#i also feel like the person who digs in trash then suddenly finds treasure

[kuro-teni]

Everytime i read any aroace representation on any media (ahem ahem ao3 fics ahem ahem) i just feel so giddy that i sometime giggle like a teenage girl in love (very ironic i know) or sometimes do a little dance

Its very fun

[kanene-yaaay]

Sleep

Kanene’s note: Heya! It’s me, Mario!!! dfghjkrgthjk jk jk. Okay, that idea hit me in the middle of the night and I think it’s very cute!! So have a bit of tickles and fluff and teases today! 

Warnings, fun facts, random things and stuff:

* This characters don’t belongs to me! They all belong to the anime/manga Boku no Hero.

* This is a SFW tickle fanfic, so, if you don’t appreciate this kind of content, please, look for another blog. There are a plenty of fabulous arts in this site!!  ^w^)b

* This is Switch!Yamada with Switch!Aizawa. They’re in a romantic relationship. Around 2.200 words.

* The Ler!Aizawa part was inspired by these tickle-headcanons! They’re absolutely amazing!!!!

* Sorry for any spelling, pontuation and grammar mistakes! Any and every advice is very very welcome! \(-w-)/

* Consume some of your comfort content! Fanfic, series, movies... anything that makes u happy! Drink water, sleep, eat and love! Today is another day and I’m proud that we’re both still here.

[~*~]

Yamada woke up to complete darkness.

 Which wasn't such a rare occurrence. With both his and his husband’s tendencies of having migraines their room was often bathed in a total lack of light, and that,  together with the fact of Aizawa being an incorrigible cuddle bug who soaked his ‘daily dose of morning snuggles’ – as Hizashi loved to call them and loved even more the other’s blushed face and deadly glare directed at him every time he dared to say such thing -  was enough for him to find no surprise at all in feeling the pressure of Aizawa basically using him as his own personal bed.

 “Morning, babe.” He maneuvered himself to gently kick Shouta’s legs off him, which resulted in the immediate locking of arms on the blonde’s waist, Shouta mumbling whatevers as he nuzzles his chest, making Yamada giggles quietly. He began to comb Aizawa’s hair with his fingers, both out of adoration with how much adorable his husband could be and to take it from his own face so he would be able to see what time it was.

 Eight in the morning. Yep. Time to start getting ready for their meeting with Nedzu and his usual Saturday patrol. He would also need some time in between those to call the Radio’s station and see if everything was ok with today’s interviewed, get a couple more of songs to play tonight and make sure to come back at two in the afternoon so he and Eri could have some quality time as Shouta slept a bit to not pass out on his night patrol.

 OK. That sounds like a plan! Time to begin the day with a proper breakfast since both were equally horrible in keeping a healthy routine and he would probably forget to eat lunch since Eri wouldn’t be there with him serving as an adorable, lovely reminder that humans have basic needs in order to be alive.

 He tried to move, receiving an annoyed growl as an answer, the arms squeezing a bit firmer. Hizashi snorted.

“Sho, I need to make breakfast and wake up Eri, okay?” He kissed the top of his head and traced an imaginary flower on his cheek, voice soft, feeling the other melt on him, humming happily. “You can sleep a few minutes more.”

 “No. Warm.”

 “I will bring you our cats, you can show your undying love to them, then.” Hizashi tried to pry the other’s grip from him, unsuccessfully. “Come on, let me go. We have a meeting to attend with Nedzu today, remember?”

 “Fuck ‘im.”

 Hizashi controlled himself to not bark a laughter, fingers itching to get his phone and amplify his blackmail treasures. “Shh, he will hear you.”

 “’don’t wanna cats,” Aizawa’s tune was slurred and he deposited a tired kiss on his bare shoulder, “I wan’ you.”

 And damn if that didn’t turn his weak heart in a happy gooey puddle, his smile going from one ear to another and his resolve to be a responsible adult and get out of the bed was almost burned to total inexistence.

 Key word: Almost.

 Especially when the raven haired adult sighs contently, his breath lightly tickling his neck and leading to a quite evil idea to gain form and color on his mind. His smile got wider, eviller.

 “Okay, babe.” Yamada’s hands rested on the other’s sides, going up, fingers smoothly running across his ribs, his nails barely grazing the skin as they went slowly back and forth, back and forth. A soft ‘tsk’ flew on the air as the smaller began to squirm. “Let’s have some fun then, shall we?”

 His index fingers stopped their dance to focus on his lowest rib, circling that sweet spot in the middle of it while the other fingers concentrated in clawing the horribly sensitive skin around it, staying firm on their task even when Aizawa jumped with the ticklish jolts that hit him.

 “H-hi-hizasshhhi.” His tone was low, warning. His brain still trying to wake up enough while his body wobbly fought to escape from the sensations, his struggles increasing specifically when his husband adjusted him so he would be laying on his back on the top of him, arms criss crossed on his chest.

 “Oh, is someone finally waking up? ~” Aizawa scrunched, Yamada’s breath hitting his ears. However, his attempts proved themselves futile as the other took as his duty to nibble, huff and puff on the ticklish spot, going from one ear to another with ease, finally breaking his husband’s barriers and being rewarded by a low, fast giggly fit. “I wonder what I did to deserve that my incredible, handsome decided to bless my morning with his sunny presence today!”

 “Hizashi, I am going to k-ILL” His snickers suddenly raised an octave as the blonde gave a quick squeeze on his hips that made his waist jerk instinctively.

 “Now, now, is that way to greet the love of your life?” Hizashi whined. “Stop laughing, Sho! I’m trying to hold a serious conversation here but something tells me you’re distracted.” Yamada kept lazily poking him, slow enough to leave him breathing properly, but quick enough to tear snorts and chuckles from his firmly pressed lips.

  “D-d-don’t.” His face was in flames as a barely muffled squeak fell from his mouth as Hizashi gave a quick nip right behind his left ear, letting out an adoring ‘Awww. Isn’t he adorableee?~’ in the process.

 “I am- I am going to get you back for that! You know I will!”

 “So grumpy, so cutee. ~”

 He tried to turn in order to give his beloved a deadly glare which usually made his students and villains fear for their lives, his eyes only barely catching his husband’s bright smile before his breath was stole when his partner resolved to attack, unmerciful squeezes mixed with a couple of thumbs digging energetically on his hips, kneading, tickling.

 His laughter filled the room.

 “HIZASHI!!” He kicked and trashed, but in vain.

 “What is it, babe?” The other started to switch between his tickle spots, knowing he couldn’t take it too long or they would be late. “Wow! I didn’t know you could be so alive in the mornings, love!! Have you been hiding that from your awesome husband all along?” Nails scratching on his armpits, fingers prodding his ribs, wriggling on his waistline, drumming on his belly. “All that beautiful laughter? All that wonderful snorts? And giggles? And squeals? Now, I am wounded, Sho! I thought we didn’t keep secrets from each other!”

 When nothing except laughter and squirming answered him, he decided to stop, deciding the few minutes of fun were already enough adrenaline to maintain Shouta conscious enough until he prepared his coffee. He quickly laid the other on the mattress, resting some kisses on his face as his husband got his breath back.

 “You-” He gasped, hiding his smile behind his hand. “You better run.”

 In a second Hizashi was out of their bed, “OkayloveyousomuchbabeI’mgoingtowakeEriupdon’tkillmeIloveyousosomuchbye.”

 And run he did.

 [~*~]

 Shouta dumped his capture weapon on the couch, immediately seeing three blurs of fur dashing from his peripheral vision directly to the object, meowing and getting tangled as they fiercely ‘fought’ with it. Shouta knew that this being his weapon and therefore an important part of his work, he shouldn’t let his cats play with it. However, as he petted two fluffy heads that popped from the cloth and the exhaustion started to totally take over his body and actions, he couldn’t bring himself to care. He had some spare scarves somewhere, he was sure.

 “Dumb cats.” He fondly remarked, scratching their newest kitten under her chin before adventuring to his room, stopping only to check on Eri and relax as he found her calmly sleeping on her bed. Good.

 His eyes narrowed as he noticed the light coming from under his bedroom, sighing and putting his eyedrops, already aware of the other fight he would have to face.

 “Hizashi,” it’s his greeting. The blonde hums, glare still clued on the screen in front of him, head resting on one of his hands, “it’s three in the morning and we have classes tomorrow. Turn that thing off.”

 “Hypocrisy, hypocrisy.” Yamada sings, hand rocking in the beat of his imaginary melody, the tiredness dripping from his words. Yet he took off his headphones, turning on his direction with alert eyes. “Are you hurt?”

 “Nah, slow night.”

 “Good.” Hizashi smiled. A small, true smile that spread a warm feeling across his chest and only made his resolute to protect his husband from every bad thing in the world grew stronger, even if the ‘bad thing’ which threatened him right now was his horrible sleep schedule. “We saved some dango for you.  It’s on the fridge.”

 Aizawa nodded, watching him turn back to his computer. “I’m going to grade 1-A tests when I am back.” And that perked the other’s attention, since both had the habit of grading tests together in order to get some quality time on their incredibly busy lives.

 That is why the taller was sitting on the bed with a pack of papers in his hands when Shouta came back, falling on the mattress face first, relaxing on the soft fabric. But, he couldn’t concentrate on that feeling now, turning to his left and trapping Yamada with his arms around his sides, legs entangling.

 “Sleep.” He clued his face on the other’s stomach, his voice vibrating across the skin and gathering a mix of snort and squeal, probably because of the ticklish sensation.

 Oh. Ticklish.

 “Babe, I really can’t right now. There are those videos I asked for my students to do and I really need to analyze and give them the results before the weekend.” Aizawa scolded his expression so his devil smirk wouldn’t be noticed by Hizashi, instead he looked up, locking their eyes, his features inexpressive as ever.

 Hizashi bit his lower lip.

 He frowned, intense glares.

 “Okay, okay! You know I am weak for those kitten eyes, your cheater.” The blonde pouted and pointedly ignored the smug shining on his partner’s face. “But this is only a break, ok? Just some cuddles and then I’m going to finish my work.”

 Aizawa hummed, not quite agreeing, not disagreeing. Yamada laid down and chuckled as the raven haired adult quickly hid his face on his neck, a hand absently running on his back and melting his strict pose.

 “Cuddlebug.”

 A yelp escaped from his lips as Aizawa used a thumb to prod the so, so sensitive skin between his shoulder blades. The morning events from yesterday fell on him as a bucket of cold water, sending shivers down on his spine, essentially when Yamada tried to wiggle away, finding his form very well secured on his love’s arms.

 “Shouta, no.” Shouta hummed, his voice vibrating on the sweet spot that was his neck, his stubble helping in nothing the giggles which already began to bubble on his throat. “Shouta, please, my love, light of my life,” he could almost feel the other’s wicked grin grow, the hand tensing behind him, “no, no, no! I can’t! You know I can’t! Shouta, I-”

 And with no warning a loud shriek - which didn’t break their windows due how fast Aizawa activated his own quirk - dashed from his mouth, laughter blooming as a mix of pokes, scratches and kneading along the whole extent of his upper back, even giving some special attention to his ribs and spine, kept him in stitches.

 His back arched at the tickly tickles, sending him directly to the unbearable nuzzles of his husband, the main reason for so many squeaks and squeals make themselves present on his uncontrollable laughter.

 “Tsk, tsk. One would think that such a known pro-hero would be able to put up with a better fight.” Nuzzle. Scribble. Unintelligible pleas of mercy. Raspberry. “Always so easy to read…You could at least try to pretend you aren’t loving every. Second. Of. It.”

 “Shouta! Nono! Shuhuhut up! Shut up!”

 “It’s not my fault you were always so defenseless to teases. What about we train you to endure them?”

 Hizashi shook his head, laughing and shrieking too much to gather a real answer.

 And, as sudden the attack came, it was gone. The hand went up to gently massage his scalp, tearing a relaxed sigh from Yamada as he fought to get his breath back, high-pitched giggles still tripping from his lips since the light tickles continued on his poor neck, sporadic kisses and eventual nibbles on the spot right under his chin maintaining his gigantic, bright smile.

 “So ticklish, so helpless. Just a few well placed touches and I can already defeat you.”

 “You talk as if you were any less susceptible.” A squeeze on his knee warned him about the possible consequence of his words. Hizashi pinched his thigh in retaliation, although much less energetic.

 “Don’t. Different from you, I want to get some real sleep.” And then he started to comb the blonde hair, Yamada’s eyelids began to drop, his tiredness now being much more present as the other used his number one melt spot against him.

 “Cheater…”

 “You will survive.” Shouta tilted his head up and kissed his husband’s lips, also starting to drift away as Hizashi’s arms pulled him closer.

 “Good night, babe.”

 “Night.”

[agentmarymargaretskitz]

VanDad Savage. You get my drift.

This calls for Angst! (Don’t be afraid to click on the link and review, fam)

Please Don’t Come Back

              From afar, Gary watched Nora dance with her father. Damien Darhk’s return as an Encore had been quite the ordeal for everyone. He had been vicious in Star City and when he was working with the Legion of Doom and Mallus. The man had even tried to kill him with a train. Now, here he was, dancing with his daughter after she’d married the love of her life. He didn’t even try to kill anyone during the ceremony.

              Even with the not-Red Wedding, Damien’s return was still putting Gary on edge. It wasn’t just because the sorcerer had tied him up and left him to get run over by a train. It was that if Damien Darhk could return as an Encore, who else would come crawling out of hell? He knew about Rasputin and Kathy Myers and Marie Antoinette and the others, but Damien made it real for him. Because if the person he feared did come back, then the Legends would more than likely find out his dirty little secret and hate him more than they ever had.

Gary swallowed, gripping his glass tightly. He tried to focus on the music instead of his memories.

“So you’ve raised the bird all on your own, Gareth. Seems like you’ve done a fine job.”

              Gary beamed at his father’s approval as he gently took the canary from the cage. At the ripe old age of nine, he knew to take his father’s praise whenever he got it. Those moments where Father showed pride in him were to be treasured.

“Thank you,” he said quietly, stroking Sally’s feathers. The canary looked towards him with a chirp.

His father ran a finger down the feathers. “Canaries were once birds valued by royalty. Courts bred them in Europe once. Centuries passed, and they became used by common folk.”

“They were used by coal miners,” Gary supplied. “A canary could detect bad stuff in the air. If it died, then the miners would know they had to get out. Also, they came from the Canary Islands.”

“You’ve been doing your research, Gareth,” Father patted his head. “You have an eye and a memory for important information, my son. That is important, but not all lessons come from books.”

Gary held Sally a little closer. He had a bad feeling about this.

“Some things will outlive their usefulness,” Father continued. “That bird, for example, has done so. I wanted to see how committed you were to figure out how to take care of something on your own without instruction. You’ve achieved the first part of that with raising the canary. Now the bird has no more use.”

Gary swallowed as his father guided his smaller hand toward Sally’s neck.

“Break its neck.”

“But it’ll kill Sally!”

“I know. You have to be able to take care of things on your own. Now do it.”

“No!”

“Now, Gareth!” Vandal Savage ordered.

The glass suddenly shattered in his hand. Gary felt his hand sting as the stem and pieces fell to the floor. He had gotten so lost in the memory that he didn’t even realize he had been squeezing the glass tighter and tighter.

“Gary?” Behrad was now looking in his direction with John and Charlie. “Hey, are you okay?”

“Uh, yep,” he nodded quickly. “Just…wasn’t paying attention. I’ll get rid of this.”

              He bent down and quickly picked up the pieces of the broken glass. As he did it, he could feel the trio’s eyes on him and reddened. Once the last shard was picked up, Gary bolted towards the kitchen. He tossed the glass in the trash can before running to the bathroom and shutting the door a little too loud. Cringing, he sank to the floor by the sink with quick, shallow breaths as the tears started up.

              It had been months since the last time he’d thought about his father. The first fifteen years of his life were spent trying to live up the standards Vandal Savage had put in place. He had wanted a son that was strong and powerful to serve as his right hand. But Gary had been nothing but a failure to him. That was something that had been made clear to him on multiple occasions, including the last time he had seen his father.

              Gary had done all he could to move away from his childhood as possible. After he’d run away, he had moved in with an uncle and gotten some therapy. He kept that up for as long as he could afford it, then proceeded to just block out the bad memories and forget all the lessons his father had taught him. All the sparring and beatings and torturing and every other evil thing he’d been forced to do or was subjected to. He had never been able to live up to the standards that his father had set before him, which made him desperate for praise in everything now.

              The very thought of Vandal Savage rising from hell like Damien Darhk and coming into his life was starting to send him into a downward spiral. It wasn’t the first time that Gary had gone into one over his father returning, but that was before Neron and Heyworld. While the spirals once lasted a day, the one he’d gone through after Neron had been defeated and they’d all been able to breathe again had lasted for a week. Now, his father returning wasn’t an unrealistic nightmare. It scared him to death, even though he knew Vandal Savage would never try and seek out such a disappointing son.

Pounding came on the bathroom door. “Gary, are you in there?”

              His eyes traveled towards the door. There was a smear of blood on the wood where he’d shut the door moments ago. Lifting his hand, Gary saw his palm was bleeding. He hated blood and just looking at it was sending him further into the spiral.

A hunting knife was pressed into his gloved hand. “You can do this, Gareth.”

              Gary couldn’t look at his father as he wrapped his hand around the handle and turned around. A sharp breath escaped him as he looked at the wounded buck. They’d gone out together on a hunting trip. Father had referred to it as a rite of passage for him. He had taken care of wounding the animal, but it was Gary’s job to strike the killing blow. This was another moment to prove himself to his father.

              As Gary stepped forward through the crunching leaves, he felt another set of eyes on him. On a hill in the distance, he caught something moving by a tree. He stopped focusing on the wounded buck and focused there instead. A man in a long brown coat was just barely visible. His arm appeared outstretched, like he was holding something towards them.

              Had his father not taught him about the enemies he’d had over his lifetime, Gary would have thought he was just another hunter. But Father had spoken enough about Gareeb enough for him to be recognizable. Rip Hunter, the man who had been trying to kill his father for years, had arrived.

Gary looked away from him. Whatever he was here to do, he could do it.

“Remember what I taught you,” his father said behind him, reminding Gary of his presence.

But the eleven-year-old shook his head. “I don’t want to do it. I don’t want to kill him.”

“You’re letting the animal suffer more the longer you delay. Now put it out of its misery.”

“No.”

“What did you say?”

“I said no!” Gary cried, throwing the knife to the side. “I won’t kill him.”

“Stop being weak!” his father shouted, striking him across the face.

Gary sprawled onto the forest floor by the deer from the force of the blow. His cheek burned as his father went and retrieved the knife. For a moment, Gary feared he would be on the other end of it and raised his arm. Instead, he used it to slash the buck’s throat. Blood spattered against his coat and he whimpered.

“Get up,” his father spat. “We’re going to do this again and again until you kill it yourself.”

He shuddered and climbed to his feet. When he looked back to the hill, Gary saw Rip Hunter walking away and out of sight.

“Gary, I’m opening the door!”

              Gary tried to protest, but his voice failed him. The door burst open and John entered. The warlock’s confused expression morphed into concern when he got a better look at his apprentice. Behrad was in the doorway, his eyes on the bloody hand. Gary ducked his head. He’d always hoped someone would come after him whenever he went somewhere to cry. Now that it had happened, it was just too awkward and embarrassing.

John sighed. “Gary-”

“Just leave me, okay? It’s fine, I cut myself on the glass.”

John turned to Behrad. “Just head on back. I’ve got him.”

Behrad looked reluctant until John nodded at him, and then he left. Once he was gone, John shut the door and looked at him. “What happened?”

Gary felt his voice wobble when he answered. “Nothing.”

“Gary-”

“’m being stupid, okay? Just leave me alone.”

“Not like this,” John shook his head. “Let me take a look at that hand.”

              Gary pulled himself to his feet and showed John the cut on the palm. John moved towards the sink and turned on the tap. He took Gary’s hand and inspected it closely for a moment. Then he wet a towel and started to clean off the blood.

“That’s one of the good towels,” Gary hiccupped.

“Eh,” John shrugged. “We’ll chuck it in the wash. I don’t see any glass, so that’s good news.”

“Yeah, pretty clumsy of me. Typical Gary being stupid. You think I’d know better, right?”

“Well, you did look pretty upset before it happened. I know people cry at weddings, but I don’t think you were crying about marriage.”

“I wasn’t.”

“So what then?” John asked.

“Encores,” Gary admitted as John started digging in the cabinet. “Especially with Damien Darhk coming back.”

“As soon as Charlie and I find the Loom of Fate, we will get that all sorted,” John promised as he ripped open a package of gauze pads. “Can’t believe you got all this thinking you’d need it for me.”

The joking tone didn’t make Gary smile. “Nora’s dad came back. I had forgotten about him. It started making me think that mine would too.”

“Thought your old man was a dentist?”

“It’s actually my uncle,” Gary confessed. “I ran away when I was fifteen and ended up living with him.”

“Didn’t know that.”

“I’ve never told anyone before. I never thought my past could try and catch up to me. My mom died when I was a kid, and then it was me and my dad for years.”

“Huh,” John finished wiping the blood away. “So your real dad is as bad as Damien Darhk? You know these are the worst of the worst that are coming back from hell.”

“I know, John!” Gary snapped harsher than he intended. “He is as bad, maybe even worse, than Damien Darhk! My father was a tyrant and a murderer! And he tried to make me just like him!”

The other man was silent, just taking it all in as he started to wrap Gary’s hand. Gary squeezed his eyes shut.

“I’m sorry. I just spent years…trying to forget him and everything he taught me. He had a plan for me, and I never lived up to his expectations. I was useless and a failure. He always made sure I knew that.”

“He was dead wrong about that.”

Gary snorted. “He’s right. Even if I’m not what he wanted me to be, I’m still a failure. And I was a monster.”

“No, you’re not.”

“You couldn’t have already forgotten Neron.”

“No,” John shook his head. “That doesn’t count, because everyone was guilty there. We all made mistakes. But listen to me, Gary, you are not a monster. You are too good to be anything like your father sounds like he was.”

“I know why you’re here, Gareeb.”

Rip Hunter looked up abruptly as he moved away from the door he’d just closed.

“My father told me all about you. If you’re here to kill him, I don’t know where he is. I ran away when I was fifteen and I haven’t looked back since. And if you’ve come to kill me as revenge against him, just do it. He’s not going to care though.”

“I very much am not here to kill you, Agent Green,” Hunter took a seat at the conference table. “Regarding your father, I helped kill the man myself. Permanently.”

“Oh,” Gary sank into the chair. He didn’t know how he felt about that. “So why are you here?”

“I’m starting an organization within the government. Its purpose is to protect the timeline and keep it on track. The opposite of what your father and my former employers were doing.”

“I only heard Father talk about time travel in passing- are you telling me it’s real?”

“I am, and I think you’d be an excellent fit for this agency instead of here at the FBI. You’re orderly. Efficient. Incredibly brilliant yet overlooked. But you also have a good heart and stayed good despite everything Vandal Savage tried to make you. That’s important. You are a good man, Gary Green.”

Gary smiled a little.

“So how would you feel about coming to work for the Time Bureau?”

“You are good, Gary,” John told him.

He exhaled slowly. Hearing someone else call him good made the spiral he’d been on start to slow.

“Thank you,” he whispered, wiping his eyes. “I’m sorry. I just…him coming back scares me to death.”

“I can tell,” John finished wrapping his hand. “But if your dad is as bad as you’re telling me, then Astra would have to do a lot of bargaining to get his soul and release him. Darhk definitely had to take some bargaining. She already has enough heavy hitters on the surface. I think we don’t have to worry about your old man.”

“I hope so,” Gary nodded, taking his hand back. “Hey, if Behrad or the other Legends ask, can you maybe not mention it?”

“I won’t. But Gary, who is your dad?”

He opened his mouth to reply, but the two words stuck in his throat. It was impossible to get them out. Because if John knew who he was, then he would look at him differently forever. The Legends would be even worse, especially whoever remained of Rip’s original team.

“It’s fine, G-man,” John patted his shoulder. “You don’t have to tell me now. Just let me know at some point, okay?”

“I will,” Gary promised. John had told him plenty of his secrets. He had to clean about a few of his. “Do you mind if I take a few days off? Just to clear my head?”

“Take all the time you need. Now let’s go rejoin that party and hope Behard lied his ass off.”

John gave him a one-armed hug before leading him out. No one had missed them when they returned.

For once, Gary didn’t mind being invisible.

~~~

              Two days later, Gary was in the States standing in front of his uncle’s house. He still remembered coming here when he was a teenager after running away from home, showing up on the doorstep shivering in the middle of a blizzard. Jeff hadn’t even asked what had happened. He had just taken his nephew in and made sure he got through high school. Even when he’d moved out, Jeff had given him the key and told him that it was his home whenever he needed one.

              As Gary entered the house, he noticed wet footprints on the hardwood floor after the doormat. Jeff had left for a camping trip yesterday and would be gone the rest of the week. Besides, it hadn’t rained here yesterday. The downpour had only started thirty minutes ago. Someone had made it to the house before him.

              Shutting off the hall light, Gary summoned a fireball and began making his way into the living room. It was enough to light his way and could be used offensively if necessary. Whoever had come in was good enough to have picked the lock to get inside. He wanted to hope that they were long gone, but there were no exit prints. For now, he had to assume the worst.

Feet were visible in the light of his fire before a lamp clicked on. When Gary saw who sat in the chair, the flames extinguished as he stared at the sight before him.

Vandal Savage gave him a smile. “Hello, Gareth.”

[2-fast-2-curious]

This Photograph is Proof You Know I Know

Pairing: Negan x reader

Summary: You’re stuck in an unfulfilling job at the Sanctuary when Negan offers you a chance to pursue your passion

Warnings: inappropriate language because it’s Negan, a sexual situation between people of differing power dynamics (Is that a warning? Basically, Negan has sex with one of the workers at the Sanctuary), oral sex

Words: 1895

Author’s Note: This was written for @i-am-negan-trash  ‘s fic exchange. My fic partner, @jdmfanfiction wrote me this amazing piece of writing and I ended up waiting almost up until the deadline to finish mine.   ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I was going to name this piece after a Nickleback song until I dug into my repertoire of angsty emo music

“The best thing about a picture is that it never changes, even when the people in it do.” - Andy Warhol

It started when the Saviors found an abandoned department store. Of course, the outdoor/sporting goods section had been absolutely annihilated. There wasn’t a single item left on the shelves. But the rest of the store was perfectly intact. You guessed whoever raided the place had done so before permanent settlements had formed. Groups travelling on foot didn’t have much use for frilly lingerie or dishwashers. While the other Saviors loaded the trucks with appliances and furniture. You were stuck filling suitcases with clothes. You sighed, your job at the Sanctuary was basically to act as a personal shopper for Negan’s wives. As he put it, you were responsible for keeping his wives looking hot for him. Negan had mentioned that he might be adding a couple of new wives to the roster so you grabbed a black dress in every size you could find.

You had zipped up your last suitcase and handed it off to Laura when you spotted two men carrying a flat screen tv. “Where did you get that?”

They nodded towards the corner where you saw an electronics section. You hadn’t noticed that before which was shocking since it looked like it was the most popular section for the Negan's men. They were all helping themselves to various video game consoles and carrying armfuls of games. You rolled your eyes and walked past them to reach the only device you were interested in. You kneeled down and grabbed a camera, the fancy kind with interchangeable lenses, the kind you could've never imagined being able to afford before the world was overrun with zombies.

You had your pick of the entire photography section and you were helping yourself to as much as you could carry. Suddenly you felt a chill come over you, you felt uneasy. Having survived as long as you did before you joined the Saviors, you knew when you were being watched.

"Boo," said an intimidating but familiar voice.

You gasped, using one hand to cover your mouth and the other to playfully slap the shoulder of the culprit. “Negan! You scared me.“

Negan chuckled pleased with your reaction. “Sorry sweetcheeks, just trying to finding something other than Who's The Boss for Dwight to watch." You saw that Negan did indeed have a handful of DVDs in his hand "Do you think he’d like the first season of Siesta Key?“

You laughed "I'm sure he'll love it." You found Negan quite easy going which was something not everyone could say. Of course, you witnessed how irrational and erratic he could be as a rule. However, you actually liked spending one-on-one time with him and his dark sense of humour. Besides, your job was crucial to keeping Negan's wives happy so he knew not to rub you the wrong way.

Negan glanced over at the boxes you had clutched in your hands. "What do you have here? A camera? You know we got one of those from Alexandria."

You scoffed. "No offence Negan but this one is top of the line with all the bells of whistles"

Negan shrugged. "So what are you going to do with it?"

“Well..." The question stumped you. The answer should be obvious, take photos but what would be your subject? The land surrounding the Sanctuary wasn't anything like the bucolic fields and trails of its past "I used to love taking photos before everything happened.”

Negan noticed your puzzled expression. "Well darlin’, how would you like to use this little hobby of yours to earn your keep around here"

You raised an eyebrow, sure he had his men snag some priceless pieces from the Smithsonian but Negan wasn't exactly known to be a patron of the arts. You couldn't see him offering you points to shoot photos of wildlife for his private collection."What do you mean?"

"I mean that I'm out here doing all this rad shit and I'm thinking it's a little unfair that not everyone gets to see it." Negan grabbed a couple more DVDs. "Effective immediately, I'm putting you in charge of communications here at the Sanctuary. Dwight can take over finding shit for the wives. You just got a promotion, you are going to follow me like a shadow and let everyone know what they are missing. Any questions, darlin’?"

You bit your lip and nodded your head. When Negan offered you a chance to end your days of digging through lacey undergarments, you were going to take it.

Negan handed you back your camera. "Get that thing charged and I'll see you first thing tomorrow morning."

You became the in-house photojournalist for Negan, you accompanied him everywhere and took photos of him. You wrote a weekly newsletter which was printed and distributed around the Sanctuary and gave updates on what their fearless leader was doing. Yup, your job was basically producing propaganda for Negan. The propinquity to Negan your new job provided also meant that you developed a certain fondness for your leader. It also didn’t hurt that he was charismatic as fuck and had killer arms from carrying around Lucille.

You were on the computer adding meta tags to some of the photos you took and you couldn't help but chuckle at a couple of them. The way Simon could contort his face should make him a national treasure. You blushed when you came across a photo you took for completely selfish reasons. You moved the image of Negan stretching, the hem of his white t-shirt just above his navel exposing his happy trail, into your personal folder with the other gratuitous photos you had taken of him. You quickly switched back to looking at a relatively tame photo of Negan and some of the Saviors next to the produce they collected from the Kingdom.

Negan strolled into your office carrying a freshly cleaned Lucille. He peered over your shoulder and squinted at the computer screen. "Who's that?"

You glanced where Negan was pointing. "Darren"

"And her?"

"Melissa"

"Darlin', that's the fucking problem we have so many fucking people here I can't remember all their fucking names." It was true there had been many new additions to the Sanctuary, anyone would have a hard time keeping them straight. Negan rubbed his jaw, you could tell he was thinking up a plan. "You’re going to stay behind for the next little while. I need my personal photographer to capture portraits of every fucker here and pass them onto my men working the gates."

Instead of shadowing Negan like you usually did, you went all over the Sanctuary. One by one, you took photos of everyone, tapping them on the shoulder and pressing the button on your camera. By the end of the week, you had completed your assignment and you felt quite proud to present Negan with your album of hand labelled photos.

You couldn’t help but fidget as you watched Negan flip through the pages. You saw him nod approvingly and thought you were off the hook but it wasn't long until his brows furrowed.

"What's wrong?" You really didn't want to redo the assignment. It was quite tedious to track everyone down and have them agree to pose for a photo.

“Darlin’, we have a problem. We have photos of everyone here except for you.“

"Oh" to be honest, you hadn't considered the fact that Negan would need your photo. He already knew who you were. And almost all his men recognized you from your days shadowing Negan.

"Give me your camera, I'll do the honours." You gingerly handed your camera to Negan and prayed that he would be gentle with your baby. You sat up straight on the chaise in your office and looked directly at the camera. Having your photo taken in such formal circumstances brought you right back to picture day in school.

Negan sighed, putting down your camera before taking a proper shot. “This isn’t a fucking mugshot, look like you’re having a good time. I’ve seen people more excited staring down the shaft of Lucille.”

You laughed, the result of both Negan’s comments and your effort to look less miserable in your Sanctuary directory photo.

Negan was fiddling with your camera when a devilish smirk crossed his face. “Darlin’, I didn’t know everyone here needed to see such close-up photos of my arm.”

You smiled, your time had come, you had finally gotten caught red-handed. “Those are for my private collection.”

Negan licked his lips. “Really? Well, maybe I need to start assembling a fucking private portfolio of my own.”

Negan leaned over and brushed some of your hair out of your face. You leaned over and kissed him, you had always wondered how it would feel to be so close to Negan.

He pulled away from the kiss and trailed his finger down the sleeve of your shirt. "Come on darling, show me some skin."

You nodded, fumbling around with your top until it over your head and off your body. “Much better.” Negan groaned as he took photos of your newly exposed body on your camera.

Hearing the reaction you could incite out of Negan made initial stagefright you felt about being so exposed dissipate. In fact, his intense stare was starting to make you feel incredibly desirable. You went ahead and removed more of your clothes and even started to experiment with your poses.

You were lying completely naked on your back. When you heard the telltale sound of your camera turn itself off. It must’ve run out of power.

“Now that my private collection is completed. The real fun can begin.” Negan was sporting his usual shit-eating grin. You watched as he got on his knees and used his hands to pull your legs apart.

You spread your limbs, exposing yourself completely to the man. Negan licked his lips at the glistening wetness between your legs. “Don’t you look good enough to eat?”

He ran a finger down your slit. You shivered at the feeling of his buttery leather glove on your cunt. You whimpered. “Negan, I want you.”

Negan chuckled, removing his finger and pretending not to hear you. “What was that, darlin’?”

You arched your back trying to get closer to Negan’s digits. “I need your mouth between my legs! Please!”

Negan obliged, pressing his tongue flat against your slit, and making you scream. You tried to clamp your legs closed but Negan held them open, keeping your pussy exposed for him. His tongue worked wonders on your cunt. You felt your orgasm radiate from your core and you gave in, letting Negan see you in all your glory. You stretched yourself out on the chaise, enjoying the looseness you felt in your limbs.

You made an attempt to grab your camera from Negan’s hands in your post-orgasmic state. But you were too slow and Negan easily kept the device out of your reach. “Nuh uh, darling. Like I said these are for my private collection”

You rolled your eyes, pretending to pout. Negan smirked at your reaction, “But I’m an equal opportunist. If you never want to print the Sanctuary's own fucking version of Playgirl. You know where to find me.”

Negan pulled the memory card out of your camera and left your office, whistling as he walked down the hallway with the camera’s memory card in the pocket of his leather jacket.

[hideandseaking]

Last time on Nikky’s WoD game show campaign??? All of which can be read here

In which I have the most self-antagonizing group on the planet

Started with Michael telling the tale about how he didn’t get a Nintendo Switch at Best Buy and everyone wondering why he didn’t preorder one hmmmm

We also roasted Brandon for buying an xbone instead of saving for the switch smh.....

No Jutopa this time bc it was too late for his timezone ://// RIP :///////////

“Okay, everyone needs to roll a resolve check because that poison ivy is ITCHY” [cue group whining]

Lady MacBeth fucking failed her roll and itched herself so hard that she knocked herself unconscious while surrounded by 4 assassins.........

In an act of heroism, SUCC decides to crawl back over to LM to save her sorry ass

Meanwhile Pap is wandering around blind in the woods and Hana Doku is trying to find him

“Where is Duke?” “[me shrugging]” “WHERE IS DUKE??????”

SUCC goes to battle the assassins and receives aggravated damage where he is going to die in 8 minutes if he doesn’t stabilize himself

“Should I use Buff Baby?” [group laughing] “Um... well, I can’t make that decision for you” “Okay but.... hmm.... is it worth it?” [group still laughing over the spell name] “Hmm.... but.... idk....” “Let me put it to you this way: You are going to bleed out and die in 8 minutes with that aggravated damage” “.......” “SUCC MEGA EVOLVE DO IT” “...... I guess I’m going to use Buff Baby” “SUCC’S GOING TO MEGA EVOLVE!!”

Suddenly a group of human-sized rats appear with crossbows and annihilate the assassins

They all are hicks and are just looking for dinner and put their eyes on SUCC

They pick him up and all start whacking him with their tails as he tries to punch them to get free

A swift slap to the ass actually kills SUCC

“Nikky.... Nicole.... Nikkole..... PLEASE let me go down better than this.” “..........” “...........” “...........................So SUCC dies with a slap to the ass-” [brandon hangs up]

After getting brandon back into the call, SUCC gets transported back to the stage all healed from Round 3 and starts to eat the buffet table

Meanwhile, Hana Doku finds Pap

But she can’t talk and Pap can’t see so so

She knocks on his leg and Pap asks who’s there

Then she tries to climb up his robes and he thinks it’s some foreign animal and tries to reflexively fling her off but SHE HOLDS ON

“Uhg! How do I tell Pap that it’s me!” “...Man if only there was a way you can communicate” [dan sits there thinking for 2 minutes] “....Can I use my Croak spell?” “YOU CAN JUST CROAK CAUSE YOU’RE A FROG!”

Pap recognizes that it’s Hana Doku and she starts to lead him back to the scene of the crime

When they get there they see the rats digging where SUCC disappeared from and LM wakes up

“Okay, I’m going to try to run away” “Okay do a dexterity roll” “....Um I got a 1″ “Okay you get up but not quickly enough to run” “FUCK”

The rats spot this and everyone has to roll initiative

Hana Doku leads Pap into the battle but tries to get him into the cabin, not in the fight

They hear LM scream cause she got hit with damage (again)

“What was that!?” “Um... Nothing... She’s dying.... You can’t help her” “You need to roll for that!!”

Pap starts asking questions to Hana Doku and the rats turn around and spot the frog duo

Hana Doku fucking dips and escapes into the cabin

Pap, in a sheer act of brilliance, uses Prestidigitation to create a tiger’s roar and scares 4 out of 5 of the rats which causes them to run away

Hana Doku snipes the 5th one in the forehead and almost kills her before she runs away too

After the battle ends, Pap walks over to help stabilize LM and Hana Doku begins to explore the cabin

Hana Doku makes her way to the second floor and really only sees a table with lots of maps and schematics, and a staircase to the third floor

She checks out the papers and realizes that they were plans to kidnap the king, but she can’t tell what the other blueprints are for

Suddenly she hears feet running down the stairs and she hides under the table while she sees 5 pairs of feet run out of the cabin

Then she smells smoke

She immediately runs upstairs and sees the whole room is on fire, and the kidnapped king is in the corner of the room. His earthy form is drying out and cracking and he cannot move

“I use Moisturize Me no Jutsu to wet his face” “You do that, and he asks weakly for help”

She tries to get him to move but he says he’s stuck and she notices that he is surrounded by these items that were on the blueprints

“OH MY GOD ARE THOSE BOMBS” “Um-” “I’M GOING TO QUICKLY GATHER THEM AND GET THEM OUT OF HERE”

She starts to quickly throw them out the window, one at a time because she’s only 6inches tall.....

“And after you get rid of them, the earth elemental King suddenly rises into his full form of 12 feet tall. He leans down and says, ‘Thank you,’ and scoops you up in his arms while he immediately dives out of the window”

They land safely right as Pap smells the smoke and the King is safe

As he offers them a reward, they’re transported back to the gameshow

They’re all healed by the co-host, Joyce, and Sebastian immediately congratulates them for succeeding on their third round

“Okay, so he offers you guys to either receive a magical item, or you can revive SUCC for future rounds. So.... go ahead and discuss that.”

They spend 5 minutes arguing over whether to revive SUCC or get an item; all while SUCC is on the spotlight on the stage saying, “TAKE THE TREASURE. LET ME DIE.”

Much to Hana Doku’s regret, they revive SUCC

“So for Round 4, you’ll be going to a town where you need to solve one of their problems! No limitation this time, because the town itself doesn’t allow magic. Also, we have another magic item for you! It’s a cape!” [silence] “....Who wants the cape?” [more silence]

LM takes the cape and as they clip it on, they say that it’s a cape that gives amnesia to the user and suddenly LM can’t remember anything

They get transported to the new place, and land about half a mile away from the town they’re supposed to be at

LM tries to walk away because she doesn’t know who anyone is there, and Hana Doku stops her

And immediately begins a whole string of lies about LM’s past

Basically, throughout the next in-game 2 hours, Hana tells LM that she’s a princess named Juliet, who was turned into a dragon by her lover, Romeo’s, mother who hated her and now she’s in a gameshow to turn back to normal and that Pap is evil and might be one of the mother’s henchmen

This all happens right after everyone agreed to start to work together

Cue Pap being endlessly frustrated, LM being excessively excited about everything, and SUCC being extremely apathetic

“So who is the leader here?” “Oh. Um. IT’S SUCC.” “Oh. SUCC, youre the leader?” “I’m just as surprised as you are.....”

Pap gets upset and threatens Hana Doku to stop part 1

“You know, Dan, Pap has never EVER in his life considered killing a creature before.” [dan laughing] “And you know, Dan, this might be what breaks him.” “YES.”

They go into the town which is filled with 2ft tall Hawks so the buildings are more akin for Hana Doku and SUCC than anyone else

They start asking the hawks if they need help and a hawk farmer asks them for help plowing his farm fields. They agree to it while Hana Doku keeps telling LM lies especially about Pap

“So SUCC has a tongue that can make him transform into things!” What really!? Is that so, SUCC?” [SUCC turns towards them and pushes his tongue out like he’s pushing out play-doh]

“Dan, why are you doing this to me?” “Mike, the ratings!” “You’re antagonizing me! What did I do to you!?” “You locked me out into the snow during a blizzard!!!”

After plowing the fields, the farmer offers them food and Hana Doku and SUCC make their way into his house while LM was laying in the sun and Pap flipped through his personal journal to remind himself of his moral values

“Dan, you know that Lady MacBeth is going to remember all of this when that cape comes off.” “Yea, but Ally won’t hurt me. Right, Ally?” “Dude, I’m going to kill you.” [cue Dan whining]

The farmer cooks up some bugs for Hana Doku and SUCC, and Hana Doku brings them out for Pap

“Hey, buddy.” “Pap just stares at him.” “Um.... So I brought you some bugs for doing a good job today.” “He takes the bugs and starts eating them while staring at Hana Doku.” “The two of you just stand there looking at each other awkwardly for like.... 15 seconds.” “OKAY well I’m going back inside. Bye.”

Hana Doku walks back inside to the farmer feeding SUCC bags of trash

They get back to the town with the farmer, who goes to tell his friends about how they want to help people

Some of the hawks are looking at Pap suspiciously as Hana keeps telling LM lies right next to him

Some ask Pap if he does magic but he asks them where they even got that idea from to deter them

The farmer comes back with a friend of his named Gran and Gran asks if SUCC will eat more trash

“So, will you do it?” “No.” [everyone groaning] “Oh. Okay then.” [gran walks back to the bar with the farmer]

Hana Doku follows them into the bar and sits down to talk to them about the magic ban in the town. The whole bar looks at her and Gran and the farmer deny knowing anything about it

They explain there is a new “mayor” in the town called Raaw, who plans to turn city hall into a dojo but before Hana can ask many questions, all the hawks outside start cawing “MAGIC” and the rest in the bar leave except for the bartender

“Nikky, how many feathers are left in here?” “umm.... [rolls a d20]... 2 feathers.” “SWEET I GOT HAWK FEATHERS NOW.”

When Hana Doku goes outside, she sees LM flying off into the distance

Pap walks over and grabs her out of the bar and goes off on her about telling her lies and mentioning that she knew how to cast magic because someone asked if she could and she did so the whole town turned on her and started to peck her

Hana Doku tries to defend herself but Pap isn’t having it and shoves her into a wooden barrel and puts it into his satchel

“How does the inside of the barrel feel?” “Um... it’s moist.” “I roll around in it. (:”

Pap takes the lead and him and SUCC meet Julia, a hawk who takes them to her place so she can talk to them in private

She tells them that Raaw put the magic ban on the town and that any magic users found out will be killed or exiled from the town; and her brother was one of the victims

Pap says that he’ll try his best to help and asks her if she saw the direction that LM left to and Julia tells them what she knows

While they’re talking, Hana Doku manages to break one of the boards of the barrel and starts trying to use an arrow to stab Pap’s hands that are holding the barrel in the satchel

Pap, SUCC, and Hana Doku in the bag then start to make their way through the woods to find Lady MacBeth

And that’s where we ended for the day!! Join us next time for another round of excitement and probably death??? Who knows :’)

[inexchangeforyoursoul]

She’s about to do something stupid.

anyway... who’s back with almost 5k words worth of garbage? MEEE

I was too lazy to rebrand the frenchness of french toast. Not even Snooj is French, goddammit, and I can't think of anywhere else off the top of my head. Next time, (as in, 3 chapters' time I see) I'm just renaming any country that has no counterpart lmao

I’m not happy with this one ngl... the funky flow is not in there as I had to weld 2 chapters together so I will end closer to 40 overall. Hereby I also declare that I shall attempt a biweekly schedule with this trash so I can end it on the date the story ends (plus-minus appendix and shit). Smell you alter, readers.

Kat is preoccupied with the new idea as she's doing a really quick rabbit shadow show while near invisible, which, as expected, Carrot is all over about. (She tells something about Wano and shadow theatre, but never having seen this…?)

However, she forgets about it as soon as Usopp replaces her after the lukewarm performance to do some actual skilled shadowplay for the mink to enjoy. The distortion part also gets cancelled after the initial tricks, as it would be hard for the eager girl to learn some of this otherwise.

It's the mild pain in her face from laughing and smiling a little too much at the sniper's excessively dumb commentary that reminds Kat of time being up, and she makes another run for it.

"Well… I was already giving up on you getting back within a few minutes," Law sighs in resignation and mild relief as she opens the door with care only she bothers with. Taking a look back at her, his brows pull closer together. "… is… there something up with your face?" She doesn't seem to be especially bothered, but… it could be that. Or a splitting headache, if she's not drinking enough. She has just had coffee, but what and how much did she have before that?

"Usopp said a lot of funny hogwash and it made me laugh a lot…" Kat near complains with a groan, rubbing her cheeks. "Guess your grumpy face is not used to it." A sting or two is commonplace even in her own body, as she either has a plastic smile or empty stare on in public, but Law's face seems to be even more taken about the exercise.

… or, it could be that. After short consideration, Law lets himself relax again. "Wouldn't be too surprised, to be honest. Maintaining a poker face and the occasional smirk is not very taxing on those muscles." He stops again before getting back to his transplants book; "If you were to get legitimately sore… just fucking tell me, okay?" He could definitely see something like this trigger the other two problems.

"I knooow, I have it with my own actual face all the time from having too good of a goddamn time," she says, putting the last pats on the cheeks. It just… hurts, then maybe buzzes for a while. "I'm used to it."

"…" the quill stops over the notepad before he would continue the bullet points; he needs a second to interpret this reply. "… I kind of forgot you are not sunshine and rainbows all the time, to be honest." She started off as someone who was lowkey judging people from the sidelines in silence. If nothing else, catching a reaction or two on topics like Monkey D. Luffy was amusing enough.

It's been about a week since this initial impression had changed, but it feels like ages since Kat seemed like someone careful and distant, if not calculating and uncaring. Which… is funny, because she seeks out loopholes to have fun and also cares in her own way, even a little too much at that. Still, not counting that he saw her cracking up on her potential execution, or the suppressed smiles while watching the crews do something stupid, he did not see her laugh until a day after they've met. Following that, nothing until Friday, where she laughed a lot, and… well, there was Saturday evening.

Wednesday also marks the date when she had caught his attention. That smile of hers irked him from the get-go, even without knowing why.

"When I'm in my element, maybe… otherwise, I'm partly cloudy with a chance of rain," she mumbles, then notes that the teddy she has passed to him is sitting in the junk behind the now closed door. Seems like some stuff has also been moved. "… what did this bear do to deserve the timeout corner?" Was he trying to get the wardrobe open? Or is it the huge chest crammed into the literal corner with a lot of stuff still on- and in front of it? Well, it's really easy to find out either way.

"Wanted to put it away, but I guess I'll have to wait until I have my bod-" He hears some stuff hitting the bed, followed by a short scraping sound on wood and some hinges creaking, and he freezes with eyes wide and as pale as a ghost. She didn't just do what he thinks she did, did she?

"Oh my gosh," Kat squeals upon discovering the unquestionably high grade stuffed material in the levitating trove. "These are deliberately the most adorable things ever?" The poofy white teddy at the top smiling at her is made of tangible sunshine and rainbows. There's no way all of these are from the same person, there's too much variety… This crew has taste, alright. That shaggy blonde leg near a corner actually kind of looks like… "The soft stuff," she whispers in awe, grabbing it immediately.

"YOU," Law near-shouts, then lowers the volume to an aggressive whisper while tumbling out from his chair; "put those things away right now." Uni and Shachi are in the control room and could barge in any time, and by god, he cannot let them know that he's actually kept every. single. one of these. His occasionally mulled-over plan to just dump it all on the nearest kindergarten or clinic is suddenly top priority, because fucking Kat with her apparently zero self-restraint will unearth any embarrassing secret or cursed relic she can put her grabby hands on. Not to mention digging up traumatic memories she should have zero access to. And she has his body, his devil fruit… is there anything he has that is safe from this woman?!

"Okay, okay, I will," she slurs as he dumps backpack burglar bear in with the others and is reaching for the one in her hands; "but… "

"But what," he hisses as she lifts it out of reach, eyeing the door behind them while also listening for movement.

"Can I keep this one?" she squeaks, holding her new stuffed friend with the plaid bandana scarf close. He's been given so many and puts them all someplace nobody could find them, one more or less really won't matter, right? "Please?" … it kind of stinks, though. Nothing that a round or two in the washing machine cannot fix, though.

"…" He's had to deal with some weird requests in the past few months, but this… this is the one that takes the cake. "Why the hell do you want it?" he bursts out, struggling to keep his volume low. "Isn't there enough useless garbage in that dump house of yours already?!"

The chest sways in the air as shame washes over Kat's face; she can't get any sound through the lump in her throat for ten solid seconds. Once her color fades into the negatives and she would be able to say something, she has no words left in her.

Seeing her mood whiplash, Law gets to calm down and lets out a frustrated sigh. He's done it now, didn't he. Legitimately hurt her. It was only a question of time, but he expected to feel less of an ass over it. The accusation is unfair anyhow, since he also has a room full of obsolete shit and a huge treasure chest reserved for nothing but teddy bears that everyone thinks he's long gotten rid of.

"Whatever, take it if…" Kat reaches out with the plushie in hand… "… you, uh…" … and puts it back on top of the pile.

"Don't want it," she mumbles through her sore throat.

"It's… it doesn't matter, I'm full on these things. Won't be able to cram in any more, anyway." About two bigger ones, and he won't be able to shut the lid without squishing its inhabitants.

She shakes her head. "This memory… is no good."

"…" The memory? The random junk in the 'dump,' and all that knickknack she has littering the place that are on the decorative side of things are… stuff to remember things by? More specifically, reminders of pleasant things. Huh. Suppose… there is something to that.

He takes one more look at the bears inside, then shuts the chest. "I see." Both of them have some long overdue spring cleaning to do, and not only on the physical plane.

Kat then rearranges the mess into the same pile as she has found it; chest as the base, followed by tightly rolled-up posters to the sides to support the folders and books on them, another doctor's suitcase that's barely in one piece, a metal case between that and the wardrobe, and finally, the notebooks and whatever else… on top. All that's missing is the little shelf rack that was sitting in front.

Law can tell by a single glance at her body language that she's lost all motivation she might have had thus far. Great. Just… great. He made her plummet back to square one, if not zero. Can't help but keep digging your own damn grave, can you? Take a deep breath and do what you have to. "Kat-ya?"

She freezes up for a moment, then lets out a questioning hum.

Not even on talking terms, huh?

"As one hoarder to another… sorry."

After some delay, she sniffs.

"... don't you fucking start crying on me."

Long story short, she did start silent crying and the man had to manually insert a leftover cracker in her mouth like a punch card and had her drink the last cup's worth of tea to get her to calm down. She felt both empty and relieved, and also like a big baby in need of their favorite stuffed toy for the rest of the day. Law meanwhile likely felt like playing a very done surrogate dad, dealing with an insufferable kid on the way home. Shachi even tried to nickname him 'Mr Babysitter' once him and Uni had actually entered the place in the middle of it all, but this jab was quickly redirected as Law flat-out told him that taking care of a toddler was nothing new for someone running a daycare 24/7. That one earned an immature, wet faced chuckle from her.

She probably should have felt more embarrassed by the situation overall. However, she kind of enjoyed it, even? Which also ought to have earned much more shame on her part, but she just became really calm and tired for the rest of the day. Crying feels good, sometimes.

Also sometimes, she has to wonder whether coffee even works.

"Okay, touch-me-not… time to hit the hay," she can hear Law's voice phase in some time later before getting shooed from her button project and out of the room. "And tomorrow, try to act like a respectable adult, because as of now… it's hard to look at you as a grown-ass woman." It feels like he had to turn into an actual babysitter, if not a pet owner for the day. And holy shit, was it fucking exhausting. She might be on par with Luffy in this regard.

She just gives a tired, matter of fact 'okay' as an answer as she surveys the doorway with vacant eyes.

The flat response… is not something he's used to. Is she like this after letting some steam out, or…? "... are you actually registering the things I say?"

"Yes, I'm just… one with the universe," she nods.

Law squints at her, then shoves the woman personally out the door; her eyes are still a little red, and the weird (although not really out of character) answer would make him suspect her being high on weed, if not for the fact that it's a substance that can be found in one single container on his wannabe-estate, that is to say, in his room, and that one is locked shut ever since some not-so-mysterious vanishing acts. Even if she shoplifted him, he would fucking notice, sharing the goddamn space all day. "You talk and walk like a zombie, get the fuck out right now."

He watches her wobble up the staircase for a bit, then closes the door with a shaking head. This… was certainly a day.

A few comatose minutes later, Kat walks into the unlit room and falls into the cotton pile unceremoniously right after. Nice and cool… almost enough to beat some life into her. Almost. It gives just enough energy to stop suffocating by flipping over, and pull one of the things over her torso. After lying around in the empty room for a bit, she turns on her side and hugs the blanket tight. She's missing her hug pillow a lot right now. Wondering about how nice it would be to have that, or the huge, white bear over, or even just another layer so this place feels less hard, she falls asleep rather fast.

Then, in what feels like a minute later, she finds herself sweating bullets. There was another nightmare, which was easily the worst one as of yet; being shut into the chest with plushies, barely able to move, with noone to hear her voice... And the screams of people outside... and the guns, just... the never ending gunshots and screaming. She shudders just thinking about it… a dream like this would upset her even without context. After shedding a few tears, she also feels the pain slowly settle inside; she was just thinking what felt off about this dream… the absence of agonizing stabs and cramps is what it was. This time, it's creeping up her right thigh and her hips, setting them on fire in real time, then the already throbbing sternum turns into a knife in her chest. Any other vague throb around the stomach has nothing on these, they might as well not even exist. She peeks direction windows to see nothing but darkness; she can hear the soft breaths of the other three, so a considerable amount of time has passed, but it must be pretty early still... she's got the bad feeling that this pain will not go away until morning, and sleeping back in right now is just... unless she faints from this, there's no way she will.

There is indeed no more rest she can get; after the generally early bird Carrot leaves, she sits up to get at least that part done, then tries her best to get on her feet before the others start moving as the alarm sounds an hour later. Task is successfully mastered in time, although she has to lean on one of the chairs for a minute, because even while being more numb than in pain at the moment, her legs did not appreciate that.

" … bad day for sleep, huh?" Nami half-asks from her own daze once having taken a look at her.

"Nnnnhng," is all that Kat can manage for the time being. Getting tortured aside, she really hasn't slept a lot, even with the near immediate knockout in the evening. Her brain is on autopilot; nobody suspects that her hobbling and nearly running into walls has any other cause than the velcro eyelids, really. At least moving around seems to ease her suffering somewhat.

By the time she has to stand up from the dining table and make her way down, the temporal alleviation has worn off and she can barely manage the task without falling back onto the chair. This is worse than the two weeks of hell from spring when she managed to trap a nerve in her spine. There's also a numbness spreading on her right side, slowly creeping higher and higher as the soreness decides to look for a new target before moving on from her hips for good. She could cry, really... likely slept through the worst every time thus far. God… being Law sucks.

As soon as she enters his room, which looks somehow even messier than before, Law clicks his tongue beside the chest of drawers which is buried under new junk.

"If nothing else, you have impeccable timing whenever you are following the routine… good morning." Looking back at her slowly puzzling the scenery together, his face displays overt exasperation soon enough. "… I can already tell you will need full-time supervision today, so I'm skipping the briefing. I wanted to take matters into my own hands, anyway." Matters being… her focus, which seems to react well to spoon-fed attention judging by her episode yesterday. Whatever amount of that still exists in this walking corpse. This experimental endeavor might be ill-timed, but to hell with it all, he's already planned this out, and he's going to go through with it. He turns back to the piece of furniture to stack some of the junk they won't be needing today; "Move it while we're young, alright?"

She hums. Closing the door, her eyes linger on the chest in the corner. Turning back towards him, she stops for a moment; asking would be all kinds of rude, yet she can't help but wonder… how much of the dreams are actual things that happened. A lot of people she sees and meets certainly are… or were actual people.

Also… how does he handle days like these? Does he lock himself up in his room, or is he just lowkey clingy? Well… there's always Bepo to look for, minks are cuddly and he does get comfortable leaning on him and whatnot. Must be his go-to therapy. Would be nice to have access to that, since the polar bear really is as soft as it gets. Honestly… she really needs to hug the shit out of something decently squishy that won't ask follow-up questions right about now. Questions that are none of their business, at least.

"Zombie attack," she moans in a monotone voice, hobbling to his side with stiff thighs.

He mouths a 'wha' as the words click just as she goes in for the kill. "What the- Kat-ya, what now?" he asks in bafflement as soon as the initial surprise wears off. Also, these impulse hugs are only getting tighter, aren't they?

She gives him a little squeeze before release, but there's no answer.

Law raises a brow while staring at her blank, if not sad expression; a few seconds of consideration later he lets out a tired, knowing sigh. "Nightmare?"

The girl nods with a hum after some delay.

" … no tea and crackers if you haven't brought more, so that's that." Not sure what else he could start with, or do in general. He'd rather avoid the rest of yesterday's fiasco.

"I'm supposed to be a big girl now, so I won't ask for any," Kat pouts to that with overdone articulation as if reading his mind. "I might ask for some hugs, though," she adds stepping out of the role of a five-year-old with a sigh that sounds as painful as her liver area feels now. The heat is also getting to her today and she already is about to break out in sweat. Except she doesn't, which just makes her feel like implodig with nausea.

"…" He can't think of anything on the spot, but she could be asking worse. Hell… he's kind of getting used to it. "Eh, whatever, I'll bear a few if necessary," he shrugs at last. But: "Tell me beforehand and keep it to a minimum, though." She may not be able to disturb him during work today, but if he doesn't give restrictions, she might cling to him all the damn time. As upsetting those dreams may get at times, that's absolutely unnecessary.

She perks up; did he just… okay it? "Woah… really?"

"Yes, re-" Law deadpans as she gives him the frontal treatment right away. "-ally. Honestly, do you have to do this?" he sighs in limp resignation. He feels like becoming a comfort article… she might have been in need of that bear, after all.

"Absolutely," she says beaming as she straightens herself with some care as to not trigger some really unpleasant things. "you are big, warm and strong, so I can give soft, high quality hugs to everyone I like!" Being half a beefcake and heater feels nice~ Gotta accept that her body really is on the bony side after getting to hug herself a few times.

First of all: was that an indirect compliment? Second of all: there's a foreboding number of likely people she's already made close physical contact with… apart from being embarrassing and potential blackmail, his relatively weak immune system should not be put into situations all haphazardly like that. Hopefully she washes her hands regularly, if nothing else. And finally, she hugs people she likes, and the implied message of having received, like, five in the past two days already… all in all, every single aspect of that sentence gives Law something vaguely alarming to think about.

He opens his mouth, then closes it again as he cannot muster an answer. Well then… move on? "... aaanyway… you seem to have magically woken up, so here's the deal with today: I was thinking of some changes, that is to say, instead of ogling you from the sidelines, I will be actively present in your training schedule. Also, we'll be doing various mixed tasks for as long as you're… operable? How much sleep did you get?"

Kat finds this idea to her liking; can't do wrong when being instructed, and company makes for a less boring day. She lowkey needs some supervision and someone to tell her what to do all the time to be at maximum productivity, anyway. Getting interrupted too often has the total opposite effect, but…trying can't hurt. "Could have been five? I'm not sure. Anyhow, that… sounds nice, actually."

Luckily, after settling into the new system and the pain receding for a while, the morning is an overall blast. Partly since she's basically constructing a junk castle over and over, removing and inserting parts with as little leeway as possible. Also, despite her worries… Law would actually make a pretty good teacher? His explanations use more jargon than necessary, but they leave just enough up to imagination and he also lets her deviate from the task. He helps no more or less than what she needs, too. Who would have thought. She sneakily uses Scan to her benefit as well, since it aids at taking things out of other things. Funny how she's getting the hang of the reverse task faster… or so it would be, if time was not pressing her to succeed at both as fast as possible.

Getting up for the fifth time in a few minutes to adjust something towards noon serves as a quick reminder that she was getting too brave with moving around, because the stabbing pain returns as quickly as it was slow at fading out. This time she actually is covered in cold sweat all of a sudden and overcome by a sense of weakness as well. That won't be her blood sugar… but could be.

"Suddenly… I feel like I could eat a horse," Kat notes between gritting her teeth. Yeeeesh, some muscle is fucking cramping on her right side, holy fuck… It's fortunate that Law's to her back, because… Okay, okay, okay… it's receding, take a breath. "Kind of forgot getting more than the usual after the forced wake. I don't suppose you have one lying around? Some snacks would be nice until… lunch." And now blood pressure seems to be plummeting, too… ho, boy. Imagine how he would react if she just fainted right now. Not fun, not at all.

He sighs. "You should have more than just a cup of cocoa anyhow? Feed me proper, that body is used to labor and burns what it gets, goddammit." He does get up, however, and adjusts his pants quick. He needs a breather from this anyhow. "I’m also getting peckish, so I might as well get something. Lunch won’t be ready for an hour at least… you won’t want to eat rice balls, I suppose, so French toast or toast toast? Likely slightly burnt in either case. That's about all I'm capable of." Hopefully Fugu won't catch him red-handed… if he's lucky, the cook's already headed out for veggies and stuff.

… not eating at all was a lie, but she's suddenly reminded of how long it's been since she's had either. Or scrambled eggs. With pepper and paprika, and thinly sliced garlic… can't have him try and fuck that one up, though. "... give me your best shot at a French toast, two slices," she replies with a watery mouth.

"Just don't complain if you don't like it," he shrugs walking up to the exit. "Be right back."

Being alone for a moment, she groans in frustration. The pain is not only back, but just as bad as it was, like it just won't stop at all. It sneakily crawled up her neck in the past hour, making it stiff, and now it started eating the right side of her face from the inside out and she already knows this will end with a splitting headache. The goddamn left shoulder is also getting tense again, but that keeps happening so often she doesn't even notice any more unless it hurts.

Thinking about that, her eyes wander over to his desk- and then to the upper right shelf where he fished out a pill from the other day. After short consideration, she steps over to the furniture slowly and rests the tip of her finger on the handle. These are for him, right? What if she just…

[fadingfartconnoisseur]

The Most Photogenic Places I’ve Ever Visited

Any destination can be a photographer’s paradise if you’re creative enough. But some places are massive overachievers! I’ve visited some countries, cities, and regions where beautiful shots lurk around every corner.

And it’s not always the places you think. I don’t always have the best luck shooting photos in Italy, for example. And as gorgeous as Savannah is, the shadows from the ubiquitous oak trees make it a challenge to photograph. And I was so upset when my first trip to Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, was a near-disaster due to poor photography conditions.

But when a destination gets it right, I have treasures that will last me a lifetime.

Here are my picks for the 10 most photogenic places I’ve ever visited. Some of them are obvious, like Paris and New York — but I’m sure at least a few of them will surprise you.

Copenhagen

I couldn’t believe how many great photos I got in Copenhagen. I don’t say that to brag about my skills; I say that because I was flabbergasted at how every aspect of the city was begging to be photographed. I had to restrain myself from covering my whole apartment in framed Copenhagen photos!

So, what should you look for in Copenhagen? I take a lot of photos of bicycles ordinarily, and Copenhagen is bike-crazy metropolis.

The Nyhavn, the famous ship-filled wharf along a canal, is the most photographed site in the city. I also happened to be there for Sankt Hans, when bonfires are lit in the canal and led to some awesome colors.

The picture with the lines was taken at the Superkilen, which is a great spot for black and white photography. That shot hangs in my black-and-white bathroom today.

Oh, and also get photos of very tall, very attractive people clad in nothing but black and charcoal gray.

Japan

I’m putting the entire country on this list because literally every part of Japan is a photographer’s paradise. Whether you’re in cities, more traditional areas, or in the wilderness, you’ll get to enjoy some of the world’s most beautiful light.

I urge you to see as much of Japan as humanly possible. Some of my favorite places for photography were the Dotonbori neighborhood of Osaka at sunset, Kyoto for the temples and rare geisha-spotting, the tech-crazy Akihabara neighborhood of Tokyo, and of course Shibuya Crossing.

One thing I’ve always said is that Japan turns you into a stereotypical Japanese tourist — suddenly you want to photograph everything because it’s so different! From vending machines to trash cans, everything is worthy of a photo. And Japanese people are lovely and a lot of fun; many of them turn into total hams when they see a tourist with a camera!

Cherry blossom season is, of course, a very popular and photogenic time to visit, but it can be tough timing it right. Personally, I’d love to visit in the fall when the leaves change.

Istanbul

I’ll spare you the Istanbul is where East meets West and old meets new drivel (god, I hate that so much) — Istanbul is on my list because nowhere else looks like it. I don’t know any other city that looks just as good up close (details in markets! Tulip-shaped tea glasses!) and far away (mosques and minarets dotting the skyline! Colorful seaside buildings!).

There’s so much to see in Istanbul, you could be occupied for weeks. I would start by visiting the Grand Bazaar, Spice Market, and every market that crosses your path. Bowls of olives, brightly colored spices, detailed lamps and hand-painted dishes make for amazing photos.

Istanbul has an amazing skyline and there are fabulous views from the Galata Tower. Istanbul also has some cool neighborhoods — I recommend checking out the hip zone of Kadikoy and the colorful Armenian neighborhood of Kumkapi.

One last thing to photograph — cats. Stray cats are all over Istanbul and they’re well cared for by the locals. Some of those cats are better-looking than most people!

Rural Australia

I’ve been to Australia twice, visiting four of its states, and while the cities are great, it’s the outdoors where Australia truly shines. In no other place in the world have I had as many “I can’t believe this place exists” feelings as I did in Australia. Some of the national parks make you feel like you’re at the beginning of time, a dinosaur lurking around the corner.

Some of my favorite photography spots are Uluru, Litchfield, and Kakadu National Parks in the Northern Territory and Hutt Lagoon (pink lake!), Shark Bay, the Pinnacles Desert, Rottnest Island, and Karijini National Park in Western Australia. I would love to explore the Kimberley, Queensland and Tasmania.

The challenge in rural Australia is getting around safely. WA in particular is very sparsely populated and there is very little public transit; most people either drive themselves or take an organized tour. Of course, driving leads to its own challenges, particularly when kangaroos like to jump in front of your car at night.

Pack your wide-angle for the landscapes and your zoom for the wildlife. And be prepared to take a million selfies with the quokkas!

Oia, Santorini

Ah, the island that launched a thousand calendars. Santorini might be a giant cliché at this point, but clichés exist for a reason. And Santorini’s crown jewel is Oia, the white village on the northern tip of the island.

Oia has been photographed a million different ways, so finding your own take on the village can be a challenge. My recommendation? Just make peace with that fact and take whatever kinds of shots make you happy.

If you want to get the key sunset picture, shot from the fort, I recommend heading there an hour or so before sunset. Bring a book to read; you’ll be glad you have something to do. And don’t leave as soon as the sun dips beneath the surface — stick around for Blue Hour!

Another tip can be photographing the sunset in the opposite direction. It can be surprisingly entertaining to get photos of hundreds of tourists lined up with their cameras.

New York City

It’s a city full of icons. How could New York not be on my list? My only crime is that living here, I treat it less like a travel destination and don’t have nearly as many photos as I should! (That will hopefully change this flower season. I need photos of New York in bloom!)

So, what should you photograph in New York? Definitely get the icons in: Times Square at night, the Brooklyn Bridge, the Staten Island ferry, Central Park. If you want views from above, head to Top of the Rock or One World Trade Center (the Empire State Building is popular, but isn’t the point to have the Empire State Building in the photo?).

But I think the best New York photography comes from neighborhood wandering and seeing what comes your way. Some of my favorite neighborhoods for photography are the West Village, Bushwick, Harlem, SoHo, and the Lower East Side. Spend the bulk of your time here — and don’t fall into the trap of spending most of your time in midtown. Midtown is boring.

Season-wise, you can’t beat spring when everything is in bloom!

Nicaragua

Of all the countries in Latin America, I feel like Nicaragua was the best for photography. (“Not Mexico?!” yells everyone. Sorry, that’s how I feel! Maybe I’ll change my mind when I visit Guanajuato and Oaxaca.) Not only was Nicaragua one of the most colorful countries I’ve visited, it also has the rare combination of extremely photogenic cities and extremely photogenic rural areas.

Nicaragua is a place to focus on details and colors. Think markets, street art, all the fruits you can find. And try to visit at least one volcano; they’re all over the country.

I found León to be the richest photography destination in the country, so many colors and markets, plus that incredible white roof on top of the cathedral. And while I didn’t have a great volcano boarding experience with Bigfoot Hostel, you can’t deny that their orange jumpsuits against the black volcano and blue sky make for some striking shots.

And a little tip: your Instagram followers will love tropical shots of Little Corn Island the most.

Paris

I don’t have to explain why. You already know.

Like New York, I find it best to knock the Paris icons off your list and then dig deep into the neighborhoods. Some of my Paris neighborhoods for photography are Montmartre, St. Germain-des-Pres, and the Marais. My new favorite street in Paris is Rue Montorgueil in the 2nd, which is covered with food shops and cafes so perfect that they look like they’re out of a movie.

But if you’re looking for the best views of Paris, I recommend the top of the Arc de Triomphe, the towers of Notre Dame (gargoyles!), the Montparnasse Tower (I hate that building so much, so when you’re up there you don’t see it!), and the top of the Printemps department store.

Do be prepared for less than ideal weather. One thing that doesn’t get said often enough is that Paris generally has gray weather with sprinklings of rain, not unlike London. Don’t fight it; lean into it and learn to love your gray photos.

Want more? I’ve got 100 travel tips for Paris.

Lake Ohrid, Macedonia

The Balkans are my favorite region in the world to travel, and Macedonia is a particular delight. The first place I visited in the country was Ohrid, the town on the banks of Lake Ohrid (which spans both Macedonia and Albania) and it astounded me with its understated beauty. I’ve never seen water meld into the sky more cleanly than on Lake Ohrid.

I’ve only visited the Macedonian side, so I can’t speak to Albanian shores, but the town of Ohrid is a great place to base yourself. Everyone gets photos of Sveti Jovan, that famous church overlooking a cliff on top of the lake, and make sure you go inside the churches, too — they’re just as interesting as the outside.

One of the best things I did was take a boat trip to Sveti Naum, a few towns away. It’s home to pretty shoreline, an abundance of wild peacocks, and young Macedonian men who don’t speak a word of English but cut you pieces of watermelon with an enormous knife.

Get photos of the lake from every angle — I especially love shots of swimmers from high above.

Also, Macedonia is one of the cheapest countries in Europe and they make surprisingly good wine. Use those facts to your advantage.

  Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka is a feast for the eyes. So many colors, so many interesting landscapes, an interesting blend of cultures, religions, and people. There is quite a lot packed into this small island, and I was deeply enamored with what I saw.

My favorite photography spot in the country was Galle, home to a Dutch colonial settlement, a fort, and clear cerulean waters. Galle also makes a good base for exploring the nearby beaches. Another must-photograph destination is Sigiriya, home to a giant rock in the middle of the countryside.

Two things that you shouldn’t miss photographing in Sri Lanka: women in their gorgeous dresses, and the tuk-tuks, which are somehow a million times nicer than the ones you’d see in Southeast Asia. And if you’re into mountains or temples, Sri Lanka has both in spades.

While I haven’t been to India, lots of my friends have said that Sri Lanka is so much cleaner and calmer than India. There’s something to be said for that.

Photography Notes: These days the camera I use is a Fuji X-T1, which has dropped in price now that the Fuji X-T2 has come out. I’ve tried the X-T2 and love it, but I don’t feel a pressing need to upgrade at this time.

I use two lenses: my main walking-around lens is the 18-135mm 3.5-5.6, which is versatile enough for most of the shots I take, and I also have a 16mm 1.4 wide-angle lens, which is FAST and FANTASTIC.

I’m also a big fan of the Pacsafe Camsafe V17 anti-theft bag, which is big enough for all my photography and tech gear yet small enough to put beneath the seat in front of me on a plane.

What are the most photogenic places you’ve ever visited?

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