I take your order?"  Great.  That was really just his luck.  Just 2 weeks before, Chaol's wrist had been emblazoned with "Not tonight, buddy.  I'm just a girl in a bar tonight."  She sounded like a fun girl.

Suffice it to say, considering that he was born and raised in New York then moved to Seattle, he'd seen more than his fair share of the chain's stores.  For the first couple of years, he'd replied to every hot barista's greeting with "Is it you?" and secretly prayed that none of the more homely ones would perk up after hearing his order.  By the time he'd graduated university, he'd given up.

When he walked into the establishment at 4th and Pine, he glanced down at his wrist and rolled his eyes, joining the queue.

-

At midnight on her 18th birthday, Manon Blackbeak sat in a circle with her half sisters, Asterin and Vesta, and her little sister Sorrel.  When "I'm sorry, no, I just got called into a city meeting," appeared on her wrist in sloppy, harsh lettering, Asterin and Vesta let out excited squeals, while Sorrel just rolled her eyes.  

The three of them had decided ages ago that they were all going to be surgeons like Asterin and Vesta's mom.  "So, that settles that, then.  Political science is a definite."

“You were supposed to come to the dark side," Asterin growled, climbing into her little sister's lap and nearly knocking her over.  She was already in her first year of Med School and Manon's hero.  Somehow, she was managing to take care of Asterin, who was still in high school, and their ailing mother, all while managing to progress in her classes at UW.  Manon remembered the long, teary phone call with her the week before her graduation from Dartmouth, telling her about her mother's diagnosis, and how she'd have to forgo Northwestern and settle for UW, citing that at least she'd be nearer to her.  It had taken its toll on her, but by then, almost a full year from that phone call, you could hardly tell.  

Even though she seemed genuinely happy for Manon's definitive first-words, it still stung that her tattoo had merely said "Excuse me."  

While she herself was a sophomore in College already by then, having skipped grades when she was younger, Manon wasn't sure that surgery was where she was headed, despite being pre-med.  That merely sealed the deal.

She'd only gotten this job to kill time and save up a few dollars while waiting for her internship at the hospital to start.  She just knew that she wasn't going to meet the love of her life in a coffee shop.  How cliche and boring would that be?  Still, it was cute the amount of young adults who came in, eyeing her suspiciously and asking some variation on "Are you her?" after her company-standard greeting with a wanton desperation, only to deflate when she shook her head sadly.  That just wouldn't be it for her.  

She knew that it was frustrating.  She saw it in the way Asterin had flinched every time a stranger moved around her on the street or tried to get her attention in a bar up until the night before she started her internship.  The fact that he turned out to be a surgeon and her boss proved only to be a minor stumbling block the next morning.

That was all going to come to a close for Manon soon.  She could feel it.  She was going to be a kickass politician and find her equally kickass politician spouse.  The fact that this was her last shift just made it all that much better.

Despite all that, she couldn't help but notice the ridiculously sexy, brooding man that just walked in and secretly mourned that her tattoo didn't read something like "Doppio Espresso and a coffee cake, please."  After a moment, she let it go.

The line progressed efficiently and there he was in front of her and, god, he was even more beautiful up close, she thought, but found herself interrupted by the sharp chirp of an old school pager.  Pager, she thought cheerfully. Politicians use those!  Returning to reality, she found herself absently chorusing the typical greeting, "Hi. Welcome to Starbucks, may I take your order."

The words didn't seem to rouse the man from the device.  "I'm sorry, no, I just got called into a city meeting," he answered and turned and walked out just like that.  

Manon's heart hammered away in her chest as the next guest babbled their long, frothy order at her, but it was irrelevant.  She hadn't heard a word they'd said.  Turning away, she waved over a coworker and pointed at the register, before she retreated into the back of the store.  Holy shit.  She'd met her soulmate in a coffee shop.  And as quickly as he'd come, he was gone.

-

That night, Manon cried in her sister's arms, describing him over and over to Asterin in perfect detail thanks to her photographic memory, and swearing she hadn't made him up.  "His first words defined who I'd become.  What if this was it?  What if I'm destined to be alone because I let him walk out?" she hiccuped.  "What if he's my soulmate but I'm not his?  Can that happen?"

"No, Manon," Asterin cooed.  "That doesn’t happen.”

It was only after the 5th time that it clicked in her head.  "What time did you say it was?"  

Sniffling pathetically, she answered "8:11".  

"And, you said he was tall, with salt and pepper hair?" she asked, straightening herself out in front of her and putting her hands out on her shoulders.

She nodded a little.

"Do you love me?" Asterin asked her sister, question met with an indignant grunt.  "Come in early for your shift tomorrow.  There's someone I want you to meet.  Get some sleep, hon."  With little more argument, Manon headed up the stairs and into bed.  As soon as she was certain she was out of earshot, Mer reached into her pocket and called her own soulmate, remembering how she'd bonded with someone over having a generic tattoo, but how she'd assured him that his soulmate probably had something great because he would be so sick of listening for it.  "Chaol, are you busy?"

-

Morning light changes people.  When she woke up, Manon felt incredibly stupid.  Obviously, that couldn't have been him.  She had a lifetime full of customers in front of her.  The chance of meeting a politician and her soulmate in a Starbucks?  Slim.  Infinitesimal, even.  That didn't change the fact that Asterin's persistence in getting her in early this morning was thoroughly irritating.

"Just trust me," had been the incessant refrain.  "You won't regret it."  She couldn't help but take her sister's urgence as a slight mockery of her reaction the night before.

Rolling her eyes, Manon sighed impatiently, "I'm fine."  She grabbed her coat off the hook and headed for the door.  "Really, this isn't necessary."

She merely smiled, practically pushing her to the car.

-

"This is stupid," Dorian moaned from where Chaol had him lodged in the hallway.  "Why do I have to be here to meet your stupid girlfriend's stupid little sister?

His best friend smiled his normal 'because-I-know-what's-best-for-you-dipshit' smile, and answered "To humor me?  Besides," he urged, "You never know.  She might be fun to hang around."

He turned away from his best friend coldly, rolling his eyes and burying his shoulder in the wall, having decided that he wasn't just going to stare at the elevator like a chump.

-

Leaning against the handrail, Manon groaned "This is stupid."  She couldn't believe she'd had her sleep cut back an hour before work. “You know I'm going to be here later than anyone else.  Why did you have to make it even longer?"  She missed her bed already and they weren’t even out of the car.

"Because you trust me.  And I'm your evil big sister."  Who you're going to thank endlessly in 5... 4... 3... 2...

-

The elevator dinged and the two girls left the car and Asterin dragged Manon straight for the men leaning against the wall with an absurd amount of pep.  She couldn't even bring herself to mind that her little sister seemed more interested in her shoelaces.  

"Hey, beautiful," he started, planting a chaste kiss to his girlfriend's cheek.  "Manon," Chaol greeted, swatting at Dorian to get his attention.   

Asterin smiled, bumping her hip against her sister.  "Manon, this is Dorian.  He's the senator here."  From his posture, Asterin wondered if he'd fallen asleep.

She looked up with her standard friendly smile and stopped cold, jaw suddenly lax.  She recognized him instantly. The guy from yesterday. Glancing between her sister and Chaol, not sure what to do.  Chaol tapped his wrist and pointed at Dorian.  Asterin nodded and whispered "Say it."

Her tongue grew thick in her mouth.  She shrugged at Chaol.  She knew what she'd said to him, obviously, but all she was sure of was that what he said was on her wrist.  She decided to give it a shot.  She tapped Dorian on the shoulder and repeated the company line one final time:  "Hi.  Welcome to Starbucks, may I take your order?"

The older man whipped around and stared at the girl, ready to lay into her, until he realized that she was holding her wrist out to him.  He read the words in his handwriting over and over again, trying to place why they sounded so familiar until it clicked.  Starbucks yesterday.  When he'd ran out, that's what he said to the barista.  He hadn't even thought to look up before he took off.  Now, he wished more than anything he had.

After the brief silence grew to an uncomfortable length, she repositioned her hand from showing the white ink on her wrist to offering it to Dorian.  "Manon Blackbeak."

"Dorian," he fumbled, reaching out to shake it.  He stared at her for a long time, like he couldn't believe after all this time that she was real.

She smiled, pulling his hand closer and looking down at the etching inside his wrist.  Her handwriting.  Those words.  "I thought I'd never see you again after you ran out of there."

"Guess it was meant to be," he answered.  In that moment, some 10 years after his ink showed up, Dorian really, firmly believed in soulmates.

TOG taglist: @sevenfreckles-for-sevenloves @starborn-faerie-queen @addies-invisible-life