#hell even the side characters feel so familiar it's unsettling

[thisfuckingdork]

Been thinking about how eerily similar Echo from Echo vn was to where I grew up and wanted to talk about without straight up doxxing myself so here's my attempt at that.

This game is either well researched or unfortunately autobiographic because damn, Echo hits HARD when you're fucking from there.

[kikyoupdates]

Otherworldly Attraction ⭑˚🔮⭑ 𝑤ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑎ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑑

yandere!jjk x f!reader

yandere, reverse harem, isekai, jujutsu kaisen x fem!reader, slowburn, slowburn yandere

You don't know how or why, but you've been isekai'd into the world of Jujutsu Kaisen. Although your first instinct is to stay away from the plot, you've been blessed with an abnormal amount of cursed energy, and for better or worse, you find yourself sucked into the storyline. You decide that you may as well use your newfound powers for the greater good, and if you're lucky, you might succeed in rewriting some of the characters' fates. But it turns out that your presence in this world is an even bigger deal than you first thought, and soon, everyone wants to make you theirs.

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You awaken to the sight of Itadori gazing down upon you.   

“[Name]!”   

He cries out in a panic, and there’s no denying the look of concern on his face. Truthfully, it takes you a little while to make sense of everything. The last thing you recall is your close encounter with Sukuna, with Gojo showing up not long afterwards, but past that, there’s not a single memory to draw from. It’s all blank.   

“You fainted,” Itadori explains. In that case, it makes sense why you’re so disoriented. Right. Gojo appeared, which means that he must have been just about to fight Sukuna for a few seconds and test Itadori’s ability to suppress him, but before that, he briefly turned his attention to you. And then you passed out without even managing a proper response.   

Man. You kind of suck at first impressions, huh?   

“I’m alive,” you mumble breathlessly. “I actually… survived all of that.”   

By all accounts, it’s a miracle. You’re not supposed to be involved in the plot. You’re not a character in the main storyline. Which of course means that any number of things could have gone horribly, irreversibly wrong. Especially since Sukuna nearly forced you to eat his finger yourself.   

At least now, finally, it’s all over. Itadori has become Sukuna’s vessel, just like he was meant to be. From this moment onwards, he will face no shortage of hardship, but at least you were able to keep the plot on track. At least you haven’t completely messed everything up. Which means that all of this insanity is about to come to an end. Once Itadori leaves for Jujutsu High, you’ll no longer have any part in this.   

Or at least, that’s what you’d like to think. You’ve been put through hell tonight, and you desperately want to believe that a peaceful life awaits you.   

But of course, you’re dead wrong—and soon, you will realize it’s far too late to escape.  

“Ah, you’re awake,” a familiar voice hums. You turn towards the person who just spoke, and there he is. The man, the myth, the legend himself. Gojo Satoru. You didn’t really get the chance to admire him earlier since your body just kind of decided to shut down, but now that you’re lucid again, you can’t help but stare at him incredulously.   

Gojo approaches you with a smile. “Hello, there. Yuji mentioned that you’re his friend. [Name], right? How are you feeling?”   

“I’m alright,” you reply in a daze, and you hope to god you’re not drooling, because it sure as hell feels like you are.  

My god, he’s hot.  

Fortunately, you keep from blurting that remark aloud, and Gojo just keeps smiling at you. Which is honestly a bit unsettling, because even though he’s one of the good guys, he’s definitely got a mischievous side to him, and it almost feels like he’s scheming something.   

“Here, stand up,” Gojo offers, and he grabs you by the hand to help pull you to your feet. You briefly fangirl, of course (Gojo Satoru is holding your hand!), but you can tell that he’s got a few things he wants to say, so you face him with a solemn expression.   

There’s a pause, and then his smile widens.   

“Your friend Yuji is going to be executed,” he states matter-of-factly.   

What a truly horrifying thing to say with such a careless, easygoing expression.   

You’re not surprised, though, because you’re already familiar with how the storyline will proceed. Still, for the purposes of not coming across like a total psycho, you turn towards Itadori with your mouth agape, feigning shock and absolute horror.   

“Wh-What?” you splutter. “I… I don’t understand. Why would you say something like that?”   

Even though you’re certainly not going to win any Oscars, you hope that your shitty acting is convincing enough. And by the looks of things, it is , because Itadori lets out a heavy sigh and slumps his head forward.   

“He tied me to a chair earlier and started saying all kinds of weird stuff. Apparently, he and his allies are trying to collect a whole bunch of those fingers. There’s twenty of them in total. That guy whose finger I ate… his name is Sukuna, or something. And he’s apparently super-duper strong. I’m not sure how I’m able to control him, but it looks like I’ve become his vessel. He’s so dangerous that they normally would have killed me by now, but instead, the higher-ups agreed to let me live until I find all the remaining fingers and eat those too. And once I’ve done that, then they’ll kill me. Along with Sukuna. To make sure he’s gone for good.”   

You’re not sure what the appropriate response is. This is all stuff you already know, but putting yourself in the shoes of someone who isn’t from another world, who doesn’t have knowledge of how everything will proceed… essentially, your friend’s just told you he’s guaranteed to die, at some point or another.   

That shit’s pretty fucked up.   

You clench your fists. “Itadori’s a good person. Why are you threatening to—”   

“Sorry, sorry,” Gojo waves off. “I wasn’t actually looking for any input. The situation’s pretty non-negotiable, to be honest. Yuji’s execution has only been postponed because I argued in his favor. You don’t seem like you’re aware of how dangerous Sukuna actually is , so believe me when I say that I’m amazed they accepted my proposition in the first place.”   

Trust me. I know exactly how dangerous he is.   

Once again, you keep your thoughts to yourself, and instead, you turn to gaze out the window. It’s early morning, by the looks of things. You’ve been out cold for quite some time. But at least you can go home now, right…?   

“I’m sure this is a lot to take in,” Gojo continues, “but it’s really the only option we have. To be honest, it’s a miracle that Yuji survived in the first place. He was able to eat Sukuna’s finger without any side effects. An ordinary human would have died immediately. But for some reason, Megumi tells me that you encouraged Yuji to eat the finger. And you seemed to have full faith that he’d survive. Do you mind explaining that?”   

…ah, shit.   

“I-I was scared,” you swallow uncomfortably, taking a step back. “Fushiguro mentioned before that only those with cursed energy can kill curses. And since Itadori didn’t have any cursed energy, I thought that… maybe he could gain some. By eating that finger. We were backed into a corner and I thought we were all going to die. Itadori’s already really strong to begin with, so I felt like he could save us.”   

“Hmm.”   

Thankfully, Gojo doesn’t press the issue any further. Perhaps it’s a reasonable enough explanation, especially since he believes that you’re a total noob in the world of jujutsu sorcerers and the like. Surely he doesn’t suspect that you know more than you’re willing to admit.   

Yeah… surely not.   

“Okay,” he grins. “I guess that explains it. Oh! But I had another question, actually. Megumi also told me that when Sukuna first awakened, for some reason, he said he recognized you. He said that he’d seen you before. That’s kind of weird, isn’t it?”   

You freeze up on the spot, and at that moment, it finally hits you.   

There’s no chance in hell they’re going to let you walk away from this.   

“I don’t know what he meant by that,” you insist. “It was my first time ever speaking to that scary guy.”   

Technically not a lie, because when you encountered him inside his Innate Domain, you didn’t actually say a single word. You were too busy crapping your pants from fright.  

You’re not sure exactly how much is safe to reveal, but you suppose a half-truth would be good enough. Because if you admit that Sukuna was trying to make you eat his finger and possibly turn you into his vessel…   

Well, evidently, the higher-ups aren’t shy about executing people they deem dangerous.   

“Itadori showed me the finger once before,” you admit. “Back when he first found it at school. It was all wrapped up in the seal back then, so I had no clue what it was, but he tossed it to me, and I held onto it for a few moments. Do you think that’s what Sukuna was referring to?”   

“Sukuna should have been contained within the seal, even as flimsy and worn-out as it was, so I don’t see how that would work.”  

Gojo leans over, bringing his face level with your own, and you gulp, unnerved by the lack of distance. He’s ridiculously attractive, of course, but he can also be pretty intimidating too. Without even trying.   

It doesn’t take long for a smile to return to his face, though.   

“Oh, well!” he shrugs. “I guess we’ll just have to cross that bridge when we get there! I’m gonna have my hands full figuring all of this out, huh?”   

“Haha… ha.”  

Seriously, fuck my life.   

“Leave [Name] alone,” Itadori frowns. “I get why you guys are after me because of the finger, but she’s not involved. She was just worried about Sasaki and Iguchi, like I was. I’m the one who became Sukuna’s vessel, so let me deal with it. She doesn’t need to worry about any of this stuff. She should be going home and getting some rest.”   

Gojo’s smile finally drops. “Not involved, you say? Well, from your perspective, it might seem that way, but let me be honest. A lot isn’t adding up here. Unlike you, [Name] was already able to see curses, and she possesses an overwhelming amount of cursed energy. As things stand, she’s far from being an ordinary person. Not to mention that Sukuna himself expressed interest in her. I understand that you’re worried about your friend and you want to keep her safe… but I can’t in good faith just walk away and pretend like I never ran into her. It’s my responsibility as a jujutsu sorcerer. Besides. If I leave her all on her own, something tells me she’ll be found by someone else sooner or later. And more likely than not, they won’t have good intentions.”   

You lower your gaze to the ground, because you already know where he’s going with this. In fact, you probably should have realized it from the moment that small curse ran away from you. From the moment you inexplicably met Sukuna inside his Innate Domain. From the moment he called out to you and beckoned you towards him.   

Or rather… from the moment you first awoke in this world.   

You shouldn’t be here. By all accounts, it doesn’t make any sense. But the fact remains that you are , and naturally, weird shit is bound to happen. Things are bound to change. The life you’ve been thrust into is going to be nothing like the one you lived before, and it’s about time you came to terms with that.   

“Yuji and [Name],” Gojo says, a grin spreading across his lips, “both of you… are coming to Jujutsu High with me.”

Not long after your discussion with Gojo, you visit Sasaki and Iguchi in the hospital, along with Itadori. The scene that follows is pretty much exactly like in the anime. Sasaki is almost entirely unharmed, whereas Iguchi is presumably going to be alright in the long-term, but he’s still unconscious for the time being.   

It’s a strange feeling, to be honest. Seeing the two of them and knowing it’ll be the very last time. You always assumed Itadori was the one who was destined to leave. You figured that he would only be your friend for a short while, and then, you would have no choice but to say your goodbyes. You told yourself that after he left, you would stick with Sasaki and Iguchi and keep them company in his place.   

But now, it looks like you have to leave, too.   

“Someone will be stopping by tomorrow to help Iguchi,” Itadori says. He pauses to offer a weak smile. “I’m sorry. This all happened because I picked up that cursed object in the first place. What you saw inside the school… they weren’t monsters. They were curses. Iguchi will be alright, though. I promise.”   

Sasaki stares at him, visibly confused, and then she turns towards you. “[Name]...? So you were at school last night, too? Both of you came to help us?”   

“I’m sorry,” you also apologize, instinctively bowing your head. Naturally, this all would have happened even without your involvement, but still. You feel compelled to apologize. Not just for what she’s been through, but the fact that you won’t be able to stay behind as her friend.   

“I’m sorry, but we can’t stick around much longer,” Itadori tells her. He smiles once more, looking even more pained than he did a few moments ago. “There’s somewhere we need to go. Sorry. We’ll see you later, okay?”   

Even without the words being stated outright, Sasaki must already know. She must realize that this isn’t just a regular hospital visit. It's a goodbye.   

“Alright,” she nods, and she’s considerate enough not to ask any questions. She just sits there, next to Iguchi’s beside, with a wistful expression. “Bye, guys. Wherever you’re going… good luck.”   

You and Itadori walk out of the building, both with heavy hearts. Itadori is probably the nicest, bravest, most compassionate person in the world, but even he can’t just shrug off the thought of being executed. You know that death scares him, but it’s less about the process of dying, and whether or not he’ll be able to have a ‘good’ death. Whether he’ll be able to say that he lived a life free of regrets. A life where he did everything in his power to save others.   

Just because he’s strong doesn’t mean he’s not scared, though. Just because he’s going to accept his fate without putting up a fight doesn’t mean it isn’t hitting him hard. He’s only a highschooler. A boy who’s lived a happy, carefree life until now. It’s impossible not to be nervous, not to feel apprehensive, not to yearn for something else.   

But no matter how frustrated Itadori feels, it doesn’t matter.   

He will never give up.   

You know what awaits him is nothing short of hell. That’s why you were so desperate to avoid this. It’s such a horrifying world to land yourself in. It certainly isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. It isn’t going to be a blissful experience, where you’ll be able to interact with your favorite characters free of any worries. It’d be nice if that were the case, but it just isn’t .   

Unlike Itadori, you aren’t a protagonist. You aren’t naturally courageous, or ready to throw your life away if someone else is in danger. You wish you could say you are, but not everyone is meant to be a hero. And in the real world, the average person won’t think twice before prioritizing their own safety.  

But it looks like you’re going to have to change. Even if you aren’t like that to begin with, you’re going to have to become that kind of person. You’re going to have to face your fears and hold your ground, bite your tears back when you feel like running away. Like it or not, in this world, you are a unique, special existence, and that may very well be for a reason. Perhaps… perhaps you might be able to save the people that Itadori wasn’t able to. Perhaps you’ve been put in this world to ease his burden. To stand by his side and support him in his darkest hours.  

You’re terrified of what’s to come. No doubt about it. And you can’t really say that you were a particularly remarkable person in your previous life.   

But maybe this time, you can be.   

“I’m going to do it,” Itadori says as you walk side-by-side. He glances over at you and furrows his brows. “If curses and people like that Sukuna guy are really so dangerous, then I’ll do it. I’ll eat all those fingers and do whatever it takes. My grandpa wanted me to help people. So that when it’s my time to go, at least I’ll be surrounded by the people I care about. That was his dying wish.”  

He reaches out and gently squeezes your hand, a smile returning to his face. Whether the gesture was meant to reassure you or himself, you honestly don’t know. But it doesn’t matter. As long as you’re together, it’ll be alright. Even the scariest moments will be bearable.  

You won’t let his story end in tragedy, and hopefully, neither will yours.

“Mom, dad, I need to leave. I’m transferring to a new school, which means I’ll be moving to a different city. Today.”   

Normally, when parents hear something like this without any prior notice, their immediate instinct is to be concerned. This is the part where they’re supposed to start chiding you for saying something so ridiculous, which will be followed by a firm refusal.   

But that doesn’t happen.   

“We know,” your mother nods, with a strange, somewhat eerie look in her eyes. “You’re going to become a jujutsu sorcerer, aren’t you? So that you can protect all kinds of people.”   

“...”   

Okay, what in the ever-loving fuck ?  

“Um,” you respond, blinking repeatedly in disbelief. “How did you—?”   

“Don’t worry about us,” your father piles on. “This is very important, isn’t it? Go do what you need to do. We understand.”   

Alright, well, you knew from the start that they weren’t your real parents, because they clearly hadn’t been isekai’d like you, but to hear them casually going on about things they shouldn’t know—since you never told them a damn thing about curses or sorcerers—is unbelievably freaky. This interaction is further proof that you’re not really a part of this world, and they’re just meant to be some weird stand-ins. They’re not even actual people themselves. More like omniscient NPCs.  

“This is creepy as fuck,” you sigh, shaking your head in defeat.  

“Hurry up, darling,” your mother encourages with a smile. “Gojo is waiting outside to pick you up, along with Itadori and Fushiguro.”   

“Oh my god, stop it! You’re seriously freaking me out!”   

You can’t possibly get out of the house any faster, your luggage clunking behind you every time the wheels spin out or roll over a rock. True to your creepy NPC mom’s word, three people are waiting outside, one of whom is Itadori, and he excitedly waves to you.   

“[Name], hey!” he beams. “Good morning. Excited to make the trip to Tokyo?”   

“Definitely. I’m never coming back to this house ever again,” you shudder.  

“Huh, why? Did you have a fight with your parents or something?”   

You let out a heavy sigh, refusing to elaborate. Anyways, it doesn’t really matter. It looks like you were always destined to get involved, whether you intended to or not. People don’t just get isekai’d in their favorite anime to not play a role in the story. In all the fanfiction you’ve read, that’s pretty much an unwritten rule.  

“All ready to go?” Gojo smiles.   

You nod slowly. Truth to be told, you have many, many doubts. You’re scared that you’re not strong enough to make a difference, even if the story is pulling you in. You’re scared that you might end up meeting an early death, even with all this knowledge on your side. And you’re scared that if you really do disappear… Itadori will have yet another person to grieve.  

Itadori wants to have a proper death, and honestly? You want the same thing. You want to be able to look back at all you’ve accomplished and say that you genuinely, truly did everything you could.   

So, that’s what you’ll do.   

“I’m ready,” you nod, gripping the handle of your suitcase a bit tighter. “But before we go… I just have one request.”   

Gojo tilts his head to the side, confused, and he watches as you pull your phone out of your pocket, only to stare at him with a stern expression.   

“Take a selfie with me, please.”

More chapters are available on Quotev and Ao3!

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🔮 main masterlist! ♡ oneshot masterlist

[r3dmooon]

Behind Your Screen — Wally Darling x gn! human! reader

summery: Strange things keep popping up on your computer. Soon you find out it's all because of a strange entity!

tw: some creepy things are alluded to, but it's all vague.

a/n: I had so much fun writing this. Wally is kicking his feet while drawing for you. He is not yandere!!!!

wc: 0.8k

Master List

❥Wally was bored, watching people come and go. They’d check out the website, sometimes look at his little doodles, then leave. It honestly made him sad. Did no one want to be his friend? The messages in the guestbook said otherwise but they didn’t come back. 

❥Then you came around. At first, you seemed like the rest. After looking around the website you closed the tab. But then you came back. He didn’t get his hopes up, as others have come back for a second glance too. But this time he couldn’t help but admire you. You were so focused, scrolling and looking through the details of the website.

❥You came back more often, he wasn’t sure why. Who was he to ask questions? He finally got the friend he’s been longing for. It was so lonely where he was after all…

❥He found out that he could leave you little drawings, and it became his favorite pastime! He couldn’t feel more delighted drawing you with him and his friends all hanging out. Oh if only those dreams could be a reality…he didn’t want to think about what happened to his friends. No, not when you’re there to make everything better!

❥When you got the first drawing, you were confused. You didn’t really use ms paint…and you didn’t remember drawing this anyways. Yes, you’ve become enraptured in this rediscovered puppet show called Welcome Home. And yes…you did check out the website, just to see if anything changed…and you may have created fan content for the show…

❥All in all, you decided to pass it off as something you made without remembering. It was a cute drawing. It was you with the cast members on a picnic. You couldn’t help but keep it in a special folder on your desktop. 

❥But then another one popped up the next day. The picture was of you and Wally smiling, text over it read ‘You're the absolute most friend’. 

❥Your heart dropped. That catchphrase was quite familiar. In fact…that was on one of the valentine’s day artworks for Wally. You quickly booted up the website, just to double check. As you found it, you took a deep breath. Maybe you tiredly drew this one too? I mean…what else could it be? But something in your gut told you that it was someone else. A hacker? Stalker? 

❥No, no you're just overthinking this. Little did you know, Wally was watching your reaction with the happiest grin he’s had in such a long time. He hopes his little drawings make you as happy as you make him. 

❥This kept happening, but you refused to bring up your concerns since nothing else had happened. Only those strange…I suppose endearing drawings. If anything, it made you even more interested in the wacky children's show. You read more thoroughly through the characters descriptions, and found the concerning hidden messages in parts of the website. 

❥All the drawing had one common theme. Wally was always by your side. Didn’t matter what scenario, or who else you were ‘hanging out’ with, he was always there. If the drawings alone didn’t creep you out, the fact that Wally in all the drawings was staring at you, and not drawing you felt unsettling. 

❥It all changed when one day your notes app was opened along with another drawing. The picture was of you and Wally hugging, the notes app saying: ‘Do you like hugs, friend?’ 

❥You slammed your computer shut, fear running through your veins. What the hell was that? 

❥Wally’s little felt heart hurt as your face left his view suddenly. Did he come off too strong? He was just excited to get to interact with you in another medium. He got so happy that he couldn’t help but write the first thought that came to mind.

❥Your presence has become a comfort to him. With everything that has happened and is happening…it was nice to look forward to his meetings with you. You seemed like such a nice person. He wished he could be with you…but the thumping that surrounded him reminded him that that would always just be a fantasy. 

❥The next time you opened your computer, you felt a little guilty. The notes app was still open, this time it said ‘I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you friend.’ You still felt anxious, but the guilt overpowered that. It wouldn’t hurt to interact…would it? Maybe it’s some weird AI chatbot that…you didn’t know. Just hoped it wasn’t a hacker messing with you.

❥Not sure how you were supposed to interact, you decided to reply back in the notes app. ‘Who are you?’

❥That’s when you learned that Wally was somehow in your computer? Able to access your computer? You weren’t completely sure, he was vague when answering where he was. You felt like you were going a bit crazy…I mean c’mon, the logic made no sense. But a feeling deep in your gut told you this was all real. You weren’t being fooled, you weren’t being hacked, the main character of an old 70’s children show was talking to you.

❥Over time, you two became closer. In fact, you started to find Wally quite charming and cute. He would continue drawing you cute pictures and you would keep him company. 

❥If only you two could live in a fairytale, happily ever after…

[comicaurora]

Have you seen the new Superman show on adult swim? Himbo Clark Kent rights

It's off to an extremely encouraging start! Thoughts under the cut!

I like how they portray Clark's super-strength and how comfortable he is flying and using super-speed. They really feel like innate characteristics of his body rather than powers he switches on and off - things he keeps toned down when people are watching, but things that are always present regardless. The number of times I've pulled a push door or shoved something that was stuck and thought "if I had super-strength I wouldn't get a Take Two on this because my hand would've gone straight through that" is clearly something the showrunners have also thought about. This Clark lives in a world of cardboard and physically cannot stop himself from putting his hand through it at least once a day.

There's a physicality to the way Clark takes hits that really communicates how little he feels them most of the time. Eyes open, mouth closed, immediately getting back into the fight after getting punched into a crater. This is stuff I also think about when I draw supernaturally tough characters in combat situations, and it's cool to see someone else doing it - especially since one of my very few complaints about the older DCAU is that Superman always took every hit like it was a fully incapacitating blow, which Worf'd him pretty constantly.

I also like that we have so far never seen Clark angry. We've seen him scared, flustered, disappointed - but not angry. Even in fights where he's taking serious hits, he's only motivated by wanting to protect and save people, even his opponents - he so far has never been motivated by a desire to destroy. That feels like very good writing for Superman.

It's currently a little unclear how exactly his powerset is scaling - it looks like the blue-eye-glow-and-suit-emblem thing is a legitimate powerup that lets him hit harder and recover faster than his normal baseline, but how exactly that works isn't clear yet - although that is very obviously going to be a plot point later, since they keep giving him little flashes of the story of Krypton's destruction and what shenanigans they were getting up to when it exploded.

On that note, Kryptonian tech has never looked or felt so otherworldly. I love the distorted electronic backward-voice choir they use exclusively for when Clark is on the ship. I love that hologram Jor-El can't speak English, but can clearly understand Clark - also this is the coolest Jor-El has ever looked. Some comics wax poetic about how Clark is an alien space god who only pretends to be human, but I like how this show is firmly putting Clark on the side of the audience with regards to how unsettling the "alien space god" vibes truly are. He can't understand the nature of the ship or the words of its holographic inhabitant, he's not really interested in what it means or where it came from - he just wants to know who he is, or rather who Superman should be. And I like that he concludes that Superman should be him - the heroics he was already doing, except this time on purpose. Superman should not be this spooky glowing alien god thing, even if that's the vibe we get from Krypton itself.

I like that the ship gave Superman his modern no-underpants-on-the-outside suit and Ma Kent was like "we can do better than that" and added the underpants back on.

I also like how much setup there is for future plot stuff that a DC-familiar audience can see coming. Clark hasn't used any of his vision-based powers yet, and it's possible he doesn't know they exist. No sign of Lex Luthor or Kryptonite yet, two problems we know will become more severe with time. We've already got Amanda Waller being stoically nefarious in the background. Young Hot Deathstroke is a hell of a design choice and I am Here For It.

I also appreciate how many little referential jokes are packed into the dialogue, ranging from the obvious "it's a bird it's a plane" to some hella deep pulls like Jimmy Olson's youtube channel.

And fundamentally I love how this show starts from the jump with the thesis that friendly, humble, Normal Man Clark is the real person, and Superman is the job that Clark Kent does. The title of the show is "My Adventures With Superman." The POV character is Clark. He is the "my" in that title. This is Clark's story about Superman.

I really, really hope Batman eventually shows up, because this Superman would make that hilarious.

[valerie-is-in-the-cupboard]

Hi, I have a request:

Could you write a One-shot Human GN Reader x Angel Dust and Husk (platonic)?

The reader is a shy human with magic skills (like John Constantine) and when they try to do a ritual, they made a mistake, fall in Hell, where they meet Angel and Husk. The first thing than the reader do when they see the two sinners is run away, think the two guys want to kill the reader, and in their hopeless run, they meet other sinners who don't have any good intents. And when the reader think than they will die, Angel and Husk come to save them.

Sorry if this request is long and specific, but I haven't found so many fanfition about Human reader x Hazbin Hotel Characters than I liked. And I want a Hurt to Comfort with my two favourite characters.

Thank you and Bye

Friends from the Other Side - Husker x human!reader x Angel Dust

Hello! Thank you so much for your request! I wanted to mention that it’s been a while since I watched Constantine, and my recollection of his powers is a bit hazy. So, I hope this still aligns with what you were expecting. I’m sorry it’s a bit shorter than you might have hoped. I really hope you enjoy it! ❤️

(Also, this might appeal to Supernatural fans as well... ;)) )

Words: ~1000 TW: violence and cursing

Your hunting days were long gone. You were never one to be a fan of monster hunting, mostly because you chose to live a peaceful life. You decided it was better to use your powers for simpler things, like tarot or palm reading.

But when two old friends asked for your help in their quest to find a demon, you couldn’t refuse. The ritual was simple, even mundane, something you had done thousands of times before.

The room, lit only by candles, was filled with incantations as you held a bowl of blood and other necessary ingredients. You could feel the connection forming between you and the target, the familiar, slightly unsettling sensation settling inside you. But this time, something was different—something dark was lurking, and the sense of imminent danger made you shiver.

You opened your eyes quickly, and before you stood a man in a black suit. You could feel the dark aura surrounding him, chills running down your spine. The bowl slipped from your hands, the blood splashing across the floor as you stumbled back. "Who… who are you?" Your voice trembled.

The man’s lips curled into an amused smile, his gaze sharp. "I told those two they can't spoil my fun just yet. Sorry, you got dragged into this," he said with unsettling calm. "You’ll be going on a little holiday until I’m done. Oh, and… tell Moose I said hi—if you make it back."

Before you could react, darkness swirled around you, pulling you into a void. You screamed, but no sound escaped. Your body grew heavy, and everything went black.

"Are they dead?" A voice broke through the haze.

"Probably," another replied. You felt a nudge. "Nope, definitely alive."

Your eyes fluttered open. "What the hell…" you muttered, your head spinning as two figures came into view. You couldn't quite see who they were as your vision was still blurry.

"Toots, don’t freak out, okay?" the first one said, leaning closer.

"Freak out...? Why would I..." Your breath caught in your throat as your vision cleared up realizing what they were. Demons. You scrambled backwards, eyes darting around the strange hotel lobby.

“See? Now you’re freaking out,” the cat-like demon said dryly. In your panic, you instinctively cast a spell, filling the room with dark smoke, and blocking their view from you. You bolted toward the massive doors, too terrified to care where you were headed. The world outside was a chaotic, twisted city, and you kept running, ignoring the bizarre sights.

But your escape didn’t last long. You collided with something solid, falling hard to the ground.

"Well, what do we have here?" a voice rang out as you tried to recover from the impact. You opened your eyes, and before you stood a demon, grinning widely as his eyes scanned you from head to toe. "It's been a while since we've seen a nice, lil' human like you..."

"Stay back!" you warned, as golden light encircled your hand, making him step back. But, to your surprise, your hands were immediately immobilized by another demon, pinning them behind your back while a cold knife threatened to cut deep into your throat.

"Woah! Why don't you put those aside, sugar? We don't mean any harm..." The demon stepped closer, running a claw down your cheek, pressing lightly. "Now... me and the boys were really... eager to taste something new today..." he laughed as two more demons approached.

"Please... I don't know how I got here..." Panic surged as you struggled to break free, but the blade pressed harder, stopping your movements.

"Oh, come on, don’t get so worked up... We’re just—"

A loud bang echoed, your ears ringing as the grip on your hands slowly disappeared. You blinked, dazed, as the demon in front of you staggered, blood splattering across his face.

"That's it, fuckers!" You turned and saw the tall, spider-like demon firing two guns, expertly taking down the demons surrounding you. One demon grabbed your wrist, but with a quick move, you sent a blast of energy, propelling him into the air.

"Not bad, kid!" the cat-like demon shouted as he tackled another to the ground, a bullet from the spider demon finishing the job. The demons' screams echoed around you, the fight ending quickly.

You stood shakily, adrenaline still rushing through your veins. "Who… who are you?"

"Name’s Angel Dust," the taller one smirked, holstering his guns. "And that’s Husk. You?"

"I'm (Y/n)... I think a demon teleported me here..." you replied, guilt creeping in. "And, uh- .... Sorry for the spell back there..."

Husk shrugged at your words. "Expected it, to be honest."

"We should head back to the hotel before anyone else notices a human here," Angel suggested, brushing himself off. Then, with a grin, he added, "By the way, that magic of yours? Fuckin' badass."

A small smile tugged at your lips. "You guys weren’t too bad yourselves."

Back at the hotel, it took Charlie a few days to open a portal for you, but there it was - shining brightly in the hotel lobby.

"Do you really have to go, toots?" Angel pouted, resting a hand on your shoulder. "I kinda liked having you around."

"I’ll be back… someday," you promised with a smile, giving him a quick hug.

Husk stood a little off to the side, his arms crossed. He didn’t say much, but there was a flicker of something—maybe disappointment—in his eyes.

"Aww, what’s wrong, Husker? Missin’ ‘em already?" Angel teased.

Husk rolled his eyes at Angel's comment, trying to maintain his usual indifferent expression. "Shut it, ya damn prick…" He muttered, his voice tinged with a hint of annoyance. "Ya better be back… someday." He said gruffly.

"I promise." you said.

"Byeee! And please don’t forget to tell the demons on Earth that the Hazbin Hotel has its doors wide open for them!!!" Charlie exclaimed, her excitement palpable.

You chuckle as you step through the portal, the same overwhelming feeling engulfing you. You felt as if you were reborn again and through the darkness - you saw light.

You fell right back onto your couch, your two friends who probably came to check on you seemingly disturbed by your sudden appearance.

"What the fuck was that?" one of them asked. You took deep breaths, trying to steady yourself as your gaze shifted from one to the other, assessing the situation.

"Which one of you morons is 'moose'?"

Tags: @ratsematary @littlebluefishtail

[b0amagination]

Tastes of Whumptober: Day 7

Everybody thank @brutal-nemesis for her cave knowledge and help today!

If you've been sitting here saying "wow boa, this stuff is great, but I really need a character based off the warlock class of DND struggling to serve their patron!" then you're really gonna like today's writing and you should buy a lottery ticket.

Content warning: Claustrophobia in the form of a very narrow cave. Take care of yourselves!

Magic with a Cost

The walls of the cave were definitely getting narrower now. Where there had once been enough room to stretch out his arms, his fingertips now brushed against the rough, stone walls on either side. 

The adventurer sent the shadows of these depths away, leaving an otherworldly light. Controlling the darkness was strange in that way. If he banished it, there could only be light in its absence.

He unfurled the parchment on which a very drunk bar customer had scribbled the map of this cave system. It occurred to him that he should’ve tried harder to persuade them, rather than simply buying drinks until he got what he wanted. But it wasn’t his fault his patron had been so stingy with their powers recently. 

Well. Not entirely his fault.

If he’d read the disjointed scribbles of ink correctly, this crevice would lead to a wider cavern housing the element his patron was after. 

Pushing forward the walls narrowed further, just as promised, until they were pushing against his sides. They were moist, wetting his cloak just enough to feel the clammy chill this far underground, but the grainy texture still chafed against bare arms. He wrapped his cloak around himself, sliding further into the crevice, finally able to spot an opening just ahead.

His shoulders were too wide after a while and he sidled ahead instead, but then even the cloak was too thick to pass through. Reluctantly, he unclasped it and regretted his sleeveless style. Though usually functional in conflict to avoid overheating, his teeth were now chattering and his arms and shoulders were being scraped raw. 

With one final lunge, he emerged in a round cavern. It still felt remarkably like a hallway, longer than it was wide, but he could finally breathe again. He summoned a fire for light this time, remembering his instructions.

Call me when you arrive. I don’t need you messing about with what’s rightfully mine.

He hadn’t quite understood the explanation of why his patron couldn’t travel here themself. The pitch dark of a cave was, naturally, suited to them. But they’d chastised him with explanations about natural light sources, potency of shadows, and how his humanity allowed him to ignore such discrepancies. 

But fire, as a sister to the sun, was a suitable replacement for her. 

Flames danced along the walls revealing what he hadn’t paid attention to before: sloped floors dipping down to a pool in the middle of the room. It couldn’t have been more than a meter deep, and the water was clear all the way to the bottom.

And then he was pulled away from it by a familiar dizziness as his own shadow lurched and twisted. Of course, rather than possessing one of the many eligible shadows around him, his patron had to make their entrance unsettling. His consciousness blurred at the edges until they’d adjusted their physical form to their liking, towering over him with a grin.

“Ahhhhh… and here I was thinking you’d never call me, baby!” They stretched dramatically, hissing sounds and tendrils of smoke imitating the cracking of joints.

“I would never call you that. And you’d be much grumpier if you just made the journey I did.” He was having trouble hiding the goosebumps and smeared blood on his arms.

“You are my spiritual sugar baby if we’re being technical. You’d call me that if it meant I restored your full access to my power.” Their patron laughed, knowing he had no good response to that.

“Well, get going with your thing then. I’d like to stop begging for every miniscule bit of help.”

“Yes, about that. Where the hells have you brought me?” 

“Where ol’ drunkie told me the Treasure of Elmstern Cave is,” he enunciated sarcastically.

“I told you what to do if you wanted my powers of persuasion.”

“And I wasn’t going to give a sermon on a demonic entity to the whole bar, including the guy I needed details from.” 

When his patron touched him in this plane of reality, it was delayed. Their touches were firm and cold, but disconnected from their body. The movement simply happened faster than this realm could process. 

All that to say: when they slapped him, he couldn’t see it coming. A chilly wind preceded harsh contact, only after which did he see the followthrough of their hand before tumbling to the ground. 

“I am not demonic.”

“Yeah? You’re definitely acting like it!” He pushed himself back up, only to find his patron’s manifestation standing directly against him. “I know you’re not a demon, but those without pacts aren’t very understanding.”

“That doesn’t excuse you speaking in such a way.”

“Then just take your fucking treasure and leave me be!” He pushed them back, tired of the cheap intimidation tactics.

“Oh, I would have.” Their tone dropped.

That made their beneficiary freeze.

“And why not?”

“It’s not here.” A flinch.

“But they said-”

“I don’t care what story the town gossip spun for you,” they interrupted, their voice booming and echoing off the walls. “I’ve warned you. Continuous failures prove to me that the essence of your soul may be much more useful than your precious little mortal existence.”

“I-I-” They stalked forward, forcing him to wade into the pool. “I didn’t anticipate the difficulty of your tasks. I’m not useless just because I’m not some… some hotshot who’s been doing nothing since the birth of the universe.” Frustration bit into his words. If they wanted to play rough, he’d do the same.

“Be careful what you say, human.” 

He was choking, and then a hand wrapped around his throat to add the pressure that cut off his words. They were standing in the middle of the pool now, and adrenaline couldn’t stop him tensing up from the freezing cold. 

“Prove to me that your pathetic life is worthy of preservation.”

Their hand plunged him into darkness. 

The water was all encompassing, seeping into each crevice of his being. The grip of his patron loosened and his body breathed before he could stop it, forcing liquid down his throat and up his nose. His feet had left the shallow floor at some point during the struggle, and he couldn’t orient himself. Desperate hands clawed at rocks and his movements kicked up silt, making his eyes absolutely useless. 

Somehow, his grip found purchase and his head met air, desperately coughing up water so he could breathe it in again. How much had he swallowed? He didn’t even remember doing so. 

Tears came next: relief, horror, exhaustion, all of it wracking his body as if he had energy to be wasting on this.

Then the water rippled behind him and a hand found his shoulder.

“Oh, you think you’re done already. How cute.”

[animebw]

Short Reflection: Pluto

Naoki Urasawa is fascinated with the darkness of childhood imagination.

Admittedly, I've only watched two anime based on his work so far- Madhouse's masterclass adaptation of Monster and now this- so I can't say how common a thread it is in his other stories. But even just from those two, his fixation on twisting childhood into something sinister and unsettling is undeniable. Nursery rhymes and half-remembered country folk songs repurposed as grim omens of doom, picture books foreshadowing real world nightmares, the innocence of his child characters and childlike imagery juxtaposed against a creeping darkness that seems born from the pits of hell itself... the mind of a kid is frequently the most terrifying place to be in Urasawa's work. Whether there's any greater meaning to it or if it's just something he things is cool, I don't know. But it certainly makes him the ideal artist for a story like Pluto. Who else but a guy like him could take one of Japan's most iconic mascots of childhood fun and use his world as the basis of a serious minded political/philosophical thriller that seeks to explore the nature of hatred itself?

Now, as someone who only knows Astro Boy by reputation and has never so much as seen a single episode of any show bearing his name, I can't comment on this story's relation to its source material. Luckily, I don't need to; Pluto is fully stand-alone and you don't need to know a scrap of Astro Boy lore to understand or appreciate it. Although I imagine it would make some of the goofier robot designs a little less immersion-breaking. I dunno, there's something inherently funny about seeing Urasawa's grounded, realistic style of character and world design, his thickly textured and non-exaggerated human faces with realistic proportions and naturalistic wear and tear, next to some of these robots looking like they were pulled straight out of a Saturday morning cartoon. It makes me wonder how certain American cartoons would look if given this treatment. Imagine if someone, like, re-imagined The Powerpuff Girls this way, and you had to see these realistic child versions of Blossom et al next to Mojo Jojo or whatever. Oh well, it would probably be better than that CW show they cancelled, at least.

But I'm getting off track. Pluto is a story about a futuristic sci-fi world where robotics have gotten advanced enough for robots and humans to life side-by-side as part of the same civilization. Every year, it seems, robots and humans are growing closer together, to the point where people are genuinely starting to wonder if there's still any meaningful difference between them. But the seeming peace is shattered by a mysterious attacker, an unknown, unseen killer targeting the seven strongest robots in the world and destroying them one by one. One of these robots, a Europol detective named Gesicht with a robot wife of his own, decides to dedicate himself to tracking this killer down. But as his journey takes him all over the world, meeting countless different robots and humans all with their own bit of commentary to offer on the relationship between man and machine, we slowly peel back the sins this world is built on, uncovering a darkness much greater than a single mysterious killer... and a hatred that may change the nature of robotkind as we know it.

It's a heady, thought-provoking affair, and despite my jokes earlier in the review, it's shockingly good at justifying its bizarre premise. The world feels real and lived-in, from its complex alt-history to its eerily familiar present. It feels like a world that would arise from robots growing increasingly close to humans, and it makes all its musings on the distinction between them genuinely compelling. What would anti-robot bigotry look like in such an accepting time? What things would come naturally to humans that might be impossible for robots, and vice-versa? How would the presence of highly advanced AI effect the political history of warfare and diplomacy? And, most unnervingly, what new atrocities could result from a world this advanced? It's a show that's deeply interested in what ultimately makes us human, and what it would take for an inhuman machine to be considered human as well. But it's also interested in what is already inhuman about us, and if there's anything we, in turn, can learn about our own humanity from a "species" still living just outside it. And while there's plenty of action throughout its run, it's not afraid to take its time on conversations and machinations to really let those ideas settle.

Of course, it's been many years since the manga this was based on was published, and those kinds of "Can a robot learn to feel?" questions have been pretty beaten to death in other media that's come out since then. These days, a story can come off as pretty corny trying to tackle such topis. And truth be told, Pluto can't help but make you roll your eyes with its attempt to explore these ideas a lot of the time. Some of that's due to the oversaturation I just mentioned, but some of that's down to Pluto itself being a very corny show, in ways I don't think it's really aware of. It tends to deliver its story in the most on-the-nose, telegraphed way imaginable.This cranky old musician doesn't think robots can understand art but watch as he learns how to feel again! This robot just wants to paint pictures of flowers but his inner nature as a brutal rage machine is dragging him down! People make promises to their family to see them again right before they're brutally killed! You can see every emotional beat coming miles away but it still expects you to be surprised when it finally arrives there. And considering that the tension of uncertainty is one of the most important parts of any good thriller, it kinda makes it hard to get invested at points.

Sadly, that isn't the only problem holding Pluto back from greatness. Aside from the corny delivery, a lot of plot points feel pretty contrived and stupid, the hand of the author shoving the pieces across the game board with little regard to making sure it feels natural. I also don't think structure this show as eight hour-long Netflix specials was good for the pacing; it means every episode meanders over countless subplots that don't always fit together smoothly and melt into a sludge of Things Happening with little connective tissue to justify putting them together. You can practically see the points where there would be episode breaks if they were a normal 24-minute length, but then they just keep going into what feels like an entirely new episode with no breathing room. So it ends up feeling like a 24 episode show Frankensteined together into a series of bloated triple-length episode booster packs, rather than a story carefully curated to take advantage of its extended episode runtime.

And yet, for all its faults, I found myself getting drawn back in over and over again. Say what you will about Urasawa, the man knows how to keep your eyes glued to the screen. And for all the shows and movies I've seen exploring what it takes for a robot to be human, Pluto's take is still unique and fascinating enough to be worth the watch. It's nowhere near the simple, offensive allegories of, say, Detroit Become Human, nor is it so intellectual that it robs the story of its humanity. It's a genuine attempt to contend with humanity in its entirety, light and darkness alike, and what we may need to sacrifice- or what we might gain- by bringing artificial intelligence over the threshold to join us. It also helps that it looks fantastic; aside from a few moments that just plain look ugly (Atom's first fight with the mysterious killer made my eyes hurt, I swear), the thick lines and fluid animation bring this world to life in stunning fashion. Even outside the impressive action scenes, Pluto is a show worth looking at. Sometimes, that sweet Netflix money hits just right.

Is Pluto a great anime? I'd argue no; it's got too many basic issues holding it back. In my opinion, Monster is a superior Urasawa offering, and I didn't even particularly love that show either. But masterpiece or no, Pluto is a work of remarkable ambition, and it demands your attention regardless of its faults. It's a thoughtful, potent, sometimes frustrating, often eye-rolling, but always compelling work of sci-fi reimagining, proof that even something as simple as a cartoon robot with rockets on its feet can be fertile ground for so much more. And I give Pluto a score of:

6.5/10

And now we wait to see if Netflix struck gold again with its upcoming Scott Pilgrim adaptation. See you next time!

[intrepidacious]

What if Reader said no at the diner in blind roads? 😌💕

no plan b

pairing: bucky barnes x f!reader

word count: 700

warnings: a variant of bucky meeting the reader in blind roads aka my bonnie and clyde au. please note that my blog is rated 18+. minors dni. ageless/empty blogs will be blocked without warning.

a/n: you know how some characters are doomed by the narrative? this is that, i think.

It went something like this:

The stranger’s eyes softened as he looked at you, and it sent your heart into a flurry. The feeling should’ve been unsettling, really, because this was something new, something big and instinctual and perilous. In truth, though, you didn’t quite dare to put a finger on it.

"Come with me," he said gently.

Your hands twisted into your skirt and you cleared your throat, your thoughts still whirling. He noticed your hesitation, apparently, because he tucked his head between his shoulders with a breathless chuckle, his glance now focused on the cup of coffee in front of him, long fingers trailing along the rim.

He had nice hands, you thought. Rough and callous, but his nails were clean. You didn’t get that all too often in these parts, where everyone and their dog was caked in earth and manure all year round.

"You seem real swell, stranger," you said finally, a nervous chuckle escaping you. "But you know, I’ve known you all of five minutes."

"That’s entirely on me," he said. "I’da stopped by a lot sooner had I known what I’m missing."

There was a sheepish tone to his voice that was so entirely in contrast to the wink he sent you it made you want to kick yourself, but it was too late now. He didn’t push it, no matter how much your heart secretly ached for it; he just ate his pie with a pleased hum on his lips, and when he left, it was with a tip of his hat in your direction. A gust of icy wind rushed through the diner, and then he was gone.

You were left shivering.

That night, you lay in bed for hours, unable to fall asleep as you stared at the ceiling. All your life, you’d only known this. This was safety. This was boredom.

This was anything but forget-me-not eyes.

Deep inside, you knew that you were meant for something other than waiting on farmers and cleaning tables, but what exactly that something was, you weren’t exactly sure. That sort of thing seldomly came all written out plainly.

Certainly, though, fate wasn’t something that just happened without you doing your part.

Wasted chance, you thought, curling up on your side and pulling your blanket over your head, unsure if the familiar smell made you feel better or worse.

Your gloomy mood continued all through the next day, and so you didn’t lift your head from the magazine you were listlessly flicking through at the counter when the bell chimed and the stomp of boots announced a new customer.

"It occured to me I was awfully rude yesterday," a smooth voice commented and you froze as someone slid onto one of the barstools a couple of feet from you.

"Do tell," you said, your tone carefully neutral. You kept your eyes on the black-and-white photograph of Clara Bow, as if that was the most interesting thing in the room.

"I didn’t even introduce myself."

"Most folks don’t generally do that."

"Well, I ain’t most folks."

You did look up, then, putting your head in your hand. No one had ever smiled at you quite like that, all boyish charm and dangerous fire.

He was wearing the same suit as yesterday, but his hair was combed with a proper part now and there was a tiny splatter of blood just below his cheekbone where he must’ve nicked himself shaving. His fingers were tapping against his thigh restlessly.

"Besides," he continued. "I got plans."

"Everybody’s got plans," you answered, as if your breath hadn’t hitched at all at the confident raise of his brow.

"Everybody’s got dreams. I got plans." He leaned forward, his elbows propped on the counter. "Tell me to go to hell and you’ll never see me again."

You saw it then, your fork in the road reopening, and you knew with every fiber of your being that you weren’t gonna play it safe a second time. You simply weren’t able to resist.

So you poured him a fresh cup of coffee and slid it over with a tilt of your head. "Then how would I ever learn your name, handsome?"

He grinned.

thank you for reading!! please leave a comment if you want to make your local writer jump with joy. if you want to see more of my writing, check out my masterlist or follow @intrepidacious-fics for update notifications 💛

[tratserenoyreve]

been a bit of me watching general world news stuff and feeling deep existential exhaustion but it has also been a bit since ive rambled about genshin game quest stuff so im going to do that real quick

with the parade of providence quest i am a bit sad that these elements won't be made as kaveh's character quest, but it was fun seeing faruzan and layla etc all get to play to their strengths. but, this is one of those events that is written assuming players have done all of the side quests and character hangouts so things like faruzan's situation and layla's alter being very familiar with the traveler can feel abrupt.

i enjoyed both faruzan and layla's quests, but with how new they are it feels odd to treat them as like. common knowledge? layla's in particular since her "sleepwalking" alter is a whole mystery you unravel.

i did enjoy the background bit of wanderer just. drinking coffee while everyone went at it for the contest. also the bit where he just showed up like a goddamn typhoon and beat the hell out of people for causing trouble with zero proclamation or explanation as to 1) who he is 2) why he was beating them up. even when working for nahida he's got a mean streak.

kaveh having a fairly normal but still tragic backstory combined with his very emotional and caring nature was neat to see play out, his unintentional self-sabotaging choices because he wants to do good by others even if it means he loses out. i also like how they express kaveh and alhaithem's dysfunction and poor communication. when alhaithem is trying to genuinely congratulate kaveh for doing the right thing, kaveh is so used to alhaithem talking down to him that he assumes alhaithem is being condescending and tells him he doesn't want to hear it. the schism between them is going to be difficult for alhaithem to mend, kaveh went into the competition ready and desperate to move out because he believes alhaithem will kick him to the curb.

even if alhaithem only shuts kaveh down because he's worried about his altruism getting further out of hand, he's so bad at expressing it in a way that kaveh will actually accept that it only pushes him to frustrated outbursts. kaveh even has a profile dialogue that's to the effect of, "alhaithem knows how to be polite to people, he just chooses not to be." for someone who is such a stickler about linguistics and information, alhaithem keeps making things harder than they need to be.

speaking of altruism: baizhu's story quest! i really liked it. i appreciate how his character retains some darker angles while emphasizing that he is a doctor because he genuinely wants to help people. changsheng only made a deal with him because he is "pure of heart" but that doesn't mean he won't use methods others find scary or unsettling to accomplish his goals. poisons can be medicine depending on what you need to do.

having xiao present, secretly following to ensure the traveler's safety in case the doctor awakens something he shouldn't, and showing hu tao heavily disagreeing with baizhu gets the point across pretty well that, even if baizhu has good intentions, the path he walks is one that seeks to defy the natural laws of death.

even if baizhu does one day succeed in being immortal, achieves his dream of being able to take all ills of the world upon himself, we know from other immortals in teyvat that that immortality can itself be dangerous. baizhu would still be subject to erosion or the corrosive rot of all the illnesses he takes upon himself through changsheng. there's no guarantee that he'd be able to withstand it forever, xiao himself is wracked with karmic debt from trying to contain the miasma that plagued liyue and we see that having a toll on his mind and body.

but, baizhu wants to do this regardless, buy people the time they need to live their lives even though this is already destroying his own body. him referencing how he'll "seek the guidance of the moon", while poetic, carries a worrisome undertone. there is an old legend about how a rabbit on the moon with a mortar and pestle would craft the elixir of immortality for the gods, but in teyvat imagery of the moon is regularly associated with the abyss and destruction...

[encephalitis-on-sundays]

Avatar fanfic

The way of war chapter 4

( Okay so I had someone else write korra's part in this one but I will be taking over the character so it might be a slight change in personality. This one is sad for Jake and sad/plot moving for Spider. Next chapter it gets a bit of excitement. Writing this started off wanting to roleplay it and now im writing the entire movie 🙃)

Her light ocean blue and light purple lavender eyes adjust quickly to the increasingly lightened atmosphere and finally open wide, but what she sees is uncomprehendable to her still drowsy mind. At least that is the silent thought that passes through her consciousness, 'I must be dreaming still.' Before her is a very primitive hut but almost a crude hospital-like space. The coldness of the white health machine too stark and foreign in these wild surroundings. Her keen ears almost immediately pick up on the rhythmic beepings of her monitored heart. She feels them prick up as the sound registers through her mind,

'...wait...no that's not right...my ears don't move when they take in sound.' Simultaneously she feels the cold medical nodes stuck to the sides of her head and around her chest. The cords cascading around and over her make her feel worried for her health and mental state.

She questions her mental state even more by the blueish figures surrounding her bed. The larger of the two, pure blue, had left before she could fully take him in...but this striped blue green other one was hovering so close.

'What a strange color to be', is the thought that swims quickly through her addled brain before her spike of fear of the formidable creature as he suddenly advances. But he is holding and offering life-giving water and she purses her lips together feeling the cracks as he puts the familiar plastic bottle to her lips. She understands this thing as his masculine alien voice speaks and asks her calmly to drink...but then just as quickly speaks absolute gibberish with a grin. She wrinkles her nose in bewilderment and is immediately transported to Wonderland with thoughts of this strange cheshire cat's grin.

Recalling the ever popular Alice quote that rises through her subconscious, 'If you drink much from a bottle marked 'poison' it is certain to disagree with you sooner or later.'

When she finally snapped from the daze she was caught hovering in, The girl let out a terrified scream.

Warr ak was taken aback by the girls unsettling reaction of fear and confusion, he could only offer comfort and safety in words.

*be calm, be calm* he ushered out the words in na'vi before realising she was not able to understand him, and his curiosity peaked.

"It's okay- We found you in the water, but your okay now, it's going to be alright" he spoke slowly and leaned back to give her space, his tail twitching from the intensity of her screams.

'Sully, where the hell did you go?' He thought frantically as the waves crashed around them in the far back ground.

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

Jake took to the skies as his way of scanning the island for abnormalities and in this instance, a kid. Focused eyes overlooked every inch of the grounds below while he grew close to the place that he knew Spider would have filled the jug. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted something small and wooden bobbing up and down in the settled water of a puddle. He landed instantly and jumped to the ground to investigate, his heart falling deep into his core as he put two and two together now as he reached to pick up the jug he had sent the boy with.

"Damn it! " He yelled out in frustration and anger before filling the jug halfway and strapping it to him as he quickly returned to the skies. He knew his children would never forgive him if he didn't try to get Spider back this time, but what could he do?

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

She screamed her alienesque scream and watched her fairytale companion's shocked features melting back into worry. She hears his absolute gibberish again trying to rise above her screeching and involuntarily her nose scrunches at the strange sounds. But then an entire English sentence...as he leans away from her. The space gives her the moment she needs to compose and cease her wail as she finds herself staring at his erratically twitching tail. The tail slows as her piercing screams minimize and she finds herself using its slowing to help slow her uncontrolled heaving breaths in time to its rhythmic swish. Calming, her heartbeat stops beating out of her chest, but leaves her in absolute bewilderment at his words. She scrambles further backwards, up toward the head of her raised pallet bed, and curls her new strange body to her as she wraps her weird striped arms about her even weirder striped legs protectively. She buries her face into her arms and terrifyingly wonders if her mind is completely broken and is breaking the english language into that utter madness... She raises her gaze back up to find him still intensely staring at her...'or is this thing switching back and forth instead', she questions herself with her rising sight. She stares back at him, into him, her eyes hyper focusing on his deep dark blues. Instantly drowning. There is something so familiar and calming about his eyes...so alluring she can't seem to look away.

It was as though time itself halted and the dangers around we're swept away with the tide, his dark orbs absorbing the light from her own. Mesmerized by the sudden feeling of deja vu, Warr ak cleared his throat nervous to speak again, was he scaring her? She was acting as though she had not a clue of her now being Na'vi, and or even has ever seen one.

"Hey there.. " He reached slowly towards her arms, but hesitated only inches away from touching her decorated skin. "I am not going to hurt you, im friendly, friendly alien" He explained, the last bit more pronounciated and as though he were speaking to a small child.

Shaking his head he restarted trying to find the right words for her perked ears to hear. "Your human right? I am too.. I mean not right now, but I was" He said, holding out a hand to show how human like it's appearance was.

Jake flipped back the curtain in haste as he watched the action jump scare the two huddled near the small pallet they had made her.

"They took spider" He addressed with a tone unmatched. "I shouldn't of let him go alone, what was I thinking" He angrily and frantically spoke feeling guilty for not being aware.

"Quaritchs dead, but they won't cease until every Na'vi has been-" He stopped his onward spiral and lifted his gaze to the two.

"I am Ajake, You are welcome to stay with my family until you gather yourself, " his eyes moved to warr ak, "Take her to the forest, don't let my family return until I deem it safe" He commanded softly and with hope.

The pull she felt towards him was magnetic insanity...almost as if they had always known each other. She felt so lost but could feel a guiding light staring into his dark deep orbs. He recovered first, trying to cover his awkwardness and the spell was broken. Part of her longed for that almost forgotten feeling...but another felt relief that she was back and more in control of herself...'But...who is myself here', she wonders as she listens to his calming reassurances of being a friendly alien. 'At least he is self aware of this strangeness', she thinks trying and failing to keep eye contact. She looks up, and uncurls coming to sit on her knees, as he admits to being human, 'Yes! That! Why am I not that...and why must he speak to me like I am incapable of understanding english?' Then it dawns on her...she has yet to speak aloud...'Oh...no wonder he thinks I don't have a thought in my head you ditz.' She internally berates herself and as he shows her his hand she seizes it between her own. 'His creature hands are much less feral than mine', she thinks before finally opening her mouth and guiding his offered hand to her cheek...

a move of dreamlike familiarity...on pure instinct and softly, "I hear you...I... understand you." She is taken aback at the feral alien tone to her voice but presses quickly on, "I mean...I don't understand this...but I understand what you are saying." She pauses with a small smile and her nose scrunches, "Well...most of the time." She swallows painfully after waking her vocal muscles from unuse, "Is...the water still on offer? I do wish I hadn't screamed...that was a ditz move on my part...but you are quite...ummmm..." She pauses in her quick ramble not wanting to say the word 'monstrous' but stumbling through her mind for a less hurtful term, "formidable...in this form." She drops his hand having just realized she had been squeezing it to her this whole time and embarrassedly wonders if these creatures blush...because she surely would be after that stunt. She bites her aching lip and looks down away from his piercing stare. She absently twirls a few strands of her hair...musing at the familiar comforting action of her purple and brunette strands...and admits softly, "I suppose I am too though." She finds herself involuntarily glancing back up at him and her body jumps back and squeels in startlement as the larger blue creature bursts into the space with a furious energy. Her bright eyes wide, as she watches and listens to his erratic display. Her ears prick up at the mention of someone's death and she sees the fear that he hides so well beneath his stern exterior. She sees him address her, appreciates the hospitality, but worries now for all their safety and muses aloud, "...Is your missing spider monstrous and venomous...if that's the case maybe it's best it stays missing...Oh how do I awaken from this crazy dream? Cause this rabbit hole is quite the doozy."

Warr ak was taken by surprise now hearing her voice for the first time since first seeing her awake, and he was happy she spoke English. He gave a small gasp as his hand was grabbed and pulled close to her face, cupping her soft cheek. It had brought his entire being closer to the other in a swift unexpected move. He dare not move or let his gaze drop as a small bead of sweat fell from his chin. 'who are you?' He thought, still trapped in a daze. The magic seemed to vanish the moment Ajake announced his concerns, and Warr ak leaned back with a chuckle when the girl misunderstood whom the missing one was.

"He's one of *My* Kids" Ajake stated in reply, in a way he was the younger boy's caretaker, and in a way he was a father as well.

"He's human too- sorta" Warr ak added, hoping that the girl was following along and understanding the two men's answers.

"You two should get ready to depart soon, I need to talk with Tonawari, but regardless it isn't safe here anymore, they will use the kid to get what they want" Ajake explained, pointing up to the sky towards the direction where the sky people used to be.

Warr ak nodded towards the man giving orders, and reached to take the water bottle that sat beside him. He carefully lifted it to her lips and smiled soft as he nodded for her to drink.

"first we need to get you hydrated enough for the ride" he spoke.

As the girl watched the laughter of this close one course through him at her words, she inherently knew she must of misspoke, but seeing him chuckle was fascinating. Her strange ears pricked up as the larger one addressed her and she was surprised how difficult it truly was to divert her attention. But this was a serious matter and she listened to the grave news and orders more somber out of respect for the missing child. 'Another human... non human...what was going on in this dream world, where it seemed as though nothing was as it should be?' She pondered the questions swimming through her mind and her gaze fell upon the water bottle sitting beside her pallet companion...just out of reach. She pursed her parched lips and as if he had magically read her mind, watched with elation as he easily reached and secured the bottle. She couldn't help but smile at that bit of dream magic. The older creature finished giving his orders out and fell silent. She felt obligated to try to amend her mistake from moments before, "I am so very sorry that you are missing a child. That is a very grievous thing to be missing."

She pauses seeing her condolences well received and can't help but add too quietly for the worried parent to hear, "At least it is not a giant alien dream spider though." Filled with a moment of worry she mentally ponders and glances up at her closer alien, 'I hope he didn't hear that either...how good is their hearing...our hearing...mind reading...can he read my mind?' She watches the progression of the bottle up to her lips and with it his progression in closing the gap between them. He smiles that cute smile and nods, and she leans in closer to meet the bottle as it kisses her lips. This time she slides her hand up to help steady the bottle and finally drinks deeply. The cooling water flooding her tongue with wet euphoria makes her wiggle in joy. She happily takes multiple sips and runs her tongue over her lips providing the much needed moisture as she listens to him speak. Her eyes widen at his words, "Ummmm what kind of ride are we talking about? A horse? Do y'all have horses? We are too big for horses. An extra large carousel horse maybe...Everything is so topsy turvy in this dream." She giggles and boops his quite close nose with her playful feral claw.

Ajake felt his heart sink low into the pit of his stomach, her words reminded him of his late son, Netayem. He hears Warr ak laughing at her next statement and shifts to crouch low as he grabs his gun from under a small wooden table. "That would be bad, yes" He agrees to her next words whilst hiding the sorrow he felt from losing one son, and now spider.

Warr ak chuckled still at her loopy talk while hoping Ajake refrained from being too authoritative in this tender moment. She hadn't a clue of what had happened to Netayem, and it was not her fault to bring up such memories.

"Horses? I almost forgot about those" He says and swallows hard, slightly embarrassed. "No, uh, we will be taking a Mountain Banshee, actually... Kind of like a horse... If it flew" He rambled on and reached to scratch behind his head awkwardly.

When his nose was booped by the girls unique hands, Warr ak felt his eyes widen as a quick memory escaped into his minds eye. 'This had happened before' When he was much younger at the bus stop, a girl had given him her scarf and booped him on the nose in the same playful way.

"What's your name?" Both warr ak and Ajake asked in unison.

Her giggle ceases as she looks away from her strange one's nose and up to the other, "Oh...of course! I'm..." Her easy smile falters a moment but she rallies quickly and tries again, "So silly of me. Sorry. My name is..." She looks down and wrinkles her nose in confusion willing the memory to return to her as she begins to flood with embarrassment, "Well I'm... I...Ummm..." She falters as she struggles with her broken mind and looks worriedly up to see him staring so intensely at her...awaiting her answer...an answer she is unable to gift him. She bites her lip anxiously and her gaze swings to the leader's as she asks with a slight plea, "Who am I?" She shakes her head 'no' slowly as if to rattle the thoughts and memories and shake them back into place. The memory does not come and she sighs in resignation accepting her fate. She puts on a fake smile and tries for a brave face to keep the threatening tears and devestation at bay, "I suppose...it doesn't matter really here...and given the other more pressing concerns...it's not that important...but ummmm a banshee is nothing like a horse...nor do I particularly wish to take a ride on one of the wailing demons." She suddenly finds herself absently twirling several strands of her hair anxiously between her fingers.

Watching her struggle in attempts of remembering her name made both men glance to another in complete perplexion.

"Right we'll that is not a top priority at the moment, name or no name, we need you safe" Ajake directed his voice at the light-eyed girl before them. "Leave in five" He declares now addressing Warr ak as he moved to open the curtain with one hand. "I'll follow behind after I check the skies one more time"

Warr ak turned back to face Jake now with a nod of agreement he tilted his head and returned his gaze to the girl. "They aren't scary, it's fun actually, to fly like in your dreams" He explains in a way he hopes would spark her interest enough to get her on one willingly.

He stood and offered her his hand to help her up to her feet, biting his lower lip before giving a "hmm.." as he looked her over.

"What should we call you...? " He asked as he helped her up, and their bodies now we're closer than before. "err- sorry about that" he said as he quickly moved back to give her space.

"I think Korra fits you most, at least until we find out who you are..." He spoke through a small laugh trying to ease the seriousness of the situation, but he had to act fast before it became too late.

"Come, I'll show you a banshee" He moved to open the curtains for her to pass beneath.

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

Once departed with Spider in front of the older, crouched low and holding on to the creature's neck with ease. He yipped as they always would do when they dove down close to the ground, earning a roll of eyes from the Colonel.

"You do this often?!" The Colonel asked over the sounds of the wind hitting their faces.

"Only Lo ak and Neteyem can ride, unless it's with them or Mr. Sully" the boy replied, feeling sickly as he was reminded of Netayems's passing. "Why do you hurt people?" He found himself inquiring now that the tension had passed mostly.

"Because, if you don't... They will walk all over you, people hurt people every day, kid" He explained as openly as he could spare to show. "No matter what side your on, sacrifices are made for the greater good of your- of -our- people... " He hoped his son would see the world from his point of view and not that as Na'vi.

Spider hated the way the fabric of his pants rubbed up against his thighs and ankles as the wind hit them with immense force. He did listen to Quaritch if only to draw out more time for him to plan, but now the other awaited a reply.

" why do you need me? Ajake won't come for me, so what is it?" The younger asked momentarily changing the subject.

Quaritch furrowed his brow and scanned the skies around them for any activity. "Who said we needed you?" His tone was slightly more cold than their previous conversations.

"We need what you have stored up in your noggin, you just so happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, kiddo" He chuckled, "Easy snipin" he adds as a joke and takes them higher up into the sky.

"What are you going to do with me?" Spider felt uncomfortable about asking the forboding question lingering in the back if his mind, 'when will this be over?'

Hands gripping the reigns tighter and pulling on the left side to turn the banshees direction, Quaritch debated telling the kid the truth.

"Well, that's the thing, we haven't decided yet... Send your ass back to earth I reckon" He said nonchalantly and with an affirmative nod as the kid jerked his head to glare at him.

"I'm not going there! You've gotta let me go! Here, here is my home. You need to see the na'vi as I do, but you won't!" He spat back loudly as the Colonel aggressively forced the kid to turn back around as he navigated them down closer to the tree tops.

"I get it, your emotional, but it's not a good look, kid, makes you look weak" The Colonel replied coolly and with patience. He knew Miles would fight tooth and nail not to enter a cryo destined for Earth, and so he expected the Tantrum to come at some point, now just hadn't been the time.

Spider did not fight the other's force as he was forced to look ahead once more, and with it his anger turned to fear. His greatest nightmare is that of him stranded on a distant planet full of the Tawtute, away from his true family.

"No. You'll have to kill me" He states with a wavering tone, yet death is not what kept him so unsettled in this flight. He heard the other snicker and give a long dramatic sigh.

"Spider.. You know you really are just like your mother" Quaritch admitted to his son. "Spittin image too"

"Stop. I don't want to hear this, not from you" Spider replied and used a hand to cover his ear closest to hearing the words. He only retrieved his hand when he was sure the other was not going to continue. They ended up staying quiet for the rest of the ride, Spider hopping down from the creatures back and looking up at Quaritch with a blank stare as he waited on the man to join him on the ships docking platform.

[oddsconvert]

Shattered #3 - Trials & Tribulations

Masterlist / Previous / Next

CW: References to Vampire Whumper, Vampire Caretaker, Pet/Bloodbag Whumpee, References to captivity, Recovery Whump, Wound cleaning, Drugs/Medication, Stripping of clothes (Non-sexual, for wounds), Vegetative State/Disassociation, Use of hypnosis/mind control, Choking, Mentions of death, Illness/infection, Referenced previous abuse

Taglist: @octopus-reactivated @whatwasmyprevioususername @ramadiiiisme @darkthingshappen @whumpsday @thecyrulik @t0rture-me @redwhump @the-non-binary-cowboy @snowstuffscuff @whump-for-all-and-all-for-whump @wolfeyedwitch @interdimensional-chaos @no-terms-and-conditions-apply @whump-blog @leyswhumpdump @not-a-space-alien @onlybadendings @darlingwhump (lemme know if you wanna be added or removed 👀)

-

Was this a foolish endeavour? Such irrational attachment and concern for a mere mortal, one August didn't even know existed until a day prior.

Because August would turn the world upside down if it meant that Declan could understand that he was finally safe…finally free. To know that his captivity and all its pain was a burden of his past, and that August would be honoured to ensure the safety of his future.

And with the unsettling way in which the boy's struggling breath wheezed from his bruised chest in the troubled slumber, dead-weight slumped in August's arms and the nauseating temperature pressing against him: skin to skin. Fire to ice.

August knew this was right.

Declan just needed someone - anyone to care. That's all he had ever wanted as well. When he could want, that is. When his mind still allowed him the capacity for desires and dreams. If only he were lucid enough to know that his wishes were coming true.

Night after night locked away in the vampire's basement, silently praying for someone to drag him out from the pits of hell, far away from the devil himself. The only company had been the lingering pain that had scarily become a comfort: after the beatings came merciful silence. Vince would leave him to writhe and sob in agony but at least he left - maybe only for a short while but it was a break nonetheless. Relief from constant torment.

August had called ahead of his arrival back home, asking his housemate to prepare Declan's new room and to begin setting up the medical equipment from his work study. He was beyond grateful that he had Lucas, a human, on side to ease Declan's recovery. It would help him acclimatise to the new environment, to have a sense of familiarity.

But also to vouch for his character. As much as August desperately wanted the boy awake, aware and able - there remained a niggling feeling pitting in his stomach. Dread. Dreading that moment where their eyes would lock for the first time, the inevitable strike of panic and a wash of pure terror in which Declan would realise:

Another vampire.

-

A corpse? Surely not…

Lucas’ jaw damn near broke from his skull when it dropped from bewilderment, eyes captivated by the harrowing sight of the lifeless boy cradled in close towards his friend’s chest; ashen-faced and lank limbs swaying loosely through the air. His lips were turning blue.

The vampire had warned him the new human he was going to collect was in rough shape; battered and broken. But this… this was beyond comprehension - a knot of anxiety twisted in his stomach.

August quickly scurries through the door, neglecting to notice or even acknowledge his friend standing dumbstruck in the hallway. Instead he hurriedly rushes past, barrelling up the stairs and carrying Delcan into one of the bedrooms.

The poor thing is just so incredibly feather light, and so unbelievably frail; he feels as fragile as fine china. So much so that August is hesitant to place him down in fear of him smashing to smithereens. He gently lowers Declan on top of the bed, allowing the limp form to slowly slip from his grasp - plummeting into the soft sheets that cushions the slight drop.

He wants to wrap the boy up in heaps of warm fluffy blankets, to tuck him in and leave him in peace to get the rest that he’s been so deprived of, the sleep he’s been refused for who knows how long? Alas, they must get the hard part out of the way.

When August had become a doctor, opening a surgery within his own home, he wanted to help ease the suffering of humans, lessen their horrific ordeal - he'd never anticipated it going down the malicious path it did. His skillset grew to be used against him; affluent, high class vampires dropping half-dead yet 'valuable' pets on his doorstep - demanding a miracle. It quickly transpired that his work made no difference to people's lives, he was essentially slapping a band-aid on them and shipping them back to torment .

A vicious cycle of fixing blood bags up to send them on their merry way and then bought back again the next time they were nearly killed. But maybe this time, with Declan, he could actually make a difference. He could actually save a human. And they could remain saved.

August’s ears twitch at the light pitter patter of footsteps creeping into the room behind him, swiftly followed by the waft of fresh, delicious blood that makes his nostrils flare and fangs itching to bare. He’d been around Declan for so many hours now, inhaling the rancid smell of near-decay that he’d almost forgotten how tempting that scent was.

“August, I -” Lucas whispered with concern, fiddling with his fingers from the nerves.

“I know… I know.” August cuts him off, not turning his head away from Declan laying on the bed - running the back of his knuckle lightly across his bony, sweat-drenched cheeks as though to lessen the blow when he stabbed the cannula into the back of his hand. He couldn't stop trying to redundantly comfort and soothe the boy, it was in his nature.

What does he know? Lucas ponders to himself. Does he know that boy looks like he’s already knocking on death’s door? Does he know that he’s definitely in way over his head?

“Is he even alive?”

“Just about.” August sighs, not entirely convinced himself, “He’s really fighting, Lucas. Clinging on to life by a thread.” August now fiddled with numerous pouches of IV antibiotics, painkillers, nutrients - pulling the stands by Declan's bedside ready to flush into his body.

“His owner was a cruel bastard… another day with him and he would be a goner-”

“How can I help?”

“I - I need some help undressing him if you don't mind. I need to examine his injuries, send some painkillers in his system, get him cleaned up. Could do with a hand?"

"Anything you need, man."

As the pair peel away the still drenched clothes clinging to Declan's skin, August freezes. Rolling Declan’s shirt up to reveal his torso covered in vicious and recent injuries littering the entirety of his body. Raw, weeping gashes from whip marks, smoldering blistering burns, deep slashes from stab wounds - warm colourful bruises spotted around his skin in polka dots. All overlayering already healing scars and marks.

“Vince said Declan has been like this for months…”

Lucas stops what he’s doing, remaining silent and cautious as his eyes land on his friend who stands lightly tracing delicate fingers around heated, wounded skin on the boy.

“These wounds… I - they can’t be anything more than a few weeks old”

August retreats and slightly paces, sticking his tongue in his cheek and clenching his fists. He had half a mind to return to Vince's manor and drive a wooden stake through the fuckers's heart - provided he actually had one. But that would be too dignified an end for the likes of him.

“Even in this helpless state he was still being hurt - that’s fucking sick-”

“He doesn’t deserve this-”, Lucas sighs sympathetically in agreement, clutching onto Declan's hand and giving it a firm squeeze.

“Nobody deserves this - was killing his soul not enough? He needed to break his body as well as his mind?! A race to see which one cracks first-” August was almost screaming the words, disgust and fury warping together.

“You’re right to be angry about this, August. It’s disgusting. But you need to channel that anger into something positive, to help Declan.”

Damn it, he was right. He couldn't allow himself to get emotional - he needed to detach himself and focus on Declan's health. The time could come later for righting wrongs - he needed to get the boy through this first.

August didn't know if Declan could even register pain anymore. He hoped he couldn't, as he returned to his side, beginning to run alcohol swabbed cotton along his infected bites - knowing that this should draw a hiss of discomfort from the sharp sting. Repeating the disinfecting on his numerous wounds, dressing them all in fresh bandages. Feeding the drips into his veins - they were impossible to find with how much weight he'd lost, they were almost invisible and hiding.

“Can you fix him up with something to eat? Something easy, something smooth - I wouldn’t know what’s best-”

“Don’t worry, I got it.”

Lucas returns a short while later, clutching a bowl with a thick red liquid sloshing around its edges. It looks delicious. It looks like blood. But the sickly scent fills August's nostrils and he nearly wretches as the taste infects his mouth, covering his nose from the smell. He tries to suss out what it is.

“What is that?”

“Tomato soup. It’ll be easy for him to swallow, he won’t have to chew", August pulls an unsure face but accepts the food with a thankful nod.

"August, I must ask... Is it your intention to feed from the boy?"

"Oh goodness, no! I know Vince said that he'll probably get through a few more days, but I believe that one last feed will be his end. He needs to recover", August reassures, though slightly offended at the implication. Declan wasn't food or prey - not anymore. He was a patient under his care.

When Lucas leaves the room, smiling with satisfaction at his friend's answer, August turns to return to Declan, he spots those big brown eyes staring off into space. He’s awake, which is a good sign.

"Hey… Declan. I bought you something to eat. My friend tells me it's motato soup or something? God, I hope you like that…". He perches on the side of the bed, helping Declan up into a sitting position and trying to get a spoon of soup into his parted lips.

But Declan’s body refuses to cooperate, his woozy head continuously dropping to fall back asleep.

"Come on, buddy…just a few spoonfuls - then you can sleep as much as you want-"' his fingers catch Declan's head before it flops again, "in your nice, comfy bed, hm?" August ‘s palms trail across the soft blanket sitting underneath Declans body, fingertips trailing through the fibres beside the boy’s legs. A luxury he was well aware Declan was never allowed, he'd spotted the grimy, ripped mattress with rusting springs popping out when he'd picked the boy up. And specks of what he could only assume was dried blood; he didn’t want to think about that.

A part of him was frightened that if he let the boy fall back to sleep…

Well, what if he never wakes up?

Declan blinks, his lip drooping as the spoon enters his mouth, tipping the warm gooey liquid onto his tongue. But as it slides down past his tonsils and to his throat, his body begins rebelling against the sensation, spluttering and choking as his body heaves and gags. A gasping, gurgling noise sounding from his throat.

“Nononono, shit!”, August frantically crawls to his side, throwing his fists around Declan's ribcage and abdomen, thrusting him backwards to get the thick liquid back up his throat before finally bending him over to the side of the bed and getting him to throw up.

Declan sits wheezing with bile trickling down his chin, short chesty breaths, August holding him in his arms and rubbing his back.

"There you are…you're okay…you're good"

August is so exhausted already. So frustrated. He sits Declan upright in the bed. If he lays him down and he retches again, he’ll choke. Game over. He picks up the bowl and the spoon and storms out the room, slamming the door so hard cracks splinter within the walls.

He isn’t furious with Declan, he could never blame him for whatever hell he endured to end up like this. He’s furious with the entire situation. Furious with Vince. And furious with every bastard vampire that selfishly puts their own hunger above the life of another being.

As he enters the kitchen, he lunges the bowl flying straight at the wall with a growl. The ceramic smashes to pieces, crashing to the ground with thick tomato soup coating and splashing against the walls and marble floors. The tremendous bang alerts Lucas who comes speeding into the room

“What the hell happened here?!”

Lucas’s sight lands on his friend, crumbled to the ground, head in his hands, panting with anger. August brings his hands to cover his face as he screams into his palms with defeat, muffling it.

"Hey, hey, hey, what happened?" Lucas crouches beside him, a hand landing on his shoulder, rubbing it to console him.

"I knew it was bad. That his mind was mush but… fuck, Lucas! He can't even eat!"

"What if … you persuaded him to eat?"

"Then what's the point of us doing this? What's the point in doing any of this if we have to resort to the very thing we rescued him from?"

Lucas listens. That’s what August needs right now, just someone to recognise and hear that he’s trying.

"He'll never heal if I have to control him just for survival. His mind needs a complete respite from just… functioning."

"What do you plan on doing then, where’s your head at?"

"I don't know.." he runs his fingers through his hair, deep in thought, "Seeing if we can get some liquidized food down him without retching? Feeding tube? Intravenous nutrition?". All such invasive procedures, most needing anaesthetic. August wasn't sure Declan's body could handle that much physical stress.

"I did do some research before buying Declan; on vampires, our abilities, the effect of persuasion…Have you ever heard of the fungi: Ophiocordyceps unilateralis?"

"I - what?", Lucas stares blankly, befuddled.

“Zombie-ant fungi. It's a fungus in the Amazon rainforest that infects ants, hijacking their mind and draining its nutrients. They corrupt the host, seize control of its muscles - the infection causes the neurons that control the body to die. Its brain is still in the driver seat, but the fungus has the wheel."

"Sound familiar?" August lets out a faux scoffed laugh, pointing his finger to the ceiling where Declan's room lays above.

"Persuasion…", the puzzle pieces click together. There could be an answer.

"I have a connection in Brazil that has been researching fungi and the insects it hijacks, trying to develop a sort of antidote…antivenom per se to vampiric persuasion. It’s in very early development but… they think they may be onto something. It’s shown to have a significant effect in reducing its effects on humans."

“Well, shit! how do we get our hands on some?”

“I’ll reach out to them, she owes me a favour. See if I can get my hands on a sample… it may not work, but it’s worth a try, right?"

“That or let him die.”

There's a beat of awkward silence. The two sit slumped together on the floor, glaring at their folded knees.

"Lucas, I think it’s best if we don't get our hopes up.” August chimed in, realising their doomed mission and the hoops they needed to jump through to save the human.

“I hate to say this… I agree.”

“He’s in rough shape, it’s a very slim chance he might make it. We can only do our best for him now, either help him turn the tide or offer him comfort in his final days. But we couldn’t have left him there.”

“What we’re doing is very experimental… it’s not guaranteed to work-”

“But…you did say their research had promising results”

“And it does, but it’s still in early development. It’s never been tested on a case like this.”

Maybe it was cruel to put Declan’s body through this amount of stress; maybe the kinder thing to do would be to let him go, and to end the suffering. Even with this 'antivenom', 'vaccine', whatever you'd like to call it: it wasn’t guaranteed to work, and if it did he still wouldn’t be out of the woods for a while - it would be taxing.

But it just felt so wrong to let him slip away. To not be given a fighting chance. August pulls his phone out of his pocket and pulls up his contacts, hovering his finger over the name of his old university friend.

Hoping with his whole heart that she can offer some help.

Some light in the dark.

-

[harpyytales]

Office Love

Pairing; Alex law x Reader (Implied fem) Warnings; Suggestive content, Alex Law is his own warning, soft make out sesh in the office ;) Word Count; 1k

Summary; The office may be boring, but Alex Law always makes it better.

THIS IS NOT EDITED

You sat in your small cubicle. Desk littered with different files and stacks of papers, all different stories and articles you were assigned to. All of them were basic sideline stories: Local Grandma Lives To See 98; Dog Shelters Reaching Capacity; This Miracle Plant Will Save Your Gut!- boring. 

You began shuffling through a few stacks of files mindlessly, only a couple minutes until your short, mandated break. When you feel the hairs stand on the back of your neck you raise your eyes, wondering what could give you this weird feeling that you’re being watched. As you scan the surrounding cubicles your eyes land on him staring directly at you, unwavering. It was slightly unsettling really, but he makes up for it with that small smile of his.

Alex Law is no stranger to you, hell you’re sure he isn’t a stranger to half the other women in this room. Lately though, instead of dancing from girl to girl, he has been solely paying attention to you. You don’t mind of course, but you can’t help but wonder what thoughts were going on in that beautiful head of his.

With a raise of his eyebrows and a tap of his watch you avert your eyes to a clock on the wall. Break time. You smile and get up, making your way to a small and mostly empty break room. No more than a minute later he comes walking in.

“A little funny how often our breaks matchup like this, you aren’t stalking me, are you?” You smile as you watch him take a quick look at the coffee bar.

“Wouldn’t dream of it, sweetheart.” He shoots back a grin and then looks as though he is contemplating something. “Actually it’s quite convenient, I need to discuss something with you about a story, but I need to get a few supplies from the closet. Would you mind walking with me?”

“Of course, lead the way.” You reply and begin following him out of the break room. You two feign small conversation on the way to the supply closet, a small space in a hallway practically no one walked through. 

Once you both walked in and the door was closed it was as if a switch flipped. No more than a second after you heard the click of the handle his lips were on yours, soft hands on your hips already pulling you close. You of course reciprocated, hands flying up to run through his gorgeous blonde locks. This always earned a soft sigh from him that never ceased to make your heart flutter. 

His lips moved against yours softly, sensually, as though he was taking his time. You’d be lying if this didn’t slightly catch you off guard. His usual methods more on the rough and quick side, not that you minded of course, you just never really expected to see this side of him. You felt the familiar warmth of his tongue against your lower lip, a question you were always eager to answer. Instead of plunging his tongue down your throat, he crept in. He let himself explore your mouth as though it was his first time tasting you.

He snaked one arm around your waist and brought the other up to cup your cheek, turning your face just slightly so he could pull you even closer, if that was even possible. You felt entirely out of your depth, usually these sessions were all about him, but this time the entire focus was you. A gentle thumb stroked your cheek as his other hand gently rubbed circles in your back. His sweet and smoky tongue danced with yours in delicate waltzes. It was completely out of character and honestly you were starting to feel slightly worried.

Once you both pulled away to breathe you looked at him curiously, eyeing his bottom lip that was wet with your saliva, “That was… quite different. Good, but different,”

You began to see a light blush creep onto his cheeks. Alex Law, blushing? You must be dreaming. “What can I say, I’m just full of surprises.” He replied with his signature, cocky grin.

“Is there a particular reason for this pleasant change in behavior, or should I be worried about our office shenanigans?” You asked with a small laugh, but he looked away from you. Before you could get the chance to ask him what was wrong-

“I want you to meet my roommates. Come have dinner with us, Juliet makes a brilliant Carbonara.” He stared into your eyes expectantly, awaiting an answer.

You stared back, eyes growing wide with surprise. “Come to your place? Meet your roommates? Are you sure? That feels like a big step for us, don’t you think? I don’t.. I don’t know if your roommates would even like me-” Your slightly panicked ramble was cut off when Alex rolled his eyes and kissed you again. Another soft kiss that had your words caught in your throat. He began moving his lips to your jaw and down your neck, softly nibbling and sucking in spots he knew all too well. With a sigh you were practically putty in his hands.

“Next Saturday,” He begins between kisses, “I’ll come pick you up at 6, dinner at 7.” He sounded very final in the matter. You were in no position to argue, you simply nodded and sighed as he continued to lick, nibble and suck along your throat. You were sure you were going to have to cover up with a scarf before you stepped back into the office.

He trailed his way back up and placed another, more passionate, kiss on your lips, hands holding either side of your face. When he pulled back he was practically beaming.

“Great, see you at 6.” He then tilted your head down and planted a very quick kiss to your forehead before abandoning you altogether and leaving the supply closet. But a moment later he was peeking back inside, “And for the record, they will love you.” and then he was gone again.

[goingmorry]

[One Piece Headcanons] OP Boys -> when some guy asks them if you're single

Part One | Part Two Characters: Zoro, Sanji, Law, Kid, Ace Tags: reader-insert, gender-neutral reader, suggestive language, overprotective, possessive, jealousy Author’s Note: Thanks for all the likes and reblogs. I appreciate all the love! 💖

RORONOA ZORO

Raises his eyebrow at the question.

On the surface, he appears not to react at all, but his mind is 😠 as he discreetly sizes up the other guy.

Straightforward. He tells the other guy that you're in a relationship with him, so there's no confusion.

"Do you know if they're single?" The man asks again, after hearing no response from the one-eyed swordsman.

Zoro gulps down the remainder of his sake, brown eyes locking onto the guy sitting across from him.

The man swallows the lump forming in his throat, feeling unsettled at the intimidating aura emanating from Zoro's questioning look.

"Who's asking?" Zoro's fingers twitch, hovering over his swords for a brief moment before settling down on his side, "And why?"

The man involuntarily flinches at Zoro's seemingly menacing words. "Me. I'm a traveling merchant," he responds honestly, not wanting to anger the pirate hunter, "We - uh... made small conversation a while back. They seemed really nice. And pretty to boot-"

"They're not," Zoro interrupts, observing the man's reaction to his following statement, "We're in a relationship."

"Ah... I see... Makes sense then," the man gulps, fingers fidgeting in nervousness. Before he can remove himself from the intimidating swordsman's presence, Zoro responds, flashing him a cheeky grin.

"Know where I can get more sake?"

SANJI

Protective as fuck.

He's not afraid to give this guy a piece of his mind for asking him if you're single.

How could someone as beautiful and perfect as you not be taken anyway?

Are they single?

"What? Hell no, they aren't!" Sanji exclaims, making the guy jolt in alarm.

"I-it was just an innocent question," the stranger says, hands held up in mock surrender, "They're really nice... And pretty... So I figured, you know... Thought I'd ask...?" he trails off, realizing that every word he uttered further provoked the rage building inside the blond cook.

"Oi, you shitty bastard!" Sanji yells, flames erupting from his leg, poised to strike this guy down. "You better leave them alone!"

The guy flees in the opposite direction; another would-be suitor scared away by your overprotective boyfriend.

TRAFALGAR LAW

A vein pops out on his temple.

He is visibly pissed off. He was already in a foul mood at having to deal with the Strawhats' shenanigans, and now this?

How dare this person ask him if his S/O is single? The sheer audacity of this bastard.

King of Unspoken Threats.

The thought of vivisecting this man crosses Law's mind but he restricts himself from doing so. Not in broad daylight anyway.

"Do you know if they're single?"

Law's golden eyes squint in disgust, flabbergasted that this stranger would dare to walk up to him to ask such a pointless question.

"Get out of my sight," Law responds, tightly gripping his nodachi. The tattooed ink of DEATH on his knuckles in clear view for all to witness.

"It's just..." the man elaborates, ignoring the subtle warning, "I've seen you with them quite often. I figured you'd know if they were in a relationship with someone."

Law smirks at the man's persistence and refusal to comply with his request, his cold eyes hinting at the Surgeon of Death's callous nature. "Don't make me repeat myself."

The words die in the man's throat, suddenly feeling a wave of nausea at Law's intense stare.

If I see you here again, there's no telling what would happen to you.

As if on cue, the man hurries away, not without looking over his shoulder, to see your familiar figure in the distance approaching Law's threatening form.

EUSTASS KID

Grins maniacally at your potential suitor.

Humors the other guy for a bit to see what his intentions are.

Goes from 0 to 100 real quick when the other man makes inappropriate comments about you.

Are you single?

Kid looks at the man beside him in sudden interest, dark red lips stretching into a full-blown grin, eyes flashing dangerously at the man's question, "And if they are?"

The guy perks up, wrongfully assuming that you were, in fact, single. "They're hot as fuck."

"Can't disagree with that," Kid states, laughing while flexing his metallic arm, "You interested?"

"Hell yeah! I'm definitely interested," the man responds enthusiastically, "You see that mouth? Oh, what I would give to put those plump lips to good use."

Ignoring Kid's warning glare, the man continues unabashedly, "I would LOVE to cum all over those-"

No one was allowed to say that about you openly, Kid thought. Except, well, him.

The guy never saw it coming. One second, Kid was sitting down, taking a sip of his beer bottle with his flesh arm. The next, Kid was standing over the man's collapsed form on the floor, unconscious from Kid's ferocious strike.

Before exiting the establishment, Kid throws some beli on the bar counter, a satisfied grin plastered across his deadly features.

"And for the record, they're with me."

PORTGAS D. ACE

Noticeably shocked. He knew you were attractive but never imagined that someone would outright ask him if you were single.

Attempts to recover from his previous outburst by explaining to this stranger that you and he are in a relationship.

Though he starts to wonder if someone else would be better for you.

When he feels insecure, you take his head in your hands, look him right in the eyes, tell him how much you love him, and shower him in kisses.

Ace feels dumb for even feeling that way - he's never doubted your love for him and vice versa - but you reassure him that all feelings, whether good or bad, are valid.

Ace ungracefully spits out a mouthful of liquor at the person in front of him. It takes him a few seconds to recover. His right hand lightly punches his chest in a show of removing the excess liquid stuck in his throat while his left hand reflexively clenches into a fist by his side.

The man across from Ace appears unamused, grabbing a nearby cloth to clean himself of the drink that was spat on him.

The question rings in Ace's head.

Are they single?

Ace stares at the person in front of him, carefully watching as the guy sets the cloth aside and tilts his head in your direction.

"Uh - no, they aren't," Ace finally responds, pausing to clear his throat.

The guy patiently waits for him to continue.

"I mean - they're taken," Ace clarifies, glancing at your figure from across the room, "We're together."

"Ah, a shame then," the guy jokes, giving Ace a lopsided grin, "Well, you better be treating them right, or I'm stealing them from you!"

Ace returns the man's lightheartedness with a salute, "Aye aye, sir! That's the plan."

[thesunicarusfellfor]

Mortal of Gold - Part 3

(Yandere!C!Techno x GN!Shy!Reader x Yandere!C!Philza)

Anyone want my list of the characters as gods? There were a few characters that I couldn't think of like Ponk, so I just left them out. ANYWAY. Hi, how's it going? ALSO I CANT EDIT THIS DAMN POST AND THE SPELLING ERRORS ARE SO IRRITATING

Part 1 Part 2 TW: Mention of amnesia, memories being altered Send me a message via inbox if you wanna be added to a general or series tag list. Make sure to turn off anon, please. ------- “They weren’t born… A mortal?”

A light wind brushed over your features, causing you to give a small sigh and roll over onto your side in an attempt to block the light from hitting your lidded eyes. It was nice and quiet for once… “(Y/n)?” A distorted voice echoed softly, causing you to flinch a bit. You opened your eyes slightly to see a silky blackbird sitting on the sheets beside you, a few golden trinkets laying beside it. Upon seeing your eyes slide open, the creature hopped up onto its legs and began making soft cooing noises, “(Y/n)! (Y/n), you’re awake!” Glancing around at the surroundings you had been placed in, racking your mind for any sort of familiarity but failing to come up with anything at all, even who you were. You sat up, slowly brushing your fingers along your ombre silk clothing before putting your hands on the sheets below your body, frowning as you didn’t recognize the bed as yours. “Hello…” You murmured softly, reaching your hand out to the crow who eagerly jumped forward to nuzzle your hand. The feathers of the bird felt… Odd. They felt more like grabbing at misty fog, but with a light staticky cotton texture that caused a buzzing sensation on your fingertips, “I’m sorry, my memory… Seems to be a tad faulty… Could you tell me your name?” “I’m Chat, Dadza- er… Philza’s familiar! I was a gift from Mumza, oops... Kristen, the Goddess of Void and Death.” It chirped, its voice having multiple layers in your head, causing you to shake your head a slight bit, “No, they’re not married, only parental figures to the souls that pass on to the afterlife or those they saved sometime before they passed on… I believe they have more of a co-worker relationship.” You nodded slightly, pursing your lips at how the creature’s voice sounded in your mind. It was unsettling and caused shivers to crawl up and down your back, but at the same time, it was incredibly calming and had a soothing aura. How that worked, you had no clue whatsoever. Brushing off the unsettling voice of the bird, you decided to focus on the name that caused a light to go off in your head, “Alright… Philza… I think I remember that name…” “Yeah! Dadza- Eck… Sorry. Phil, he’s the God of Survival and Crows! He controls not only every crow in the mortal land, but he also controls whether or not someone will survive a situation. If there is no way that the mortal can survive, he will send a crow down and have them guide the soul of the mortal to him! Then he escorts them to Kristen! He has gained the name Angel of Death because he works for Mumza!” You decided not to question why the crow called Philza and Kristen Mumza and Dadza, knowing that you’d probably find out later, but by the sound of it Chat seemed to be multiple children, “Okay… Makes sense…” You mumbled slowly, nodding your head up and down. With a sigh you slowly brought your legs over to the side of the bed, only now becoming aware of how large the soft mattress was. Lowlands! (Hell) You could probably fit six people who were ten feet tall in it with room to roam! Pushing yourself off the bed, you also realized how high the beautiful bed was off the floor, Gods, whoever lived here was tall! Behind you, you heard a small chirp, and you saw Chat watching you curiously. With a small shrug, you decided to pick the familiar up and hold it in your cupped hands as you walked out the door, “Oooh! Dadza never carries us like this, and Technoblade does only when he’s about to yeet us out a window!” “Yeet?” You scowled in confusion as you walked through the arched doorway, your bare feet padding silently on the quartz flooring, “I'm scared to ask. Technoblade? Is he also a god of some things? He sounds familiar as well…” “That’s its word for throwing something. Well, it yells the word when they throw something or get thrown, so I assume it’s yelling in excitement,” A deep voice spoke from in front of you, causing you to gasp and lift your head from the crow. The telepathic chirping and squeaks from Chat in your mind quickly formed the name Technoblade, so… You had a feeling that your answer was on its way past his

lips, “I’m Technoblade, or Techno, the God of Blood and War. It’s… nice to see you finally awake…” He shifted awkwardly on his feet as you curiously studied him. His appearance could certainly be described as godly if anyone asked you. His long pink hair was mostly twisted and tied into a braid with bits of golden chain and a polished golden crown adorned with rubies, garnets and diamonds. Upon his pale skin, dozens of scars of varying sizes decorated his skin in different areas, but they were displayed in an almost proud manner. Almost. When he spoke, his dark pink eyes hidden behind cracked glasses searched your form for any sort of injury, “I’m… (Y/n)... I think. I don’t know if this bird is exactly trustworthy in its information… Do you know where I am?” Techno snorted as Chat gave an offended squawk at your statement, “That’s very fair, to be honest. You’re in the Tundra of the Upperlands, and this is my palace. No there is no snow, I believe the person who named this place has never looked into the name or word Tundra, but it’s been like this for too long to change it-” He paused for a moment as he noticed you looking extremely confused, “Ah. Right. Desert. Don’t worry about it.” “Oh… Okay…” You frowned at the tusked male for a moment before shaking your head, deciding not to question it much, “Now, uh… How did I get here, and why don’t I remember anything about myself? Or, about you and this Philza guy, I was told about.” You lifted Chat slightly toward Techno as a silent indication that Chat was the one who told you about Phil. “That’s uh… Phil’s field of expertise.” He rubbed the back of his head with his black-tipped fingers before adjusting his crown, “I don’t understand much of what happened, and Phil will tell you what you need to know that will keep you safe.” Hesitantly, he held his free hand out towards you making you realize that he was easily over seven and a half feet tall, “C’mon, I’ll take you to him and get you the answers you need.” His hand was extremely steady, you noticed as you stared down at it cautiously. Once you noticed that he didn’t seem to want to do you harm, you slowly shifted Chat into one hand and used your free hand to take the one extended to you, which you couldn’t help but notice, made Technoblade very happy, “Okay. Thank you.” The god held your hand in his calloused one for a few moments before beginning to lead you down the tan and white hallways that were turned a light golden hue from the rising sun. It was quite a long walk filled with a slightly uncomfortable silence, but you distracted yourself by looking around the palace curiously. It was obvious he was the God of War by how many swords hanging on walls and sets of armour he had placed on armour stands in the hallways. Eventually, he walked you through an archway that led into a wide-open room with multiple windows that had many crows perched on the windowsills, some chirping and singing some little tune in perfect unison while others shuffled around, seeming to do a little dance. You were quick to realize the whistling of one of the birds didn’t match up and noticed that it was coming from the man with the large white and green striped hat as well as massive black feathered wings dangling on his back, fluffing themselves up every so often. When you and Techno stepped in, the blackbirds started chirping loudly, losing the rhythm of the tune the winged man was whistling as Chat started telepathically squealing about… 2/4? Two out of four what? “Ah!” The hat-wearing male turned around and clasped his hands together upon seeing you standing up, “(Y/n), you’re awake. I was worried the injuries you sustained were enough to keep you out cold for a few more weeks. I’m glad to see I was wrong. I’m Philza, God of Survival and Crows, and I see you’ve met Chat and Techno. Pesky bird, I told it not to wake you...” You pursed your lips for a moment, analyzing the shorter god as the bird squealed out its protests. While he was shorter than Techno, he was certainly tall, standing roughly around six feet tall, his wingspan

probably double that for each wing! His blonde hair was long around his face but was pulled into a loose braid like Techno’s was, although instead of gold intertwined into his hair, it was silver. His outfit was made up of a loose green shirt and black pants, with a red heart-shaped pendant dangling off of a chain into the center of his chest. Why did that pendant… Look familiar? You slowly rose your hand up and clasped at the pendant around your neck, noticing how Philza smiled softly, “Technoblade… Said you could tell me why I can’t remember anything?” “You’re still wearing my gift, I see,” Philza gave a soft hum as Chat jumped from your hand and onto his shoulder, before gesturing for you and Techno to take a seat where he already had drinks and some form of cakes set out, but they certainly weren’t there when you came in. Upon seeing your confused blinking, he gave a soft laugh, “I’m a god, mate, magic is no difficult task for me, let alone creating some measly tea and desserts. Now, sit down and I will tell you everything…” - General - None Mortal of Gold -@generalalmond @binas-idea-vault @ohworm-writes

[dnvrsmedia]

I Meant Every Word I Said

Natasha Romanoff x Fem!reader

summary: reader comes back from a mission and involentarly spills the truth on how they feel about their crush on a certain redheaded assasin.

word count: 1185

genre: fluff

warnings: sugestive themes but no smut

masterlist / ask box

you do not have my permission to repost my material and claim it is yours. that is plagerism.

likes and reblogs are always appreciated and welcomed.

You wracked your brain trying to figure out what went wrong as you stumbled out of the quinjet feeling lightheaded and dizzy. It was a simple recon mission at an abandoned Hydra facility. Nothing that you haven’t done millions of times previously. You thought that everything had gone well until now. You managed to get your ass inside and up the elevator.

The familiar ‘ding’ caused everyone relaxing in the livingroom to turn their heads. The woozy and unsettled look didn’t go past these highly trained individuals, more specifically Natasha Romanoff.

“Hey! How was the- Y/N are you alright?” Nat cocked her eyebrow in a questioning manner. You took one wobbly step out of the elevator.

“Is it just me or is everything spinning really fucking fast?” You slurred out before collapsing to the ground. Before you fall, you feel strong arms wrap around you.

“My hero.” You used the last of your strength to lift your mouth next to Nat’s ear, brushing your lips on to her soft skin. You try to seductively speak but end up sounding like you were about to have a life-threatening stroke.You passed out before you could see the faint blush and look of concern that washed over the former assassin’s face.

You wake up in the med bay with a groan. The pressure of someone’s hand in yours warrants you to open your eyes out of curiosity. The (assuming) once warm cloth, now lukewarm, slides down your forehead as you lift your chin. Surprisingly enough, the cold exterior-redheaded- Russian spy is clinging on to your hand as she naps in the chair at the side of your bed. You try to move once more but a wave of dizziness hits you like a semi-truck prompting you to groan even louder. That groan wakes up the redhead besides you. Within seconds she was standing by your side.

“Hey tough guy,” she flashes you her ever so infamous smirk. “You feeling okay?” She squeezes your hand. You oddly take the hand that is in yours and kiss her palm due to a wave of confidence that you previously never had around the spy.

“How could I feel anything else but bliss when I’m around you,sweetheart?” As soon as the words fell out of your mouth you felt your face heat up as did Natasha. Being this bold was completely out of character for you. You were the shy nerdy type that always had your nose in some book or geeking out with the science bros about some new statistical anomaly. Like oil in water, you and confidence did not mix. At least not until now.

“Excuse me?” Nat looked at you both shocked and painfully flustered. Normally it was Natasha that made you blush crimson.

“You heard me, princess. You know you are painfully beautiful. If I had to die I wouldn’t want to die anywhere else but between those thighs.” You smacked your mouth shut after that horribly explicit confession you just made.You didn’t think it was possible for Nat to get this flustered or flustered at all, but your incompetence to keep your mouth shut seemingly broke her.

Nat stood there opening and closing her mouth like a fish out of water.

“Nat I am so sorry I don’t know what is coming over me-” As you apologized Banner barged through the door.

“We ran some tests and think we found some sort of truth serum found its way through your body, Y/N. To make sure, can you remember walking through some area with maybe some broken air pipes or did you accidentally kick some sort of gadget that could have released this sort of thing?”

You tuned out almost everything Banner was saying to you as you ogled the stunning woman in front of you.

“Every single part of you is perfect and I wish I had the balls to ask you out.” You dreamily sighed as you pulled Nat on top of you on the bed. Nat let out a little yelp as she fell on top of you.

“Now this is something I could get used to.” You looked up horrified at the woman on top of you as she giggled into the crook of your neck.

“I think that answers the doubts you may have Dr.Banner.” Nat laughs as she looks back at your embarrassed demeanor. Banner nods and scurrys off to presumably get the antidote.

“I like having you in my arms, Natty. It makes me feel like I could protect you.”

Natasha’s heart melts. Not only at the nickname that only you are allowed to call her, but you want to protect her. She has never had someone want to protect her and she's willing to open up to that feeling with you. Natasha looks into your eyes in admiration.

“Fuck it.” She whispers as she cups your cheek. This kiss was everything you could have imagined and more. It was intense and sexy but that lustful feeling turned into her wanting to prove how much you mean to her. It turned sensual and full of care. You two would kiss forever if you could, but it was interrupted by your coworkers.

“You owe me twenty, pay up bird brain.” The familiar voice of Tony Stark makes the two of you separate. You look over to see Clint begrudgingly taking a wad full of cash from his wallet and smacking down a wrinkled twenty dollar bill into the hands of the billionaire.

“You couldn't have gone on the mission next week!” Clint groaned but shut up quickly when Nat shot him a glare. You just laughed.

“Be nice Natty.” You teased and kissed under her ear. You lifted her face back to see the red on her cheeks darkening at the use of the nickname in front of your friends.

“Yeah, Natty! Be nice-” Clint says but is quickly sent to the ground with the use of the redhead’s widow’s bite. You gasp and turn to your new lover. You lift your head to her ear and speak.

“Don’t be a brat, sweetheart.” This time, you confidently pull away as the woman on top shudders.

“I- I don’t know what you mean. Banner, Where is that serum?” She awkwardly coughs and slides off of you so that she is sitting next to you opposed to directly on top as you chuckle at her visibly being uncomfortable in comparison to her normal calm and cool exterior.

“Oh I already gave Y/N the antidote when you were asleep. I have no clue why she is still acting like this.” Banner shrugs. Now it’s your turn for your face to heat up.

“Okay I can explain! Everything said before Banner came in was involuntary!” You feel like your face was the seventh ring of hell. Of course Tony and the others happened to find all of this amusing.

Everyone seemed to find this hillarious, but you couldn’t read Natasha’s face.

“But you meant every word you said, right?”

“Right.”

“So...my thighs, huh?”

She cheekily smirked as you groaned.

[charleecat-bat]

Sonic Cast in the Magic AU

This consists of small snippets of backstory and information of sonic characters in my Mage/Magic AU. I’ve been working on this for months and it’s been worked on bit by bit and left in my tumblr drafts so i’m SO HAPPY that it’s gonna be posted now.

if you have any questions about the au, feel free to ask! :D

Decided to add the thing so it doesn’t make looking at it on mobile hell-

Sonic Windstep- A hedgehog who has been described as a literal speed demon, both for his extraordinary skills of flight but his raw talent and mastery of momentum magic. Not only can he manipulate his own momentum, by making himself as fast or as slow as he needs to be, but he can alter the speed and movement of other objects and people. He can go from slowing people down to sending them flying whenever he wishes. While he’s got a good heart, he’s not exactly good at staying out of trouble, and his use of magic certainly keeps him out of it; but it’s better at keeping others out of danger. He’s one of the most well-known mages in the land, getting all kinds of attention. His familiar is a Peregrine Falcon. 

Amy Rose- This cheery hedgehog lady has a very peculiar type of magic. Her magic is quite literally in the cards with card magic, and not just about the clairvoyant use of them with fortune telling (although she does enjoy doing that and was the first trick she learnt). With a special set of crafted magic cards, she can use them for a multitude of different spells and magical enhancements, such as summoning weapons or objects, setting traps, or enchanting herself depending on the cards. She can even use the very cards themselves as a projectile. It’s a very versatile set of magic that is difficult to master, but she is well on her way to doing so. She usually helps out at Vanilla’s inn or at Honey’s studio but she enjoys doing Tarot Card readings on the side. Her familiar is a swan... that seems to act exactly like her, cheerful and loving one moment... and then horrifyingly aggressive the next.

Miles ‘Tails’ Prower- A young fox who’s already a prodigy, his intelligence being far greater than anyone of his age. Despite the terrible teasing he suffered during his earliest years, getting to the point of dark rumours about him being born with two tails, he’s grown past it and training hard to become a great and wise magic user. Tails’ magic is one that isn’t very common and even harder to master, the magic arts of an Artificer (At least I hope I’m getting this right-). Everyone is aware of magically enhanced items and almost everyone has used them at some point in their life but very few can make them, yet Tails is already steadily learning the ropes of those very skills. As an artificer, he constantly comes up with ideas for enchanted items, from tools to weapons and uses his own specialised tools and magic to create them... it doesn’t always work but he won’t ever quit! His familiar is an Octopus, who frequently likes to hang out on his arms and play with his tools and spare parts.

Nakon 'Knuckles' Guardia- A reclusive echidna who comes from a long thought extinct clan of solitary echidna mages. Very little is known about this clan except they were very powerful and defended many magic-infused artifacts, but they suddenly just vanished. Only Knuckles remained and has been on his own in the Emerald Groves ever since he could remember and continues to live in them to this day. No one knows what happened to them, or why Knuckles is the only one left and neither does he. He may not have memories of his clan and has had to fend for himself from a young but that doesn’t matter to him. He strives to keep up the honourable duty that his ancestors did before him. Knuckles uses an ancient form of nature/earth magic that is very difficult to replicate, very very few mages can accomplish ancient forms of magic. His familiar is a dragon, which matches his rare and powerful magic.

Shadow Ranchor - A mysterious and almost unsettling hedgehog whose origins are unknown to many; even his own memories of his past are foggy. What he does remember was his dearest friend, Maria Ranchor. Whom she and Shadow were watched over by her grandfather. who had found him and taken him back to their home but did not tell him anything else about his origins. Maria was a sickly girl and was frequently bedridden or had to have elixirs that only did so much at a time. Her grandfather tried desperately to find a cure for her disease but most of his attempts were unsuccessful. Unfortunately, they were attacked by a mysterious cult, Maria was killed trying to protect Shadow and her grandfather was taken away; never to be seen again. Shadow had fought these cult members the best he could but they subdued him... and that’s the last of what he can remember. He had awoken from this slumber-like stasis, the emotional wounds still fresh and rage still fueling but only to discover 50+ years had passed now... He shows great talent in one of the more notorious branches of magic, blood magic. He not only can control his own blood, such as stopping himself from bleeding, shaping it and manipulating or using it in blood rituals. He can also manipulate other people's blood which can be... very bad. He, later on, discovers that he is an artificial being made by the same cult that attacked Maria and her grandfather. He doesn’t know their connection to the cult but he vows he will discover his past if it’s the last thing he does. His familiar is a surprising one to some, A dove. It originally was Maria’s but he has taken it as his own, a true sign of devotion and love to her.

Rouge Éblouissante- An alluring and beautiful bat mage who seems to have an obsession of all sorts of gemstones and jewels... but for good reason! Her magic, gemstone magic, stems around the very use of crystals and jewels. She’s able to use many of them to grant her all sorts of enhancements and perform particular spells and even use them to make gorgeous charms for her liking. Not many people know of her past, she loves to tease that she’s full of mystery and can’t give it all away. She runs a cabaret that is a very popular hot spot, the home she lives in is above the building. Her familiar is a peacock.

Silver Occasio - Despite barely being a mage yet and still learning, the teenaged hedgehog holds a massive amount of power for someone his age. Silver's talents lie with time/divination magic, being able to control time such as slow it down, and speed it up (he has yet to discover if he can even alter the past..). He can also see the future and look into the past to some degree, although both of these can be very... upsetting for him, he's seen things that he'd rather not have. These powers have given him some amount of stress but he has tried his best to control and come to terms with them. Despite the heavy duty of these powers, Silver tries his best to be an optimistic and cheery little dork. Currently, he’s being tutored by the finest mages in the Sol kingdom, some would call him lucky but the mages don’t really help with the pressure. Thankfully he has found support and comfort in his best friend, the Princess herself. His familiar is an owl.

Blaze Emberlot- The teenaged princess of the Sol Kingdom, her bloodline has ruled over the kingdom for many decades; many members of her family tree bare great and powerful magic. Blaze is naturally talented with the powerful magic that is fire/heat magic. This of course has left her kingdom... greatly concerned. As a child, she struggled to control it and many children even feared her for it. For many years she has been monitored by her kingdom and trained under the very best mages, it’s more been keeping an eye on her and making sure she doesn’t destroy the whole kingdom though... Despite the destructive power of her magic, she performs it with such grace and elegance and always keeps a cool, calm exterior; hiding the burning passion inside. This has settled a lot of her kingdom's concerns for her, but it has not settled her own inner anxiety. Her familiar is a lion, suiting the tradition of her family line having big cat creatures as their companions.

Cream Maplewood- A sweet little girl who has just started her learning of magic, yet at a young age she already shows exceptional talent with beast/animal-based magic. Being gifted with the ability to not only communicate with all sorts of creatures but even pacify them. She can’t do much else at this moment, but with how much she’s achieved so far; she’s sure to be a powerful mage. Her familiar shows great promise with how rare it is, a unicorn. It is not her only companion however, Cream seems to attract a large number of creatures called Chao; one who she has gotten very close with and called Cheese.

Vanilla Maplewood- The gentle and nurturing mother of Cream, she owns a inn/bakery where she excels in her quite unusual magic specialty. Culinary magic. Not only does her food actually manage to heal your wounds and injuries if needed, can improve your mood, improve your health and lift sickness and many other properties depending on whatever she bakes and cooks. She even learnt how to cook a large amount with only a small amount of rations, saving her money and wasting very little. Her bakery is very successful and popular and she is known as one of the best culinary magic users. Her familiar is a deer.

Big Immanis- A laidback gentle giant that has quite a shroud of mystery on him. Very few know much about him except the obvious, that he’s a quiet fisherman that prefers a life of serenity and simply doesn’t talk much about himself unless it’s about his love of fish. Many assume things about him as they haven’t seen him be anything but as a fisherman but little do they know that he is very powerful both with his immense strength and size and his mastery of water magic, even being able to manipulate ice itself which is not an easy feat to achieve for those who attempt water magic. It wouldn’t be a good idea to get on his bad side, but thankfully he’s so easygoing he’d barely ever want to hurt anyone unless given a good reason to. Who knows what else has happened in his life... His familiar is a frog and has been by his side for as long as he can remember and his best friend nicknames him Froggy.

Vector Marblemaw- a large loudmouthed crocodile with a heart of gold. His magic is quite unique and considered odd but very fitting for Vector. His specialty lies in incantation/vocal magic, which surrounds his voice/vocalisations in order for his magic to work. Ranging from powerful attacks to gentle healing spells, as long as he has his voice, his magic is strong. So he indeed lives by the phrase loud and proud. He runs a Watchmen service which mostly aids in public safety, crime prevention, crime detection, and recovery of stolen goods; whether enchanted or not. Although it can be hard for them to find work, they’re definitely good at what they do. His familiar is a whale, a powerful yet gentle creature that is known to sing and vocalise just as he does. He used to be embarrassed by this familiar when he was younger but not anymore.

Espio Omagatoki- a calm and collected mage who has a surprising talent in a branch of darker magic, shadow magic. While his magic has frightened and unnerved many but he does his best to teach people that the darker magics don't necessarily mean they're evil from the start. He knows he’s not a bad person and his magic shouldn’t dictate that, and so far he's been successful in changing some people's minds. He works with his close friend, Vector in his Watchmen service, using his magic to assist them in their work; he especially strives well in stealth-related missions. His familiar is a praying mantis, and yes he knows the irony of it you don’t need to mention it he’s heard it way too many times.

Charmy Marblemaw- A young, energetic and hyperactive bee that Vector had adopted and taken under his wing. Despite being a bit easily distracted and even... annoying to some, he is still a good kid and still tries hard to learn about his magic, even if it’s at his own pace. He has recently learnt he has a knack for light magic and while only being able to do flashy performances with it, he'll slowly but surely learn how bendable this branch of magic is. His familiar is/will be a hummingbird. If he gets it now, all he'll be able to do with it, for now, is just talk to the familiar and maybe fly around with it on his staff which he finds kinda boring unless he feels too lazy to fly himself. That’s a rule with children and familiars, the only rare exception is that magic can be used through the familiars while on their staffs.

Mighty Armoure- a kindhearted but strong armadillo man, his durability and strength is something to behold but yet he’s full of surprises, not even with his pacifistic nature but his magical specialty, his talents lie in bard/music magic. While considered unusual or even a more comical branch of magic, Mighty truly shows just how powerful it can be if used correctly. From the strums of his bass guitar to his powerful voice, he wows people with just how well he uses this magic. Of course, he prefers using it outside of fighting, best believe he will and not even have to use his strength… probably a good idea if you didn’t anyway. He’s usually a traveller and goes from place to place but always comes back home to visit and make sure his siblings are doing well as they study. He and Matilda didn’t have a good homelife originally but they’ve moved on from that now and don’t speak of it. His familiar is a bear, and just like Mighty, it's fiercely protective and it’s not smart to get on its bad side.

Matilda Armoure- The younger and much more snarky and witty sister of Mighty. While she has jokingly said she studies the dark arts, this is simply her just messing with people. Her magic specialises around art magic/animation, having the power to bring things to life, but excelling at things that come from her own creation, mostly through drawing and sculptures, but she can still bring to life any inanimate object that has a solid form (So don’t go asking her to just bring a random slap of stone to life it won’t work). Luckily for her, if she so needs it, she has quite a vivid and interesting imagination so if she needs to protect herself, she has a full sketchbook of things that can protect her. Her familiar is a fox and loves to jokingly mess with people just as she does, not even Matilda is safe from suddenly loud strange sounds from the creature.

Ray Fellowes- a jumpy and skittish young flying squirrel boy. He’s a close companion of Mighty, almost an unofficially adopted little brother to him. Despite his nervousness, is deeply loyal and a clever young mage. He's discovered his talents lie within healing magic. While not having much confidence in his abilities just yet, he's still learning and willing to make himself stronger. In the meantime, he's happy to still at least have magic that can help others. He’s also aware his branch of magic can have a dark side to it, where it can inflict injury and illness instead of taking it away but he’s smart enough to be cautious of that side of it. His familiar is a mouse that tends to hide in his sleeves if it’s not on his staff, not out of shyness, but simply out of comfort.

Nack ‘Fang’ Bizirik-  A scrappy hybrid criminal that has had a rough go of life. Nack didn't have the nicest beginnings, he was discarded by his birth parents and given to a cult (this cult stemming from the one that created Shadow). This cult experimented with spells and curses and used orphan children as their test subjects; Nack was one of these subjects. He wasn’t at an age to know that a curse was put on him that stunted all of his magic and only when the curse was broken would be able to use his natural magic again. He was soon tracked down by his uncle (after finding out what his trashy parents did) and to avoid any trouble by the mage, simply gave the child back to him to raise himself, his uncle raised him the best he could and was a supportive figure for him. Unfortunately, it wasn't easy to raise the young hybrid and after continuing to grow older and still lacking any magic ability, he ran away from home; angry and bitter at the world. He became a thief and stole many-an-item. He used many of these stolen enchanted items and charms to make up for his lack of magic. He soon met Bark and Bean not long after and grew close to them, even becoming something of a family with them over time. When he found out about his curse it was... not fun to say the least, but it was discovered his talents circles around shapeshifting magic when it was broken. Fun times! His familiar is a beetle, who he found discarded in trash not long after running away, it was Nack's only friend for the longest time.

Bartek 'Bark' Nor'easter- A mute, physically imposing and powerful polar bear mage. He comes from a pure-blooded, wealthy and high-class family of mages, the Nor’easter family. They had high expectations put on him the moment he was born. He was expected to have natural-born skills with mind magic, which involves telekinesis, telepathy and many more, and he did. This is what his parents expected him to study and nothing else, whether he liked it or not. Bark was made to be a certain way and act and do as his parents wanted, when he didn't; they were not afraid to use their mind control on him to have him be as obedient and ‘perfect’ as possible. This abuse gave Bark the determination and spite to become stronger than they ever could be with this magic. lived up to that self-made promise, he's by far one of the strongest mages when it comes to Mind Magic, almost becoming feared for how powerful and adept he is at using it. Most telepath users only being able to talk to one or a few handfuls of people at a time, Bark can use his to speak to massive crowds at once... albeit his power can extremely overwhelming and it's wise not to have him lose his composure else it'd be by far the worst meltdown for everyone else... He left his home quickly after he was finished with his studies and hasn’t spoken to his parents since and still tries to rid himself of their reputation. His connections with a criminal (Nack) and a troubled child (Bean) that he has taken under his wing definitely don’t help with his image but he’s trying to live his life in the way he wants for once and still trying to heal from his parent's treatment. His familiar is an Elk, he got his familiar much later than most magic users as his family didn't let him have one in case it served as a distraction, and man does he feel like he missed out.

Bean Nor'easter- a troubled young mage that was adopted by Bark after he found him and took him under his wing. He is a talented potion-master, and while it's easy for most magic users to accomplish creating potions with a bare amount of magic. His skill is on a level that requires use of spells to give it that extra... spice. And his creative thinking definitely helps with this. Unfortunately, he was mentally unstable and no one knew why or didn't care to find out. Only seeing this boy as a danger and thinking he needed to be dealt with. Bark would discover not long after befriending him that a curse was placed on the boy when he was young. Bean didn’t remember how he got it but it was the cause of his mental instability, it’s a fairly common and weak curse. Thankfully with Bark's support and doses of elixir, he’s improved greatly and had a smooth road to recovery. He continues to improve with his magic and hopes to become a powerful potion master. His familiar is a Pheonix, which is a very rare creature to acquire as a familiar, he found it after hearing a nearby explosion in the forest he lives near and they took a liking to each other. Explosion-prone buddies!

Scourge Abscond-  An arrogant and reckless hedgehog that bares quite a resemblance to Sonic... as he should, as they are actually cousins! They used to be close growing up, but unfortunately, they weren’t given the same attention. Scourge was not as lucky as Sonic when it came to receiving positive attention. Poor Scourge has always felt stuck in his cousin's shadow, never seemingly being able to live up to the ‘better’ child. Envy and bitterness grew in him and they drifted apart. During their teenage years, Scourge finally ran off and has become a known criminal since. His specialty lies in teleportation/portal magic, which definitely comes in handy when you choose to do crime for a living. Sonic has many attempts to reach out and reform his cousin but... it’s yet to go well. His familiar is a hyena, and for a long time has been his only friend that he can rely on.

Jet Skyborne- A brash and cocky hawk teenager whos very interested in flight-related sports and has shown to have great skill and talent in them, he, unfortunately, isn’t at the top yet. Despite his arrogant and prideful attitude, he uses it to mask his insecurity and jealousy. Especially towards Sonic, who Jet claims that he’s a rival to him and vice-versa(Sonic definitely doesn’t see him as such and more of an annoying teenager who constantly wants to challenge him-). One of the biggest reasons for his insecurity is the kind of magic that he seems to be talented at, weather magic. He badly wishes he could have something better, and even tries to fight it by trying to learn different magics and cast them but no matter how hard he tries to fight it, weather magic is his specialty and he can't get away from it. He sometimes struggles to control it and it ties to his emotions in the worst ways so when he gets at his worst... it’s not a fun experience. It even resulted in injuring his older cousin, another reason why he hates his magic. His familiar is an eagle, he loves to fly with it and it’s the one thing he’s truly proud to have.

Wave Skyborne- an ambitious and self-confident swallow woman, ever since she was but a teenager she’s always had a mindset and interest in business endeavours and while it did take some plotting, she eventually managed to get a good business flowing with her natural talent as an alchemist. She’s very skilled in the art and science of alchemy but that doesn’t mean she has her competitors, she has a slight rivalry with the young prodigy Tails. She belittles him and calls him an amateur but will never admit that she’s quite impressed with how skilled he is, even at his age she wasn’t nearly as good. While she can say things to her brother and cousin that might get them at each other's throats, especially Storm, she truly does care for them... she doesn’t know how to show it. She hopes that if her business is successful enough she can provide not just her but her brother and cousin with all the riches and wealth for them to be able live happily; she’ll never stop trying to achieve her goal. Her familiar is a wasp, while very aggressive to most people, it’s very close to Wave and loves to stick by her at all times, and if not, it’s found taking naps on her head or in her toolbox.

Storm Skyborne- A large, loyal albatross man, he may not be the brightest bulb but he really does mean well and tries his hardest. The magic that he specialises in is quite unexpected for someone like him, his powers specialise in emotion/empathetic magic. He doesn’t really know how to feel about him having this kind of magic himself, he never has. It’s not bad magic to have but he just hasn’t figured everything out about it. Unfortunately magic for him lately has been even more difficult and hard for him to control following an... incident he had that left him injured and both mentally and physically scarred. Since that day, casting magic in general and even some physical activity has been difficult to accomplish, at worst his magic can unleash in uncontrollable spurts and considering the type of magic he’s naturally talented in... it’s pretty bad for everyone around him. It’s often easy to tell when he’s not in a good mood or having a bad day, as it just affects everyone around him. Because of his misfortune with magic, he’s begun to avoid being out in public for too long as some folks had even considered him a bad omen... Since then he’s just tried to focus on using his physical strength over magic as much as he could; even if it doesn’t get him too far. His familiar is a shark, who is actually quite a sweetheart and very affectionate, especially to Storm.

Zero Edevane AKA Infinite- A dark and brooding jackal man whose life has gone down a dark path. He was the eldest of his siblings and without parents, he took it upon himself to be the responsible one and look after their family. His speciality revolved around illusion magic, although he would face belittlement from some folks, as some see Illusion magic as a weaker branch of magic. Unfortunately, tragedy struck his family, his siblings had died and he was the lone survivor of the family. This filled him with sadness and rage, seeking revenge on the ones that destroyed his life and took his family away from him. A got his hands on a very powerful but cursed artefact and decided he was going to use it to get his revenge. And it did grant him lots of power and grant him the ability to wield the very rare and unstable magic of chaos magic. He went on a rampage and his mind was corrupted by the power of the artefact. Zero was eventually defeated and thought to be destroyed along with the artefact, well only one of those things is true. He survived the encounter but the artefact was tethered from him, despite being destroyed a part of it remains to him and will be for the rest of his life. He’s currently in hiding and stuck in a horrible state of depression, a part of him even wondering if it would’ve been better if he wasn't here. His familiar is a moth, he recently found this one during his time hiding out and it’s the one companion he has during this time. It’s not his first familiar though, he had another one previously but he lost it, just as he lost his siblings.

Gadget Fortier- A clever and handy wolf man whose large, strong stature tends to surprise many. He was raised in a more rural town where mages are smaller in numbers. His parents run a repairing service that has them fixing all sorts of knick-knacks, Gadget took after them and has always enjoyed tinkering. Much to everyone's surprise, it turned out he had the ability to cast magic. He had a fitting talent for restoration/repair magic, being able to restore any sort of object to a brand new state; even if the damage was immense or pieces were missing. He still does enjoy the fix things the old-fashioned ways, however, out of habit and for enjoyment. His familiar is a bee, it loves to play around with a lot of the spare parts Gadget has lying around.

Shade Nocturne- A serious and rather eerie echidna woman who was raised in a large cult-like society that’s hidden from the world, as Cults are heavily outlawed. She was raised to learn the dark arts and has a talent for them, being knowledgeable about all the branches and especially being gifted at curse magic. Her cult leader, Ix, raised her almost like his own (as he had disposed of her own parents for getting in his way), moulding and shaping her into his finest apprentice and second-in-command. Shade always believed he was doing the best for her, even if it was sometimes.. questionable; little does she know that his need for control and power go to the point of putting a curse on her too. To make sure the risk of her becoming more powerful than him could be prevented. She was always curious about the world outside of her cult and wanted to learn more but Ix, being as controlling as he was, forbade any contact outside their society. She did sneak out behind her leader's back to discover more of the outside world and was careful in her endeavours and would eventually meet a few people that she would call her friends. The more time she spent away from the cult, the more she began to painfully realise that the cult she had been born into was... bad. All of Ix’s ideals were wrong, even discovering she herself had been cursed by him. It hurt to realise this but the truth and logic couldn’t be denied. Soon after this revelation, Ix was ready to destroy her and many of her new allies attempting to stop his dark plans. She found herself having no other option but to destroy the one father figure she had in her life, once breaking the curse he put on her she did so. She knew it was for the best to do but... it still hurts. All of it hurts. Since then shes’ still reluctant to use her power but one day hopes that maybe she can change the way people see her, her magic doesn't make her a vile, wicked person... right? Her familiar is a raven and had been a close companion of hers for a long time, albeit secretly as Ix would’ve destroyed her familiar if he ever found out about it.

Tikal Guardia- Legend has it, that long ago lived a young but powerful mage that came from the mysterious Guardia Clan, a girl named Tikal. Tikal’s spells were the stuff of legend, her skills specialising in Summoning/Conjuration magic. Being able to bring forth any creature or entity or if able to, even a person as she so pleased... and if necessary she could even banish them. Where? Who knows. A pocket dimension. Another world. A void of sorts. No one knew except her. According to legend, she has a mystical connection with a powerful deity that she could summon at will, this deity is simply known as Chaos. Because of this connection, she had a strange bond with the chaos and loved them ever so dearly and protected them the most. A true pacifist by nature, she made it her duty to protect the innocent and righteous and stop evil in its path; even if it meant turning on some of her own blood. Unfortunately, at one point she was forced to, her father and the leader of the Guardia Clan became power hungry and were planning attacks and the only thing she could do was summon Chaos to stop them. It was a devastating amount of destruction but it had to have been done as much as it pained her. No one knows if she still lingers today, whether as a spirit that hasn’t quite vanished or is somehow still secretly alive but hidden away. Her familiar was/is a manatee.

Marine Marlowe- An adventurous racoon girl that descends from Tanuki bloodlines. She currently travels across the sea while she continues her magical studies, it’s very rare for her to be in one spot for long but she always returns to the same spots where her friends reside. She’s very recently found her talents lie in rune magic, and while she hasn't learnt everything yet and is nowhere near being a master. She has the determination to learn as much as she can, what she’s learnt so far has definitely aided her on her oceanic adventures. She’s close friends with princess Blaze and frequently visits her and has a home in the Sol Kingdom.  Her familiar is an otter who’s as playful and mischievous as her.

Honey Chirimin- A bubbly young cat woman who’s a big fashionista. She’s had an interest in clothes and fashion for as long as she can remember; always loving to experiment with her clothes and dress up in all sorts of outfits! This seems to fit with her family’s history of tailoring businesses. Her magic specialises in creation magic, specifically in clothes and fashion. She can create and enchant all types of clothing items she creates for customers and folks. It’s a complicated process that took some time for her to perfect but her unique fashion line has made her famous despite her young age. She continues to come up with new ideas and outfits and will never stop! Her familiar is a spider that gives her quite a lot of inspiration.

Tiara Bobowski- a spunky young manx cat woman who has been Honey’s best and closest friend since they were young kittens. She has stuck by Honey’s side through all her endeavours and will continue to do so, serving as her assistant and helping her with whatever she needs, but her favourite thing to do is to be her photographer. Tiara tends to prefer her own company (with Honey as the exception) and explore herself and play around with hobbies, interests and even magic. Recently she’s discovered that she has a knack for inscription magic due to all this experimenting. Her familiar is an antelope who she loves to catch in action shots on her camera as it’s always on the move if not on her staff.