#honestly the first two couples were a coincidence that amused me

[dire-vulture]

also it’s official. i have decided Otisco and Hotsocks are dating so now i have every possible combo of mirror/pearlcatcher couples haha. pearlcatchers and mirrors were just made for each other i guess!

featuring the Prim (she/her) and Proper (she/her), Myosotis (she/her) and Sappho (she/her), Charon (they/he) and Baileya (they/them), and now Otisco (they/them) and Hotsocks (she/they)!

[greynatomy]

reputation

ella toone x reader

first ella toone fic! was in the drafts for a while and got around to finally finishing it. honestly don’t know where i was going with this

———

You had a reputation.

Once you turned eighteen, you started to rebel, wanting to make your point across. At eighteen, you started getting tattoos and buzzed all your hair, looking completely different from the colorful person you used to be. You wanted to steer away from the child everyone sees you to be and be seen more of an adult. The thing is, your management thought that the only way to do that is to make you out to be a womanizer, getting girls left and right.

The smoking, though, that was on you. Becoming well known starting at the age of fifteen, you’ve been under the spotlight from a young age, being told how to dress, how to act, everything in your life was controlled. The smoking, getting tattoos, cutting your hair was a way for you to get some of the control back.

You are now twenty-five. Fired your old management, signed into a new label who let you be you. Its been two years and you’ve been writing and producing songs on low profile. Your fans still figure out which songs have been written/produced by you - even under pseudonyms. You were loving being out of the spotlight for once.

—

The sun shining through the curtains wakes you up from your sleep, eyes fluttering shut from the light. Your arm tightens its hold from the body it’s slung over, pulling them close.

“Mmm, five more minutes.”

You didn’t reply, just pulled her closer than she already is, drifting back to sleep. About an hour later, you wake up to footsteps running around. Sitting up, back resting against the headboard, you see your girlfriend running around, stuffing things into her training bag. You sat there quietly, admiring your her chaotic form rushing in and out the room.

“You’re staring.”

“Just admiring.” You mouth twitching up in amusement.

“Well, I need to leave now or I’ll be late.”

“Did you pack any going out clothes? Wanna take you out after training.”

“Yeah, but what about my car?”

“I’ll take a cab to the facility. Wait for you.”

“Alright, text me when you’re there.” She leans down, giving you a kiss. “I love you.”

You grab the back of her neck and pull her back when she moves away, pulling her back in for another kiss.

“I love you. Now, go before you’re late.”

“See you soon.”

To make time go by faster, you decided to busy yourself with some cleaning around the house. You quite liked being a little housewife for Ella, cooking, cleaning, waiting for her to get back home from training.

Few hours later, dressed casual, you’re in a cab on the way to St. George’s Park. paying the cab driver, you walk to the parking lot looking for Ella’s car.

Rockstar 🎸🖤

at the car. forgot the spare key. take your time

Looney Toones ❤️⚽️

give me a few minutes

You leaned against the car, answering some messages and emails from your phone. You were too focused to notice a couple of footsteps coming towards you.

“Uh, excuse you. Don’t lean on the car.”

You look up, taking the hood off your head, to see Ella’s best friend, Alessia, and one other.

“Oh, sorry.”

“Hold on.” Mary, the goalkeeper that Ella’s told you about, spoke up. “Why do you look so familiar?”

Before you could answer, you’re cut off by a very loud voice.

“We’re matching!”

Your face instantly lights up at the voice of your girlfriend.

“What a coincidence!”

“Ha. Ha.” Ella realizes you, once again, matched with her on purpose. “What is it with you wanting to match with me?” She smiles at you with adoration.

You shrug. “You ready to go?”

The clearing of a throat breaks the two of you out of your bubble, forgetting about the other two Lionesses.

“Uh, Tooney?”

“Yeah?”

“Who’s this?”

Ella’s face lights up. “Oh! This is me girlfriend, Y/N!”

“Nice to meet your two!” You hold your hand out, but it was just stared at. You let out a chuckle, awkwardly putting your hand back down. “Ready to go?”

“Yeah. Bye guys.”

Mary and Alessia watch as the car drives off with their friend inside.

“I remember now! She’s Y/N Y/LN. The one I’ve seen on the news always bringing a new one home.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean I wouldn’t be surprised if Ella was just another one of her conquests.”

The next day at training, Mary and Alessia approach Ella during break.

“Hey, guys!” Ella greeted them cheerfully.

“Hey, Ella. Uh, just some questions.”

“What is it?”

“Your girlfriend. You know who she is right?”

Ella was now confused. “Uh, yeah. Of course I do.”

“Well, we’re just worried.”

“About?” Now Ella was getting a bit impatient.

“She’s a bit off a womanizer isn’t she?” Alessia blurts out, speaking up for the first time.

“Excuse me?”

“She’s always seen with a new girl hanging by her arm like every week.”

“I’m not having this conversation.”

“Look, Tooney. We’re just looking out for you.”

“Looking out for me? Nah, I’m done with this conversation.”

You were in the backyard when you heard the front door slam shut. Looking towards the door, you see your girlfriend stomping towards you and plopping down on your lap.

“What’s happened?”

“Ugh! Can you believe Mary and Less? They had the nerve! The nerve to accuse you of being with me only temporarily.”

“What else did they say?”

“They were talking ‘bout how you always have anew girl hanging off your arm and stuff, but those were from years ago before you fired everyone.”

You wrap your arms tighter around her, pulling her closer. “Well, I mean, look at it from their perspective. They’ve never met me, they don’t know me like you do. All they have is what they’ve seen online. And they’re your best mates, they’re looking out for you.”

After a few moments of silence, Ella now has a look of determination on her face. She grabs her phone and sends out a text.

“They’ll be here in a couple minutes.”

Your eyes almost pop out of their sockets.

“What do you mean in a couple minutes. I haven’t even cleaned the house yet.”

You run around the house picking up anything you could see to put away, wanting to make a good first- technically second- impression with Ella’s best friends.

“Babe.”

You go to grab the vacuum.

“Baby.”

You also grab a broom because what if the vacuum isn’t enough.

“Baby!” She grabs you by the shoulders to keep you in place. “Breathe.” You do as she says. “Okay. The house isn’t even messy and even if it was, they’d know it was from me.”

You nod your head. “True.”

Exactly as Ella stated, there was a knock on your front door a couple of minutes later. She greets them, letting them in and goes to stand next to you.

“This is Y/N. My girlfriend, as I stated yesterday.”

“Hi, nice to meet you both.” You give them a small wave.

Mary’s lips form a straight line while Alessia gives you a small smile in greeting.

“Let me get us something to drink.” Ella announces, leaving the three of you alone.

“What’s your game here?” Mary gets straight to the point.

“Sorry?” Your eyebrows furrow in confusion.

“C’mon! You’ve gotten with singers and supermodels, basically everyone. Is Ella another one of your conquests?”

“What? No!”

“I’m not stupid! I know your reputation, you go from one girl to another.”

“Well, then you don’t know me at all!” You were now getting frustrated. You hated when people judge you just because of what they see from the media. You can’t blame them though, that’s all people know you from.

“What’s going on here?” Ella walks back in, drinks in hand, confusion on her face.

“Nothing. Just getting to know—”

“—Actually.” Mary cuts Alessia off. “I just wanted to make sure she is good for you. Based on all the girls she’s been with, I don’t think she is.”

“Okay, that’s enough Mary!”

“I’m just being realistic!”

“No, you’re being an asshole judging my girlfriend from things you see on the internet. You should know not to believe everything you see online. The both of you.” Mary and Alessia looks down in shame. “Also, if you haven’t noticed, she’s been out of the media for two years so everything you’ve seen was from a long time ago.”

“Doesn’t change the fact that she’s been with half the population before you!”

“It does when you find out that that isn’t true at all.”

“What?” Alessia’s voice was soft but heard.

“My name is-was a brand by the label. I was legally blinded to do what they told me to do and the acting out, smoking, tattoos, those are the only ways I could take some control back, but I never took advantage of anyone. All those girls I’ve been pictured with, I’ve only slept with one until she left me because management wanted to keep the ‘bad girl’ image.”

You move to the kitchen, grabbing a beer from a refrigerator. Popping it open, you take a swig, leaning against the kitchen counter.

“Two years ago, I decided to ‘run away’ to Manchester. Fired my whole team and just disappeared.”

“That’s when I met ‘er.” Ella cuts in, wrapping an arm around your waist, leaning into you. “Started dating two months after the countless dates she took me on and it’s been almost two years. She makes me really happy.” The last sentence was directed right at her friends.

“Okay. I’m sorry for judging you so quick.”

“Same with me. I’m sorry.”

“No hard feelings at all.” You give them both a smile. “Now since you’re both here, why don’t you stay for dinner.

The three perk up at the mention of food.

[whataperfectwasteoftime]

Kinktober Day 8̶ 7 - Fisting

Pairing: Dave York x wife f!Reader

Rating: E (explicit smut 18+ only!)

Word Count: 3.1k

Warnings: ……fisting. Also: mentions of watching porn, passing mentions of other kinks, use of restraints, Dave’s filthy mouth, degradation, PIV sex, rough sex, spanking, soft!Dave

Summary: You and your husband share a Pornhub account to share inspiration with each other. You also have your own, personal account where you can explore the kinks you’re too embarrassed to bring up to Dave. You must have been on the wrong account when you were taking a little “alone time” last night…

A/N: I AM POSTING THIS A DAY EARLY BECAUSE I'M GOING ON VACATION TOMORROW AND I SELFISHLY WANT TO SEE THE REACTION BEFORE I GO! THANK YOU to @leslie-lyman, @honestly-shite, and @pedropascalx for being my sounding boards for ALL of Kinktober, AKA letting me spam them with screenshots every couple of hours for the past two weeks. Credit for the concept of Dave mocking you by saying his own name goes to @ezrasbirdie, whose fic rare might have ruined my life. Thank you to @absurdthirst for the amazing Prompt List!!

Masterlist | Kinktober Masterlist

It was just a matter of time.

A matter of time before you fucked up.

It's too easy, really–you have two separate accounts for the same website. It was a matter of time before you used the wrong one.

It's simple: you and your husband, Dave York, share a Pornhub account–to share videos as inspiration, to explore kinks, to watch together when Dave is pulled away for a work trip, as he often is. You also have your own account, where you can indulge in things that are a bit more niche, videos and kinks that you might not want to reenact in real life, but still really turn you on when you watch them solo. You’ve never shared them with Dave; you feel self-conscious over some of your darker tastes, not knowing what your husband would think if he knew some of the things that you watch out of sheer curiosity. 

You must have been on the wrong account last night when you were taking a little “alone time” with one such video and your vibrator.

All Dave had done was to send you a screenshot via text of the offending video in your ‘liked’ page the next day while you were both at work. No accompanying words, nothing. You don't respond, too flustered and embarrassed to acknowledge your slip-up while in the office, trying to focus on your job and not the fact that Dave knows exactly what you were doing last night while he was working late. 

That evening, you walk in the door with your heart in your throat. Dave is at the sink, loading the dishwasher, when he turns and fixes you with a look that is equal parts amused and challenging. 

You know what the first words out of his mouth are going to be before he says them.

“Extreme… fisting… compilation…” Dave murmurs, letting each word hang in the air before he moves onto the next.

“Dave, I–”

“I didn’t know you were into that,” he says quietly.

“I don’t know if I’m into it–”

“You don’t know?” Dave parrots, pouting his lips mockingly. “You must like it a little, considering you touched yourself to it last night,” he muses. “How many times did you cum?”

“How do you know I was–”

“How. Many. Times,” he repeats, lowering his voice and moving close to you to speak the question directly in your ear while you feel the heat of his body against your chest. His breath on your neck is causing goosebumps to prickle your skin. 

"Th-three," you breathe, voice wavering. 

"Three…" Dave muses, pretending to think. "I think you might like it."

"I-I like to watch it," you protest. "I don't know if I'd like to actually–" you trail off.

"There's only one way to find out," Dave rumbles. "And what a coincidence–you're going to find out tonight."

Dave's lips finally meet your skin for the first time that night in a tantalizingly soft brush to your neck, contrasting starkly to his words.

"Dave," you whisper, your neck instinctively craving up to allow him more space, leaning into him as you have done for years in his embrace. 

"Shhh," he hushes, in an imitation of being soothing. "I was gonna make you wait until after dinner but I'm done with the pretense of waiting," Dave says darkly. "Get your ass upstairs."

—

Dave might have been unwilling to wait to get you upstairs and naked in your bed, but now that he has you here, he's taking his fucking time. 

You writhe under the ministrations of a little bullet vibrator with your wrists tightly secured over your head by Dave’s belt. He edges you viciously, building you up over and over just to wrench it away at the last second until you are dripping and close to tears. 

"Dave–please, Dave, fuck–"

"Tell me what you want," Dave demands.

"Dave," you whine.

"Daaave," he mocks quietly. "That's not going to work. Say the words."

You bite the inside of your cheek, irritated at his goading and hell-bent on being a brat in retribution. Not that you have any semblance of power, here–already tied to the bed and dripping onto the sheets.

"I-I want you to put your fist inside me," you finally say, cheeks burning with humiliation. "I want you to make me cum from it."

Dave pretends to be surprised, his eyebrows shooting up exaggeratedly at your words. 

"Really!" he says with an exaggerated tone. "Do the ladies on the HOA board know what a depraved little slut you are?"

"Dave, please," you murmur, voice quieter as you give in to his gentle degradation.

"I'll give you what you want," Dave agrees, "if you tell me what other videos you have on that other account of yours."

You blanch. "What?"

"Don't get shy on me now, not when I'm about to stick my whole hand in this perfect cunt."

You press your lips together. You aren't just going to give him what he wants, just like that. It isn't fun unless you fight back a little. 

In retaliation, Dave brings the little vibrator to your clit, edging you toward an orgasm yet again. Just before you fall, it's gone, and you sob in frustration.

"Tell me and I'll let you cum," Dave teases. 

You swallow. "F-Fuck machines," you admit reluctantly. 

Dave slides one finger into your aching cunt as a reward. "Good," he murmurs. "What else?"

You bite your lip. "Double penetration," you squeak. "Um, h-hypnosis."

One of Dave's eyebrows twitches subtly. He wasn't expecting that one; that had been a surprise. 

"What else," Dave says gently, continuing to pump you slowly with one finger. 

"That's… that's about it," you say vaguely. 

The finger leaves you, and you groan. 

"Let's try that again, shall we?" Dave says. "I've spent hours interrogating people for information in ways you will never know about. It's cute how you think you can lie to me."

You shiver slightly at the mention of Dave's job. He doesn't tell you much–he can't. For one, you don't have the security clearance, but the biggest reason that side of him will always be behind walls to you is that the Dave that you know, the one who loves you and speaks to you softly, who enjoys watching space documentaries and fishing and who you've seen crawling on the floor with the two girls squealing on his back–that Dave–is the one he wants, no, needs you to see. 

You do know, however, that your husband is a dangerous man, someone who has done unspeakable things in the name of his country, obeying orders to kill without question. He doesn’t want you anywhere near that part of him, and while the idea that Dave York is just as deft with a gun as he is applying Hello Kitty bandages to scraped knees or fucking you until you forget your own name makes a shiver of excitement run down your spine, you are more than happy to put that Dave into a neat little box that will never be opened by you. 

"Dave," you whine in protest. 

Dave doesn't react, just stares at your vulnerable, restrained form below him and waits. 

"N-Non-con," you mumble with a grimace, no longer meeting his eyes. 

He's going to think you're insane. 

Dave, for his part, cocks his head to the side and doesn't comment further–no more gentle mocking, no more humiliation. He wordlessly unbuckles the belt securing your wrists, freeing them, and slides off the bed, giving your stomach a playful kiss as he does so, and retrieves a bottle of lube from the nightstand. 

"You're going to need to tell me if it's too much," Dave says, his tone far softer than it had been before. 

"I will," you whisper. 

You watch as Dave pours an obscene amount of lube on his hand–far more than you normally use. He holds your gaze with a smirk as he coats his hand, including his thumb, as if he's willing you to picture all of it inside you. Then, he upturns the bottle directly above your pussy and lets it drip down, and you squeak at the slightly cool sensation. 

Dave holds your eyes as he slides one slick finger into your cunt, quickly moving to a second. The third is always a stretch, and you let out a little whimper as you feel him slide another finger into you, thrusting gently as you adjust. 

"I don't know how this became a kink of yours," Dave remarks, his voice playful. "When this little cunt has this much trouble taking three."

He curls his fingers up and rubs against your g-spot and your whimper turns into a sudden cry of pleasure. 

"Do you think you'll be able to take all of it?" Dave murmurs. "Are you going to stretch to fit me without completely breaking apart?"

You feel like that’s kind of a rhetorical question, but you nod anyway, looking up at your husband with a mixture of trust and trepidation.

“Of course you will,” Dave agrees. “Because you’re my perfect girl, aren’t you?”

His tone of voice is smug and arrogant, but the praise–and the affection in his eyes as he teases you–makes you preen..

"Aren't you," Dave repeats, arching one eyebrow and dropping the smirk and giving you a stern pout. Of course–he expects you to answer.

"Yes," you say quickly.

Only then does he begin to slide his fourth finger into your pussy with the other three. 

It's a lot, with those thick fingers of his–but you're pretty sure he's had four inside you before, and you know you can take it. You can take it, you can take more. 

Already, he's creating so much pressure inside you, curling all of his fingers against your wall and rubbing back and forth as he works you open. There's so much pressure on your g-spot already that you think you might cum. Your hips rise off of the bed slightly as you clench and grind against his hand.

"No, no," Dave tuts, easing off with his fingers. "Not until it's all in there."

You nod rapidly, trying desperately to be good for your husband and not cum until he says. You relax your hips, willing them not to lock into place before Dave says it's okay.

Dave hunches down over you, propping himself up on one elbow, his hand gently cupping the back of your neck as his thumb starts to tease around your entrance.

"I want you to look at me," Dave says, his voice low and quiet. 

Your eyes flick up to meet his, and you feel the pinch of his thumb sliding into your cunt to join the rest of his fingers. 

"That's it," Dave rumbles softly. "Fuck, look at you."

His hand keeps moving, entering you even further, and your body instinctively tries to shy away, to close up, but Dave shushes you quietly. 

"Relax," he says. "Breathe. You need to relax for me, honey. You can take it, let me in."

Your chest heaves with effort as you try to do what Dave says. He doesn't stop; his hand keeps inching further inside of you, so slowly that he's barely moving, but you can feel the change inside you until he hits the very end of you. 

"Dave," you breathe. "Dave, Dave, Dave–"

"I know," he murmurs, his lips hovering just above your face as he watches every little expression flit across your face. "My perfect girl, you're taking all of me, aren't you? Greedy little slut. You need my whole fucking hand? I'll give it to you. Knowing you, you'll beg for it in your ass next, won't you?"

You press your lips together and whine, shaking your head 'no.'

Dave chuckles. "Aw, what's wrong, sweetheart? Is this too much? Is having my fist in your cunt too much for you?"

You quickly shake your head again. God, you need to cum. There's so much pressure on your g-spot, but it's not enough, you need him to rub back and forth, you need–

"I guess it's too much for this tiny little pussy," Dave mocks, "since you can't even use your words. I guess I'll have to stop–"

"No!" you cry immediately, making Dave laugh outright. 

"Then tell me," he demands. "Tell me to fuck this perfect cunt with my fist."

"F-fuck me with your fist…" you say weakly.

Dave's hand around the back of your neck squeezes ever so slightly. "That's not what I told you to tell me. C'mon," he teases. "Apparently you watch some depraved shit online and get off on it. Surely you can tell me to fuck this perfect little cunt."

"Fuck my cunt with–"

Dave arches his eyebrow, and the pressure on the sides of your neck increases. 

"Fuck my perfect cunt with your fist, Dave," you try again. "Please. Fuck my perfect cunt with your fist until I cum, please, I need it. I need to cum."

"So pretty when you beg, sweetheart," Dave says darkly, and his hand starts to move in and out of you. "You do have a perfect cunt, and you should say it. Be fucking proud of it. Fuck, it's squeezing my hand so tight, you know that? It's given me two little girls and here it is, still barely able to take me."

Dave sits up, both to see the mess he's making of you and for better leverage.  His fingers–all of them– expertly find your g-spot and start to rub back and forth.

"And now it's gonna squirt for me, isn't it?" he continues. "This perfect cunt is gonna get me all wet. Say it," he barks. 

“It’s–I’m gonna–”

“No,” Dave corrects. “‘My perfect cunt is gonna get you all wet.’ Say it.”

“My–my perfect cunt is gonna get–get you–”

The dam breaks, and your back arches off of the bed with the force of it. Everything clamps down, the overwhelming pressure of Dave’s fist finally breaking something inside of you. You cum harder than you’ve ever cummed in your life, thanks to Dave’s thick fingers pressing up. Your release splashes out around his fist, soaking the bed, the insides of your things, and Dave.

“Oh, fuck yes,” Dave groans. “Good fucking girl.”

He withdraws his fist and you’re left empty, a wet, trembling mess on the bed.

“I’ve gotta have you,” Dave says as he fumbles with his pants, haste and desperation coloring his words. “Tell me I can fuck you.” He’s lost his edge of command, that controlled, sometimes clinical way in which he speaks to you. The words are a demand, yes, but if you close your eyes, it sounds like he’s begging.

Your cunt is still twitching pitifully as you nod. Somehow, after all of that, you want more. You always want more of Dave. 

Dave doesn’t answer, just yanks his cock out of his tight boxer briefs and thrusts home, sliding effortlessly into you from your previous release. He fucks you roughly, his cock hammering on something that even his fist couldn’t reach. His fist was brutal, yes, but something about the way his hips snap into yours is ruthless. Your head rolls back and you surrender to the feeling, moaning loudly into the room.

“Fucking insatiable, aren’t you?” Dave teases. “My fist wasn’t enough for you, now you want my cock?”

“Yes,” you pant, barely able to get the words out over the force of his thrusts.

“Then take it,” Dave gravels through clenched teeth. “Take it, fucking–take it for me, take it–” 

You’re going to cum again–you can feel it. All you need is a little more, a different angle, his hand on your clit, something.

“Dave,” you cry out desperately. “Dave, I need–fuck, I need–”

“Turn over,” Dave barks. “Ass in the air.” He pulls out abruptly and slaps your hip a couple of times for emphasis. You scramble, getting on your knees, your chest pressing into the bed, presenting yourself to him. His hands grip the flesh of your ass roughly as he punches back into you, making you wail into the covers. 

“You wanna cum, huh?” Dave teases. “You always cum so fast like this, don’t you?”

A sharp spank on one cheek when you don’t answer. “Don’t you?”

“Yes!” you squeal in response. “Yes, Dave–fuck, it’s–I’m gonna–”

Another rough spank on the other cheek sends you higher, so close to the path of no return that–

“Again,” you beg your husband. “Again, again–”

Dave indulges you, giving your ass a few more sharp slaps that you know are going to make you red. Good. It never fails to cause you to fall, and this time is no exception. You sob into the bed as you cum again, prolonged by Dave’s punishing thrusts. 

“Good girl,” Dave murmurs, lost in pleasure. “Good girl, perfect–” His hips stutter as he cums with a deep groan of your name. 

A switch flips, and Dave’s grip on your hip becomes a light caress, a comforting touch as he gently withdraws from your aching cunt. You pitch forward onto your stomach with a sated sigh and roll over on your back to look up at Dave.

“Fuck, the sheets,” you murmur tiredly as your leg catches on the wet material. 

“In a minute,” Dave rumbles softly. “Come here.”

He moves to the other side of the bed and pulls you with him, folding you into his body and cradling you in his warmth. When you’d first met him, you didn’t imagine that Dave York was much of a cuddler after sex. You’d been proven wrong again and again, but even as the years have passed, your heart still soars with affection when the man who faces the rest of the world with hard eyes and clenched jaw positively melts for you. 

Dave hums softly in contentment and buries his face in your neck, nipping lightly at the skin.

“Extreme… fisting… compilation,” he murmurs playfully into your skin.

“Stop it,” you scold, rocking your hips against him.

“Why don’t you tell me?” Dave asks quietly. “About the videos you’re apparently too embarrassed to watch on our account. I didn’t know.”

You suck a breath in. “I don’t know,” you respond. “I guess because I’m just… exploring, you know? There’s lots of stuff that I like to watch, but I don’t think I’d like to do it in real life.”

Dave hums thoughtfully, and you can feel the vibration on your skin. “Then why don’t we watch them together, and you can tell me what parts you do like,” he suggests. “I want to know this stuff about you.”

“Even the weird shit?” you ask quietly. 

“Especially the weird shit,” your husband answers with a smile.

*

[qierxing]

Obligations

Yan! Zhongli x Reader

Word Count: 2,837

How long can a man talk before he runs out of air?

Scratch that. How long can this man talk before you decide to strangle him?

"...as such, the rivers, plains, and mountains that are said to have been the remains of what is left of the dead gods remains…."

The intonation of Mr. Zhongli's voice nearly puts you to sleep at the ornate dining table, and if it weren't for the fact that you were at an esteemed establishment (even if you two were in a private room), you surely would've face planted and fallen asleep right there on the mahogany wood. But you don't, because it would be an insult to the very man (and the food) who invited you on this outing.

Mr. Zhongli is a respectable man and apparently, a good friend in your family's circles. Even though you've never met the man till now, even you're aware of his shining reputation; aunties giggling on how he's so charming and polite, cousins admiring his knowledge and strength, and other relatives likewise praising him to high Celestia and above.

And he is, you suppose, very handsome. His face is beautiful; high, defined cheekbones, molten amber eyes that glow warmly, pretty curved pink lips and nose to match. A good face, your auntie would say if she was here. An auspicious face.

“And that is how the geography of Liyue came to be...”

You're sure anyone in your position would be swooning over how his voice flowed like the trickling rivers that ran through Guili plains, but you just wished he would shut up at some point. Not even the delicious spread of food at the glass carousel wheel could distract from his tirade, and that was saying something.

Speaking of, why did he order so much food for only the two of you?

'In Liyue, you can always eat till you drop!' A saying that always echoed among the locals, and still holds true today. But even then, the intricately painted línglóng porcelain holding the remnants of steamed egg soup, roasted duck, squirrel fish, and more and more food, are way too excessive, even if he wanted to impress you.

You idly push around the Tianshu meat on your plate as he continues to drone on, wondering when you can politely excuse yourself without being rude.

-

"So, how was the dinner?" You internally groan as your mom's barely concealed excitement in her voice shows.

"Mama, we just sat there and talked." Well, Zhongli was the one doing most of the talking. But you weren't about to say that, not when you know a lecture awaits that answer.

"Isn't he a very handsome man?" Your mother's eyes gleam dangerously and a resigned sigh leaves your lips as she barrels on confidently. "Doesn't he seem like the perfect husband?!"

"Mama, it's ten in the morning…" What you wouldn’t give to eat your congee in peace.

"He is a respectable man, and quite knowledgeable to boot."

"Not you too, Baba!"

Your father merely chuckles as he continues reading the daily newspaper, and you roll your eyes as he continues chuckling behind the printed pages. Your mother swats at him to finish his porridge, turning to you with a frown on her wrinkled face. You brace yourself, knowing exactly what is coming next.

"[First Name], you're already of marriageable age, you should be looking for your future spouse! Your parents are growing old and when we die-"

"I will be perfectly fine without a husband." You cut her off, rubbing at your forehead. It was too early in the morning for this talk.

"Aiya, I don't want our only child to be by themselves! We will never know peace once we pass away, so much worry-"

You tune the rest of the lecture out, not even having the energy to refute her worries.

When you leave the house to take a walk, you meet the infamous Mr. Zhongli again.

"What a coincidence, I am also taking a walk to clear the mind. Would you perhaps like to join me?" And trapped by societal politeness, and the fact that this man did order you a three course meal the previous night, you agree.

So it's to your surprise that he does not immediately initiate dialogue as the both of you stroll leisurely through the stone gardens in Yunjin terrace, and a comfortable silence falls.

"You seem to have a lot on your mind." You turn to meet his gaze, and then away. Your frustration burns at you in the remainder of the morning's argument, but it dissipates at his concerned face. It is not his fault, you reason, that your mother wants you to court him for a possibility. For fortune. Despite the man's shortcomings, he is nothing but a gentleman.

"I don't want to pry but...I have heard that talking about your thoughts might ease your mind?"

You pause for a long time, breathing out your nose as you close your eyes.

"My parents want me to marry you." You've never been one to mince words, much to your mother's dismay at trying to teach you etiquette. "They think that you're a good match. And they're paranoid about me becoming a spinster."

There's silence for a moment and you open your eyes to not a face of disgust or shock, but rather one of musing.

"And you, [First Name]? What do you think?"

You turn your gaze to the water.

"Honestly? I don't know. I don't know you well enough to make that judgement. I know my parents are worried, but I don't want to get married for the sake of not being alone. I think it's rather selfish, to wish that solely for your partner."

The words tumble out of your mouth, one after another and you wonder how it is that it's easier to confess this to an acquaintance than your own parents.

"I was under the impression that people often like to pursue lasting romance in their lives. It's interesting to see this is not always true." Zhongli hums, hand coming to stroke his chin thoughtfully.

"Perhaps? I don't know. I've always been content with my friends." Shrugging your shoulders, you sigh. "Who knows? Maybe I have yet to meet the right person."

Zhongli hums again in response, seemingly in deep thought with a small frown pulling at his lips. A silence falls once again, and an awkward atmosphere falls upon the both of you.

"Oh yes, I never did thank you for the delicious dinner last night." You note offhandedly, half distracted by the swimming carp in the clear pond water. The water trails are hypnotic, and they help take your mind off the stressful morning you had.

"It was nothing. For my friend's precious child, that was the least I could do." He modestly replies, and you deadpan. It was nothing? A three course meal at Xinyue Pavillion, nothing? You know that squirrel fish did not have a low price tag.

"Regardless, I'm very thankful for your generosity." After all, not many tolerated your blunt, forthright personality, least of all the potential suitors your mother always brought before you. The memory makes you feel guilty at the irritation you had back then at the dinner. "The next time, I insist we have dinner at Wanmin--I've heard their black back perch stew is to die for. My treat."

He hums, and turns to you with a heartbreaking smile, a far cry from his previous countenance. "Is that a promise?"

You raise your eyebrow, "What are you, Morax? Yes, it's a promise, unless you hate fish, I guess."

His amused chuckles are soft but light a warm hearth in your heart.

-

Your mother is growing more daring than you remember.

She shoves you out the door as if you're some kind of fancy wrapped gift to offer to Mr. Zhongli, and there's a manic glee in her eyes as she eyes you and him standing together like a couple.

"[First Name] has been looking forward to this, haven't you, sweetie?"

The Liyuen hanfu she forced you into were a different cut than the modern cheongsam dresses of the current trends. Archaic, if you dare call it that. While some traditionalists still donned hanfu, it was not as common to see it in the streets. When she was shoving you in the under robes, she muttered about how it was something passed down in the family. Which explained a lot. These days, hanfu like this were something of a rich antiquity.

You sigh deeply, tugging your translucent pibo around you tighter as you decide to humor her, if only to get her to stop embarrassing yourselves and leave faster.

"Yes, quite."

Zhongli hums, and when you turn to face him, you're almost unnerved at how his eyes sharpen and scan over you, pupils slit like a dragon's. The moment is gone in a flash and he merely smiles at you gently before taking your hand in his gloved one.

"In that case, shall we get going?"

The nightlife of Liyue is in full swing and Zhongli tugs you closer, and there's something intimate in the way he presses you firmly into his side, the warmth he exudes sending pleasurable tingles down your body.

"Do forgive me for being so bold, [First Name]," He addresses you so tenderly, that you blush when you look back up from your joined hands, "You look absolutely radiant tonight."

How is it this man manages to say such an embarrassing thing so smoothly? What is his secret? He doesn’t seem like the playboys that often loiter around the downtown area of the harbor. You look away, unable to meet his eyes that reflect the lanterns and make his pupils glow.

"T-Thank you, Zhongli, you're too kind."

His eyes never seem to leave you, even when taking in the lovely scenery of Liyue at night. For the bright lanterns glitter and glow on the ocean waves, but his own pupils are glued to your being when you look in your peripheral.

“Is there something on my face?” Tearing your eyes away from the street in front of you, you turn to meet his gaze straight on.

He merely smiles.

“No.” He pushes a stray strand of hair behind your ear, the gesture innocuous, but leaving a burning trail where his finger tips touch your skin. “I believe we have arrived.”

Thankfully you can excuse the burning in your cheeks and neck away with the spices that the Li cuisine favors. If anyone asks, it was the black back parch stew making you look flushed and out of sorts. Never mind the fact that Chef Mao looks quite amused at the fact you’re sputtering in response to his cheeky questions about you showing up with a man to your favored restaurant.

When you look up from checking to make sure your hanfu didn’t get any stains, Zhongli is uncorking a white bottle and pouring it into your cups. At your questioning look, he replies, “Dàqūjiǔ. The Li technique ferments wheat for about two to three months. This one in particular, has a fine aroma after being fermented for a while.”

“Hoh…” You chuckle at his explanation, “You really do know everything.”

“Hardly. I cannot say I know as much as the regular scholar…nonetheless, to good fortune!”

Echoing his cheer, you raise your cup and drink.

The alcohol burns your throat, and you’re reminded of your low alcohol tolerance. Yet, your fellow friend refills your cup just as easily, and who are you to refuse him? By the time you’re on your fourth cup, your world is spinning and you’ve developed a headache.

“Ahaha…wow...everything...is...moving…” You slur incomprehensibly and slump onto the bamboo table.

“Oh dear, we best get you back. In this condition, you’re too vulnerable.”

“No way...if I go back with you...my mom….she won’t let me…!” You raise your head from the cool table, but the effort of doing that makes you groan.

Zhongli all too easily picks you up bridal style, and after bidding goodbye to Chef Mao with a hefty bag of mora, he walks down the now empty streets of Liyue.

“Won’t let you what, dear heart?” He hums, stroking your face gently with the pad of his thumb.

“Won’t let me...let...us...ugh…”

“[First Name], do you like me?”

“Mmh...yeah…” Is all he gets, but the stilted, jagged answer is enough for him. The content smile that breaks his face belies the haunting glow of his molten eyes.

-

When you step out of the door of your bedroom, you're accosted by your sobbing mother.

"Ma-Mama?! What's the matter?" You frantically ask, pushing at her shoulders.

"Oh my sweet child, oh I'm so happy for you! When were you going to tell me, you brat?!"

"Tell you what?!"

"That you're marrying Zhongli, sweetie! Oh, this is such a momentous occasion--"

You're too shell shocked that you do not hear her next words. What? Marry? Zhongli? What on Teyvat was going on--

"--Hurry up, he's waiting for you in the living room!" You're snapped out of your daze when you're ushered hastily into the room, casual robes and all, right in front of the very person you had so many questions for.

The door shutting behind you does not muffle the excited chatter from your parents and you wince when you hear your mother excitedly bantering with your father. Turning and meeting an intense gaze, you feel like you’ve stepped into an arena with a monster.

"Zhongli, why are my parents under the impression we're marrying?"

His golden eyes crinkle in delight at your blunt words, "Because we are, my dear heart."

D-Dear heart?!

"I don't understand."

"What is there not to understand?" You step back as he rises from the cozy armchair he was given. It only just occurs to you how ridiculously tall this man is, and he towers over you, like a mountain.

"I believe we share a mutual attraction. After all, last night only proved it." He leans over and you flinch as he gently cups your face with a small smile.

"We've only known each other for a couple days!" You protest, leaning your face out of his hands. His smile dips into a displeased frown, hands falling to his sides.

"Why need more time to prove what is already there?" He tilts his head. “If this is a matter about your dowry, I’m sure I can help--”

“This isn’t about mora! Zhongli, this is moving way too fast--”

“Is that so? If I’m correct, I believe that your family’s come upon some hard times, no?” And you’re left breathless, struck silent. “Not down to the pits, but just one little slip and...well, your father’s business is already taking loans, isn’t it?”

Your teeth are grinding so hard against each other to the point where it echoes in your head.

“Marry me, [First Name], and you won’t have to worry about any of that. After all, I’ve always had enough good fortune to share. Are you so willing to crush your parent’s hopes and dreams for their child?”

“I-” Your mother’s tears on her weathered face come to mind, wrinkles from stress deeply indented in her skin. Your father, weary, veiny hands covered in scars from hard manual labor, shoulders slumped from his strength sapping. And you realize with a bone chilling fear that this man, this man was threatening to destroy the very foundation of your life.

He smiles upon seeing your uncertain visage, gritted teeth, clenched fists and trembling body.

"You'll look beautiful in red and gold."

-

How numb you feel!

Having to sit there while being dressed, being fawned over by your cousins, cried over by your mother and aunties, and your father and uncles chuckling over your good fortune. All the while, you cannot bring yourself to bring even the fakest smile to your face, only being able to muster up a sheepish smile, but it is of no concern, as everyone seems to mistake it for a shy front for a person about to marry their true love.

At least that’s how your mother is spinning it to your giggling aunties. And even when the festivities are over, you know that this is not the end.

Bare fingers trace your cheeks and lift your veil as a chaste kiss is placed on your lips.

This was supposed to be a day of joy.

Said fingers begin to trail down your body, and more sobs begin to shake your body. When you think about it, this might be the first time you felt his skin touch your own. Zhongli has always dressed conservatively, even covering his hands with his gloves. Thinking about it longer makes your skin crawl.

This was supposed to be--

Zhongli hums appreciatively into your collarbone as he slips your wedding garb off your shoulders, your world collapses and dims, with only a haunting amber light as your guide.

[taeyamayang]

hq boys and soulmates

daichi, tsukishima, oikawa

PAIRING: tsukishima kei x reader

GENRE: fluff!

a/n: welcome to a brand new one shot series featuring soulmates. my first one shot series is about hq boys and their reaction to their s/o confessing so if you missed that one just click the link above. anyhow, here we go~

tsukishima

you have been standing in front of your senior with your hands on your waist for a whole solid fifteen minutes as you listen to her ramble about her reasons for not running the errand herself. she is, in short, asking you to bring the papers to the volleyball gym and let the members sign it because she has thousands of reasons why she can't. but you know better than that. you know the real reason why she's asking you to do it.

it has to be the the blonde boy.

"you don't believe me." she says as she scrunitizes your body language.

"glad you figured." you let out a scoff before crossing your arms over your chest as you look at her provocatively.

"i swear," she, despite being your senior, lets out a nervous laughter. you are known for your sharp eyes and straight forward attitude so even though you are only in your freshmen year nobody dares to lie through their teeth in front of you. especially when it comes to you interacting with him. she continues. "it's not about tsukishima kei." she waves her hand out in defense.

you hum in reply as your fingers scratch your bottom chin. your eyes held nowhere near amusement as you narrow your gaze at her. you know she's lying because anyone who says "it's not about you and tsukishima" is always about you and karasuno's middle blocker.

"okay, maybe part of it, yes." she instantly takes it back knowing that this conversation won't end unless she admits it. you roll your eyes at her. everyone, specifically the whole student body, romantically pairs you with tsukishima kei. everyone assumes that you two are meant for each other.

it's has been an on going thing ever since day one, literally, when you two sat next to each other during entrance test. tsukishima held examinee number 107 while you had 106. you two were famed as the examinees who bickered alot before and after the test. he was being a jerk and you won't back down easily.

once you both got in, both of you were assigned to the same class. unfortunately, your adviser fancies randomized sitting arrangements. so, lo and behold, he became your seatmate. the story goes on, in the batch standing your names would always come out together. your scores have always been tied and like what everyone would say, "like a married couple" because your last names occupied the same spot everytimeㅡmuch like couples signing legal papers. and what drives people crazier is the fact that a number of coincidences is also an indicator of your soulmate. you have crossed paths with him enough to safely assume that you two are indeed soulmates. at least that's what everyone, except you, presumes. for you coincidences are subjective. there is a much greater indicator of a person's soulmate but you vowed to yourself not to test it out with him.

you vowed to never meet with his eyes.

"okay, but hear me out. you going to the gym and meeting with tsukishima is a bonus thing, for me at least. honestly, it's not just me. it's everyone! besides, no one here is available to run this errand. we are need to be in a meeting in a short while." she gestures to the girl sat next to her. the other girl nods in agreement. "how about this. if you do this favor ill scratch your name off the errand list for next week."

your right eyebroy arches and your fingers leave your chin. now, that's convincing, you thought. you. honestly, this is an easy task. after you explain to them the about the upcoming sports event you can let kiyoko do the job of asking for their signatures. you don't get to interact with them individually and you get a chance to load off next week. you smile to yourself.

"okay, ill do it." you snatch the clipboard from the other girl's grip. you hear your senior mutter a "yes" triumphly. your eyes scan through the page. it lingers longer when it lands on the familiar name.

tsukishima kei, im about to meet you. again.

your knuckles rap loud knocks against the wooden door frame of the gym as your head appears by the doorway. the loud thumps from the balls muffled your knocks so you decided to go with plan B.

kiyoko or yachi.

your eyes search the gym for a dark haired enchantress or a small blonde with a hairclip on. they're not here. thank god they're too busy with practice to notice you there. you were about to pull your head back and retrieve when someone called you from a distance.

"y/n!" daichi shouts. you wave at him before pointing at the clipboard secured around your chest. well, at least it isn't suga or worse hinata. he jogs to you. you step out and meet with him halfway.

"where is kiyoko and yachi?" you question him.

"kiyoko and yachi are with takeda-sensei. they are talking about something related to management." your face crumples in discomfort as soon as he answers your question. you have to do everything by yourself.

"why?" daichi recognizes your troubled expression. you keep your mouth shut, unable to think of coherent words to describe your discomfort. so, instead you look up to him with deepened creases around your face.

"i get it." he lets out a series of laughter. "ill help you manage their behavior. ill stand next to you." his reassuring smile is enough for you to get by. again, thank god it's daichi who spotted you.

"everyone, gather up." his commanding voice blares inside the gym. he clapped his hands twice for attention. everyone's gaze falls to you. some held a genuine smile while others had a smirk on their faces. they sauntered to your direction.

"woah, y/n you're here." asahi says and you nod at him in greeting. suga giggles next to him with one hand covering his lips. you made up your mind to speak first before anyone decides to open their mouths.

"i have here is a letter from the administration. it's about the upcoming sports event. this is specifically about the official members of the volleyball team. so, i need everyone's signature here." you flip the page and turn the clipboard to face them. your forefinger points at the space next to their names. "we need it for the main event which you all have to walk down the aisle while your names are being announced over the microphone so please check the spelling as well." you eyes walk through their faces one by one but stops when the blonde boy in specs appears in your peripheral vision.

"any questions?" you say after pulling your eyes back to the center. hinata raises his hand. "yes, hinata?"

"why do insist on not meeting eyes with tsukki?" he questions.

"okay, anyone who still have questions other than hinata?" you ignore the orange boy's question. nishinoya raises his hand. your eyes narrow at him in suspicion.

"that is not related to me and tsukki?" nishinoya lowers his hand but your statement caused murmurs within the group. then it hits you. shit, you called him 'tsukki'. his nickname must have stucked in your head when hinata mentioned it.

"t-tsukki?" yamaguchi stutters in disbelief.

"they called him tsukki." suga says.

"yes, i heard it too!" tanaka exclaims.

"same." kegeyama butts in.

"guys, guys, we need to calm down." asahi tries to pull the group together when he sees daichi's infuriated look. daichi was about to speak when he was cut off by two voices saying two words at the same time.

"stop it!" instinctively, your eyes glanced at him making you momentarily locking eyes with him. your body jolts in surprise as a train of uncalled and unfamiliar emotions take over. you immediately pull your eyes back to the gushing boys. you feel your cheeks grow warm. albeit, you step back trying to hide a quarter of your bearing behind daichi as the captain takes the lead.

"enough of the childish acts and line up to sign the paper." the players instantly follow his orders and begin lining up in front of you.

the first one is to sign is kageyama. this man isn't much of a talker so at least that saves you and your burning cheeks. followed by him is ennoshita then suga. you swallow saliva when suga takes the clipboard and pen. he pauses before handing you the document. you look up to him to see his face.

"your face is as red as a tomato." he says before walking out on you. your jaw uncleches and your mouth is left ajar.

"suga!" daichi barks at him.

"just kidding." suga winks at you. his one leg is folded up while he shoots you finger guns in a cutely manner. you scowl at him before turning your head back to focus on the next person.

hinata.

"shoyo." you warn as you push the clipboard to him. you are both on a first name basis not only because both of you are first years but also because you're friends with him. actually, you are friends with most of them while the rest that doesn't exactly fall into that category are definitely more than a stranger to you.

"what?" he glances up briefly before squinting his eyes back to the paper as his finger run through each names. "it only takes three seconds to know if you two are soulmates; just three seconds to hold his gaze. don't you want to know how golden his eyes are?" he feuled your curiosity with the way he chose the word 'golden' to describe his eyes. are his eyes really golden?

"and what's wrong with trying?" he scribbles in the last loops of his signature before looking at you. "ill show you." he hands you back the clipboard. he turns his head. "kageyama! do you want to lock eyes with me?" kageyama whips his head uo as soon as the smaller called him.

"no!" kageyama snaps at him. you find this as a chance to get back at him.

"see? he just rejected you." you chaff, laughing at his failed attempt to convince you.

"no, he didn't. that's his love language. he gets shy." hinata confidently remarks before turning his back. he leaves you trailing for words to retort. when did this two get so close to know each other's love languages? or maybe hinata is being sarcastic. you will never know.

"tsukki isn't as mean as you think he is." a soft voice says making you switch your attention back to the boy who gently took the clipboard away from your grip. you never thought of him as mean. the whole thing isn't about him like how everyone assumed it to be.

"it's not about that, yams." your eyes softens for the latter. it's your fear of knowing the truth. whether he's the one for you or not. you are not certain of how you should feel because your whole life you're comfortable with the numbness inside you but ever since he came you start to feel emotions you are not accustomed to. your coincidences make your stomach turn into knots and your heart racing. you are walking on an unfamiliar path and you feel lost.

"good." he pulls a smile before walking away.

once your eyes dettached from yamaguchi, you give the clipboard to asahi who's patiently waiting for his turn. balls hitting the concrete floor breaks the silence as some of the players get back to practicing. the sound it makes echoes your unsettled thoughts. yamaguchi did a great job in stirring up your peaceful mind.

"y/n! watch out!" asahi's alarmed voice wakens your senses. you turn your head to the side and see a ball coming in your direction. your relfexes are quick to dodge the ball as you step back but not enough to refrain you from a collision behind you. a hand creep to your elbow as a support.

"im sorry i didnt know you-" your eyes widen when it meets with a golden pair. you wanted to pull you head down and turn away from him but his grip on your arm tightens.

"i heard what you said to hinata." tsukishima speaks. his tone is stern. your eyes rally from one eye to the other. "are you afraid ill reject you if you offer to test it out with me?"

"tsukishima." your voice came out in a whimper still not believing who your eyes are feasting on.

"i won't reject you." he remarks. he pulls you gently so your whole body faces him. his eyes are assertive making you cower under his gaze. "let's test it out. look at me." you obey his request as you keep your eyes fixed to him. you open mouth to explain.

"i promise it's not about you it's about the overwhelming emotions i feel when im with you. i don't kno-" your words are left hanging when his eyes burned bright amber almost like your staring straight at the sun. it glimmers for a quick second before it dims back to it's original hue. tsukishima's fingers uncoil against your skin and you both step back in surprise. a tingling sound from a pen hitting the floor fills in the silence.

"i saw it." asahi says from behind. "i saw it! tsukishima's eyes gleamed! it was so bright for a moment. oh, god. so, that's how it looks like when you find your other half!" his voice heightens in excitement.

"i don't know how to handle my feelings." you continue your sentence in a whisper. your eyes still lost in his gaze.

"me too." the corner of his lips pulls up. his smile, you've only witnessed his smile just now. "let's figure it out together."

tag: @tendousthoughts

a/n: in a world where soulmates are determined by locking eyes id definitely lock eyes with everyone in the team (even if theyre far drom being my soulmate 🥴) oops. ill proofread when i wake up! as always thanks for reading! likes and rbs are very much appreciated.

Masterlist | accepting requests for this series

[karen-kurobara]

Some moments of the book "Sword of Destiny" that I want to highlight - Geralt asks Jaskier's opinion of the clothes +Bonus: Jaskier steals Geralt's clothes

Brief warning of No spoilers.

This second book, titled "The Sword of Destiny", ends at the same narrative point as the first season of the Netflix adaptation, so this post doesn't contain spoilers for the main plot of The Witcher. Instead, I will highlight scenes from the book that were not adapted for television.

Having said that…

There are two very iconic moments involving Geralt, Jaskier and their clothes in the "Sword of Destiny" book that I would like to highlight.

Geralt asks Jaskier's opinion about his clothes.

The first of these occurs during the chapter "Eternal Flame" (same chapter where Jaskier insists on going to a brothel in the company of Geralt, we will comment on it later, and unfortunately it wasn't included in the Netflix adaptation)

The moment is brief and actually speaks for itself, you don't need to know much context beyond the fact that Geralt and Jaskier meet by coincidence and this conversation occurs at the moment when both have a chance to speak directly:

I find it amusing that the stoic Geralt doesn't really ask Jaskier what he thinks of the greatcoat, instead asking the bard directly if he likes it.

Jaskier, typical of him, interrupts him practically telling him that he is old-fashioned (a comment quite in keeping with the bard), but please Jaskier, your best friend asks you about his clothes, be a little more polite and tell him that you like it.

+Bonus: Jaskier borrows Geralt's jacket

This scene takes place in the chapter "A little sacrifice" (my favorite story so far, which I highly recommend reading, and which again was not adapted into the Netflix series).

The moment goes by a bit unnoticed, Geralt and Jaskier have just gone through an adventure at sea in which they were both swept away by the tide. Geralt has just woken up after nearly drowning, Essi (a second bard who appears in this chapter) is worried about the witcher's health, and Jaskier wanders around while he waits for his friend to come back to consciousness.

(Although Jaskier doesn't seem particularly worried, I defend his honor by saying that he could have left at any time and yet he waited in the same room until Geralt woke up).

This is precisely the starting point of this moment, Geralt is already aware, the bards have already determined that the witcher is fine, and Jaskier must go (he actually wants to give Essi and Geralt a moment of privacy) but the bard's clothes continue wet, so without hesitation he decides to take Geralt's jerkin

Geralt never gets angry about this, he doesn't even comment on it since they change the topic of conversation, but I love how Jaskier gives himself the luxury of inspecting the garment

So...

From all this we can draw a couple of conclusions. (and ideas for fanfics, by the way).

Let's go for the obvious and develop it a little.

Geralt really does try to have a sense of fashion or at least cares about clothes to some degree.

Geralt acknowledges Jaskier's opinion on clothes, or at least the witcher allows himself to play dumb with Jaskier to highlight his new clothes.

Jaskier borrows Geralt's clothes when his own is wet (a classic in fanfics, which also makes me wonder, Jaskier, didn't you have any more dry clothes or did you just want to annoy your best friend a bit?)

Geralt doesn't mind Jaskier taking his clothes, or at least not enough to bother him.

All this is cute and I'm not saying that it necessarily has to be a romantic gesture (I myself have shared and will continue to share clothes with my best friend) but what is usually a normal trope in fanfics turns out to be something canon.

I honestly hope to find more of these moments in the books that I have yet to read (don't tell me) and if so I'll update this post.

[musekicker]

Buster and Crystal on a blind date prompt?

This is very much in that only au that I think this couple could be healthy and yes, Jimmy's basically out of character but ah well.

Buster wasn't sure what had gotten into him. Maybe it was the fact that things were going so well. Or it was a need to get some stress out. Whatever it was, Buster had decided to try a blind date app. And surprisingly, he had found a date that wanted to meet that night.

Yes, Buster was well aware that the complete stranger aspect of this app could be trouble. But then, people could lie even with more full profiles. And he was feeling daring tonight. Buster was fairly certain that his blind date wouldn't be a serial killer.

He hoped they wouldn't be anyways.

Finding and arriving at the place that they agreed to meet, Buster told the hostess the name of the reservation, and was told that the other person was already there waiting. Buster hoped they hadn't been waiting very long.

As Buster followed,  he was unable to keep from noting how nice this place looked on the way. Then he saw who was waiting at the table.

"Well, isn't this a funny coincidence." the wolf said.

Buster could not believe it. His date for the night was Jimmy Crystal. 

"Mr. Crystal!" Buster cried, his voice going up a octave.

Jimmy smirked. A sign the wolf was amused by this turn of events rather then angry. Even with Jimmy not seeming angry, Buster was just about ready to try to stammer out a apology and turn right around to leave when Jimmy put up a hand, a gesture to stop Buster from saying anything.

For his part, Jimmy still looked amused. Which was honestly a better outcome of Jimmy discovering who his date was. Better then pure disgust or even anger.

"Can't say this is what I expected." Jimmy said.

"I'm.. I'm so sorry. I didn't know. I'll just go." Buster said quickly.

Jimmy's brows went up at that.

"Are you saying that you think that I wouldn't be a good date?" Jimmy asked.

Buster's brain stalled at this question.

"No, of course I wasn't saying that!" Buster said quickly, shaking his head.

"Then sit down already." Jimmy said.

Buster quickly did so.

Why exactly Jimmy was entertaining any of this was a mystery to Buster. Surely the wolf had better things to do and did not exactly find Buster to be that good a company. He had no idea what was on the wolfs mind.

At first even though Buster was stressed being so close to Jimmy in this context especially, the time taken to look at the menu made things at least a bit of a buffer. But once the orders were made and the menus taken away, Buster realized one of them would have to start to talk.

Buster drummed his fingers on the edge of the table for what was probably too long to not be awkward. Jimmy seemed to notice the awkwardness. How long could this awkwardness last before one of them broke?

It was Buster who eventually said something first.

"How did your business meetings go today?" Buster asked.

Jimmy looked almost startled when Buster brought up the topic. At first Buster thought maybe he had somehow brought up a bad topic and that Jimmy was about to yell at him. Instead he leaned back in his chair and started to talk.

"Just as well as it normally goes. I made some deals, acquired some new performances." Jimmy said.

"Any I might have heard of?" Buster asked.

Jimmy grinned wide.

"You didn't hear it from me yet but I did get a contract with a well known band called "The Pink Six"

"Isn't that the band that leans in heavily to a pink theme but play rock and roll?" Buster asked.

The desserts and drinks were brought to the table at that point. Once the waiter left, Jimmy pointed his fork in Buster's direction, still grinning.

"That's the band exactly. Porsha has been going on about them long enough. And I've heard a lot about them from other sources. Hell, I heard Jerry playing one of their songs the other day." Jimmy said.

"Their songs are pretty catchy." Buster said.

Jimmy nodded, taking two bites from the cake before answering Buster.

"Tell me about it. I've got that one song about smashing a ex's stuff stuck in my brain." Jimmy said.

Buster groaned.

"Oh now it's in my head." Buster said. "I think it's called "Break your stuff" or something like that."

Jimmy laughed. A genuine laugh that was not at anyone's expense.

"So you know their music well? Didn't see you as the rock type." Jimmy said.

"Please." Buster said. "I don't look like I had a punk phase but I did." 

"Really?" Jimmy asked. "You're right, you don't look it."

"I had these boots and jacket I would wear to concerts. They were my look." Buster said.

The conversation about music continued. Buster talking about concerts and shows he had gotten to see, not mentioning he had sneaked into some of them. Jimmy talked about some of his favorite performers.

"Are you going to eat that?" Jimmy asked Buster at one point.

"Um, I think I'm done with it actually. If you want it-" Buster said.

Jimmy didn't wait for Buster to finish his sentence before pulling the plate over towards himself and started to dig in to the parfait.

"You like your snacks." Buster observed.

Jimmy shrugged.

"How does that one song lyric go, hungry like the wolf or something like that?"

More time passed. The desserts gone and glasses that had been refilled at least once at the very bottom of the glass. The drinks did prove to open up more light hearted conversation. Buster was still laughing over a story Jimmy had been telling when the bill was placed down between them at that moment. Buster looked down at it and regretted doing so. They had only gotten a few drinks and dessert but the sum for his drinks and dessert alone was high.

Buster stared at the bill. It was far more then he had thought that it would be. How had he not realized that he would spend so much here?

Jimmy saw the expression on Buster's face and took out his wallet.

"Don't worry about it Moon, I'm covering it." Jimmy said.

"Oh thank goodness." Buster said.

Jimmy laughed again. Buster had the sense that the wolf was actually amused and not because he had played with his anxiety like he had before on the set.

The bill paid and coats collected, the wolf and koala stepped out of the restaurant and onto the neon lit streets. Buster was about to walk in the direction of the hotel when Jimmy called out from his waiting car.

"You coming over or what?" Jimmy asked.

Buster stopped and looked to Jimmy to read his expression. He was looking back at Buster, not quite expecting but more curious about what Buster's answer would be.

"That's if you want to of course." Jimmy said, a half shrug to his shoulders.

It was then Buster had more of a idea of what Jimmy was suggesting. If getting drinks still had been beyond what Buster expected when he and Jimmy saw each other at the restaurant, then the fact that he was getting invited to stay the night with the Jimmy Crystal was a a impossibility. Yet, here Jimmy was, offering just that.

There were so many reasons to decline. He was paying for the show Buster was working on. He had a temper. There was so much work to do. He should politely say no and head back to the hotel.

Yet...

"You know..." Buster said. "I think I will."

[stopbeingrude]

Hi guys , how are you doing ? I hope you had at least a decent day. I was really surprised by how many people were interested in my story. (blush) Im so glad As promised, here's chapter 2 ,, I like the rain, it always seemed like the only thing that was like me…" Chapter 2. ,,Thank you for being here" Juvia looked at the object in her hands that she found while packing for their trip to Tempeville. A tiny umbrella , white with smiling suns printed on it .She remembered vividly the exact moment Jerry had handed it to her. - "Here, this is for you, I couldn't bear to hear you whining anymore,"- said the golden-haired man, handing the little girl his gift. -'' I've told you many times, that in time you would be able to control the rain around you. It's normal for water to behave strangely around water mages, and I had a problem with it too….- said Jerry. The man thought for a moment, then added. -..I'm pretty sure I told you how I nearly drowned my ex girlfriend….I told you, right?.. "- little girl nodded-"...Of course I did…haha..If only you could see that bitc...yh...lady's face….Where was I at again?............Oh right!... If only you were just a bit more patient, little froggy.." -"I told you not to call me that, you dummy! "- shouted the seemingly angry Juvia. It was obvious that she wasn't angry, but if those were supposed to be birthday wishes , then that this old slacker could have tried a little harder. -''Oi! Brat....I'm trying my best to wish you a happy birthday and you act like this? -" What kind of birthday wishes are these supposed to be!?- the girl exclaimed. -..Unbelievable! Young people these days are so ungrateful….Ugh .."- he complained, but eventually gave up. -" Heh... Alright….Im sorry... Happy Birthday Juju…- he said with a grin. He couldn't stay angry with his baby for too long. - "...I wish you happiness, health,...I hope you'll grow up to be a decent and intelligent woman ... because remember this..., it's not how you look that counts, it's what's in your head…. - the man poked her forehead lightly, causing the girl to giggle. Despite the tough character of her ..guardian ...? I guess you could call him that… despite his difficult sense of humour and his biting remarks, she knew that she was important to him, just as he was important to her. He just had a strange way of showing affection... Juvia laughed lightly despite a few tears that flowed from her sapphire eyes. It was for moments like this , she's been able to endure the bullying of other children , she knew that every sad experience ended with a visit from Jerry. Every visit ended with one of his strange ideas that always put a smile back on her face, like that one time he took her out for hot dogs at 10pm. Juvia was never able to forget the look on the orphanage ladies' faces when Jerry walked her back at 1 am. Lost in her thoughts, she didn't notice when her fiancé appeared in their bedroom. -" I've never seen this one…"- he pointed at the umbrella- ''.. I'm guessing it's a special one then" -he stated, handing her tea. - "Thank you... "- she took a sip-"...Yes you're right... actually it was a present for my birthday. HE gave it to me…" After packing the last things, they both sat down on the bed. Neither of them was quite sure how to start a conversation. Gray didn't like the strange atmosphere that had prevailed in their apartment since yesterday. But most of all he did not like how distant Juvia seemed to be. That wasn't his Juvia. Devil Slayer rested his head on her shoulder. When Blue-haired woman began to gently stroke his hair, he immediately relaxed . He missed that... After what for him felt like ages , she decided to speak. -"Juvia is sorry that she didn't tell you anything...Juv….. I was just trying to forget about it... it's not like I don't trust you....Please don't be angry…"-she said in an uncertain voice. -"I'm not angry at you….I'm just a little disappointed...I thought you felt comfortable enough with me to tell me everything…"- he admitted. It was silly to admit , but he didn't

like the fact that Juvia wouldn't tell him something. He knew that everyone had the right to have their own secrets, but his desire to find out what was in her head was much stronger. After a while he decided to ask her more - "Is there anything else you haven't told me about yourself?" He needed to know. -" No. Everything else is true…About my childhood, about Phantom Lord...and mostly about my parents..." …………………………. -".........What happened to your parents...?"- he asked quietly. He contemplated for a moment whether he should ask her this question. After all, he didn't know what kind of reaction this would cause.. -" My mother died when I was about 2 years old.... I don't know who my father was... Jerry said he never met him…about my mother.."- Juvia looked as if she was thinking very hard about something, and after a moment she added-"..Jerry once told me that even she couldn't remember who he exactly was….not that she cared about it or about being pregnant …"- said Juvia weirdly. Wait , what? -"..L-let me get this straight…...you're trying to tell me….that she didn't really care that she got pregnant...and that she wasn't even trying to look for your father? ' Wait, what !?' -….ymm... that's....." - the man persistently tried to choose the right words. He did not want to offend his fiancée's mother by any means (If not for her , Juvia wouldn't be there in the first place, so she obviously deserved to be at least respected)....But everything Juvia had mentioned sounded...How to put it?...Concerning? -" It's not normal... I know... you don't have to hold back Darling- she said with a slight smile- "Her name was Eliana and apparently she was always like...that..., she was...well DIFFERENT.."- that's how Jerry would always describe her-"....She didn't really care about anything, she didn't talk too much, she rarely showed any kind of emotion....She was one big secret, even for him. Juvia never fully got it. Why would she be like that with the person she supposedly was…… ..ymm…..Close.?"- he didn't miss the way she said the last word, but he kept quiet about it. After all ,the relationship between two strangers wasn't his business. Gray decided to change the subject a bit. -"You know..., I think it's really great of him to take care of both of you.…"-despite the fact that the night before Gray had felt a lot of anger towards the aforementioned man, right now he was grateful that he had taken both ladies under his care.- "He must have been an amazing person. It really sounds like you are telling me about some hero or saint"- ice mage smiled - "He was "- said blunette with a smile - "I will always be grateful to him...But Saint ? No, no ,no...That's probably too much of an exaggeration." - she added with a giggle. Gray was glad that she was laughing again, he couldn't help but laugh a little too. They are slowly returning to normalcy... - "He was the laziest, most stubborn man you could find on this planet….He was untactful , brutally honest and worst of all, sometimes he could be so awfully mean and grumpy , especially when it was Tuesday...Juvia never got that...why Tuesday?….Dear God , he could be so unbearable...."- Juvia stopped for a moment, then smiled playfully.- "Honestly you two are pretty similar in that case" - "Ekhem....So.. you're suggesting that I'm mean and grumpy ? Oh ..Alright... I'll remember that when you want something from me..."- Gray said, pretending to be offended and trying hard not to smile. Juvia laughed loudly, then wrapped her arms around his neck and placed a sweet kiss on his lips. After Jerry disappeared, she was sure she would never get attached to anyone again. She didn't want to suffer more. But as we all know, life likes to surprise us, and "never" is not eternal. First she met Gajeel , with whom, by some strange coincidence, she found a connection. Funny, considering how different they were. Even then a quiet voice in her head, similar to Jerry's, whispered to her to not get too attached….that it didn't make sense. On that day, for the first time in her

life, she decided to ignore it, and thanks to that, she gained a wonderful friend. The same situation happened again after she met Gray and Fairy tail. The insistent voice kept reminding her of the past. 'Just because you've miraculously found a friend who hasn't left you, doesn't mean that it will happen again...' 'So what if he stopped your rain, one day you'd be able to deal with it by yourself…..Besides, don't you remember what happened the last time you felt something for a guy? It's just stupid, meaningless crush, just get over it....' But as time passed and she became more and more attached to the guild mates, more and more in love with Gray..... The voice in her head gradually faded and after a while the only sound she heard was the laughter of her loved ones. Despite the suffering of the past, Juvia no longer regretted anything. She would go through it even 100 more times, just to be happy with her new family. -"Oi ! - she felt Gray lightly tap her nose- Juvs don't fall asleep, we have a train in about two hours….. Remember? "- he asked amused - "You're right! Juvia's sorry, she got lost in her thoughts…" ****************************************** - "Are you going on a mission ?" asked Mira Jane cheerfully, as the couple informed her of their departure. Gray didn't necessarily want to share with her the reason for their trip. After all, it was a rather sensitive topic. - "Yyyy it's more like..... a..vacation...?...Right Juvia?"- he turned to his fiancée - "Oh!....Yes, yes..."- nodded the woman. The barmaid looked at them with a huge smile. She still couldn't quite believe that these two were finally together.… - "In that case I wish you a wonderful time, lovebirds" - she giggled as she saw them both turning red. - "Ooh vacation? That's awesome, wish you a great time guys." -they heard Lucy's voice behind them. - "They are such a beautiful couple."- added Erza proudly-" I can't believe that our Gray has grown so much..I hope you'll have an amazing vacation." - '"I also wish you an amazing time'' -said Wendy happily. -Ohhh..young love…- sang Happy, flying over their heads. - " And where are you two going anyway?"- asked Natsu curiously while finishing his lunch. - "We decided to visit my hometown,"- said Juvia. Her friends didn't need to know more... - "Oh cool..Where is it?" -continued Natsu. He never really thought much about where his guild-mate came from.. -" I don't think that's your business Flame-brain. Besides you probably wouldn't know where it is anyway." -said Gray, slightly annoyed. He was slowly starting to get on his nerves. Why does Natsu always have to meddle in things that are not his own? - "I asked Juvia ,not you Icy-pants" said Natsu teasingly. Jeez what's wrong with Droopy eyes today , he just asked a simple question. - "Calm down both of you "- said Lucy. She didn't like where this conversation was going. -'' Lucy is right, there is no point in arguing....Natsu if you really want to know, Juvia was born in the town of Tempeville, in the south - said Juvia, trying to calm down quickly. - "Oh, I've never heard of that place," Natsu said, surprised. Looks like there's a lot of towns he didn't know about. - "See, I told you so,"- said Gray. "Now if you'll excuse us, we have a train to catch. So let's get going… - "Hey Lucy, Happy, let's go with them...I'd like to see what that place is like "- said Natsu suddenly, dragging the blonde with him. His girlfriend looked at him in horror. 'Natsu, what are you thinking? Are you trying to ruin their trip?' - "The hell?! "- shouted Gray. And then he thought that everything was going well…'Please no….' - "Natsu, that's their private vacation! "- exclaimed Lucy, knowing very well that they should leave the couple alone- "Besides, they said they have a train coming soon!" -"Then let's go , we have to get ready quickly…...!" "LEAVE US ALONE !!' - desperate Gray shouted as loud as he could, unintentionally focusing the attention of practically the entire guild. They all looked at him, disapproval clearly written on

their faces. - "Gee..Buddy..you don't have to be so rude," - said Max. - "My God… what's with you?- whispered Lisanna - "Exactly Gray, what kind of behavior is that? "- Erza asked in a stern tone- "If you don't want Natsu to come with you, just tell him politely. The Devil Slayer wanted to disappear... It wasn't supposed to be like this. He turned his gaze towards his fiancée, silently asking for any kind of rescue. However, he was met with the same horrified gaze. After a moment, the girl bowed her head slightly and said to the rest of the guild. -"Everyone , please forgive us, especially Gray. I don't know what's going on with him lately...." - ' Huh ?'- Gray must have heard that wrong….There is no way... -"....He's been very tired and stressed lately, probably because of work, that's why we decided to go on vacation…..Juvia didn't know what to do...." said Juvia, brilliantly pretending to be distraught. 'Stop making me out to be some kind of aggressive freak,' Gray shouted in his mind 'Juvia is sorry but this is kinda your fault'- thought blunette , while taking a look at her lover. - "Relax Juvia, you don't have to apologize to us... To be honest Natsu tried to force his way into your trip" - said Lucy, looking at her partner with an annoyance. - Sorry Juvia….-said the pink haired boy meekly-"...but the ice princess can kiss my ass. I won't apologize to him.." -he added quietly. - "It honestly sounds like an excuse to leave you alone so you can shag in peace" -said Cana under her breath. She wanted to add something else but then she felt a murderous gaze of the black-haired man and decided to shut up. -"True!"- added Gajeel, receiving a look full of indignation from his best friend. -"That's so MANLY" - "How could you blame them though….." -laughed Macao. -"GOODBYE !" - shouted Fullbuster blushing furiously ,as he headed straight to the door, dragging his equally embarrassed lover with him. As they walked towards the train station, dragging their suitcases behind them, blunette suddenly asked… - "Did you really do this...to be all alone with me....?" asked Juvia innocently. Oh how she loved teasing him like that... -"JUVIA ?! "- At this point Gray was close to having a heart attack. A very amused girl could not stop laughing for a while , until they got on the train and they sat down in one of the wagons. Their journey has just begun. ****************************************** Very random/ unnecessary bonus . Remember this, Lovelies! Never doodle under the influence of alcohol, you will get wierd ideas lol. ,, Do you see this sh*t Juvia? People are fighting over fictional characters… Humanity really is getting dumber and dumber...."

[ayybtch]

Psychotic

Bucky Barnes x f!Reader

Summary: You really love animals, Bucky not so much. A random TikTok brings to light exactly what Bucky thinks of you.

Word Count: 1,776

Warnings: Being told no to getting animals, a couple swear words here and there, blink and you miss it suggestiveness, and a very strange TikTok

A/N: Happy Valentines Day everyone! I watched this TikTok months ago and absolutely lost it when I saw it, so definitely give it a watch! Dividers made by the lovely @firefly-graphics​

A Mutual Weirdness Masterlist

Days off were a rare occurrence for Bucky. Rarer still were days off that coincided with yours, and it practically required cosmic intervention for both of you to be off on a weekend. This was the first Saturday Bucky had off in almost two months and he planned on spending it doing absolutely nothing.

He made a point to sleep in and stay in bed as long as he possibly could. Once the grumbling of his stomach finally won out, the day would start off with a giant breakfast followed by a long, hot shower. The remainder of the day would involve him sitting on his ass while enjoying a good book or watching TV. He’d stay where he was until he needed to eat and that’s the way he liked it.

Today, he wanted to make some progress on the strange Romanian murder-mystery novel Wanda had recommended. She swore up and down that it was one of the best she’s ever read, but so far Bucky was not impressed. The pacing was too slow, the characters were too dull, and the murder itself was not all that intriguing. He would have stopped already if it hadn’t been for Wanda pestering him about it.

He had been laying on the couch completely immersed for almost an hour trying to solve the case before the lead detective when you came rushing into the room. You climbed into his lap and sat there staring at him, eyes unsettlingly wide. Bucky peered back at you over the top of his book, suspicious as to what could possibly be running through your head. A small smile started to appear on your face, but you remained silent.  

“Can I help you?” Bucky asked after a few minutes without any change to your expression, which was growing more and more manic-looking by the second.

Your eyes seemed to snap back in focus as he spoke and the rest of your face became serious. “So I had an idea…” you said cautiously, suddenly far more serious than he had ever seen you look before. “What if we got chickens? Not too many, just like three. I think three is a good number.”

Bucky stared at you in disbelief. “We live in an apartment. Of course you can’t have chickens,” he said flatly. You rolled your eyes at his response.

“Obviously not right now, but in the future when we’re not living in an apartment. You know, after you and I get hitched and find a house we like.”

All of the confusion and concerns Bucky had were thrown out the window as he processed what you said. You want to buy a house with him? You want to marry him? The thought of being with you forever made his heart skip a beat and filled him with an overwhelming urge to kiss you. He realized you were still watching him expectantly, waiting for an answer. “S-Sure, I guess. I never really liked chickens though -”

He wasn’t even able to finish his sentence before your lips were pressed against his.

“You are the best! Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!” you yelled, kissing him all over his face between thank you’s.

When you broke apart, an excited squeal left you that had his ears ringing. You laid down fully on his chest and started rambling about how nice it would be to have some land so you could have a nice big garden filled with every fruit and vegetable imaginable, a decent sized back patio or porch for friends to come over, and plenty of space for the chickens to have a giant coop. You even started listing out possible names for the chickens. Your seemingly endless ramble ended unexpectedly as you trailed off mid-sentence, gasping slightly after a moment. You picked your head up just enough off his chest to look him in the eyes.

“If we have enough room, can we also have goats?”

Bucky groaned, “Don’t push it, Doll. I’ve barely agreed to the chickens.” He pulled you back down onto his chest and placed a gentle kiss on the top of your head before he continued reading.

It was almost a week later before Bucky had his next day off. He decided to plan a long-overdue date night. It was nothing fancy, just a casual dinner at a restaurant you liked followed up with dessert. After you left the restaurant, the two of you made your way through a stretch of Central Park. He had intended for it to be a romantic walk, full of hand-holding and kissing that maybe could lead to something else once you were back at the apartment. Instead, it quickly turned into one of the worst decisions of his life.

Everything was going according to plan until you spotted the raccoon family of three hanging out in the tree not far off the path. Bucky didn’t even need to look at you to know you were staring at them with the same heart eyes you always stare at animals with.

The raccoons were in a relatively low tree branch, each snacking on some food they had scavenged from a nearby trash can. You pulled Bucky off the sidewalk and into the grass. Your excitement grew with each step you took towards the tree.

“Bucky look at their little hands! How cute are they?” You whisper yelled, practically jumping up and down with excitement. You were so focused on them that it gave Bucky the chance to watch and appreciate how enamored you were. While it drove him nuts sometimes how many animals you wanted, it never stopped being adorable to him how passionate you were about them. Bucky had no doubt you’d manage to sweet-talk him into more than he’d care to admit, but if it meant seeing you smile like this every day then it’ll be worth it. He was so lost in his thoughts of what your future may hold that he hardly heard what you were saying to the raccoons. It wasn’t until you finally turned to look at him that he tuned back into what you were saying.

“Do you think raccoons would make good pets?”

Without a word, he picked you up and slung you over his shoulder before turning to walk away, shaking his head as he did.

“Oh my god, babe! Look at this baby cow!” you gushed, bursting out of the bedroom and into the kitchen where Bucky was making breakfast. “It’s so fucking fluffy, I need it.” The emphasis on need left Bucky scoffing as you shoved the phone into his hand. You stood there and stared at him, grinning ear to ear as you continued to ramble about the baby cow.

He eventually had to cut you off, “Doll, we’ve been over this a dozen times. You don’t actually want a cow, you just want a cow you can hang out with. Now sit down and eat your eggs before they get cold.” He scooped out some scrambled eggs onto a plate before placing it at your usual spot at the counter.

You grumbled slightly before sitting down on the barstool, stabbing your eggs harder than necessary with your fork. “You didn’t even acknowledge how cute it is.”

“It’s very cute. But I’ve already agreed to quite the menagerie so I have to put my foot down somewhere. I’ve already said yes to the chickens and it’s at least maybe on goats, and possibly a pig if we have enough room.”

“I’ve already said yes to the chickens and maybe on goats and pigs,” you said mockingly. “What difference does a cow make if we’ve already got all of those?” you asked, mouth full of food.

Bucky stared at you, shaking his head and sighing. “You’re lucky I love you, woman.” He pressed a kiss to your forehead and sat down to join you for breakfast.

It was almost a month later before the two of you finally were able to have a quiet night together. The evening had been spent cooking dinner, making a mess in the kitchen as you did, followed by making a different kind of mess in the living room not long after. Now, the two of you were laying in bed together winding down for the night. Bucky was reading while you laid there scrolling mindlessly on your phone. You giggled from time to time, pausing to show him a funny meme here and there, but for the most part, the room was quiet.

It wasn’t until you were in full-on giggles that Bucky leaned his book against his chest and stared at you waiting for an explanation.

Once the giggles died down, you rolled slightly to be closer to him. “You have to watch this wack ass video.” Your laughter started up again before you even hit play.

Bucky watched as the guy in the video kept pulling out stranger and stranger animals. He chuckled throughout the video, but it wasn’t until a thought struck him at the end that he really burst out laughing.

“That’s going to be you in five years if I haven’t already married you and kept your psychotic ass from getting an unreasonable amount of animals.”

Your laughter died and you stared at him reproachfully. “Bucky, baby...do you think I’m psychotic?” Somehow you managed to sound unconcerned by the possibility of being psychotic. If anything, you seemed almost amused.

“Honestly? I think you’re on the brink of snapping sometimes,” he said with a slight shrug.

You stared back at him, not fully sure if he was joking or not. The serious look on his face confirmed he wasn’t joking and you couldn’t help but laugh. “Good to know you think I’m one mental breakdown away from snuggling with a possum, you jerk,” you teased, placing a quick peck on his cheek.

Bucky turned to fully face you, looking you dead in the eyes. “Be honest with me, if the possum was replaced by one of those raccoons we saw a couple weeks ago, how unreasonable would that seem to you?”

Your face felt hot and you stuttered for a moment before going quiet. “I guess that’s fair,” you mumbled, eyes rolling slightly. “But raccoons are cuter, you can’t blame me for wanting to snuggle one.”

“I know, you fucking weirdo. Now come here,” Bucky said, grabbing you and pulling you into his chest. He pressed a kiss to the top of your head and a comfortable silence fell over you. A few minutes later, Bucky spoke again.

“For the record though, possums and raccoons are both firmly on the ‘no’ list.”

[pillow-anime-talk]

chibi-chan.

synopsis: A little bit of jokes about your height from GoM’s boys or situations where you need some help. But don’t worry, we all know that you are super cute and adorable.

# tags: scenarios; current relationships; comedy; fluff; romance; jokes; also protective/helpful boyfriends; sfw

includes: female reader ft. ryouta kise, daiki aomine, shintarou midorima, atsushi murasakibara, seijuurou akashi & tetsuya kuroko {knb}

— RYOUTA

You’ve been wondering how to impress your boyfriend for a few days, because he hasn’t paid much attention to you for a long time. Even when you came in a different hairstyle or changed your perfume, Ryouta just smiled at you, then stole one kiss from you and run for basketball team training...

Oh, right. Basketball. You didn’t know a bigger fan of this sport than your boyfriend. Stupid thought of playing basketball passed through your head to show off your skills (or rather attempts to have any skills to play in this sport) to Kise.

The more you thought about it, the more convinced you were. You decided to try and on Friday immediately after your lessons you went to the gym. You knew that at 5 p.m. the Kaijou team would start their training, so you only had an hour to take off your whole uniform, jump into the P.E.’s tracksuit and pick one ball from the big bin and start slowly throwing into the basket hoop.

Of course, it’s easy to guess that it was hard for you to hit into the hoop with your... small height. Certainly when you were born, you didn’t queue for ‘being tall’, but rather for a nice smile and big eyes. No wonder that for the first ten casts only one was successful and it was certainly a coincidence, because the ball spun three times on the rim before falling inside.

“I suck in this game.” You muttered under your breath, again taking a position on the first line on the court.

You were so absorbed in the game that you didn’t even notice how a curious blond-head looked inside the gym because of the noise and the light on. What a surprise for Kaijou’s ace who saw you in front of the basketball board and the ball in your hands.

However, when he noticed your next inaccurate shot he laughed under his breath. “I think you’re a little too short for this game, Y/Ncchi.” He said in an amused voice, entered the room. You turned to the voice and then sighed.

“And too short for you to notice me, huh?” You added wearily, catching the ball.

“Y/Ncchi... I always see you!”

“I don’t think so. But I don’t blame you. I just wanted to... impress you. You like basketball, so maybe you would like me more if I could play with you.” You shrugged, throwing ball into the hoop again. Miss. “Shit.”

The blonde man shook his head approaching you. “I like you no matter what you do or how you do it. You don’t have to play basketball to impress me. You should change you for you and only you, not me or someone else. Anyway, I said what I said. I notice you all the time, Y/Ncchi. You looked pretty last time when you had a ponytail. Your new perfume was amazing too. Hmm, now when I think about it, I don’t praised you for that, right? But know that I appreciate everything you do.” He confessed quietly, patting you on the head. “And now Chibicchi, I’ll show you how to play basketball, because you have a terrible position to throw a ball...”

— DAIKI

Aomine definitely loved teasing you the most if your height was at stake. He usually made you as his own armrest or asked what’s weather below. They were a puppy jokes that somewhat irritated you, somewhat amused you, and somewhat embarrassed you, but what can you do? After all, they were just pokes and you knew that well. In retaliation, you often mocked him by calling him a ladder, giraffe or Eiffel Tower.

Daiki was glad you weren’t offended about it because... you were incredibly cute to him when your cheeks turned red and slight insults came from your lips. Of course he would never say it out loud, but you were super fluffy for him and he liked this side of you. And hey, as your tall boyfriend he had nice views from above. For this and if necessary he liked to take you on his lap or cuddle with you on the armchair, because you were the pocket-sized person and he could cover your whole body by his.

But as I wrote, Aomine would never have said it out loud. He just always laughed, saying you were shrunk again.

Of course, Daiki wasn’t such a bastard to you.

I mean, yes. Aomine had the right to make fun of you, but no one else him could do it, because he knew that after all your height is your complex. Your boyfriend spoke his jokes in a gentle way, always saying at the end that he loves your body anyway, because of this he feels more manly and needful. He didn’t spare wet kisses or hickeys on your chest at that time, so you didn’t feel bad with him. You love each other very much.

However, when other people’s jokes were involved, such as those from girls who were jealous of your blue-haired man or gross jokes from boys who didn’t like Aomine or wanted to pick you up... Daiki changed his mood immediately.

Just like now, when you were walking towards Aomine’s class to go to the roof with him and have breakfast. Unfortunately, just before the door a couple of first-year students stopped you; one of them hit the wall with his hand, blocking the way for you.

“Hey, Y/N-chan. Oh, this bento is for me?” The tall black-haired boy took your breakfast box, then raised it high up, smiling broadly. “Thank you, it’s really nice. You are such a damn cutie.”

“Please, no. W-Wait...”

“Maybe we’ll arrange a date? We can go to the cinema and then to me. I think it won't be a problem with you getting into my bed, because you're so small...”

“Don’t touch me and give my bento back!” You jumped to catch the white box, but in vain.

“Oh, I have great views from my perspective.” The teenager laughed, not even noticing the shadow of a much taller person behind him. The box with your bento was picked up and the perverted student was pressed against the wall next to you.

“Why don’t you repeat what you just said a moment ago?” Daiki asked and you immediately ran up to him, hiding behind him. “Harassing girls... especially girls in the relationship... It’s really shitty, don’t you think? Get out, brat and never approach my girlfriend again.”

As I said, only Daiki can use your height for kissing or joking.

And of course to show that he’s the best boy on the whole world.

— SHINTAROU

Your boyfriend was a difficult man. He rarely showed any emotions, but you knew that he cares about you very much and despite his cold behavior he always worries about you.

No less, Midorima is... Midorima. You didn’t know any bigger tsundere than him; especially when you two were together at the random moment.

Like. Did you forget your scarf? No problem, Shintarou will lend you his own and tell you that you are irresponsible and childish. You’re hungry? All right, your boyfriend will buy you something from the school cafeteria or share his bento saying it’s the last time he does it for you (spoiler: this isn’t the last time because he’s a simp for you anyway). You’re tired? Girl... Midorima will take you on his lap and hug you so tight that your heart will melt, but three times he will mention that you can’t tell anyone about this situation. Mom, I love him.

In any case, Shin has his own way of showing affection, which is primarily based on texting to you or bringing for you your lucky items for the day; for example, recently, Midorima brought you a key ring with a puppy's pendant, because Oha Asa mentioned that this wouldn't be a good day for your zodiac... Sweet.

Today, however, he brought to school only an item for you (by the way, it was a Tokyo’s guide), or so you thought, because Shintarou always discusses with you about his lucky thing. And today he didn’t say a single word about it. He only took your hand and led you to class, saying that he would come for you at your next break.

And so, throughout today’s day Midorima didn’t leave you even for a moment, and by the way he still walked with you by the hand, which was a bit strange for you because Shin didn't like a public PDA. Takao was equally surprised.

Only when you started coming back to home with the green-haired man who was walking next to you (of course with your fingers laced with his) you decided to ask Shintarou if something had happened.

“So... your today’s happy item is a holding hands or maybe rather a woman’s hand?” You asked seriously, laughing under your breath, at which Midorima looked at you surprised.

“No.” He said honestly, so you immediately thought that your boyfriend joined into a PDA lovers! You were about to say something, but he continued. “My lucky thing for today is something small, that’s why I thought about you.”

You hit the boy on the shoulder, blushing furiously. “Idiot.”

— ATSUSHI

With Murasakibara, no matter if you were 155 centimeters tall, 168 centimeters tall or even 180 centimeters tall... you would still be small for him. And because you were below average, your relationship looked at least funny, but also sweet.

Of course, Atsushi didn’t care about your height, what’s more – he considered that it’s your advantage because he was pleased to took you in his arms while watching movies or grab your hands and play with them. Therefore, while you were next to him, you praised him and (maybe) from time to time you fed or played with his hair, Murasakibara paid no attention to your height. And when someone asked him if he didn't mind about it, he answered with his the most weary voice ‘Why would that kind of things should bother me? My Y/N-chin is my Y/N-chin and I like her no matter what. Do you have any problem with her or me?’

Of course, Atsushi is a big baby who likes to tease you, but he doesn’t use words for it; I mean, very often, when you want to kiss him, a tall boy laughs quietly and specifically asks that ‘huh, do you have a problem’ to reaching his lips. He always suggests bringing a ladder or chair. You snort, hitting him at the waist and laught shortly after that. Finally, you always pull him by the shirt to bend him down. He can't refuse you anyway.

Especially when you threaten him with not giving him snacks the next day.

Atsushi is a very supportive boy! If someone else teases you and you feel bad about your height difference, then your man always grabs the other person's head and asks rhetorically whether to crush him. Therefore, in order not to feel bad about it, you immediately offer him something to eat; if it's one of his three favorite dishes he'll probably follow you like a faithful dog.

‘Sushi likes to lift you up and help you to get to the basket board. His height is also very helpful when you cook something together, and he has the task of reaching for ingredients or bowls.

Nevertheless, sometimes he can’t refrain from saying that you are really smol. And if you’re together among the crowd, he sometimes he loses sight of you.

Fortunately, Atsu is so tall that you can find he quickly (usually at food stalls).

“You’re lost again, Y/N-chin...”

“You went to the snack machine without even telling me anything!” You laughed reaching for your wallet to buy ice cream for both of you.

“Sorry, sometimes I forget that you’re so small and have short legs, Chibi-chin.”

— SEIJUUROU

Your boyfriend definitely isn’t one of those type who joke about such serious matters as appearance, style or diseases. However, if he only saw or heard that someone was laughing at you, he immediately appeared next to your figure, which caused the tormentor escape. No one dared to object to Seijuurou, it’s a fact.

Akashi, of course, didn’t laugh at your height as I wrote, but this doesn’t mean that he didn’t like the fact that you asked him a favor or asked him to give you something or help you in doing a random thing. This brat asked for something in return each time; usually it was a kiss but sometimes it was also something more.

In any case, your man always went into defense mode when he was with you, through what many people were surprised by his change from Akashi in the basketball team > Akashi in the company of Y/N.

For example, imagine such a scene: You go to your home with Seijuurou because the boy decided to help you with chemistry and physic, but on your the way you unfortunately stumble over the protruding curb and fall into the ground, injuring your knee. Sei immediately changes from ‘full seriousness’ to “God, honey, are you all right?”

“Sei-kun, I’m not dying.”

“Yes, but it looks really bad. Let me take you in my arms.”

“Seijuurou-kun, I can really go on my own legs.”

“I won’t let you. Come here.”

“You’ll be tired and I’m heavy.”

“No, you’re not. You’re tiny.”

There really is no point in arguing with him because you won’t win anyway. Although you have to admit that thanks to the pink-haired you feel really loved and appreciated. There is no person in the world who cares about you like Akashi.

— TETSUYA

This boy is literally an angel. He probably won’t say a bad word about your height, but if he does, he will be 100% unknowingly about it and if he quickly understands his mistake, he will apologize for it; for example, he says you have recently seemed taller, but after a while he will remember that you were wearing shoes with a higher heel that day, not sneakers. Tetsuya is the most supportive boy in the world who will help you with everything you have a problem with.

You can’t reach the top shelf in the store? Kuroko will take your favorite cereal without a word and say that if you need something else from this or other shelf, just tell him. Do you have a problem with hanging laundry or putting curtains on your window? Tetsuya will gladly help you or lift your body to make you more comfortable. Are you cold? This cutie will lend you his sweatshirt/jacket/blanket, saying that you should take care of yourself, because you quickly catch a cold.

You! Literally! Have! Nothing! To! Complain! About!

Angel. I said what I said.

Kuroko isn’t one of the highest either people, so he is somewhat happy that his girlfriend is much shorter than him and sometimes needs his help for even such simple matters as changing a light bulb, reaching for a book in the library or chips from the storage locker in kitchen.

Sometimes, however, you get the impression that Kuroko is too worried about you. Like at this moment when you were going to go swimming with your boyfriend in the lake because you and your friends from Seirin went for a little rest. And also ‘cause the basketball team has a training under the supervision of Riko.

“Y/N-chan can you swim here? It’s quite deep. I’m worried.”

“Yes, Tetsuya, I can handle it. But I will take your hand when I feel threatened.”

“Yes, but you can hurt yourself. Grab me now. Pretty please.”

Kuroko is definitely cute and lovely, but he should chill.

[mnemosyne-musing]

Double date (River/11)

(So this prompt link is very tenuous and has basically turned into pwp for which I at least partially blame sonic for encouraging me. This version is rated T but the link for the slightly smuttier version is here)

“So!” the Doctor leaps up the stairs to the console and grabs the monitor, spinning around on his heel before typing rapidly into the keyboard, “I was thinking, once River arrives, maybe, a trip to the Amazzi waterfalls. They have these wonderful pools filled with algae. Only, it’s not really algae, it’s this kind of-“

“Doctor,” Rory interrupts, somewhat tentatively, “We were thinking tonight. If you don’t mind that is. That we could just stay in? Maybe have dinner and, you know, just talk to River, and you of course?”

“Yes,” Amy pipes up quickly, “Only if you don’t mind of course,”

He looks up from the console at the two of them standing by the railing. Amy folding her hands slightly nervously in front of her and Rory biting his lip anxiously.

He beams at them. “Of course!”

Amy gives a sigh of relief. “Oh, thank you! It’s not that we don’t want to go anywhere, it’s just, it’s been a lot the last few weeks and we haven’t really had much of a chance to process or talk to River or-“

“Ooh, it can be like a double date!” he cuts in and claps his hands together, “We can cook dinner here. I’ve got this wonderful recipe from Escoffier. Fabulous chap. I worked in his restaurant once actually and-“

“Doctor, are you sure?”

He waves a hand at them as he types. “Pond, it’s fine. I’ll be fine. It doesn’t always have to be running and excitement. I can do an evening in. Now, off you pop and get your cooking clothes on! I’ll pick up River and we’ll meet you in the kitchen.”

Amy and Rory grin at each other before bounding towards the stairs and out of the console room.

“Thank you, Doctor!” Amy calls as they scarper down the corridor.

It had been just over a month since leaving River in the hospital after Berlin. They’d seen her once since then. He’d taken the Ponds to a planet with a fantastic seventeen hour meteor shower and they’d bumped into her on the viewing deck. They’d also run into a gang of high-end jewel smugglers whose presence there River swore was a complete coincidence to hers. He had his serious doubts about that but, honestly, he’d been quite distracted by all the running and excitement and then afterwards River had had to dash off very quickly. Well, not so quickly that she hadn’t grabbed him and snogged him against the door of the TARDIS but. Anyway.

He sighs and shakes his head to clear of it of those thoughts before returning to the monitor. He’s just about to pull the lever to let the TARDIS dematerialise when there’s a familiar noise of someone appearing by vortex manipulator behind him.

“Hello sweetie,”

He turns around, a grin already on his face and leans back against the console. River is standing a few feet away, wearing a dark trench coat that’s cinched in and tied at the waist, a pair of dazzlingly high blue heels on her feet that do funny things to his insides.

She begins to stalk towards him, a little bit like a predator approaching its prey.

“I thought I’d bring you a birthday present,” she practically purrs, stopping just out of arm’s reach.

He quirks an eyebrow. “But, it’s not my birthday?”

She simply smiles. A slow smirk that spreads across her face and now she really does look like she’s sizing him up for the kill. That thought really shouldn’t thrill him as much as it does he briefly ponders.

She brings a hand to the belt on her coat and slowly pulls it loose. “Care to reconsider?” she asks, her voice low and throaty as the coat falls open.

The Doctor opens his mouth but all words and possible replies immediately evaporate as he catches sight of what she’s wearing beneath the coat. Or rather, what she’s mostly not wearing beneath the coat. He hardly thinks that the plunging bra and skimpy pair of knickers, both made of flimsy lace in a deep blue colour to match her heels, really count as clothes. In fact, he can think of several planets on which that is most definitely not considered an outfit and would probably be illegal and really- hang on, why is he thinking about other planets when River is here and-

He licks his lips and swallows. “I think,” he manages to croak out, “I think it might be my birthday after all.”

River grins wickedly at him and lets the coat fall to the floor with a soft thud. She steps in towards him and grasps his shirt front, pulling him off the console and steering him backwards towards the jump seat. She pushes him down willingly into the seat and his hands automatically drift to grasp her hips, his fingers splaying across her back and stroking the soft skin there.

As she leans down to kiss him, there’s a small flicker of a thought at the back of his mind that there was something he was supposed to be doing. Something he was doing just before River arrived and-

A little while later, she levers herself off his lap as gracefully as she can before turning to look for her knickers. He watches unashamedly as she bends down to retrieve them, arse in the air and wearing nothing but those heels. She frowns down at them before shrugging, kicking her heels off and slipping her underwear back on. Turning back towards him she leans down and nabs his shirt, slipping it on before he can protest and carelessly doing up less than half the buttons.

She looks so utterly delectable, all beautifully dishevelled and ravished that he reaches for her again but she dances out of his reach.

“River!” he complains, as she sashays away from him and towards the corridor, “Where are you going?”

“We need to toast your birthday!” she calls over her shoulder as she disappears around the corner.

“But, it’s not really-,” he sighs and stops as he realises he’s talking to an empty room. He shakes his head and pulls up his boxers and trousers before sitting back in the jumpseat and waiting for River to reappear. He still hasn’t really caught his breath back since River first appeared in the console room.

He must’ve closed his eyes very briefly because he nearly jumps out of his skin a few minutes later when River’s voice suddenly crackles in the air.

“Sweetie, do we have any of the 1976 Krug? I’m sure we do but I can only find the ’77 and it just isn’t as good.”

He looks around wildly but he’s still alone in the console room.

“River?” he exclaims, “What? How are you doing- Where-“

“I’m in the kitchen, sweetie,” she says in that infinitely patient tone that she seems to reserve for when she’s telling him something extremely obvious, “I’m speaking over the intercom.”

“But. The TARDIS doesn’t have an intercom?” he objects, still looking frantically around the room as if River might suddenly pop up from behind the furniture somewhere. Her silence in response to his comment tells him she is probably rolling her eyes at him.

He’s about to come up with something very cutting and witty when over the intercom he suddenly hears a gasp and a very Scottish ‘Oh my god!’

The Ponds! Oh gods indeed! He had totally forgotten them and their date! He leaps up, spinning around to look for his shirt and then remembers River had purloined it just minutes ago. He swears in Gallifreyan under his breath, running a hand desperately through his hair before dashing out the door.

He sprints down the corridor which is rather longer than he remembers it being, cursing the TARDIS under his breath as he does do. He careens to a halt just before the kitchen and vainly tries to slow his breathing as he attempts to nonchalantly stroll inside.

He stops in the doorway and swallows nervously. River is leaning back against the kitchen counter, still clad in only his shirt and her knickers. She’s clutching a bottle of champagne in one hand and a couple of glasses in the other and looking exceptionally amused.

There’s another doorway into the kitchen on the opposite side to him and standing there are both Ponds. Amy is looking mildly embarrassed but still faintly amused whereas Rory has a shocked and slightly horrified expression on his face.

“Ah, there you are, sweetie!” River calls out cheerfully, “Did you want a glass of fizz?”

“Doctor?” Amy simply puts her hands on her hips and cocks her head at him expectantly.

“Ponds!” he exclaims as he looks wild-eyed between them, “River just arrived and- she- Well, we were going to celebrate because-“

“I think we know how you two were ‘celebrating’,” Amy snorts, folding her arms in front of her, “You’re only wearing one outfit between the two of you!”

“Ah, no, no,” the Doctor shakes his head frantically, “I know what this looks like but actually I had to give River my shirt as she only had a coat and some underwear that, well, really wasn’t much of an outfit to begin with and after-“

“Not. Helping, Doctor,” Rory mutters from between gritted teeth as he scrubs a hand over his eyes as if trying to erase that particular mental picture.

The Doctor gulps and attempts to salute the other man. “Sorry, centurion.”

“I suppose I should have asked earlier but when are we, Doctor?” River asks, still looking far too entertained with the whole situation.

“We’ve only just done Berlin a few weeks ago,” he mumbles as her eyes widen.

“Oh! Early days then,” River nods in understanding, a grin still playing around her lips, “So, this is the first time you’ve caught us like this?” she asks Amy and Rory as they nod.

“Hang on!” the Doctor says in a panicked voice, her words suddenly sinking in, “What do you mean ‘first time’?”

River simply gives him that knowing smirk again. “Believe me, none of you want to know about those times in advance.”

He puts that rather worrying thought to the back of his mind, ignoring the way Rory blanches and Amy gives a small shudder. Pasting a smile on his face, he claps his hands. “Well, we’re all here now! We can have that double date!”

“Double date?” River raises an eyebrow as she looks at him.

Amy shakes her head. “Sorry Raggedy-Man. Seeing you two half-dressed has kind of ruined my appetite.”

The Doctor glares at her and pulls his braces up self-consciously over his bare-chest, ignoring River’s soft snort of laughter. “Oi. Rude, Amelia.

“Don’t you Amelia me!” she retorts and wags a finger at him, “I know exactly what you’ve been doing with my daughter!” she adds as the Doctor blushes bright red and avoids her gaze. She turns on her heel and heads towards the door, dragging Rory along with her. “We’ll see you in the morning,” she calls over her shoulder, “If you could try and keep it out of the communal areas that would be lovely!”

The Doctor splutters in protest and turns an even deeper shade of red. He turns to River who is still leaning against the countertop. “You,” he points his finger accusingly at her, “This is all your fault.”

“My fault?”

“Yes,” he nods emphatically, crossing his arms across his bare chest and trying to look foreboding as it was possible to look when only half dressed, “We had a nice evening planned. The four of us. A double date. And then, you arrived with-,” he gestures vaguely at her, “Well. With all-. Looking like that and now here we are.”

River ignores his attempts at glaring and simply laughs. She puts the champagne and glasses down on the side and slinks towards him, her hips swaying. She runs her hands up his chest and winds them around his neck.

“I’m sorry, my love,” she coos in a tone that suggests she isn’t really very sorry at all. She leans in closer and whispers in his ear. “Shall I make it up you?”

He swallows heavily, his arms having already uncrossed themselves and somehow found themselves settling on her hips. “Well,” he mumbles, “It is my birthday after all.”

Her answering laugh is muffled as he kisses her once more.

--

[dangermousie]

CFC 166

1. Drunken HY kissing XQC’s neck and XQC “groaned, his back trembled” - it’s an angsty moment because XQC is dead set on denying denying denying but seeing how insanely affected he is by this is !!!!! One of the things I love about Meatbun is how well she conveys longing (and also that both people in her pairing are hot for each other, none of the victorian “lie back and think of jjwxc” for her.)

2. HY begging for a hug is heartbreaking. It shows how good Meatbun is because 100 or so chapters ago, I wasn’t just ready to gut HY with a rusty spoon but genuinely couldn’t see how I could ever ship HY x XQC and now I do and my heart is breaking (but then this was the case for me with 2ha too -I started out disliking both mains and the rest is history.) HY is so confused and frankly, even someone who is not young and in his first relationship AND has serious mental issues would be thrown into a tailspin by XQC’s hot and cold behavior. XQC is pushing HY away for HY’s own good (he genuinely believes that) but honestly the way he’s acting is designed to create a breakdown. Also, I really really need for XQC to hug HY at some point without HY begging or a life/death situation. I am this close to writing fic about it, and I haven’t written any in close to 15 years.

3. Forced kissing and groping against the wall. Aaaaand this chapter is getting locked in 3, 2, 1...

4. HY still thinks it’s because he’s a man. Goddammit, XQC, seriously.

5. The fact that my MTL translates Chen Man as Chen Slow is one of the small but enduring joys of my life.

6. XQC’s reaction to Chen Man seeing the kissing makes me certain that at some point, x-rated videos of XQC and HY will go public because Meatbun likes to go for maximum pain and hit where it would hurt the most for the character. XQC is not fully to terms with being gay (though is he? He Yu clearly is, but XQC strikes me as demi more than anything else - it’s driven by that need to love first before feeling desire much more than what gender the partner is, but he’s not straight at least)  AND he is a hugely private person AND there are aspects of their relationship that are condemned by society even aside from gender (though that is there too and he knows that) - doctor x patient, age gap, blah blah. Or maybe the stuff won’t leak but threat of leak and humiliation for XQC would be used to keep HY in line? (And then they will leak anyway, of course.)

7. You got two hot young men brawling over you in the hallways, XQC. (I am now flashbacking to 2ha, and CWN realizing two of his students were obsessed with him and wondering if it’s is fault because one student could be a coincidence, but a 67% ratio is...heh.) But HY is also excited because it gives him an outlet - jealousy (objectively he should know XQC x CM are not a couple, if for no other reason than CM is also a man and XQC sticking point seems to be the gay thing) but he’s never rational about Chen Man.

8. HY telling CM all about how he and XQC banged and CM thinking about it is (a) gonna get this chapter locked (b) CM’s brain is blown that XQC is not the top - I am amused at how consistent that is and (c ) HY is an idiot because if XQC was not angry before, he would be now and he should be! He just got outed without his consent which is !!!!

9. XQC backhanding HY is my sexual orientation. And He Yu’s apparently.

10. Hmmm, Chen Man found out about XQC and HY and is now less obedient. I wanna make a long meta paragraph about it but it’s still percolating in my brain. Short version - I guess if XQC is not untouchable any more AND another young guy got to boss him around in bed this means CM’s views of XQC are shifting from purely impossible/untouchable to human like me which means I don’t need to always defer. Which is honestly healthier for Chen Man, but ahh, the utter devastation this whole mess must be for XQC.

11. XQC is keeping HY to talk because he’s the most unhinged one but honestly, I feel so terrible for XQC - what a way to be outed. He Yu needs proper therapy more than a relationship btw tho for him the two are tied and he will never succeed in one without the other.

12.Radiation is the way to calm him down? Congrats, He Yu, if you don’t go nuts in a fashion that kills you, you are gonna die of cancer.

13. HY is a strapping 20 year old but emotionally he really comes across as a small child - with that same lack of impulse control (he is already sorry he spoke up!) and lack of regulation, strong extremes of emotions and all that. And I find it so sad because part of it is his condition but part the awful deprived upbringing that stunted him so.

14. “It was Xie Qingcheng who gave him oxygen to live.” SCREAMS!!!!

15. HY losing it because he gets a paper cup and not his rabbit cup and XQC says he got rid of HY’s mug. And the reason HY is like this is because he’s emotionally on the brink already so anything can push him off (he’s been suffering for weeks and before that it was years of lack of love and so much abandonment) but also it is a symbol of relationship being over and...

16. And now XQC is asking HY to basically vanish from him entirely. HY, you dug your own pit, but honestly also XQC - if you are doing this for HY’s sake, how is any of it helping? HOW?

[cybernaght]

Guardian rewatch: Episode 3

First of all, wow. When I decided to post those online, I was expecting that they would be read by two people, both of whom I personally know. It was in equal part surprising and terrifying that so many of you ventured here. Thank you for reading, I really appreciate it. 

Episode 3 is probably my favourite case. It’s not perfectly strung together, there is little actual investigative work in it, but it’s a beautiful story of boundless love and devotion, which echoes through the relationship between our protagonists

Professor Shen is looking at some materials that are looking suspiciously like research into something supernatural, when Zhang Ruonan makes an appearance at his office, claiming that she is absolutely fine, while clearly being very far away from fine. This is something Shen Wei can certainly relate to, because he is the king of hiding his ailments from others. 

Zhu Hong’s one-sided affection for Zhao Yunlan starts to show already in this episode:  while he has the cold, she nags him to take care of himself, shoves tissues into his hands, and presses him to drink his meds. It’s easy to imagine even this early on that she will be the woman drunk dialling him one day. 

I know this could be seen as straightbaiting, but I honestly thing that the actual purpose it serves in the show is the opposite; I’ll talk more about it when we get there.

Zhao Yunlan spends a lot of this episode in Shen Wei’s office, starting with this scene, in which is obviously flexing. Not only does he sneeze all over the office, he goes to eat Shen Wei’s cake after specifically being told not to eat it.  He also takes his opportunity to mix questioning with flirting, as is his usual way. He keeps eye contact while spooning cake into his mouth, as he explains, jovially, that another mysterious death on his campus cannot possibly be a coincidence. And, to be fair, he is not really wrong. We are meant to believe that this is all set in motion by Zhu Jiu, aka the least scary villain in the history of villainy, and an owner of your staple baby goth wig. I will not mention him again until the plot makes it impossible for me not to do so. 

Zhang Ruonan comes in, and Zhao Yunlan introduces himself as Shen Wei’s good friend. Which is half-way between a flex and an act of kindness. On one hand, he could have said he was from the police - which would be absolutely true - and risk tarnishing the professor’s good name. On the other hand, he could probably look less pleased with himself. Shen Wei, at the very least, looks neither grateful, nor amused. 

Zhao Yunlan asks her if she new the victim and she looks incredibly shifty as she flees. He is right to think that something is up, and he correctly assumes trauma, rather than guilt. We can now start to see that he is very very good at reading people. It must be equal parts thrilling and disconcerting for him to have met something who he decisively cannot read. Shen Wei vouches for the woman, partly, surely, because his Hei Pao Shi sense is tingling, letting him know that someone is eavesdropping. 

Despite feeling uneasy, Shen Wei still offers Guo Changcheng, who is left to collect various paperwork from his desk, a little smile. He has a reason to like Xiao Guo, of course: he was the one to see the young man’s kindness and understanding, and he is already growing protective of him, way before he will start seeing members of the special unit as his people. This reminds me of how many months later, he will subtly, but decisively stop a barrage of verbal abuse against Xiao Guo by dropping a pair of chopsticks. 

Zhao Yunlan is taking Xiao Guo with him on the case rather than anyone else, partly, supposedly, because of Guo Changcheng’s familial connections. The young man looks more sure of himself, asking correct questions, dutifully records answers. He also tries to look after his Chief by asking him to go home and rest. He does phrase it badly, but Zhao Yunlan has a thing against his own health and well-being, so he reacts extra poorly.

Soon after, Zhao Yunlan’s at Shen Wei’s office yet again, as Shen Wei tries his best to ignore him, in the hope that he… well, maybe not goes away, but does not ask him anything that will require him lying. Instead, Zhao Yunlan is asking Shen Wei why he is bad at reading people, which is a very strange thing to ask. Shen Wei answers his question with a question, “Will seeing through people really lessen the hurt and disappointment?” Adding, “Many tragedies were destined from the beginning”. He looks well.. like this as he says it. 

This is loaded. On first glance, it’s a pretty good set-up to the way this story will unfold, as a tragedy of two individuals who let their devotion to each other nearly ruin each other’s life. A fragile human and a dangerous powered Undergroundian: what else is that, but a tragedy, waiting to happen? But this story - this one right in front of us - will not end tragically, at least not for the two people it enters around. It could do so, but it will not. Maybe, this truly is the first hint that this entire narrative, so carefully set up from the very first time Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei meet, is destined to be a tragedy. Moreover, that it must be one, for some cosmic reason. 

(… I apologise while I go have a little cry in the corner. Damn you, Guardian, why do you make me hurt so much?)

Da Qing inexplicably morphs from black cat to a human in white t-shirt while doing night shadowing, and promptly falls asleep on patrol. Why is he being sent to stake anyone out? He is least suitable for it.  He is literally a cat. He sleeps 16 hours a day. 

Surprisingly, when pressed, Zhang Ruonan comes clean very easily, revealing that she was a victim of the three students she failed (two of which are already dead and one one standing right next to them), who lured her out at night, which left her vulnerable to be attacked. Zhao Yunlan listens to this story, and instead of… oh I don’t know, perhaps asking her the identity of the third student, leaves to go find that out for himself. It is heavily implied that he does it on purpose, which is definitely not okay.  

Moreover, he goes and... asks Shen Wei. This makes me suspect that he’s not really thinking with his head at this point. As he does so, he is brandishing a letter opener. 

Shen Wei is looking even less impressed with him than he did during their last few conversations. 

Zhao Yunlan is a little bit flippant when it comes to students’ lives this episode. And yes, they have done something really quite horrible to another human being, but that's not a very good excuse to let the last of them just die. As it happens, the situation Yunlan created - perhaps on purpose - did lure out Zhao Ruonan’s murder girlfriend, but it also cost a student his life. Which is far from ideal, but is somehow never even mentioned. Instead of being aghast, he sits on the table as he goes into full interrogation mode. (As he will continue to do a lot. Sometimes he crouches on tables instead. There is no further point here, apart from: I like this character quirk. It’s a nice character quirk.)

He brings some of his team in at this point, and asks Zhu Hong to continue interrogation. It would be a nice gesture is he did not interject two questions in. 

“How do you regard your relationship with Wang Yike?”

“We are family.”

They are definitely, decisively not going for sisterly bond here. Which is kind of incredible. This is one of the moments the amorphous being that show is looks at the censors, wiggles its battered low budget eyebrows at them, and then proceeds to flip them off. Well done, Guardian. 

Wang Yike calls Zhang Ruonan, saying there is one more victim she needs to take care of, and Lin Jing traces the call back to campus. Zhao Yunlan, who did not even bat an eyelid at a dead student earlier, now looks decisively worried  

“Oh no. Professor Shen.” 

The only reason Shen Wei is attacked is jealousy. Wang Yike does not know this of course, but trying to kill him is a bad move, because a) he has long ago given his heart away, and is definitely not interested; b) this is probably the only thing she could do to make the man on the case very very upset; c) Shen Wei’s immune to her powers. 

“Someone like you will never understand what she means to me!” Wang Yike shouts eventually. “As long as I can protect her, my life has worth!” And, even as Wang Yike has no way of knowing it, these are the words that ultimately save both her and her loved one. Because Shen Wei does in fact understand what Zhang Ruonan means to her. His own endless and ultimately self-destructive devotion is his main driving force.

Shen Wei pretends to be hurt, again, which earns him a half-hug from the object of his devotion. If Zhao Yunlan does notice that Shen Wei should really come out of this attack grey haired and dead, and not just mildly inconvenienced, he chooses not to say anything. 

Worried about her murder girlfriend, Zhang Ruonan rushes in and accidentally touches her. Zhao Yunlan Freaks The Hell Out. Shen Wei does, too, but in his own, reserved, way. They are both emotionally invested in those two people, although for very different reasons: Shen Wei is acutely feeling resonance of his own past in their story, and Zhao Yunlan, I think, wants to fix it, he wants to be able to make it better. Instead, Shen Wei fixes it for him, turning the tide on this tragedy, and giving it a happy ending. He heals Zhang Ruonan right in front of the officers of SID, albeit with much subtlety. (“Have someone saved her right under our noses?” Zhu Hong will snort the very same evening, and she will be 100% correct.)

Shen Wei also lets Wang Yike go despite the undeniable fact that she did kill three people. Here, he is looking at the picture of this human/Undergroundian couple, surviving despite all odds, and touches his only reminder that Kunlun really was in his life. 

He then burns the picture as the only evidence that Wang Yike was not punished by him for her crimes. 

In the end, Guo Chengcheng is making first of his many diary notes about the events, recounting a conversation between Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan we had not witnessed, in which Shen Wei mentioned a relationship based on devotion that can last a thousand years, and Zhao Yunlan called such a relationship “guarding”. Finally, Guo Changcheng hopes that he can become a guardian of all. 

And this is making me think that this absolutely should be a set-up for him becoming a wick of the guardian lantern, as per every single other decision that was made prior to the last two episodes. Right? This is a perfect foreshadowing, and mentioning it here, so early in the show would not make any sense if it were a deliberate subversion. So, was Guo Changcheng meant to become the wick after all before... what, some rewrites happened? What made the final episode be what it was in the end?

(This is a genuine question by that way, if anyone has any insight on the matter.)

The episode would end here, if this was a western show, with a familiar monster of the week structure, but it does not. At least, the way it ends is reminiscent of a cliffhanger, with Zhao Yunlan catching Shen Wei in a middle of a crime scene, and looking betrayed. 

Next episode: Lynchian Nightmare, aka people without faces. 

PS.

I did not have a seamless way to stick this in anywhere but... Shen Wei’s technological ineptness at the max: he does not know how to use a Polaroid camera. Help him, he is so lost.

——

Second point of housekeeping to say a few things: 

I don’t think I will be consistent with certain things being transliterated versus translated. I am more likely to use Hei Pao Shi rather than Black Cloak Envoy (because the later reminds me of Tuxedo Mask, which makes me inwardly giggle every time) but at the same time I am also more likely to use Underground/Undergroundian rather than Dixing/Dixingren. I am more likely to use Xiao rather than Little, but have called Chu Old rather than Lao before. I hope that’s not grating, but do tell me if it is

My recaps are Shen Wei-heavy. I have no real explanation for this, apart from.. I like Shen Wei. 

I realise that there will definitely be things here that are head canon and speculation rather than flat observations; this show is a work of fiction and a work of art, which cannot be interpreted objectively. If you have alternate takes on anything I write in the future, let me know! 

[secret-engima]

hamelin-born

@secret-engima

Oscar likes green. It’s that simple. Yes, he does have a lot of fond memories linked to the color green, and yes, having everything be green means that any magic he choses to use has a good chance of being lost against the background, but - green’s his favorite color. It’s that simple. He’d probably honestly be a little amused at hearing all the frantic speculation about his reasons behind the color scheme.

...the fact that The Emerald City made appearances in the hometowns of what would grow to become Team JNPR is totally a coincidence. Right? Yes. A total coincidence.

*snicker* That is perfectly in character. Mercury probably sarcastically suggested that Oscar’s animated cane-weapon be given the name of ‘Short Term Memory’ or something along those lines. Oscar, true to himself, decided - hey, his cane was a living thing, it should have the chance to chose it’s own name!

That is why the cane proudly bears a name suspiciously similar to ‘Toto’.  

Whitley is cheering on Oscar’s efforts to make miniatured rainbows, and looking up all the information on color spectrum and prisms. He too wants to be able to, one day, see a grumpy person with a personalized raincloud above their head! A raincloud that will break into rainbows when they smile and/or laugh!  And they know just the perfect test subject...

Somewhere, Qrow feels a shiver run down his spine.

Oscar did not set out with the intention of kidnapping Whitley. It just - happened? And ooh, but I love seeing Whitley’s perspectives of his first meeting with Oscar. It’s just - Oscar accidentally come off as mysterious and colorful and almost fae; it’s amazing. And just - I’m suddenly struck by the parallels with another modern fairy tale - namely, Peter Pan and the Lost Boys. Oscar doesn’t sugarcoat the danger when he offers to take Whitley away; he lays out everything in his offer, and leaves it Whitley’s decision.

And Whitey - comes away.

He never regrets it.

A couple of random thoughts about the Schnee Family Debacle: Actually, Qrow might initially be afraid that the ‘Schnee Bingo’ is indirectly aimed at Ironwood. Because Winter is - relatively close in Ironwood’s confidence, I believe. And the whole ‘dragging the family’s sin’s into the light?’ It is going to impact her, one way or another. And everyone who is aware of ‘Schnee Bingo’ is going to wonder just what they did for the Ringmaster to respond like this - speculation goes anywhere from realistic to highly improbable.

The smart ones, upon uncovering the evidence of what the Schnee family does to their kids, think that that probably has something to do with it.

Me: @hamelin-born 

The reblog chain this is from is getting really long, so I decided to snag this and start a new post with it. XD

Oscar likes green! It means growing things and life! And yes it does hide his magic rather well :3

The fact that Emerald City has been all over the world and stopped in hometowns of SEVERAL main characters is total coincidence yes. :3 Just like how it is TOTAL coincidence that sometimes, a child or two is invited backstage to meet the tiny Ringmaster. >:333

(Pyrrha remembers that circus years later, how she was 14 and just starting to really get famous and realize how much fame sucked, and she didn’t have her parent’s permission to go to the Circus just outside Argus but she did anyway and it was a night she would never forget. A magical, beautiful night, and then the little Ringmaster, a boy younger than her, smiled and sang a song that brought tears to the eyes and somehow- it felt like he was looking right at her.) 

(She remembers being invited backstage by one of the acrobats, a cocky boy her age with silver hair, and at first she thought they were doing it because she was “Pyrrha Nikos” but- they never mentioned it. They never even asked her name. They just led her backstage to the tiny Ringmaster in his top hat and cane and workshop of wonders. He smiled at her and asked her name. She blinked and cautiously asked if he didn’t know it already. The boy twirled his cane and seemed a little too old for his childish appearance as he said “How could I? We’ve never met before. Though,” his smile had gone a little ... something at the edges, sad or wild or maybe even fae like her grandmother’s old stories, “I may have met your shadow along my roads, and for that I suppose I owe you thanks.”)

(“...Thanks? To me?” She asks, and the boy hums as he starts performing magic tricks right there, just for her, reappearing and disappearing of various trinkets and tools. Yes, he tells her, and then he pulls out a beautiful little necklace, a slender gold chain with a glimmering stone in the shape of a juniper tree, he offers it to her, and she wonders if it’s her imagination that the stone tree feels warm and alive on her palm, you don’t remember, he hums gently, but you once told my best friend that you believed in him, and it quite possibly saved his life. He never told me your name, but he told me about the Argus girl with red hair and kind eyes, and I dare say you fit the description to a T.)

(The Ringmaster smiles at her and gestures at the little necklace, “Keep it, as a thank you. May it bring you good fortune and safe passage, no matter where your destiny leads.” Not long after, she was led out by another of the acrobats, and it was only after she’d gotten home and was staring at the ceiling of her bedroom that she realized she was automatically wearing the necklace. And that the stone still felt warm.)

(If anyone bothers to ask Pyrrha Nikos after that if she believed in magic, she will touch the pendant of a tree that she always wears around her neck and say yes. Magic is real. And so are little fairy boys with kind green eyes.)

(Annnnd now I wanna do some drabbles of the main cast meeting the Emerald City circus and having encounters with the mysterious little Ringmaster XD)

Mercury so suggests “short-term memory” but Oscar solemnly says the cane should have a say. It picks the name “Total Remembrance” and Mercury laughs his head off while Neo gleefully calls the cane a sarcastic little twig. They shorten the name to “Toto” for Oscar’s sanity.

Whitley is a glee the day they get the spell to WORK. Now- to find their first test subject. Emerald: I’LL GO LEAD HIM HERE *flies off as a gremlin magpie*

Oscar doesn’t know it, but he comes off as a little bit fae (or a lot fae) to a LOT of people. He can’t help it, with his connection to magic and his future memories and the way he acts and dresses he just- feels like a storybook wizard or fairy boy stepped out of the pages. And gosh, Oscar is totally like Peter Pan in his kidnapping of Whitley. XD Just- he offers adventure and danger and love and FAMILY. Come away with me? whispers his magic and his outstretched hand, and Whitley is far from the only person to have taken it over the years (look at his time-traveling crew), and he never regrets it.

Oh gosh I didn’t think of that. Qrow WOULD possibly think this was a jab at Ironwood, but ... not necessarily because of Winter? Depending on when this happens she might only be newly graduated. No wait the hammer fall happens in canon, so yeah there is the Winter connection, but ALSO, in canon Ironwood is implied to be an old, estranged friend of the family, and further, as a Council member, he and Jaques have to deal with each other on a professional level. Taking down the Schnees could be seen as a personal jab through Winter yes, but also as a threat, that if they can take out the Schnees, who are roughly equal Ironwood’s status and known “friends” (for a loose definition of the word) of the General, then what can they do to Ironwood directly?

The smart criminals look at the confidants of their Ringmaster, who are mostly kids, and a few of them know that the Ringmaster looks like a child himself and they ... well. Put some pieces together.

[ladyhallen]

Colonnello’s Terrible, No-Good, Very Bad Day part 2

How Reborn and Harry met and fell in love

It was the sleep deprivation, Harry would use as an excuse. That and how god awfully confused she had been feeling.

It wasn’t a nice thing, feeling that confused, and Harry was more confused than most.

The world she had landed on had magic, thank Merlin, enough that she her potions weren’t inert and her wand didn’t turn brittle. It just felt strangely hot, for magic. Magic wasn’t supposed to feel hot and coupled with the complete absence of Diagon Alley or the Leaky Cauldron, Harry was confused. Where had magic gone?

The answer, her sleep deprived ass mused, landed on her doorstep, bleeding, concussed and with several broken fingers and a broken leg, several lacerations on his back and a broken nose. It was a testament to how threatening Voldemort and  Death had been that a deadly weapon aimed at her barely made her heart beat faster.

It was a wonder that the man could even hold his gun and aim it at her.

“Do not call the hospital,” the bloody man commanded, swaying in place but hands steady and aiming at her head.

Harry blinked slowly. She could see it, the magic. It swirled around him like yellow fire, licking his wounds closed very slowly. If it continued, it might heal his bones wrong, then she’d need to re-break things and that just wouldn’t be fun for everyone.

“Alright,” she agreed. “But won’t you come in? You’re alarming the neighbors.”

The man swayed in place for a couple more beats before agreeing, entering her apartment like a cautious cat. He moved like a cat too, quietly and without a whisper of sound, despite how much pain he must have been in.

“I have some bandages, and some salves,” she offered. She just needed him off his feet and unconscious. Preferably two hours ago.

It took another moment before he agreed and Harry finally had him pegged. She knew his type. He was a controlling man. Anal retentive, Hermione had called it.

She doctored his tea with some muscle relaxant, and with the state of him, even as suspicious as he was, he fell asleep immediately.

Blearily, Harry thought it was a good thing that she was so good with fixing injuries while drunk, sleepy or tired. She waved her wand, fixing injuries and straightening up broken bones with a thought, her magic working overtime to compensate for her less than optimal thought processes.

And then she was left with a bloody man on her sofa, ruining the upholstering. Harry huffed a breath and cleaned him up too. She wanted her deposit back, dammit.

It really was the damned sleep deprivation, Harry cursed as she accidentally drank the tea she had given the man, the one with the muscle relaxant. It worked on her too well and she crashed on the chair with a curse.

I am never going without sleep for two weeks, Harry promised before a gigantic yawn overtook her and she finally fell asleep.

.

.

When Harry woke up, feeling weirdly refreshed and tired at the same time, she was starving.

She also thought that the man she had cured was a dream until she opened her eyes and almost screamed at the man still asleep on her sofa.

It made sense, she realized belatedly. He was healing from what must have been torture wounds. Nobody broke their fingers or concussed themselves intentionally.

She couldn’t leave him there of course.

An idea occurred and she giggled before she could stop herself.

Twenty minutes later, the man was in a motel in another country, asleep and with all his belongings. Harry’s couch was free of blood and she was indulging herself in chocolate fudge ice cream.

He was going to be so confused, Harry giggled over a mouthful of ice cream.

.

.

The man hunted her down and for a moment, Harry cursed her red hair for being so memorable. Then, the little devil peeked up at her and Harry mentally shrugged. Why not, she thought.

“I’m sorry,” she told him, her green eyes going confused. “I don’t understand. What? Who are you?”

He snarled at her and Harry played at being frightened. McGonagall was scarier than this man, and she could sniff liars within a heartbeat. Well, he probably could as well, but he couldn’t threaten her while she was working in a bookstore and all the employees there loved her.

“I’m trying to jog your memory,” he said, voice low to keep it private.

“I’m sorry sir, but I still don’t know who you are?” she said just as softly. “Do you need help with a book?”

He huffed and stalked out, footsteps still eerily quiet. Not that anyone else noticed.

When he was far enough, Harry allowed herself a private smirk.

.

.

He stalked her!

Harry blinked large eyes at the man on her doorstep, getting a flashback to the last time he was there, bloody and swaying. A blink, and he was clean and holding a cup of coffee to her.

He was also holding a bag of chocolate croissants.

Harry opened the door wider, eyes on the croissants.

“May I help you?” she asked.

“I won’t even drug you, just answer my questions,” he demanded.

Reluctantly, she let him in. She really shouldn’t, but she really wanted those croissants. It had been ages since she’d allowed herself a pastry and the sudden craving for it was going to be a problem.

At least he laid out his offerings on the table first, letting her have a sip of coffee and a bite of the pastry before starting out with, “So what family are you allied with?”

This time, Harry’s confusion wasn’t feigned. “What?”

He made a rude noise and waved a hand. “You healed my injuries and then moved me across countries. You obviously have connections. Who are your contacts?”

The truth, she realized. Was going to be more confusing than lies.

With an inner cackle, Harry said, “I’m alone. I’ve been alone since I got here. I mostly moved to Italy for the desserts.”

Though, if Harry really wanted decadent, she would have moved to France. Those people had ideas about butter.

He looked frustrated. “You…alone? You did it alone? That’s impossible.”

Harry finished off the pastry in four bites. If he was going to start shooting, at least she had something delicious in her stomach.

He didn’t start shooting, but he did leave looking more confused than anything.

Harry waited thirty minutes before letting out a cackle.

.

.

The man - and she still didn’t know his name, kept appearing in her apartment.

He also seemed to notice that she let him in faster if he brought baked food. Hermione always said that food would kill her, but Harry didn’t think she meant the food brought as bribes from a mercenary.

And he was a mercenary, she realized. He kept a gun on him at all times and Italy’s gun laws weren’t that lax. She’d read up on it once in the bookstore after he showed up for dinner three times in a row. Italy needed permits to carry. With how well cared for that gun was – and how well used it was, Harry didn’t think he had a hunting license.

He still kept asking her strange questions. Harry was just as confused as when he started this strange arrangement, but not as confused as he was.

“What Flames?” Harry answered the millionth strange question. “I don’t have fire!”

The man made a noise like a cat stepped on and left after washing the dishes.

Harry felt herself softening. He was such a sweetheart.

.

.

Once, he fell asleep on the table, clearly worn out and Harry let him sleep.

She knitted across him, making a tea cozy and amusing herself with the funny patterns.

When he woke up near midnight, he looked spooked - frightened.

Concerned, Harry let go of her knitting and held his hand. “Are you alright?” she asked.

He kissed her hand and left, still looking scared out of his mind but considering.

.

And then the flowers started.

.

The bouquet of orchids and red carnations had Harry blushing.

Did he?...she looked up at his guileless eyes and looked at the flowers again. He didn’t know the meaning of course. It was just a coincidence that the flowers meant exotic beauty and admiration.

“Thank you,” she told him. “What’s with the flowers?”

He held her hand between his, and she felt small. His hands were larger than hers and Harry shivered deliciously at the warmth.

“Can a man not give flowers to friends?” he asked. “And I just realized. It’s been three months and I never gave my name. It’s Renato.”

Harry smiled. “Harriet. Call me Harry.”

Renato looked dazed. “Lovely name,” he murmured.

.

.

If Harry thought that Renato showed up regularly when he stalked her, now that he had given her his name, he seemed to show up every day on a schedule.

He brought dinner, a startling difference to the baked goods, and stopped asking her strange questions. He stopped looking confused and instead brought a lot of flowers.

Harry felt harassed. The flower’s messages were enough to make her blush, and Renato still looked clueless at her embarrassment. The latest one seemed to be asking her to marry him. Harry wanted to die, it was so forward.

“You don’t like the Spider Flowers?” Renato asked. “I can get different ones. How about Chrysanthemum’s and Daffodils?”

There was no way this was a coincidence anymore. He’d all but announced he was in love with her. Unrequited love with her. His eyes were crinkled with suppressed laughter and Harry understood.

“Renato, you’re going to kill me,” Harry whined, face buried in her hands. “I love you, you bastard.”

Renato laughed, scooping her up in his arms. Harry was helpless to resist and she laughed with him.

.

.

They were still having miscommunication issues. Harry was undeniably British and Reborn was also undeniably Italian.

There also seemed to be a second layer of miscommunication that still seemed to be happening, no matter Harry’s or Reborn’s best efforts.

The answer to this was dates. Lots and lots of dates where they just talked, as honestly as they could to each other, so that it would resolve their issues. Renato promised to tell her when he was angry with her. Harry promised to ask him what he was feeling instead of just assuming what he felt. It was a work in progress.

On Harry’s days off, they went trawling through coffee shops, Reborn for the coffee and Harry for the pastry.

It was a good system and both of them loved it.

And then the shooting happened.

.

.

Ducked under broken tables and bandaging an arm wound, Harry whips out her wand and heals it, cursing the entire time when the bullet pushes out. It hurt so much more going out than it had gone in.

“What is that?” Renato asked in shock.

Harry blinked at him and swore. She had forgotten on important thing in the many things she had shared with her lover.

“Magic?” she said weakly.

He smiled, looking manic. “You don’t use Flames? You’re not in the mafia?”

Harry gave a weak giggle. “No. I’m a witch. You’re in the mafia?”

“I thought you knew?” he asked her.

Which, in hindsight, yeah. Why didn’t she guess it?

“Why didn’t you tell me?” he continued, gesturing at the wand she was using to reinforce the table against the gunshots.

Harry bit her lip and did her best to look innocent. “Would you believe me if I tell you that I forgot?”

Reborn hid his face in his fedora and laughed.

.

.

Harry was mentally going Oops.

[nightswithkookmin]

JIKOOK: DEAR ARMY WE ARE IN LOVE

DISCLAIMER: I wouldn't take this particular post seriously. I mean it's something, but nothing at the same time. I just do these kinds of 'analysis' for fun and for my own personal amusement.

Do you see it? Or do you need me to connect the dots for you? Thought you'd never ask! Lol

I have always been fascinated by BTS's incorporation of fine art, poetry, metaphors, imageries, philosophical and psychological theories etc into their craft.

They are brilliant at expressing themselves and conveying their emotions through art and music. I have always found that challenging and mentally stimulating.

Take for example this whole Dear Army moments they shared with us on Weverse this week. Yes, it's a marketing strategy, the objective of which is to build an intimate connection with Army but most importantly hear feedback from Army on the struggles we are each facing in light of Covid 19 and also to provide feedback on why we love and stan BTS through their recommended hashtags.

Suga had already explained they were going to do this in that March YouTube live and so it's no brainer. The fun part for me, which of course is subjective, is the embedded meaning behind this whole Dear Army concept.

The progression from day to night, the use of contrast etc is all very reminiscent of the message of Bulletproof eternal- we are not seven with you. Especially with Suga and Hobi's postcard being taken directly from the BTS bonfire moment in Bonvoyage which made a cameo in Bulletproof eternal and the allusion to winter in both artworks.

The overall message of Dear Army is very simple: we had nothing but dreams, open our eyes to a foggy morning, so much pain too much crying; after seven winters and spring- we are all in this together, BTS and Army forever.

I also found the exploration of the cycle of life, the ambiguity of morning and night that blurs the line between evening and daybreak quite interesting. Its always been a recurring theme in their songs and arts. It's just them reassuring and connecting with us through their ingenuity as usual.

But of course this is just my opinion and my interpretation of their use of symbolism and allusions. And as much as I enjoy deconstructing BTS's musical genius, I'm just going to focus on Jikook's message- well not message, message but their artistic expressions in Dear Army.

JIKOOK'S MESSAGE

Now I already talked about the body text of Jimin's post and so I'm not going over that again. Jk's text is equally very much straightforward and is just a restatement of the message he shared in his recent YouTube live about rediscovering his purpose in life. So I won't focus on that either.

It's the artwork they chose that I am interested in and fascinated by. I was trying to ascertain whether the art work for the postcards where chosen randomly by staff or whether it was something the members themselves chose as at first glance it looked pretty generic- I wasn't able to confirm so...

Now from what Suga said about incorporating letters into their upcoming album, I'm just going to assume BTS themselves chose these images and the creative directors added their finishing touches to it- based on the tone and mood BTS had described.

Let's start with Jimin's. I clocked immediately I saw his postcard where the concept of that artwork or background image was from. I'll circle back to this hold on.

I value and pay alot of attention to the unique ways that each member of BTS expresses themselves. Those unadulterated, authentic expressions of self provides a better sense of who they are as Individuals rather than the perfectly curated, highly edited and performative versions of themselves we see screens. In my opinion.

Take Tae and JK for example. These two men are the kinds who'd write a song about their feelings and emotions when they are hurt. Lol. They deep for no reason. Bless them.

Jimin talks a lot. He is a verbal communicator. But hardly does he reveal any relevant details about himself that gives insight into his psyche and persona through his words. Again, in my opinion.

I keep saying his persona is very elusive to me. He tends to give us so much he ends up not giving us anything at all. Unlike Tae or even JK who write songs, recommend songs, or even GCF(JK) that gives us insight into their personal feelings, Jimin doesn't do covers as much and the songs he recommendes aren't as insightful into his deepest thoughts and feelings. He is very elusive that way.

That doesn't mean he doesn't express himself. He does, just not through his music like the others. In my opinion. Mostly he expresses his wants, his desires through his music but his sensuality through his dance.

It seems also that he explores his identity and expresses the exploration of that identity through the body arts he inks himself with temporarily or permanently.

Jk I find is the opposite. He doesn't explore his identity through his body art. Nor his sensuality through dance. Rather he expresses his values and the things he cherishes through his body art; his thoughts and feelings through his music and art.

And so while Jimin would be inking temptress, seductress, bigender on his body, JK would be inking- rather cool than dead and other symbols that represents his beliefs and values on his body.

I'm going off on a tangent, am I not? Sigh

Back to the post card. When I saw JM's postcard, it immediately reminded me of JK's GCF in Helsinki. [Couldn't attach image due to Tumblr but check it yourself]

It reminded me of JK's Frozen sunset theme, his use of warm and cold contrasting colors throughout that GCF and also the ending parts of GCF Helsinki where the sun is setting over the clouds just as in this post card- Frozen Sunset.

Jk also made an allusion to that frozen sunset in his song Still with you. I am particular about his use of the words Sky, clouds, sunset etc when they appear in his music, paintings or tattoos because he once said it's something he loves taking pictures of- that and of course Jimin.

I pay much attention to the things he says he loves and so I look for them in his self expressions to try and understand why he loves it and what it means to him.

Honestly, I didn't think much of JM's postcard art when I saw that use of the frozen sunset for his postcard. I thought, well staff could have picked it out randomly so I was waiting to see JK's postcard and the overall concept for Dear Army to see if this was something JM had done intentionally.

Part of me also felt those themes they presented in the post card art work were metaphors for the kind of songs they would be creating in the new Album just as Suga had said.

But JK's postcard art made me suspicious of JM's post card. JK's postcard art is the odd one out of all the artworks for the postcards. Sope had a similar complimentary art taken from the bonfire moment of Bulletproof Eternal as I mentioned earlier. The rest all had elements pertaining to nature- sky, parks etc except JK's.

Also the theme and symbolism of Jk's art convinces me he chose his artwork himself for that post- I mean I could be wrong but...

Remember when I talked about GCF Helsinki, Still with you and Never Not etc and I said they all had a similar theme- something about roads and paths, being mismatched, not being on the same page, not having the same goals etc?

GCF Helsinki- I'll take the desert, you take the coast to each his own.( moving in different paths)

Still with you: Though our steps may not go along together, I still want to walk this path with you.(again, mismatched paths repeated)

I was intrigued by that recurring theme of roads and paths leading in different directions in JK's music and art in this timeline especially as it contrasts heavily with the themes of his past timelines.

And I even speculated that I felt it was in reference to him and JM not meeting minds on the direction they wanted to take their relationship.

I have been waiting eagerly for him to release yet another cover or art since still with to see what that whole mismatched, separate roads thingy was all about but he didn't do his birthday cover this year- among other things.

It's thus funny to be that in this post card thingy he chose train tracks- intersecting train tracks to represent his feelings and coupled with the message of him rediscovering his passion- It doesn't feel like a coincidence to me or something staff would chose for him.

It certainly doesn't help my delusional brain cells, that JM flashed that Mickey Mouse during his VLive which again I felt was an allusion to their GCF in Tokyo.

First he is making allusions to GCF Tokyo, now GCF Helsinki, signing his name to JK's posts at Pop-ups...

Remember when I said that if JM was the one who had stopped JK from posting on his birthday, that he would come swinging hard on his Jikook agenda? Remember that?

If JK posting on his birthday was important to JM, chilee nothing would have stopped JM from logging into Twitter, posting and signing JK's damn name to his post- if saving face is what was important to him. It's not like he's not done that before. He could have done that and we wouldn't even know it wasn't from JK. Lol

He really is the one that stopped JK from posting on his birthday for whatever reason- wink. You know. Lol

Park Jimin is not the 'victim' in this birthday drama. He is guilty party your honor. Guilty per the books. Lol

Stay supporting Jikook, your life will be easier that way. Bless you.

Signed,

GOLDY