#i could have had them eat each other's face out in the tunnels but it stopping daddy from making a philo stone was more important

[luvyeni]

THE DEMON IN THE KITCHEN • PARK SUNGHOON

pairing ‎⸝⸝⸝ demon!sunghoon wc. 5.2k+

𓄷 warnings... smut mdni. mentions of murder. sunghoon actually hates you. attempted murder ( twice ). reader likes some weird stuff. sexual tension. oral ( m. receiving ). rough sex. degradation.

nia's notes: this is probably a lot darker than the jake one , im sorry, but I hope you still enjoy 🖤 jay is next !!!

jake | lucifer masterlist | jay

having taken you away , I became a terrible monster, destroy and trample all …

with the burning fire of lucifer’s anger , swallow it up …

It had been about a month since you've found out about Jake; and the other demons who you haven't met that lived in your grandparents' old house — they hadn't introduced themselves yet ; so you and Jake spent your days alone in the house , never really leaving.

You mother had also came and visited to check on the house, see what you had gotten done; and if the house needed any renovations— unfortunately; your new friend had to stay away that week, which he dramatically claimed was the worse week in 50 years.

Besides watching TV shows and forcing Jake to take up baking; you two also had a lot of sex— like a lot there was not a time jake and you weren't on each other; his hips constantly rutting against yours while watching tv; his hands in your pants , giving you orgasm after orgasm before you went to sleep. Jake never slept though; he didn't need it, instead he watched over you while you sleep. At first yes you thought it was a bit creepy; but eventually you grew to like it; and soon you couldn't sleep unless he was right next to you, holding your hand.

You liked spending time with Jake; but you couldn't help but ask questions about the others; jake— who at first was jealous that you would literally ask about them when he's right there , put his pride to the side; you weren't only his— told you everything he could about his brothers ; telling you that he believed it will different and they'll all come out when they're ready. “be patient.” he would always said. “things will be different soon.”

“have you tried to eat?” you asked during one of your baking sessions. “of course , but, I don't need to eat, why would I? besides your grandmother was a terrible cook.” His face scrunched up in disgust. “I don't need to eat the brownies , but I believe you when you say they are good.” You frowned; which made him feel bad. “Fine, I'll eat one.” You smiled , cutting him a piece of freshly cooked brownie. “take a bite.”

You watched as he bit down on the brownie; his eyes lit up, moaning at the chocolate gooey treat. “it's so good.” he said. “We did a good job.” You scoffed, rolling your eyes. “we? the only thing you did was crack the eggs.” he shrugged. “That's something.” He said , your lips were in a thin line. “You got egg shells in the batter three times.”

“When you leave at night.” You said , laying in bed after a tense session. “where do you go?” this question had always loomed over your head. “there's a lot you don't know about this house; a lot that all of the owners don't know.” He said, “like what.” You sat up. “this house has many secret tunnels , the first owner who built this house was a bit of a maze lover , so he built a bunch of tunnels under ground.” He said. “And some of them have rooms?” you asked. “more like and entire underground house.” He said.

“How do i access it?” He sat up , holding your hand. “Do not go searching for it.” He said. “Why not?” You said. “Because the first owner wasn't just obbsesed with the labyrinth, but he was also a bit of a nutjob.” He said. “He also built secret tunnels that would lead to no where , but would trap you inside and you can't get out— ones so the ground could easily become unstable and you could get hurt.” He said. “Promise me you won't go looking, promise me.” you saw the concern look on his face , deciding not to stress him further. “Fine I won't go looking for the passage ways.” He looked into your eyes. “What can you tell if I'm lying or not?” He nodded. “Well smartass we can in fact tell when you're lying , that's how I know you're telling the truth.” he kissed your pouty lips. “It's best you don't go around getting hurt , if you die we can all feel it.”

Jake left after making sure you were in a deep sleep; locking up the house, something you always forgot to do , so he took it into his own hands to do so— turning the lights off , making his way through the tunnels back to where he'd wait until morning when he knew you were about to get up and start his day with you again.

you sat up in your bed , looking around the dark room. “Jake?” You rubbed your eyes , a blurry figure appearing in front of you. “Jake?” You squinted, “is that you?” He nodded , holding his hand out. “Come with me.” You held your hand out , getting out of bed , where he waited. He took a hold of your hands. “Follow me.”

“Where are you taking me?” You asked. “You wanted to see where we stayed right?” He asked. “Well I'm taking you.” You were confused. “You told me it was dangerous.” He looked back at you. “alone? yes, but you're with me me, would I ever put you in a dangerous love?” He wouldn't , you knew that he wouldn't. “No” he smiled. “Then keep walking.”

And that's what you did, following him down to the base of the house , where he guided you to a wall , pushing on the wall. “just go right through there.” He went first holding your hand , guiding you through the tunnels, lit with torches. “Just a little further love.”

You finally made it to the door , he pointed. “There.” He said. “open the door love.” You were about to reach for the door; turning back to him. “Go ahead.” As you reached for the door , you heard a yell— no a call of your name, it was jake; but how could that be if he was right there with you , and his mouth wasn't moving; in fact he was smiling. “Guess he's right on time.” The boy in front of you said. “what?” His mouth went flat. “Maybe next time.” He said. “Wake up.”

Your eyes suddenly shot open, it felt like all the air came rushing back to your lungs. “y/n!” His arms were wrapped around you. “huh?” Your head felt dizzy. “I told you to never come looking for these tunnels.” He held your shoulders , shaking you. “you promised you wouldn't come looking for these tunnels and you were sleepwalking.” He seemed so scared, you tried to explain but he wasn't having it. “Let's get you back to your room.” He said.

“You don't understand, you almost opened one that could've killed you.” He said , you sat on your bed. “But you're the one that guided me there , you told me you were gonna show me.” You said , he shook his head. “No I didn't , why would i guide you to one that was gonna kill you?” He said, he had a point. “But he looked just like you.”

“He did?” He asked. “Yeah , just like you.” He thought about it for just a split second , his eyes filling with rage. “What's wrong?” You reached for his hand , but he shot up to the floor. “I have to go.” He said. “Where?” You asked. “Jake where are you— just go back to sleep, I'll see you in the morning.” Was all he said , before leaving out— like hell you were going to sleep.

meanwhile Jake was on a mission; to find him, pushing the door open. “Sunghoon!” He shouted. “Where the fuck are you.” He was livid, walking throughout the house to find him. “sunghoon!”

“What?” The boy emerged from his own room. “what the hell is your problem?” Jake shoved the boy. “You could've kill her.” He bellowed , sunghoon nodded; the shrug barely phasing him. “you're right I could've but I didn't , did I?” He tilted his head to the side. “shes safe no? you got to her in time.” Jake couldn't believe his brother would be this heartless ; he wasn't always like this. “if you don't like her then leave her alone.” Jake said. “be like jay then , don't bother her.” He said.

“No.” he folded his arms, waking towards the boy. “I want her to take the necklace off , I want her to break the bond.” He said. “Leave this place , leave us alone.” He said, “I don't want to deal with her family anymore.” Jake knew he had his reasons; but this didn't mean he could do this to you. “she's not like her , I promise.” but sunghoon wasn't listening , already checked out. “maybe if you just got— i don't care, just cause your pussy whipped doesn't mean anything to me.” He said. “she's as good as dead in my eyes.”

You actually don't see Jake the next morning; which doesn't worry you at first; until he doesn't show up in the afternoon either— he told you he'd be back , and then the way he left abruptly. “Jake?” You called out , but got no answer. you got up , you couldn't wait for him today ; you needed to go into town.

“Hey it's you again.” You smiled seeing kai; the cute cashier standing at the register. “was starting to think you left.” He said , packing all your things up. “no , just don't really get out much.” He nodded. “understandable , driving into town all the time could be a handful.” He said. “Your grandmother never came into town , actually i haven't seen your cousins in a while.”

Cousin? you didn't have a cousin , you're mother didn't have any siblings. “Oh you're talking about jake.” Knowing what you knew about your grandmother she probably did use them as her slaves. “long black hair, kinda like a golden retriever?” He laughed , sitting your last bag in the cart. “Golden retriever?” He said. “No , absolutely not, his hair was short and black.” he could sense your confusion. “sunghoon I think his name was.” — sunghoon? jake said he didn't leave the house. “oh sunghoon , yeah.” you chuckled. “he went home to his family” he nodded. “figured.” he said. “he didn't talk much , and when he did, it was cold and sorta murderous.”

he walked you to your car; helping you put your groceries in the trunk. “thank you so much kai.” He nodded , smiling. “No problem.” He awkwardly shifted on the balls of his feet. “Is there something else?” You questioned. “Would you like the to get a drink sometime?” He said. “With you?” you asked. “Y-yeah , it's fine if you're busy though.” He stuttered. “No I'm not busy any time soon.” you said he smiled. “how about saturday?” you nodded. “sure.”

you bring all the bags inside. “Jake!” You shouted , closing the door. “Jake where are you?” You walked around looking for him. “I went to the grocery store.” You looked into the different rooms. “Jake?” nowhere , it was like he vanished, you walked into your room , the door to your closet open, making you smile. “Jake?” you open the door; empty — except it wasn't fully empty, there was a door. “huh?”

you moved the shoes , pushing the door; it opened. “Is this how he was leaving?” you asked yourself , shaking your head. “I'm gonna kill him again , if I find him.” you looked down the tunnel , another opening; wide open and you could see inside , a room. “seems safe.” You walked down the dimly lit tunnel , stopping once you reached the door. You pushed it open , walking it. “Jake?”

it was a room, a red and black room; the bed right in the mirror , it was almost a mirror to yours; Jake had nice taste— it was actually better than yours. “That's because it's not jake's room.” you heard an almost familiar, but unfamiliar voice. “and that's not how he enters your room.” He said , you were almost scared to turn around , you could feel the room become colder. “you're sunghoon.”

you turned around, and there he was, just like kai described— expect scarier cause he was right in front of you. “you kept calling for him and calling for him, it was annoying me.” he said. “I can hear you.” The door slammed behind you making you jump forward. “Your voice sounds like nails on a chalkboard.” he stepped closer to you. “i hate constantly hearing it in my head.” you stepped back. “then dont listen to it, I'm looking for Jake.” you turned to open the door; only for him to slam it again. “you think its that fucking easy?” He scoffed. “You are just as dumb as I thought you were.”

he didn't even know you, so why was he insulting you? “it was you.” You said. “You're the one who made me sleep walk— the one who tried to kill me.” he scoffed. “Trust me if I was trying to kill you, you'd be dead already.” He said. “sending me into a fucking tunnel to have my head caved in by rocks didn't seem like you were trying to be welcoming”

“Oh you have a mouth on you.” he said smiling. “Gonna make killing you so much better.” He said. “st-stay.” He interrupted “stay away? or what? you gonna call jakey?” he mockingly said. “I want you to take the necklace off,” he said. “Leave this house, hide it somewhere your parents won't find it.” he said. “If your mother doesn't find it , I won't have to slave for your disgusting family anymore, and when they die we'll get a new bond.” He said, “or I can kill you.” you can feel his breathing on your neck. “Jake can't stop me.” he whispered in your ear. “I can hear your heart racing.”

your breath hitched, he smirked. “Is the thought of me killing you turning you on,” he said. “are you really that sick of a person , not only do you fuck demons , you fuck demons who want to kill you as well. “ you felt his hand coming up to your back , pushing down on it. “st-st” you stuttered. “I bet if I fucked you right now you'd take it.” he growled. “Let little jakey walk in on me making you take my cock.” you gasp , his hands coming up to your hair yanking it back. “or I snap your neck now.”

he let you go; pulling the door open. “now get the fuck out; and think about what I said.” he said; you took off back down the tunnel entering back through the closet, slamming the hidden door closed , standing in your closet , trying to catch your breath— he said alot of stuff; what the fuck were you supposed to think about. “yn?” you heard jake's voice outside your door. “jake?” you pushed open the closet door. “where the hell have you been? I've called you 50 times.”

“I gave you a break, you seemed pretty scared,” he said. “Why are you coming out of the closet?” he asked, he saw the look in your eyes. “you found the passageway into sunghoons room?” you nodded. “and he was in there.” you nodded again. “I'm so sorry yn.” he stood up, hugging you. “I don't know why he's like that now , he actually wasn't that bad.” feeling your heartbeat. “What did he say?”

“N-nothing.” You said. “You're shaking like a leaf and your heartbeat is going a mile a minute, he must've said something.” you didn't know what to tell him , so you only told him what you thought he wanted to hear. “He said he'd kill me.”

telling him everything except the “moment” you both shared. “that's it?” He said. “that's all he told you?” you nodded. “Y-yeah.” you said, he sighed. “Why does he hate my family so much?” you asked, he rubbed his face with his hands. “your grandmother really fucked with him; sunghoon was always a little fucked in the head , but she made did something he swore to never do again , and he couldn't stop her , so before she made him do it again—” he stopped , continuing on again. “What did he do?” you asked. “he stopped her.” that's all he said , before stopping. “He killed her.”

That's all jake would tell you that day; and the next few days it was like that— you trying to force it out him and him telling you no; and you tried everything, even withholding sex; which never lasted long because jake was persuasive little shit.

Eventually you gave up; until he came to you again— you knew it was a dream again; but he wasn't trying to trick you this time; it wasn't him trying to disguise himself as Jake, it was actually him. “So you chose to die?” He asked , you couldn't move your legs, you could only sit up. “All you had to do was take the necklace off,” he said. “is it because of jake isn't it?” you felt his finger on your ankle. “would you miss fucking little jakey?” he mocked you again.

“Are you getting turned on again?” his finger dragging up your thigh. “you didn't tell him earlier, why didn't he want him to find out you got wet from me threatening you earlier?” he made his way to your thigh, squeezing hard, you whimpered, his face was angry. “you keep asking questions.” he dug his fingers into your thigh. “you want to know why?” he said. “Why I killed her?” you couldn't move anyway so it was an obvious rhetorical question. “because she was a murderer,” he spat. “and I hate those the most.”

What was he talking about? you wanted to say something, but you couldn't; you wanted to ask him, but you couldn't open your mouth. “stop asking questions about me.” he finally let your leg go. “Next time I snap your fucking neck.” and just like that he was gone— you shot up feeling your legs , looked down at them; no bruises, breathless you looked around your room; everything was normal. except the fucking adrenaline wouldn't stop running through your veins, and the obvious ache in between your legs.

when you finally came to, you were livid; he had no right to be upset with you; you didn't murder anybody, so why was he so upset with you? why'd he want to kill you so badly? and who the hell did she kill; that really wasn't on the top of your list now, finding the murderous man. “sunghoon!”

your voice was booming throughout the house. “I know you're listening, you're all always fucking listening.” you yanked at your hair frustrated. “so fucking answer me , sunghoon!” you felt like you were going crazy , screaming into the air like a lunatic. “what?” you turned around, and there he was. “I told you to le—” before he could finish , all you saw was red , before raising your hand , slapping the demon across the face. “What the fuck?”

“how fucking dare you?” you hissed. “whatever my grandmother did to you doesn't have shit to do with me , so don't you ever interfere with my dreams again.” you said. “and I'm not taking the necklace off , your little scare tactic doesn't scare me anymore.” he scoffed. “scare tactic?” He said. “That's what you think it is?” you could almost feel the heat bouncing off his body. “I said next time I will snap your neck.” before you could get a word out , your words were cut short; his hand wrapping around your neck. “I meant it.”

you could see his eyes flash red; he finally was gonna kill you. “I told you to take off the necklace and leave,” he said. “you should've listened.” He heard your heartbeat going faster, he wanted to do it, end it before he could start— but he couldn't.” He let you go , you gasped falling to the floor. “Stay away from me, stop calling out my name,” he said. “He's here.” before you could say something he was gone and Jake was here , ready to console you.

“you almost killed her!” Jake wanted to snap the boy's neck; that wouldn't help he was already dead. “but he didn't.” sunghoon sat on the bed. “and why didn't you sunghoon?” he sighed. “because she's innocent.” he said. “and?” he looked at Jake. “I'm not a killer , I don't kill innocent people.”

You rub the sleep from your eyes; sitting up, rubbing your sore neck. “you're gonna be fine.” a voice made you look up. “su-sunghoon.” you stuttered. “I'm not gonna hurt you calm down.” he said. “You tried to choke me.” You said. “yeah well now that you're not a murderer i have no reason to.” He said. “That's not how you apologize.” you said. “because it wasn't an apology.” you both stared into each other's eyes, before he coughed. “go to bed.” you tried to say something, but before you could blink— he was gone. “what?” then you realized, it wasn't a dream— he was really in your room.

you don't see him again— and soon saturday rolls around; and your date with kai. “you really don't have to go.” Jake followed you around the house as you got ready. “Well I already agreed , so yes I do.” you said. “why'd you agree in the first place?” you turned to him. “Because he's the first human I've come across since I came up here.” he pouted. “I can come with you.” you stood with your hand on your hips. “its supposed to be a date.” you said. “why would I bring you on a date?" he frowned, "why would you go on a date?" you pinched his cheek. “I'll only be gone for a few hours.”

you met kai at the bar; he was waiting at a table for your arrival. “kai!” you waved. “hey.” he stood up, hugging you. “you made it.” he let you go. “Of course I did.” you followed suit. “order anything you want , it's on me tonight.” He said. “You don't have to.” he shook his head. “Think of it as a very late welcome gift.”

“you're really pretty, you know that?” the red faced boy said. “I wanted to say that ever since I saw you first.” he was drunk , slurring his words. “but I was nervous.” he pouted, it was cute; it reminded you of jake. “but I was so happy when you said yes to going out with me,” he said. “I'm glad,” you said , and you genuinely were, but your mind was elsewhere; it was on sunghoon. why was he on your mind? he tried to kill you, you tried to shake it away.

“Are you okay?” he asked , both of you walking out. “yeah, are you okay?” you laughed , watching him stumble. “Will you be able to drive?” he shook his head. “I live down the road with my brothers, I'm fine, are you okay to drive?” you only had one drink , knowing you had to drive. “Yeah I'm fine,” he nodded. “Can I see you again?” your mind kept shifting , from him to jake— to sunghoon. “We'll see.”

you drove back to the house , pulling into the driveway. “Jake?” you call out , not getting an answer; but a noise , from the kitchen. “Jake?” there was the sound of glass shattering. “Jake , I told you to turn the light on , you've broken three of the mugs.” you threw your bag down , walking into the kitchen. “Jake get out of the ki—.” you froze in your spot. It wasn't Jake standing over the shards of glass; it was sunghoon. “I broke it , cleaned it.” he said. “wh-why are you here?” you asked. “Because you've been calling out for me for an hour , it started to get annoying.” He said. “I thought I said don't call out for me.”

“I didn't— you have been, you've been thinking about me, I heard it , felt it.” he said. “It's annoying.” you frowned. “Well you try being choked and then finding out you can't escape the thing trying to kill you, and then the thing trying to kill you is standing over a broken mug telling you to clean it.” you said. “That's annoying as well.” his face is stoic , but so is yours; staring at each other , both of you filling up with anger again. “I don't like you.”

you scoffed. “feeling is mutual.” he stepped closer , you stepped back. “i-im not scared of you.” He smirked. “I can hear your heartbeat dummy.” he said. “It's late out , why are you coming in late?” He had the nerve to ask you questions. “what's it matter to you?” he shrugged. “you smell like alcohol.” He scrunched his nose up in disgust. “you were out drinking? was it with a guy , little jakey won't like that.” it was your turn to scoff. “jakey or you?”

“What you do isn't my concern,” he said. “says the one standing in my kitchen , asking where I've been , seems like you like to make anything I do your concern.” you said, he stepped closer. “because I have no choice.” He said , standing over you now. “All because of that stupid necklace , as long as you're wearing it, I can hear what you're doing, see you.” he stopped. “feel what you're feeling.” your breath hitched as you felt his hand go up to your hair. “It's killing me.” you felt a tug on it, you whimpered. “i can't fucking escape you.”

he couldn't stop himself; his lips attaching to your neck with quickness, pushing you against the kitchen counter. “su-sunghoon.” he yanked on your head back. “don't speak.” He continued to attack your neck. “don't fucking speak.”

his hand gripped your waist; it most likely was gonna leave a bruise, but you didn't care. after leaving your neck covered in bruises, he pulled away. “On your knees.” he pushed you down. “gotta shut you up.” he groaned , unzipping his pants, pulling his underwear down just a bit to free his cock from its confinements , slapping against his abdomen. “open.”

you don't know why you were doing this; he tried to kill you; you should be scared of him— but that all seemed to not matter as he pushed his cock into yours mouth. “fuck.” he groaned, his cock hitting the back of your throat. “suck it , suck my fucking dick.” he growled. “wanna fuck your face.”

tears streaming down your face; drooling as he abused your throat. “so fucking messy -fuck- i can hear all the dirty thoughts on your little head.” he cursed. “so dirty, letting someone who hurt you fuck your tiny little throat.” he moaned, your thighs tightening together. “you're horny I can feel it.” he said. “need someone fu-fuck you.” he held your hair once more , pulling you off his cock. “not yet.” he pulled you off him, stroking his hard on. “gonna make you want it.” he said. “fuck you.” you spat; your mind was everywhere, you pissed at him— more importantly, you were horny. “still running that mouth.” he cursed, stroking faster. “see how fucking stupid you look -fuck- trying to be pissed at me , covered in my cum.” he growled. “fuck I'm cumming.” you felt his cum hitting your cheeks , tapping your lips. “So messy.”

You woke up the next morning; everything running through your head , you groaned. “yeah it happened.” Jake said. “I wish I could make it disappear from my mind.” you looked at the boy. “You two are sexually bonded to each other in a weird way,” he said. “like super weird , you hate each other so much , but you also want to fuck each other.” You stared at him. “i'm not jealous, I know our bond is stronger.” you rolled your eyes. “hey I'm not the one who fucked the demon who tried to kill me.” he shrugged. “I hate you.”

He was back two days later; you were sitting on your bed , when he pushed open your closet door. “Did I say you can use that, did I?” you said. “Yeah well I did.” he said, sitting down on the bed. “you were thinking about me again.” you stared at him. “Who did my grandmother make you kill?” His face dropped. “I’m not talking to anyone about that , especially you.” he said. “Why?” he said. “cause it was my grandmother.”

“You want to know? really?” he said , you nodded, “I do.” “It was your grandfather,” his voice was laced with bitterness. “she made me kill your grandfather.” you furrowed your eyebrows. “No you're lying, grandfather died of a heart attack.” you said. “Did he? or was it because I crushed his heart?” you gulped, he was looking you dead in the eyes. “why?” you asked. “She was tired of him , just wanted him gone , and she couldn't do it,” He said. “no , why did you kill him?” you said. “my told me he was the kindest man she'd ever known.”

“He was,” he said. “I couldn't do anything about it.” you scoffed. “So you just had to kill him?” he huffed. “You wouldn't understand,” he said. “Yeah I do, you're a murderer.” you could see his eyes turn red. “I'm not a murderer.” you curled back against the headboard. “I was a slave to her , to that fucking necklace— to who ever owns it.” He said. “That's my punishment.”

“punishment?” you questioned, “what kind of stupid punishment is that?” he closed his eyes , before continuing on. “As punishment for killing innocent people , I became a slave,” he said. “They killed her , she did nothing wrong and they killed her.” His fit was tightly closed. “who?” you asked. “Her name was mina.” he said. “she was my first love, it was supposed to be a robbery, we both were supposed to be out, but she didn't feel like it , so she stayed.”

“So you sold your soul like Jake?” you asked. “But he isn't a slave?” he scoffed. “If you think watching the love of your life die for the past 100 years is considered good , then you're just as crazy as I thought.” He said. “I didn't sell my soul , I died and went to hell.” he said. “After they killed her , I went crazy; I wanted revenge.” he said. “So I found them , all of them— and I killed them,” he said. “But you said they were trying to rob you, so they were not innocent.”

“they weren't, but there was this rage inside , I killed everyone in that house that night; including myself,” he said. “when I got to hell , he forced me to live through killing 2 innocent people and myself and over.” he said. “until I was begging on my knees for him to stop.” he said. “I told him I'd do anything.” and he turned me into a demon, and sent me here, forced to live out eternity as a slave for the people to whoever found that necklace, in the house I killed those people in.”

“So you killed her?” you asked. “When I'm told to do something, it's like I can't control my body— she forced me to kill an innocent person,” he said. “I was punished that night, he said if I ever killed any innocent person again I would be punished,” he said. “how were you punished?” “That's not important.” He said. “After that I thought she'd stop , then I started hearing her thoughts about killing her caregiver. Her caregiver had a child , 2 daughters and no husband, and she wanted me to kill her, for no reason. I couldn't wait until she told me and I couldn't stop , so I had to do it.” he said , staring off into space. “I had to kill her , so no one else got hurt,” he said, before staring at you. “You look like her when she was younger, I guess I really just hated her that bad.” you didn't say anything, just sat there in silence.

“don't look at me like that,” he said. “with pity, I don't want your pity.” He stood up. “I only told you so you'd stop asking jake.” He said. “I don't need your sympathy.” You sat up fully. “I wasn't going give you any.” You said. “You still tried to kill me.” You said. “and how do i know you aren't lying , demons don't really have a good track record of being truthful.” he grew frustrated, lifting his shirt up. “because this is what happened when I killed your grandfather.” Three long scratches on his chest. “This is what happens when I kill an innocent person.”

“yo-you can't heal them?” he huffed. “don't you think I would if I could?” he scoffed. “What the hell am I doing here? explaining myself to you.” he went to walk away. “no.” you said. “sit down.” He looked at you with anger on his face. “I said sit down.” he moved to the bed, sitting down. “I don't want to be here with you.” He said. “Too bad, because I'm not letting you leave , and I'm keeping the necklace on.” before you could say anything else, he was yanking your legs down , pinning them to the bed. “Fine then I'll do what I came here to do in the first place, the real reason you keep thinking about me.” he climbed on top of you. “to fuck you.”

he pulled down your sleep shorts , leaving you in your underwear. “open your fucking legs.” he growled , pulling your underwear down. “so fucking wet , do you get off on the fact that I don't like you?” you smirked. “wipe that smirk off your face before I shove my dick back down your throat.” his eyes were red , but filled with lust; not anger. “Please , you enjoy that more than I did, I remember you moaning and groaning too well.” He gripped your cheeks. “slut.”

Slapping the inside of your thighs, holding them open. “God you're dripping, you want me to fuck you that bad?” He pulled his cock from his pants. “just hurry up and fuck me.” he roughly shoved himself inside you, both of you moaning out. “shit!” he moaned, moving his hips , holding down your waist , keeping you still as he abused your cunt. “tight fucking cunt , sucking in my cock like a slut.” his hand coming up to your neck. “fu-fuck , please faster.” You moaned , his hips speeding up.

you were so close to cumming, you could feel it— then you felt him slip out of you. “Kee— I know what you're doing, trying to get your way.” he said. “I will gag you to keep that mouth shut if I have to.” he flipped you over; your ass up in the air, pushing your head in the pillow. “stop trying to tell me what to do.” he slammed back into you , you tell as he slapped your ass. “Just shut up and take my cock.”

his movements were lethal; his hip snapping against your ass , watching it bounce back. “fuck sunghoon.” You screamed. “Please let me cum.” he moaned. “fuck, fuck go ahead cum.” he squeezed your ass. “cum all over my cock.” your legs shook as you came , eyes rolling to the back of your head as he fucked you through your orgasm. “shit I'm gonna cum , I'm gonna cum inside.” He groaned , “take my fucking cum.” you felt his cum filling you up , his hips twitching as he came. “sh-shit.” he pulled out of you.

“I'm not gonna make you murder anyone.” You said. “I don't think I ever wanted anyone dead.” he looked at you. “Well there was talia in second grade who took my pink crayon.” You thought about it further. “and a few of my ex's , but I wouldn't act on it or force someone else to do it.” you said. “and how do I know that?” He said. “you have to trust me, just how I have to trust that you won't snap and kill me.” You said. “you’re safe for now,” he said. “I can live with that.” you said. “but the next time you ever try to tell me what to do when im fucking you, I will gag you.” you rolled your eyes. “whatever.”

“I'm leaving,” he said. “Jake should be here soon , and I don't want to see him right after this , he'll be sulky for days.” you smiled. “he's cute isn't he?.” he scrunched his nose in disgust. “no, no he is not.” you pouted , then spoke up. “was it you?” you asked. “what are you talking about?” he said. “The one in the mirror on my first with the necklace?” he laughed. “the last thing that day wasn't fucking you or seeing you naked.” he said. “It was murdering you.”

“asshole.” you said, he smirked. “it was jay.” He said. “jay, jake told me he hasn't shown himself for the past 200 years.” he shrugged.

“i guess you're special , congratulations.”

TAGLIST. @deobitful @in-somnias-world @darlingz99 @luvitaria @lost-fantasy @lostinneocity @nalenhypen @heeshlove @kirinaa08 @strxwbloody @ryn000 @neosexuals @sakanelli-afc @yizhoutv @capri-cuntz @lilyuwon @criminalseung @hanhaeji @eggomi @serenijiny @luvvsnae @jakesfurry

©️LUVYENI

[serafilms]

song 53! magic (one direction) + percy jackson requested by @isabelboo (2023 spotify wrapped event)

you, you’ve got this spell on me, i don’t know what to believe, kissed you once now i can’t leave

Percy isn’t really sure how or when it started, but he’s pretty sure you’ve put some kind of curse on him.

His thoughts are consumed by you day and night. His vision tunnels in on you every time you’re around. Whenever you talk to him, all he can do is think of your lips. It’s excruciating. It’s nauseating. And it’s definitely affecting his daily activities, he thinks as he sits, dazed in the infirmary, with a stab wound (a very minor one!) in his side.

It has to be some kind of magic, he thinks, because he’s never felt like this. Maybe some voodoo? Maybe a trick by Hecate as vengeance for defeating the Titans. Maybe you’ve been slipping him potions in his food. It could be anything, and Percy is not as well-versed in magic knowledge as some other people at camp, so he has no idea.

But he finds himself always looking for you, asking after you. He finds himself trailing after you always, and depressed when you’re not around.

The strangest part is that nobody else seems to notice anything out of the ordinary, and he’s too afraid to ask them about it.

He mentioned something about it to Annabeth once, but she merely waved him off.

(“It’s like I can only think of Y/N,” he said.

Annabeth looked over her notes distractedly. “Uh huh, yeah, that’s great, Percy. Hey, since you’re not being any help here, would you mind getting Y/N so they can help me finish the Capture the Flag plans?”

Percy blinked. “Okay?”)

He thinks it must have started somewhere between all the times you held his hand to lead him somewhere, or the times he stood behind you to help correct your sword fighting posture, or the times you touched his hands and arms to correct his archery posture. He always ended up blushing furiously after each of those ordeals.

Or maybe it started that time he kissed you. Although, technically, you’d kissed him first (on the cheek, nothing crazy!) before he went off to face Kronos.

But then again, Percy had been the one to kiss you on the lips when he found you again after.

(“Percy!”

He heard the call of his name, registered your voice, and his head was already whipping around to find you. He found you, a strained look on your face as you hobbled towards him, and Percy rushed towards you.

No sooner had you steadied yourself by holding onto his forearms than he had leaned forwards and kissed you on the lips.)

But Percy couldn’t help it! He’d just been so worried about you, and so relieved to find you alive. He thinks maybe during one of those kisses you transferred your evil little spell.

Still, he hoped that kiss might have meant something to you, more than friendship, but you hadn’t gotten the chance to talk about it, since you’d collapsed on your broken ankle right after.

Even until now, you two have never really discussed what you are, or what the kiss/es entail for your future relationship. Because magic spell or not, Percy’s endless thoughts about you have him planning out your future (however much of it you can plan for two demigods who face certain death before their prime). An apartment in New York, close enough to his mom and Paul but not so close that it’s overbearing, college and planning schedules to match up, weekends out with your friends laughing and eating and watching movies and doing normal teenager things.

That’s all he wants. But he’ll settle for the lingering touches and smiles he gets from you for now.

But this curse, spell, whatever (because gods forbid Percy Jackson admit he’s in love with you before he’s sure you’re in love with him. They kissed you, Percy! What more do you need, for Zeus’ sake) is seriously becoming a problem, because somebody explain to him how from 30 feet away, Percy managed to see an Ares camper headed straight for you and make it over the battlefield in time to intercept it. With his own abdomen.

It was a stupid mistake, he acknowledges now. He’s been through countless battles, and he knows he could’ve incapacitated the camper from behind, or just knocked the spear out of his hand or something. But something about seeing you in danger just sets alight a fire in his mind that burns through any rational thought, leaving only an urge to stop you from getting hurt.

A little inconvenient now that he’s wincing on an infirmary bed with his side burning up. But at least you’re okay. And oh, look! It’s you! He’s not sure if he’s hallucinating now, or if you’re really standing in front of him.

“Seaweed brain,” you say, sniffling.

Okay, definitely you.

“Hey Y/N,” Percy says meekly. His side still feels like it’s on fire but his heart feels warmer with you here.

You take his hand and his heart aches at the tears in your eyes. “Hey, I’m fine,” he assures, ignoring the fact that he is definitely not fine.

“You’re an idiot, is what you are.”

“Yeah, that too.”

You look at him, at the ridiculous little smile he’s giving you to reassure you, at the bandages around his waist, and his hand in yours, and you lurch forwards and press your lips to his.

Percy jolts in surprise and feels his abdomen screaming at him from the movement, but kisses back nonetheless, feeling your lips on his once more and your tongue graze his bottom one.

When you pull back, he stares at you in a daze. If kissing is how you kept this spell on him, he is okay with being under it forever.

“You’re ridiculous, Percy Jackson,” you say, “but I love you.”

He swears his heart has never felt this warm. “I love you too.”

(“Sorry,” Leo says, looking rather gobsmacked, “they weren’t already dating?”

“Leo!” Piper throws her hands up in exasperation.

He smacks his cheeseburger back down on his plate and stares at the faces of his friends. Jason and Frank also look rather miffed, but the girls are all rolling their eyes. “Excuse me for being surprised! They’ve known each other since they were, what, 13?”

“12, actually,” answers Annabeth.

“12! When Percy woke up on the other side of America, the only name he could remember was Y/N’s, right?”

“Correct,” says Frank.

“And we spent ages on the Argo II, during which they got caught in the stables—“

“They were just talking,” says Hazel.

“—and they fell into Tartarus together! Because he refused to let go of her hand! They literally went all the way to hell, all the way through hell, and back out, together!”

Nobody says a word, all looking at Leo.

“You’re telling me,” Leo says, breathing very intensely as though he just found out that his pet dog has been run over, “that during that entire time, neither of them asked each other out?”

“Nope,” says Annabeth matter-of-factly, “and he also kissed Y/N on his 16th birthday.”

“Man,” Jason sighs, “talk about slow burn.”)

[pookietv]

aquatic missile | arthurtv

had this idea that i thought was adorable so here

have a little arthur with a crush on a marine biologist !!!!

after arthur had moved to london, finally getting somewhat used to the area he had moved to, he had become slightly socially worn out from seeing his friends much more often, being exposed to many more social situations all whilst trying to unpack and organise his new flat.

so he had decided to abandon his responsibilities for the day to go to the aquarium, which was honestly one of the things he had been looking forward to most when moving to a bigger city then he was used to, the museums, zoos, and aquariums he could finally visit.

he was happy going alone, wanting to unwind, his headphones hanging from his neck, ready to play some music as he strolled through and gawked at all the sea life.

when he walked into the lobby, he noticed the place was quite empty, but it didn't wholly surprise him - it was 11am on a tuesday, most people were probably at work or school, and he had somewhat been glad it was empty.

he walked up to the desk, slightly looking up at the woman at the desk before back down to his feet for a moment.

the worker was quite pretty.

"hi, can i help you?" the woman spoke, in a sweetly helpful way.

"hello, i just wanted to get a ticket?" he said, a little quietly.

"just a one day general admission?" she asked, and he confirmed with a nod of his head.

"yeah, that sounds good to me," he nodded, his eyes slightly crinkling as he offered her a slightly awkward smile.

"have you been before? we have a little leaflet with a map in that might help if you'd like one, you can obviously just wander as you please but if theres specific things you'd like to see, they're all labelled in here," she offered, placing a small blue coloured leaflet on the desk, his fingers gently reaching to take it, nodding gratefully.

"oh, thank you, yeah.. i mean, i love all the sea creatures but i do really like the sharks," he admitted with a small laugh, and she nodded, giggling a little herself.

"oh, me too.. the sharks are my favourite by a mile, i even have a specific favourite shark, they actually let me name her," she smiled, and his eyes lit up.

"no way, really? what did you call her?" he asked, clearly interested.

"a little rogue but i called her missile," she said bashfully, and he laughed.

"that is very cool." he confirmed, and she blushed a little with a nod.

arthur handed her the money for the ticket, taking it from her with a small thanks as he headed his way into the aquarium.

he could easily spend hours in the aquarium, and he did, meandering slowly and stopping at each small fish that he could see, reading all the boards with the facts on, and by the time he had even looked down at his phone he noticed it was already 2pm, and he was approaching the shark section of the aquarium, a grin on his face at the prospect.

he had barely ran into anyone whilst walking through the winding path of the place, and in the shark section he could only see one person in the whole big area, a big glass tunnel, someone hunched over on a bench, eating and watching the sharks on the other side.

he began slowly walking around, his head focussed on looking up at the glass, watching the sharks swim around, even over his head when he was lucky before he heard noise.

"oh, hi again," a small familiar voice said, and he turned to the girl eating, who had lifted her head up - the worker from before.

"hello," he said, smiling a little, "must be very cool to be able to eat here on your lunch break," he joked a bit, and she nodded.

"uh huh, one of my favourite parts of the day, checking on missile... and of course all the other sharks, i love them all. though, feeding time is also pretty cool,"

"feeding them would be so cool," he nodded in confirmation. "which one is missile?" he asked curiously, and she grinned.

"the one that swam over your head before," she laughed slightly, putting down her box of pasta and standing up for a second, slightly closer to him before pointing upwards, at a spotted slightly smaller shark, "that's missile, she's a leopard shark,"

"what about the others? do you know all their names?" he asked, and she nodded, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.

"that's david, he's a lemon shark... that's haribo, he's a gummy shark, that ones called eve, she's a nurse shark... and the rest are hiding somewhere, but we have hammerheads, angel sharks and cow sharks hiding round here somewhere," she laughed a little, shrugging, "some of them like the attention more then others,"

"so you're really interested in sharks? or is it just a thing where you know a lot from working near them?" arthur asked, and she nodded again.

"i studied marine biology, i usually work more behind the scenes but on quiet days i work behind the desk too, but yeah, i love sharks, and just sea animals on a whole... i mean, i even have a shark tattoo," she giggled. "what about you, you just here to see them or do you have an interest?"

"oh, um, i have an interest in animals in general, and i just moved to london, so i wanted to come see the aquarium 'cause i've never been before," he admitted, and she nodded.

"i do love the aquarium, it's so peaceful, i mean sometimes i come in even on my days off, which in most jobs seems so bizarre but, i don't know, i just love it here."

and that's how arthur ended up frequenting the aquarium more than he intended to, over the past month going at least six times, enjoying the aquarium (and secretly hoping to run into the girl who he had become just a small bit infatuated with but had only admitted that to his close friends, who in turn obviously mocked him)

"you literally don't even know this girls name," george laughed when arthur had admitted he may have had a tiny crush on her after telling them about going to the aquarium for the fourth time in two weeks.

"well, obviously i know that, but i mean, i can't find out unless i see her again, can i?"

"only arthur could go to an aquarium and randomly fall in love with a girl just because she spoke to him about sharks," chris said sarcastically, and arthur rolled his eyes at him, his face red.

"she was cool, okay? she literally gets to name and feed and pet sharks, that is cool!" he defended himself in a splutter of embarrassment, only leading to slightly more giggles

when he next went, and he had paid for his ticket with someone else at the desk, and began his wander around the museum, he heard a slightly teasing voice once in the shark exhibit.

"you know, you could have saved yourself a lot of money if you had just bought a monthly pass," a giggling voice said, and he turned around to her with a slightly red face and a shrug.

"didn't realise i was gonna end up coming so much," he admitted with flushed cheeks.

"just become obsessed with the sharks, eh?" she asked, and he gulped down with another shy nod.

"uh huh. and, um. well, kinda hoping to run into you, also," he acknowledged, only to hear her laugh a little more.

"stalking me now, are you?" she asked, only to make his eyes widen

"no, not like that! just that, you know, i thought you were interesting and that-" she laughed a little harder now,

"i'm just kidding, don't worry about it. you do know there's other ways to see girls you find interesting other then hoping to bump into them at work?" she teased.

"well, that's what i was hoping to ask, you know... if i could maybe see you not in the shark section of the aquarium? like a date?" he asked, fiddling with his fingers a little.

"sure, that sounds nice," she smiled at him, "though, you don't even know my name," she teased.

"well, what is your name?" arthur asked, slight more confidence in his voice and a small smile on his face, slightly reassured that she had said yes.

"whats yours? i mean, for all i know you're some stalker who frequents aquariums looking for victims," she teased, leading him to jokingly roll his eyes.

"my name is arthur, and i promise it was not stalking... just thought you were smart, and pretty, so.. what's your name?"

"suppose you'll have to find that out on the date, hm, arthur?

[thezombieprostitute]

Barista Steve - Part 4

Summary: Finals have you super stressed out. Steve knows how to help with that.

Word Count: ~2k

Warnings: Bad parents, Dom/Sub dynamics, Smut. Please let me know if I missed any!

You were dealing with the big F's: Finals, Family and Fear of Failure. Your parents wouldn't stop reminding you of the importance of passing your exams. Your classes were incredibly difficult. And you didn't want to think about what would happen if you didn't pass one of your finals.

As you leave your latest study group, you see Steve waiting for you by his motorcycle. You're practically running to hug him, finding solace in his scent, his touch, his comforting words.

Steve has been frustrated by your situation as well. He knows you're not getting real support from your family. Well, not the kind of support that actually helps. More the kind of support that only makes things worse. He's doubtful of your defense of "they mean well". He's seen the effects of the stress and while he's worked hard to help mitigate them, there's only so much he can do.

The one big light at the end of the tunnel for both of you was your agreement to move in together as soon as you got your degree. Neither of you cared that your parents wouldn't approve of Steve, you both knew there'd be no one else for either of you. You took care of each other, supported each other, and you were tired of keeping him a dirty secret.

Besides, your parents had told you time and time again they wouldn't support you forever. Part of you knows you should've moved out sooner, but it was a truth you couldn't realize until you got a taste of what you really wanted. Steve definitely provided that. You'd be forever grateful to him for his patience.

"Hey there, Good Girl," Steve coos into your ear. "I figured you could use a break. A chance to shut down your brain."

"That sounds perfect, Sir," you agree. "Need to let my brain relax."

"Then let's put your choker on and get your helmet."

Steve didn't take you to the studio like you thought he would. Instead he parked the motorcycle outside of one of your favorite diners. The constriction of the choker reminds you that he's in charge, you're not to question his commands, but you can't hide the look of confusion on your face.

He sees your face and puts his hand on the back of your neck, "I need to take care of my Good Girl and I know you haven't been eating well lately. So we're going to get you food, water. And remember, I'll order for you so you don't have to waste brain power."

"Thank you, Sir," you happily sigh. You've been subsisting on granola bars and coffee lately. Your stomach rumbles at the thought of real food.

Steve orders you both moderately sized meals. He knows you need to eat but too much food could hurt you just as much as the too little you've had lately. He also makes sure you both drink water. He doesn't want to be unfair and order something for himself that you can't or shouldn't eat and he knows you need to hydrate. Especially after you start drinking your water and it's gone in a blink!

After the meal you're starting to feel sleepy. Steve kisses your forehead and says he's taking you to his place. Again, you're confused that you're not going to the studio but you don't question. You just enjoy holding onto him while riding his motorcycle. Breathing in his scent, feeling his muscled torso underneath your arms. The cold wind doesn't bother you much because he's just so warm.

Steve walks you up to his apartment. You hope it'll be both of yours soon. He directs you inside and tells you to wait for him in the bedroom. You don't need to be told twice.

Once inside the bedroom, you drop to your knees and let your arms relax as you wait for his orders. It's taken a lot of time and effort but you've learned how to shut down the part of your brain that feels bad for "sitting around doing nothing". Wearing the choker, feeling it every time you breath, is a good reminder and a good focus to keep you from fidgeting and thinking about what's next.

Steve walks in wearing nothing but a pair of low hanging grey sweatpants. You fight the urge to moan at the view of his tattooed, muscly torso while your pussy clenches. He steps in front of you. "Undress," he orders.

You stand as you hurry to obey. When you're fully naked you successfully fight the urge to try to cover yourself with your arms. You never have to feel ashamed in front of Steve. He's told you time and time again how much he loves seeing all of you. He's shown you as well.

"Good Girl," he purrs. He brings out a skimpy but soft looking nightgown. "Arms up."

You raise your arms and he puts the nightgown on you. It fits perfectly, like you knew it would. Steve always seems to know what feels comfortable for you. Knows what you need and how you need it. It's why you trust him enough to shut your brain down around him.

He caresses your cheek, eyes full of love, before pulling back the blankets on the bed. "Now lay down on your side for some cuddles."

You practically leap onto the bed in eagerness. Cuddles with Steve are always so restful and generally lead to more. A part of you is worried that you're going to fall asleep, but you quiet that down. You're following Sir's orders, being his Good Girl. He knows what he's doing.

Steve gets into the bed and holds you from behind. You've never felt so safe and warm as you do in these moments. He gently caresses you, giving you occasional kisses to the top of your head. Your eyelids are getting so heavy. He whispers, "go ahead and sleep, Good Girl. Pretty sure you need it. I'll hold you the entire time."

He says more but your brain doesn't processes anything other than that he's talking, it just drifts off to sleep.

You're not sure how long you slept for, but every part of you knows you needed that sleep. True to his word, Steve is still holding you and you smile in appreciation, small tears forming in the corner of your eye. You feel Steve stir and he squeezes you tight.

"Did you sleep well?" He yawns and kisses the top of your head.

"Yes, Sir."

"Glad to hear it," he mumbles as he continues to kiss you. You can feel his erection against your ass and fight the urge to roll your hips against him. "My Good Girl needed some rest, didn't she?"

"Yes, Sir," you rasp. Your need is building. He can definitely hear it in your voice because he softly chuckles against your skin.

"I think my Good Girl needs something else now," he purrs into your ear, sending electricity straight to your core.

He moves his hand down your body and reaches underneath the nightgown. You understand now why it was so skimpy; not only did it show off plenty of skin, but it gave him ready access to everything. He starts rubbing his fingers along you folds as he nibbles gently on your shoulder, making you whimper.

"I'm going to get on my back and you're going to sit on my face," he tells you. "No hovering."

"Yes, Sir," you whimper, both excited and nervous. Steve had a tendency to get lost in the taste of your pussy, making you overstimulated.

Before he lets you go he whispers, "what's your safe word?" You tell him and he thanks you before rolling onto his back.

You're quick to move into position, but you still let yourself enjoy the sight of Steve's body, his erection making a prominent tent in his sweatpants. As you're settling onto his face, Steve is already pinning you to him and devouring you. His strong hands hold you in place as he uses his tongue to reach all of your favorite spots. They're some of his favorite, too, because of the sounds the elicit from you.

The headboard is the only thing you can grasp and you do so with all your might as the first orgasm of many hits you hard and you cry out from pleasure. A small part of your brain realizes how much you've been needing this as it feels like everything in your system is finally unclenching from all your stress. It's only been a minute or so and your limbs are already feeling like jelly.

After the second orgasm, you're already crying from relief and pleasure. You repeatedly rasp, "thank you, Sir," not knowing if Steve can actually hear it or not. You try to roll your hips, a silent plea for him not to stop. He responds with a squeeze to your hips, an acknowledgement of your request as he adjusts just enough to reach that one spot he knows drives you crazy. He smiles as you cry out from the sensation and ride his face like your life depended on it. He keeps going until you cum on his face a third time.

He slows to a stop as your body goes lax, tears flowing freely down your face. He gently maneuvers you so that you're beside him, still repeating your mantra of "thank you, Sir". He looks you over but doesn't pick up on anything worrisome. "How's my Good Girl doing?"

"Thank you, Sir," you whimper. "Thank you for taking care of me."

He kisses along your cheeks where your tears are falling. "Such a Good Girl. But we're not done yet. Lay on your stomach."

As soon as you turn, Steve spreads your legs. "Such a pretty pussy," he groans. He kneads your ass cheeks for a bit before kissing up along your spine until he's covering you like a weighted blanket. He wraps one of his arms around so that he's got a hold on your throat. He kisses you once again before he roughly pushes his cock into you.

"Best pussy I've ever felt," he tells you as he starts up a brutal pace that has you keening. "Taking my cock like the good girl you are," he praises. "Taking everything I give you and begging for more."

"S--S--Sir," you croak.

"Cum for me," he orders. Your body automatically obeys. "That's my Good Girl," he groans as your pussy squeezes him tight. "Fucking you brain dead feels so good." You moan in response to his words. "You like being fucked like this? You like when my cock makes you dumb?"

"Y--Yes, Sir!"

He licks along the back of your neck, making you squeal. "I need one more from you." He readjusts you so you're slightly on your knees, making his cock feel so much deeper. He resumes the brutal pace and you start to see stars from the pleasure. "Cum for me, Good Girl."

Your body obliges and you cum with a lewd sob. He's quick to follow with a few grunts before he lets go of your throat and starts giving you small kisses along your back.

He pulls out of you with a soft hiss and immediately goes into aftercare mode. He removes your choker, cleans you up, and gives you reassurances as he holds you.

Finals are done. You've officially completed your degree. You opt to not go to the graduation ceremony, too many people. You've moved in with Steve, much to your parents' disbelief and outrage. They called you a lot of not very nice things that only reaffirmed your choice to get away from them.

One of Steve's friends at his art studio actually got you connected with a well paying job near the apartment. You were happy to finally be contributing financially. More importantly, Steve didn't object to you having your own bank account. Steve never wanted you to feel you had to be with him because of finances. He wanted you to have agency. It was something you'd probably spend forever getting used to.

Thankfully, Steve had the patience to help you out.

Okay, so this series is done, right? Barista Steve won't continue to bug me, right?!

Edit: Part 3/Series Masterlist

Tagging: @alicedopey; @delicatebarness; @icefrozendeadlyqueen; @jaqui-has-a-conspiracy-theory; @ronearoundblindly

[darlink-xoxo]

MEMORIZED BY YOU!ੈ̊♡

in which, a boy thinks he's in need of medical attention

but he's really just in love..

GIF isnt mine

─ͥ─ͦ─ͮ─ͤ➼♥

just shoto being blissfully unaware of how whipped he is 💕

read pt2 here

Warnings: Oblivious Shoto, Shoto in Denial, Puppy Love 🫶.. spelling mistakes

❥ · ﾟ₊ he blinked when a hand waved itself in front of his face. glancing at his surroundings, shoto's brows lightly scrunched together as he tried to remember where he was. oh right, he was in the middle of eating lunch in the cafeteria. turning to look at who waved in his face, he was greeted by his friends looking at him with smug faces.

".. hello?"

"sorry to interrupt you todoroki, but you were spaced out for a few minutes now." izuku spoke with a small smile.

ochako leaned over towards tsu and whispered something, before both started giggling with fox grins. shoto blinked, confusion clear on his face, he looked towards tenya who cleared his throat.

the engine quirk user pointed behind him to a table over with a sly smile on his face. shoto's head tilted as he looked over, his breath seemed to leave him as his eyes landed on a particular someone..

their name was y/n, one of the top students of class 1b. his surroundings left his mind once more, his vision turned tunneled, and it narrowed in on them. just how much time had passed? he couldn't say.

it was like they managed to stop his world from spinning, they kept him grounded, while also making him throw away any rationality he might've had. he felt lightheaded, did he have heartburn? or was he drunk..

wait shoto doesnt even drink

you were happily chatting with your classmates kinoko and tokage. although, it was more like kinoko was listening, while you and the dark green haired girl chatted away. you both knew that kinoko was the shy type, so you didnt forget to include her in your conversations.

as you sipped your drink, you glanced to your side to see tokage whisper something to the mushroom quirk user. it was then that kinoko covered her mouth to hide her giggles, her shoulders shaking with laughter and tokage let out loud laughs.

you flashed them a confused smile as you asked them what was up. they did nothing but laugh harder, before eventually calming down and pointing forward at the next table a couple feet away in front of you guys.

you tilted your head as you turned to face the direction where they pointed at, before being stunned when you made eye contact with a certain ice and fire user. although he seemed to snap out of whatever spell he was under, his face held a similar look of shock as yours.

you quickly glanced around you in case he was looking at someone else instead, when you found no one else you sent a confused wave in his direction. smiling at him before going back to eating your lunch

shoto responded with a wave of his own, although still stuck in a daze, he felt the corners of his lips quirk up. did.. did his quirk suddenly activate? last he remembered y/n didnt have the ability to activate someone else's quirk.. so why did he feel so warm..?

izuku lightly laughed at his love dazed classmate. how could one of class 1a's top students, be so unaware of how spell bound he looked?

"hey.. midoriya.."

"oh! yeah todoroki?"

"am.. am i sick? i feel warm all over, and i think i'm experiencing a heart attack."

the green haired male blanked as shoto was finally able to turn away from his attention capturer, "midoriya.. am i dying??"

.. eh?

"i'm serious, my mind is going blank, i think i'm experiencing cardiac arrest. i couldn't even breathe, and i zone out every time i look at them. i cant even speak.. it's like i've been brainwashed."

"pff," izuku was fighting for his life to keep his laughter in, but ultimately he failed when he heard how the rest of the table burst with laughter. ochako and tsu clutched at each other as they wheezed with giggles, while tenya repeatedly slapped at the table.

"OH MY GOSH TODOROKI!! 'AM I DYING??' HAHSHAHH THAT'S HILARIOUS!"

"wh- but i mean it! i'm not even sure recovery girl will be able to help with my situation!"

"PFFF BWAHAHAHA!! RECOVERY GIRL DEFINITELY ISNT GONNA HELP THAHAHAHAT!!"

"guys i think i might be allergic to y/n 😨"

"NO WAY AHAHAHA!!!"

you looked over at 1a's table, your eyes narrowing in on a dual quirk user. you sighed happily, finding the escapade that you were watching from afar to be funny.

kinoko nudged tokage's shoulder, and both girls turned to look at you before lightly giggling behind their hands, taking a breath to recollect themselves, kinoko reached over and prepared to wave her hand in your face.

"sorry to interrupt you y/n, but you've been zoned out for a while now." they laughed.

[thatoneguydownthestreet]

Hey so how would lilia feel about apocalypse yuu and the obvious world ending war and after effects from where yuu is from?

Thank you for feeding us apocalypse yuu <3

I started maniacally laughing as soon as I read the name lilia

FEM ALIGNED DNI

How Lilia Vanrouge reacts to the war and its effects: 

Lilia would say your relationship was pretty good. As nameless and as vague as it was. It was...peaceful. 

It was nice.

You were learning to trust people, to trust him. To let your guard down just a little bit more each day. To speak your mind and make decisions and to just simply walk with him without looking over your shoulder every few seconds. 

He’ll never forget that feeling of happiness and relief when you fell asleep with him right there next to you for the first time, or when you saw him enter a room and he saw your shoulders drop just that much. 

Once, in the pop music club room, Cater had asked him how he got you to relax around him so easily. He only gave a small chuckle and a vague response, as he himself didn’t truly know at the time. 

He still doesn’t. only having a few loose theories here and there, but he is grateful to be able to know you just a little bit more than the average person. To be able to live this long to see you come here, to this world, scared and confused and hopelessly, utterly lost, and then to see you start to really live for the first time.

He hopes he hopes that he’ll be blessed enough to live to see you thrive. 

Honestly? he thinks it’s because of something simple. So, so simple

He listens.

Not to say the others don’t of course, they listen!

they just ...don’t really believe you. 

Lilia doesn’t blame them, honestly.

It truly feels like you exaggerate your past and lack of knowledge at times.

The most obvious example he can think of is when epel, that pretty first year boy, gifted you one of those beautiful red apples that grew on his parents farm, only for you to look at it with confusion and distrust. 

You didn’t know what an apple was.

You didn’t know what most fruits were period. (Or cheese, or most meats,or most vegetables, he thinks he saw you reboot like an old computer the first time you saw milk) Often confusing the names and refusing to eat them if you forgot what they were. 

It was at that point where he could tell your rag tag little group of friends started to doubt your words. Just a bit.

He would have too, if not for the clear, heavy distress that simply couldn’t be faked that was ever so evident on your face when he'd asked.

“Perfect, do you really not know what any of these fruits are”, he has taken extra care to keep this conversation playful. He wasn’t trying to embarrass you after all. 

You simply huffed, a bit of frustration showing. 

Lilia ignored the little happy spark he got from seeing you show what you were feeling. You were getting better at that.

“Of course I don’t! we don’t have fresh fruit in the tunnels! Not to mention things like "cheese" and dont even get me started on good meat!”, you said it like it so obvious...

You never explained what the tunnels were. But lilia could guess.

He had a bad feeling about them either way....

So yes. The others listened. But you could both see crystal clear that they took what you said with a heavy grain of salt. 

Lilia on the other hand, believed every word. Or at least tried too.

So when you asked him to swing by Ramshackle saying you wanted to show him something, how could he refuse?

Really, how could he?

....

Lilia Vanrouge didn't know what he was expecting. He knew it was probably something big, judging from your earlier tone of voice.

But this....

this was just sickening.

you sat shirtless on the floor, with your arms out in the air in front of you. 

with your scars on full display. 

there were (oh great seven) there were slash marks all across your chest. Ragged and uneven and ugly. Looking like whatever cut them in took extra care to truly rip and tear your flesh apart.

There were burn marks on your shoulders and your stomach. Looking like they came from both fire and electricity. The electric burns spiderwebbing their way up the side of your neck and around your sides.

There were what looked to be claw marks and dog bites on your stomach as well, like you were almost frantically mauled to death and just barely made it out with your life.

There was a circular hole he didn't know the cause of on both sides of your right forearm, the underside scar being in the same spot but significantly worse.

There were like deep (deep) bruises that he could see everywhere on your body.

and then there were the marks on your back....

There were whip marks and lashes absolutely everywhere. Slashed across every which way, overlapping with each other and digging into your flesh. there were a few places that he swore had less skin than others. and oh God some of them only looked a few months old. 

Some of them were fresh when you came here.

Lilia didn’t know what the rest of your body looked like, but he already knew that your back was in the worst condition out of everything.

A small whimper snapped him out of his thoughts.

You were still on the floor, now sifting slightly, like you were embarrassed.

Embarrassed. What an odd little human.

Lilia immediately got down on the floor and sat in front of you, dust and possible bugs be damned.

He didn't touch you, only looking at your face and tried to make eye contact.

He tried his best to avoid looking at your neck. The lighting in this old dorm was bad but he swore he could still see a slash-

"Y/N....can you please look at me?", gentle. Just keep the tone gentle for now.

You still looked away from him. Lilia sighed.

Gently, oh so gently, he brought his hand to your face and slowly turned you head towards him.

You didn't flinch. Not once! And if lilia silently celebrated this feat later? Well, that was his business, and his alone.

Your eyes held a hint of fear when you looked at him. Fear of rejection.

Why would he ever push you away for something like this?

...Did someone do that before?

He heard you let out a faint, shaky breath, trying to find your voice.

He still didn't say anything. Just let you take your time. He couldn't rush something like this.

So he sat there, just out of reach as to not overwhelm you, as you took a deep breath and tried to compose yourself.

"So uh...I'm sure you have questions", you tried to say it in a way that lightened the mood, but your voice came out small.

It was fine. You couldn't lighten something like this either way.

The fae infront of you looked at you with the patients of a someone who's lived a dozen lifetimes and counting, which made you relax just a bit more.

Good.

"That I do perfect, but make no mistake, you are not obligated to answer"

"No! No, I- I want you to know. I wouldn't have shown you otherwise...", your voice trailed off.

Lilia took a deep breath.

Ok. Sharing scares.

Sharing memories.

Sharing war stories.

He could do that. He's done it before hundreds of times. He could do it again.

He just...didn't want to do it with someone so young. Someone who had absolutely zero business doing any type of life or death fighting.

Unfortunately, life was a total bitch and just loved putting him in these exact situations.

"Ok...ok. so why don't you tell me about...this one first", lilia pointed to the circular hole that went through your arm. He wanted to know what caused it.

(And maybe. Just maybe, find something that could heal it)

You sighed a bit. He thinks in relief? And smiled just a tad.

"Ok... that one was caused when me and a rescue team were trying to locate one of the medics that had gone missing during a surprise raid on the southwest base.... I wasn't even supposed to be there really...", you trailed off again. Your eyes glossing over a little.

Well. That couldn't happen.

The last thing he wanted here was for you to relive any one of these scars.

"What was the medics name?", it was the only thing he could ask, really. He didn't understand much of what else you had said.

You took a deep breath. Right.

You weren't there anymore.

"Caroline. Her name was Caroline. And she has a sister named Kate.... she's the one who put in the request for her to be found. Her body, at the very least"

Lilia began to wonder what exactly happened during these "raids". And why it required children to clean up the aftermath.

"Caroline. She was the medic. Ok.... you said you weren't supposed to be there?"

You looked a little sheepish at that.

"Yeah... our base was short on explosives manufacturers so they sent me. I was still learning but apparently I knew enough to go out there anyway. Heh...yeah, it didn't turn out too well"

....explosive manufacturers?

Lilia had met and worked with plenty if mages that specialized in more.. dramatic shows of magic. Especially during the wars.

How, lilia wondered, was something like that simulated without magic?

...He didn't know if he wanted to find out.

Instead of asking what in the seven an explosive manufacturer was, he asked:

"Why did you have to go though? Surely there were other uh...people in your field? That had nore experience", he kept his tone soft, trying to keep you unaware of the anger that was slowly building in his gut.

You silently shifted where you were sitting, looking like you regretted this more and more.

Damn.

Carefully, he added, "where were the others?"

"...active combat was getting more and more rare....no one thought- I mean- we just needed farmers and hunters and medics more than we needed weapons at the time"

The look on your face was...hard to describe as you struggled to explain your past situation as quick as possible. Like you would be punished if you didn't do it fast enough.

Hm...

"Y/N...", lilia started slowly

He had an idea of what your world was like.

He had a good idea of what your world was like.

And he was hoping that he wasn't right.

Your head raised a bit. Making eye contact with him and calming down just a little. Good. But he was going to feel all the more guilty about what he was about to say.

"Were you by chance, involved in any type of warfare?"

Lilia didn't know what you'd do. He had been ready for anything. For you to scream and shout and scratch and fight. For you to try and deny what you both already knew for whatever reason.

But you never did.

Instead, you just tilted your head to the side, like a confused dog.

Then you said:

"The war ended around...50 years ago? 60? I don't know for sure. The records were all destroyed, and the elders that fought in it are quickly dying out"

Lilia breath hitched.

All those scars. All their stories. Are from the aftermath? The aftermath of a finished war is still producing what lilia believes might very well be child soldiers.

And then you spoke again.

"When I was...I think twelve? I don't know. No one really knows their age. But I was definitely around twelve. The other manufacturers with more experience and a better idea if what they're doing got sent to the northern bases. They were needed there. They wouldn't tell me why"

...

...Twelve?

"Anyways, a couple months later -or were they weeks?- some time later, Caroline went missing"

Twelve?

"And I was really all they had to send"

Twelve.

"Now that I think about it...it was probably because they could replace me well enough if it didn't go as good as it did"

Fucking TWELVE?!

"As good as it did?!", lilias voice startled you out if your own head.

You looked at him. He looked back at you with an expression of exasperated rage.

You stopped talking.

"As good-as GOOD as it did!"

"Y/N. Y/N there is no good in this! This-" He grabbed your arm. Gesturing to the old, half healed scar that had started this whole mess "-is terrible! Dammit this is a crime against morality!"

...

...oh.

You looked at your arm. At the old shot gun would you had gotten after getting your arm stuck just outside if the entrance to the tunnel you and your temporary team had taken.

You could barely even remember why you had it out in the first place.

To throw a grenade you had put together on the spot? A stick of dynamite? You didn't know.

All you knew was that it hurt.

It still does sometimes.

You looked down at your own body.

They all still do sometimes.

....

Oh God...

You looked back at lilia, and the night resumed.

None of what you said will likely never be repeated outside if the walls of Ramshakle. Not all of it at least.

You didn't tell lilia about the scars on your back. You probably never will.

That was fine.

You told him what you had to do to survive, and he told you that you shouldn't have had to do that in the first place.

There were things that were never really explained. Like guns or grenades or that old, abandoned army tank that you played when you were a child.

("So it's a car...with a Canon on it?"

"Uhhhh. Sure. Yeah")

And other things...

Well. Turns out some scenarios are seen a bit different here.

You don't your age.

That's sad. Not bormal.

You don't know who your real parents are. The high infant mortality rate in the southeast base and the tunnels surrounding it that most mothers simply give away their children to avoid the pain of burying their babies.

That's a tragedy. A horrible, horrible tragedy.

Not normal.

Just like your life.

........

As soon as he got back to Diasomnia, lilia went to check on silver. Then sebek. Then malleus.

Silver and sebek were asleep. And he could see malleus taking a walk about the dorm from his bedroom window.

They were safe. Lilia felt his shoulders drop for the first time that night.

...and then he did something he never thought he would need do again.

Slowly, lilia walked over to his desk, lighting a tall, white candle and setting out an expensive piece of meat.

Wasn't the best offering, but it'll due for now.

He hoped it would at least.

Religion had long since died out of twisted wonderland as a whole, with only a few churches and temples remaining in certain parts in the shaftlands and a few of the older families in briar valley truly practicing in this modern age. 

Even so, later that night when his dorm and his children were all sound asleep, lilia knelt beside his bed and prayed to his old god for the first time in centuries.

He could only hope that they would be answered. 

[shenglingyuan]

title: first time he kissed me, he but only kissed (ao3) pairing: togame jo/sakura haruka summary: togasaku first kiss ;3;

The tunnel under the rail tracks became a common meeting spot for both Togame and Sakura. It was perfect and convenient – Togame would only need to walk a few blocks from the Shishitoren headquarters, Sakura could cover the patrol of the surrounding area then end right in front of the Shishitoren and Bofurin boundary, and the street itself wasn’t busy if the sun was still out.

The first few times, trouble came to their spot, what with smaller gangs from out of town escaping through the tunnel to get to the pub street. Needless to say, Togame and Sakura took care of it with no issues. After a while, word got around that monsters from Shishitoren and Bofurin were guarding the narrow street, and no one with intent to cause trouble dared to cross that path anymore.

Usually, Sakura would bring with him lots of food. Rewards from the community, he said. The people don’t seem to run out of food to give Bofurin, but even Sakura’s voracious appetite could only hold so much. Even if he was usually possessive of the food he received, he didn’t want it going bad. Fortunately, Togame shared the same stomach. He didn’t win all those eating challenges for nothing. In return, he would bring the drinks. Mostly ice-cold ramune, of course.

It’s been a month since the festival, and today was one of those usual days they would hang out under the rail tracks. Togame already finished his portion and was sipping his strawberry ramune leisurely. It was warm earlier in the day, but the summer humidity brought down a late afternoon thunderstorm. The surroundings were cascaded with heavy rainfall, and neither of them had an umbrella. There was no choice but to wait out the rain.

“This rain doesn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon,” Togame noted, peeking at the dark sky overhead, “I could ask Choji to bring us an extra umbrella so you can go home.”

“It’s fine, I can wait with you,” Sakura replied, staring up from his phone. He was leaning against the wall, holding a still half-full grape ramune in his other hand. “There’s nothing to do back home anyway. Here’s better.”

“Yeah?” Togame smiled as he walked back to his spot next to Sakura, swiping the ramune bottle off his hand and taking a swig out of it. “Ahh, that’s so good. I really like this flavor more – Won’t your Bofurin friends look for you?”

“Hey, you already had yours!” Sakura quickly stole the bottle back, staking his claim by drinking the remaining contents all at once. He didn’t even let at least one drop go. Then when all the drink was gone, he answered with a slight burp, “I told them I was meeting you today. They know anyway, so…”

This surprised Togame. Togame hadn’t asked if Sakura told his friends about them. He didn’t care, but knowing that Sakura did made him feel oddly satisfied.

Rain continued to pour as silence fell between the two of them. Togame glanced at Sakura. He seemed to be frozen in thought, the empty ramune bottle still lingering on his mouth. In fact, Sakura did seem like he has been occupied by something ever since they met this afternoon. Even the light sparring they did when the rain just started didn’t seem to wash away whatever it was that he was thinking about.

Concerned, Togame finally asked, “Is something bothering you?”

“…K…kiss.”

“…Huh?” Did he hear that right?

“I…I want to try it.”

Togame looked at Sakura’s face, trying to see any trace of mischief on his face. Sakura’s not the type to tease, after all. They’ve been dating for a month now, yes, and within that time they have gotten to know each other better. They both enjoy a good fight and good food. Their private moments under the rail tracks were simple but meaningful. But within that period, Sakura didn’t strike him to be a proactive type when it came to physical affection. So why was he bringing this up now?

Sakura’s forehead was crumpled into a frown, his eyes averted, but his mouth was curled into a pout and the entirety of his neck up to the tip of his ears were red. For someone asking for a kiss, he looked very conflicted about it.

Togame lets out a laugh. “You’re note being dared to do this, are you?”

“You think I’m not serious?”

“Of course not,” Togame stepped closer then, making Sakura back into the wall. In reflex, Sakura’s arms raised as if getting ready to fight, much to Togame’s amusement. Togame raised his right hand and held the back of Sakura’s head, his thumb ever so slightly caressing the tip of his ear. “But if you want to be kissed, you probably shouldn’t act like you’re about to hit me.”

Sakura froze under his touch, the bottle on his hand falling onto the ground and rolling away. Despite this, it didn’t look like he was regretting his request either.

Togame then leaned in…

And kissed Sakura’s forehead.

“How’s that for a start?”

Sakura draws in a frustrated breath, his eyes widening and his cheeks gaining another shade of red. “Are you messing with me?”

Togame laughed as he avoided a punch of protest from Sakura. “I’d never. Just didn’t want to overwhelm you, that’s all.”

“Stop playing around.”

Then without warning, Sakura took the initiative and pulled Togame down by the collar of his jacket –––

“Ow!”

Teeth smacked with lips, and in the next moment, Togame tasted something metallic. Sakura, on the other hand, suddenly squatted on the ground with a hand over his own mouth; it was his blood that Togame tasted.

“Sakura! Are you okay?”

“What the hell, all those articles are wrong!”

“You were…reading about how to kiss? Was that why you keep looking at your phone today?”

“Shuttup!” Sakura looked away, his hand still covering his mouth. It was all Togame needed to confirm his question. No wonder Sakura had been looking so distracted since earlier. He must have been thinking how to ask for a kiss and how to do it properly.

The spot where Sakura hit against was still throbbing a bit from the pain, so Togame could imagine the impact was worse for Sakura.

“Let me see,” Togame worriedly squatted down in front of Sakura and lightly grabbed his chin, making Sakura face him so he could see the wound on his mouth. Upon inspection, it didn’t seem something to be concerned about. As for the other matter… “Why do you want this so bad anyway?”

“Should there be a reason? I just feel like I want to…kiss you, that’s all.” The last part he whispered almost inaudibly. Then he stood up, roughly rubbing at the spot where his lips smacked against Togame’s teeth. “But if you don’t want to, then just forget about it.”

“I want to, though.” Togame reached for Sakura’s hand, weaving their fingers together as he slowly stood up. “Since the festival, really. But I wanted to take our time until you’re completely comfortable.”

Togame was the type to love deeply, that he knew of himself. And when he attaches himself to something, or someone, he tends to be territorial about it. Sakura’s one of the strongest people he knew, but Togame also recognizes that Sakura had a fragile side, particularly when it came to his relationships with people. Though he trusted that Sakura would overcome that difficulty, he was still careful in treading his own relationship with him. The last thing he wanted was to push Sakura away.

“I am comfortable. Especially since it’s you.” Sakura looked down at their entwined hands, and a small smile lined his lips. “It’s just that…whenever I see…romantic things, I get flustered for no reason…I feel like even if I get to…kiss you…I’d be too shaken to like it.”

Sakura’s answer brings a smile to Togame’s face. It was useless to worry, after all.

 “What if you closed your eyes?”

“Close my eyes?”

“So, you don’t see the kiss coming.”

Sakura pondered on the idea a bit, but after a while, he did as he was told without any more protest. His face was still full of nervousness, but at least this way, he would neither freeze up at the sight of Togame closing in, nor feel overwhelmed from the view of an incoming kiss. A bit of blood still stained the edge of his mouth. Togame reached out with his free hand and cleaned it up, tracing the outline of Sakura’s lower lip as he did so. Sakura’s lips were smooth against his thumb, parting ever so slightly in response to his touch. The warm and shaky breath against his finger tells of Sakura’s eagerness for what comes next.

Finally, Togame closed the distance, and this time, he carefully planted a light kiss on Sakura’s mouth, like a butterfly carefully hovering over the blooms of a cherry blossom tree.

Neither of them has done this before, so who knows what’s a good or a bad kiss. Was it awkward? Not at all. Amateur? Maybe. But it seemed that for the right person, it didn’t matter. The body would respond in kind without needing to have prior knowledge of how to do this or that. It’s just a matter of listening to one another’s desires as delivered by the lips, much like how a good fight is a fruitful conversation between fists.

Sakura’s mouth opened even more as it met Togame’s, instinctively deepening the kiss himself. Togame could still taste a bit of rustiness from the blood, but also the sweetness of the grape ramune they shared. He drinks it all in, drowning in the unhurriedness of the moment. Sakura let out a small sound against Togame’s mouth, making Togame greedier, pulling Sakura even closer to reduce the very small distance between them into nothing.

Togame lost track of how long it had been, or if he had even come up for breath. Before he completely lost himself in their kiss, he grasped at the small mindfulness that graced his mind to pull away. Yet, Sakura followed him and leaned forward, unwilling to end the moment, attempting to continue the kiss. At this point, Togame was already prepared and shifted his face a bit, only the edges of their mouths meeting. It broke Sakura away from the trance of the kiss, his eyes shot up wide open. They’re both in a state of wanting more; one of them should at least hold the fort and be rational.

“So, did you like it?”

The steady patter of the pouring rain fell in rhythm with their heavy breaths. Sakura’s eyes seemed to have lost all their intensity, staring dazedly into the air. He blinked a few times, perhaps confused as to why they stopped, and when he finally turned a hazy gaze to Togame, his glazed eyes seemed to say, More, more, more…

Ah, this is a bit dangerous.

But contrary to Togame’s expectations, Sakura resorted to wrapping his arms around his waist and burying his own face against Togame’s chest.

“Yeah, I liked it.” he mumbled, his voice vibrating against Togame’s hammering heart, “The other one, too.”

“Which one?”

“Forehead.”

Togame couldn’t see Sakura’s face, but the tip of his ears was still bright red. Alas, a first kiss like that must have been too much for someone like Sakura. As for Togame, it was everything he could have hoped for. He returned Sakura’s embrace with a smile and held the other boy tightly. Sakura shifted his weight, completely leaning onto him, that if Togame lets go, he would fall to the ground. But that won’t happen. Togame didn’t plan on letting go.

“I liked them both, too.”

Not now. Not ever.

[writingintheshadowsforever]

Imagine bonding with the people of Talokan when Namor gives you a tour

“You made me promise not to go back to Wakanda unless I was summoned, I highly doubt your mother is going to invite back in.” Namor finally said after staring you down for five minutes to see if you were serious with your last request. 

“I know that’s why I asked her to make the beach neutral ground for you” You told him. Your lips tugging upward into a small smirk when he hissed something in his mother tongue. That you couldn’t understand, but from the look of frustration on his face. It wasn’t a nice word.

“I left my home and my family behind to bring peace and unity to both of our nations. While no offense Namor you really didn’t have to give up much. I know my brother put Talokan in a tough spot when he opened up Wakanda to the rest of the world, but it’s not like he knew about you guys. The least you could do is find some common ground with my mother. It would make all of this a whole lot easier.” 

Namor was quiet again contemplating his options. He didn’t have a real reason to say yes considering you already made it clear. You weren’t going to recant on the deal no matter what, and that’s what scared you the most about asking him to do this. He could just say no and there would be nothing you could do about it. Your family had been through enough heartache in the past year, and you knew your mother wouldn’t ever have peace at heart again. If she spent all her days feeling like she failed to protect you, and that you were down here suffering in silence. If her and Namor could form some kind of connection maybe that would ease all of her worries. 

“How is she going to know to meet me on the beach?” He asked.

“I left her a letter asking her to” You replied.

Namor raised an eyebrow at you realizing you had really thought of everything and had already planned this after accepting his proposal. “I’ll consider it mi amour.”

“Okay that’s a start honestly I was expecting you to just say no” You said. 

“Come let’s give you a tour of your new home” Namor replied changing the subject. He motioned for you to follow him, and started walking in the direction of pool of water in the underwater cave. This time instead of holding onto him, and letting him do all the work. You just swam beside him as he led you down to dark depths of the bottom of the ocean. His hand took a hold of yours when the two of reached the water tunnel too keep you from fighting against the rip currents. Just like before the tunnel came to an end spitting the two of you out into a vast open space of nothing. Namor held onto your hand leading the path to Talokan.

The sight was just as breathtaking this time as it was the first time. You don't think it was something you would ever get tired of seeing just like returning home to Wakanda. You formed an air bubble around your head. Not for breathing, but so you would be able to actually communicate with him and the rest of Talokan with words. Because unlike them you couldn't exactly talk while underwater. Namor looked back letting a small smile form on his face at the sight. His people were out and about just like last time swimming from place to place with all of the buildings connected to each other.

"So does a tour include a stop at all of the hotspots like a restaurant, because I'm really hoping you guys have something. Other than seaweed for me to eat while I'm down here."

Namor came to a halt. "Are you hungry my love?"

"Not yet but I will be eventually, and like I said I would like an actual meal for when I'm down here besides underwater vegetation.

"Do you think we're vegetarians?"

"I would assume so yes considering your love for the ocean and the life down here."

"I do have respect which is why we eat what nature provides for us. We might not have the meat you're use to on the surface, but we can still provide you with a source of protein. Although we tend to eat our fish as raw." He told you.

"Okay so fish not my favorite food especially raw." You muttered under your breath. A major change in your diet was something you'd really thought about until now.

"You can always cook the fish when you return to the cave maybe I can even give you a few suggestions" Namor offered.

"That could work" You agreed as a family swan by the two of you, and came to a stop eyes focused on your hand connected with his.

Namor released your hand to bring his wrists together, facing outward toward the family. They repeated the gestured bowing their head to their king.

You copied him with a small smile.

Namor spoke to the family in the mother tongue and nodded his head in your direction. The family turned back to you with a joy filled eyes and bowed their heads.

You shook your head and held up your hands in protest. "There's no need for that at least not yet." It didn't seem right to you for them to be showing you so much respect. When they didn't even know you yet, but then again they saw Namor as a god. So if he said you were their queen now it made sense that they didn't question it.

Namor said something else with a grin. The family nodded and swam away with the mother throwing one more glance over her shoulder.

"What did you say to them?" You asked

"I told them you were being modest and to take it easy." Namor answered with a knowing look. "I told you my people would accept you with open arms."

"Well I would still like earn their respect and love" You said.

"That is why we're here love let's go."

Over the next few hours Namor gave you the more in-depth tour to of Talokan, that he couldn't give you the first time. It turns out the underwater city did very much have restaurants, parks, and even a strip of building dedicated to shops. Everywhere he took you the people of Talokan stared in awe and curiosity. No one really hesitated to come up to meet you, and just like with the family. They would bow their head in respect, and a few of them even gifted you items like jewelry and clothing. It got to be a bit overwhelming so it was a bit refreshing when a group of kids tugged on your hand to get you to follow them. Where they were playing a game of putting a ball throw a sideways hoop.

Namor floated a few feet away watching as you played with the kids with a look of adoration.

Wakanda

Dear mother,

I'm sorry I left and took away your chance to give me a proper sendoff and a real goodbye. I know it must be hard for you with me gone and not knowing when you will see me again. But please don't let yourself be buried in grief and regret. This was my decision and for the best instead of seeing it as a bad thing. Look at it as a victory Wakanda now has a ally who can match us in strength. If the other countries ever do try to invade us with Talokan on our side. None of them will stand a chance and like I saying, with time I may come to love Namor. But I know right now there is turmoil in your heart, because you don't think that this is possible. You believe you let your oldest daughter go off to marry a underwater devil, and did nothing to protect me. Mother I want to put your heart at ease, so whenever you're ready come to the beach. The one where I used to train with T'Challa at it will be neutral grounds for the people of Talokan.

When you find it in your heart to be able to forgive him for everything he did. Namor will be there to make peace with you. I want the unity between Wakanda and Talokan to be real, and not just a fabrication from a power marriage.

I love you mother.

Queen Ramonda read the letter for the third time in a row. It had only been a two days since you were gone, and your absence was still felt everywhere throughout Wakanda. The Council weren't happy with her decision to let you go especially after the revelation of your powers. One of the elders had the gall to call her a fool in front of everyone during a meet yesterday. Shuri ordered the elder to leave the room with a look of hatred.

Shuri was working nonstop to find a way to finally restored the heart-shaped herb. Even with the newfound peace that came from your decision. She believed it was time for Wakanda to get their protector back, and was ready to take on the mantle. Some like M'Baku were still paranoid that the threat of war was still looming.

A comforting hand came to rest upon her shoulder causing her to jump a little bit. It was Nakia taking a seat beside her wrapping her arm around her shoulder. "I'm guessing it's the content of Princess y/n's letter that has you at war with yourself."

"She wants me to forgive Namor and go to the beach to meet with him." Queen Ramonda told her handing the letter over.

Nakia accepted the letter reading over it a few times before setting it down. "She didn't put a time limit on your forgiveness mother. If you're not ready to come to peace with him then just give it a bit more time."

"But what about the state of Wakanda? If I hold onto this grudge and keep seeing him as the enemy. So will the Council, my soldiers, and Shuri no one will be able to completely move on and focus on the real threats. Y/N agreed to go to Talokan with Namor to neutralize the threat of war. If we can't let her go we will reignite it."

Nakia knew the Queen was only speaking the truth yesterday in the room. M'Baku proposed the idea of going down to Talokan and taking you from Namor's clutches by force if necessary. It was her and Okoye who was now back on the council thanks to a personal recommendation from you. Who was able to convince him and the elders that the plan was a bad idea. All it took was a reminder of what Namor and his people did after Nakia rescued Shuri and Riri. This time Namor would take an attack more personally, and even you might be unable to contain his rage.

"If you wish to speak with him my Queen I will accompany you, but please just be sure you are truly ready for this." Nakia said squeezing her shoulder.

"Do I have another choice?" Queen Ramonda whispered to herself. The sooner she fell in line and came to terms with your decision. The sooner Wakanda could truly move on to the next chapter.

Talokan

The tour ended after Namor took you see his throne, and the craftsmanship of it made your jaw-drop. You questioned rather or not it was made out the jaws of the shark were real. When you pressed a finger to one of the teeth, and discovered it was sharp enough to draw blood. That answered your question he watched in awe as the injury healed itself with a glow from the water.

Namor gave you the opportunity to sit upon the throne but you turned him down, and at the unmistakable sound of your stomach growling. You and him took the journey back to the underwater cave system. Where a small raging fire was already going thanks to his orders.

You sat by the fire in a change of clothes letting the heat of it warm your body. Namor dove back into the water insisting he knew where to find the best tasting fish in all of the ocean. Twenty minutes later he would return with a couple of large gray and chubby fish on the tip of a spear.

"I believe on the surface world your people know these guys as groupers" He told you.

"Not really big on seafood so I wouldn't know" You replied with a light shrug.

You watched as he prepared the fish by removing the eyeballs before placing them on a stick, so they could cook over the fire. Once they were setup Namor took a seat beside on the log. He removed his robe from around his shoulders and without a word threw it over your back, and clasping it back together at your neck. You turned to him with a look of surprise. The robe was extremely soft and literally felt like being wrapped up in a cloud.

"You were good with my people today I think they're already in love with you" He said staring into the fire.

"I think it was mostly curiosity after all how many outsiders do they see in their city."

"You were the first and your sister was the second, but that's not the point. Did you see the way some of the acted towards you?"

"Yeah but your people worship you Namor of course they're going to trust your judgement. They know you wouldn't do anything to put them in jeopardy, or put someone unworthy on the throne beside you."

Namor turned his head to the side to look at you, bringing a hand to your cheek. You looked up as well making eye contact with him. "That's just the thing mi amour I didn't know if I could truly trust you with my people till today. You were kind and gentle with them."

"Your people were kind and gentle with me." You whispered.

"I've seen a lot of humans kill those who are kind and gentle" He murmured. An emotion in his voice that you couldn't exactly pinpoint, but it was as if he was broken by something. It reminded you that there was a lot about his history, and Talokan that you didn't know about.

"Not all humans are the same one day you're going to let me prove that to you." You said leaning in closer to rest your forehead on his.

"Maybe mi amour" He replied with a smirk.

The crackling fire, and the rushing water were the only sounds to fill the cave. As you and him just sat there taking in so much that had happened in the past two days. A newfound sense of hope was worming itself into your heart wiping out the uncertainty. Before today you really did question rather or not you made the right choice. So much of your plan was based off how well you handled the massive change of scenery. You were worried you wouldn't be able to adjust to Talokan and call it your home. While you weren't ready to pack your bags and go live in the underwater city. You were more sure about your decision than before. For Namor watching you bond with his people brought settled any thoughts. He had about you being unable to fit in, and his people not accepting you. He talked a big game but deep down the King has his doubts, but seeing you adapt so easily. Also brought upon another unsettling conflict that wasn't there before.

"I'm sorry for what I did to your mother" Namor whispered out of nowhere.

Your eyes which had closed a minute ago snapped open in shock at his words. You pulled back from him to study his expression. The look of regret was present as his eyes averted to the fire. He reached forward to turn the slowly cooking fish over.

"Thank you Namor but I'm not the only one who needs to hear that. If you truly are sorry then please tell my mother" You pleaded.

"How will I know when she's at the beach I have no way of summoning her."

You shrugged your shoulders. "I don't know you'll just have to trust that she will be there."

"The fish is done" was his response as he lifted the stick from over the fire. You figured the conservation was over for now, and was to hungry to keep arguing about it. So you let it go for the time being to enjoy dinner with him. It turned out Namor wasn't lying when he said it truly was the best fish in the ocean. Afterwards you could feel your eyelids getting heavy and he could see how tired you were. So you made your way to the giant hammock that was still acting as your bed. Surprisingly enough like everything else here it was super comfy, and you had no problem falling asleep in it covered up with Namor's robe still.

It was while you slept well into the night Namor slipped out of the cave and made his way to the beach. He peeked his head out of the water eyes scanning the shore, and just as he was getting ready to call it. A soft roaring sound filled the air from above, and he looked up to see white lights flashing from the sky. Namor rose from the ocean and hovered in the air.

A few minutes later two figures walked out of the trees stopping right where the water met the shore. He flew over to them pausing a few feet away to keep a comfortable distance between them and him. "I didn't think you would come."

It was Queen Ramonda with Nakia by her side.

"My daughter asked me to."

Tag List: @omgsuperstarg @local-bxbby @nebulastarr @historygeekqueen @realm-of-azrael @lia-losing-it @queenotaku23 @creamecafe @dngnmtr-blog @lullabaesstuff @polireader @inkareds @ellathefriendlyalpacaaa @alinefrank @pearlsyeaaa @astronautelilanded @riri53 @undermoonlightwalk @1andonlytashae @riverjane-d @zeeader @farleyis @leahnicole1219 @redcitisiren

[copperbadge]

Mr. Badge! Mr. Badge! Life hard, but Caleb and Buck are cute, can I ask for maybe a small snippet (if you have one easily avaliable, if not no worries) of fic for that good positive brain chemistry?

Yours sincerely, lostchips

Well, I don't have anything from Royals/Ramblers that's easily shareable, but Buck and Caleb do pop up in the football novel (I'm thinking of calling it Paolo's First Eleven but I already did one novel with a number in the title....)

Context: Paolo, the POV character, is a former top footballer turned youth coach, who happens to have befriended Buck and through Buck, Caleb. One of his young players, Vev, is in his early teens, so gifted that it's extremely obvious he'll be an elite player someday, and also trans, which Paolo knows is going to be an issue for his career sooner or later. Our scene is set just before morning practice begins...

To his surprise, the pair of men in the stands turned out to be Buck and Caleb -- Buck in a pair of ripped jeans and a leather jacket over a worn band t-shirt, Caleb swaddled in a hoodie with an instrument case on his back. When he came out of the tunnel, Buck waved and both of them got up to come down to the pitch. 

"Morning," Paolo said, offering them the bag of protein bars he was carrying to hand out to any hungry-looking kids. Buck waved it off, but Caleb peered into it and then took one. "Here to write me a fight song?"

Buck grinned. "Working on it. No, I'm just chaperone really, this is Caleb's joint."

Paolo looked at Caleb, curious. The younger man smiled. 

"I heard about Vev," he said. "Came to see him, see how he was getting on." 

"Oh! That's -- very thoughtful," Paolo said, as the kids on the pitch began to slowly drift towards the adults. A few stayed out; Vev, bouncing a ball from foot to foot, was one of them. "VEV, YOU TOO!" Paolo yelled. Vev looked up, caught the ball off a knee, and came running over. When he saw the pair of men with Paolo, he stopped, eyes huge, then sidled forward shyly, half-hiding behind Paolo. 

"Eat," Paolo told him, pressing a protein bar into his hand. Vev held it loosely, still watching the other two. "Vev, this is Buck Haverd and Caleb Canto, they're mates of mine."

Vev nodded. "You won Eurovision," he blurted. 

"Well, he did," Caleb said, jerking a thumb at Buck. The other children were crowding in, equally awed and impressed. 

"But you should have," Vev said, apparently forgetting to be shy as he crept out from behind Paolo. Buck began to laugh, loud and enthusiastic; he shook a finger at Caleb.

"Every time," he said, through chuckles. "Every time, someone in this damn country tells us both you should have won. Come on, you lot, let's have a kick-around," he added to the other kids, shedding his leather jacket and walking onto the pitch, most of the students following like ducklings. Paolo lingered, just in case Vev took shy again. 

"Well, whether I should have or not, Buck did," Caleb said gently. "But I'll gladly brag about being second-place." 

"I liked your song," Vev said. 

"Thank you. I wrote it about children like you," Caleb said. Vev blinked at him. "Daring princelings. I heard from Paolo that you're a star player."

"Don't let it go to your head," Paolo said, ruffling Vev's short hair. 

"So I thought I'd come along and meet the newest tavat," Caleb said, using the Shivadh word for prince that his song had popularized. "You know I'm trans like you are."

Vev nodded, digesting this.

"Well, we have to stick together, don't we? Look out for each other," Caleb said. "So I thought I'd introduce myself. That way you have a grownup who's like you, if you need one." 

Paolo swallowed, watching Vev's face go from thoughtful to pleased. 

"So if you have questions, or some kind of problem you need help with, you know you can always talk to Coach Paolo," Caleb said. "But maybe you could talk to me too, if you want." 

He offered Vev a little slip of card-paper; business cards, real paper ones, were in vogue in Fons-Askaz at the moment, and Vev took it like a treasure. Peering over his shoulder, Paolo could see it read 

CALEB CANTO  MUSIC AND VOICE INSTRUCTOR PRODUCER - REVERB STUDIOS HE / HIM 

An email address and a phone number were printed in one corner; the address of the Maritime Academy was printed in the other.

"Come by the school any time, or text me and I'll come visit you here," Caleb said. "Give it to your parents if you want so they can get in touch, too." 

Vev nodded. Paolo elbowed him and he looked up. 

"Say thanks," Paolo whispered. 

"Thank you, Mr. Canto," Vev said. 

"Caleb is fine." Caleb gave him a smile. "Now, you'd better go show Buck your best moves." 

Vev looked down at the prized business card. "Can you keep it for me?" he asked Paolo, who nodded and took the card, tucking it carefully in the little plastic pocket that held his ID. Vev turned back to Caleb and visibly squared his shoulders. "Nice to meet you."

"You too," Caleb said, and Vev fled back to the field, where he almost immediately stole the ball from Buck and outran him despite being about a third of his size. 

[accirax]

Disventure Camp All Stars Power Ranking (Round 19)

The finale begins!

In case you haven't seen my previous power rankings, the Power Ranking Format is essentially a way of ranking how well each player is doing in the game. So, in essence, this is a long form way of predicting who I think will be eliminated from the competition in the next episode. There will be spoilers for last week's episode (obviously) and its power ranking, so make sure to read that first if you don't want to be spoiled on how I ranked our last boot. If you want more clarification on the rules, that first post will help you out as well. Furthermore, I'm going to be spoiling the preview for next episode, so if you want to go in TOTALLY blind, save this for later. Let's go!

Recap - The Motel Episode

Current Score: 76 acquired/113 total

(Points versus @venus-is-thinking: 27 acquired/38 total)

Bench Points: 8/10 (so far)

(Note: Scoring for Fiore, James, and Yul was taken from the Motel episode. Scoring for Tom, Aiden, Lake, Connor, and Miriam are taken from the preview.)

Well, that was... not what I expected! I mean, all of the character dynamics and fun banter I mostly expected-- other than that one last shot at some Yul depth-- but the setup for the three finale helpers being chosen by a first-dibs challenge was not. And, even if I knew that that was going to happen, I probably wouldn't have guessed that Fiore, James, and Yul would be chosen as the helpers to Ally, Jake, and Riya. I look forward to seeing those unexpected pairings gain more focus in the finale.

Yeah, I think that pretty much everything else I had to say, I covered in my initial thoughts. There's less to talk about here when no one was actually eliminated. So, let's look at the trailer!

Trailer Analysis

Looks like Emily will literally have to drag Trevor into being complicit kicking and screaming. Surely Derek and Trevor won't have a misunderstanding this episode that is resolved romantically in the last episode, right?

I'm guessing that Ally and Jake are practicing here? Notably, it appears that Jake wins the practice race. I'm sure that won't get in Ally's head.

Ooh, are they doing the Survivor-style finalists' breakfast this season?

Is this one of their letters from home? Why is Jake smiling while reading it? Out of the two of them, I would guess it's probably Riya's letter, but it could also be a surprise Connor's letter or something.

We're back in the mines from Season 1! Some bonus trauma for Jake, as that challenge occurred in the episode where Ellie berated him before he got eliminated.

I guess maybe they have to mine/dig for clues?

Despite the two seemingly getting along while eating breakfast, Ally will still sabotage Jake's team via giving James a rock to the face. Maybe that'll make James think twice about emotionally supporting Ally. (/j)

So, Emily's act of sabotage (for this episode at least) is releasing the scorpions onto the campers in the midst of an otherwise peaceful challenge. Hooray for murdering people...?

First of all, Jake needs to stop engaging in long jumps where he barely makes it to the other side. Secondly, this is probably the same gap that we see Riya putting a bridge over multiple times in the trailer, which may imply that Jake and James reach this area before Riya and Yul.

Of course, everyone is going to wind up in the same tunnel at the same point in time anyways.

This is interesting because, in the last shot, Riya was in the front of the pack. But now, she's throwing a rock at Ally, who's ahead of her. I wonder which scene happens first.

"C'mon, everyone! Let's do the Jake cheer we've been practicing!" "One, two, three, four! Gooooooo--" "And, that's enough of that! Here come our finalists!"

James looking so dead inside while doing the cheer has me dead. Based on this, I'm guessing that Ally will have Hunter, Tess, Grett, Gabby, and Ellie, as well as picking up Alec, who's there to support Fiore. That would leave Jake and Ally with even benches, and Riya with no one other than a mandatory Yul. I feel really bad for Ally, though, given that Jake picked up both Ashley and Connor. It makes sense why both of them would pick Jake (they befriended him first), but I hope she doesn't take it too hard.

Power Ranking

I don't even think anyone is getting voted out this episode, so I'll keep this formality relatively quick.

#1: Jake

Jake is still my winner pick, as he has been for a while, and nothing other than his elimination is going to change that. Going up against Ally + Fiore and Riya + Yul is a stellar combo for Jake, because no way ONC wants Fiore or Yul to actually get their hands on any money. The only mildly confusing thing is that James would wind up winning money from the show again (despite being the first boot, even), but I have half a mind to believe that he'll just donate that money to Ally anyways.

I think that James is here to be an audience insert. Having barely participated in the game at all, James is still of the belief that Jake is exactly the same as he was at the end of Season 1, no matter what Aiden tries to tell him. By being someone who had no faith in Jake who learns over the course of the finale that Jake truly did become a more thoughtful and responsible guy, ONC will use a character that the audience loves to prove why they too should root for Jake's victory. They want to prove to the nonbelievers that Jake has improved, through him mending his relationship with his first DCAS burn. Or at least, that's how I see it, as a Jake winner truther since the beginning of the merge.

#2: Ally

While an Ally/Riya finale feels basically impossible to me, a Jake/Riya finale is plausible. Offputting, but plausible.

Ally has been in the strange position of being rootable but unlikeable for most of the game. I believe that she could turn it around and win, if ONC is going for a plot twist ending, or that she could be taken out now as the lesser of two evils to let the real baddie shine in the finale. Most likely, though, I believe she'll take second, learning some important life lessons and maybe getting some money from James.

Fiore is probably here to be the devil on Ally's shoulder. She'll suggest something cruel and unusual, and it'll be up to Ally to decide whether she can resist those urges, or whether her fate will fall to villainy. Fiore also may be here as someone who can comment on her relationship with Hunter. She saw the beginning where they were fighting, but she's also been at the Loser's Motel for long enough that she probably knows how Hunter feels about her now. If she's feeling nice, she could use that as motivation.

Let's go team Fiore!!!

#3: Riya

If someone is eliminated in this episode, it'll be confusing in and out of universe if it isn't Riya. She has Yul as a partner and a second disadvantage, and no one should want to work with or root for her. She's also obviously not going to win the season, so if the writers want to keep up suspense for who does, they should eliminate her and leave the finale to Jake and Ally. Really, the only reasons why I don't think she would be eliminated this time are because 1) it's so obvious and 2) I don't think anyone will actually be eliminated this episode.

I think that Yul is mostly here for the comedy of it all, and so that the writers didn't have to choose who he would genuinely choose to root for otherwise. There is also some juicy potential for something I've mentioned before-- for both of them to reflect on their shared tendency to sabotage themselves by always choosing material success over building relationships or choosing to be kind. If we're lucky, we'll get some reflection on that, but I'll be happy with just a Riya/Yul cringe comp.

Alright, I've probably hit my government-mandated word count now that I've yapped about the helper choices a bit. Excited for the finale! Let's end this season on a high note!

[mixelation]

wrote some reborn au. takes place after the tori v itachi fight

i decided iwa has a bunch of tunnels connecting everything !!

--

The little makeshift clinic set up in the holding wing of the stadium was quiet. Tori sat patiently on a cot while one medic wordlessly spread healing chakra over the burn on her shoulder; the other medic was organizing ampules of clear liquid at table, the glass gently clinking together. 

Across from her, the poor fifteen year old who’d drawn Deidara was unconscious in another cot. Kurotsuchi was nowhere to be seen, probably because Itachi had beat her without harming a hair on her head. The latter was definitely more embarrassing than ending up in a hospital, but personally, Tori would take a blow to the ego over cracked ribs any day. 

Maybe she should have just let Itachi take her out with genjutsu. It wasn’t like she was going to pass, anyway. Then again, even Itachi’s less bad genjutsu were really scary… and she’d wanted to test her new seal…

The quiet of the room was broken by Kushina slamming the door open. 

“Tori you did so good, you know,” she proclaimed, unconscious teenager be damned. A noise like a muffle tea kettle escaped the medic’s throat. “Your taijutsu has improved so much. I’m really proud.”

Proud…? When was the last time anyone had been proud of Tori? She didn’t know what to do with that, and she felt her cheeks go hot against her will.

Kushina didn’t say much out loud about the four-part seal Tori had painted on herself, but she did shoo away the medic so she could help Tori take it off. The medic looked affronted by Kushina’s bossiness, and then scandalized when the seal on her burned shoulder turned out to have four matching ones. 

“You did all that to your genin?” the medic half-squawked. 

Kushina paused, a brush hovering over Tori’s shoulder. 

“Well, she designed it herself,” she said, like that excused it. A grin cracked on her face. “Hey, make sure you get that to the judges, you know. I don’t just hand my students fuinjutsu.”

Only two of the four seals had to be deactivated to break the random fluctuations in chakra, which is all they needed for the next leg of their mission. 

“We should grab some snacks before Itachi and Deidara duke it out,” Kushina said loudly as she led Tori out of the clinic. Both medics voiced annoyed protests. “Oh, come on, she’ll just come back after the show, you know!”

Tori let Kushina take lead. She led her down two flights of stairs, babbling about how there was a ramen stand just a couple blocks away that she was craving. As far as Tori knew, Kushina had not liked that stand and complained in length about Iwa having bad ramen in private, but it was established fact to anyone observing them that Kushina was obsessed with ramen. 

“Sensei, ramen is hardly a snack,” Tori whined as Kushina pretended to look confused as she navigated them through the maze of tunnels under Iwa. 

“Nonsense,” Kushina told her. “You need nutrients after your fight, you know.”

“Sensei, ramen barely has any nutrients. You told me you got scurvy when you were my age from not eating anything else.”

“Um, no, I said I nearly got scurvy from cup ramen. Restaurant ramen is completely different–”

It was easy to fake getting lost under Iwa, deep in the passages anyone could access. The tunnels were creepily empty, and they only passed two other people, an older civilian couple rushing in the direction of the stadium. Almost everyone was currently gathered to watch children try and kill each other.

The hardest part of this mission, they had both assumed, would be the transition to the ninja-only tunnels and then not getting caught in the prison complex. The transportation seal itself should be simple enough to plant. 

They never got that far. They were attacked first. 

The tunnel suddenly rose up in front of them, the stone cobbles flipping and stacking on top of themselves in a complex Earth jutsu. The path in front of them was sealed within seconds. 

“Er,” Kushina said, pausing, but the jutsu was already repeating itself behind them. Iwa-nin after Iwa-nin peeled themselves from the walls, crowing Tori and Kushina. “Hey, what the hell?”

All the ninja were wearing gas masks. This was very, very bad. 

“As an invited guest of the Tsuchikage,” Kushina started, her hair twitching at her side in building anger, “I demand an explanation.”

Tori felt dizzy. She wasn’t sure if this was nerves from their mission taking a sudden nosedive, or whatever thing the Iwa-nin needed gas masks for. 

No color, no odor, able to be filtered, Tori thought, mentally sorting through all the gasses and aerosolized poisons it could be. They’re covering their skin, so it might be absorbed that way even if I hold my breath… 

Had they already been caught, before they’d even gotten close? How?

The masked ninja offered no explanation. They didn’t even move to attack, although each and every one of them was tensed for a fight. 

Tori felt her knees going weak. Somehow all her limbs seemed to be getting weaker. 

“Chakra poisoning…?” Kushina wondered out loud. “Alright, I think it’s fair to call this self-defense.”

Kushina grabbed Tori, pulling her protectively into her chest, and chaos broke out instantaneously. Chains erupted from Kushina back, ensnaring and pinning down ninja in the claustrophobic hallway. Six chains shot right through the walls cutting off the passage. Tori was aware of weapons being thrown or swung at them, clinking loudly off the mass of chains and ricocheting into the narrow tunnel.  

The cobblestone walls rebuilt themselves as quickly as Kushina knocked them down, countering her attempts to vent the space. More ninja crawled out of the walls and ceiling, pushing and crowding them. Sharp blades slipped between the chains more than once, knicking the both of them. 

“Sensei,” Tori started, fingers fumbling for scrolls. “I can–”

“They almost definitely want me, you know,” Kushina huffed, breath heavy. Kushina had a lot of chakra to poison, but even she had limits. “Run.”

A chain wrapped itself around Tori’s waist and then shot her towards one of the cobblestone walls at a terrifying speed. Three more chains broke the wall in front of her, and Tori had to hold up her arms to protect herself from rubble. They she was flying down the open passage they’d walked through earlier, which felt almost cavernous with the sudden lack of other bodies. 

The chakra suddenly evaporated, turning from the most solid thing Tori had ever touched to gold dust. Tori was flung forward, and she only barely managed to get her weak legs under her to land, which turned into a sad, uncontrolled roll directly into a wall. 

Tori was on her feet immediately, running as fast as she could in the opposite direction of Kushina and the mass of Iwa-nin. The cobblestone wall had already prepared itself, and the passageway was eerily quiet. 

No one appeared to be following her. Should she go back? She couldn’t abandon Kushina. 

But what was she going to do, by herself with no plan? It would be smarter to go get Itachi and Deidara’s help. 

She found a staircase up to the surface and sprinted up it. Her chakra was sluggish and unmoldable, and her muscles weren’t quite right because of it. But she got herself up the stairs, and then she forced herself into a false calm as she walked back to the stadium. 

She couldn’t do a henge in this state. She pulled the tie on her braid and brushed her hair over her shoulders to hide her face. She hunched her shoulders and kept her eyes on her feet. I’m a shy little girl, I’m timid and civilian and harmless… 

It wasn’t a good enough disguise to hide her from anyone actively looking. But it would keep anyone else from noticing her, she hoped. The guard at the gate to the stadium certainly barely looked at her. 

The fight between Deidara and Itachi was in full swing, and it was about as loud as she’d expected. When she entered the stands, most people were standing, screaming in excitement. In a better mood, Tori would have contemplated that whatever bad blood ws between their villages, Iwa’s citizens still enjoyed seeing two top-tier ninja beat the shit out of each other as much as the next village. 

Itachi and Deidara’s role was to draw this fight out as long as possible, and draw it out they did. There were too many ninja in the audience and crawling around the stadium for Tori to even think about signaling for them to wrap it up. Instead, she sat there in silence, forcing her hands to not knot themselves in her shirt in anxiety. 

She needed to calm down. She couldn’t do anything if she didn’t keep her head on straight. Why was she getting so bent out of shape, anyway? Either Kushina was already dead, or they would hold her hostage. There was no point in letting herself get bent out of shape until after the crisis was over. Tori had thought herself accomplished at the ancient shinobi art of stomping down panic. 

She said she was proud of me, Tori thought over and over.

[cowgurrrl]

If I Ever Were to Lose You

Pairing: Joel Miller x fem!reader (plus platonic Ellie Williams x fem!reader)

Author’s note: DO NOT READ THIS IF YOU DO NOT WANT TLOU2 SPOILED FOR YOU (also I was going to wait to post this but I like it so it’s getting posted 🥸)

Summary: “Perhaps, somewhere, some day, at a less miserable time, we may see each other again.” - Vladimir Nabokov [1.1k]

Warnings: spoilers for tlou2 that’s all I’m gonna say, all the feminine rage, poor Tommy

The day is going by slower and slower as the patrolmen search for them. You knew Tommy and Joel were on patrol together, but they were supposed to be back by now. Ellie, Dina, and Jesse formed the groups before you could even wake up. You trusted him to take those late night/early morning shifts, you had no reason not to, but now the pit of anxiety is solid in your stomach. You would probably be throwing up if you had anything in your stomach. Maria tries to get you to eat, but you can't. You can't do anything until you know Joel and Ellie are safe.

Before the Outbreak, you heard stories of wives waiting for their husbands to come back from war. You listened to them recount nights of dread and fear. You sympathized with them when they told you the prayers they whispered despite never believing in God. They just needed to beg for their lives. They needed someone to hear them. And it still wasn't enough to bring their husbands back alive. You never thought you'd be like those wives who said prayers into non-believing hands, but here you are.

He told you not to go. He told you he had it handled. He told you it was fine, and you believed him. You've trusted Joel with your life before but always struggled with trusting him with his own. He could be reckless and get tunnel vision, especially when protecting his family. You've argued about it more than enough times. You thought he knew to keep his mouth shut and his head down, so he came home alive. You thought he knew the rules. You thought he could handle himself.

You hear the footsteps coming up the porch before you see the people. Maria calls after you as you rush out the front door to see Ellie standing there, blood dried to her face and hoodie. You don't think twice before wrapping her in your arms and crying with relief. She barely returns your hug, her weak arms shaking around you. "Who did this?" You ask when you pull away, putting your hands on her face. Ellie's not all there, that much, you can tell. She has the same faraway look in her eyes that she got after she killed David. She can't even look at you.

Tommy clears his throat behind her, and that's the first time you see the men standing on your porch. Tommy's bloody and bruised too, but he's alive. The rest of the patrolmen stare at their snow-covered boots, dried tears staining some of their faces. You search the faces three times and feel your body tremble when you can't find Joel.

"Tommy," you say, your voice breaking on the second half of his name. "Where is Joel?" Ellie flinches at your question and flees from your arms, retreating into the house. Bombs could've been falling from the sky, and it wouldn't have made you look away. Tommy says your name softly and tries to put his arms around you, but you push him away. "Somebody, please tell me where my fucking husband is!"

Two patrolmen step to the side to reveal the body bag they had been carrying. Your knees buckle under you. Tommy holds you up and says something in your ear. You think you hear Sarah's name but can't understand him over the ringing in your ears. You can't see anything except the black body bag in the snow. "Let me see," You say. The patrolmen look to Tommy like it's his decision, and you lose a piece of your sanity. "Let me see him!" You yell. Slowly and hesitantly, they unzip the bag and reveal Joel or what's left of him. You think they expected you to flinch or to run away at the sight of his body, but you don't. You drop into the snow next to him and stare at him. You reach for his hand and hold it tightly in yours, like the warmth from your body will be enough to breathe life back into his.

"What happened, baby?" You ask him, kissing his cold hand. The glint of his gold wedding band catches your eye, and you feel like you could shatter into a million different pieces. It's dented and stained with blood, but he's wearing it. He never wore his ring on patrol, but he wore it any other chance he got. He must've fallen asleep with it on and never taken it off this morning. He died wearing the ring you put on his finger, the one you used to promise you would love, respect, and honor him until he died. Until this moment. Except, your love doesn't fade looking at him even now. You squeeze his hand and sniff as tears fall into the snow next to him. "You said it was fine. You told me. You fucking told me you'd be home for dinner," you sob. You faintly register the patrolmen around you kneeling, but you can't look at them. You can only look at Joel. "I would've gone with you, you stubborn bastard, and we would've come home. We're a team. I should've been there. I should've… oh, God."

Your head drops to rest on his chest, and you scream so loud that the mountains seem to shake with the force. You don't care who hears. You want the earth to rumble with the depth of your grief. You want time to stop for everyone else the way it just stopped for you. Joel died, and you weren't there. Joel died, and you didn't get to say goodbye. Joel died, and there was no way to protect him after you promised him you would always have his back. You want more time. You deserve more time. He deserves more time.

You cry for a long time. Nobody tries to pull you away from Joel or soothe you. They just bear witness as darkness tingles at the base of your spine until your tears stop and you pick your head up. You kiss his hand one more time before laying it back down and holding your palm to the place where that big, soft heart used to beat.

"Who did this?" You ask. The patrolmen don't move or speak until you hear familiar footsteps approaching you.

"It was a kid. She couldn't have been much older than Ellie." Tommy says, and that makes you wince. Of course, Joel would soften for a young girl like Ellie. Of course, he would let his guard down around her. Of course, that would be his downfall.

"Where did she go?"

"She's a kid."

"That's not what I fucking asked you, Tommy," you stand and turn to face him. His Adam's apple bobs when he sees the deadly look in your eyes. "You tell me which way she went so I can rip her eyes out of her skull and then come back and bury my husband."

"I…It was a group. You can't take them on by yourself." One of the patrolmen speaks up, and your jaw clenches.

"If you make me repeat myself one more fucking time, we’re gonna need more body bags,” you snap. “Where. Did. She. Go.”

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Tag list (that I forgot I started): @evyiione @nyotamalfoy

[liberalk1tsch]

10 first lines

rules: share the first line(s) of your last ten published works or as many as you are able and see if there are any patterns!

ty @adsosfraser for the tag lol

seeing as many of my published fics have been scrubbed from the internet due to my mother stumbling across my wattpad in 2014 and forcing me to deactivate my account (i can’t blame her — i was 12 and hoping i’d get sold to one direction), i don’t have many that are actually public🫣🤗

so here’s a few published mixed in with unpublished/wips

1. Sparks Fly: (everlark, published, finished)

The frosty air around me has long since stolen the warmth from my hands and the once-steamy flask of tea they grip tight. My body is stiff all over, as if my muscles themselves have frozen in the harsh January weather. If a predator were to attack me now, the odds of me walking away unscathed are miniscule. I should get up, get the blood flowing through my veins. I should do so many things. Say so many things . . . But instead I sit, still and silent as the first rays of dawn begin to break over the horizon and the calls of birds begin to split through the trees.

2. Made of Ashes: (everlark, published, wip)

I slide a hand down to my swollen belly and stare at my shoes, watching as a fine layer of ash settles on the worn leather of my boots. A few yards away is where the bed I shared with my sister, Prim, stood. Over there was the kitchen table. The bricks of the chimney, which collapsed in a charred heap, provide a point of reference for the rest of the house. How else could I orient myself in this sea of gray?

3. Cruel Summer: (everlark, published, wip)

I try to scream, but no sound escapes my throat as my head is shoved under the surface of the slimy, foul-smelling water of the Capitol’s underground tunnels. I thrash against the two sets of hands holding me down, but it’s no use as the eerie, smiling faces of Coin and Snow swim into my vision.

4. The Loneliest: (everlark, temporarily re-unpublished, needs reworking and planning)

I grip my father’s hand tightly, dreading the moment I know he’s going to let go and push me towards the line of all the other 5-year-olds already forming outside the classroom door. It’s my first day of school, and I know I should be excited, but all I feel is an anxious pit in my stomach.

5. Exuent: (mrs. everdeen x mr. everdeen origin, unpublished)

I slump my head in my hands, the scorching summer heat starting to get the better of me as I shift uncomfortably in the apothecary stall. I hate summer. Really, truly hate summer.

6. untitled gtb (unpublished, NOT sparks fly related, peeta’s pov)

I find her laying on the sofa for the fourth morning in a row. Not eating. Not sleeping. Just . . . staring. At what, I have no idea. But her gaze is fixed on something outside the window.

7. untitled victory tour wip (playing with calling it temporary fix) (yes i have a fixation on them getting caught sneaking away and the whole «nights on the train» thing, idc) (unpublished, peeta’s pov)

“You wanna get away for a bit?” I whisper softly into her ear as the song we’ve been dancing to fades into another. She has that artificial, inauthentic smile that doesn’t quite meet her eyes. The same one she always uses whenever we have an audience. The same one that’s fallen ever so slightly with each question she’s had to respond to, every congratulating compliment she’s unwittingly received.

8. untitled random wip i started and never finished for my friends: (everlark, smut)

I wake with a start, but it's not the usual nightmares plaguing me tonight. The symptoms of a nightmare are all there — my thundering heart, my body breaking out in a sweat, shaking uncontrollably, my throat hoarse from crying out. But then there's the heat in my stomach I connect only with those kisses with Peeta in the cave.

9 and 10 are 5sos and 1d fics that somehow survived the wattpad purge by hiding in my google docs but will be remaining nameless and sentence-less bc i should not have been writing those things as a 12 y/o💀

anyways, they’re unnecessary — the common denominator is that i’m a Certified Yapper who might enjoy narrating a little too much

tagging: literally anyone who feels like it😅 i’m tired and can’t think of anyone rn

[cosmicjoke]

Winter

Winters in the Underground are bleak.

It’s the drafts, Furlan knows, coming in through the holes in the caverns roof, the ice melt which sinks down through the sewer grates, and flurries of fat, freezing flakes of snow. There is no sun to melt it as it carries on the strange currents of wind which suck down like a vortex into the open space, blowing endlessly through the dark tunnels of their world.

Isabel hates it. Complains constantly about how cold it is, shivering and shaking as she tries in vain to warm herself by their pitiful firepit.

Levi bears it like he bears everything. In silence, grim faced and unreadable.

Though, sometimes, Furlan catches the tremble in his small hands.

This year is worse than usual.

There’s a famine up above, apparently. No rain during this last spring resulting in fields of dead crops.

It’s well hard enough getting food down here, even when things up top are thriving.

But people struggling for food on the surface meant people starving to death in the Underground.

It’s been hard for everyone, even the three of them, who usually did a descent enough job staying afloat, thanks, mainly, to Levi.

But these last, few weeks, they’ve had to take to scrounging through the gutters in hopes of finding some tossed out and molding piece of bread, or wilting, days old vegetables, just to get by.

There’s no food. The merchants from the surface willing to come here, few and far between as they are, have all packed up their stalls and left, and whoever’s left has nothing to sell at all, stands left bare and empty, their owners gone and out of sight.

Levi had managed to hit one of the fleeing merchants about a month back now and steal a sizable sack of dried goods from him, and they’d been living off that ever since. But, between the three of them, even with Levi skipping meals and leaving the bulk to Furlan and Isabel, much to their dismay and protests, they’d finally bled the haul dry, and now they had nothing.

Each new day was weighted with uncertainty, then, as to whether they would eat or not.

They all knew what starvation felt like. They’d all been through it.

That didn’t make bearing it any easier.

It didn’t make the pain, or the fear, go away.

And the cold was only making things so much worse.

It was fucking freezing, even holed up in their little space as they were, clinging to each other for what little warmth they could share. Levi has his arms around both of them, drawing them against his sides as they hunch with their heads together in front of their meager fire, and Furlan can feel Levi shaking just as violently as he and Isabel.

Through the thin material of Levi’s shirt, Furlan can feel his ribs and the ridges of his spine. He’s lost a lot of weight, from skipping so many meals these last weeks.

“… I’m gonna’ die, ain’t I?” Isabel’s voice breaks the pressing silence, dried and cracked and barely more than a whisper.

Furlan feels Levi stiffen.

“Don’t be talkin’ like that.” He scolds her, his own voice barely seeming stronger. “You ain’t gonna’ die.”

“… B-but I’m so hungry, B-Big Bro, and… and I’m cold. Oh, God…”

“I know. But ya ain’t gonna’ die, Izzy. I wouldn’t let that happen. Alright? You trust me, don’t ‘cha?”

“Y-yeah Big Bro. Yeah…”

Levi’s arms squeeze tighter around them, and the room goes silent again, but for the pops and crackles of the fire.

Furlan squeezes his eyes tight and bites the inside of his cheek ‘till he tastes blood.

He knows Levi means it. He means it when he says he isn’t gonna’ let them die. Knows Levi would give his last damned breath to keep both him and Isabel going. But… strong as Levi is, it doesn’t amount to much when there just isn’t any food to be had.

Shit… they might have to resort to trying to catch rats soon, if things don’t improve.

Furlan doesn’t think Levi would eat a rat. He doesn’t think Levi could bear it, twitchy as he is about disease and filth and the like.

Something to do with his mother, Furlan thinks, who Levi told him died from disease when he’d been a child. He hadn’t said more than that; Levi rarely spoke about himself at all. But Furlan can guess at the ugliness of the thing.

“… I’ll go out and look for somethin’ to eat. You two stay here.” Levi says after a while, and he starts to stand.

Furlan is slow to react, his energy sapped almost to nothing, and it takes too long for Levi’s words to process. By the time they do, Levi is already wrapping his cloak around his shoulders.

“Levi, wait…” he starts to protest, beginning to stand. “you can’t go out there now. It’s too cold. You’ll…”

“Stay here Furlan. You and Izzy keep holdin’ each other, try to stay warm. I’ll be back soon as I can.”

“Levi, please, you could die out there…”

Levi just shakes his head, starting for the door.

“I’ll be alright. I’m strong Furlan. You know that.”

“Y-yeah, but…”

“I’ll be fine. Stay with Izzy. Don’t leave. Don’t come after me neither. Alright? I’ll be back, soon as I can.”

Before Furlan can lodge any more protests, Levi is gone, the shabby wooden door creaking shut behind him, and Furlan feels what’s left of his energy drain outta him as he sinks back to the floor. Isabel throws her arms around him, burying her face against his shoulder.

“H-he’ll be alright, won’t he Furlan? Big Bro’s the strongest, s-so he’ll be alright. Yeah?”

Furlan puts his arm around her, laying his cheek to the crown of her head and holding her tight against his side.

“… Yeah.” He promises, and wishes he felt as confident as he forces himself to sound. “He’ll be alright.”

//

Levi doesn’t come back ‘till almost four hours have gone by. Isabel had fallen asleep, somehow, and Furlan had been grateful for it, because he’d been starting to grow sick with worry, more and more convinced with each second that past that something horrible had happened to Levi.

He didn’t know what they would do if something happened to Levi.

He didn’t know how they would survive.

But then Levi walks in through the door, carrying a heavy looking sack over his shoulder.

Furlan stands immediately from where he’s still sat by the dwindling fire, stumbling forward a step, before coming to a halt partway, eyes wide.

Levi’s got blood on his face, a thick smear of it coated across his brow, over his eyes, running from what Furlan can see is a large gash, just a little above his left temple. Gaze dropping to his hands, and Furlan sees Levi’s cut up and already swelling knuckles.

He’s been in a fight, then. A bad one, from the looks of it.

Furlan can’t help the words which spring unbidden to his tongue, a tight, sick knot in his gut.

“What happened?”

Levi looks dolefully back at him, silent.

It wasn’t that Furlan was surprised.

Levi was rough stock. He came from some kind of hardship extreme even from down in this place, and for a long time, violence was his only friend. The only thing he could depend on to make it from day to day. Furlan knows that. He knows. Even though Levi rarely spoke about his life before he met him, or Isabel. You could hardly miss the scars littering the kid’s hands, or all over his body. Knife fights, long, gnarled ropes of raised, white skin, some clean and straight, some jagged and twisted, like whoever’d done the cutting meant to make it ugly as possible. There were starburst shaped patterns of raw, too smooth skin on his chest, parallel in place on his back, and Furlan knew those to be entry and exit wounds from bullets.

Yeah, Levi was rough stock, and he’d made his way before mostly through fighting.

That was the thing down here, in this place. Predators picked off the weakest looking prey, and Levi was small. Just a tiny kid. The top of his head barely reached to Furlan’s chin. Hell, Furlan knows, when he’d first seen Levi, he’d thought like everyone else. Short, scrawny looking kid, should be an easy mark, even though, by then, there’d started to be talk of a scrappy little midget who could take down men twice, three times his size, even. And like everyone else, Furlan had wanted to see if the rumors were true.

Well… Levi was rough stock. He was fucking terrifying. Stronger than any man Furlan had ever seen. He’d felt it, one time. How strong Levi really was. One time, when a guy from a rival gang had come charging at Furlan, ready to sink his knife into his back, and Levi had caught Furlan by the arm and jerked him outta the way before it could happen. In his panic, Levi’d grabbed him hard, harder than he’d meant to, Furlan knows, and the power in his hands, in his grip, had stolen the breath right outta his lungs. He could break bones with his bare hands. Furlan knew it then sure as he knows his own name. And then that’s what he did. He took hold of the man who’d tried to put a knife in Furlan’s back, and he’s crushed his hand. Mangled it, ‘till he couldn’t hold a knife, or any other kind of weapon, ever again.

You didn’t fuck with Levi.

That’s what kept Furlan and Isabel safe. Because everyone knew. You try anything with them, and it was Levi you’d bring down on your own head. And you didn’t fuck with Levi.

Unless you were the MP’s. They fucked with Levi all the time, ‘cause they fucked with everyone, down here, and ‘cause they knew Levi wasn’t fool enough to kill no government workers. That’d draw attention. That’d get people from up above involved. And Levi was always telling him and Isabel, it was best not to get people from up above involved, ‘cause they had money, and money gave ‘em power, and they could take everything from them. Levi was always saying. They could take everything.

Furlan’s eyes catch on the sack over Levi’s shoulder. It’s one of those stitched potato sacks, starched white, and printed out in bold, black letters across the front, are the words “Government Property”.

Well, shit…

“Levi… what happened?” Furlan asks again.

Levi slides the sack down, lying it gentle onto the floor.

He doesn’t say anything as he kneels down on one knee, starts undoing the tie round the bags end.

“Levi… did you kill military police?” And even as the words leave him, Furlan feels a dizzying horror in his head, threatening to black out his vision. If Levi killed police, then…

“… I didn’t kill ‘em. Just roughed a couple up. They ain’t dead. Just socked ‘em, some.”

“Levi…”

“They did me first. I… I tried talkin’ to ‘em Furlan. You know how I ain’t good with no words. But I tried talkin’. I told ‘em I could do stuff for ‘em, if they was willin’ to spare some ‘a their food. They got… all this food, Furlan. More ‘an they need. It ain’t fair. It ain’t right, down here, what you got people starvin’ to death, droppin’ dead in the streets from starvin’, and cold. I told ‘em Fur… I said…”

“Levi, alright. It’s alright.” Furlan says, keeping his voice even and level.

Levi got like this, sometimes. He got emotional, like this. He kept himself so even keeled most of the time. Was most of the time so reserved. He only got worked up like this when he was real upset about something.

Levi sniffs, wipes the back of his hand against his nose, and keeps working at the bags tie. He gets it open after a minute, and starts pulling what Furlan can see are dried goods, mostly. Crackers, standard military rations, some cans of beans. Stuff like that.

Levi’s hands are shaking.

“… What did you tell ‘em you could do for them, Levi?” Furlan asks, even though he doesn’t want to.

Again, Levi says nothing, just keeps pulling the goods from the bag.

There’s a lot.

Enough to last ‘em several weeks, Furlan thinks.

Their lives are saved.

“Levi, you didn’t…”

“I said, ‘cause, like… you know.” Levi cuts him off. “I said I could do ‘em some jobs. If they needed anything, like… like, I could steal stuff for ‘em, or what. You know how good I am at that stuff Furlan. You know, ‘cause I’m small. I can sneak into any place. You know it, right?”

Furlan nods.

“Sure do, Levi.”

“Well, but then they got to laughin’ at me. And one of ‘em says, he says, what I could do for him is suck his dick, ‘cause I’m… ‘cause he says, I’m the perfect height for it. And they were laughin’ at me Furlan. And I got mad. So I beat ‘em up, and took a bag. They got dozens ‘a bags, Furlan. They won’t miss just the one.”

“… Okay.”

“They were laughin’ at me Furlan. They… they used to laugh at Mama like that. I remember. They used to laugh at her just like that. I got mad.”

“Okay.” Furlan feels his heart sink.

“But I didn’t kill ‘em. I just socked ‘em good.”

“… What happened to your head?” Furlan tries, and Levi blinks at him.

Furlan points to his own head, near his temple, and he sees understanding come into Levi’s eyes.

“… Yeah. I socked the one who said about my height, and the other one came in and hit me with his billy. Caught me good too. I almost went down.”

“God, Levi…”

Levi shakes his head.

“But I kept my feet. Kenny says to me, you gotta’ keep your feet, no matter. No matter what they hit you with. So I kept my feet, and I socked him too. I just knocked ‘em cold Furlan. I didn’t kill ‘em, so you don’t gotta’ worry none about that. Don’t worry none. Only, maybe we’ll have to move soon, in case anyone comes sniffin’ around. Them MP’s don’t like to be stolen from. You ask me, they’re the ones stealin’. There’s people starvin’ to death in the street, Furlan. There’s little babies dead out there in the cold.”

“I know, Levi.”

Levi looks at him, and his eyes are, for a moment, so damned hurt, that Furlan has to look away.

Fuck…

“Well, I gives some ‘a what I stole to some poor lady, ‘cause she had a baby, Furlan. I lied, before. I’m sorry. I took more than one bag. I… I took a couple. And I gives one to some poor lady. Don’t be mad, Fur. We gotta’ eat. You know that. We gotta’ eat.”

“I ain’t mad Levi. God, I ain’t mad at ya.”

And he isn’t. He can’t be.

Fuck, Levi just had too much feeling in his heart, and Furlan couldn’t ever be mad at him for that.

It got sometimes so he could hardly stand to look though, for all the hurt Levi had in him. All the hurt he had for everyone else.

People didn’t know, ‘cause Levi was rough stock, and he grew up learning to keep it all in, pressed down so nobody could use it against him. He kept it all in, usually. But when he got like this, there it was, plain as anything, all that feeling and hurt he carried around inside him for everyone else, and sometimes Furlan could hardly stand to look.

He couldn’t imagine what that felt like, to be carrying around all that hurt, keeping it all inside like that.

“… Yeah? Well, alright then.” Levi says and starts up emptying the sack again.

“Say, Levi, that can wait ‘till later. I should clean up that gash you got on your temple. Okay? Fix up your hands too.”

Levi keeps unpacking the canned goods for a moment, before he stops, rubbing at his nose again.

“… Okay.” He finally agrees, and Furlan feels an almost dizzying relief.

He has Levi sit down along the bench in what they’ve designated the living area of their small hovel, and tells him he’ll be right back, going to fetch a bowl of water and some clean rags.

They’d filled a couple wooden buckets with water a few days ago, when the ice stopping up the well a little ways from their place had final broken enough apart, but they were gonna’ have to get more soon. Assuming the well hadn’t frozen over again. It probably had. Furlan tries not to think about it. Getting drinkable water down here was almost as hard as getting food, now.

He sees Levi’s removed his cloak, finally, as he makes his way back towards him, and he’s got his arms crossed against his chest, his hands stuck in the pits of his arms. He’s shivering, and Furlan knows he must be freezing, though Levi won’t ever complain about it.

Furlan knows better than to make a fuss about it either. Levi never liked anybody fussing over him.

Instead, Furlan just takes a seat across from him and sets to work, cleaning his wounds.

The gash along his temple is pretty bad. Might even need stitches, Furlan thinks, frowning to himself. He tells Levi as much, and Levi huffs, but doesn’t otherwise protest as Furlan gets up to set the bowl of water to boiling over the fire and fetch a needle to sterilize. He needs to add some kindling to the fire to make it hot enough, and Isabel tosses and turns in her sleep, mumbling incoherently to herself, dreaming.

“She alright?” Levi asks as Furlan comes back.

Furlan shrugs.

“Sure. Good as she can be, I suppose. She’ll be happy to see you’ve got us food.”

“… Yeah.” Levi says, and goes quiet again.

Furlan doesn’t say much as he sets to cleaning and stitching Levi’s wound, good as he can, and Levi doesn’t complain, sitting stiff and still, mouth pulled tight at the corners.

“Hands.” Furlan orders after, and Levi dutifully holds them out for him.

There’s scar tissue all over Levi’s knuckles, the skin split and bleeding now. It must hurt, but Levi gives no indication of it as Furlan works, trying to be gentle as he can.

“Alright.” Furlan says when he finishes, letting Levi’s hands go.

“Thanks, Fur.”

Furlan smiles tightly back.

“No problem.”

Furlan packs the materials away, leaving the used rags in the bowl of water to soak for a bit. He’ll have to clean them later, or Levi will get upset.

Levi busies himself by storing away the food items he’d nabbed, and there’s a heavy, comfortable silence which falls over the place.

Furlan wants to ask Levi if he really thinks they’ll have to move again soon, but he knows Levi will let him and Isabel know if they do. If he’s anything, he’s cautious, and keeps his eyes open and ear to the ground. He’ll know if their spot’s been compromised.

Furlan rummages around in their pile of wood bits they’ve been collecting for kindling, throwing a few more pieces on the fire, stocking it and building the flames back up.

“Levi, you should rest.” He calls to the smaller man after a while, watching Levi move restlessly about the space. He’s got his duster out, aimlessly waving it at different surfaces. Even from half the room away, his face looks gaunt, pale and too thin. The circles under his eyes are like dark bruises. He must be exhausted.

Levi stops, but he doesn’t turn to face Furlan, just stands there, staring at the ground.

“Come on, Levi. You can lay by the fire, try to warm up a little. You need rest.”

“… Okay.” Levi at last relents, placing the duster down and making his way to where Furlan and Isabel are lying together. Furlan scoots some to the side and holds his arm out, inviting, as Levi settles down, nestling against him.

They’re quiet for a while, and Furlan stares absently at the ceiling above them as Levi turns, pressing his face against his shoulder.

There’s a thousand and one things Furlan thinks he wants to say to Levi. He wants to beg him to stop doing this. Going out and putting himself in so much danger like that. He wants to thank Levi for it, for taking care of him and Isabel, even at the expense of himself. Wants to find a way to show Levi how much he appreciates it, how grateful he is. Wants to understand why it is Levi seems to care so little about himself in turn. Why he… treats himself like a tool to be used, instead of a person who matters.

Maybe it’s his fault, Furlan thinks dismally. Maybe, because when he first met Levi, that’s all Furlan saw him as too. A tool. Somebody he wanted, so he could use him to move up in the Underground gangs. Somebody who’s strength he coveted.

He was still using Levi for that, in a way. Even though Levi was their de facto leader, he let Furlan make all the plans, let Furlan, ultimately, call all the shots. He didn’t have to. If Levi wanted, he could rule their gang with an iron fist, and there wasn’t anything Furlan, or anybody else, could do about it. But Levi only ever leant his strength to make Furlan’s plans reality, only ever did all the hard stuff, the dangerous stuff, and Furlan let him.

He thinks he shouldn’t.

But he does, and he knows it’s because it’s comfortable for him, this way. Because he’s too selfish to try and change their setup. Because his plans, he knows, wouldn’t even be possible if he didn’t have Levi backing him up.

So he says nothing now, just curls his arms tighter round Levi and Isabel both, lets the silence settle over them as the night deepens outside.

[yanphobia]

Cleithrophobia - Chapter 11

Cleithrophobia: The fear of being trapped.

Pairing: Yandere Male Drider OC x Reader

Warnings (for the entire story): Yandere, Horror, Graphic Discriptions of Injury and Death, Spiders, NonCon Touching, Possible NonCon (depending on reader's interpretation), Implied Female Reader (although it doesn't really factor too heavily into the plot), Extreme Dead Dove Do Not Eat

Chapter 10 Index

Author's Note: Aaaand that's a wrap! I was going to wait until next week to post this, but you've all been so good waiting for updates that I thought you deserved to get it early. It's been so much fun starting this blog and seeing your reactions to the new chapters, and I can't wait to get started on my next story. I have a few ideas bouncing around, so stay tuned! But in the meantime, enjoy the final installment of our angry spider man!

This story was inspired by cobalt-sphinx's Drider x Reader from Quotev.

You didn't die that night; no. Death would’ve been kinder. 

Every waking moment, the events of that night haunted you. Every time you fell asleep, it was as though you were reliving it all again. 

Mars hadn’t let up the second you fell into his den. You tumbled down the tunnel that would be too steep to ever climb out of and slammed against the cold ground of the hollowed-out nest below, dimly lit with the lantern you had left in your meeting spot earlier in the night. The impact caused you to lose your breath, but almost immediately he was lifting you up again, roughly shoving his tongue down your throat as you weakly attempted to push him away. 

Then he carried you to the newly laid webs in the corner... you shut your eyes. You didn’t want to remember what happened next. 

But even now, you could still feel his hands ripping through your clothes, shredding them and leaving you in your most vulnerable state. You could feel his fangs tearing through the soft, delicate flesh of your body, the wet sound of his mouth slurping up your blood in between his loud proclamations of hate. Your voice was gone from all of the screaming, and crying, and begging for mercy, and you weren’t sure how often you passed out only to wake up again in the throes of your torture. 

He had left no part of you untouched, unviolated, and you haven’t seen him since. 

At some point, you had woken up to find him gone, and although it was impossible to tell how long you’d been here, it had to have been at least a few days. You were forced to lie there, starving and weak in a pool of your own blood and waste, as you fought with yourself to maintain your sanity. There was something inside of you, some weak desire to escape from the hell you’ve been subjected to, that was keeping you alive.  

It was quiet, but eventually you heard the scratching of his legs against the dirt walls of the tunnel. He stopped when he reached the bottom, no doubt confused by the darkness of the den. You couldn’t bear to look at your injuries anymore, and over the course of a few excruciating hours you were able to roll over and turn the lantern off. 

“This,” he said, as you heard him approach, “was supposed to stay on!” 

The lights flickered on and you saw your captor’s irritated face, which quickly turned to surprise. It would’ve been almost comical, if you had the heart to laugh. The two of you looked each other over, him, holding the corpse of a goat by its broken neck, and you, looking like a prey animal that had met a much slower end. As he took you in, his confusion turned to an obvious disgust, and the embarrassment and shame you felt at your current state overtook you. 

“...” 

“They’re infected.” You were quick to explain. “The wounds, they’ve, uh... they’re festering. They need to be treated.” 

It was awful and seeing them again was nothing short of nightmarish. There had been nothing here to clean them when they were fresh, and you wouldn’t have had the strength to do so anyway. In your solitude, you slowly watched as the area around the lacerations swelled and reddened, while a thick, foul-smelling pus leaked out of them. They burned and the redness spread around your body, along with the fever that’s been plaguing you ever since. Your skin glistened with sweat as you watched your skin begin to yellow, and then blacken, shriveling away to reveal the deep-seated fascia and layers of fat underneath. You laid there in agony as your condition worsened, all the while remembering your readings about the necrotizing properties of spider venom.  

You were rotting away, from the outside in. 

“Please...” you begged, your voice so weak and pathetic sounding that it only embarrassed you further. “Please, let me go. I just have to... have to treat it. I have to go to a hospital.” 

He remained unimpressed. “Do you really think that will work on me?” 

“I’m serious!” You begged. “I’ll do anything... I’ll come back the second that I can. But I can’t put it off any longer...!”  He eyed your injuries again, observing old blood stains on the webs underneath you. The smell was nauseating, and perhaps that was what made him compromise. 

“I’ll get you water-” 

“No! Water would not do anything at this point, not this far along.“ The only thing that could save you now was a clean environment, with plenty of antibiotics, steroids, skin grafts. 

“Please,” you tried again, “I swear to you that I will come back. I’ll die if I don’t!” 

“You’ll die?!” He scoffed. “What do you think I do every day? How do you think I feel, knowing that you’re here, wanting to be close to you, but then remembering all of the shit that you did to me?! What I suffer, [Y/N], is a fate worse than death, and all of it is because of you.” 

He leaned closer and held up the dead goat. 

“This-” he said, shaking it in front of your eyes, “is what I’m supposed to be. An apex predator, one that listens to no one, especially not a useless human like yourself!” 

And with that, he tore into its flesh. He maintained eye contact with you as you watched the meat of its body break down and liquify. You imagined yourself in the later stages of your necrosis, with your internal organs falling apart the same exact way.  

You didn’t have it in you to be sick anymore. You were too numb. As you watched Mars devour his meal, you realized that this was the exact fate that you deserved. For all of the things that you’ve done to the people you claimed to care about. For Laura, Stan, and Shadow, whose deaths you had caused. You could never be allowed to make a full recovery, physically or mentally, because you have not earned it. 

You sighed, closed your eyes, and waited for nature to take its course. 

--- 

Mars stared down at your unconscious form. You hadn’t been responsive for a few days, and he had lost the last of his patience. He knew, in his heart, that you were being dramatic, that your injuries THAT HE INFLICTED UPON YOU were not nearly as bad as you claimed. He even cleaned your wounds for you, scrubbing them down using water from a nearby pond YOU’D TOLD HIM WATER WAS NOT ENOUGH TO HEAL YOU and the scraps of your old shirt. 

He’s done everything he could NO HE HASN’T but you still refused to wake up. 

“Hey.” He barked out. Silence. 

“HEY.” This time he kicked you. Again, silence. 

He knelt, taking one of your hands in his. He briefly glanced over the withered, blackened fingertips and yellowed, peeling nails, before biting into your cold palm. Blood gushed from the puncture, and he waited intently for you to wake up screaming, but he was still met with silence. 

He stood and dropped your hand, which fell listlessly to the ground, and licked your blood from his lips. It was off, somehow, extremely sour and not at all as warm and sweet as it used to be. 

His hands raked through his hair as he thought to himself. He wasn’t stupid, he knew what a rotten carcass looked like, he had seen them many times out in the woods. But you weren’t dead. You couldn’t be. 

Slowly, he approached you again, and even slower, he lowered his ear to the marred flesh above your heart, ignoring the bit of yellow puss that rubbed off onto his cheek. 

A heartbeat. He could barely feel it, much less hear it, but it was still there. He looked again at your disfigured face, at the deep cuts in the muscles that so closely resembled the raw meat that you used to bring to him. 

He wasn’t stupid. He knew what a creature in its final moments looked like. 

--- 

You had no way of feeling your naked body being wrapped in a dirty threadbare blanket, or the night’s cool air on your face. You couldn’t feel the way it rocked back and forth as it was carried through the forest. You couldn’t feel it being propped up against the wooden balusters of a front porch, either. 

You could, however, hear a voice pulling you back from the darkness that you had been lost in. 

“Alright, you’ve won.” It said. It kept tugging on the fabric around you. Adjusting it. 

“I’ll take your previous deal.” 

When a star is about to die, it receives one final burst of energy before it diminishes completely. Why that was the first thought you had as you mustered up the strength to open your eyes... you could not tell. 

Your vision was blurry, and in your left eye it was almost entirely gone. You didn’t have a way to see how milky and deteriorated it had become. But somehow, you were able to make out a few pairs of red eyes staring at you, and a wide, thin mouth which revealed black fangs when it spoke next. 

“Go, then, to your little human hospital and sort all of this out. And then afterwards – immediately afterwards – you'll come home again. Don’t... don’t you di-” 

His voice caught in his throat, then he huffed in annoyance. 

“Don’t you try to screw me over, okay? I’ll know if you try to get out of this one...!” 

He stood up then, seemingly miles above you, and gave one final warning: 

“Go there and come right back, [Y/N]. Just like you promised.” 

Your eyes began to defocus as you heard him bang loudly on the front door and run away, into the pitch-black forest behind you. The door opened, and you heard the woman’s voice change as she processed the macabre scene before her. 

“Hello? What is...? Oh... oh my God! Kids! Brandon, Kayla, get in your rooms! Get in them, right now! Charlie, I – Charlie, call 911! You- hey... are you alive? ...Listen, we’re going to get you help! We’re calling an ambulance! Just... just stay awake, alright? Just don’t fall asleep...!” 

You held on to her words as much as you could. Deep down, you still felt the animalistic urge to continue living. No, a part of you still wanted to believe that you could get through to the other side of this, as little as you may deserve it. But as your eyelids pulled themselves closed, and as you felt your conciousness begin to slip, you weren’t so sure that you had the strength to hold on anymore... 

THE END.

[randomfoggytiger]

"I Know You. It’s What I Do."

The X-Files and Beauty and the Beast 1987 crossover.

Dedicated to @amplifyme, who nurtured me into the wonderful world Below~. Saw this post again and couldn't resist (though Mulder and Vincent were sidelined quite unexpectedly.)

*****

The hulking shadow had vanished from the tunnel mouth, slipping through cold, faded stone as easily as mist; and taken her partner with him. Mulder’s ferocious “FBI--” wilted into an unanswered echo while she yelled for him, hit the rock, hit it again, and began pushing, shoving each of the weathered corners to find a weak spot. 

*****

Werewolves, he’d pronounced two days ago, toying her with gruesome crime scene photos. There has to be two-- one to bait the victim, the other to catch him unawares and cleave him in half. The targets were always men, were always attacked at night, were always within a respectable radius of each other. Mulder kept his math sharp since the Dupre-Phillips case. 

She’d argued this was a case for serious intervention from animal control, laying out the impossibility of his theory in the singular (let alone as a coupling of homicidal carnivores.) 

They never eat the bodies, Scully-- just shred them. Probably protecting themselves or their families.

The debate was picked up and set aside at various junctures-- taxi, plane, taxi, motel, taxi, police station-- but while he entertained theories of another mated Jersey Devil pair, she avoided recollections of Lyle Parker groaning and shrieking in pain in the dark. 

*****

The tapping could have been mistaken for the wind innocuously sweeping up pebbles littered around her feet had Scully not been earnestly listening for a sign. Louder, softer; longer, short, short, long. Code-- and not one her father had taught her when starching her nouns and adjectives with the repetitive heartbeat of Morse Code pounded out on the table, on the dashboard, on the wheel of their rented vacation boat. But whoever was out there making noise would at least hear her own attempts at communication. 

SOS, HELP, LOST, Scully beat, fingers splayed to protect her manicure while she banged out her distress over and over and over. 

The wall gave way, softly grinding across the floor and spilling out the warmth of torch light, dazzling to Scully’s unadjusted eyes. She wheeled back, searching for purchase on the slick stone and dirt and dust, grappling for her holstered gun as a tall silhouette emerged from the secret door. Not as tall as the shadow, not even as tall as her partner; not an animal and most definitely not a werewolf. 

The stranger stretched her palm up and out, her friendly face and flaming hair escaping over one shoulder in the twin beams of her own and her guest's light. 

“Nice to finally meet you, Scully, FBI. Diana Bennett. I’m with the New York City police department.” 

*****

The Tunnels, Diana explained, were a sacred part of the world Below. A couple miles the right way and you came straight to the Chambers; a couple yards the wrong way, and you were likely to find a nasty surprise or two. 

“Then where’s Agent Mulder? Are you taking me to him?” 

“He’s with Vincent. Rather, Vincent’s with him, letting your partner think he’s in charge. Don’t worry about him: the two of them’ll be back once they’ve had their fun.”

Scully halted their steady walk and stood back, weighing the truth in Diana’s eyes. There was a keen intelligence that edged somewhere between clever and clairvoyant-- but the edges were straight all the way down; and kind. “My partner will know he’s being fooled with.” 

“I figured,” Diana nodded, turning to slide the torch into the nearest hook, “but Vincent doesn’t play a fool’s game. He wants to take your partner’s measure.” Her smile, wide and fleeting, carved through the darkness. “It’s been a while since Above gave him anything, anyone, new to abstract over.” 

It was, Scully decided, wisest to evenly match Diana’s stride, light bearer that she was. Carefully, she cooled her voice to a sharp, practiced nonchalance: “Did Vincent have anything to do with the killings?” 

“Yes. They came after him and…." She trailed off, changing directions before the silence became pronounced. "Vincent was captured by a ruthless, powerful man six years ago. Since then, the enemies have been pouring in by trickle and truckload. Can’t shake ‘em, and they won’t shake us. It’s become a three-way habit now. Vincent and I are hunters-- you can’t beat that on home turf. But... it wears on him. Then you two flew into town.” Again, the smile. “You should’ve seen him this morning when Agent Mulder found that tuft of fur. Both of them were practically quivering with excitement over the other.” 

Then she became serious; and stopped talking the rest of the walk. 

*****

Time was hard to determine in this unending darkness: it sank into one's mind, tearing out the crucial parts until all that was left was anxious awareness.

 “Look, I don’t know what you or, or Vincent want with me or with Mulder, but I’d like to know where he is so both of us can go home.” 

Diana stopped this time, appraising Scully’s rigid posture and shaking hands, opening her mouth halfway in contemplation, standing absolutely still. A pipe creaked, or groaned, or tapped; and she lifted her head higher as if from a daze, abrupt and wincing. 

“Back that way, then.” 

The women turned, gaining a foot or two before she clumsily lunged towards the wall-- “Forgot to alert Vincent”-- and squatted down to pick up the nearest rock she could find. Language was once more transmitted along an adjacent, sinewy pipe, swirling and jolting deeper into that impenetrable darkness. 

“Is he bringing my partner?” 

“I think Agent Mulder will be along on his own.” 

*****

Day was seeping into the tunnel before Diana spoke again. 

“I was 32 when my life changed. One day I was working on an unsolvable case about a woman found dead in her apartment-- many stories up, no witnesses, no evidence-- and the next I was mapping out Vincent's mind on my board at home. I anticipated him, tracked him, found him. I saved him, he saved me back. Now, we save each other.”

Scully watched her brush off another secret notion with another escaping tendril of hair: disturbed; and determined not to show it. They both knew she’d shown it. 

“It was my idea for the two of you to come down here, see Below for yourselves. Thought it’d be my way to start you on your own 32.” With a sigh, she straightened and ambled closer to the secret door. “But you’re not ready yet. Too bad.” 

“Too bad I won’t see more of the sewers?” A bluff affront, a wry offering of peace. And well-received. 

“Too bad you won’t hear the angels sing. Vincent or one of his books might call it something like, ‘Some glorious nothing I did see’.” 

“Hm. Maybe next time.” 

A rush of calm settled close, punctuated by scattered code calls faintly reverberating off the walls. 

*****

Taxi, motel, taxi, police station, taxi, motel. 

Mulder remained subdued after their reunion in the Park. 

She’d left Diana, walking ahead to relish the sun, the morning birds, the earliest joggers circling their usual route. 32, with three haunting years tailing behind her. 32, with darkness a comforting consideration rather than an oppressive presence. 

Taxi, airport. 

Scully turned on the nondescript bench-- coffee flavor of the month in one hand and guilty rag magazine in the other-- to stare at her partner, watching the blazing sun eat away at the shadows lingering in the peaks and valleys of his profile.  

“Mulder.” And he turned, staring back. “Did you see anything?” 

His mouth worked back and forth, eyes flecked with tangling emotions. “I… heard singing.”

*****

Thanks for reading~

Enjoy!

Tagging @today-in-fic