#he says he's a coward but he's actually really brave. and stupid

[multi-lefaiye]

pavel is such a fun character to develop i fucking swear

[ohboyhowdybuckaroo]

As a way to celebrate the end to the first arc of the ASL Gem AU, here's a couple of headcanons and things I put in the story that I was proud of. Also, some shitty memes I doodled and thought were funny. I put all the headcanons and neat things under the read more because there are spoilers for Keep It Simple, Stupid in there.

Luffy actually got poofed four times throughout the events of the first chapter. Two of them were depicted on screen, but the other two were when Ace got him caught in a landslide in their first meeting and when he came back to the bandit hut on the wolf and broke a hole in the wall getting tossed off of Kebab. Ace could've sword that landslide would have poofed Luffy and, I mean, he's not wrong.

Whery told me BTS that Sodalite's hair remains suspended in air as if it's flowing through water at all times. He's got mermaid hair, everyone. Love this guy.

The reason Sodalite struggles to unfuse is because... 🥁 🥁 🥁 He has a hard time unfusing when his components feel unsafe. That doesn't stop anyone strong enough from poofing him (A la Garp) or Sabo and Ace having such a strong disagreement that they come undone (a la the argument before the final fight with the wolves or when Ace post-getting-Luffy'd has conflicted feelings about ditching Luffy with Amethyst and co.).

In the process of plotting this, I wasn't sure how to translate the money-saving-schemes into this AU for the boys. The general layout of the plot is similar to canon, but I wanted to mix things up a little. That led to the parts scrounging aspect, which led to Ace and Sabo having their own waterfall cave instead of having a tree that they keep things in because I didn't think a tree could properly hide most of their junk from sight that close to the Kindergarten.

Sodalite never actually introduced himself to Luffy. (Cursed with Ace's tendency to never make a good first impression.) He learned Sodalite's name when a few gems and people were yelling in panic at their first meeting.

There's another nod to Sodalite inheriting Ace's bad first impressions when he first "meets" the bandits when literally dropping Luffy off after saving him and also when he meets Woop Slap and Makino.

Also continuing Ace's penchant for bad first impressions, he really did get put through the ringer with Makino when he first reformed. I gave him hell this whole arc, didn't I? Poor guy.

Herc and Agna are my contributions to the Dadan Family. I wanted to flesh their numbers out a little bit since we only ever know the names of Dadan, Magra, Dogra, and Pochi. I hope you like them... They're silly. (And probably in love tbh.)

Speaking of them, they made a bet on whether Luffy killed Ace in the beginning of the third chapter and you can see them exchanging money in the sixth chapter when it's revealed that Ace isn't actually dead.

I also added Woop Slap's baker brother, a Beryl to the Azurite crew who stood around while Luffy got his ass electrocuted, and a couple of random characters here and there with no canon version just for the hell of it. Got the chance to flesh this out a little bit thanks to focusing on a small sequence of events compared to the Odyssey that is One Piece canon.

In the second chapter, there are a few things that Sodalite and Luffy say in a couple of the conversations post-saving Luffy from the Azurite Pirates that get called back to.

Sodalite: You can’t be brave unless you’re scared. And if the first hint of danger has you sniffling and running away like a chicken, you’ll never be brave.

This one is a little more obvious. It gets reflected back in chapter 5 when Luffy is in the process of trying to help Kebab out from where he's trapped. Luffy is a bit of a coward and a crybaby when he's younger in canon and in this story. He builds up confidence with being rubber (Though I replaced his rubber body helping to protect him with him being able to reform quickly), having two older brothers to protect him, and eventually his own fighting skills in canon, but I wanted to add a little more oomph to it.

Luffy: I'm not crying, you're crying!

Sodalite: That's not how tears work, squirt.

This one reflects the flashback to when Ace and Sabo fused for the first time. I figured it would help soften Sodalite up to Luffy with the little nod.

Ace: I'm not crying, you're crying, stupid.

Sabo: That's not how tears work, idiot.

There's another point that gets called back to in a conversation between Luffy and Sodalite, but this is the conversation when Sodalite starts to refer to Luffy as "Luffy" mentally and not just Spinel.

Sodalite: Free and kind, huh? Free how?

Luffy: Free to go where I wanna go. Do what I wanna do. Be who I wanna be.

Sabo thinks back to this when he's poofed and trying to figure out what he wants to look like. Freedom is hard to get used to when you're used to a regimented lifestyle. I think it's called choice anxiety, but even though he wants freedom, he still has to learn how to be free, if that makes sense.

Speaking of that conversation between Sodalite and Luffy, I tried to switch up what he was called in the narrative based on whose POV I'm talking through. In the beginning, when Sabo, Ace, or Sodalite are thinking about Luffy, they consistently refer to him as "Spinel." When it's Luffy's POV, Luffy only referred to himself as "Luffy." Eventually, after the heart-to-heart they have in chapter 3, Sodalite, Ace, and Sabo also only refer to Luffy as "Luffy."

Prior to the narrative, Sodalite didn't have a lot of room to grow or a lot of interaction with people outside of battle or when he's alone when Ace and Sabo needed comforting. Being around Luffy and the circumstances of which they can't unfuse gave Sodalite the opportunity to become more of his own person.

I used he/they pronouns for a lot of the story to reflect the Sodalite-not-being-completely-his-own-person as even Sodalite still saw himself as Ace and Sabo and not just Sodalite. He's aware he's a fusion, but he's only now settling into the idea that he is a new person as well.

Ace thinks that Dadan and the bandits don't care about him for most of the story and they don't help things by pretending not to care that he's "gone" when Sodalite's around. However, at the beginning of the fourth chapter, I tried to give a little nod to Dadan being worried about Ace with her sometimes smoking late at night on the porch and staring into the forest. She was looking for Ace and worried about him, but Sodalite can't tell because Ace is blind to kindness. Dadan was losing sleep over you, you dummy.

True to canon fashion, I tried to limit how much I used Luffy's POV as in canon he doesn't really have a lot of internally kept thoughts as much as he doesn't have a filter between mental reaction and physical reaction. Thus, when I did have to use Luffy's POV, I tried to switch it to another character as soon as I could.

Whery once posted an animatic wherein they used the Ben 10 clip of Kevin saying, "You have to treat a car like you treat a woman," and I pretty much used that to shape Sodalite amd Makino's dynamic in my head which led to the way Sodalite and, by extention, Ace feel nervous around Makino, but the nerves just make it harder for them to say the "right" things.

These four posts gave me psychic damage and were the kick in the ass that got me to write K.I.S.S. to begin with. Literally got so wrapped up in them that I wrote a whole fanfic. I was originally going to just write the Luffy and Sabo reunion in Dressrosa. A couple hundred words in, I realized I should probably just start in the beginning to fluff it up with some history. Then I fell in love with Sodalite and underestimated how much I would get into the AU, so now we're here.

Y'all can take Ace being nervous around Makino however you want, but my intention was that kind people throw him off his game. This was meant to reflect how he's a mama's boy in canon and the pedestal-ing he did with his mother. (Rouge is a goddess, though, so like... he's not wrong.)

I tried to write it so Ace Literally Does Not Know how to be anything but a scruffy and snappy little kid since he was raised by bandits and Garp isn't the picture of healthy communication. With the Makino interaction post-reforming in chapter 5, I wanted her to nudge him into realizing that there's another way to handle disagreements and not every time he fucks up will lead to violence or yelling. Easing his toes into the water.

I went back and forth for a while on the scene in chapter 6 where Ace is about to run away. I was very iffy on if it was in-character for him to leave behind his only friends and everything he ever knew. But I also remembered how he acted in canon when people were putting themselves in danger for him and, yeah, pushing people away when people might get hurt """"because of"""" him fit well.

Is it weird that my favorite scene to write was in the 6th chapter when Sabo and Luffy knock a gem into a barrel and run away? I just felt my heart get full being able to write them getting closer and being chaotic together... Can't wait to write these three being chaotic together more.

It was very cathartic for me personally to write the scene where Sodalite first plays guitar for Luffy in chapter 2 and the scene in chapter 6 where Ace bursts out laughing when they fall over.

Sabo and Ace met when they both stumbled upon their cave and started having a turf war over who it really belonged to. They eventually became friends, but naturally, it took a minute and some fighting before then.

Most of the people and gems around don't care one way or another about fusion. Garp, as a gem higher up, cares based on principle and because he's old as dirt and was around when the "No Fusing" rule was more radically reinforced.

Fire Agates were "made" to be demolition gems (AKA why they have the fire going on and are typically very strong). Due to this, Ace can keep more items within his gem that can vary in size. Sabo can keep some things in his gem, but they typically have to be small to medium. Luffy could theoretically keep a lot in his gem, but I genuinely don't think he thinks about it unless he's storing food.

Luffy eats and sleeps because he first formed around the mixed population of humans and gems in Foosha Village and just thought it was neat. Now, he has sort of programmed his gem so he sleeps at night like people do, but he doesn't need to. He just likes it. Silly lil guy.

Ace was initially put off by Luffy wanting to use a different name than his gem type because he struggles with his own identity as a Fire Agate. Using a different name feels like running away from the realities of your gem type. Ace is plagued by his own gem type and feels like he can't run away, so Luffy so casually giving himself a name was foreign to Ace and made him a little bit jealous tbh.

Sabo similarly wasn't willing to call Luffy by his name because he felt cursed by his gem type. He's less touchy about it than Ace, though because he understands Luffy's desire to want to be his own person-- whoever that may be.

I changed Sabo's gem type from Labradorite to Moonstone because he has had some really neat fanart made of him that was Moon themed, and I thought that was really cute. There's some more to learn about Sabo that I've been hinting at, but y'all will find out sometime later.

Shanks was the person who made Luffy realize that he could have whatever name he wanted. I might write it out someday, but it basically went, "woah, I wish I had a cool name," "You can call yourself whatever you want. What, did you think Makino's name is her gem?" "... So what if I did?!" *whole crew laughs at Luffy* "Well, what do you want us to call you?" and the rest was history.

Ace and Sabo will eventually be able to bubble things. Ace can make bigger ones, but Sabo's are less likely to burst when messed with. Luffy could theoretically create bubbles, but I don't really think Luffy's the type to want to capture things in bubbles outside of beetles, and that's easy enough to make Sabo or Ace do.

I took some very vague inspiration from Zuko from ATLA and Ruby from Steven Universe when thinking about Ace's fire abilities. I wanted him to have pyrokinetic abilities, but struggle to use them thanks to some internal turmoil. Thus, his powers come from strong bursts of negative emotions and typically just sprout out around his body. (Yes, he has caused a forest fire before.)

Sabo can create light constructs similar to how Pearl does in Steven Universe. Thinking about Sodalite getting a little more showboat-y with his music and doing light shows? Eventually, fire blasting out of places like some bands do at concerts. That would be metal as fuck.

Sodalite literally always radiates warmth wherever he's at. He's a space heater. You can see a little bit of this in the 3rd chapter when he sits near Woop Slap to keep the old man warm.

Luffy still has the stretchy abilities of a Spinel, but he's still new to using them. In the first chapter when he's got an arm wrapped around Kebab the wolf, it only happened because he got his hand stuck on a spike and Kebab the wolf rolled around trying to get him off. He also has a lil toon force action going on. I tried to show this with a couple of scenes here and there. (When he falls into the ravine, when he runs into a tree in one chapter, the Luffy shaped hole in the bandit hut when he gets flung off Kebab into it, etc.)

I don't even know where the nickname idea of "Squirt" came from. I just thought it would be a funny nickname (derogatory) and it kept reoccurring in my brain and in the writing until it became squirt (affectionate). Who doesn't get called dumb names by your older siblings?

That eventually expanded into Sodalite handing out derogatory nicknames. You mostly see that with Garp. (Bootlicker, marble muncher, etc.) Sodalite is teaching Luffy how to be an even bigger little shit and I love to see it.

I didn't originally plan for the wolves to show up outside of the couple of times they appeared in the first chapter. Then, when I was writing the third chapter I needed a reason to have Garp escort Makino and Woop Slap to the bandits and then I wanted a reason to get Luffy and Co. to go to Foosha Village, so tada.

I especially didn't plan for Kebab to become Kebab. However, I wanted each of the brothers to take out a wolf in their own ways and Luffy just isn't prepared to fight creatures 1v1 right now, so I cooked up the idea of him becoming a pet thereafter.

Damn, that was a lot. Thanks for reading! Go check out @where-does-the-heart-lie for all the cool art they did for this AU, but please don't bother them for more art. I'm pretty sure they're not all that into the AU anymore, but they do have a lot of other cool posts and a comic they're working on for the boys if you need more ASL bros content. They also made a post with several drawings they wanted to do after reading that correspond with several events in the story if you wanna check that out.

That's it for now! Good luck, y'all. I'll be back with some kinda writing soon-ish.

[i9messi]

How you get the girl — Pablo Gavi

Pablo comes to your house in the middle of the storm to tell you he wants you back and he still loves you.

Word count — 1,8k

a/n: what can I say, taylor inspires me a lot. (ANGSTY but with a happy ending!)

gavi's masterlist

Ever since you and Pablo broke up six months ago, every time he told someone you weren’t together anymore, people asked him the same question. «Why did he let you go?» and the truth was that he couldn't understand how he had been stupid enough to let you go. You were the girl he had fallen in love with and yet, he had been stupid enough to lose you.

He thought a lot about you, every night he went to bed wanting to text you and every morning he woke up thinking it was a good option to call you. He had never done it before, Gavi had never dared to approach you, fearing that you wouldn't want him anymore.

"Pablo, what are you doing here? It’s raining. Are you insane?"

He shook his head, his eyes meeting yours. You were so pretty, you’ve always been pretty to his eyes.

"I needed to talk to you."

"Couldn’t you wait until the rain stopped? Oh, Pablo, you’re going to get sick. Come, come in."

Gavi needed to talk to you and he knew that outside, with the rain falling so hard, it was impossible. He preferred the privacy of your home so you both could have a real conversation. He was led by you to the living room and you picked up some towels.

"Strip. You’re gonna catch a cold."

"What?"

"I will bring you clothes. I still have some of your things in my room."

There were countless times your ex-boyfriend had been to your house. You remembered the nights you would just hug, talking about everything that was going through your heads. Gavi was a person who didn’t get along with the pressure people put on him, he didn’t react well when things went wrong on the pitch. He would get stressed and the pressure wouldn’t help. He just loved coming to your house and disconnecting from the real world, he loved to hear you talk because your voice calmed him like nothing else.

When you came back, Pablo was still standing there, all wet and with the towels in his hands. His body was shaking from the cold, even though the heat was on. You passed him the clothes you had on him, a pair of pants and a t-shirt. They both still smelled like him.

"Do you want me to start you a shower or a bath?"

"No, it’s fine. Really."

"Okay, then I’ll go make something hot to drink."

You went to the kitchen without waiting for his answer, simply wanting to leave there for a moment. You weren’t ready to see Pablo after months of missing him like never before. It was painful to have him so close and at the same time so far away. He had hurt you, grabbed your heart and broken it into thousands of pieces, he never dared to apologize. Gavi never called you, he never texted you. He had moved on with his life, while you kept the memories of the relationship.

What was he doing there? The question didn't leave you alone. Outside the weather was the worst, it rained like never before, it was actually a thunderstorm, but Gavi had appeared to knock on your door.

Taking a breath, you finished preparing the hot drink and went to the living room, where you met your ex-boyfriend. Pablo was now dressed in dry clothes, although his hair was still soaked.

"I made you a mug of tea."

"I still love you."

The statement took you by surprise. Your shaking hands left tea on the table, while you stood there. The brunette kept looking at you. He spoke again, just because he thought you didn't hear him.

"I still love you."

"Pablo, don’t do this to me."

"What? Tell you how I feel? I never stopped loving you at all."

You shook your head. You were shocked by what he was telling you, you couldn’t just accept it like everything was fine. It wasn't. He had broken your heart with his hands.

"Did you try to call me at all, Pablo?"

"I was never brave enough to do it.”

"You’re a coward, that’s what you are. You broke my heart and never dared to apologize, or at least say you screwed things up. You come six months later to tell me you still love me? Is everything a joke to you?"

Gavi was embarrassed, he knew it probably wasn’t the best choice of words, but he really wanted to let you know how he felt. After everything that happened in the past, he believed you still would listen to him.

“I know It’s been a long six months and I was afraid of telling what I want— I practically lost my mind since I lost you, all because I left you without giving you any explanation. I shouldn’t have done that, I shouldn’t have left the one girl I’ve loved and will love all my life. I just know that I’ve ever missed anyone or anything as much as I missed you. I didn’t know until now that missing someone like that was possible."

"Pablo, it’s too late now."

You were crying, tears poured down your eyes and all your emotions struggled to find a place in your chest. Loving a person and at the same time making such a difficult decision was cruel.

“It's okay, but I'm not okay with the fact I lost you because I was stupid enough to not fight for you. I will accept that you no longer love me and I have ruined everything. But I couldn’t take it anymore, I needed to come here and tell you how I feel about you.”

You kept quiet for what seemed like an eternity, until you breathed and found his gaze once again.

"I still love you, Pablo. But you broke my heart and I can’t just— I can’t accept you breaking it again. I can’t tolerate someone who I love breaking my heart not just once, but twice."

"I will not. I will not break your heart again, I will pick up every piece I have broken."

You looked at him. He seemed honest.

"No, Pablo. I can’t do this anymore."

"I will wait as long as you need."

"For what? Do you think I’ll change my mind?"

Pablo didn’t answer, so you spoke again.

"I will bring you the things that belong to you. It’s over, for good."

You went to your room, where you still kept a box of all his belongings. Photos, his clothes and gifts that he had given you and certain things that you had borrowed, but had never given them back before. Having all those things in your room made you remember him and spending those months with his memory had been painful.

You came back with the box in your hands and leaned it on the table. Letting go of everything was a real goodbye, saying goodbye to the love you had for him. You didn’t really feel sure about anything you were doing, you still wanted him to fight. That he would tell you that he needed you, that he would fight to be by your side.

“Everything is here.”

"Okay, so I guess this is a goodbye."

Wasn’t he going to fight a little more?

Your ex-boyfriend got up from the couch and took the box, you walked him to the door quietly, but when he opened it, both saw that outside it rained torrentially. The weather had not improved and seemed to only get worse every minute. He stepped forward, until you stopped him, holding his arm.

"Pablo, don’t go."

He turned, his brown eyes holding your gaze. The same eyes that had looked at you at your best and worst moments. The ones that belonged to the person you loved the most.

"Wait until the rain stops."

"Okay."

You both returned to the living room, where you sat on the couch. Pablo left the box on the table and his hands approached the box to pull out a picture of you two. You saw him smile. It was a picture of when the team had won La Liga, Pablo was very happy that day. You had been there with his family to support him and when you saw your boyfriend, you couldn’t help running and hugging him. His family had captured the moment, where you were both on the floor, smiling like two idiots.

He spoke, "I miss this."

"Me too."

"Look at this." He smiled, pointed out another picture. It was a Polaroid.

You were both sitting on the couch, smiling for the camera. It seemed like forever ago, but it had only been a few months.

"Why did you never call? If you had called me..."

Your voice caught him by surprise, Gavi left the picture in the box. You could see that his hands were shaking a little and now it wasn’t because of the cold or the rain.

"Would you have listened to me? Would you have accepted that I loved you and ruined it because I didn’t know what I wanted?"

"Yes."

"Is it too late now? Is it too late to tell you that I love you and that I want you back?"

"It’s not too late, Pablo."

His eyes shone with longing and hope. It was the first time in that afternoon that you gave him signs of hope. That maybe, just maybe, you could give him a second chance.

You grabbed another one of the Polaroids and looked at it. Pablo and you were on the beach, the two of you smiling as you kissed each other. His hands held you by the waist, while you held him by the shoulders, giving him a hug.

You missed him, you loved him, and you needed to have him by your side. Being so close to him and remembering everything that had once been put things in perspective.

"Please let me love you right this time, let me love you as you deserve to be loved from the start."

"Won’t you break my heart?"

"I swear to you that I won't, I will love you this time. I will prove to you that it is worth giving me a second chance. I will not let you down."

You cried, Pablo was seconds away from doing it too. You approached him and allowed him to give you a hug and hold you in his arms. Both of you remained silent for a long time.

"I don’t deserve you, mi amor." he said.

"I am the only one who can decide if someone deserves me, and I can say that you are that someone who does."

"I love you."

"I love you too, Pablo."

Pablo would work hard every day to make things right and let you know how much he loved you.

[fanganfessions]

I’ve heard a lot of people say Ace’s motive is weak but I think it’s super realistic, I also have thanatophobia and would probably act similarly in a kill or be killed situation

I really relate to ace a lot, I also feel like a coward a lot and I feel like I wouldn’t be able to sacrifice myself for someone else

I understand the struggle of not wanting to die but also wanting to be brave and save someone else, I’ve always wondered what I’d do in a situation like that and I’m worried a i wouldn’t be able to do it, even to save someone I love I think Ace is an incredibly realistic character and I think the creator did an AMAZING job with him. It sounds crazy but I really liked watching his struggle

And i totally get him being mad at other people for acting like they understand everything about him, it's super realistic They were basically reducing his whole being to a simple explanation of his motivation without talking to him or being him. I’d hate if someone did that to me

And also i can't excuse Ace bullying anyone (or the threats of animal abuse) but I really really love him and just ugh i hate people (mostly the actual characters but ive seen people on tumblr and in the comments) reducing him to a stupid or angry or flat/boring motive-d killer and character

Yeah he's unlikeable, but he's also super realistic

sorry if this made no sense

.

[bonny-kookoo]

Hi, I love your wiriting SO much! I was wondering if you'd be able to write something for the Sugar Crush AU with a protective Koo? You can throw some angst with fluff ending perhaps?

Love your work! Keep it up 💜💜💜

A/N: this became a lot longer than just a short moment OOF I LOVE THEM SO MUCH-

Your entire life, you've been a coward.

You don't like confrontation, you always tend to be swayed into things you don't actually like doing just because you can't say no, and you never really stand your ground even if you should in many situations. You're easy to take advantage of, you let people trample all over you- and due to that, you rather began distancing yourself from everyone instead of trying to become more brave.

It was the easiest way out, after all.

Outside of the grocery store, there's a bunch of drunk hybrids and humans, currently angrily yelling at each other, profanities flying so hard it feels like it's only a matter of time until they begin to physically fight as well.

Technically, you can just walk past. But you're scared, rather trying to seem occupied while keeping an eye on the people outside the small corner store, no sign of them stopping anytime soon making your anxiety rise.

You don't have anyone you can call to pick you up. You're too ashamed to ask the cashier to escort you out the store either. What the hell are you supposed to do?

"Hey uh- I wanna close. Please finish up alright?" The man asks, and you nod.

Your eyes sting with unsched tears as you take out your phone, just to spot a notification from Jungkook- a message you hadn't noticed he'd sent an hour prior, asking how you were doing.

You call his number with shaky hands.

"Oh hey!" His voice chirps from the other side. "Didn't think you'd call. How're you doing?" He asks, and you flinch when something crashes outside.

"Uhm.. are you- are you doing anything important right now?" You ask, and there's some shuffling heard in the background, before he answers.

"Lazing around on the couch, nothing much. You sound a bit nervous-" he asks. "-You alright?"

"I- there's.. okay this might sound.. stupid but, I'm getting groceries right now-" you explain quietly, "-but outside there's.. people fighting and uhm.. m' scared." You say, and jungkook hums a reply.

"Where' you at pup?" He simply says, on the other end of the line getting up to grab his keys and jacket, slipping into his shoes. "I can come pick you up."

You give him the location of the store, and he assures you he'll be there soon, as you walk to checkout your items. The commotion outside is still loud, and the young man scanning your items sighs. "You going home alone?" He asks, and you shake your head. "Good. I've called police already, you should stay in until someone picks you up." The human advises, and you simply nod again silently, watching as the guy packs up your items.

There's a car parking close by, headlights shining around for a moment before the engine is shut down.

And then, the familiar wolf hybrid walks in, who visibly brightens up at the sigh of you, his tail wagging.

"Hey." He greets, thanking the cashier and taking the bags to carry them for you. "They're really going at it outside there, aren't they?" He comments as you walk towards the automatic doors. "You can hold onto me, by the way. It's not weird, I promise." He reassures softly, and you take that chance right away, holding onto his arm as he shields you from the fighting people now being held back from each other by police.

In his car, he lets you guide him to your place, it's quiet except for the quiet radio playing in the background. "You can always call me for stuff like this, by the way." He opens conversation at a red light, looking over at you. "I promise you're no bother."

"Its just.. stupid." You mumble more or less, not looking at him.

"Hmhm, I guess that's what you've been taught." He shrugs, fingers tapping on the steering wheel to the beat of the song. "But it's not." He says. "But, dropping that- you wanna hang out this weekend?" He asks, and you look at him in wonder almost, for a second stunned that he's not even mentioning you not messaging him much. "Dont do that-" he laughs suddenly, "-I'm driving!" He scolds.

"Wha- I didn't do anything?" You ask, confused, but he shakes his head.

"Anyways, answer my question." He avoids the question, and you nod.

"I.. I mean, you can stay over too? I have a couch you could sleep on, if you want.." you offer, and he shrugs.

"If you want me to stay over I totally can." He nods.

"But not.. for, stuff." You shake your head.

"I know. Wasn't my intention." He reassures. "Won't even hug you if you don't want that."

"...hm." You nod, a little deflated. You would've actually liked that. But that might be unfair to him, considering he's aiming for an actual relationship- and hugging is an intimate act, isn't it? It would be a little selfish to want hugs and skinship but not offer him anything in return. Wait- maybe he shouldn't come over then.

"I uh, actually think I have something up on Saturday." You start, and he chuckles.

"Alright." He parks the car, turning off the engine before he turns towards you, only the orange interior lights illuminating him, hybrid eyes reflecting a little. "Talk to me."

"..I am?" You say, but he shakes his head.

"You're not. You're just reacting to what I say, until something sets you off and makes you try and escape." He says, basically stripping you naked of your usual armor. "I know this will make you uncomfortable, but I don't like stuff like this. Is there really something you have to do on Saturday, or are you trying to make something up so I leave you alone?"

You stay silent, staring at your shoes.

"Got it." He nods, crossing his arms. "So what made you try and run away just now?" He asks again, watching you.

"..I don't know." You meekly answer to yourself mostly, feeling like a scolded child.

"I believe that, to be honest." He chuckles softly.

"I just.. you said you wouldn't hug me, but- what if I want that?" You ask, and he laughs at that, watching you with a look of endearment.

"Oh puppy, alright, fuck-" he laughs. "Okay wait wait wait, let's make a deal here." He calms down. "I'll do anything you want-" He offers, still smiling, "-and in return, you tell me every thought you have from now on. No more 'trying to figure it out yourself', since that's clearly not working well." He offers, leaning closer to you.

"I want a kiss." You blurt out, and without laughing or even commenting, he simply shrugs, leaning over to you to peck your cheek.

"See?" He grins, watching your wildly wagging tail and your red cheeks. "You've got so many great thoughts in your head-" the wolf comments,

"-and I wanna hear all of them."

[marigold-hills]

Dunes & Waters, part 6

PART 1 • PREVIOUS PART • NEXT PART

They make it back to the hotel, but Remus isn’t sure how. They apparate. It must be quick, he knows, but feels like an age, the hotel impossibly far. He’s been so careful of touching silver he’s almost forgotten how singularity horrid it is. Worse from waiting too long, wasting time on the stupid, stupid argument.

Small mercies: Black is furious. Doesn’t talk on their way back and doesn’t argue when Remus says “I’m going to work. Don’t bother me,” and locks himself in his bedroom. There is no singing outside the door, obnoxious or otherwise. Remus is sure he’ll get punished for this somehow – maybe all his newly acquired cigarettes will be gone by morning, or maybe he’ll find his morning crossword ripped to shreds. It doesn’t matter, it’s a problem for after.

The problem for now is throbbing and red. There is blood smeared on his trousers where the burn rubbed off. Remus is singularity minded, always prepared. A large trunk hidden under his bed always on hand, always stocked full.

He lays out the copper pan on his desk, fills it up with charmed water, grateful he doesn’t need to leave the room or carry it. Finds his little vial of wolfsbane and tips three drops into the water. It shimmers purple, lavender. Hesitates with his hand above it. He knows it’s going to hurt.

He’s used to pain, in a way. Tells himself this is nothing. In two weeks, your skull will break apart to make way for the beast. But that’s the problem with it – this pain, he has a choice. Not a good one because choosing not to use the potion is still choosing pain (and he’s crying now, no sound but the tears won’t stop coming because he was actually quite enjoying the market, and the weather was lovely, and there were things he still wanted to eat and to buy, and his hand really fucking hurts).

It’s a matter of being brave and submerging his palm or being a coward and submitting to the pain he’s already feeling, and he hates himself, hates himself, and doesn’t choose the easy way.

It’s a near thing, a scream ripping itself out of his throat. The water bubbles, steams, removes the burnt skin away from his hand. It smells like nights of the full moon: blood and hurt and a cold forest floor. Remus remembers the days after the moon, when his mum was alive. The salve she would put onto new parts of his body the wolf had destroyed. Misses it, the way her hands would smell like care for days after. Feels stupid and small for aching for it so badly, like a child.

He doesn’t think anyone has touched him like that since her, not with such attention, each careful ministration with the singular purpose of making it easier for him. He thinks the last real hug he had was the day his father left. Maybe before. By then, Lyal was a shell of himself, so maybe the hug was just a shell of one, too.

The water turns a russet red. The bubbling stops. He can see though it now, to where his hand is stripped off skin, strangely pale like that of a corpse. Pallor mortis.

He’ll have to bandage it up. Keep it like that for a few days. Hope to keep away infections and unwelcome questions.

First he has to take it out of the water, and he remembers this from before, he knows: it’s going to hurt just as bad as it did going in.

NEXT PART

@tealeavesandtrash

@moon-girl88

@hoje--aqui

@cocoabutterandbooks

@onion-sliced-apples

@prancingpony42

@digital-kam

@remoonysiriusly

@sweetstarryskies

@a-sunset-outside-my-window

(let me know if you do/don’t want to be tagged!)

[wakeupau]

AU Headcannons

This is just a few headcannons about this AU. Feel free to read em, but if you do, it may ruin your experience with this story. I won’t link so much (even though I already have muhaha) but enough for everyone to know where I’m going with this. A̶n̶d̶ t̶o̶ g̶u̶i̶d̶e̶/m̶o̶t̶i̶v̶a̶t̶e̶ m̶y̶s̶e̶l̶f̶ i̶n̶t̶o̶ s̶t̶a̶y̶i̶n̶g̶ o̶n̶ t̶r̶a̶c̶k̶.

RUN CHILDREN‼️

☀️ believes there’s a bright side to every situation. ♥️���️🌼⭐️💡🍎🌙 depend on him for reassurance. Mostly ♥️ and 🌼 though.

☀️ acts like Joy from Inside Out. A̶ c̶o̶n̶t̶r̶o̶l̶ f̶r̶e̶a̶k̶.

⚡️ and ⭐️ are great friends! They’re almost never seen apart, which is a good and a bad thing. They make a pretty good team, but everything can and will evolve into some sort of competition. One way or another. Some of it is unintentional.

⚡️and ⭐️ are also very sneaky pranksters. 💡 is usually the one who finds out in the end though.

Due to ⚡️’s impatience, ⭐️ sometimes feels peer pressured into some of the stunts he does.

Surprisingly, ⚡️ and 💡 also make a good team, the only disadvantage is that ⚡️ has a lack of… common sense.

⚡️ is impulsive.

💡 is an overachiever.

🍎 has an eating disorder, and isn’t very good at hiding it.

⭐️ can be immature and childish. And a coward.

⭐️ is easily scared.

Mischief Level:⚡️>⭐️

♥️ is very clingy.

🍎 and 🌼’s dynamic mirrors Apple Jack and Rairty’s in a way.

🌼 is a mix of Fluttershy and Rarity. Not very confident with people, but definitely her interests.

🌼 second guesses herself when she talks, especially to strangers. This also causes her stuttering.

🌼 is afraid that she is a pushover, and tries to act assertive.

🌼 and ⭐️ are actually similar in some ways.

🌼 and ⭐️ are good friends.

⭐️ is more easy to scare than 🌼

⭐️ acts tough and brave around 🌼 and⚡️

🍎 is a great cook! 🍎 loves to try new recipes and food combinations. 💡 sometimes checks to see if they’re safe to eat.

🍎 loves to cook from scratch. She plants her own fruits and vegetables.

🍎 acts like a mix of Apple Jack and Pinkie Pie.

🍎 is the to-go person for desserts.

🍎 is an early bird because B R E A K F A S T

🍎 and 🌼 make food art sometimes.

♥️ is a pretty good liar because ♥️ is the most emotionally intelligent of the critters. It also depends on what the lie is. If it’s something small like stalling for a surprise everything is okay, but if it’s something serious, the truth may be told a little too soon.

♥️ is the most emotional. She isn’t necessarily a crybaby, but no one can watch a sad scene without hearing her weep behind her hands.

♥️ is a hopeless romantic and indecisive. She goes to library trips with 💡 and he has to wait a pretty long while before she finally decides what she is going to check out. (🍎 packs snacks for them because she knows lol)

🌼 likes to design clothing for special occasions.

🌼 is like Fluttershy from MLP (mostly her temper side).

💡 and 🌼 have pointless arguments about overlooking details. 🌼 says 💡 is overthinking the obvious. 💡 says 🌼 is taking too much time looking for small details. If that makes sense lol

💡 can also be a control freak depending on how much a situation applies to him and/or his interests.

💡 is a perfectionist, 🌼 is more relaxed.

💡 feels like he needs to know everything, if he doesn’t, he gets very depressed and puts himself down. (Calling himself stupid, etc)

💡 obviously has no emotional intelligence. It makes it hard for him to know when to stop and enjoy the moment during his long monologues about everything.

💡 reads psychology books in order to understand emotions and habits to help himself and his friends.

💡 “studies” his friends’ behaviors to figure out better ways to help them.

💡 can’t ever really relax. When he tries to act subtle, instead of being calm, he gets very tense. ⭐️ helps out.

💡 is easily impressed. No one has to try too hard, but then again they do because he will question them.

⚡️ likes to annoy 💡whenever he’s busy by being a smart aleck sometimes.

⚡️ has been told on multiple occasions to slow/calm down.

⚡️ is a picky eater. Especially when it comes to vegetables.

⚡️ and 🍎 get easily distracted.

⭐️ has a massive ego./j

⭐️ talks to ♥️ about his narcissistic tendencies and takes her advice to be better.

⭐️ can be a pain in the neck.

⭐️ holds grudges and will use them against whoever caused them at any given time.

♥️ and 🍎 love making Valentines’ gifts. Especially “heart-shaped, chocolate chip, doubled stuffed cookies” The first bite is Heaven, the second you’re actually there.

☀️ gets the sugar cookie version since yknowwww

♥️ and 🍎 still say they’re not sweet enough as a joke when everyone else is literally bouncing off the walls because the sugar made them hyper.

♥️ and 🍎 are also good at party planning.

♥️ and 💡 also have quarrels. Book smarts vs emotional intelligence.

♥️ is like the therapist friend, but if anyone overshares, she will make sure they’re okay.

♥️,🌼, ⚡️and 🍎 are great at decorating.

If there’s ever a song, ♥️, 🍎, ⚡️, ⭐️ (barely) or ☀️ are the lead singer or start the song. (It’s almost always ☀️ or ♥️)

♥️ is better at giving motivational speeches than ☀️ ☀️ and ♥️ are like the dad and mom of the group. (NO SHIP THOUGH)

☀️ and 🌙 are great friends, or at least, in the best way they can be…

☀️ believes he’s doing the right thing, 🌙 is afraid to tell him otherwise.

☀️ doesn’t necessarily have anger issues, but if he’s too overwhelmed, he may snap or talk in a loud, irritated manner. His friends get startled or shocked by it whenever it’s all of a sudden.

☀️ tries his best to be easygoing.

☀️ isn’t good at hiding his stress, nor his problems.

☀️ needs help and guidance, but is afraid to ask because he’s the leader.

☀️ makes sure everyone knows who’s in charge. He literally owns that title like a trophy. (Considering the fact that ☀️ doesn’t have a specialty)

☀️ can get very emotional. Not as much as ♥️ though.

🌙 gets very anxious around his friends and doesn’t know why. 🌙 just feels a wave of depression when he’s around them, especially around ☀️

🌙 is in somewhat denial, he clings to ☀️ and asks his opinion on almost everything.

🌙 is scared he’s doing something wrong.

🌙 is miserable, no one really notices because he’s always smiling. 🌙 is also the least expressive out of the bunch as shown on promotional material.

🌙 gets confused between the the series and the reality.

🌙 is dissociative when he is overwhelmed.

🌙 is a night owl.

🌙 is more of a follower than a leader.

[daytaker]

Let's Meet In Our Dreams

Belphie feels guilty about almost killing you that one time. It's embarrassing to have feelings for someone you tried to kill.

Ship: Belphegor x Reader Word Count: 614 Cross-Posted on AO3

I’m jealous that you spent so much time with my brothers while I was holed up in the attic. I’m jealous that you became so close with Beel. I’m jealous that you were able to connect with everyone so easily. Even Satan and Lucifer. I never really thought you’d be able to get through to those two.

Only a really weak person or a coward would let things like that get to them. I’m not even really sure why I’m bothered.

I’m sorry I tricked you. And I’m sorry I tried to kill you. And I’m sorry for wanting to destroy the human world. …Gosh, when I lay it all out like that, it sounds bad…

I don’t like feeling guilty.

It’s much easier to just not think about things that make me feel like a bad person. Like how I’m such a slacker. I never really pull my own weight. And since I’m the youngest, my brothers never give me such a hard time about it. Or how if I wasn’t so lazy and weak, Beel could have protected Lilith. He wouldn’t have had to waste his time saving me. Or how I let myself blame an entire world of people for the death of my sister, just because she loved it so much. It’s easier to blame “the humans” than to blame myself. Though… that’s just me taking the easy way out again. Beel didn’t end up thinking like that, and he feels just as responsible for what happened to Lilith. Beel is strong, though. He doesn’t take the easy way out of things. That’s what I do. That’s what Belphie does.

I don’t know how to feel about you.

I know that I feel something about you. It’s a sort of sick, sort of dizzy feeling in my chest and in my stomach. When you hold my hand, or when I wake up from napping and see your face close to mine, my heart races. …Ha. I’m not actually that stupid. I know what it means when you feel like that about somebody. It’s more that I don’t know how I feel about my feelings. It’s kind of uncomfortable to feel like this about someone when the first thing you did after they freed you from captivity was try to murder them. I keep thinking, “If someone did that to me, I would hate them.”

But you don’t hate me. I don’t understand why. …That’s not actually true either. It’s because you’re a loving person. That’s how you got my brothers to like you so much. That’s also how you got me to like you so much.

You’re the first person I ever had these sorts of feelings about. Did you know that? I always loved to sleep, but I never used to be so excited to see someone in my dreams. And I know I mentioned it already, but the way it feels to wake up and see you…

…It’s a whole feeling, alright.

I don’t really deserve to want special attention from you, but I’m lazy and selfish and all that so I want it anyway. I want to hold your hand so badly sometimes I feel like I might cry. Isn’t that pathetic? It’s embarrassing. So what are you thinking about? What sort of things do you wish for? What kind of dreams do you have? Do you ever dream about me? I like to think you do. Maybe we can meet each other in our dreams someday. I feel like, if I was dreaming, I’d be brave enough to tell you stuff that I can’t say in the real world.

I wish…

…Well. It doesn’t really matter.

[lillie98]

I headcannon Mike Wheeler as autistic (because we share the exact same strain) and I have a theory regarding Season 5. Many autistic people, including myself, have a warped sense of inherent danger. We will throw ourselves into dangerous situations not fully understanding the risks involved. It’s a dangerous situation, sure, but not so dangerous we should avoid it. Mike also has this problem, what with him diving head-first into every fight. He wants desperately to be a hero, to prove his worth and might as a person—to be remembered. If that means doing something stupid like getting himself killed, then that’s what it takes. It’s heartbreaking, but that’s the world he lives in. Hopper, Eleven, Will, they’ve all sacrificed their lives in some capacity to save the world, now it’s his turn.

Eddie touched on this concept with his “Don’t try to be heroes, not today. There is no shame in running,” but Mike doesn’t see it that way. In his mind, those who run are cowards, afraid to face their fears and fight for what they believe in. Has Mike been a bit cowardly these past two seasons by avoiding his feelings for Will? Yes, absolutely. But that’s his arc. Mike has to understand his actions, why he’s hiding, and the serious danger everyone is in. He has to face the music. Where does this lack of inherent danger come in? Glad you asked.

We all know Mike wants to be a hero. He wants to go down in history as someone good, someone who put others before themselves and saves the world. The Brave Knight, The Paladin. Paladins swear an oath of bravery and loyalty, vowing to avenge any threat that dares harm their allegiance (Byler anyone?). Something will threaten to harm/kill Will in Season 5, and Mike will have none of it. They’re not doing this again. Thus, Mike will throw himself in front of Vecna/Demogorgon/Brenner, etc. to protect Will, not fully comprehending the danger of the situation. He’ll be a hero. Unfortunately, this risky act will most likely cost him his life (temporarily). He doesn’t have to die. He’s the heart.

Lucas says, in the Season 4 hospital, that Max’s heart stopped for over a minute, but it miraculously started again. She is alive. El’s love for her conquered death itself. If we go on the “Will Has Powers” theory, then his love for Mike will conquer death and revive him. Mike only needs to be presumed dead, to be out long enough for Will and El to feel the effects of his death and consider joining Vecna. Because without their HEART, they’d fall apart. Both of them.

Back to what Eddie said, there really is no shame in running. Will doesn’t need Mike to do some egregious, knightly act of sacrifice to prove his love for him. His love is already enough. Will loves Mike for EXACTLY WHO HE IS. He always has, and THAT is the real heart of this story. Mike is not a hero because of what he does, but because of who he is. The way he loves, the way he stands up for what he believes in, the way he treasures his friends and protects them. The way he makes Will feel safe just by being there. That’s what Will fell in love with, not some fantastical DnD character that never actually existed.

Like Mike said in Season 2, “this isn’t DnD, this is real life.” DnD characters are fun, and it’s exciting to dream about slaying dragons or exploding orcs with your Magic Missiles, but that’s not real. It’s a game and it will end. Hit Points don’t magically restore you after a Long Rest and Healing Potions don’t deal 2d4+2 Healing. Actions have consequences and danger is real, even if your brain tells you it’s not. Paladins, Clerics, Bards, Rangers, they’re not real people. But Mike Wheeler is (in this context) and Mike Wheeler is enough. He is so enough. It’s time he wakes up and realizes he doesn’t have to be the Hero, slay the dragon, and make everything better, because it was NEVER HIS FAULT. Bad things happen and, sometimes, we can’t fix them. All we can do is stand beside our partner, hold their hand, and fight along with them—to remind them they are never alone. That, in and of itself, is truly heroic.

[tonberry-yoda]

Write for Leon Scott Kennedy coward 😳

The End - Leon Scott Kennedy

notes - THIS IS WHAT YOU GET FOR MAKING MY BRAINROT WORSE! You get a long fic now tee hee. This was so satisfying to write tbh. I loved RE2 and love Leon, so I was very happy to write this <333

word count - 2,756

WARNINGS - blood, SPOILERS FOR RE2, not proofread lolol

Wounds from Lickers, Zombies, spare glass shards, and god only knows what covered your body. You looked like a wreck who was tired and a little dead inside, but it was over. You made it out of that hellhole they called Raccoon City and were now onto a new, and hopefully better life.

"I could really use a shower," Claire laughed, picking a stick out of Sherry's hair.

"Tell me about it." You agreed, wiping what you couldn't tell was dirt or sewage off of your shoulder. You felt disgusting, but you knew that whenever you got to a shower that it was going to be the best shower of all time.

You and Claire were lucky you could still be laughing and smiling after everything that happened. And Leon... well, he had been through hell and back with it being his first day as a cop and all. You felt bad for him. He went through loss after loss and you had no clue what to say.

He was sitting in the corner of the train cart, crying. You wanted more than anything to go cheer him up or something, but how on Earth were you supposed to do that.

Apparently though, Claire saw that you were eyeing the crying cop and nudged your arm with her elbow, signaling that you should probably go talk to him. She and Sherry decided to head to another cart to look around a bit.

You took a deep breath and walked over to the blonde boy, putting your hand on his back. "You were very brave out there," you told him in a soft voice, tucking a strand of hair behind his ear.

He looked up at you a little shocked, tears staining his puffy red eyes. "No way. If anything you were the bravest here. Me and Claire were kinda prepared for anything, but you? You were just living life and got sucked into this shit."

"But I'm okay now. And you're okay! We did great out there!"

Leon just nodded and stared off into space, little tears flowing down his cheeks.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" You asked.

Leon turned to you again. Seeing him cry was about to make you cry.

"It's my fault she's gone."

"Who? Ada?" You had stuck with Leon his whole mission helping him through stupid puzzles and beating the shit out of psycho dogs. Ada was someone you met on the mission and immediately got a bad vibe from. You knew she wasn't FBI when you met her, you just didn't have the heart to tell Leon. He really seemed to like that girl. And it didn't matter how jealous you were in the little tram where she kissed him.

Leon nodded, tears welling back up in his eyes. "I could've pulled her up if I didn't get so hurt. She's gone now... because of me."

You put your hand on Leon's back. "Leon, look, she was a crazy mercenary, there's a huge, like GIANT chance that she's okay. She probably had a grappling hook in her bra or something."

That actually made Leon laugh a bit, which surprised you. "How's your arm?" You asked, wanting to quickly change the subject.

"Better." He stretched out his arm, which took some work, but he barely winced.

"Good!" You smiled and gave Leon one more check over to make sure he wasn't in any more need for medical attention. "It looks way better!"

"Yeah, well injuries always look better than they feel." Leon chuckled and sat back to be more comfortable. None of you knew where this train was going to lead, but you were just happy to know that you would be out of that awful town.

"You're really strong, you know that?" Leon told you.

You were shocked to hear that if you were being honest, so you turned to Leon with red cheeks. "Where did that come from?"

"I mean, I already explained it earlier, come on! You've been through a lot with me. Thanks for that."

You just nodded, still thinking about Ada. You were never the jealous type, but all of the sudden you were and it was pissing you off. I mean, you couldn't blame all the ladies around you for liking Leon as much as you did because oh my god, he was perfect. He wanted to protect everyone, was kind, empathetic, and cute as fuck. He was everything anyone wanted in a partner and you were just mad that Ada got her hands on him first.

"I can't wait to get some nice clean clothes." Leon sighed, pulling you out of your mind.

"Right?!" Even thinking about the warm embrace of a blanket was making you cozy, but clean clothes? That sounded like heaven right then.

"I found a crap ton of money at the station and that should be enough to get us a couple of hotel rooms and some clean clothes until we find something better." Leon pulled out wads of cash and your jaw dropped. You knew that some of the zombies would have cash on them and you had to admit, you did take some, but you weren't expecting Leon, the cute cuddly rookie, to take any.

"Leon, did you steal that?!"

His face flushed bright red. "I-I.... They.... I just.... We needed it and uh...."

"I'm just playing with you, Kennedy." You playfully slapped his back and he cleared his throat, a little embarrassed.

"Hey guys?" Claire stuck her head back into the cart with a smile. "Sorry if I'm interrupting your flirting, but it looks like we're about to come to a stop. Looks like we're outside of Raccoon City too!"

You laughed at Claire and turned to fine Leon blushing, which made you blush too. "Alright, we'll get prepared."

"You better," Claire winked. "Because clean clothes and a bed sound like heaven itself."

The train came to a halt in an unknown area, but when you got off of the train, the world looked happy again. It was no longer the dead of night and was now early morning, where the air smelled fresh and you could hear birds chirping. It was fantastic and you didn't mind the tears that were rolling down your cheeks. The train took off behind all of you with a loud whoosh and you were now somewhere new, hoping that you wouldn't hear anymore zombies.

"Come on you guys!!!" Claire ran off to a city that was off in the distance, grabbing Sherry's hand. "Let's go!! Are you seriously gonna wait all day?!"

You and Leon looked at each other with a smile and ran after Claire to the city. Stepping in there any other day would probably be hell, with people cussing each other out and pushing each other around, but when all of you stepped in there, it was amazing. There were living breathing humans just doing their every day normal routines. It was like everything was back to normal.

You clung to Leon's arm and smiled. "Leon, can you believe it?"

He was smiling like an idiot before running into some random Target. People were looking at you like you were crazy, while others whispered about hearing what happened in Raccoon City, surprised there were survivors.

You didn't care either way, it's not like you were paying attention. Instead, you just grabbed everything you needed. Water, food, underwear, shoes, socks, clothes, normal everyday items that would be so regular to everyone, but seemed like jewels and riches to you.

You walked up to Leon with a stacked cart and a smile. "I'm about ready to check out!"

Leon looked at your stack with wide eyes. "Damn, you really went ham down those aisles, huh?"

You nodded. "I'm just thankful I had a crap ton in my savings so you don't have to pay for any of it. Thank god they have an ATM here."

"Oh, awesome!" Leon was looking at a few shirts and you pulled one off of it's hanger, handing it to him.

"You would look good in this. I'll meet you outside, okay? Tell Claire the same!"

Waiting outside in a Target parking lot wasn't ideal, but it felt heavenly out, so you weren't mad in the slightest. Honestly, you didn't care at all that you looked pathetic, you were just happy this wasn't Raccoon City.

Claire quickly ran out of the Target with her arm in Sherry's. "Let's go get that hotel room!!!" She quickly darted off and Leon ran out of the Target, limping.

"Dammit, Claire, hold on!!"

You grabbed onto Leon's arm and chuckled. "She's fine, Leon. We'll catch up. She pointed at the hotel she wants to stay in, and it's not too far off. I'm just glad she has the energy to take care of that kid right now."

Leon nodded. "Same. I can barely walk without feeling like I'm going to pass out."

You and Leon walked to the hotel, laughing about the memories you had of Mr. X trying to follow you around. Even though those scared the shit out of you in the moment, you couldn't help but laugh now.

The hotel was nice. It was bright white and covered in fancy red carpets. You looked like a bunch of homeless people.... well, you guessed you were now.

"Me and Sherry are gonna share a room," Claire said, grabbing both sides of the girls shoulders.

"Then I guess that means y/n and I will have separate rooms. I'll go pay."

Your heart dropped and immediate panic filled your body.

"W-Wait." You pulled Leon off to the side, your heart pounding for some reason.

"What's wrong?" Leon looked at you with concern and held your shoulders.

"I... Can we share a room?" You looked up at him and he smiled.

"Of course."

"I just don't know if I can sleep alone after all that and we've already been through so mu-"

Leon placed his index finger on your lips and giggled. "I don't need an excuse from you, y/n. I understand."

You waited eagerly and patiently for Leon to get each of your rooms.

"I'm gonna shower so hard, you don't even understand." Claire said, stretching, each of her bones making a small pop sound.

"Me too." You sighed, imagining the warm water running down your back.

"Here's your key, Claire. Don't lose it."

Claire snorted. "As if. Of course I'm not gonna lose it. Let's go Sherry!" They ran up the stairs, getting odd looks from other patrons and staff, but they didn't seem to care.

"You ready, y/n?"

You nodded, taking the elevator with Leon.

"I'm so glad that's over." He smiled, clicking the elevator button.

"Me too."

"I still can't believe how amazing you were back there." Leon gave you a little pat on the back.

"Well, for it being your first day, Kennedy, I'd say you killed it."

"Literally."

You both burst out into laughter. You were surprised you could still do that, but very happy about it.

"You're amazing, Leon." You set down your target bag on the elevator floor and pulled him into your arms.

He sighed, tickling your neck a bit and held you by your waist. "You're amazing."

The elevator dinged, interrupting your hug, but you couldn't help but bolt out of there and down the long hallways.

"You're going the wrong way, y/n!" Leon called out, pointing down the other end of the hall.

"Which room is it?" Before Leon could answer, you glanced at the key and took off, finding the room rather quickly. You waited like an impatient puppy and bobbed up and down as Leon opened the door.

Leon opened the door to a nice clean room that smelled slightly perfumey, but much better than rotting zombie.

As you were searching the room, you were satisfied with everything. It was cozy, roomy, had a TV, a clean bathroom, and...

"Leon?"

"Yeah?" Leon was already quick to unpack his stuff, and stuffed his mouth with chips.

"There's only one bed."

His face flushed pink. "Y-Yeah... I.... I thought it would be nice." He cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck. "Look.... I don't want to be that far from you, okay? I don't know why. I still feel like I have to protect you and-" You interrupted him by placing your index finger on his lips this time.

"I don't need an excuse, Leon. I really don't mind. Now, I'm gonna take a quick shower. Sorry you gotta stay musty for a little while longer."

"Eh, it's fine. It'll make the shower more worth it."

Worth it was definitely the right words to use. When you stepped into the shower, ignoring the dark red that poured off of you and the black water that formed at your feet, it was really heaven. It was the best shower you had ever taken, and you have never felt so clean in your entire life.

When you stepped out, you immediately tossed out your old clothes and put on something fresh and some pajamas that made you feel cute. It didn't really matter since you were about to pass out soon, but feeling nice was something you enjoyed and something you actually needed after all of that.

You stepped out of the bathroom and chugged some water, not even noticing that Leon had run straight past you to take a shower himself. He really deserved it though, so you didn't blame him.

You laid down on the bed and stared at the ceiling for a while. What a goddamn day. You really couldn't believe you survived all of that. It was a shit show, and for a while, before you met Leon, you didn't have anything but a metal pipe to beat the zombies off with. If not for that rookie cop, you wouldn't be here right now.

You were more thankful than he could ever know.

"Holy shit," Leon stepped out of the bathroom, drying off his hair with a little towel, in a giant shirt and a pair of basketball shorts. "That was the best shower ever."

You sat up with a smile. "Wasn't it?!"

Leon smiled when he saw you, throwing down the mini towel on a nearby table before jumping on the bed next to you. "You know," he told you, getting comfortable on the bed. "You're actually really cute not covered in blood. Wait, that came out wrong... You were cute with the blood... but uh.... shit, I messed up, can I restart?"

You giggled. "Go ahead. Restart."

"You know," Leon looked at you with the most loving smile ever. "You're really cute."

You blushed. "Says the cutest guy in the world."

"Aw, shucks, you don't mean that, do you?"

"Of course I mean that, Leon."

He smiled at you and pulled you into his arms, laying back with you on the bed. "I'm glad I found you out there." He said softly.

"I'm glad you found me."

You two sat in silence for a while, just laying in each other's arms. After being through all of that, you didn't realize how sore you were and only now was it kicking in. But thank god you had a bed.

Breaking the silence, Leon wrapped his arms around you tighter. "I never want to let you go, y/n." He whispered in your ear, placing a kiss on the lobe.

"But...." You hated yourself for asking this. "What about Ada?"

"What about her?" Leon sat up a bit, letting go of you.

"I.... You two kissed. It seemed like you really liked her."

"Ada kissed me," Leon reminded you. "We weren't that close. I knew you for longer, even if it was a couple of hours. Plus, Ada betrayed us. She was using me. You, y/n, you really care about me. I just want to protect you.... at all costs. If you'll let me."

You cupped Leon's face in your hands and smiled. "Of course I'll let you. But know I want to protect you every now and again."

Leon couldn't help himself, he pushed forward and planted his lips onto yours, pushing you right down on the bed. You quickly smiled into the kiss and pulled him closer until he was right on top of you.

He placed kiss after kiss after kiss onto you until you both passed out, snoring.

You didn't care what was ahead. As long as you had Leon, you would be fine.

~~~~~

resident evil masterlist | pinned post

2023 @tonberry-yoda – do not repost or claim ANY of my work as your own! likes, reblogs, and comments are not only welcome, but appreciated

~~~~~

[thx-sunsxts-addrxss]

Letters of love that touches one’s soul

Junior year of Highschool-

Krithika was walking home from a bad day.

How dare Delilah accuse her for 'stealing her boyfriend'? Like, Krithika didn't even know who her boyfriend was!

"Girly!" Called someone who could only be one person. "Hey, Krithika!"

She turned, annoyed. 

"What, Shah?" She spoke, using  his last name to intimidate him. He took a step back in fear, regained his composure and waved a folded piece of paper.

"I'll just keep this here" Suyodhana Shah hurried off.

Krithika could hear the elderly on the street talking about how energetic and bright he was for a 19 year old. And the younger about how handsome he was, with his heterochromia. Which was all true of course. Even if she was in a bad mood, she couldn't deny that.

She opened the letter in curiosity.

And the saga of love letters starts here.

Dear Krithika,

When you open this, I've probably run off already. Just the coward I am.

Isn't it crazy how much you changed me? I went from a tech nerd to nerd on the subject of you.

I'm really bad at constructing angles, and even though you look beautiful from every angle, I think the angle I see you from is the best.

I don't play with fire, but when we're together, I feel the sparks flying.

I don't like science but when I'm with you, I can see the chemistry.

I'm learning important dates in history. Wanna be one of them?

Ps. Don't kill me at school tomorrow.

Love,

          Suyodhana 

Senior year of high school-

He glanced down at the note Krithika had given him, his heart pounding.

Dear Suyodhana,

Remember your letter last year? I realized I never actually replied. And, honestly,

It was incredibly cringey. You are super cheesy. But I would not mind having you on my pizza.

I was having a super bad day when you gave me that. It felt like you wiped off the rain cloud above my head and replaced it with sunshine.

I'm not a fortune teller, but I can see my future with you.

Love,

        Krithika.

A couple years later-

He had a stupid grin on his face as he handed Krithika a letter.

Dear Krithika,

Before I had felt the sparks. 

Now I feel a fire burning in my heart.

My life without you,

Is the sky without blue,

Roses are red,

You like the white ones instead,

Violets are blue,

And my love for you is always true,

But still, 

It grew.

Krithika Shah,

Will you marry me?

Krithika looked up in tears.

"Yes. I would love to"

Dear Suyodhana,

It's been awhile since we wrote these letters. 

I don't know if you'll ever see this.

I want you to know that I still love you. Sleeper or not.

Arundhati. You named our child Arundhati, after the morning star. And I must say, it was the most fitting. You really don't get anything wrong, do you?

She asked where you were today. When are you coming back?

I love you always. Aru loves you always. And I know you love us too.

From,

         Krithika.

But the reply didn't come. And finally, 12 years later, Krithika understood it would never come.

Dear Suyodhana,

What were you thinking in those last moments?

Were you okay?

Were you happy?

Were you sad? Or distressed?

Were you about to take my hand?

It has been 6 months from the final battle. I know you must be so proud of your pretty little girls. They found peace. 

Kara had to bear a punishment. I'm sure you would be absolutely devastated to hear that, but it was for the better. She is with the family you took her from, able to relive everything. She is carefree and has no memory of anything that happened.

Aru. She's just so brave, you know? I'm sure you would be mad to hear she has someone to love now. They look like when we were younger, living in the bliss of young love. She's taken most of your genes, which is why she looks absolutely pretty. She's grown into an independent, beautiful young woman.

Thank you for everything. I hope you've found peace.

And one day, I'll join you and we can make up for lost time.

I love you.

Love,

        Krithika.

A tear dropped onto the letter. It dampened the small spot that it had fell on, smudging the cursive handwriting a little. She put her hands together and closed her wet eyes.

"I hope you're in a better place" Krithika prayed. She looked up to the sky, wondering if he was looking down at her endearingly. She crouched down to the chilling grave as the wind blew autumn leaves to the burial.

"You always liked autumn, didn't you? Now you can always see it"

And with that, on the cold ground that had now captivated her lover's body, Krithika Shah placed the last letter of love and ended their love story.

[prompt by @the-princess-fangirl. Tysm!]

[watchoutforthefanfics]

achievement unlocked 🔓 (part eleven) || Streamer AU! Reddie (IT)

Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

AVAILABLE ON AO3

Inspiration: this prompt + BIRDS OF A FEATHER by Billie Eilish

Summary: Richie liked to play video games, and by some stroke of luck, it became his job. Being primarily known as Trashmouth on stream, he found his own little group of streamer friends and they became intertwined: The Losers Club. It never did feel quite complete, though. Well, until, he got his very own backseat gamer in chat.

TWs: innuendos, lots of talk of sex (it's Richie), cursing, brief mention of toxic relationships, and shameless flirting.

[[A/N: The Aftermath !!! Also am I angry that Chris Pratt voiced both Mario and Garfield??? Yes I am, and I think Im allowed to be. Enjoy :))]]

Richie Tozier is not a coward. Not really.

He's impulsive (brave some say) and just does shit. Which is why he was here, staring at his phone. Staring at the three words he hadn't necessarily wanted to say but couldn't stop himself. It just... He just always did stupid shit.

And then his phone lit up.

e.kaspbrak

What

Richie Tozier is not a coward. But sometimes shit was scary, and sometimes you run away.

So, without another word, Richie muted his phone and slid it onto his nightstand. He stared at his phone guiltily for just a spare few seconds, before slipping off his glasses and rolling over to his other side. Promptly ignoring the way the ceiling lit up, knowing that it meant he was distinctly ignoring messages from... Eddie. His Eddie. Eds.

He'd deal with it in the morning. He just needed a night, yeah, a night.

And maybe a morning.

He stared at his phone with too early tired eyes, got up, made some frozen waffles, sat down, ate them, and stared at it some more. Fidgetted with his hands, he debated looking at the messages. (Would there be calls, texts? Would Eddie try and get everyone else to harass him too? Would he tell them what had happened? That Richie had just... said that shit. And... And ran away?) Instead, he spun on his heel and busied himself with his comics or maybe his figurines (or maybe both. Probably both).

It doesn't distract him though, not really. It was in the tap of his foot, or the flex of his hand. He was almost completely panicking, but at the same time, there was no fucking way he could look at what Eddie had sent him. It just wasn't... He didn't want for it to come out this way-

Richie was currently on his couch (it was way past lunchtime at this point, he'd been ignoring his phone for hours), death glaring his bedroom door. His eyes set somewhat to the location of his phone, like he could maybe erase the problem if he stared at it hard enough.

Because of course, after Eddie made this genuine speech about wanting Richie. Only wanting him, and all his fucked up pieces. He'd give him another reason not to.

He knows that not all the options are bad, in terms of Eddie's response, but the bad ones are so fucking scary. Richie was in love with him, how was he supposed to handle (potentially) scaring Eddie away? Or maybe he thought he was just moving too fast? Or maybe Eddie just didn't see it that way yet-

Richie threw his head back on the cushion, groaning. This is going fucking nowhere. You're only making it worse.

Maybe Eddie was good with the whole 'in love with him' thing, but now, you've ignored him for hours. He could be fucking pissed. And what the hell could you do about it? Say sorry?

God, he was so fucked. There was no good fucking outcome from this. Trashmouth Tozier is fucking at it again, ruining hi-

There was a knock at the door. Well, if he was honest more like a bang, it was a pretty hearty fucking knock actually. So much so, that Richie almost didn't go move to see who it was. Who the fuck could it be?

Wait.

"Richard fucking Tozier-"

That was one Beverly Marsh. An angry Beverly Marsh.

She got the kind of mad that was all internal, all glares and frowns and just fucking... like you'd brought home a failed test. ("I'm not mad, I'm just disappointed.") Bev was a good friend, a fiercely good friend who knew how to call Richie out on his shit. And god, did she have something to call him out on now-

"Richie," she leveled, maybe a little concerned, "-I'm so serious. Open this fucking door."

He might as well bite the bullet, yeah?

With the drag of his feet, Richie pursed his lips and pulled open the door. He was met with a new type of Bev.

She looked particularly ruffled, if he was fucking honest, and her lips pulled into a tight frown. A frown that he distantly recognized... maybe once. And her eyes? Fucking cold blue steel.

"What the fuck-" she pointed a finger into his chest, "-did you do?"

Richie blinked.

"Eddie has been texting me nonstop about you, that you're not answering him, so I-" she stressed it out, pressing her finger into his chest -it stung a little, "-called you and got the same shit. I called you five times in a row-"

"Bev-" he tried, but she only moved forward.

"-and you didn't answer. I was so worried, Rich, and I can't imagine how Eddie felt all the way in New York-"

"Bev-"

"-And I get here, and you're perfectly fine. So that means something is wrong, and that means that you did something, Richie. So, what did you do?"

Richie gnawed at his lip -reluctantly, closing and locking the door, before questioning, "Eddie didn't tell you?"

Bev's mouth flattened into a straight line, eyes turning somehow fucking colder, "Richie."

"Look, Bev, I just... I fucking panicked, okay-" Richie scrambled a little bit -anxiety in his stomach snapping, "-I didn't mean for it to go on all day-"

"What did you do?" Bev repeated, stern.

"-I just... I don't know, I freaked out. And I needed a minute, I guess-"

"Richie," she tried again, this time grabbing his face -setting his eyes to hers, "-I swear to god I will get Stan to fly his ass here from Atlanta, if you don't tell me what the fuck is going on."

Shit, those were the big guns. Stanley cannot know about this, it would fucking disappoint Patty so much. And Richie could never fucking disappoint Patty-

It burst out of Richie just like it did the night before -rushed and impulsive.

"I told Eddie I loved him."

Bev paused, eyes softening and eyebrows pulled together -confused, "Eddie told you that he loved you, and you ran away?"

"No, I-" Richie let out a heavy breath, clarifying, "-I told Eddie that I loved him, and I ran away.

Beverly scrunched up her nose, dropping her hands from his face (all he could read was confusion), "What?"

Richie furrowed his eyebrows, "What do you mean what?"

"Well," she let out a sigh, "-normally, when someone runs away after a love confession, it's not the one who confessed, Richie."

Richie pursed his lips, what's that supposed to mean?

"Wait," Bev deflected, grabbing her phone, "-shit. Eddie's probably freaked the fuck out right now."

Richie's stomach twisted, bile rising up his throat, "This is exactly what I wanted to avoid, Bevvy. I fucking knew it was too much-"

"Shut up," she raised a finger to his mouth, silencing him, "-That's not what I'm talking about."

"Then, what-"

"Eddie is probably worried about you," she clarified, flicking his nose, "-because, you overthink things. And you didn't even hear him out-"

"I saw his message after," Richie reasoned, maybe a little for his own conscience, "-he just said 'what'. I mean, how was I fucking supposed to take that-"

"Knowing you, Rich," Bev pointed out, carefully, "-you probably said it out of nowhere. So, I give him a pass about being shocked."

"Well, I just thought-" Richie tried, but his side didn't really seem to make sense anymore.

"No," she shook her head, "-no more thinking. Go answer your phone."

"But," Richie decidedly didn't move, "-what if-"

"Richie," she glared, hands smoothing down his shoulders, "-you don't know shit until you see it for yourself. So, for the love of all that is holy, go fucking answer your boyfriend."

Richie pursed his lips, hesitant to take any steps anywhere. He was so fucking scared-

"You know he's probably stressed the fuck out about this," she commented, accusing, "-about you."

Richie frowned. Eddie was probably fucking scared too, had been all night. Fuck-

"I don't want him to be stressed out, fuck-" he breathed out, burying his head in his hands, "-God, I'm so fucking stupid."

"Hey," Bev softened, moving to pull his head down to her shoulder, wrapping him into a hug, "-I think... I think Eddie knows that you were scared. That's why he's losing his shit-"

Richie breathed in her Bev smell (it was a more like feminine smell with a hint of a masculine musk, like a flower just after some rain), and leaned forward into her. It was kinda what he needed, maybe for the past few days. He just needed a fucking hug.

"-because you're scared, and he can't help you."

Fuck.

Richie let out a shaky breath, heart racing in his chest, "Fuck, Bevvy, what if I... What if I fucked it all up? What if he never even-"

"What did I say?" Bev pulled back, leveling his face to match hers, "-No more fucking thinking. You want answers? Go ask Eddie. It helps no one to speculate shit."

"I know, but-"

"No buts, Richie," she shoved him toward the direction of his bedroom, "-go answer your fucking boyfriend, and figure this shit out."

Richie turned back toward her.

"Like now," Bev snapped, pointing toward the door.

Richie smiled at her, a little tight (but to be fair, his anxiety was through the fucking roof), "Thanks, Red."

She lightened slightly, smiling back and stepping toward the door, "Tell me how it all goes. I love you, Rich, but don't test me again though, seriously-"

Richie near immediately chimed back, actually smiling, "Love you too, Bev."

She rolled her eyes and motioned him through the door further -eyes glinting in a way he didn't want to test. Richie obediently did so.

That brought him to now, staring at his nightstand and that dreaded fucking phone.

It was just as overwhelming as it was the first time, staring it down and not quite being able to grab it. Like he physically couldn't. Like everything in his body was fighting it. But, now, now there was something else in his mind.

Eddie, in his tiny apartment, clutching his shirt like he always did when he was anxious and tapping his foot so much that it shook the coffee table. Big brown eyes staring at his phone like it could get up and walk away. Like if he looked away it would disappear and he really didn't want it to disappear. Richie remembered when his breaths would get so fast, and he'd talk himself up-

Richie didn't hesitate to grab his phone.

He was confronted with a growing list of notifications, spanning from a range throughout the night. Missed calls and texts every hour or so. Had he even slept last night? He thumbed through the notifications, calculating the time difference in his head.

Richie frowned again, No. He did not. Or at least, not more than like an hour.

God, Eddie-

His hands moved to Instagram, instinctively. Throughout a slew of missed calls (and videochats), there were just a few messages.

e.kaspbrak

What

[missed call from e.kaspbrak (x2)]

Richie, answer your phone, dickweed.

[missed call from e.kaspbrak]

Rich, seriously, this isn't funny.

I know you didn't just fall asleep in two seconds.

[missed call from e.kaspbrak]

Richie, you're freaking me the fuck out.

If this is some sort of joke, I'm going to be so pissed.

[missed call from e.kaspbrak (x3)]

Come on, Richie. This isn't fucking funny.

[missed call from e.kaspbrak]

Are you okay?

[missed call from e.kaspbrak (x4)]

Richie felt like fucking vomiting. He didn't text any after that one, it was all calls. Just call after call. God, he was such a dumbass. Eddie was up all night, fucking paranoid. Because what? Richie was scared of rejection? That he wasn't even sure he'd get from Eddie. It was so fucking selfish, and he felt like shit.

He wasn't gonna make him wait anymore.

trashmouth.tozier ✔️

hey eds I'm sorry I didn't respond

I was really fucking scared and I didn't want you to end things and I just panicked

and I'm sorry

If you don't want to talk to me, I get it

Richie let a breath in through his nose and out his mouth. He wasn't sure if he should even expect a response at this point. Maybe he was sleeping, which would be good, actually so-

e.kaspbrak is calling

He was scared as fuck, but there was no way in hell he wasn't answering it. Not after all the calls he missed already. So, with a breath, he accepted and pulled it up to his ear.

It was silent for a second, so Richie spoke instead. Eddie had done enough already, anyway.

"Eds?"

There was a shuffling, and Richie held his breath.

"Look, I am unbelievably fucking mad at you right now," his voice echoed through the line, and it was a little shaky and too fast, "-but I can't fucking articulate that properly because I'm so fucking happy to hear your stupid ass voice."

"I'm really happy to hear you too, Eds," Richie laughed a little, eyes a little teary, "-And you should, you should be mad at me, I'm a fucking idiot-"

"Did you mean it?" He interrupted, and he was definitely sniffling.

Richie flexed his hands once, hearing Eddie cry because of him made him want to throw himself off the nearest bridge. Or maybe book the next flight, and hug him until he physically couldn't anymore.

"Mean what, Eds?" Richie asked, gently.

"Do you actually love me?"

Richie's heart twisted in his chest (he didn't think I meant it?), "Yes, yeah. Of course, I fucking love you. What do you mean?"

"I was-" Eddie started, before clearing his throat, "-I thought it might've been a stupid joke, I don't-"

"What?" Richie whispered, "-No, I know I'm a fucking idiot sometimes, but I wouldn't... I wouldn't do that."

"Well, I just-" Eddie let out a breath, and it was much slower (Richie hoped it was somehow because of him), "-I don't know. I just got fucking scared. And then you weren't responding. And I thought that you might think I didn't-"

"I'm so fucking sorry, Eds," Richie interrupted, "-I fucking hate myself because of this whole thing. I love you, and I just stressed you out, what kinda bo-"

"Don't fucking say that," Eddie hissed out, "-I am mad as shit at you, but you're still you, Richie. You're my boyfriend, you can't shit on yourself. Because if you were anyone else, I would beat the shit out of you."

Richie barked out a laugh, loud and sharp. He heard Eddie laugh a little too, like he couldn't help it. It made something stir in his stomach, and it just slipped out.

"God," he spoke through laughter, "-I fucking love you, Eds. You're such a little shit."

Eddie's laugh got louder, it might have even changed to a giggle if he was honest. It made Richie fucking giddy; I love you, Eds, love, love, love-

Richie's mouth opened, and he just let him say what he wanted to. Eddie already had his dramatic confession, it was his turn anyway.

"Eds, I really fucking love you," he spoke, tone genuine and he was smiling (Eddie wasn't running away), "-and I know I talk a lot of shit. But this... I'm being honest. There's no fucking shitty joke. I feel like I've been in love with you my whole life-"

"Richie," Eddie breathed out, but it was a little shaky and quiet (maybe like he was crying).

"-which I don't know how that fucking works, because we've only known each other for months so-"

"Richie," he tried again.

"-but it feels like that. It does. Like Richie Tozier is supposed to love Eddie Kaspbrak. Like it's the fucking Earth turning-"

"Richie-"

"-and every time you talk, it just rings through my head. Because you're so... you. And I love the fuck out of you. So, when you said all that shit to... to reassure me, and then you were just... Eddie telling me that you were pissed off at them, on my behalf, and I just... I couldn't fucking stop it."

He took in a big breath, but he wasn't scared. Eddie deserved to fucking hear it. Even if he didn't love him back, right now, he'd still tell him everyday. Until he died, probably. Even if they broke up (which the thought made Richie want to shrivel up and die), his last words would be: I love you, Eddie Kaspbrak-

"You're making it really fucking hard to hate you, right now," Eddie spoke, in what Richie knew to be frustration (the kind where he puffed up his cheeks a little).

Richie laughed, shuffling his feet a little (like he had energy he couldn't let out which he always fucking did), "I try."

Eddie brought on this whole new side of himself like he couldn't stop fucking smiling and he fucking loved someone. And god, he had never loved someone like he loved Eddie, or maybe never loved at all-

"I wanna say-"

Richie somehow immediately knew where it was going, "Eds, you don't have to say anything. Seriously. If you're not ready, there's no rush. I'll fucking be here as long as you need me to be."

"Richie," Eddie leveled, "-that is sweet as fuck. Probably the sweetest thing you're fucking capable of saying. But I need you to listen to me-"

"I dunno Eddie baby," Richie teased, "-I could go sweeter."

"Richie," Eddie tried to say seriously, but he was laughing through it, "-shut the fuck up."

Richie politely cut it back. He could always tease him until he nearly blew a blood vessel later (it was kinda his favorite thing to do, honestly). Preferably on a video call, so he could see the red go all the way up his face-

"I think I want to come earlier."

Richie nearly dropped his fucking phone, "What?"

Eddie continued, almost bashfully (Richie added the new tone to one of his Eddie files), "I hate New York. The people here suck, the streets are loud, the whole place smells so fucking bad-"

Richie snorted.

"-and you're just in San Francisco, fucking waiting. For what? For money I can't even get to? I mean, it's practically fucking invisible-"

Richie was smiling way too big for his face.

"-and I'm just fucking sitting here in a shitty apartment because I already paid rent. And you, my boyfriend who fucking loves me, are across the fucking country in a fancy ass apartment-"

"I wouldn't call it fancy, Spaghetti," Richie interrupted, going into a 'fancy' accent, "-It's not like butlers are waiting on me, or there are fucking... marble floors. It's just got a nice kitchen, and is in a nice walkable part of-"

"That's not the fucking-" Eddie let out a sigh, recentering himself, "-It's got you, dipshit. That's what I mean. You're there."

Richie grinned, "I mean... so is Bev-"

"You are such an asshole," Eddie huffed out, unsuccessfully hiding a laugh, "-didn't I tell you to shut up? I'm trying to fucking say something."

"Yes dear," Richie responded, flatly.

"Oh my god, Richie-"

"Okay, okay," he let out a laugh, putting his hands up in surrender (even though Eddie could not see him), "-I'm done, I'm done. Go ahead, Eds."

"I fucking hate you," Eddie retorted, with no bite.

"Agree to disagree," Richie remarked, before adding, "-Seriously, I'm done. Scout's honor."

"That means fuck all if you weren't an actual Scout, dickweed."

"How do you know I wasn't?" Richie proposed -curious.

"I just know," Eddie responded oddly. Like he was-

"Oh my god, Eds-" Richie almost jumped in fucking place, "-were you a fucking Boy Scout? With the cute little uniform and sash and hat-"

Eddie huffed out, "It's a really good program, asshole."

"-Please tell me you have pictures, Eds, you don't understand. I will print it out and frame it on my wall."

There was a pause.

"You have pictures?!"

"Well, fucking yeah," Eddie spit out, maybe a little embarrassed, "-obviously. And they're already fucking photos, they're in like a baby book-"

"Eddie baby," Richie cut off, "-please tell me you're packing that."

"Of course I am, asshole," Eddie retorted, "-It's all my fucking memories, why wouldn't I take it with me?"

"Thank god," Richie raised a hand, silently thanking somewhere in the sky.

"If you're gonna make fun of me-" Eddie started, prickly and defensive.

"Eds, no," Richie clarified, laughing (which was not helping his case), "-I would physically sacrifice myself to see your baby photos. You are so fucking cute now, I can't imagine you as a baby. Especially in a lil Boy Scout uniform-"

"Yeah, okay, well," Eddie blew out a breath, and Richie could tell he was flustered, "-I'm bringing it. So."

Richie processed that for a second (and maybe he did a physical fist pump, no one really knew) before his mind flickered elsewhere. And his mouth was off like a rocket, like it always was.

"How soon?" He spoke, palpably excited -grinning way too fucking bright, "-How soon do you want to come?"

"Maybe if you hadn't fucking distracted me," Eddie reasoned, "-you'd know that."

"Eddie baby," Richie spoke (yes, he was pulling that card), actually apologetic, "-I'm so sorry. When do you want to move in with me?"

There was a silence, and Richie could nearly hear his resolve weakening (bingo). He probably had his arms crossed and was rolling his eyes-

"It's like supposed to be two months, right?" Eddie asked.

Richie was totally not counting the days (nor had he bought a physical fucking calendar just to write Eds in a heart on the day he was supposed to get here), "Give or take."

"Well," he paused, mulling it over, "-I think at most a month. Maybe."

"At most?" Richie asked -blankly.

"It'll probably be as soon as I can sort out all my shit," Eddie stated -plainly, like he wasn't changing Richie's whole life, "-I have to pack, talk to my shitty landlord, and buy the plane tickets-"

"Aren't you afraid of flying?" Richie asked genuinely.

Eddie seemed to pause for a second, processing, "How did you-"

And then he stopped.

"-Forgot about your fucking Eddie files."

Richie snorted again.

"Yeah, I am," Eddie addressed, "-but the trip is like fucking 40 hours long-"

"43," Richie instinctively corrected. Shit.

"Have you-" Eddie seemed to process for a second, "-Have you searched that up?"

Richie gnawed on his lip for a second, trying to figure out how he wanted to go about this. Eddie already knew that he loved him, to be fair, so it probably explained any of his behavior enough for a pass.

"Well, you were talking about moving in, and-" Richie breathed out -hesitantly, "-you're afraid of flying, so I.. So I looked into it."

"What were you gonna do? Drive to me?" Eddie laughed a little.

Richie was definitely not laughing. Eddie's laughter cut short, and there was a second.

"Rich," Eddie echoed out, disbelieving,"-are you serious?"

"Well, I just," Richie pursed his lips, before relented, "-Yeah, okay, yeah. I was, Eds. But if you... If you just want to fly though-"

"No," Eddie interrupted, "-No, I'd rather drive."

"The whole 43 hours?" Richie asked, genuinely.

"Well, it's fucking different," Eddie offered, most definitely a little flustered.

"How exactly?" Richie laughed, "-The trip is the same amount of time, Eddie baby. Well, I guess I could shave off some time if I-"

"Shut the fuck up," he cut him off, directly, "-You're not doing shit."

"Sir yes sir!" he chimed -instinctively.

He could nearly hear Eddie roll his eyes, it made him grin.

"It's different because it's with you, dickweed," Eddie answered, "-I wanna do it with you. Obviously."

"Yeah, well," Richie was smiling, "-I did tell you I'd do anything you wanted, Eds."

"Well then, okay," Eddie paused, "-come and get me in a month."

"Just a vague month?"

"No, fucking of course not," he automatically responded, "-I'll give you a specific day, and time. And on that point, you better not be late."

"Ah," Richie sighed, "-there's my Eds that I know and love."

"Yeah," Eddie spoke softly, maybe in disbelief, "-you love me."

Richie smiled, eyes falling to his feet. This was something he never wanted to forget, even though he'd be here so soon. He didn't want to forget these calls, ever. He hoped he could recount them until he was old and gray.

"Fuck yeah, I do, Eds."

In retrospect, Richie didn't realize that Eddie hadn't said it back. But, he didn't really care. Eddie would say it whenever he wanted to. Frankly, as long as Eddie kept dating him, he didn't need it. Don't get him wrong, if Eddie said 'I love you', Richie could probably die happy. Or maybe never have another bad day in his life-

Today, Richie was streaming. It was a boring one, a Q&A but he was kinda tired so, it would work. His subs actually liked Q&As because Richie would wholeheartedly answer all kinds of things. It was limitless, the mods really only stepped in on super serious shit.

"Hey motherfuckers," he chimed, grinning brightly (his subs were used to his new smile by now), "-how are we today? Anyone have shit to share with the class?"

Richie skimmed through the chat.

"Pretty sure my Mom slept with my boyfriend," he read, raising his eyebrows, "-Shit, dude. What the fuck? I'm not even sure what to say to that. My condolences...? Is that like shitty of me to say-"

stan.the.man donated $1: no I think that's fair

"Stanthony, hey," he smiled, shooting finger guns at the camera, "-welcome to the stream. No good birds to watch?"

dizknees: a q & a in this economy ???

girlie-pops: hey trashmouth

elite._.gamer: started with the games ended with the streamer

too.tough.to.cry: how do we submit questions

trashy.tozier: @/dizknees I know I'm scared of what these questions are gonna be

stan.the.man: fuck you richie

trashmouth-for-me: @/too.tough.to.cry the link in the description

benny.boy: hey rich !!!

babey_boy: this is going to be so fucking cursed

"Hi Ben," Richie chimed again, "-I'll give it a few minutes for all your questions to come in-" his eyes darted to the submissions (it was growing exponentially), "-Actually, we're pretty fucking full as is."

Giving chat one last glance, Richie turned to the form, skimming through the submissions -this was going to be a total shitshow. But hey, that's what the trashies loved so... he was here to deliver.

"Who do you think tops, Luigi or Bowser?" He read out, pressing his lips together and furrowing his eyebrows, "-Are we talking about Mario? Like big turtle monster and Italian plumber?"

trashy.tozier: yeah it's from the movie

"Oh, the new movie?" Richie asked, which chat confirmed, "-Yeah, I won't watch it, fucking hate that Chris Pratt got it, honestly-"

trashmouth-for-me: say less king

ghostie_girl77: no bc exactly

cryingandscreaming: so reallll

bouncing-baby-boy: I liked it 🤷‍♂️

the.losers.are.better: I like him as star-lord and in parks and rec

girlie-pops: @/bouncing-baby-boy red flag

flying_froggerz900: I only watched it for jack black

toziers-trash: say that

your._.mom: period

gnarlybabes: peaches peaches peaches peaches

"I mean, it seems kind of obvious...?" Richie brought himself back to the question, thinking, "-Bowser is a fucking monster king, and Luigi is like a more... fragile character. Unless he has another side to him, but I don't get those vibes, and fucking trust me, I know them-"

Honk, honk!

reddy.bevvy donated $1: hi love you but shut up :)

"Bevvy! Love you too-" he grinned and blew a few kisses to the camera, before refocusing, "-I think Bowser is my final answer. Alright, next question-"

He clapped his hands once, peering over the list and reading, "What is the sexiest finger?"

"Oh, easy," Richie waved it off dismissively, "-middle."

dizknees: EXACTLYYYY

an_idiot_sandwich32: no bc there's literally no other answer what

hunterz-dream: if you disagree think again

babey_boy: obvi

trashy.tozier: anyone seen 🍝 ?

girlie-pops: the only other valid answer is maybe ring

elite._.gamer: this makes no sense but he is right

It went on like that for a while, with somehow both questions he'd expected and questions he most certainly did not (some about Minecraft, and also asking if he preferred Coraline's mom before or after spiderization, typical stream really). And then, he saw it.

"Do you have a boyfriend?" Richie read out, licking along his teeth -debating (they had talked about this, but he didn't want to cross any boundaries).

He mulled it over for a second, before deciding to answer, "Yeah, actually, I do."

trashy.tozier: WHATTTT

tell_me_a_lie: there goes our single rep

reddy.bevvy: 😉

dizknees: 🍝 ? 👀👀👀

babey_boy: we lost another one ✋️😔

too.tough.to.cry: wait fr

girlie-pops: let's go gays

trashmouth-for-me: @/dizknees reddie real ???

toziers-trash: real or imaginary

your._.mom: trashmouth lore drop

genuine._.disappointment: imma die alone

stan.the.man: @/toziers-trash tragically real

girls.girl: tell me more

Richie promptly didn't say anything else about it. Mostly so he could figure out specifics with Eddie later. He wanted to tell them, honestly, but he wasn't gonna do anything without talking to him. Richie's life was already public, Eddie deserved the choice -he stood by that solidly.

And so the stream moved on, well, until it didn't.

"I'm not really sure about the-"

Bzzt, bzzt.

Richie paused, cutting himself off. His eyes dashed to his phone, eyeing the screen. It was an actual phone call-

💞 Eds 💞

He furrowed his eyebrows, a little concerned, before turning to the camera.

"There's the man now, folks," he chimed, happily, and moved the screen over to the break one -promptly muting his mic, "-Gimme one second."

He spun in his chair, facing the wall, just in case, and answering.

"Eddie baby, what's up?" He asked, in a casual sort of concern.

Eddie immediately responded, bristly (maybe because of concern on his part too), "What's up? I've been trying to call you for fifteen fucking minutes-"

"Eds, relax," Richie laughed, "-I had my Instagram notifications off."

"What, why?" Eddie asked -innocently (it was really fucking cute).

"Well, Spaghetti," Richie added -carefully, "-I'm streaming right now."

"What?" Eddie asked again.

"Don't worry about it," Richie quickly amended, "-I'm muted and have my little break thing up."

"No that's not-" Eddie seemed to pause, voice more distant like he was looking on his phone (maybe had him on speaker), "-I didn't get a notification. Since when are you streaming today?"

"I told you this morning," Richie replied, laughing, "-It's just a Q&A. They actually... They actually asked me if I had a boyfriend."

"And...?" Eddie questioned, plainly. It made Richie want to squirm, because he couldn't tell what the right answer was.

"I told 'em yeah," he answered, slowly, "-but I didn't say it was you or anything so-"

"Why not?"

Richie paused, pressing his lips together, "You... You want me to?"

"Well, yeah," Eddie clarified, a little flustered, "-I already told you that."

"It was actually more kinda implied," Richie noted before pointing out, "-I didn't just wanna say shit without your fucking... approval, Eds."

"Well, I'm giving it," Eddie replied, sturdily.

"Okay, so-" Richie laughed a little, "-I'm just gonna tell chat that we're dating?"

"I don't fucking know, dipshit," Eddie bit back, "-it's your stream."

Richie gnawed at his lips, trying to think. Could he just work it into the conversation? Would that be forced and awkward? How the fuck did he want to do this?

He took a deep breath in, trying to think. He could hear Eddie shifting through the phone, and he thought his mic might actually pick it up if it was on-

Wait.

"Eds," Richie grinned, "-how do you feel about being on stream?"

"On stream?" Eddie questioned.

"Yeah, like your voice," Richie clarified, "-through the phone."

There was silence for a second.

"They already know I'm on the phone with my boyfriend," Richie explained, "-all I have to do is call you Spaghetti, and chat will connect the dots."

Eddie was slow to speak, but it came out a little frantic, "What the fuck am I supposed to say? I don't-"

"Just hi," Richie soothed, stopping the Kaspbrak spiral -effectively, "-Nothing else."

There was another pause.

"I'll be right fucking here, Eds," Richie said, gently, "-You know that."

Eddie let out a big breath, "Okay, yeah. Let's do it."

Richie gave him a little warning, before unmuting the mic and changing it back to the camera. He watched for a second as chat seemed to acknowledge him, and the grinned real big -putting the phone on speaker.

"Alright, everyone," he chimed, dramatically, "-say hi to Spaghetti."

"Hi," Eddie's voice echoed out, softer than usual (Richie thought it was both the cutest thing in the world and nothing compared to what he knew to be his actual voice). He actually seemed fucking nervous, which was new -Richie promptly added it to the Eddie files.

genuine._.disappointment: EDDIE ???

girls.girl: 👋👋👋

bubblingbabz: hi richie's bf

hog-inthebog: hiiiiiiii

younganddumb: reddie exists??? love wins

toziers-trash: no fucking way

powderpuffdonuts: 👋👋👋

stop.it.bruv56: 🍝🍝🍝

minecrafter.on.main: eddie stream when

dizknees: HOLY SHIT

babey_boy: 🍝 ???

trashmouth-for-me: I FUCKING KNEW IT

girlie-pops: no bc my gaydar was off the charts with those chats

trashy.tozier: @/trashmouth-for-me REDDIE CONFIRMED

tozier_babeyyyy: somebody clip that I gotta start a comp

elite._.gamer: 👋👋👋

harness-safety19: 🍝🍝🍝

only-here-for-trashmouth: @/tozier_babeyyyy 10 times trashmouth mentioned eddie and eddie told him to stfu

bevs.boa: hiiii spaghetti 🍝

trashy.tozier: @/tozier_babeyyyy @/only-here-for-trashmouth JSJKISNSJHSBSH

grumpy_frog: 👋👋👋

Richie smiled, eyeing the chat (Reddie, huh?), before pulling his phone back and turning off speaker phone. He was honestly giddy, of all things.

"Chats going fucking bonkers," Richie laughed into the phone, "-They really fucking love you, Eds."

"Yeah?" Eddie asked -maybe a little nervous.

"You should see it," he assured, "-They're all like saying Reddie confirmed. Apparently, they were clued in already, Eddie baby."

"Reddie?"

"Our ship name, Spaghetti," Richie chimed back, "-obviously."

"They do that for fucking real people?" Eddie remarked, and he could almost see the nose shrivel, "-Ew, what the fuck?"

"Oh, Eds, my sweet summer child," Richie hummed, "-I have a lot to teach you."

"Not that," Eddie emphasized, sharply, "-anything but that."

Richie promptly ignored him, teasing, "What if I got it tatted? Reddie forever, right above my heart-"

"You wouldn't fucking dare," Eddie chastised, "-I'd rather stay in New York than see that shit."

"Oh my, my, my-" Richie fanned himself like a damsel, "-Spaghetti is expecting to see me with my shirt off? How scandalous-"

"Shut the fuck up," Eddie replied, and Richie knew that he was getting flustered (God, he loved him), "-You're an idiot, and I can't stand you."

"Yeah, well," Richie hummed, "-I'm in fucking love with you, so looks like you're fucked, Eds."

Eddie laughed that time, and Richie felt it all the way down to his toes, "That makes it so hard to fucking argue with you, you know that?"

"What does?" Richie asked, almost forgetting he was on stream.

Eddie paused for a second, it came out in a huff of breath (flustered again), "You saying you love me."

Richie grinned, and wondered why he was so nervous about it in the first place. All of that seemed so stupid now.

"Well, Eddie baby," Richie breathed out, "-ya better get fucking used to it."

[splendidissimus]

1 July 1997 - Welcome to the Death Eaters

((Content warning: homophobia, bullying))

((Promptspiration: @whumptober 2023: day 8: Outnumbered / "It's all for nothing." ))

((in this world, "fairy" is a Mudblood / N-word level slur for gay men, based on its already slurry nature, plus the fact that the wizarding world actually know fairies, and consider them vain, stupid little things useful only for decoration))

Genre: whump

Romance level: none

Angst level: 4/5

Draco's headspace: defiant / "normal" -> despair

((words: ~1400))

------------------------------------

"Lucius, it's time to have in an exterminator," Rodolphus called as Draco entered the room. "The fairies are getting in the house." He and his brother both guffawed, Nott chuckled from the background, and Travers gave an unpleasant leer. Draco's father glanced over from the fireplace blankly; he was closer than he had been last night, but he still didn't look himself. 

Draco clenched a fist by his leg. He didn't even remember, exactly, why they were saying that — his memory of the previous night once the Cruciatus started was garbled and unclear — but when he heard those words out of that mouth he had a crystal clear flash of memory, hearing Rodolphus exclaim 'I knew it, the Malfoy boy's a fucking fairy!' to that same laughter. What right did he have—

"Don't speak to me like that," he said coldly, and crossed toward the table with the tea tray. 

Rodolphus stood up to intercept him, Rabastan leaning forward on his elbow, and Bellatrix picked up a scone on her dagger while watching with distant amusement. Azkaban, especially only a year stint this time, hadn't been as cruel to Rodolphus as it had to his father. He was thin but solid, not wasted but tempered into something hard, and he had that deranged edge about him that many of the longterm inmates sported.

"Oh, you've got brave this morning." He had a grin that looked like he was about to bite. "Or you'll do what? Cry for your mummy again?" 

Draco clenched his jaw in embarrassment. That was it, he'd begged for her under the curse. As though the other Death Eaters witnessing him under the Cruciatus wasn't enough… as though them seeing his father curse him wasn't humiliating enough… He was never going to live that down. 

"I've the same mark you have," he said, forcing flatness into it, focusing on that and not showing the embarrassment. "I've proven myself." Against all odds, he'd done what he had to do, borne what he had to, and he'd bought his way into this group with the lives of Dumbledore and anyone else who hadn't made it through the night at the school… These were his people, no matter what, now, and it was time to take his place among them. "We're equals."

Rabastan spat on the floor, Travers' chair scraped on the marble tiles as he stood, and Rodolphus took a step forward. Draco tried to stand his ground, but the sheer difference in their build meant he either had to step back or be shoved, and he couldn't help it. 

"Don't ever let me hear that out of your mouth again, boy," Rodolphus spat, and Draco bristled, because he was seventeen, he was an adult, not a boy, and these dismissive, brutish— "The Dark Lord might let you take out his rubbish and kiss his boots, but none of you poncy, coward fucks—" He swept a sharp finger over the room, including Draco, his father, and even Nott, who had also avoided Azkaban after the first war. "—deserve to even look on him. We were loyal. I'm not going to be told that that's equal to a little sissy—"

"Stop calling me that," Draco snapped. 

"All right, stop it, gents," Nott scoffed. "You're hurting his feelings." Most of the others laughed.

"What is even the point of mocking someone for something that isn't true?" 

"Really?" Bellatrix spoke up with a languid grin in the background. "I've been all up and down your pretty little mind, and I certainly don't recall running across any embarrassing thoughts about girls…" 

That did make every man in the room laugh at him, except his father, who was looking distantly into a painting and contributing nothing. 

His hand clenched helplessly. She was conveniently leaving out that he'd barely been sixteen when she was teaching him Occlumency, and it wasn't like she'd found those kinds of thoughts about guys, either.

It didn't matter. It didn't matter that it wasn't true, it was just a way to turn him into an object of ridicule. Like how she belittled his father for being soft, how they made his mother play gracious hostess when she hated entertaining. It didn't matter that it wasn't true, it was just a way to mock them and make them lesser. And Draco shouldn't have to be told not to argue with those kinds of insults; if he were on the other end, any argument would be evidence of an opening to dig into all the harder. 

There was nothing he could do there, he realised. Nothing he could do or say would end in anything other than mockery. There was no way to snatch back any amount of pride or belonging. He turned away to leave the room, followed by Travers jeering "Flutter away, little fairy," and more laughter at his expense. He crossed the hall to the front parlour instead and stood looking out the bay window over the overgrown garden.

It wasn't supposed to be like this!

He'd done it. He'd done what he had to do, he'd proved he belonged here. For what? 

Well, no… He knew for what. He was alive. His parents were alive, and they were all back together again. If he hadn't done what he did… How much of that would be true? Would any of them be alive? 

But he'd thought it would be over. Dumbledore was dead, it should be over… He'd never looked further ahead than that, and now he knew why. It didn't end. If he thought that as soon as Dumbledore was dead, the Dark Lord would welcome him with open arms, take his family back… stop threatening them… 

Maybe if he'd actually killed him. Maybe then… but he was so fucking weak… He couldn't do it even when he knew he'd be killed if he didn't, and what did that say about him? One fucking spell, and he couldn't do it! And they all knew it. He couldn't even hide it. He couldn't even pretend.

He was lucky he was alive. He had to admit that — to escape last night's homecoming with only a terrible bout of the Cruciatus, even one administered by his father under clear threat, was better than he should have expected. Even though Dumbledore was dead, he hadn't been the one to do it, and everyone knew it, and that was not what he was ordered to do. Everyone knew that, too. That he still existed because the Dark Lord had decided to be merciful, not because he deserved to be alive. Of course they weren't going to accept him, if that was his introduction. 

That old familiar sick feeling was coming back into his stomach, cold and hard and twisted. He'd lived with the fear for almost a year, and for one brief morning, when he'd thought it was over with Dumbledore's death, it had faded, and he almost remembered what it was like not to live under the threat of death. Now that the shape of his future was starting to become clear, it was back where it belonged. He was now glad he hadn't gotten anything to eat. The twisting might not have let him keep it down. 

There was a dark figure moving in the hedges outside; one a terrifying second, he thought that it was the Dark Lord and his breath caught in his throat. When it stepped out into the garden and he realised it was Snape, his breath came back, although his heart was racing so hard it made his chest hurt. 

There must be a meeting tonight. Of course there was. There would be more of them coming soon.

He moved to the doorway of the room so that he was waiting there when Snape came into the house. Snape acknowledged him with a brief pause at the end of the entry.

"What happens now?" Draco asked quietly.

Snape considered him for a long moment, expression cold and unreadable. "Now you live with what you've done," he said eventually. "And haven't." Then he swept away toward the drawing room. 

Draco gripped his arms tightly and looked toward the window again.

[prince-rowan-of-the-forest]

Crown Princes and Butterfly Wings (8/?)

Chapter 7 : Butterfly Wings

—-

Virgil meets the others, secrets are revealed. The party becomes four and the group begin travelling once again.

<- Previous | First | Next ->

@cutebisexualmess :)

—-

Whooo I struggled to get this chapter up to the designated minimum word count I have set for myself haha, not because I was struggling with ideas or anything, I just wanted to leave it at a certain point but I didn't have enough words when I got there :/

Virgil has officially joined the squad!! I wonder who will be next :eyes:

Also! The links on here actually work now! They were messed up before, but I'm fixing them! So they work, on this post at least.

Happy reading!

----

The moment Virgil’s feet touched the ground, the dragon- Tanwen rose up from her coil once again, turning to face them with a rumbling purr. Virgil’s face went red and he turned away and covered it with a hand. Roman laughed, feeling the happiness in the air. He could feel how proud she was. Roman turned to Virgil with a raised eyebrow. 

They huffed, “She says she’s proud of me for finally getting out of that tower.”

“Oh?” Roman asked, “That’s not how most of the stories I’ve read go.”

“Obviously you haven’t been reading the right ones,” Virgil said with a shrug, “She’s been trying to persuade me to leave since I was sixteen years old.”

“Really? You were just… free to go? This whole time?” Roman asked, looking up at Tanwen’s huge form. She bowed her head. 

My Prince is a coward. 

Roman jumped as she did that- speaking in his head again. It didn’t seem nearly as threatening now than it had before, but it was still… an odd feeling.

“I am not!” Virgil yelped. 

You have willingly remained in a prison for four years…

“It was merely caution.” Virgil said, folding his arms.

You are very brave for leaving, my Prince.

Roman watched Virgil as he curled into himself a little, Tanwen was talking to both of them- she must be- but Virgil seemed… almost upset about her words.

I am proud.

“I don’t… want to go.” Virgil said, so quietly that Roman- standing right beside him- almost missed it. Roman looked between him and the dragon. He couldn’t help but think that this felt like a goodbye. 

You must 

Virgil curled further into himself and Roman reached out- meaning to put a reassuring hand on his arm- but stopped halfway, he had no idea how this prince felt about touch. 

His hand- left hanging awkwardly in the air between them- was taken by Virgil, who gripped it tightly. Roman could only stare in surprise. Virgil had made it clear as crystal that he didn’t trust- or even really like- Roman. Regardless, Roman squeezed Virgil’s hand back. 

If you ever need me, I will come

Roman watched as she stood, spreading her wings and taking off. Virgil followed her with his eyes until she couldn’t be seen in the distance anymore and when she couldn’t be seen they turned away, taking a deep breath and looking towards the forest. 

“Alright,” They said, taking another deep breath afterwards, “Where- where are we going?”

Grinning, Roman tugged on their still joined hands and led Virgil to the edge of the forest, trying to remember exactly where they had set up the camp. He needn’t have worried, though, because as soon as he breached the trees, Patton had come running up to them.

“Roman! Oh jeezy, I was so worried you were going to be dragon chow, thank goodness you came back, going in without a plan was so stupid- oh did you get hurt at all?” Patton asked, speaking quickly as he patted down. Roman’s arms. Virgil had let go of his hand as soon as Patton approached, stepping back, “Oh and- wait- since when did you have wings?”

“Oh dear,” Roman mumbled.

“Oh dear indeed,” Logan said, following Patton out of the trees, “Would you like to explain why you’re not hiding them?”

“Tanwen- uh- the dragon- she had me show them and I- sort of forgot…” Roman said sheepishly, “Sorry.”

“It can’t be undone now, and if it was necessary…” Logan sighed, “I will let it go for now.”

Roman turned to see Virgil was standing slightly behind him, he was hiding- if not obviously- and using Roman as a shield. He smiled back at his new friend.

“Uh, well, guys, this is Virgil,” He said, gesturing, “And Virgil, this is Logan, the wizard, and Patton, the traveller.”

Patton startled, only just noticing the other figure behind Roman, he fumbled a bow, in an attempt to be polite, “Um- it’s- it’s nice to meet you, Prince Virgil!”

“There’s no reason for formalities,” Virgil huffed, tapping his foot against the ground, “I’m barely a prince, at this point.”

“Ah, but you are still a Prince,” Patton squeaked.

“But you’re not acting all strange and formal around Roman- why do I get this silly special treatment?” Virgil said, frowning. Roman sighed.

“But- Roman’s not-” Patton started, before looking back at Roman, “You’re not a Prince, are you?”

“Let’s- er- let's get back to the camp and the Logan and I can explain everything, I think you deserve to know, at this point,” Roman sighed, walking forward towards the trees. He could feel all three of the others watching him. Patton followed quickly, walking next to Roman and glancing at his wings every so often but not saying anything. Logan led the way, looking back at him only once. Roman could feel his disappointment, and Virgil remained slightly behind them, following in almost complete silence. 

—-

“Alright,” Logan said when they reached the camp turning to face them, “I suppose since Roman has been negligent of his duties that a proper explanation is in order.”

“Hey,” Roman said quietly, “I’m not- there was no negligence!”

“You forgot about your wings, and you told Virgil that you were a prince,” Logan pointed out.

“Logan, I had to show my wings or I would probably have been fried, would you rather me be dead or our companions know that I was a prince?” Roman fired back, crossing his arms, “We should’ve told Patton earlier what was going onyway, I know this is supposed to be a secret mission, but we never needed to trick someone who’s already accompanying us.”

“Even so, you should have hidden your wings after talking to the dragon, and told Virgil you were a knight or soldier instead,” Logan told him.

“He had no choice,” Virgil cut in, “Tanwen would not have let him lie to me, though you could have informed me that it was a secret and I wouldn’t have said anything.”

“It would have been unfair,” Roman said, feeling a little small, “To keep Patton in the dark after all of this.”

Logan was silent for a moment, before sighing, “Alright, I can see your reasoning, but- keep it within this group, alright? Just because we all know doesn’t mean you can be careless whilst we are travelling.”

“I never planned to,” Roman said with a small smile, “And I’m sorry I messed up.”

“It’s alright, it cannot be helped,” Logan replied. 

“W-well I for one would really like to know what’s going on,” Patton interrupted, he had sat down on one of their bedrolls whilst he and Logan were arguing and was now looking up at them while he wrung his hands in his lap. 

Roman sighed, moving to stand next to Logan while Virgil moved to stand behind Patton with his arms crossed, “We- haven’t been truely honest with you, Patton, you especially, you knew we were keeping things from you, but…”

“I knew that,” Patton cut in, “Don’t worry, I’m not upset about the secrets- I just- well I’d like to know what you’re on about.”

“We’ve been travelling together for multiple weeks now, Patton,” Logan said, “And I believe you have earned our trust. Virgil- unfortunately I cannot trust you yet, I hope you understand, but considering you already know, you may as well hear the whole story.”

“Oh good,” Virgil said, tapping his foot, “Well get on with it, then.”

“Alright, alright,” Roman raised his hands, “I am a Prince, one of the princes of Dalandaire, Roman Kylynne.”

“Wait- I didn’t- you’re that Roman?” Patton yelped, “Sorry- I-”

“It’s alright,” Logan cut in, “We took precautions so that you wouldn’t find out who he was, one being the spell that allows him to hide his wings. Our mission was supposed to remain entirely secret.”

“And your missing twin brother?” Virgil asked, tilting his head, “Is he real?”

“Of course, the crown prince, Remus Kylynne,” Logan nodded, “He disappeared roughly seven weeks ago in the middle of the night and Roman and I were tasked to secretly track down and return him to their fathers, Kings Thomas and Nico.”

“We didn’t want to cause mass panic across the kingdom with the news that the Crown Prince was missing,” Roman explained, beginning to pace, “So we chose to search for him in secret, although we didn’t expect to have anyone join us on this journey.”

Patton chuckled, eyes wide, “So- so what you’re saying, is that me, me, a poor farm boy from Miera has been travelling for the last four weeks with a Prince and someone else who’s very important?”

“I am a training wizard, my father is the King’s advisor and I hope to take the position when Remus himself becomes king,” Logan explained his role proudly, “I have grown up knowing the two Princes all my life.”

“To answer you, Patton, yes you have,” Roman nodded, “But I will not treat you any differently for it, nor do I want you to treat me in any different way, alright?”

“I’d… probably feel more comfortable if you didn’t treat me as though I was special also,” Virgil told them, scuffing one foot across the ground, “I may be a prince by blood, but I was not raised as one.”

“Alright, ok, so… just Virgil?” Patton asked, turning to their new companion.

“Just Virgil.” He nodded. 

“And- just Roman?” Patton asked, looking back at them.

“Exactly,” Roman smiled, “Just Roman.”

“Alright then, now that you know most of the details- we can discuss more later if needed- it’s getting late, Patton, would you like to help me with dinner?” Logan asked, Patton grinned, brightening immediately and rushing across the clearing to help by lighting the fire they’d build earlier. Virgil turned to Roman.

“So… what’s going on with them?” They asked, Roman chuckled.

“Well, Patton and Logan are both into each other, romantically,” Roman whispered, “But Logan is dense as a brick and probably doesn’t even know that he likes Patton himself, let alone that Patton likes him back, and Patton’s been endlessly attempting to flirt with him since we started travelling to no avail-”

—-

Virgil was very interested in the fire.

It was strange, Roman thought, as soon as they’d lit the fire Virgil had moved to sit next to it. He looked softer, next to the firelight, it seemed to tone down the sharpness of his jaw and bring colour to his moonlight pale skin. It made Roman smile. His fellow Prince must like fire- it made sense, considering he seemed to have grown up with a fire breathing dragon as his only companion.

Roman decided, on a whim, to sit next to him. It was very hot, sitting so close to the fire, but Virgil didn’t seem to mind so Roman wouldn’t complain. 

“Hey,” Roman said when Virgil didn’t acknowledge him, Virgil let out a sound that could only be described as a high-pitched squeak, turning to face him all whilst leaning away, Roman chuckled, a little awkward, “Apologies, I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“It’s- fine,” Virgil mumbled, glancing back at the fire before looking back up at Roman, “I am unused to seeing a big fire so closely, it- um- distracted me, I am also unused to- people.”

“I see,” Roman nodded, “Do you like fire?”

“Bright things in general,” Virgil corrected, their wings twitching and- oh right, they were a moth. The attraction to light made a lot more sense now, just like Roman’s attraction to colour.

“I see,” Roman nodded, before glancing back at Patton and Logan, who were busy getting dinner served up, “Food is almost ready, I’m not sure what you’re used to, but we haven’t really got many options.”

“I’m sure whatever your little troop has will be tolerable,” Virgil said, rolling his eyes and standing from his kneel, walking over to Patton and Logan and leaving Roman next to the fire. Roman watched them go, shoulders slightly hunched and turning their head every now and then to look out into the forest. Roman sighed, he wondered how Virgil would fit into the dynamic they had going on right now. 

During dinner Patton tried to get to know Virgil. He didn’t get very far, considering Virgil seemed reluctant to share most details about their life. Especially their life before the tower, Roman wondered what could have happened to make him hate his own family and kingdom so much. 

Shortly after dinner they had decided to turn in for the night. Roman made sure to give Virgil a fair warning about what sleeping on the ground would do to you, all while side-eyeing Patton and Logan. What? He was still a little miffed that they hadn’t mentioned he would hurt in places he didn’t know he could hurt afterwards. 

—-

When morning came, the group set off back the way they had come. Now numbering four instead of three. Roman couldn’t help but jump around, using his wings to flitter from one low-hanging tree branch to another, hopping between the large roots of the trees and laughing as he went. He hadn’t been able to fly properly in weeks, he felt like he deserved this chance before he had to hide his wings again.

Virgil had been watching him. Roman tried to pay no mind to it, but all the time he was flying he could feel the other prince’s gaze on him even without seeing his eyes. Sometimes he would look over and Virgil would look away, pretending to be uninterested or replying to something Patton said, but Roman knew it was a ruse.

Roman wondered if it was because Virgil couldn’t fly himself, maybe he was jealous, or attempting to work out the technique from watching Roman. Whatever he was trying to achieve by watching him, Roman found it couldn’t dampen his spirits.

What could dampen Roman’s spirits though, quite literally, was rain. 

It had started as a drizzle, a light spatter or raindrops that was easily ignored, as the day turned into evening. But as they attempted to set up camp it just continued to get heavier. 

They had taken up refuge underneath one of the large trees that only really offered a little bit of shelter whilst Logan looked through the books he had brought with him in hopes to find some kind of rain repelling spell that would work to stop them from getting drenched while they slept.

In the end Logan had been able to find a somewhat complicated spell that could last them the night. They’d set up under the tree just in case and watched as the water poured off of their little bubble in sheets. They’d slept close together for warmth- without the heat of a fire to warm them instead-  and woken only to find that the rain fhowed no signs of stopping anytime soon.

Well, Roman thought as Logan enchanted all of their packs to repel water, he supposed they were going to get drenched afterall. 

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[tobiramamonmari29]

omoi point of view:

I was in class, but I didn't feel like listening to my French teacher. I couldn't concentrate, as usual I was thinking way too much. Ah, to tell the truth, it's not that I think a lot about the possibilities that I fail, it's just considered. OK, maybe I'm thinking way too much.

But how I could concentrate or not consider the fact that I should perhaps declare myself. Silk what could go wrong in a statement?

Maybe this sunny weather could turn into a disaster. maybe he wouldn't even come! Maybe he doesn't like the fact that I asked him to find me after school. Maybe he doesn't like me being unoriginal in choosing to go behind school to tell him. what if he hadn't understood that I was going to declare myself to him? What if he wasn't gay? What if I change my mind and he thinks I'm a coward? I'm not a coward I'm considering just in case.

What if he didn't like me and didn't know me? maybe he ignored me thinking the request was from a girl. I should have signed the letter with my last name and class in addition to my first name. What if he knew me and didn't like me at all.

and let's say I fall down the stairs or slip in the toilet before going to see him. What if I'm considering doing that there's something to do rather than see me? And if I had an impediment.

Teacher: classes are over, see you on Monday.

omoi: I'm not ready.

Karui: omoi, you're always worrying for nothing.

Omoi: But Karui, let's say-

Karui: let's say you don't tell him anything, then let's say I kill you for it. Will it make you happy?

Omoi: no.

I put my things away with sweaty palms. What if my clothes get stained before I get to see it? What if he didn't come at all? What if I was a coward, really, a coward. Can I turn around? Nah, I'm brave, it turns out he's waiting for me with beating heart in the hope of seeing me. I am the great omoi after all.

kankuro: omoi!

Omoi: oh my god... Sorry god.

Kankuro: is that you? Who asked me to come.

Omoi: do you know me?

Kankuro: Well yeah, karui is my friend you know. I have already come to your house.

Does that mean he's spying on me? Or does that mean he saw me at home? Damn I should wear my headphones less when my sister invites people over. And maybe less ignoring his friends would have seemed less stupid in front of my crush.

Omoi: I-yes.

Kankuro: About the letter.

omoi: be my girlfriend, I mean my husband no my boyfriend fuck my girlfriend fuck. Will you go out with me? Whore ! Can I start over? I thought about several ways how I was going to ask you and I really screwed up.

kankuro: omoi, he chuckled before bursting into laughter. I love this part of you. Actually, I agree to go out with you.

Omoi: do you want to go out with me? Damn....I'm gonna have to consider dating.

Kankuro: kiss me already.

Omoi: ok.

End.

[endiness]

the batman lb

~

okay, i guess i'll reserve my commentary to a lb now instead of spamming.

when is a batman property gonna be brave enough to make alfred posh again. bruce pulling the "you're not my real dad" card on alfred. like, legitimately, is this supposed to be a comedy. how did people watch this in theatres and not crack the FUCK up, it is beyond me.

you have THREE hours. why are you speedrunning the cypher. like, why is this so fast paced? WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH THE REST OF THE TIME IN THIS MOVIE IF THIS IS HOW YOU'RE SPENDING IT NOW. I AM CONCERNED. when this movie isn't unintentionally funny, it's just boring. i mean, why else would you just take a thumb? obvs it would be used to unlock something, duh. also, like, what'd you think was gonna happen putting that mystery usb into your computer? maybe put it into a burner with no personal information and network connection on it next time, maybe.

WHY'D YOU MAKE HIS BOOTS SO STUPIDLY STOMPY. IT SOUNDS FUCKING DUMB. also it just makes me think clang, clang, thunk, scrape. it'd be funnier if this were some bdsm club and then batman would come in and nobody would bat (hehe) an eyelash at his outfit choice. HEY, GUYS, DID YOU KNOW THIS CHICK IS CATWOMAN? LOOK AT ALL THE CATS. DO YA GET IT? DO YA GET IT??? everything about this batcat scene is bad and dumb. also, they don't have chemistry.

why is the place SO destroyed. there's TOO MUCH evidence. it's the riddler? are sure? are you sure you aren't mr jigsaw man? are you really certain? LMAO IT'S LITERALLY JUST JIGSAW THIS IS SO EMBARRASSING. THAT EVERYTHING IN THIS MOVIE IS PLAYED COMPLETELY STRAIGHT. "you got a lot of cats." yeah, duh, bruce. how else would we know she's catwoman. the audience is completely stupid and has to have everything spelled out to them, don't you know anything? (the sad thing is that's true. people ARE that stupid these days. ugh, why'd y'all have to ruin it for the rest of us with brains.)

"they injected him with arsenic." "rat poison." also known as: poison. "what kind of demented sob does this to a person?" jigsaw! :) oh sorry, did you want me to say riddler? but i don't see him anywhere 🤷‍ anyway, remember when jim carrey was riddler. that was at least fun, wasn't it. the complete lack of batcat chemistry lmao. I'M NOT EVEN AN HOUR INTO THIS MOVIE 😭 hey, y'know what makes up for a total lack of chemistry? the old bickering married couple trope, especially for characters that've known each other for like 5 seconds. jk, that's bad. don’t do that. selina would be more interesting if she were just her own character and not selina or catwoman and also if this movie would let her exclusively be about her friend and not, like, batcat nonsense.

when the riddler isn't jigsaw'ing it up he's brainy'ing it up. (y'know, brainy. from hey arnold.) the riddler just blunt force trauma'ing all his victims is so funny. like, i've watched criminal minds. i know that means you're just a coward. especially since you have to get them all when their backs are turned. coward. like, legit, are you supposed to find the riddler in this intimidating? because he isn't. he's funny when he's lurking behind people as if that's somehow supposed to be scary when it isn't, and he's hilarious when he's smashing people's heads in because he must have so non-existent self-esteem that's the only way he feels comfortable enough to attack people, and then he's also funny when he's trying to be the riddler because you're actually just coming up with saw traps. I'M STILL NOT EVEN AN HOUR INTO THIS MOVIE.

oh yay, forcing this batcat narrative despite them having no chemistry. and selina genuinely being a better character far, far away from him. also, you have to keep up appearances beCAUSE YOU NEED A COVER STORY, YOU BAFOON. joker did everything about this better. full offense but pattinson's bruce sucks. he's so boring and awkward. and like, not in a good way like how bruce should be. 'cause he should be a lil awkward. but he should at least be able to FAKE being mr eligible bachelor man, if literally only for appearance and cover's story sake. the bruce in this feels like everybody interviewed about him after he has been convicted of being batman would go "yeah, that kid was always a fuckin' weirdo, i ain't surprised at all." JOKER DID EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS BETTER, FFS.

i'd get out of there. a smart person would've made that car a bomb. i guess making the person inside of it is the same thing. this is so fucking boring, honestly. 🙄 AND I'VE STILL 2 HOURS LEFT. clang, clang, thunk, scrapeeeee. batman has come to uh... untape. that man's mouth. "*heavy breathing*" IT'S BRAINY, Y'ALL! no, you're nygma. e nygma. edward nygma. lmao, joker did all of this so much better. this movie is SO embarrassing. really, i'd have thought since you were a child, you loved the saw movie franchise. 🤷‍ bruce, i don't think you're supposed to be helping him cheat. but is riddler gonna call you out or. is that gonna happen when you get to the third one and bruce has answered them all for you. oh, that didn't happen. lame.

the idea that batman would somehow survive a point blank explosion to his face when it took off the other guy's head who he was literally right next to when the bomb exploded... now you've broken my immersion on top of everything else. if you're going to be afraid of somebody high up on the food chain in a corrupt justice system, i'd think you've be afraid of like... the mayor? not whoever the fuck that guy is. OHMYGOD, JIM IS FAKING INTERROGATING BATMAN????? WHO??? COULD HAVE FORSEEN??? THIS??????? does the movie think this looks cool? i hope it knows it looks lame.

somebody add that whip noise effect for how often this scene is switching between coverage of bruce and jim lmao. why doesn't batman just upload all of this evidence to like tiktok or something. modern day technology exists in this iteration. he's actually being extremely ineffective as batman by not doing that. STOP PRETENDING THAT BATCAT IN THIS HAVE CHEMISTRY. THEY DON'T. shouldn't bruce be like brain dead with how many successive concussions that he's had at this point. bruce revving his engine like this is somehow supposed to be intimidating... embarrassing. i must have THE most bored expression on my face watching this chase scene. LOOK IT'S THE SCENE FROM HEAVY RAIN! how does this scene have any stakes. did anybody watch this and care about what was happening. i mean i guess now there's stakes that poor innocent people are being sucked in this clusterfuck lol. but i mean for the main characters? eh, who cares. oh look the car is flipping, you can tell because it's that shot of the stuff in the car goin’ nuts. LOOK HOW COOL BATMAN LOOKS UPSIDE DOWN IN THE RAIN WITH THE FIRE AND HIS STOMPY STOMPY BOOTS. HE'S SUPER COOL, RIGHT GUYS? AND WITH THE SUPER COOL MUSIC PLAYING? WE MADE A GOOD MOVIE, RIGHT? that's what i assume the people who made this movie were thinking.

when i can even take them saying the riddler seriously i just hear method man saying the riddler. *takes a 3min dance break for the song* i'm not joking, i took a break to listen that song. OH THANK CHRIST. i am halfway through this movie. THE EVIL IS 50% DEFEATED. 🎶 THE RIDDLAR 🎶 this movie is soooooo bad lol. i mean el also means god. is that gonna be a thing lol. remember when jon glover voiced the riddler. that was fun, wasn't it? remember when lost did this bit with the old school technology? that was fun, wasn't it? THE TOWER? THE TOWER THAT JEREMIAH DESIGNED? is that what you're talking about? okay, but fr, why is there an HOUR AND A HALF OF THIS MOVIE LEFT.

ohno, bruce, you've put alfred in danger by existing AND after you've already pulled the "you're not my dad" card on him. that's sad, huh. "i'm afraid it already has, sir." dory is hilarious. unintentionally. please explain how alfred is doing so poorly despite at least THROWING THE BOMB AWAY FROM HIM but meanwhile bruce survived a fucking point blank explosion. POINT BLANK. LITERALLY RIGHT FUCKING NEXT TO HIM. like, you can either have realism or fantastical. YOU HAVE TO PICK ONE. YOU CAN'T HAVE BOTH SOMETIMES AND OTHER TIMES NOT. every time this movie thinks it's being cool my eyes just roll. 🙄

THEY DON'T HAVE CHEMISTRY. STOP. everything about this is getting lamer and lamer 🙄 THERE'S STILL OVER AN HOUR LEFT. i mean, the joker also thought bruce's parents were his when they weren't. did you get a dna test done or. why's it so laaaaaaaaaame. why are they kissing. this doesn't make sense. ugH. now, you could make this acceptable if she stole shit off of him.

"martha was in and out of asylums" joker!martha canon??? okay. i highly dislike this version of bruce. he is just *sad trombone noise* i don't want *sad trombone noise* for a bruce. ...didn't i play this scene in a batman game or something. why is the plot for this just jumping everywhereeeeeeeee. *sad trombone noise* is so boring. all of the wayne manor designs (sans gotham) have been bad since 90s batman ended. 💅 bruh, he just woke up. calm down. what, you did nothing for your mom? RUDE. ....i miss when alfred got to be posh. i do not accept any of you non-posh alfreds. 🙈 this scene is so touching. is what somebody would say who is possibly easily manipulated i guess. not me though.

i just. do not like this selina. there are only two selina's for me and they are from batman returns and btas. why would you do this plot and make everything so boring when you could've just done white knight. except whoever made this would've just made that boring too. "come on, vengeance." pls stop. literally every time this movie is like look how cool this is, it's just the lamest shit ever.

now it's like you're trying to copy batman returns but like. you have to know batman returns did it better, right. right. if all of you stopped monologuing, you'd solve all of your problems. like, at all. instead of not at all. omg, she scratched him. like a cat. get it. 'cause she's catwoman. GET IT. DO YOU GET IT. everything about this is just the lamest. i mean, batman's secretly recording everything he sees and hears so perhaps not. THERE'S STILL ALMOST A FUCKING HOUR LEFT.

i was going to make a joke about the riddler sniping falcone but i guss it wasn't a joke, huh. i hope it is the riddler who shot him because that makes actually no fucking sense whatsoever. so it's perfect for this movie! remember how fun the riddler's place was in batman forever and they played bad days by the flaming lips? that was fun, wasn't it? ohmygod, is he drawing a question mark in his cappuccino or whatever. because that'd just be. so clever of this movie. so clever and creative. i am not at all being sarcastic. IT'S THE ONE THAT SAYS E NYGMA. AS IN NYGMA. EDWARD NYGMA. oh, movie, you're just oh so creative and clever to have him draw a question mark in his coffee. i'm so super duper impressed by you and your storytelling skills!

no, his name is edward nygma. "suffocating my mind no escape" yeah yeah cut my life into pizza, we get it. "he's got like 500 followers." i have a lot more followers than that. on tumblr. tumblr. wow, is it: I'M GONNA SAY WHO BATMAN IS. i, for one, would gladly have this be the end of THE batman. 'cause this movie is bad and you're a bad lame-o batman, full offense.

...is that collar a joke, because you could easily slip it over your head. like, it's much larger than his head. okay, so on top of being jigsaw and brainy, he's also literally just stanley coleman too? dumb. man, you know things in places like this are recorded, right? or did you stop the cameras? kinda looks like they're still recording so uh, you're kinda already fucked. where's the joker to pop in a bitchslap the fuck out of riddler and be like "WE ALL KNOW HE'S BRUCE, YOU MORON. YOU'RE RUINING THE GAME WITH BATMAN FOR THE REST OF US." the joker did this way better. 🙄 WHY THE FUCK IS THERE STILL OVER 30 MINS OF THIS MOVIE LEFT. why'd people give joker so much shit when this movie and character exists lol. bruh, are you faking this or like everything in this movie: is this supposed to be unironically played straight. let's fast forward outta this scene already pls.

i am at the point where if i could run this movie at 2x speed, i would be already. alas, i cannot. now you're just stealing from jeremiah and gotham. LAME. literally every single thing this movie is copying... everything else did it better lol. jeremiah already did this and he's so much cooler this is so unfair 😤 LITERALLY GOTHAM ALREADY DID THIS AND IT WAS SO MUCH COOLER UGH. also, like, year one/zero year was the inspiration for both, right. BUT GOTHAM LEGITIMATELY DID THIS BETTER AND COOLER.

ohno, the dumbass mayor who thinks she knows better than everyone else got shot. how terrible. also, i totally have emotional investment in all of this characters and not. literally none. oh yay, it's the look how cool batman is fight scenes. yay. waiting for the moment when batman gets saved by catwoman 'cause this is super lame and that's one of the lamest things that could happen. oh i'm sub 30 mins, yay! this random villain taking for fucking ever to just shoot batman when he could've just shot him. lame. also, hey, catwoman stopped him and saved batman. who could have forseen this totally not lame turn of events.

remember when the joker and batman were bleeding out and their blood was making a broken heart on the ground. anyway, that was more romantic than this nonsense. so now he's just using magic juice to pump himself up? lmao. what even is this. "i'm vengeance." yeah, it sounds lame af doesn't it. i know that's not the real reason. but it should be. isn't the entire city there getting deded lol. LMAO ARE YOU FOR REAL. THIS IS SO FUCKING LAME. like, your epic "oh batman dies" moment is him being a fucking moron and cutting an electrical wire to stop it from electrocuting people except THEN you fucking chicken out and don't even have him die (or ‘die’)? EVEN THOUGH YOU SHOT IT AS A DEATH SCENE MOMENT. HOW MUCH FUCKING LAMER CAN THIS MOVIE GET, JESUS. all tea all shade all offense but batfleck did this better. look at how ~emotional and ~moving this scene is. totally not schlocky as hell. wait, was that the dumbass mayor who's there? who got shot? bitch, you're gonna die in those waters. your wound is getting super infected. that's sad huh.

OH YAY THE EMO MUSIC STARTS. NOOOOOOOOOOOOO COME ON WE'VE RETURNED TO THE RORSCHACH VOICE OVER NARRATIONS?????????? THIS IS SO SAD FOR YOU. I'M SO EMBARRASSED FOR YOU. THIS IS REALLY PATHETIC, Y'ALL. ugh, when is this gonna be over. somebody soundproof the riddler's cell. YOU CAN'T SUCK ME IN WITH BATJOKES. I WON'T FALL FOR THIS. is this how it's gonna end. on them. having no chemistry.  "you're already spoken for." YEAH, BY THE JOKER. i mean, not this batman. he's *sad trombone noise* and deserves no jokers. but like, batmans in general. they are all spoken for. (by the joker.) all you have to do is end the movie and you're still making it lame. YAY, IT'S OVER. I'M FREE. anyway, gotham did all of this, everything in this movie, but better. go watch gotham. 💅