#he wont do anything in the yard and it’s starting to make

[weedlovingweed]

the dog im watching shit all over himself and his crate and i had to wash them both and my only pants that are clean now have shit on them. i took him out before i left. i wasn’t even gone that long. and he wants to walk again im like motherfucker my ONLY PANTS HAVE SHIT ON THEM. GO IN THE BACK YARD!!!!

[gravesdept]

literally banging at the walls of my enclosure at the thought of western au!141 + graves & makarov.

content: headcannons, western au, no proof read, sfw

barkeeper / saloon owner! kyle “gaz” garrick whom owns a tight end bar thats known for the best liquor out west. men travel yards just to taste the taut beers and whiskeys. its something hes truely proud of, owning a business in these days aren’t stable most of the times.

so when a group of bandits come storming in tryin’ to rob him of all of his worth and take his saloon girls, lets just say he ain’t happy. there was nothing he could do cause he’d never been robbed before. it was outright to even consider robbing in this town, so the sudden change had him on his toes.

gaz goes for his last resort and tells the townsmen to try and get reimbursement, but they wont do anything about it, says a man his “color” should be greatful to even own such a business in a town like this. and if that doesn’t get him going its what sparks it, cause the next day hes heading down to the sheriffs office to report the bandits.

the sheriffs man tells him he could be in useful hands to help track and find these bandits so gaz is the first to get recruited into the program/commitee.

cowboy! simon “ghost” riley who owns stable horses, cattle, bull, sheep and piglets. hes locally known for his ridgid nature and the deadly skull mask that makes up his face. some say its to warn off bandits, some say that he was a bandit, neither are confirmed to be true though.

when no one can come up with who he is behind the mask, they start calling him ghost cause’ there always seems to be mystery around him.

simon always keeps stock of his cattle but oddly lately they seem to be goin missing. when the news gets around that theres a group of bandits going around causing chaos, he’s relatively pissed. soon his horses start to go missing, some even killed. at first he dealt with the cattle going missing but now killing his horses? he wanted revenge.

no animal deserved to be harmed in such way. hell he had started to blame himself for not being there to stop the pesky rats.

so when the local sherrifs man price comes around talking all nonsense about getting affected locals to help him on course to find their leader, sure as hell he saddled up his horse and had an ol’ friend laswell to take care of his stables while he was away.

lawman / sheriff! john price who is above all petty crimes and laws. hes kept his town clean for decades, having been passed his job as lawman from his father and his father before that. its all normal until a banker has stolen funds and taken off. it must have been what tripped many wires in the squeaky town. cause bandit after bandit started rolling in stealing and causing utter disaster.

so when locals start to report havoc reeking on an even major scale its no doubt hes pissed. he finds out the bandits started to band together and has made a permanent group.

he cannot possibly track down all of these bandits by himself so he suggests collecting a few affected locals to the lawmakers to form a temporary committee in finding the bandits. and when kyle comes to him about being robbed hes offering him a deal to join him.

blacksmith! johnny “soap” mactavish whose a foreigner to the town, that first gets into making horseshoes for cowboy!simon. when he hears the news about the bandits stealing from businesses and harming locals the first thing he does is message simon to make sure his poor cattle are fine.

its reasonable hes mad once hes informed the bandits had attacked and stolen horses, even harmed them. he feels sympathetic for the animals just as much as simon and when the sheriff calls simon about the committee hes the first one to know.

and the third to join out of sake of sympathy for all and everyone in the town who had been affected. also feels as a foreigner he has to prove himself worthy of becoming known in the town for his hardships.

bounty hunter! phillip graves who runs a large underground outlaw organization. called shadow corp. him and his shadows capture and kill peoples who have bountys placed on them. they travel territories and districts collecting the cash. ultimately they decide to store the money in a bank, so no one knows what their scheming.

a local west district banker named of shepherd allows them to smuggle the money into the banks safe. not without a fee though as they have to commit to doing personal bountys for him along side thir work.

bandit! vladimir makarov whose morals drive him away from his job as a banker. hes caught stealing the savings from the bank, taking off before the lawman can question him. its 2 years later before he comes back, though not alone, having gathered a loyal pack of thieves which he called konni. they caused crime all around town. trampling businesses, stealing cattle, and harming the locals.

and when that wasnt enough they started branching out to other territories.

gaining attention from the lawmakers and eventually the sheriff, he gathers locals who have been affected by these crime dwindles and temporarily has them help in search for these bandits. allowing them to become lawmen. one of simons old stable horses had the number 141 etched into its skin, though it later died fighting off a group of bandits. which is the reasoning behind their lawmaker crews name 141.

along the search for the leader of the infamous konni they travel other towns different districts even to stop the bandits further. 141 comes in contact with a travelling bounty hunter who is in need of help tracking someome whom had recently had a bounty put out on them, says he’ll split the bounty cash, betrays them and before they know, he takes off.

soon they’ll all meet the leader of konni, but not in the way their expecting.

AN: LOLOL WAS SUPPOSED TO POST THAT STUPID MAKAROV FIC BUT I DONT KNOW IF IM GOING TO FINISH IT.

[chiara-hotel]

𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝐧𝐝: 𝐃𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐇𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐬/𝐨

Characters: Chuuya, Fyodor, Poe, Ranpo, Sigma, Dazai & Nikolai

TW: Mentions of Fake Blood, Limbs, Clowns, Usual halloween decor

This idea is so cute so I ended up adding Chuuya & Nikolai aswell for the characters list. Anyway, hope you enjoy the hc & thank you for requesting!

—————————————————————————

Chuuya:

- Chuuya loves celebrations and celebrating

- Hes definitely the person to go all out on decorations (not even on purpose too, he just sees something he doesnt have and then buys it)

- Each halloween you open the seasonal storage to see a lot of new things

- Onto the actual decorating, he loves decorating with you

- Chuuya will make you fly with his ability to help you put up some of the decorations before letting you back down and kissing you

- You guys put up a lot of lights and other decor in higher places, just because chuuya likes using his ability on you and seeing you happy

- But don’t worry he also helps put up a lot of things

- Imagine your on a ladder and then he jumpscares you with one of the decorations

- Then comes a playful fight between the two of you

Fyodor:

- Fyodor doesnt own many decorations

- I’d say 3-6 with a few cobwebs + spiders

- But the decor he owns is definitely the scariest

- You guys are putting the decor up and all of a sudden you active it and jump back

- Fyodor would laugh at you before asking if you’re alright

- Then after that your staying behind him & helping out from the saftey of your boyfriend

- If they keep jumpscaring you he might get rid of them

- After you set up the things he owned, you bought a whole ton of decorations for inside the house

- So you suprised him with them and you convinced him to let you put them up

- He helps hold the ladder your standing on for lights, hands you stuff/decorations to add but he won’t put anything up

- He would never admit it but he finds it cute when you decorate the house

- Hugs while he’s standing there helping you, especially if he gave you the last item

Poe:

- Poe is the one who’d get scared at every single thing you bring out of your halloween decor box

- Hes hiding behind you and he’ll look adorable while hes doing it

- Definitely will help out for the non-scary decorations

- Karl also helps you guys out! and hes a big help

- Expect a lot of hugs from him (mostly from behind)

- Talks about making some new halloween mystery novels while you put up some of the decor

- Maybe he’ll even start writing if you have a little bit of decorations left

- Karl eats some of the candy though (and you guys spend 30 minutes trying to figure out where it went)

Ranpo:

- The one who doesnt find any of it scary

- Ranpo will complain at the beginning but eventually gives in just for you

- He doesn’t really help out though. Ranpo is your helper who will support by eating snacks at his desk

- On a side note: hide the halloween candy because this man will take them all

- Even if Ranpo finds a lot of the scary stuff stupid, he doesnt like some of the overly scary things

- Lights, Cobwebs, Pumpkins, Spiders, Bats are just a few things he loves

- Also those blow ups that you put in your front yard (he does that one, he must set it up)

- Ranpo expects a lot of praise for putting up the 1 decoration so give him some wont you?

- And when you’re finally done with all the decorations here expects a lot of cuddles for all of that work

Sigma:

- Sigma would want all of the decorations to be perfectly placed, so I think he would spend a lot of time on them

- Definitely overthinks the placements… a bit too much

- If hes deep in thought just hug him and ask him to help you with something else

- He likes cobwebs, carving pumpkins, jack-o-lanterns & fake graves/skeletons

- Nikolai probably gave him a clown decoration for fun so now you guys hang it at your door

- Sigma especially loves carving pumpkins with you. its relaxing and he also makes a lot of designs

- you guys definitely have the path leading to your house filled with jack-o-lanterns

- You also help him & nikolai decorate at the casino/DOA office

- Mostly because nikolai forces the both of you

- Nikolai would make comments about how cute you guys look together the entire time (and he won’t shut up until you guys kiss or something)

Dazai:

- When Dazai asks you to help him decorate his house, he doesn’t actually want to decorate-he just wants to spend time with you

- But hes so glad when you agree to decorate his house because that includes: Shoping trips, Spening more time with you, and much more

- Most of the time Dazai will complain about putting up the decorations as if it werent his idea

- The other times he’s actually helping you, maybe start bribing him with kisses to get him to work

- He likes mummys, caution tapes & fake blood for decorations

- Dazai will also secretly buy a while can of fake blood just to put on himself on “accident” he just wanted attention

- So you spend a whole hour in the shower together (you taking off the fake blood and cleaning him)

- The decorating will take 2 days or more with him because he gets lazy

Nikolai:

- Run away while you can

- Goes shopping for halloween decor with you only to pick out the scariest of items

- Your house is a literal haunted house

- Not to mention Nikolai bought some extra suprises for you to put around the house

- You got into he kitchen… Open your cupboard and BOOM a clown will pop up from the cupboard and scare you

- As for decorations he likes, scary ones, the decor with audio, clowns, blood, fake limbs but why have fake ones when he can get real limbs & blood easily

- Nikolai is also that one house on the street that has audio with screaming & scary sounds

- At this point everyones afraid of him

- Not to mention while decorating hes going to try to spook you at every possible moment

- As for the decorating itself hes prefect because of his ability!

- Nikolai can easily reach the high spots

- So yeah decorating with him will take the entire day

[bcolfanfic]

Ahh id love to hear some hcs about the time when theyre trying to get bucky help/make him realise he needs to try and get help (even if that too turns to be difficult when they hit a wall at the VAs office)

poor sweet bub </3

in my head- it takes a minute after they get home for things to really get as bad as they do. when he first goes back to wyoming with gale and they get their marriage license the minute they're back (they say they'll have an Actual Wedding later, they just want it on paper asap), even though his mind is racing, he's kinda in lalaland just happy to be out of the war. and with gale and starting their life together.

then when the "newness" does start to wear off, he's antsy to really tell gale that he's struggling because he's scared of popping his bubble and "ruining everything". '

so he doesn't say anything- and just kinda starts spiraling into depression. sleeping more, crying in the shower, feeling really Out Of It when he is awake etc etc.

gale notices something is off right away, but bucky wont talk to him so it doesn't really get very far- until one of the nights bucky gets out of bed in the middle of the night and gale finds him just sitting in the living room crying into his hands </3

sits with him and bucky just kinda blubbers about everything and about how out of whack he's felt and how guiltily he feels over it. this is elaborated on more in the fic im working on- but to begin with gale encourages bucky to talk to the va, and it's him doing that advocating for himself at first, or at least trying to. there's a little movement, he gets an initial appointment and talks to someone but then in the attempting to have consistent, ongoing assistance is when things start to go sideways,

and after one call with them where he gets especially frustrated and really freaks out gale decides to take over trying to handle the va for him.

he has "episodes" kinda similar to the whole baseball thing- and mostly at night. in a way gale almost trains himself to sense when he's awake and not in bed anymore, and it really freaks him out the few times bucky ends up going outside at night. he only ever goes out into their backyard, and gale always manages to get him inside and back to bed safely, even if it takes a bit.

but a part of his increasing frustration with trying to get him help is that he's terrified that one night he isn't just going to be in the yard, or he's not going to wake up/realize he's gone and bucky's going to get hurt. and he knows he wouldn't forgive himself if anything did happen to him.

bucky talks to curt quite a bit when all of this is going on, in that he still feels like he's burdening gale with certain things and curt is "different". especially when a lot of his shit comes from blaming himself for curt getting hurt/his EOD unit not finding the explosive that blew his leg off, in a way it helps to talk to him as much as he can because it drills into his head that curt is alive and doesn't hate him for what happened.

[cakkeheavenly999]

Homegirl

yuji itadori x fem!reader wc: 1693 tags: weed sex/yuji calls you baby not beta read!

yuji is the type of guy who grows feelings for his girl best friend. i wanna kiss him so bad...

your toes curled in your fluffy socks as you sat beside yuji on his living room couch. well, his older brothers living room couch. you had been so busy with college you didnt have time for your best friend; until now. it was finally spring break, and you were finally back in your hometown. of course you were staying with your parents for the week since they wanted to see you, but they werent the only people you came back for.

when you told yuji you were back, he blew up your phone with excited texts and begged to facetime you. of course you agreed. you talked with him all night and woke up laughing together when you realized you fell asleep on the phone with one another. 

no one was closer to you than your homeboy yuji itadori. 

when you were free that evening, he invited you over to smoke. of course you said yes. you told your parents you were going to see yuji and jumped on your old bike, riding down to his place with a bag of weed in your back pocket, and a lighter in the front of your denim shorts. yuji lived in the big house two blocks ahead of yours. it was impossible to miss and the two of you always loved doing everything together. its funny how things worked out that way. 

you jumped off your bike, throwing it in his front yard as you ran up to his front door. he beat you to it. with a big shimmering smile, he wrapped you up in a tight hug and pulled you into his house. the sun was starting to set, and the smoke session was about to begin.

choso was nice enough to let you and yuji smoke in the house instead of sending you to the porch. as long as you didnt burn anything down. “its been so long since we smoked together, im sorry i only have cruddy weed.” you apologized while eyeing your crumbs of cheap weed nobara had slid you. 

an exchange for you being so kind as to drop her off at a sneaky link. the room was lit via the tv and a small table lamp on the side of you, making your contribution even more pathetic. “you know i would never ask you to bring weed. and this is all my brothers anyway.” he snickered as he emptied the shredded tobacco from the cigar wrap into a little, black grocery bag. “sukunas? he wont be mad?” you asked with worry as yuji rolled his eyes. “he stole my favorite red nike dunks. so im stealing some of his weed.” he frowned as he got into the much larger bag of weed to break up a few nugs. 

“be the bigger person.” you joked and gently nudged his thigh with your foot before your eyes returned to the tv. the two of you had put on an anime to watch, but neither of you were actually paying attention to it. just some background noise for the smoke sesh. with the blunt now rolled (and pearled) yuji scrambled for a lighter among the snacks and bottles of water. “here,” you pulled one out of the front pocket of your jean shorts. “dont lose it.” you smiled at him as he took your lighter. your fingers brushed his but you thought nothing of it.

you were yujis homegirl. and of course he was your homeboy. people always assumed you were dating, but that wasnt the case. you did have some unsavory thoughts about yuji from time to time, but he was your friend before he was an object of your desire. the blunt was passed to you and the ceramic ashtray was moved to the center for the both of you to share. 

the weed was superb. sukuna really was the greatest plug. making yuji the greatest plug via association. your eyes were starting to feel heavy as you leaned against yuji with the brown blunt becoming shorter and shorter. “should we roll another? use the weed i brought.” you offered him the blunt and he hummed in deep thought. you could see the shine of his thin gold chain dangling around his neck from the tvs glow. it pulled you in closer until yuji was holding the blunt, looking down at your hand resting on his thigh. 

“you okay?” yuji asked lazily as his body sank back against the velvet couch. you nodded, your hand still as you gave his muscled leg a small squeeze. his breath hitched softly as you moved in even closer. “whatre you doin?” he mumbled as the blunt hung from his lips. his eyes on you. “nothin.” you whispered as you eyed his crotch through his black basketball shorts. you were sitting on your knees now, your heart pounding in your chest until yuji grabbed you by the shoulder and pushed you away. his cheeks were red and he was frowning.

“you dont have to do that.” yuji didnt sound angry with you. just anxious. “i want to though…” you trailed off with a weak frown, watching yuji put the blunt in the ashtray. “lets do somethin for you too.” the offer was quiet, the tv casting you both in a colorful glow as your pink haired best friend inched closer on the couch.

your lips met. soft and welcoming. you knew in that moment that this was something you both wanted. your tongues met with each messy kiss, drool coating your chin as yuji made his way on top of you. your back was digging into the arm of the couch now. your heart racing as your arms wrapped around him with a whine leaving your lips as he pulled away and moved lower.  

“wheres choso?” you panted as yuji sucked and kissed along your jugular, lightly and cautiously. “sleep upstairs.” you pulled at the back of his shirt, stifling another whine. “sukuna?” you worried about him the most. “his babymama house.”yuji mumbled against your skin as his warm hands slipped under your shirt, pulling at the front clasp of your bra as he sucked and licked at your throat.

you wanted him to leave marks. more soft sounds passed your lips as yuji pulled away and bunched your shirt over your chest. your nipples hardened once they were exposed to the cool air of the room. he looked down at you, contemplating his next move as you pulled your hands away and tugged at his shirt. he took your silent request and pulled the article of clothing over his head and haphazardly dropped it to the floor. his chest was exposed, and he dove in for another round of kisses as his large palms massaged your breasts. you were like dough in his hands. moldable and pliable for him to enjoy. it was like one of many fantasies you silently wished would come true.

his hands moved to your jean shorts, pulling at the button and zipper as he kept your moaning lips distracted with his. the denim was being yanked down your hips with your panties bunched in the fabric. they dangled off of your ankle as his hands moved between your thighs. his thumb rubbed at your clit. his fingers pumped in and out of you carefully crooking upwards. swallowing your yelps and cries as you trembled beneath him with nothing short of delight. when the sound of shuffling clothing returned you felt the pooling heat in your stomach leave a dull burn as his fingers pulled away. 

you needed yuji inside of you. his cock rested against the meaty petals of your pussy, the tip of his cock meekly greeted your clit with a few light, affectionate rubs. “can i?” he whispered, his voice airy. needy. just as needy as you. you gave him a lazy nod for a response, your body tensing when his strong arms lifted your hips into his lap, leaving you bent as he sank his thick, throbbing cock into your soaked cunt. 

his hips rocked with yours, his gold chain swinging before your eyes. the anime was drowned out by wet smacks of skin and soft moans. each drag of his cock left you light headed. you clenched tighter around him, mumbling soft sobs and ‘oh fucks’ with each piston. the mushroomy tip of his cock nudged perfectly against that spongy wall inside you. “your body was made for my cock. feel it baby?” he cooed, leaning in to meet your lips with his own. his rhythm steady and quick as he fucked you against the leather couch, letting you drag your nails against the bare skin of his back. it felt so good. better than you could have imagined. maybe it was the weed. maybe it was the feelings you held onto. maybe it was in yujis dna to have excellent dick. whatever the answer was, it was leading you to an orgasm; fast. 

your toes curled in your fuzzy socks, your breathing quickened as yujis thrusts became sloppy and rough. a thin trail of spit connected the two of you as he pulled away, pushing your thighs apart to get even deeper inside of you. “s-so deep yuji- mm’cummin…” you whimpered pathetically as your pussy fluttered around him. sucking him deeper and deeper as he nudged against your cervix. the sudden feeling left the coil in your stomach winding impossibly tight as yuji nodded. “you can come. cum with me? cum with me please? please baby?” he huffed and panted as his cock throbbed inside of you.

you nodded, your body quaking as your orgasm hit you like a punch. your body writhed as yuji hunched over you with a deep growl.

his cock pulsed, the feeling of a gooey warmth left your thighs trembling. the throbbing sensation intensified as your body grew sensitive from overstimulation. you could feel the pearl colored cum starting to leak out of you along with your own juices. but thats not what you were worried about.

it was the post nut clarity telling you that you just fucked your homeboy on his older brothers couch. 

[ants-personal]

okay i gotta jot this down real quick so fuckin a

tw. suicide attempt

okay its the idea of after randy being shot he instead of admitting he called the cops he whimpers out a plea for benson to just leave with him let's just go please and honestly at that point feeling so overridden with guilt benson listens they drive away right as the cops pull in. Benson is full on panicking randy's hurt he hurt him he did the opposite of what he promised why did he ruin everything everytime he just wanted to do one thing right before he died and he couldn't even handle that. He's rotten hes disease a bad dog that tears up anything given to him

Randy bleeding the passenger seat asks benson if he's okay and that makes benson bark out a laugh cause of course randy is checking in on him while he's the one with a hold in his shoulder. Sweet strong randy who stood up like benson wanted who learned and will go off to be wonderful a real angel in his passenger seat he says nothing and randy just stares. tries to reach out gets a growl in response like the ungrateful mutt benson is.

He robs a corner store everything he'd need to patch up randy best he can he cant let him die wont let him die. Golden tears run down soft cheeks as he digs into sacred flesh with blacken thread. whispers apologizes asks for mercy flinches when a gentle hand rests on his cheek. Kneeling with precious blood on his hands blood he cant help but puke at the sight. Putrid vile like him. Randys shaking and asleep in the backseat he barely keeps his eyes on the road terrified if he takes them off him hell disappear into the moonlight.

Its only when he can stop his pathetic tears and really think he knows what he has to do knows it must end this way always was going to when he walked out to his car today. He pulls over when he spots it a large weeping widow just off the back of some pound a few yards from the road. He grips the wheel selfishness fighting him fresh hot tears well in his eyes. Grabbing the gun and his cigs he leaves the keys in the ignition and begins his walk to the end.

He sits and smokes it's really fitting that his life began and ends at the hands of a coward too afraid to face his actions himself. He deserves it stuff like this didnt happen to good boys. It's quiet out here damp and cool least his body will be useful to the wild life out here one positive for all the destruction and pain he has caused. Once this last cigarette is snuffed out so will he.

He hears it the call of his angel stupid stupid the keys are there he needs to go back home back to a world that needs randy and not benson he shouldn't have to see bensons rotten insides splattered against a tree trunk. He curls into himself winces as randy stumbles into view eyes him with all the dark mean energy a dying stray trying to hole itself away make him leave its all he wants hands trembling hates the precious tears he keeps spilling

Bares his teeth when soft whimpers spill from randy mouth inching closer eyes bright in the shadows this might be what people see when they look up at the eyes of forgiving god then randy gets to close tries to wrap slender fingers around the gun loosely in bensons hand and it's instinctual to lash out dig his claws and fangs into heavenly flesh tackling randy till he has him pinned tears not to let his acid tears sear and stain randy. And randy's pleading with him like he is anything more than the dirt hes laying on.

He rest his forehead against randy's brings a hand up to wipe away tears. Reassures this is what needs to happen randy needs to heal himself his world and benson needs to kill his its just what sinners like him deserve tears himself away from the heat and light that is randy bradley crawls back towards the gun and his final resting place. He has to finish what he started and he's so so sorry there's nothing to save there never was.

the gun goes off

and yet he still breath feels the divine warm solid figure of randy pressed into him fingers digging into his wrist and twisting it like a croc with its kill forcing him to drop the gun pulled into a sweet safe embrace he doesnt deserve and never will sobbing his distasteful tears into the shirt of his personal saint

[mister-eames]

I know it’s been said before, but you spark so much joy with your headcanon & arthur/eames discussions 🥺 also! Still thinking of that pic of Tom Hardy in a muscle tee & other recent photos of him where he is lots of grey in his beard. Idk if you saw JGL at the ceremony where he presented rian Johnson with an award but he had a deep velvet plum suit on, a beard and his hair is long & wavy. & now I’m thinking about older eames/Arthur who are comfortable happy and still sickeningly in love

Nonnie!!!!!!! Thank you so much for stopping by, these asks always are so thought provoking and indulge me so much, I'm always happy to talk about Arthur/Eames and Inception in general!

Okay so, I had not seen that video and I am SO GLAD you brought it to my attention. JGL LOOKS SO FREAKING GOOD!!! THE SUIT!!! THE BEARD!!! THE CURLS!!!!!! Oh my god. If anyone has not seen the video check it out here you wont regret it.

And, you said it -- "Comfortable, happy and (still) sickeningly in love" is all I want for Arthur and Eames (and my life tbh). My headcanon is that they settle down and retire and while they still dabble in a little criminal action here and there (like being criminally sexy!!!) they live quieter lives a handful of years after the Fischer job. They love each other, right? They want to be safer because they want to build a life over building dreams, because life can be so short, you know, and I think in the film you learn just that--anything can happen at any given moment and you just...slow the hell down. Even when that means taking life in the slow lane and changing course - and so they do.

I imagine Arthur and Eames in their forties and fifties, teaching and consulting for work - Eames being disgusted every time he does his taxes and Arthur being disgusted with himself for wearing polo shirts in the summer and secretly loving it. They are starting to go grey, more grey with every handful of years - they are starting to go soft in places. There are crows eyes and forehead lines and heartburn and creaky bones. Diets to manage IBS and blood pressure. Worse, they start to do things their parents used to do -- like watch the news on TV and mutter into their dinner about idiot politicians and neighbours who park like dickheads on the street and wont trim their trees back out of their yard, and they reminisce about how things were different when they were kids and seriously why the fuck are they the only normal people who live on this street?

They keep busy. They learn new things. For his forty-fifth birthday Arthur builds Eames a library in their Philadelphia home with his bare hands. Eames buys the battered skeleton of a '67 Ford Mustang and restores it for Arthur. They read books and watch movies in bed and keep guns in their bedsides just in case. They go on long drives together and still sometimes travel the world to see old faces and so they still remember what it feels like to be homesick and miss the good life. Eames' knees play up. Arthurs back has seen better days. They're uncles to their siblings kids and to Phillipa and James. And they take that job very seriously.

They still have their domestics and spats every now and then. But they make up and move on. They're partners (in life and crime) and they get their thrills out of making the other happy. They're the people the other cannot wait to come home to.

They have always attempted to manufacture their own luck and they finally did it because here they are, content and happy.

[spaceless-vacuum]

I am sold on your yandere version of Link but I've gotta ask... How does he fair if he was to actually succeed in winning you over? Is he still the type to want to lock you away from the rest of the world or do you get to explore it still? With him at your side of course because he would never trust your safety to anyone else I'm sure.

I love this idea because he is so much more manageable when you go with him willingly. Maybe I’m just soft for yandere who manage their tendencies with their darling, but I love the idea of the two of you just getting along. Of course it’s not perfect by any means. You still have some rules to work around, some spoken and some are just there for you to understand.

The two of you do travel together. Fighting while on the road is always a prevalent issue in Hyrule. Yet he doesn't want you to get hurt. So to get him to agree to bring you along you have to prove that you wont start anything. If you're allowed to carry a weapon, it’ll be a bow. A sword or any other weapon would only encourage you to get close to the fighting. That is the exact opposite of what he wants.

In fact I think he’d be more inclined to give you a slingshot. You can use it to defend yourself, but you wouldn't want to get into a fight with just a slingshot. Making you rely on him for knightly duties while keeping you safe if something does go wrong. This also opens up the option for you to impress him with your abilities. Shooting down enemies from afar is something he appreciates, even if he wishes you would just leave all the fighting to him.

More on traveling with him, don't expect to travel when injured! If you get hurt you're staying at camp. Either there are if it’s close enough a stable or a house. Broken bones? You're not leaving the bedroll. Just sit there in the designated safe spot until he comes back from his quest. From there you can be escorted to his house. All the items needed to heal you are there. Don’t worry too much about it, he's just being kind.

Once there you aren't allowed to leave until you are healed again. It’s too dangerous to risk you being killed all because your body is too injured. Stay by him and only with him and you’ll be ok. Don't wander away or go too far from the yard. He’ll have to force some bedrest if you get too out of hand. It’s all for your own good he says, as he ties your ankles to the bed frame.

Some part of him knows it’s wrong and he does feel bad for doing it, especially since you came so willingly, but you have to understand it’s for your own good. He’s the warrior with hundreds of years of expertise here alright?

That being said, some part of him takes so much glee from the idea of you being right where he left you. Even when travelling around he feels it. The giddy joy of knowing you're right there. Sitting by the fire of the campsite right where he told you to wait. By the time he comes back he’s ready to hold you tight and lay kiss after kiss on your skin. His treat for a job well done. 

All the war and killing takes a toll on him. He is for all accounts a kid who has to sacrifice himself so others may stay safe. To feel just like that kid and not have to worry about the world for just a few moments is all he needs. He gets it when travelling by himself, with Zelda when they are not working, and with you. Coming back home to you for a cuddle session is all he needs to feel safe again.

So all in all, you going with him works out best for both of you. Yes you still have to be careful and not do anything to make him feel like you'll leave, which is easier said than done, but if you're inclined not to talk to strangers (or anyone that isn't him) already, can handle yourself but you try to avoid fights, and don't travel far from where you're left you're in luck!

[ididit-allofit-foryou]

hello, hello all. it is my true honor to gather you here today & give you some Lore about the above pictured dog/creature: Mr. Buddy Vergle.

Buddy is like. Really Fucking Smart (but ONLY when he Wants to be). like. he has a bigger vocabulary than some toddlers that ive met! he can even spell some of those words!! he even knows my dad's made up sign language of some of THOSE words!!! if he wants something (anything) he will get my moms attention by a) barking at her b) pawing his claws on the metal leg of the bar stool to make noise or c) staring at her until she notices. she will then start asking him what he wants. 'do you want food?' 'do you want to go outside?' if the answer is No, he keeps staring at her. if the answer is Yes, he will look in the direction of said Object Of Desire, aka the back door for 'outside' or his bowl for 'food'.

he knows a lot of tricks, & he is also a Master Manipulator™️. this is who that one Olivia Rodrigo song was about i stg. he can literally get ANYTHING he wants from my mom. and he KNOWS IT. literally--she made the mistake of giving him a rawhide stick several years ago. fell into a habit of it. he began to expect it Every Day. as of Now, he has Rituals around The Stick™️. he gets one immediately after waking up (which my mom chops up with pliers so he wont choke from eating it too goddamn fast), followed by half a milk bone (sometimes a whole one), & Now i believe he even gets like. some whipped cream with it. this sounds like a lot, yes, but it gets better (worse??): this happens TWICE A DAY. first, right after my mom gets up. second, at 4pm. my mom even has a fucking Alarm on her phone.

let's back track to why i say he is smart 'only when he Wants to be'. you see. Mr. Buddy is plagued by the unfortunate predicament of being an animal. and sometimes, the animal brain takes over. my parent's neighbors have a crab apple tree which hangs over into my parent's back yard. and. buddy likes to eat these apples (as well as anything birds and squirrels happen to drop & he happens to notice). but it does Not go well for him. Ever. he will eat Things in the back yard. Substances, if you will. then come back inside. and. throw it up. 'oh, but animals have an instinct to avoid things that make then throw up once it happens!' you might say. yes!! i reply. i know this!! i know this, & you know this, and all the laws of science & nature know this!! but Mr. Buddy Vergle? either he Does Not Know this, or, he simply Does Not Care. because, day after day, he will return. and he will devour. and, though the sacred morsels enter his stomach, they never stay. this does not deter him, however. not in the slightest. he is nothing if not determined.

(i also say he's stupid bc he likes to roll on dead worms and cat shit lol)

and this isnt even the fucking half of it. this fucker is 8 years old & has the soul of a crotchety, old, (repressed) gay, war criminal shoved into the deranged body of a 15 pound chihuaha-something mix. if he were Not a semi-dog like creature, he would be in prison. or a minor god.

---if you would like to know more about Mr. Buddy Vergle, please comment below. there is much lore and nothing but time---

[cosmickestrels]

Please tell us your Thots on Barok and Gina for the ask game!

I'm going to do Gina first bc. you'll see.

Gina

Sexuality Headcanon: Bi as well as demiace/demiaro

Gender Headcanon: Girl but also in a v loose sorta agender sense. I think it really boils down to - she honestly just doesn't care. Being gendered is fine, not being gendered is also fine, but she doesn't feel strongly either way

A ship I have with said character: Goulstrade! Ginasusa & ginasusahao are also noice, but I don't have any preference here

A BROTP I have with said character: I already mentioned her siblinghood with Iris when answering previous ask, but Kazuma worsties are the funniest thing I've seen in some time and I love it. Also her found-family-ism with Herlock is super cute and just...!!

A NOTP I have with said character: Can't rly think of anything specific, so just apply the same NOTP rule as Susato

A random headcanon: Ever since she was v young she loved horses and when she had a chance she would sneak out even to just look at horsies. Even now she hopes one day the Scotland Yard will asign her a horse (or she manages to buy one)

General opinion: V good character, but divines i wish she had more screentime!! One of my faves ever since my first playthrough and yall make me like her even more <3

And now. Barok my... yes <3 (anon what did you do. now i wont shut up for a week)

Barok

Sexuality Headcanon: Aspec first and foremost. He's definitely grayace with strong leaning on ace, but what flavoring of aro is he? Nobody knows and certainly not him. Don't even ask him what gender he likes, he'll bluescreen

Gender Headcanon: Guy... maybe. I think he never really questioned it bc he didnt need to, but at the same time he also wasn't raised with strict gender roles so he has a vague understanding of what a 'man' even is. Also considering everything that happened in his life gender is just so, so low on his thinking-about list. I can absolutely see him just realising he's agender as well as being just guy[tm] and everything in between.

A ship I have with said character: Vanlock my beloved,,,,, thank you for making me rotate them in my mind again (I mean this in a good way!). Both Barok & Herlock are such strong personalities that I can't help but love it. There are just so many aspects of them that i love!! Starting from the very surface level opposites (sad vampire - essentially a sunshine) to the more complex stuff like the fact that they're balanced just right to be able to find support and solace in each other without one of them auto devolving into a 'i-can-fix-them' state. I mean it - at the very core they're both flawed or even broken people. Barok's is just way more visible because he's all 'mysterious' and angsty and Herlock is mostly masking it with being silly. Anyway if I write any more this will turn into an essay,,, Also DLC case English side my beloved

A BROTP I have with said character: Aside from the canon friendship with Albert probably Runo post-canon whatever kinda friendship thing they have going on. I mean with how big-hearted Runo is and with Barok showing that he can change & repent for being, well, collosal asshole I can easily see them being friends. I can imagine something similar for Susato but she should be allowed to throw him to the ground first

A NOTP I have with said character: Him and Kazuma is probably the clearest "no" for me. Worsties turned cordial turned maybe eventual friends sure, but I feel like there is too much grievances and trauma between them to result in any sorta healthy relationship

A random headcanon: You even wondered how he's still so flexible? Barok is still practising ballet. In secret of course!

General opinion: Easily one of my favorite DGS charas and by a landslide my favorite prosecutor (I know my avatar say otherwise lol). He's incredibly complex and honestly I just have a soft spot for characters that are just so trauma ridden. I have opinions about that part of his arc and I would just rewite it to hating Asogi's specifically and Runo by extension since they're associated/friends. But at the end of the day and what really solds Barok to me is that he shown that despite being fucking awful he can change. He's not an immovable rock, he can understand being wrong, hell, he can apologise. Try to be better person. I can't help but adore that But yeah he absolutely should have his ass handed to him once or few times, no denying that (I could say also much more but divines I really dont want this to turn into an essay lol)

[ask game]

[indigo474]

92424-happy happy happy-

i may be in denial that this is happening- am i really moving-into a condo-is this really happening? Friday was the inspection- Madison went with me to see our new home for the first time. She likes it. she cried to me on Friday night-about moving out of our apartment. she's not a crier, so seeing her cry feels strange to me. she really loves our tiny 2 bedroom apartment and she's going to miss it. she feels safe and she likes this side of town. i wonder if the feeling of safety is about location or what goes on inside our home.. the love and support and peacefulness that we share inside our home. maybe both? I like this side of town so i feel her on that. I have to tell my landlord i am moving but i'm worried settlement wont happen and i'll be homeless. i need to find a mover- i JUST purchased a huge couch- i tried to hold off but really coundnt anymore. i told myself i wanted and DESERVED to be comfortable in my home.. it feels like a lot to do. anyway.. inspection seemed to be going well. the inspector showed me where to run off the water, electrical box, sump pump things like that. I'm either going to have to become handy or find someone who is. there's always YouTube. i don't feel scared anymore- scare the loan wont go through- but not scared about making this move. i knew as soon as i walked upstairs - i liked the downstairs- when i saw the upstairs and liked it i knew-this is the one. it's absolutely perfect for me. it has everything i wanted - a fireplace- wood floors-i don't have to worry about maintaining a yard. there's a garden out front- there are 2 or 3 hydrangea bushes- i have tried to grow hydrangea's for years but couldnt because of the amount of sunlight Chatham got- they are one of my favorites. the whole thing is really weird- like this place was waiting for me to walk through the door. I was the first person to look at it. it feels right.

ive been running 3 miles at a time. I decided to start the 10k program. I mean, why not. I ran yesterday at the gym and the only reason i stopped is because the program told me to. I need to get different headphones.. i spend a lot of time trying to fix the ones i have. I dont like wireless so thats a problem. Maybe i should concentrate on getting faster at running 3 miles. Joey Barbells says my adrenaline is going to help me on race day- honestly, i just want to finish. I told James how i really feel about the new program he has me doing. it's hard and i'm not enjoying it. i use to hate upper and love lower. now that is reversed. split squats just suck. I've been at 55 lbs for a few weeks now. they make me question everything- the amount of energy it takes for me to do them-crazy - i'm doing sets of 8 and i feel and count every one. front loaded squats- i'm fine doing the warm up ones. the last set - things get a little dicey- i lose count of how many i did- it's so fucking weird. there's no room for anything but me doing what i got to do. I wish it were like that with the split squats. I'm not exactly sure how much i am lifting with the front loaded squat- the last time i checked i was at 100lbs.. And there are the dead lifts.. ive spent weeks trying to get my form right.. I *think* i have it right or at least better than it was. last week 125lbs. i love it when he asks me how it feels- it feels HEAVY- .. i dont love them, i dont hate them.

[alilmusebundle]

Kero slams the door shut and immediately winces. From the connected house, the sound of frantic scratching and buzzing barks start up. When a seconds pause doesn’t bring a flurry of angry cursing, she leans back against the door and groans.

Seemed Cal was still at work. She’d take care of Rio first.

The valeer bursts in after she cracks the door between the flats open, fluffy segments wiggling with joy. She sidesteps as he makes to try and climb up her leg, making soft buzzing noises back at the creature in greeting. She leads it to the back door and slides it open. Rio bounces out into the small yard with a high pitched yip.

Cold air rushes over her flushed bones. With a long exhale, she closes her sockets and stands there a moment. Once the jingle of Rio’s collar passes by, she quietly slides the door shut.

Food isn’t appealing to her- the thought makes her soul squirm. The apple bits were all she’d managed so far, and after that conversation with Rasalas, the nausea had made life difficult. Today and yesterdays events haven’t helped control that condition in the slightest. Rio was probably hungry though.

Carefully, one hand on the counter, she bends down for Rio’s bowl, rises up with it just as warily. The valeer dances into a sitting position near it’s dinner mat the moment she reaches for the high cupboard and the bag within. She breathes a moment before filling it with a cup and a half, mixing water in from the tab to soften the grub mulch.

The bowl slops slightly as she sets it down. Stupid shakes.

Rio starts munching, happy sub-vocal buzzing making the floor vibrate near it’s long body. Hand on the wall, she tip toes around it, slowly making her way to her desk.

Loose paper, binders, and book line the desk in a messy sprawl around her computer hub. That’s a headache in itself. She elects to ignore it (for now) as she collapses into a plush chair and neatly plunks her cursed phone into it’s charger, waving a hand over her hub to wake it up. One hand covers her eyes as she waits for it to open.

Sockets crack open once the light dims. She scoots forward and drags out the keyboard and stylus, and begins to scroll through her socials.

Some of which immediately get closed as blinking message notifications appear, no doubt from monsters she’s already answered on her damn phone, but still. None of that.

This inevitably leads her to a site that no one her age uses anymore. Her old childhood account on a very old but still functioning site. There are only a few icons in her friends list, all of them grey and lifeless: a tiny botfly, an angry fishcake...

Muscle memory has her clicking on the cutesy cartoon ghost, the icon idly blinking it’s looping animation.

Many messages pop up- all from her, the timestamps quickly turning to dates that she doesn’t want to look at. So she types instead.

Today has been rough.

I’m not used to dealing with so many monsters wanting my attention... I feel like I’ve had no rest at all. I doubt I’ll get anymore tonight. My sibling still hasn’t talked to me yet... I worry.

Sorry I haven’t really explained but... their whole deal is complicated. They know so many, have so many connections that they’ve tried to get me to join, but I just... can’t when they’re not around. The pressure of so many eyes on me, even if they’re not physically there is just...

My sibling decided to take a personal day and all their connections fell to me and it just felt so awful because I don’t know where they are and they wont talk to me and all of these eyes want things from me

I about puked in class today. Children wanting things from me nearly made me tear up. All I’ve managed to eat is an apple, and I can’t stomach the thought of anything else.

Isn’t that just pathetic? I think it is.

It’s sad because I want to be able to talk to others. I want to have these connections like they do. And usually it doesn’t bother me, that my sibling is just so good at making friends, but it’s times like today when my com is flooded by others begging for scraps of knowledge about their friend that

that I feel jealous

and then I feel angry and irritated at myself and I just

Her soul lurches and she quickly lunges for the wastebasket, half falling out of the chair. She sits there choking up basically nothing for a time, vision blurry. A cold nose snuffles against her skull. She shudders and gasps.

“I’m fine... good boy.”

She slowly sits up, and Rio scrambles to follow her, climbing along the back of her chair as she resettles. She breathes, blinking crud from her sockets, and sees her message had sat long enough that it had sent. Oops.

Sorry. Didn’t mean to just disappear there.

...I don’t even know if you read these... or if you’ve ever thought about this old account for years. I don’t know if I... want to know, at this point. If you do read these...

you must think me so strange

I’m really sorry. Your old weird friend turned this into a damn diary on you. Really fucking awkward, huh.

...I hope you had a better day than I did. Goodnight.

She quickly hits send and clicks out of the site as the faint sound of the door slamming in the neighbor house echos through her own. Rio catapults from her chair with a buzzing boof, and she leans back.

Cal was home. Maybe they could mope together.

[injvre]

dream i had a while back about dogs barking. a little scary, idk. sorry for how i decided to write this, it felt faster & i thought about posting it somewhere else but decided not to

it’s pretty rare, but sometimes when i dream, i’m not me / my circumstances are totally different from my real life / everyone else in the dream is a stranger, and it may have a more coherent plot. this is one of those

>move into gated neighborhood >way nicer than last neighborhood >had scary home invasion incident in last place, paranoid & want to get away >spend lots of money on getting a guard dog and getting it trained >have to introduce dog to neighbors because they also have dogs (2 or 3 little toy breeds) >immediately hate my dog because he's big and scary, convinced he’s going to eat fifi gigi & mimi i guess >see lots of “missing dog” posters for dogs in our neighborhood but think nothing of it >our neighbor increase comments abt my dog eating other dogs, make weird accusations to an owner of one of the missing dogs that my dog ate theirs >(even though i moved in after his dog went missing) >my dog behaves fine, never hear or see dog do anything they say >neighbor gets contentious, mentions going to court >don’t want to lose my dog so i say i'll set up a security camera so we can get it solved >rig up camera (wanted to anyway) >also rig up microphone >program to record on movement & on loud detection of noise >also it’ll play a sharp noise that dogs hate but people cant hear >wont hurt dogs and will have win/win of making sure neighbor dogs dont bark back >neighbor snotty about it but agrees >go to bed >dog wakes me up to go out in the middle of the night >let dog out & go back to bed to watch the cameras on my phone >neighbor’s dogs already out b/c doggy door & bark at mine >my dog does his business & goes patrolling smells >he ignores their dogs barking but they settle down >like couple min of footage on the cameras  >dog lays down on back porch for nap >their dogs go inside >no footage bc not enough movement/noise to activate cameras >basically this for a week or so >nothing interesting just normal shit, people locking their cars etc >neighbor starts saying this is it this is your dog antagonizing i told you >can’t let my dog out because hers bark immediately >she says let my dog out when hers aren’t out but can’t do that because she has a doggy door so if they hear / see my dog let out then they come out to bark. >whatever. i cope >one night i hear my dog bark so i look at the clips on my phone >tfw my dog DOES start it >heart drops to asshole thinking my dog will get taken away >clip starts a few secs b4 trigger so dog laying on porch. see ears perk up / neck fur stand up going guard dog mode >growling starts >dont see anything >dog stand up >walk slowly to end of porch >neighbor dogs start cowering by back door yapping >my dog starts doing big scary booming dog barks >its fucking over they totally think my dog is gonna eat theirs he's gonna be taken nononono >finally notice he’s not even looking in their direction  >another dog starts walking btwn our fences in little alley thing >can barely see it because growing grapes along fence & some other plants >but kind of large and reddish/brown >moving slowly taking really weird steps walking slow >head moving back n forth weirdly >my dog standing back from fence as this thing approaches just barking trying to scare it off >my dog & neighbors dog keep flinching bc dog frequency bell going off >just keep barking tho clearly super pissed about this >meanwhile strange dog not flinching at all ?  >neighbor lady is gonna be pissed my idea didn’t work >neighbor dogs get a little bolder & go to mid yard also barking >light turns on in neighbor house >they yell at dogs & get theirs inside >i come get my dog >he hurries inside kinda like he’s scared of smthn but i dont see shit at that time bc its out of range of porch lights >look on camera when i’m back in bed >on camera it shows >strange dog keeps going to neighbors back gate >stands up on its hind legs >realize it was a fucking human man on his elbows and knees >can see straps/belts holding ankles to hip and wrists to shoulder with caps???? or bandages on the joints >penis out >more straps across his middle >realize its how this guy is wearing the dog fur >red/brown. still got head but it's like a bear rug where it's kinda flattened >fiddling w stupid wrapped-up elbows at gate that just latches >OPENS GATE >goes back to all fours to go across their yard >moving like he’s tired >gets to porch >squeezes himself into dog door >immediately freak out & call the police >have to give huge interview and show footage and their house is searched and they catch guy from a few houses down and charge him with all kinds of things and he's going to jail >tfw neighbors never say thank you even though w/o me & my dog they never would have known this happened and i’m not sure if they’d even know he went in their house >still hate me over stupid shit

[dudethattries]

I might be Bisexual | Michael Afton x male! Reader

Trigger warning: Sexuality crisis, homophobia (mentioned), gay panic

Inspired by life is strange :)

You are teenagers here, post bite of '83.

Pronouns used for reader: he/him/his ------------------------------------------

"I might be Bisexual."

"What?"

"I think I might be Bisexual."

"What do you mean 'you think'?"

"I'm not sure."

You sighed leaning back. Michael and you were currently on the junk yard near your house. He was balancing on top of some sort of old pillar, while you sat inside an old car that missed most of its windows and doors.

"Well, why do you think you're Bisexual?" Michael hesitated.

"There is a boy I think is cute." You turned away. There was a boy? Who? Why couldn't he just like you?

"Well, if there's a boy, why don't you ask him out?" He laughed.

"Cmon (Y/N), you really cant pull that card if you haven't asked your crush out, who you've like since like 7th grade." You chuckled sadly.

"Yeah, I guess so. Who is it anyways?" He sighed.

"Will you tell me who you like?" You laughed.

"No?" He laughed too.

"Well then Im not going to tell you either." Its you! I cant tell you because its you!

"Why are you not sure if you're Bi?" He started walking on the pillar thing stretching his arms out wide to keep his balance. He looked far too handsome like that, the setting sun making his features stand out more. It made your stomache feel fuzzy.

"I don't know. I like him. Very much in fact, but Im kinda new to this I guess?" He sighed.

"And I know dad wouldn't be too fond of it." You snorted.

"Since when do you care what your father thinks?" He snickered and jumped down from the pillar and walked to the car you were in. He sat down in the passenger seat turning to you.

"How did you know you liked him?" He leaned closer. Leaning back with a slightly hotter face you ran a hand through your hair.

"I don't know? I guess I just crushed on him long enough that I couldn't really ignore it?" Michael leaned to the side to rest on the slightly rotten car seat. He looked like he was contemplating on doing something potentially very stupid. You'd known him long enough to know exactly to know the mischievous twinkle in his eyes didn't mean anything good.

"What are you thinking about?" You groaned, scared of what he would come up with.

"Have you ever kissed anyone?" You choked on your own spit.

"What?!" you coughed up. He laughed at your reaction.

"You heard me. Have you ever kissed anyone?" You looked away embarrassed.

"No..."

"Do you wanna try?" Shocked you stared at him. Was this really happening?

"What about your crush?" He chuckled leaning closer, your face felt hotter and hotter.

"Something tells me he wont mind."

"Then- Then thats okay then." You stuttered out as Michael came closer.

"Are you sure this is okay with you?" He asked looking into your eyes. He was now slightly hovering over you, one hand on the dashboard of the car the other on your backrest. Not trusting your voice, you simply nodded.

Michael leaned in and kissed you. Your shock-filled eyes closed after the initial surprise, that he actually did it and wasnt just joking. His lips were slightly chapped but softly pressed against yours, so you really could care less. His hand, now on your neck pressed you even closer to him. Hesitantly you moved your hands to his hair, softly playing with his curls.

When you parted both your faces were a bit redder than before. Grinning and slightly out of breath Michael leaned back to give you a bit of space.

"You okay?"

"Yeah." You took a deep breath.

"Did Susie tell you?" He looked confused.

"Tell me what?" "That I like you." He grinned even wider.

"So it was me! God I was scared you liked someone else."

"You didnt know I liked you?" He snickered embarrassed.

"Well I wasn't sure, you didn't exactly talk too much about it."

"What, didnt I boost your ego enough already?" He laughed. The butterflies in your belly started acting up again.

"No, you can continue please." You chuckled. Michael stood up and walked around to your side of the car holding his hand out.

"Cmon its getting late."

You took his hand and he pulled you up. He looked at you and smiled softly. You pecked his cheek and gently pulled him along back towards the direction of your Homes.

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

Whats up dudes, this is reposted (and slightly edited) from my wattpad oneshots book. Hope you liked it :]

[fruggo]

I’m not gonna lie this would be the first time I requested something so if I do something wrong I’m really sorry,

Can I request Quentin, Leon, Steve, and Frank meeting a female reader who, before the entity took her, had already faced off her own killer?

And this made her kinda tough? Like she knows what she’s doing

oh my gosh thank you so much!! this is my first ever request to fulfill so we’re in this together :DD seriously i really appreciate you!

i decided to do a headcanon kind of format for this, i hope that’s okay! also these are my absolute favorite boys aaahhh this is so fun for a first request

the boys x tough f!reader (part 1) (part 2)

warnings: swearing, reader kicks frank in the shins

word count: ~700-1k each (sorry if it’s too long…i kind of got really excited and uhhh maybe i got carried away,, yeah. sorry)

(also i'll be honest quentin's is not my best. that was the one that got eaten by the tumblr abyss and i had to write all over again, and it just didn't come out the same way that i wanted it to at first :( i did the other boys hoping i'd get some inspiration to fix it afterwards, but i got kind of stuck. so it's not my favorite, but i hope you like it okay! i want to write better stuff for quentin in the future, he is my favorite sleepy boy <3)

𝐐𝐔𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐍 𝐒𝐌𝐈𝐓𝐇

when you arrived in the realm, everyone thought you would be the same as the others—frightened, confused, and overwhelmed. but you took this nightmarish challenge in stride, adapting to your surroundings quickly and learning far faster than anybody else had.

your past experiences had made you independent and sometimes distrustful, so once you had the gist of things, you didn’t need (or want) anybody to tell you what to do. and nobody was inclined to, either—your instincts naturally told you what to do and when.

the first time you met quentin was a little awkward, i wont lie. you were wary of speaking to the other survivors; you weren’t going to let yourself get hurt again.

it was the beginning of a trial. the nurse’s fatigued shrills could be heard all the way from the edge of the wrecker’s yard, but you immediately started work on a generator, unafraid. a few minutes passed, when soft footsteps indicated someone’s approach. it was quentin—he started to work on the wires without hesitation.

you were a little surprised, only because the other survivors usually left you to your own devices. you got the impression that maybe they were intimidated by you, which you didn’t particularly mind. but you wouldn’t particularly mind some company now and then, either.

it was comfortably silent for a while, before quentin spoke up.

“what’s your name?” he asked, gaze still focused on the wires.

hesitating a little, you told him. then you said, “and you’re quentin, right?” you already knew most everybody’s name just from observation.

“that i am,” he replied.

then it was quiet for a while.

very quiet.

well, what were you supposed to say now?

the silence was deafening and very, very uncomfortable to you. normally you were okay with a quiet atmosphere, but it was the kind of silence that buzzed in your ears, chewed at your stomach, filled the area as if it were something solid. man, what were you supposed to say—

it was then that you realized poor quentin had fallen asleep, his face smooshed onto the generator. his cheek was now covered in grease and grime.

it made you smile—only a little. you finished repairing the generator on your own, causing quentin to wake with a start and bang his head on the pole protruding from the machine. he swore like a sailor until he realized where he was, smiling sheepishly.

“sorry, i wanted you to have your nap. you looked really tired,” you said. you also couldn’t stop admiring the dark grease on his face—it was really quite funny. and no, you weren’t going to say anything about it. it could stay there a little longer.

you spent the rest of the trial running the nurse around the whole wrecker’s yard, only suffering one injury until the end. quentin had no idea how you had been here for such little time and already knew how to outplay the nurse, one of the most difficult killers to survive against. he still didn’t know how to do it well himself, so he was thankful for you.

however, once the exit gates were opened, you found yourself in a bad spot. the nurse had caught you in an empty clearing with nowhere to hide or predict her moves, and she downed you instantly. quentin cringed hearing your agonized scream as you were hooked.

there was no way you were dying on his watch. once he was sure the nurse was gone, he gently lifted you from the hook, pulling out his medical kit to begin patching up your shoulder.

despite the pain, you had enough energy to smile at him and say, “thanks, nap boy.”

quentin feigned offense with a wry grin, pulling out some gauze. “is that all i’m going to be to you? nap boy?”

you hummed, pretending to be deep in thought. “maybe you won’t be if you get me out of here.”

“that won’t be a problem," he smiled, quirking an eyebrow.

“show me the gates and then we’ll talk, nap boy.”

from then on, quentin became your go-to source for supplies and general comfort. you weren't scared of this place, but it was nice to know you had somebody who would really be there for you.

he would often fall asleep on your shoulder at the campfire--he really was a nap boy, and you would never let him live that down.

𝐋𝐄𝐎𝐍 𝐊𝐄𝐍𝐍𝐄𝐃𝐘

leon could not tear his eyes away from you the first time you arrived in the realm. your presence was strong; he could tell you weren’t one to back away from a fight.

most of the survivors had been (rightly) confused and disoriented when they popped into the realm, but you tried to accept it quickly. you didn’t like it, in fact all you wanted was just to go home, but you came to terms with it and jumped into trials headfirst like an insane person.

that was the courageous part about you—maybe you were scared, but you did scary shit anyways. in fact, you did scary shit to spite the fear, to prove to yourself that you were strong enough to overcome it.

and leon couldn’t lie, that was cool as hell.

you had tunnel vision and didn’t pay much notice to the other survivors; you were too focused on learning about this place and getting out of trials. having gone through some real shit, being here hardly came as a surprise to you. if you were going to be here forever, what was the point in mourning? might as well just accept it and try your hardest to survive. maybe someday this sick game would end, but for now, you were prepared to fight for your life and that’s all you could really focus on.

your first trial was not the best. even though you were resourceful, you didn’t know what the objective was yet, so you weren’t sure where to start other than analyzing your surroundings. luckily for you, leon kennedy was one of your teammates.

after being downed immediately by bubba’s chainsaw and tossed onto a hook, you were amazingly resilient to the pain. leon was the one to lift you from the hook, and he took out his medkit to help patch your wound, but you flinched away from him before he could touch you.

he was puzzled. “what’s wrong?” he asked. he didn’t want to make you uncomfortable, but he wanted to help you.

you hesitated and looked him over before mumbling, “i’m fine.” and you tried to stand on your own, beginning to limp away. you didn’t want or need anyone’s help.

leon sighed, following after you. “let me help, that must hurt a lot.”

“i told you, cop, i’m fine. i don’t want your help, okay?”

leon opened his mouth to insist, but decided against it. if you didn’t want his help, then he shouldn’t butt in. that wouldn’t keep him from watching over you, though.

but then leon called after you (perhaps a little smugly), “do you even know what you’re supposed to do?”

begrudgingly, you stopped walking. no, you didn’t know what to do. “i’ll figure it out,” you said over your shoulder. and you would; you had been through enough to survive any situation thrown at you.

but maybe one pointer couldn’t hurt.

“do a generator,” he told you, giving you a cheeky grin when you turned around to look at him. he was lucky he was cute.

the first part of the trial had been rough, but after that first hook you were doing a lot better. you managed to find your own medkit from a chest, and you learned how to fix a few generators. you found it came pretty naturally, and were satisfied that you hadn’t needed anyone’s help (except leon’s. but you didn’t have to admit that yet). when the killer came near, you skillfully avoided him and stayed hidden as much as you could.

you were also pretending that you didn't notice leon hovering near you. he was not very good at being subtle; he was obviously trying to make sure you didn't get hurt. it was cute. you didn't want to ruin his fun, so you didn't say anything about it.

it wasn’t long before the gates were powered and in the process of being opened. you saw a red glowing light in the distance, and assumed that must be your destination. you put all of your remaining energy into sprinting to the exit, adrenaline pumping through your body.

but then there was a heartbeat. a heartbeat so loud it filled your head, splitting your concentration. it wasn’t your own heartbeat--it was the killer’s.

the sound of the cannibal’s chainsaw roared in your ears and pain tore through your body; you collapsed to the ground with a cry of agony. shit, that really hurt, and you weren't sure you could ever get used to it. eternity sure seemed a lot longer than you had first anticipated. would you really be here forever? doing this over and over?

biting your lip until it bled, you tried to crawl towards the gate, dragging the lower half of your body with much difficulty. it was no use, though--you hardly got anywhere, and you could already feel the killer picking you up. just like that, you were going to die? you had been so close..

but as you were being placed on bubba’s shoulder, you saw a flash of a police uniform and a blinding light, and before you knew it, you had been dropped to the ground, the exit gate looking awfully lovely and much more desirable than a meat hook. you gathered all of your strength and began limping forward, when suddenly you felt an arm firmly wrap around your waist and your own was placed around someone else’s shoulder.

leon. when you looked up at him, all he did was give you a calm smile, which you felt inclined to return. with him supporting you, the two of you made it safely to the exit and began the long traipse back to the campfire, where you would find yourself spending a lot of time together.

from then on, you always remained quite unfazed by the events of the entity’s realm—the only thing that ever made you feel weak was being around leon. he was just so cute :]

𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐕𝐄 𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐓𝐎𝐍

you had never met someone so persistent in your life. from the moment the entity stole you here, steve harrington was after you, and there was next to nothing you could do about it. he sure was living up to his self-proclaimed role of babysitter.

you told him you were fine, that you didn’t need him following you around, but the asshole did it anyways.

“how cool do you think you are?” you asked him at some point, to which he simply shrugged with that stupid grin on his lips.

“i can take care of myself.” “i really don’t need you to baby me, steve.” “steve, if you don’t leave me alone i’m going to break your kneecaps.” these were all things that had come from your mouth multiple times recently. you were seriously thinking about that last one now.

you knew you could make it on your own, and you only wished he would give you a chance to prove that to him so he would leave you alone. but it was like he had attached himself to your hip, and for some reason the entity seemed to really enjoy putting you in trials with him. great.

he was a dumbass and a sweetheart, and you weren’t sure which one of those took higher priority. you knew he only meant well, but god, you wanted to be independent for once. why did he think he had to protect you so much? you arrived here after running for your fucking life, fighting off your long-time pursuer, and living in awful, ever-changing conditions. you had seen your closest friends die, right before your eyes. you didn’t need to be sheltered or coddled, but you couldn’t seem to make steve understand that, no matter how much you fought with him.

steve would literally throw himself in front of the killer for you. he clicked his flashlight in the killer’s face if they were after you, and he would swear and cuss until they chased him out of pure annoyance. it got him killed countless times, and you didn’t know whether to call him stupid or selfless. probably both.

eventually you decided to just copy him and see how it worked out. you weren’t scared, you had no reason to be. you wanted to show him you could be just as flashy as him.

as you arrived into a trial, steve right across from you (of course), you smiled to yourself. you had brought your best flashlight, and you were prepared to use it. the two of you began to work on a generator together, making light conversation as usual.

“if the killer comes here, hide. i’ll take him away.” “fuck you, steve harrington.” “sure, if you really want to.” “why don’t you ever leave me alone?” “it’s a mystery, isn’t it?” “i could punch you right now.” “but you won’t. i’m too good to look at.”

you know, the usual friendly stuff.

you purposefully connected the wrong wires, making the generator spark and sputter. “oops. oh no, the killer must be on their way,” you dead-panned. steve gave you an unamused look.

and indeed, only a few moments later, you heard the sound of the hillbilly and his chainsaw roaring in your direction. the two of you split up, and the killer’s weapon collided with the generator, making an awful screeching sound.

and that was when the chaos started.

steve began hollering and flicking his flashlight into the sky as usual, and after a moment’s hesitation, you did the same. steve looked at you in astonishment, pausing, but then he started again, even louder. you tried to outdo him.

“HEY BILLY! FUCK YOU!” you screamed, ignoring steve’s attempts to get you to stop. “COME AFTER ME, SHITHEAD!”

steve started actually yelling, just yelling, while you continued to swear meaninglessly. the poor hillbilly looked confused and overwhelmed, and eventually he couldn’t take the noise anymore--he just left, opting to find the other survivors while the two of you sorted out whatever it is you obviously had against each other.

it was dead silent now that the killer was gone, and you and steve were both out of breath. but as soon as you made eye contact, laughter bubbled up from your chest, causing you to collapse against the tree and slide to the ground. your voice was hoarse from all the screaming.

and then he was laughing too, stumbling over to plop down next to you, and your giggling started up a whole new round.

after the laughter died down, you stared at your hands, ignoring steve’s gaze on the side of your face until you couldn’t anymore.

“what?” you asked, finally looking at him. he was smiling all stupid again. “what?” you insisted, fighting off a grin of your own. you hated when he looked at you like that, because it made you want to smile back at him.

“nothing,” he said coyly, laughing again. you punched his shoulder playfully.

“c’mon harrington, when have you ever held your tongue before? spit it out.”

he nodded, that was true. so he said it. “i just like you, that’s all.”

oh. oh.

realization dawned upon your face. “is that why you always--”

“yes,” he interrupted you. “i thought it was obvious. man, you’re clueless sometimes.”

oh.

huh.

you guessed…maybe…steve harrington wasn’t that annoying. maybe.

𝐅𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐊 𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐎𝐍

to say you were feisty was an understatement. frank hated your guts at first because you were so good at evading him, which he would never admit. but the thing that made him really mad was that if he ever downed you, you would kick at him and try to trip him over, like actually bruise his shins. it hurt like hell.

this lead to his decision to constantly tunnel you, and he would laugh at you while you were on the hook, too. so you hated his guts just as much as he did yours. it was a mutual guts-hating situation.

your teammates always felt bad for you, but they also thought you were a badass and knew you could handle yourself. you hadn’t told anybody where you’d come from or what had happened to you, but they knew it was something interesting. there was a reason that nothing that happened here really got to you.

sometimes things escalated even further than shin-kicking. there was one time where frank had managed to grab the back of your shirt as you tried to vault a window, and as he pulled you closer to himself, you elbowed him in the neck and squirmed out of his grasp. while he stood stunned and lost for breath, you kicked the back of his locked knee so that he fell to the ground and bonked his forehead on the wall—the classic dead leg.

this was very funny to you.

not to him.

while you ran away, laughing to yourself, frank’s anger built and built. he was tired of letting you make a fool of him, and it was time to be serious about things.

he ignored you for the rest of the trial, forming a plan in his mind. there was something he needed to do after this, so he made sure to kill everybody else to please the entity—he couldn’t get caught up, it would derail his anger train. he also didn’t feel like getting kicked in the balls or some shit, so he let you out without a problem.

frank did some brooding at the ormond lodge before he was ready to go through with his plan. and his shins really, really hurt, so susie helped him ice them before he left.

the masked killer made his way to the survivor camp rather hastily. when he arrived, he saw you pacing around, deep in thought.

so he threw a rock at you.

it was just a pebble, really. maybe it could be considered a rather large pebble, but frank insisted in his mind that it was a pebble.

“ow, what the fuck!” you cursed, rubbing your sore shoulder and looking around to find the culprit. and then your eyes laid on him.

he looked so sultry standing there at the edge of the woods, arms crossed and mask smiling, you could almost laugh at him. he acted so serious, when really, he was just an angry and misbehaving twink.

you put on your best serious face, genuinely trying not to be amused by this, and strode over to the killer.

“what do you want?” you asked confidently, mirroring his body language and crossing your arms.

frank bristled at your approach, as if trying to make himself look bigger. he wished you were scared of him like everyone else, it would really make him feel better.

“i want a truce,” he said.

you almost burst into laughter at that. a truce? what the fuck for?

he said was willing to stop tunneling and camping you if you stopped beating the shit out of him with your sticky little hands. he didn’t say it like that, but you knew that was what he meant. you, a survivor, could beat up frank, a killer, and it upset him and his little ego :(

just to humor him, you agreed. and frank nodded.

“but,” you continued, raising your eyebrows, “you have to give me something else.”

he started to say “no, no way—“ but you interrupted him: “you’re asking me to stop fighting for myself and just give in when you catch me. i think i deserve something other than just not being tunnelled.”

frank glared at you under his mask, thankful that you couldn’t see. “okay. whatever. what do you want?”

“i want to see your face.” you thought this was a good choice, something you could lord over him forever. it was surely only a win for you. his face was something private, and you would be the only survivor to know.

of course you wanted to see his face, frank thought. everyone did; they wanted to find out if he was good-looking. which, according to him, he was. if you ever asked the other members of the legion, susie was the only one to actually respond. she felt obligated to compliment him as she was basically his sister. so she would say frank is handsome in a ruggedy, jess mariano kind of way. you wondered how she knew what gilmore girls was, since that came after her time, but susie would never give away her secret.

so with a sigh, frank agreed to let you see his face. he didn’t really care, all he wanted was to stop having bruises on his shins. it was kind of miserable, and the entity never did anything to help him.

when he said that you couldn’t do it here, and you asked why the fuck not, he said it was because some other survivor might see. you decided he had a fair point, so reluctantly you let him drag you all the way to ormond.

when he took off his mask, your first thought, whether you wanted it to be or not, was “wow! he really does look like jess mariano! but with tattoos! hot!”

you were lost for words. you didn’t really know what you were expecting, but you sure weren’t expecting him to be that attractive.

he could tell your thoughts from the look on your face.

this had been per your request, and you were planning on this being something you could hold over his head, but the situation had turned into something that he could hold over your head.

oh dear. frank morrison now held pretty boy privilege over you.

and soon you would find out that he was going to keep tunnelling you anyways.

listen i've been watching a lot of gilmore girls and i just get jess vibes from frank, except our boy is more of a twinky idk shdjfhsf i love this guy sm

[asweetprologue]

me lámh le do lámh - Part I

Ahh I can’t believe it’s finally done! After a year of working on this beast, it’s finally ready for me to share. This is something I started way back last summer, and I decided to finish it as my project for this year’s @geraskierbigbang. It will be ten parts in total, and I will post one part per day until it is complete! There are several art pieces that were created by the wonderful @herostag​ and Miranda.draws for this story, which I will link when the appropriate section is posted. For a summary and further links, please see the masterpost.

Next | Ao3 | Masterpost

“Alright,” Geralt said. “Don’t laugh at me.”

Yennefer looked up at him with bright eyes, curious and already mirthful. She was sitting across from him in his quarters, reading through a tome she’d found in Kaer Morhen’s disheveled library. Geralt had just come from a bath after hours spent training Ciri in the yard, and the room was filled with the warm evening light, supplemented by the fire crackling in the hearth. Yennefer had insisted on carting dozens of tapestries and drapes to hang around the drafty keep, and the room was nearly stuffy with their bulk keeping the heat in.

Yennefer gave him an amused smirk. “I will make no such promises before I even know what you’re going to say.” The gentle teasing brought a fond smile to Geralt’s face. After the events of the mountain all those years ago, things had been understandably tense. Yennefer had been reluctant to join them when she had finally met up with Geralt after Sodden, but had eventually agreed to seek refuge in the witchers’ keep and teach Ciri to control her magic. Once she’d met the girl it had all been a wash; it was clear as soon as their eyes met across the room that Yennefer was as much a part of Ciri’s destiny as Geralt was.

Geralt had expected that to either mend the rift between them enough for things to go back to the way things were, or make things even more awkward. Instead, they found themselves in a sort of in-between. Over the years his affection for Yennefer had only grown, but he found himself looking to her more and more as a friend—maybe his best friend. After Jaskier, of course.

Speaking of. “I was thinking about Jaskier.”

Yennefer rolled her eyes obviously. “As you are so frequently wont to do. The thaw will come soon enough, dear, and you can run off in search of your bard.”

Geralt felt his ears grow warm. Witchers couldn’t blush, not truly, but he still felt the tingle of it as he fidgeted with embarrassment. “That’s not what I meant,” he said, absently tracing a finger against the grain of the wooden table. There were two goblets of wine sitting between them, but so far neither of them had begun to drink. “Do you know how many winters it’s been since I found Ciri?”

If she was confused by the odd turn in subject matter, Yennefer didn’t show it. Instead she looked thoughtful. “Two, perhaps three? You know I don’t follow the seasons with diligence.”

“Neither do I,” Geralt agreed. “I was thinking the same though, two or three years since the fall of Cintra. Which means Jaskier is…” He paused, trying to do the math. “He was a few years past forty, during the dragon hunt, I think. He must be closer to fifty now than not.”

Yennefer raised an eyebrow at him. “I recall mentioning something about his crows feet. What of it? Humans age. Are you only just discovering this?”

Geralt forced himself not to grumble. In a way, he was only discovering it. He’d known humans across the years, of course, and knew that many that he’d once been acquainted with were no longer alive or were in their twilight years. For decades Geralt had wandered through the world, changing no more than a ghost would, touching the lives of regular mortals for a brief instance, maybe a few times if they were particularly unlucky. No one had stayed by his side, dedicated themselves to a relationship with him, the way that the bard had. The amount of devotion that Jaskier showed to him had made Geralt antsy, in earlier years, and then confused and angry by turn. He had hated the idea of someone needing him, had hated needing someone in return. The way his chest felt heavy when he and Jaskier parted ways had left him furious with himself and the bard.

And then Ciri came into his life, and everything had changed so quickly.

With Ciri, it didn’t matter whether Geralt felt like he should care for her, or if he wanted to. He needed to. Without him, the girl would die, or be kidnapped by Nilfgaard for who knows what purpose. He had to feed her, and clothe her, and teach her, and he had to love her for her to thrive.

She made it very easy. It was only afterwards that he realized how much of an idiot he’d been to Jaskier, and the thought of how he’d treated the bard over the years had plagued him. It had been months before he could find him to apologize, but Jaskier forgave him almost immediately—which Geralt found both relieving and infuriating at the same time. This was the first winter they’d spent apart since. Geralt left the keep more rarely now, heading out on the Path only when the months grew truly warm and returning at the first hint of falling leaves. Ciri was safe on her own, he knew, but he missed her when he was away. And he could admit now that one of the forces driving him back into the world over the last few years had been the itching desire to find Jaskier again and settle the yearning in his chest for another year. He was less inclined to venture forth when his bard, his daughter, Yennefer and his brothers were all in one place.

This winter Jaskier had begged off, saying that he had “work in the south,” which could mean anything from spending a decadent winter in the court of some noble or sludging through the front lines as a Redanian spy. Geralt had learned not to pry too deeply into Jaskier’s business when he wasn’t around. It was often either too explicit for him to stomach or too confidential for Jaskier to share freely.

It worried him, being away from the bard for so long. He could get hurt, or captured by Nilfgaard, or worse. But what really terrified Geralt was the idea that he would find Jaskier in a tavern along the Path and realize that the bard had grown old, to find silver in his hair and wrinkles beside his eyes. “He’s getting too old,” Geralt said to Yennefer, who looked at him with sympathetic eyes.

“You must have known when you started travelling with him that he would eventually leave you,” Yennefer said, not unkindly. “Humans are so short lived.”

“I didn’t exactly get a choice about becoming his muse,” Geralt said with a huff. Despite his improved relationship with Jaskier over the past few years, he still found it difficult to admit that he had always been more than willing to let the bard tag along. If he’d wanted to travel alone, he would have. But he never had. “I just didn’t realize…”

“It always comes sooner than you think it will,” Yennefer sighed. She set her book aside and picked up her goblet of wine, turning to look out the large window their table sat in front of. It faced west out of the keep wall, towards the mountains and the forest beyond. The sun had set below the craggy peaks, throwing the snow covered valley below into darkness. Geralt could just make out the ruins of the old tower, its stones dark against the white landscape. “You can’t cure his mortality, Geralt.”

“We did.”

The look that Yennefer gave him was sharp, almost angry. The firelight in the room turned her violet eyes darker, like mulberry wine. “At great cost,” she snapped. “I can’t imagine you would put him through the Trials.”

A stab of panic shot through his gut at the thought. “No. Of course not. He wouldn’t survive it anyways. Only children stand a chance at all.”

Yennefer nodded, apparently satisfied that Geralt hadn’t completely lost his mind. “The boy hasn’t got an ounce of Chaos in him, in spite of his rather chaotic nature, so I highly doubt they’ll accept him as a late trainee at Ban Ard.”

“There must be other ways,” Geralt said, feeling petulant. “Less conventional.”

“I cannot believe we are actually discussing this,” Yennefer said, rising to her feet. She picked up her book from the table as well as her glass. “There is no way to achieve immortality, especially not without sacrifice. You know that, Geralt. Drop this foolish line of thought.”

Geralt rose after her, reaching out to catch her retreating wrist. A grasp loose enough that she could break it, if she wanted, but Yennefer paused. “Please, Yen. Just… look into it for me? I can’t—the thought of—” He cut himself off, dropping his hand away from her arm. The look she gave him was more pitying than he would have liked.

“I’ll do some research, but nothing more. Don’t get your hopes up, Geralt. There’s a reason there are so few of us,” she said. Her face softened slightly, as much as it ever did. Despite Ciri, Yennefer was still made of more glass and fire than anything else. “I know you love him, even if you can’t admit it to yourself. I promise, I will do my best.”

Geralt nodded wordlessly as she left and wondered if Jaskier's eyes would be as bright next time he saw him.

*

For weeks Yennefer said nothing about his request, and Geralt refocused on spending time with Ciri and preparing to depart for the spring. Lambert and Eskel had already left a month before, as soon as the road down the mountain began to thaw, but Geralt had hung back. The roof needed repairs, a difficult job to do in the midst of winter, and it was a hard task to leave for Vesemir alone. It was always like this, now—him looking for odd jobs to keep him at Kaer Morhen, with Ciri, making excuses until Jaskier’s jitteriness or Vesemir’s raised eyebrows forced them on the road again. Some of that was mitigated this season by the silence he heard when he found himself listening for the sounds of lute strings strumming gently in the background, and Geralt’s increasing anxiety about Jaskier’s wellbeing. Even so, it was hard to leave Ciri behind.

The girl was progressing rapidly as she entered her teen years, the chubbiness of her youth morphing into lean if awkward muscle as she continued to work on her swordsmanship. When Geralt and his brothers weren’t pushing her through drills, she was studying monsters and alchemy with Vesemir, or practicing her magic with Yen. She never seemed to tire, eagerly absorbing any lessons passed on to her and desperate to prove her worth. The only person she seemed to let her guard down around was Geralt, who found himself often goading her into mock wrestling matches (which he refused to throw on principle) and humoring her when she became restless and wanted to explore beyond the keep. Kaer Morhen was dangerous in the winter, but as spring approached and the deep snows on the surrounding mountains began to thaw, the duo spent more and more time trekking through old ruins and sleeping beneath the stars.

He could put off his journey south no longer.

“I’m going to be fine, Geralt,” she said, rolling her eyes at him. He wondered if he’d been this petulant as a teenager. Certainly Lambert had. “I can take care of myself, and Yen will be with me.”

Geralt tapped her wooden training sword with his own, indicating that she should prepare to go again. When he was a boy he’d trained against the other foundlings, stumbling around like pups through drills and sparring matches. Ciri trained against full witchers, and only Eskel ever faked a misstep here or there to allow her to get in a good hit. When she won a fight for the first time, it would be on her own merit.

The girl raised her sword into a decent fighting stance, and Geralt moved to correct her footwork. Her sword work was exceptional above the belt, but she consistently forgot her stances, throwing herself off balance. They’d begun putting her on the pendulums to force her to focus, dancing between posts to attack the dummies. Geralt had spent many a night rubbing salve into her bruised shoulders, gained from taking fall after fall from the low poles. No one forced her, but if there was one thing Ciri hated, it was admitting to weakness in herself. “Sword up,” Geralt said, and launched into his attack.

He stayed on the offense, forcing her to practice the defensive drills they’d started going over recently. “I know you’ll be fine,” he said, continuing their conversation. His breathing was relaxed, almost meditative through the slow exchange of blows. “Just seems cruel to leave you with only the old man and Yennefer for company.”

Ciri giggled despite herself, and Geralt found himself grinning back before he smacked her lightly in the ribs with the training sword. She swore—Lambert, Geralt thought with chagrin—and danced back a few paces. “Gotta focus,” he said, still smirking at her.

She poked her tongue out at him childishly and reposted off of one of his blocked attacks. He easily swayed out of the way, but the movement was fluid and smooth, which meant someday it would be fast, faster than he could dodge. He gave an encouraging nod.

They continued to spar for another half an hour or so before breaking, heading to the well to fill their water pouches. Geralt sat on the short ring of stones and Ciri slumped on the ground beside him, leaning against his leg. The simple trust and familiarity she exhibited around him still took him by surprise, sometimes. “I’m leaving tomorrow,” he said, rubbing a hand over the top of her head. Her hair was almost as white as his.

She sighed, wiping dripping water from her chin as she tossed her water pouch down. “I figured,” she said. “Say hello to Jaskier for me, when you find him? I missed his songs this time.”

Geralt’s caress turned into a playful ruffle. “I will. Any requests for books?”

“Ones about Elves,” she said immediately, “and Skelligan alchemy. It’s different from ours, did you know? The Druids—”

Geralt chuckled. “I know. You’ve said half a dozen times. No fairytales this time?”

The girl hummed, reminding him for a brief and touching moment of himself. “Just bring Jaskier back. He tells about your adventures so much better than you do.”

“He’s certainly made a career out of it,” Geralt grumbled, feigning annoyance. “I’ll do my best. You know how he is.”

“You missed him too,” she said, hitting his knee with one closed fist. “I know you did. You get all…Well, more grumbly and mopey than usual, when he’s not around.” She wrinkled her nose up at him in exaggerated disgust. “It’s gross. But I do want you to be happy.”

Geralt knocked back against her gently with his knee, swallowing around the feelings that rose in his throat. “You just think I’m a boring old man who won’t help you put toads in Eskel’s bed. But you never even ask. I’m the expert, not Jaskier.”

Ciri laughed, bright and crisp in the morning air, and Geralt felt warm despite the fading winter chill. Tomorrow he would leave, and he would find Jaskier, and next winter he would tell Jaskier that he had to stay at Kaer Morhen. For Ciri, if nothing else. And if it was more for Geralt’s sake than anything, well, no one had to know.

*

Yennefer found him before he left, saddling Roach in the stables.

“Go to Triss,” she said by way of a greeting. Geralt knew what she meant by the gravity in her tone and the tension sitting in the corners of her mouth. “Ask after Ida. I don’t know where she is or if she’ll speak with you, but a Sage is the only one that might be able to give you anything.”

Geralt reached out to grasp her hand firmly in his own. “Thank you, Yen,” he said honestly.

The sorceress sniffed. “Well, you owe me one, I suppose. I hope you find what you're looking for. But be careful.”

“I won’t do anything that might put him in harm’s way,” he promised. “I swear it.”

“Good.” She gave him a slight smile before leaning in to brush a kiss over his rough cheek. The simple touch warmed him from inside out. “Say hello to the bard for me. Tell him I heard about that disastrous competition in Vizima. Ought to have him stewing for a good long while.”

Geralt rolled his eyes. “I’ll give him your love as always.”

“Goodbye, Geralt,” she said, patting his arm lightly. “Be safe. You know how to reach me, if you have need.”

“I do,” he said. “I will. Take care of Ciri.”

“It’s more the other way around, I’m afraid,” she said with a soft smile, and Geralt understood exactly what she meant. Ciri had saved them both, in more ways than one. Every time he left her was more painful than the last. Someday, he knew, they might travel the Path together, a witcher, a sorceress and their daughter. Maybe even a bard, if he was extremely lucky.

Geralt hoped he would be.