#i do miss. making these silly low-effort comics ;;;

[crystallizsch]

i had a vision is it a good one? that's debatable

[squiggledrop]

Birthday Confessions - Spencer x Reader

Masterlist

Summary: Reader (gender neutral) and Spencer are both secretly in love with each other. Reader is going to be alone for their birthday, so Spencer comes up with a plan to surprise them.

Word Count: 4k

Pairings: Spencer Reid x Reader

Category: Fluff

Warnings: Kissing

Note: Written based on this request: “Spencer knows the reader doesn't have family near and celebrates it with her?” by @amofbebbanburg​. So sorry this literally took me forever.

The low rumble of the jet lulled you to sleep, your head falling to rest on Emily’s shoulder. Spencer sat across from you, his eyes fixated on the slight curve of your lips as your chest rose and fell with every breath you took, in tandem with the fluttering of his heart. The orange hue of his reading light dusted your cheeks, and the soft sounds you made resonated between his ears. He was so transfixed on your angelic, sleeping form, that he was unaware of the smirk plastered across Emily’s face as she watched him look at you. When he noticed her staring, he cleared his throat and abruptly returned his gaze back towards his book. Her light chuckle at his actions brought a harsh blush to his cheeks, only causing him to sink behind his book even further. 

“You know, you’re not being very subtle”, Emily teased, “(Y/n)’s going to catch on sooner or later”. Spencer felt his lungs constrict as panic coursed its way through his body.

“Wha-what do you mean?”, he confoundingly replied, having realized just how obvious he had been.

“Spencer”, she said with a knowing look, “We all know how you feel about (Y/n)-”

“Emily!”, he hissed. His eyes growing tenfold as he looked back at you to make sure you were still asleep. “They’re right there!”, he pleaded, turning his head to gesture towards your unconscious form.

“Relax”, she grinned. “They’re asleep, and trust me, (Y/n) can sleep through anything”, she said, rolling her eyes fondly. Spencer fought back a smile, trying to maintain his stoic composure, as he thought of how annoyed Emily would get on cases when your absurdly loud alarm would go off and not even wake you up. You would always joke that the point of your alarm wasn’t to wake yourself but to wake up Emily so that you could be woken up by the smiling face of your best friend. Emily would always glare at you in the mornings while on cases, and you would return the favor by laughing Oh hush, you love me, as the rest of the team shook their heads at your comical antics. 

Spencer bit his bottom lip as he thought about how he wouldn’t mind being woken up every morning to an air horn in his ear if it meant he got to wake up next to you. He would wake you up with gentle kisses across your face while holding you tightly to his chest. He would make sure to always have a huge smile on his face as he told you how much he loves you, just so you would start each day knowing how wonderful he thinks you are.

When the jet landed Emily gently shook her shoulder, causing you to groggily awake from your sleep. “Morning sleeping beauty”, she joked. You took in a deep breath, lifting your head and taking in your surroundings. It was dark, save for an amber halo peeking through Spencer’s deep curls. An inaudible gasp left your lips at the sight of him smiling down at you with his dark eyes that still managed to shine brighter than all the stars in the night sky. To quell the augmented flutter of your heart, you quickly turned away, hiding your flushed cheeks, before putting your head back down on Emily’s shoulder.

“Mmm, goodnight”, you sighed, closing your eyes as a smile crept its way to your lips.

“Nice try”, she laughed as she took her arm out from under you, placing a teasing pout across your face, “I’ve hit my sleeping (Y/n) quota for the week”. You reluctantly sat back up and were face to face with the man you had been hiding from. Your eyes met, and you lingered slightly too long looking at each other, completely unaware of Emily’s smirk.

“Right”, you cleared your throat, standing up. Spencer jolted his eyes back down to his book as he turned to place it in his satchel. You took this opportunity to make your way off the jet, not daring to look back at the man you were hopelessly in love with.

As you rode the elevator up to the sixth floor, you were hyper-aware of Spencer’s presence behind you. You kept sneaking glances at him, only to see he was looking at you each time you did. And each time you would both avert your eyes, just to look back a moment later.

After the team debriefed in the conference room, everyone went back to their respective desks to finish up some paperwork for the case before heading home. Luckily for you, this meant having to sit across from Spencer and using every fiber in your body to not look up at him. Spencer, however, couldn’t take his eyes off of you. He watched as you flipped through the files on your desk, and admired how you ran your fingers through your hair, a habit of yours when you were deep in thought. He let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding when you began to chew on your lip, and he couldn’t get the idea of kissing your tender, plump lips out of his mind. You were killing him. He couldn’t focus on his work, and all he wanted was to hear your voice, he needed to.

“So, are you doing anything for your birthday this weekend?”, Spencer inquired. Your head shot up from your desk, your mind having gone blank at his question. He furrowed his eyebrows at you, while his musky brown eyes searched your face. Spencer’s face fell as he slowly turned back to the open file on his desk, figuring he said something to make you uncomfortable. Your eyes were fixated on him, as his words, that hung in the awkward silence, finally caught up to you.

“Uh, h-how did you know it was my birthday?”, you questioned, genuinely confused. You had been at the BAU for seven months, after having transferred from the San Francisco office, and you were sure your birthday, of all things, had never been the topic of conversation. It’s not that you hated your birthday, but seeing as your family lived on the other side of the country, you felt silly celebrating it beyond a text from your mom. Truth be told, you had almost forgotten it was coming up with how hectic everything has been at your new job. It was a lot different than your previous job in California, which mostly consisted of doing paperwork at your desk. But, you couldn’t be happier than where you were: doing your dream job with people that were slowly becoming your family. Emily quickly became your best friend, and your crush on the very man sitting across from you formed not long after. So, imagine your surprise when he looked at you, through dark circles that framed glazed over eyes, hazy from sleepless nights during long cases, and asked you if you had any plans for your birthday.

“Oh, um, well”, he looked away from you and scratched the back of his neck as his plump lips formed a slight smile, “i-it was in your file from when you joined, and you know, eidetic memory”. He shrugged his shoulders and smiled innocently at you before staring back down at his desk.

“Right, of course”, you forced a smile as his head shot back up and nodded. “Well”, your face brightened in an attempt to break the palpable awkwardness that had formed between you two, “probably just going to spend it watching David Tennant on my tv while curled up on the couch with some ice cream.”

“What? For your birthday? You aren’t going out to celebrate?”, he questioned, appearing genuinely concerned.

“Well, normally I would, but drinking at a bar alone doesn’t scream ‘Happy Birthday’, you know”, you chuckled.

“You should at least have cake, everyone should get to have cake on their birthday. Actually, birthday cakes date back to ancient Rome, where people would have cakes made out of flour, nuts, yeast, and honey. However, birthday cakes became popularized in the 15th century in Germany when bakeries began making one layered cakes for people to buy to celebrate birthdays”, he said as he raised his eyebrows while his lips formed a thin smile. You couldn’t help but look at him with complete adoration as he rambled. “But, um, you aren’t even doing anything with Emily or Garcia?”, he hesitantly questioned. Your lips pressed together as you shrugged your shoulders.

“Emily treated me to lunch earlier in the week because she has plans this weekend”, you reassured him and he nodded, “Plus, it’s the first year I won’t be with my parents and I just miss them so I don’t really feel like celebrating alone”, He gave you a sympathetic smile as you shrugged. “But, I promise I’ll at least get cake batter ice cream”, you smiled while winking, eliciting a laugh from him.

“Okay good”, he said, smiling back. His warm chuckles still reverberated throughout your chest, swirling around your heart. Once again you found yourself frozen, knowing you should turn away, but not finding an ounce of strength to do so as you both just gazed into each other’s eyes.

“Well uh, goodnight”, you said, forcing yourself to look down to grab your bag and head towards the elevator. Your stomach clenched as you kept your gaze ahead, not daring to look back at him. Spencer, however, couldn’t keep his eyes off of you as you left. His eyes caressed each of your curves as you walked further and further away from him. He bit his bottom lip, smiling to himself as he watched you leave. 

“Goodnight”, he murmured to an empty room with an obnoxious smile plastered on his face. 

You woke up the next morning, the sun glaring in through your blinds. You turned over in your white, crinkled sheets, shutting your eyes in an effort to avoid the intruding rays. The ding of your phone pierced the quiet room as you sighed and rolled back over to check your phone. You groaned as you squinted at the screen, the harsh light it emitted illuminating your face. 

From Derek: Hey sweet cheeks, sorry to bother you on our day off, but Hotch called a meeting. He said it’s urgent. 

Great, you thought, Happy Birthday to me. You forced yourself out of bed and wasted no time getting ready before heading over to the BAU. You grabbed a granola bar on your way out, rolling your eyes, dreading having to spend your birthday working instead of sleeping all day. 

When you walked into an empty bullpen, you were even more confused. You got out your phone, ready to text Morgan, but you got a text from Garcia.

From Penelope: Good morning and happy happy birthday my sweet sweet (Y/n). Everyone is in the conference room! :)

When you opened the door to the conference room, instead of seeing grotesque crime scene photos of victims, you found the whole team there, each sporting a very cliché party hat. You couldn’t help the smile that grew on your face as everyone shouted Happy Birthday! You made your rounds hugging and thanking everyone, however, you couldn’t help but notice that someone was missing. 

“Hey, Pen, where’s Spence?”, you asked as everyone else was distracted in conversations.

“Oh, he um, he had something to do today, so he couldn’t make it”, she said sympathetically, noticing that the smile you were trying to force was gradually falling.

“Oh okay”, you said, looking around trying to appear happy. 

“But um”, she said, turning to Derek, who raised his eyebrows and shook his head before stepping out of the room, “he gave us very special instructions on what to do”, she reassured. Your heart fluttered at her words, knowing that Spencer did this for you. Just as you were about to ask her what he said, the lights turned off. Derek came in holding a cake adorned with candles as everyone sang “Happy Birthday”. When he held the cake in front of you, you read what it said: Outside those doors, we might see anything. We could find new worlds, terrifying monsters, impossible things. And if you come with me… nothing will ever be the same again! Happy Birthday (Y/n)! You felt a tear slip down your cheek as you blew out the candles. The tenth doctor was drawn on the cake and you couldn’t stop rereading the quote of his that was written on top. You smiled back up at your team and thanked them for such an amazing birthday.

Despite the love and appreciation you felt from the rest of the team, you couldn’t help but spend the rest of the party overthinking, hiding it behind a façade. You didn’t want to read too much into the quote, but Spencer, who could probably, no definitely, recite every line from Doctor Who, had chosen this one for your birthday cake. You desperately wanted it to mean something, but if he hadn’t even shown up to your party, clearly you weren’t that important to him. When everyone had finished eating, you thanked them again and gave your hugs goodbye. You drove home and blasted your music, loudly singing along, in hopes of drowning out the thoughts of Spencer that swarmed your head.

When you reached your door, there was nothing you wanted more than to put on your sweats and sink into your couch. You slid your key into the deadbolt and pushed open the door. Expecting to walk into your desolate apartment, tears were brought to your eyes at what you found when you walked in. The lights were off and the windows had trash bags taped over them to prevent any sun from breaking the barrier and entering your apartment. You looked all around and were met with string lights adorning your ceiling as if there were a thousand glass stars littering your apartment. A projector sat on the floor near the entryway, projecting galaxies that were currently orbiting around the room. The twinkling lights drew your gaze onto the figure standing in the middle of the dimly lit room. You couldn’t make out his face, but you could tell who it was by the way his dark curls were illuminated by the intertwining auburn and cream-colored swirls of Jupiter that spun around him. 

“Spence…”, you whispered, his name slipping out as you felt yourself being pulled towards him. You had missed him so much today, and at the sight of him, you couldn’t contain the relief that washed over you. You placed your hands on his arms, the soft fabric of his pinstriped suit felt so right under your light grasp. You looked down at his converse, laughing as you realized he was dressed as the tenth Doctor. Looking up at him and meeting his gaze, you suddenly realized how close you two were and that you were practically holding him in your arms. “This is amazing”, you chocked out as you quickly pulled away, wiping the tear that rolled down your cheek as you sheepishly smiled. 

“That’s Doctor to you”, he teased, matching your smile tenfold. 

“Sorry”, you laughed, “this is amazing, Doctor.” You looked around your apartment again, still stunned at how captivating it was. “Um, how did you do all this?”, you asked amazed.

“W-well, you mentioned you were going to spend your birthday watching David Tennant on your television, and I figured having the Doctor in person would be an even better way to spend your birthday… And then I figured what kind of Doctor would I be if I didn’t show you outer space”. You opened your mouth but were swiftly cut off by him, “And, I’m so sorry I wasn’t there to celebrate with everyone, but, I had to get you out of here and I thought you would enjoy spending some time with the team. Oh!”, he abruptly interjected, “did you um, get your cake?”, he timidly asked with a sheepish smile.

“Yes, I-I did. It was delicious by the way”, he nodded, “I missed you, but thank you for the party”, you said, just above a whisper, “but um, this, is amazing. I-It’s beautiful, Spence”, you smiled, admiring all the twinkling lights and planets that orbited the two of you, “really. Thank you”, you said, finally looking into his eyes that bore into you. 

“You are beautiful”, he said, as if it was the easiest thing in the world. You were speechless. Your mouth opened a few times as you struggled to find a response. “I just thought you should know”, he added after your prolonged silence. 

“The quote, on the cake. Did you um…”, you broke the silence between you two looking up at him expectantly.

“Yeah um”, he scratched the back of his neck as he smiled to the ground, “I uh, that line always makes me think of you”, your eyes widened at his words, “At work, we come across the most ‘terrifying monsters’, but, when I’m with you, I feel safe and when I look at you, I’m reminded that there are still amazing, beautiful things in the world, because, I-I think”, he cleared his throat, trying to hold back tears, “Because you are beautiful and amazing, and I am so lucky to have you in my life”. You were stunned. Your heart was beating so fast you feared he could hear it. Your silence, however, scared Spencer, because he didn’t want to lose you just because he had decided to spill his heart to you after breaking into your apartment. “I thought we could watch Doctor Who together”, he paused, still looking for any hint of a reaction from you, “but if not, I can just go. I didn’t mean to barge in like this and-”, he was cut off as you flung yourself into him. Your arms wrapped around his neck as he latched onto you, breathing a sigh of relief.

“No! Um, that, that sounds amazing”, you whispered into his neck. “I’d love nothing more than to be th-the Doctor’s companion”, you said, smiling against his soft skin.

“Good”, he laughed, “that’s, that’s very good”. You lifted your head off his shoulder, just enough to look into his eyes. Your smile slowly dropped as you moved in closer to his mouth, lightly brushing your lips against his. His eyes fluttered shut as you spoke against his mouth.

“But, as much as I love the Doctor, I would much rather be with my favorite doctor,” you smiled against his lips as you looked up, searching his eyes. 

“I think that can be arranged”, Spencer mumbled against your lips, opening his eyes as your noses brushed up against each other. You looked into his velvet eyes and swore you could see the entire universe in them as they reflected the warm glow of every star hanging above your head. You moved in closer, finally connecting your lips. Warmth rose within you, radiating out through your chest as his lips moved against yours. His arms moved up and down your back, mapping every curve of your body as if he were drawing constellations onto your flushed skin. Your fingertips ran across his supple skin as you cupped his cheek, deepening the kiss. His tongue grazed your bottom lip and you gladly opened your mouth, granting him more access. With every breath you took, you inhaled him in even deeper, getting high off the notes of cinnamon and coffee that flooded your senses. He pulled you impossibly closer, pushing you flush against his chest, and the moan you elicited only intensified his grip. Your thighs clenched and your knees felt week as he began to kiss along your jaw. The warmth of his mouth trailing its way down your neck, caused your eyes to roll to the back of your head. “So beautiful”, he murmured against your sensitive skin, saying it to himself more than anything else. Each kiss caused a string of electricity to shoot throughout your system, as you ran your fingers through his deep curls, tugging lightly. His kisses gradually became less intense, and your breathing began to even out. He gave a final peck to your neck and then to your cheek and finally your lips, before leaning back to look you in the eyes. “Happy Birthday”, he said smiling at you, while his eyes gleamed with adoration.

“Thank you”, you replied, your brain still fuzzy from the kiss you two just shared, “for, um, everything.”

“Of course”, he smiled, still holding your gaze, “So um, do you want to watch Doctor Who…”.

“Yeah, yes”, you nodded, finally getting some grip back on reality. You walked over to the couch, Spencer’s hand still laced in yours. You sat down first and Spencer sat next to you, still grasping onto your hand as if you would disappear if he let go. You grabbed the remote from the coffee table and leaned into him, resting your head on his shoulder as you both relaxed into the couch. As you were getting Doctor Who set up on the tv, Spencer took your hand into both of his and ran his fingers over your knuckles.

“I know I’m no David Tennant”, he said, causing you to turn and look up him, “but um, I-I just wanted to be clear that I, I like you, a lot”. 

“I like you too Spence”, you smiled, “a lot”, you teased. “And, Dr. Spencer Reid is way better than any other Doctor in my book”, you kissed him on the cheek, causing him to blush.

“Really?”, he asked, biting his lip.

“Really”, you reassured him.

“Even Matt Smith?”, he joked.

“Oooh I don’t know about that”, you said coyly, raising your eyebrows. Despite your joking manner, Spencer’s face still fell.

“Oh. Sorry. Yeah, he’s um-”, he rambled, looking down at his shoes.

“Spence”, you stopped him and put your hand on his shoulder, causing him to look up at you, “I was just joking”, you said earnestly, making sure he understood. You searched his eyes as he slowly nodded. “When I said I like you, I meant I really like you, and only you, okay?”, he nodded again but remained silent, “I’ve kind of had a crush on you since my second day at the BAU”, you said smiling as a blush found its way to your cheeks, “and there is no one I would rather be with than you”. Spencer couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Your angelic voice echoed in his head as he pulled you towards his chest, enveloping you in a hug.

“You are the only person I want to be with too”, he said, pulling back so he could see your beautiful face. “And I’ve liked you since your first day at the BAU”, he smiled, crinkling his eyes. You let out a breathy laugh as you gave him a quick peck before snuggling back into him on the couch.

“Always have to one-up me, don’t you doctor”, you teased, and this time he laughed as he pulled you in closer to him, running his fingers along the side of your hip. As the episode began, you turned up to him again and pondered, “Speaking of one-upping, you took me to outer space on our first date, so I am very excited to see what you plan to do for our second”. You both giggled as he kissed the top of your head. 

Finally feeling confident after your many reassurances, Spencer quipped back, “Someone’s eager, and who said anything about a date?”, he smiled, “this is just a birthday present”. You feigned being hurt by his words as you laughed.

“Dr. Spencer Reid”, you shook your head, “I told you, I’m your companion”, you smirked, causing him to laugh, “you are stuck with me”.

“Good”, he said, peppering your face with kisses as you giggled, “Because I am never letting you go”. He looked into your eyes as the Doctor Who theme song played in the background and you both smiled like idiots. You turned your attention back to the tv and held onto each other for the rest of the night. You fell asleep in each other’s arms as the stars twinkled above your heads and you spun in orbit with the planets that danced throughout the apartment.

[asscreeds]

Heila - Chapter 4

thank you again to @freyastrider​ for letting me yoink your screenshots :’D

TW for graphic descriptions of violence & death. Read on AO3 | Masterlist

The cool midday wind blew from the North, hastening the journey by longship, and Eivor thanked the Gods for their favor today. Curled up at the Wolf's feet, Nali hissed at Dag almost comically when he had boarded, scarcely recognizing the man, making Eivor chuckle. Not even five minutes into the journey, Dag started up another one of his stories, and Eivor did not realize how much she had missed the man's silly tales until her crew burst out into laughter at something absurd he said, the Wolf-Kissed joining in heartily.

Four hours passed and they had just passed Roucistere. By then the sun had sunk further into the sky, sending its rays into everyone's eyes and turning the sky and eastern sea a beautiful gold. Were it any other day, Eivor would have found the scenery beautiful, yet even with Dag's stories and the lightheartedness of the journey as her and her vikingr were reunited on the ship once again, she could only think of the battle ahead and prayed that it would go smoothly. 

Thinking back to your sobbing form made her heart squeeze with some unknown emotion; she could not decide if it was pity or something else. The name 'Gunnar' stuck in her mind. Who was the man to you? Part of your clan, obviously, but what was he to you? A companion? Brother? Lover, maybe? Despite her trailing thoughts she surmised it was not for her to know and began chastising herself for even pondering. It was not important to her; what mattered was honoring her promise to you and seeing that he and the others were returned to you safely.

As they pulled into the docks, Eivor could see a few of her men that had been sent forward earlier in the day had already set up a small camp above the beach, higher on the hillside where the two-dozen horses could graze and rest. Jumping from the lypting of the ship to the dock she bid her vikingr follow her up the hill to the forward camp, the raiders most grateful for being able to stretch their legs after the journey. 

As they gathered about the campfire, she called for their attention. "From what the scouts have told, the Danes are being held to the southwest of the barracks, near the most open portion of the city. There is a northern gate near the barracks that leads to the heart of the city that we will rush through. If two or three could ride forward to fire arrows and slay the gate's guards, we will catch them off guard and ride forward with little problems. The issue lies in exiting the city once we have freed the Danes, as the northern gate will be undoubtedly crowded with the soldiers from the barracks. We may either leave by the most western yet farthest gate, or the closer eastern gate - it depends on how the guards will react. Whatever happens, stick together," she explained, and her vikingr nodded, some cheering. Before letting them mount the horses she added in one final thing: "Remember, these are people who have been scarcely fed for days and been treated as animals. There is a very low chance that they will be able to defend themselves if they are targeted - load them onto the backs of your horses, then ride as fast as you can. Do not engage in battle unless you must, if you are outnumbered or are blocked from pushing forward. If all goes well we will overwhelm them with the suddenness of our attack and we will be able to slip in and out with little issue."

Then she let them go, and they each mounted a horse, standing near the mouth of the road waiting for her to lead them. To her surprise she found her personal mount among the horses; Askr, the rowdy, black destrier stallion she had purchased from Rowan a few months ago, whom she had just recently bonded with enough to be able to ride him into the heart of battle. Patting his nose, she mumbled, "I pray to Thor that you will not suddenly turn your heart in the middle of this and buck me," and then took her seat in his rune-inscribed saddle. The horse only gave her a side-eye and snorted.

Walking Askr forward to the road, she raised her fist to the sky, looking at the vikingr. "To Canterbury!" she cried, and the resounding war cries of the warriors hastened their mounts forward into a comfortable gallop on the stone road. By now the sun had eased down into the horizon, and they would reach the city hopefully just in time for the gap in guard rotation as the day rota switched for the night. 

Even in the dim light of dusk Eivor could still see the steeples of the church rise into the sky as they rode over the hill, and then Eivor pulled them all to a slow trot. Much to her delight, they had just begun lighting torches for the night and even from a distance she could see only one lone guard at the northern gate. Looking over and nodding to an archer, she sent them forward to deal with him before they rushed in and the guard could call for help. "Light your torch near the gate once you have dealt with him." One Norseman would only puzzle him, instead of seeing an entire raiding party descending down the hill like a flood.

By now the last light of the sun had nearly gone, and the sky turned a deep indigo as the first stars began to shine and the slim crescent moon began to rise higher. For what was about to transpire, it was such an incredibly calm night; a gentle breeze, the soft chorus of crickets, the hooting of an owl nearby. As they crested over the hill in definite eyesight of any eagle-eyed guardsmen she saw the torch of the archer being waved around near the gate; their signal. Bidding Askr into a canter, she and her warriors rode forth to the gate, meeting with the archer that had remounted their horse. The breach was quiet, and though the thunder of the horses' steps were a dead giveaway, it seemed that scarcely anyone had noticed their arrival. Good.

 Things did not go so smoothly once they rounded the corner to the area where the Danes were kept. Almost instantly four or five guards jumped up with weapons drawn from where they had been conversing around a table, and Eivor could only give a smirk as she and a few others drew their bows back to release a volley of arrows upon the men, not missing a single mark. They quickly fell, and she rushed forward to the imprisoned Danes. Despite their cages being secured with a lock and her nor the guards having the key for them they bent and broke easily enough. Drawing out her torch and stepping forward into the cage she was met by sad, sunken eyes that should have never belonged to any human being. Slowly, she approached them.

"I have been sent by y/n to rescue you. We will help you to mount the horses, take you to our longship and to Ravensthorpe where you will be fed and bathed," she said quietly, and immediately some burst into tears, rejoicing, others staring ahead quietly afraid. In all there were only maybe a dozen of them, four women and eight men divided into separate cages, all as visibly ill as the next. She did not ask any of them for their names.

As the fifth Dane was paired to a horse, a patrol rounded the corner to the clearing, and Eivor felt the rush of adrenaline blanket her mind. They were met with swift swords to their shields almost instantaneously as her vikingr beat them back away from the Danes, and the shouting from the conflict seemed to wake the entire city. Another two Danes were paired, and suddenly the church's bells began to ring, splitting the calm air of the night in two. Shit.

Moving as fast as she could she lifted a large man with bright blue eyes to rival her own onto her shoulders, placing him on the back of her horse. The man groaned with the movement and in her torchlight she could see dried bloodstains about his torso; another sad victim. She bid him to wait, leading Askr a few paces away in a shadowed alleyway between buildings to hide, and then ran back to the others to continue to pair the ninth, tenth, and eleventh Dane.

By now many of the Saxon guardsmen knew what was happening and descended upon the warriors like fighting dogs, and though the Raven Clan had a mounted advantage they were beginning to be pushed back into the clearing. Some had already fled, beginning the ride back to the longship. Eivor prayed that they would not be followed. 

 Grabbing the final Dane was where things went sour. An arrow flew right into the eyesocket of a Danish woman, who fell limp in the saddle and shocked the warrior at the front with the sudden dead weight at their back. More heavily-armored guards rushed in from the barracks and were poking and slashing at the horses chests, spooking them; little by little they were losing ground and precious time. The last prisoner secured, and with a final push from the guards, Eivor mounted Askr and commanded her warriors to follow her and run. They galloped higher into the city, heading towards the eastern gate with hopes of escaping cleanly - unfortunately, these guards were intelligent and had swarmed not only the east gate, but all other exits, too. They were penned in. 

Eivor could not see any other solution. Pushing Askr into a hard gallop she rode forward as archers stationed in the barbican above the gate released their arrows and the Wolf-Kissed had raised her shield just in time to prevent them from piercing her and the man's flesh. Some others were not so lucky nor swift enough. Three more Danes were struck by arrows. In the pause of archers knocking arrows again her vikingr rushed behind her, yet this time the arrows were set aflame. The portcullis was still open, thankfully, though beset by a formidable wall of soldiers.

They would fall and be trampled just as any other.

Galloping forward in the final stretch Askr's chest connected with the unfortunate men in the path of destruction, hooves pounding on their bones as if wading through water. What a good horse. Thankfully, he was never wounded by the effort. Taken aback by the feat most archers did not fly their arrows a second time, and those that did scarcely hit their target. Nobody was injured that time. The other horses followed close behind and soon there was a pretty pile of corpses lying near the mouth of the portcullis like a disgusting blanket.

Exiting the city and breaching the cold night of Cent made Eivor release a breath she did not know she was holding, the shock of adrenaline still hitting her hard. She definitely was not going to do that again any time soon. Glancing behind her to check they were not followed, she opted to take the quickest route to the longship; regardless if someone came after them they would still board the ship as quickly as they could. 

 She decided to try and talk to the man on her horse, just as she'd done to you. "What is your name?"

The man stirred slowly, as if he did not recognize that he was being talked to. He could not focus on much past the way his body felt as if it were being carried forward by a valkyrie, mounted on her horse and riding towards Valhalla. "G-Gunnar," he croaked, and Eivor nearly choked on the cool night air. Ah.

Looking behind her at the state of the man, she realized he was in a far worse state than you were when she'd rescued you. His eyes were clouded, unfocused, dried blood seeped down from a wound at the center of his forehead; he was weak, with the way he barely clung onto the Wolf-Kissed's smaller frame despite being heads taller than her. There were the dried blood stains at his middle, too, and she could not guess where those wounds came from.

She prayed to all the Gods she could think of, even those that she did not revere, that he would stay alive long enough to make it to Ravensthorpe.

"Alright, Gunnar. I am Eivor. We're taking you and your clan to a safer place." The ride to the ship felt much longer than riding from it, despite being the same route.

Gunnar would seemingly gain awareness some moments, holding tighter to Eivor's waist and groaning in pain, and then completely lose it at others, falling limp at her back and scaring her each time thinking that the man had passed.

Only one time did he address her. "Y/n sent you…?"

"Yes, she did," Eivor said, and the beach and her longship were in her sight. Nobody was followed. Five of her raiders and their paired Danes had already boarded the ship, keeping it still to the harbor even in the night's high tide.

Gunnar let out a breathy wheezing sound. "Ah, she's alive…" he said, and Eivor could hear the smile in his voice despite everything. "Alive…"

Slowing Askr down to a trot they approached the longship, the tide rising to the point where the horses were lifting their legs in the water. There were still more of her clan stationed at the forward camp; they would return the horses to Ravensthorpe after they departed. Dismounting the horse, she grabbed Gunnar by the waist, laying the large man over her shoulders and carrying him to the ship. He could not find the strength to sit up on the seats. Eivor slowly lowered him against the side of the ship, propping him up. 

Taking a headcount, every single one of her drengr survived; out of the dozen Danes they rescued, five would not live. 

Jumping to the lypting again she commanded the ship be turned round and the sail raised. The sea's wind roared, boosting the speed of their getaway, though it would not hold over the river Thames as they passed Roucistere. The night's calm northern breeze did little to bend the cloth of the sails, so it was lowered. 

 At some point, Gunnar roused again. Nali had curled at his bloodied side and was purring furiously, and the man gently petted the cat, in another spell of awareness. "Hello, little friend of Freyja," he spoke, spooking Eivor.

"You are awake, Gunnar. Are you feeling better after a bit of rest?" Eivor asked, grasping at anything to keep the hope of this man reaching Ravensthorpe alive.

"No," came his simple answer, looking up towards Eivor. Blood began oozing from the corners of his mouth and his nose. Immediately Eivor rushed to his side, and all her warriors turned their heads, and upon seeing why the Wolf-Kissed acted so suddenly, they understood. 

Gunnar could only look to Eivor still with an unreadable expression. Taking a cloth from her pouch she began wiping away at the blood, though it continued to run and run, and then Gunnar smiled at the Wolf-Kissed's efforts. In the calmness of the moonlight and Gunnar's awareness she realized how bright his eyes were and how they crinkled at the corners when they were not clouded with pain. Grabbing her hand, he willed her to stop.

"It is no use. I am a dying man," he said, and then let out a great, wheezing cough to drive the point home. Blood still ran from his mouth, down the scraggly hairs of his beard, onto the front of his tunic. Eivor stared, wide-eyed, her own heartbeat pounding in her ears as she stared at the fading man. 

"...What would be your last wishes, drengr?" she asked, and Gunnar picked Nali up from his side and set her down farther away, and though Nali only weighed not even a stone it was a great effort for the man, who then fell limp after. 

Gunnar seemed to pause, taking in wheezing breaths, thinking of the many answers he could give. Avenge my clan. Slay Frederik. Send word to my wife and daughter in Denmark of my death. Above all he chose one.

"Keep y/n safe," he rasped, suddenly reaching for Eivor's hand and holding it firm. "Keep her safe. Keep this clan safe. There is nothing else left of us.

"I have known her since we were children. Like a brother. I have cared for her as I have cared for my own blood. She is the voice of reason that kept us all bound together in times of strife. I could not protect her when I swore I would. I have known I would die this way for months, yet I did all I could to fight against it. For her. Please, keep her safe. In this world, and the next," he said, and his cryptic words both puzzled and troubled Eivor.

Eivor nodded, and squeezed the man's hand. "I heed your dying words. I will protect her to the ends of the earth."

Slowly, like the moon's face dwindling away as the sun rose each morning, he faded, the light in his eyes dying with him, and he went with a calm exhale into the night air. Eivor set his hand upon his lap and closed his eyelids. He would be given a proper burial, though where, she did not know. It was for you to decide.

The rest of the journey was in silence.

...

You had spent the better part of the day anxious, uneasy, unable to rest like Valka had wanted you to. To keep your mind distracted she asked you of your homeland, to which you gave mostly simple answers, and eventually you grew so anxious you had to pace. Scarcely moving around for days except to relieve yourself made your body shriek in pain with the effort of moving that you would have collapsed if Valka had not caught you. She scolded you like a mother would a child, and then you'd begged her like a child (much to her amusement) for her to help you relearn to walk.

After an hour and some more food and drink you were able to hold your own weight again, and after two more you could walk, albeit slowly, without the strain of the sliced muscles in your back bothering you too much. Valka took you to the pond behind her hut, and you revelled in the sound of the waterfall, and though the movement pained you enough to cry you could not stop yourself from cupping the fresh water in your hands and splashing it in your face. Valka laughed and said she could draw you a bath later. You stayed there for a while, until the sun began to hang lower in the sky, and then you noticed peculiar wisps of light that you've never seen before - catching one you found it was some type of delightful insect that held light within its body, and you let it be free again.

By now your stomach growled with hunger and you slowly raised yourself off the ground and went back into the hut where Valka had already gotten the two of you fresh bowls of soup and bread. Ever grateful you ate quickly, feeling a little calmer after the day. After you ate Valka drew a bath for you, and though the water was lukewarm to ease the pain of your injuries you were grateful to be able to clean the layers of sweat off your body. Valka helped you with the areas that you could not reach, even helping to wash and rinse your hair, and not once did you feel uncomfortable with your nakedness in front of the other woman. It felt natural, in a way, and you surmised she wouldn't really care, anyway. After redressing your wounds, you were surprised by her giving you a freshly-washed, simple chemise, made of soft linen and about ankle length, saying that "It would be easier on your body to sleep warmer, yet not be inhibited by heavier clothing," referring to the men's trousers and tunic you had been dressed in as a prisoner.

Then Valka made you more of the sleepy tea, and you fell asleep before the sun had even set. Thankfully you did not have a nightmare this time, and were back to the normal nonsensical dreams that you would never be able to recall come waking up.

Your sleep, however, was disturbed by the sound of a horn being blown, your mind instantly connecting the sound to Frederik’s horn, and you were sent into a minor panic before you remembered who was blowing the horn. It was not Frederik coming to face you, nor were you back on his longship heading to the monastery; it was Eivor, bringing the remnants of your clan to you. Adrenaline fueled you and you leapt from the bed, frightening Valka who had not yet fallen asleep and she rushed to your side, bidding you to return to bed, but you could not. You had to see Gunnar, you had to see your kinsmen. Limping forward a few paces out into the cold air of the night Valka ran back to her hut and returned with her heavy fur cloak, gently setting it about your shoulders so that you did not freeze.

You walked past the stables, down the western side of the longhouse, past numerous buildings you did not know the purpose of and saw several people getting off the longship. And even in the dark of the night you could see bodies being lifted onto stretchers, and your heart dropped. Some deep, deep, ugly part of you hoped that they were Eivor's warriors and not yours, to no avail. There were five of them, and you rushed forward, stumbling, and in the light of the torches you tried to make out faces.

A hand was felt on your shoulder, preventing you from toppling over, and you turned to face Eivor, who looked at you with a somber, defeated face. You did not like that look, nor the way you were turned away from looking at the final body of your kin. You could only stare silently into the Wolf's eyes.

"Y/n, I…" Eivor started, unsure of the right words to say. She sighed, and then took hold of both of your shoulders and squeezed. "I am sorry," was all she said, pulling you closer to her chest in comfort. You did not like her tone and what it meant. You could not make yourself move to match the warmth of her hug. The entire clan had gathered, but they were all silent.

Slowly, she let you go, and you turned around to look at the bodies. You could recognize the pallid faces of poor Lissi, and Jørgen, and Erna, Nils…

 And then there was Gunnar, stiff and pale, blood staining the cloth of his tunic all around, and you froze, your mind not processing what you were looking at. And then you drew in a great breath and wailed, a painful, broken-hearted sound pulled from your throat like a bow running harshly across the strings of an instrument. You dropped to your knees, crawling closer to the man's body and pressing the palms of your hands to his cold cheeks, sobbing and gasping for breath. like a madwoman over his body, willing your hot tears that fell onto his face to bring him back to life. Why was he to die like this? Away from his family? His home? He did not even die in battle. He did not deserve this death. You hunched over his body, still sobbing, pressing his cold forehead to yours and then closed your eyes, and prayed that he would find his way out of Hel's domain to where he belonged, seated with the other einherjar in Valhalla. Maybe guided by a valkyrie, maybe out of his own will. 

When you pulled away you were now weeping silently, and you could not bring yourself to look at the bodies of the rest, nor look at the faces of those that were alive, passing by you as they were carried to the barracks. You instead looked out into the forest on the far side of the river, and you could not bring yourself to move even as Eivor's men began to haul the stretchers away. 

The Wolf-Kissed approached you, slowly, and set her palm on your shoulder again. "He passed peacefully, facing the moon and stars. His wounds were too dire for him to go on," she said, and you rose from kneeling on the ground, her hand on your shoulder a wonderful feeling keeping you grounded in reality. You could not speak, only staring ahead still. Eivor stayed by your side, silent for a moment.

"He… he called for me to protect you, to keep you safe as his dying words," she said quietly, and this made you turn and look at her through your tear-laden lashes. Eivor's heart squeezed. "I promised to him that I would. And my word is my bond. I will keep you safe, until… until you decide what you want to do," she said, the last bit sounding strained, as if that was not what she truly wanted to say. This was all very sudden to your already exhausted mind.

You stared at her for a moment longer, and Eivor felt you were looking through her, not at her. Blinking some tears away you slowly turned from her, looking at the water's edge and how it reflected the moonlight, trying to clear your head. "I… he… " you began, trying to find your words and will the lump in your throat away. "H-he… he was not my blood. But we grew up together… a big brother to me," you mumbled, not truly knowing why you were telling Eivor this. "I… I cared greatly for him. I still do. I've thought before what I would do if he passed, and even that hurt, but… this is…" Snivelling, you pressed a palm to your mouth so that Eivor would not have to see the ugly way your face contorted and lip quivered as you tried to hold in another anguished cry. The woman did not think any less of you. She stood unmoving behind you. "This is… this is Frederik's fault. All of it. If he had done anything…" you croaked, the lump in your throat rising again to the point where you could not speak further nor breathe, choking on air and holding it for far too long, and Eivor set her large palm on your shoulder again. When you did not respond, she slowly pulled you into another hug, being ever mindful of the injuries at your back, and you immediately clung to her, shoving your face into her chest even though it was still armored, your head under her chin, and sobbing anew. You couldn't help it at this point. You felt like a maelstrom of emotion, waves of sorrow washing over you as you kept thinking of Gunnar's soft smile that he gave you on the longship and how it contrasted with the stillness of his pale, dead face. And then you realized how cold you were, even in Valka's coat, when the warmth of the larger woman began to seep into your body; a small comfort. Eivor shushed you gently and dared to smooth your hair out just as Valka had, and you felt yourself growing calmer in the arms of the warrior.

After some time you felt more composed, calmed, and you slowly removed yourself from Eivor as the intimacy of her consolation and promise to Gunnar hit you and you suddenly felt uncomfortable, stepping back and looking to the patterns in the wood of the docks. 

"I know Gunnar had a wife and child, back in Denmark. They should know of his passing," you said, running your fingers over the edges of Valka's cloak. Eivor nodded. "I will send a letter, then." 

Swallowing, you thought of her words earlier. Protect me until I decide what I want to do, she says… you did not see any other path. 

"You… you said that you would protect me, until I have decided to go elsewhere," you started, looking up to match Eivor's blue eyes, though difficult it may be. The woman blinked slowly and nodded. 

"I… I do not think I could go elsewhere. I do not want to return to my family, knowing that Frederik could potentially return there, too. And whatever lies he spun they would believe his words over mine. I do not have a home there, not anymore," you explained, and then broke eye contact with the drengr, feeling a burst of anger at the entire situation for a moment before you took a deep breath, sighing.

"And you… you saved my life. You and Valka, you've helped me to recover. And that is something that I feel I can never repay."

You met Eivor's blue eyes again, and even in the dim light of the moon could see how soft they've grown. "I would stay with the Raven clan, if you would let me," you said, feeling small again. Eivor blinked again, and then her expression somehow grew softer, and nodded. "Of course, y/n. You will always find a home here in Ravensthorpe, and wherever else we may go," she said, sending you a muted smile. You will always find a home with me.

You let out a breath, sighing in relief and in exhaustion, and realized how cold it had gotten when you could see it hanging in the mist, and then you felt it seep into your bones. "Th-thank you, Eivor," you shivered, and the Norsewoman took note of your state almost immediately, and on instinct pulled you to her side and began walking you back to Valka. "Of course, lagr kærr."

Passing the barracks you were relieved to see some of your kin already tended to and resting; you would speak with them tomorrow of your decision. You did not have a leader, not anymore, and it was up to them whether they wanted to leave or stay once recovered. You, however, would find a home in the Raven clan yet. 

 Valka was, as expected, not in the hut, most likely at the barracks treating the last of your friends. After such a long day both you and Eivor were exhausted, and the Wolf bid you farewell at the door, turning to go to her own place of rest. Shrugging off Valka's coat you placed it in it's usual spot and then crawled into your cot, still straining with the movement. Your body had its own celebration when you finally relaxed, and though you would certainly feel the soreness tomorrow you were glad that you still had some mobility after the wounds near your spine had become infected. You would heal in time. Closing your eyes, you fell asleep blissfully quickly.

In the shadows of the longhouse's exterior, Randvi had watched how your smaller form tucked into Eivor's as the two of you ascended to the seeress's hut, and felt an ugly twist of envy in her gut. She turned away from the scene to storm to the alliance map. She still had reports to write.  

[every1studio]

“in the arms of a father” [skz: hyunjin ft a wayv member ]

genre: FLUFF

ficstyle: timeline + bulletpoints 

requests: “hello! so i especially liked your “in the arms of a father” fics out of all your writings and i was thinking if you could maybe do one for Hyunjin! take your time and dont feel rushed 🥺💖” + “ Can you do a “in the arms of a father” for hyunjin please I really liked your first ones 😁 “

note: I’m not completely back from my hiatus but I hope I will be writing again soon

[NEWBORN] 

Hyunjin has been on edge since he heard that you were pregnant 

what if something happens to the baby?

am I qualified enough to be a dad?

what if the baby does like me?

do you think the baby is a cat person or a dog person?

he’s literally asking so many silly questions you don’t know the answers to 

all you can say to put him at ease is, “everything will fall into place, just go with the flow” 

every time you have a contraction, he’s ready with your go bag and the keys to the car

“what are you doing, it’s just a contraction”

“I just wanna be ready”

but the moment your water breaks, he’s like “SHOULD I CLEAN THE FLOORS BEFORE WE LEAVE?” “DO YOU WANNA SIT IN THE FRONT OR THE BACK SEAT?” “SHOULD I HOLD YOUR HANDS OR PUT BOTH HANDS ON THE STEERING WHEEL?”

literally a chaotic mess 

while in labor, he’s having more of a hard time breathing than you are

he’s quietly crying as your cutting the circulation from his arm 

you let him hold the baby first because this guy is still pumping with adrenaline and he needs to calm down

he’s literally hogging the baby for a whole hour before you’re able to hold your own child

this is going to be daddy’s little girl for sure

(you two named her Madeline) 

[1ST BIRTHDAY] 

Hyunjin literally invited everyone he knows for Madeline’s first birthday

it’s almost as grand and extravagant as your wedding 

the whole time you’re literally thinking that he’s going to spoil this little girl rotten 

this guy literally bought this little one 2 whole luxury hand-crafted cakes and went as low budget as possible for your wedding 

when the guest comes in, he’s telling all the little boys that they’ll never be good enough for his daughter

“babe stop picking fights with the toddlers..”

“BUT WHAT IF THEY TRY TO COURT MADELINE”

he barely lets other people hold her 

you didn’t tell him but you saw that she has liking to Chan because if you did, he would ban him from seeing her

even though Chan is her godfather 

[KINDERGARTEN]

Hyunjin was so worried that Madeline would get hit on or picked on at school

he was insisting the teacher to let him chaperone 

but Madeline told him that she was a big girl now 

“how are you going to say no to that, honey?” you nudged at him

he was left speechless

“bye baby, I’ll see you after school, okay?” you kissed your daughter on the cheek

Madeline ran up to Hyunjin

“papa, are you going to say bye to me?”

Hyunjin bent down to give her a hug, one that was a little too tight

“papa! I can’t breathe! I’m not going away forever!”

he kisses her on her little button nose, “I’m gonna miss you, princess..”

“bye now, papa! bye mama!” she waves happily before turning to play with the other kids

Hyunjin was quiet on the ride home, “you know.. she’s going to leave one day..”

you held his hand that wasn’t on the wheel, “you’re thinking too far ahead, just take a step back, okay?”

he brings your hand up to his lips and kisses it, “what would I do without you..”

30 minutes passed and he was already getting antsy; he was so close to picking her up early from school 

[MIDDLE SCHOOL]

Madeline was starting to get a little distant as she made more friends and joined the basketball team 

she was charismatic and charming just like Hyunjin

which worried Hyunjin

he always told her to be careful of boys 

but there’s nothing she can do about it, a lot of her classmates are into her 

she assured your husband that she’s way too focused on school and sports to be worried about boys 

she begged you to convince him

“some things will never change,” you chuckled 

he was so scared that she was going to become a moody teenager so he bought her a dog to enforce more family time

it worked 

[HIGH SCHOOL]

Madeline was becoming more and more beautiful, and more and more popular 

just like her father in high school

“I hear they call you, Princess Madeline..” you brought up

Madeline’s eyes widened as she knew what was to come, “MOM SERIOUSLY?”

Hyunjin dropped everything and clung onto her for dear life

“I WILL NOT ALLOW ANYBODY TO CALL MY SWEET LITTLE PUMPKIN, PRINCESS.. ONLY I CALL HER THAT!!”

you laughed as the two quarreled like squirrels 

“DAD I’M NOT A BABY ANYMORE”

“YOU’RE MY BABY”

this was probably they only type of “arguments” they would have because your husband was too soft for her and your daughter had one for him too 

thank the Lord, Madeline didn’t go through a rebellious phase or else you would be the villain of the house

you loved your family but you weren’t the spoiling type 

you’re so happy that they get along so well; they’re two peas in a pod 

you couldn’t help but think about what will happen when she goes off to college? 

[LAST YEAR OF HIGH SCHOOL]

“MOM! DAD! I GOT INTO THE COLLEGE THAT I WANT!” Madeline was ecstatic and your husband put on a feigned smile to show his support 

“which college?” he asked as he ruffled her hair

“the college where you met mom!” she beams

you didn’t even know what school she sent applications to, so hearing that she got into the school that you met your husband warmed your heart

“you got so many scholarships from so many other amazing schools..” you hugged your daughter

“yeah but.. I want to walk along streets on campus where dad walked you home and go to the library where you had study date... I want to find my prince at the same school you went to..”

Hyunjin was going to tear up

he always thought that she never had a serious relationship because she didn’t want to worry him and focused on school

he didn’t know that all of her efforts were to go to the same school as him

“I have high expectations,” he joked 

Madeline smiled as she snuggled closer to him, “I know”

[COLLEGE GRADUATION]

you and Hyunjin just about cried when your daughter walked to get her diploma; her shoulders were adorned with cords 

her smile radiated on the projectors 

Hyunjin proudly said, “that’s MY daughter,” when other parents murmured about how beautiful she is and how proud her parents are 

when the ceremony was over, Madeline spot you two from a mile away and sprinted in her heels 

she jumped into Hyunjin’s arms and he spun her around 

“we are SO proud of you, baby,” you finally had a turn to hug her

“those college days are over and done with!” she really looked happy

from the corner of your eyes, you saw a boy shuffling his feet; waiting

“mom.. dad... I have someone I want you to meet..” she walked up to the boy and dragged him in front of you and Hyunjin 

“I know I didn’t tell you about him but this is Hendery.. my boyfriend.. we’ve been together since my sophomore year...”

Hyunjin put on his tough face, which was kind of comical because you knew that wasn’t him

the boy straightened his posture and gave the two of you firm handshakes, “nice to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Hwang.. I’ve heard many wonderful things about you from Madeline..”

“well aren’t you a handsome young man, come here,” you gave him a hug to relax his nerves because he was probably nervous 

“I hope you’re taking good care of my daughter,” was all Hyunjin said 

Madeline rolled her eyes, “dad.. seriously..”

“I’m doing everything in my powers to make her the happiest girl in the world, sir,” Hendery said with a bright smile

“what a prince,” you nudged at your daughter as she blushed

Hyunjin squinted sternly at Hendery but Hendery’s smile did not falter 

“okay..” was all he could muster, because he couldn’t admit that Hendery reminded him of his younger self 

[WEDDING]

it was your daughter’s wedding, she was getting married to Hendery, 5 years after she graduated from college 

you were so happy for her

so was Hyunjin

over the years, Hyunjin slowly got closer and closer to Hendery  

Hendery completely won over Hyunjin’s heart 

but he wasn’t ready to let his baby go

Hyunjin took one look at his baby girl and knew that she was ready to start her own life, her own family 

which is why her wedding was going to be even more extravagant than all her birthdays and your wedding combined 

it was inspired by “The Little Mermaid”

he was so excited to have some father-daughter time while planning for the wedding 

when he finally saw her in her wedding dress, the wedding started a little late because he could not stop crying

he took his time walking her down the aisle because he wanted to cherish every second 

you bet that the father-daughter dance took 30 whole minutes because he was emotional 

he was so proud to have a daughter like her 

(he can’t wait to have a grandkid to dote on)

End.

[ masterlist + guidelines ]

[georgemackayhey]

Rules For Falling In Love: #2

summary: In which George wants to get married. But… you’re not dating. Why should you say yes?

a/n: The love for this fic has really made my heart ache in all the best ways! I hope yall love this update and I look forward to all your feedback of any and all kinds, as always ♡

w/c: 2k

───※ ·❆· ※───

You had a week from hell, one where you seemed to live and breathe your work against your will. When you were free to do as you pleased, all you wanted was to do was absolutely nothing.

When you got home to find George seemed to have been waiting there all afternoon like a puppy, you rolled your eyes, entirely too exhausted to consider having fun. But before you had the chance to give that speech, George ushered you to the sofa.

"The last season, it's starting right now." He explained, turning the volume up on the telly that was already on. The show in question was one of those horrifically trashy ones. A silly little show you both got hooked on when you had the same cold, nowhere to go, and nothing else to watch. Now you needed to know what happened next.

The days weren't always like this. Between the years, you'd drifted apart from each other, floating back together for odd dinners and weekend getaways. It wasn't even like this when you started living together. But it seemed like in the blink of an eye you were spending more and more free time side by side, planning more than a few shared breakfasts and rainy afternoons.

Nights like these were expected by now, and you realized you'd be amiss if they ended anytime soon. George had called off dating some year or two ago, shaken by the Hollywood scene and the popularity contest he seemed to be in on, during films and even off set, in local shops he'd gotten recognized in. You'd forgotten that dating was a part of social life, far too preoccupied with your work and the plans you always had with George after hours to get to know anyone new.

It all made too much sense. So when the first commercial break kicked in and George passed the snacks he was holding over to you, as if he just remembered you were there, you spoke up.

"I'll do it."

You took the snacks, holding George’s eyes as his searched yours. You knew that he knew what you were agreeing too. Just when you thought he was about to speak, the show came back on and both of your focuses shifted entirely on the screen. You hadn't known what to expect... But the way everything seemed so vastly normal, sort of jarred you.

And for the next couple of days... neither of you talked about it at all. Sure you're busy with work and George had been fretting over a couple of important telephone interviews. But you thought surely he'd be more anxious to discuss logistics, or bring up the subject he invented, at all.

It wasn't until the next weekend, that the conversation picked up where it left off, again.

You'd spent the early Sunday morning roaming through the storefronts of an overpriced market. You ducked inside to relish the air-conditioned sales before dipping back out every few feet to admire the booths full of flowers, handcrafted gifts, and expensive decor. You'd buy absolutely everything here if you could.

You did have a mission. It was to pick up something to bring to dinner, a Sunday evening tradition with George's family. You'd been invited for as long as you could recall, and you'd never shown up empty-handed. Usually, flowers and desserts did just fine. But you were entirely too indecisive over what to purchase, this morning.

You'd become lost in a conversation with a woman who sold soaps and lotions, locally and expensively made. You rambled with her for so long that you'd lost sight of the person you'd come here with.

When you spun away from the lady selling soaps as new customers flocked closer to inspect her products, and you went on the hunt for George. You spotted him from behind, leaning in to speak with a vendor nearer inside. And just as you start to drift in his direction, he noticed you, too, through the crowd. And as the people part and you're nearly toe to toe, George doesn't greet you like usual.

There is no jab about where you'd been missing for so long, there isn't even a hello. Instead, you watch as George's smile grows mischievous, before bending at the knee.

Between his thumb and finger is a ring, just your unique style. It's from the booth he knelt in front of now, where hundreds of other delicate and novel jewels were displayed.

"What's all this then?" You laughed, standing in front of the guy you'd known longer than how to do simple maths.

"Marry me?" George asked, for the hundredth time, it seemed. You hadn't ever expected the question. But after this week, it came again at long last. You wondered if he'd ever bring it up again. But this time was different. This time, he smiled softly and held a real promise in his hand, looking up to you with a squint to block out the sun.

"I suppose I will." You grinned, answering quietly as George beamed up at you.

A couple of old ladies gasped from a couple of steps away, turning to watch on as George rose to his feet, grabbing your hand with both of his.

"Thank you, y/n. I cant wait." He said as if he'd been planning this for longer than he'd been pestering you about it.

"Why, we're practically already married." You laughed, mocking the statement he kept returning back to over the weeks. You watched as George slid the ring on your finger, with a pretty little design you couldn't have chosen better if you tried.

"Kiss her!" One of the elder spectators demanded like she was watching a wrestling match and coaxing on the fighters.

"I suppose I should," George remarked, mocking you, from moments ago. When he dipped down to place a teasing, chaste kiss on your lips,  the old ladies cheered. When you swatted his arm with a playfully furrowed brow, the old ladies grumbled, completely let down by the way you ruined the moment.

"Don't blow it, Mackay. Go pick one for yourself, now." You warned your friend who was already giving you a playful smirk as you pointed to the collection of rings he was meant to choose from.

He found the perfect band, with specks and flecks that matched your own. And he liked it, best of all. The two of you walked out of the shoppe with matching rings, in fits of laughter as you imagined all your friend's reactions.

To celebrate, you stopped at a stall selling frozen yogurt and ordered one big container; because it was extremely overpriced, and George didn't mind sharing, because according to him-

"We're official." George boasted, digging into the dessert as you walked back toward your neighborhood, enjoying the perfect morning weather.

"Not quite." You reasoned. "We've still gotta get the worst part over with."

"The worst part?"

"Throwing a faux wedding. Lying to our guests. Drawing far too much attention to ourselves. This feels so much more like a business interaction than an event. Not that I'm not glad to do business with you, of course." You laughed, stepping in time with your closest friend.

"We don't have to make it a whole big thing. I only asked to be married, not for a garish wedding. We could stick to signing a few papers and call it a day."

"Are you serious? I want you to be explicitly clear about what you want because whether we make it one or not, this is a big deal."

"I'm okay with it." George chuckled, forcing the frozen treat in your grasp for a turn. "Either way, we'll need some witnesses."

You grumbled, remembering he was right. You weren't ashamed to marry him. Only embarrassed at the slightest bit of misjudged attention, and worried that your decision would be mistaken for something it wasn't, by anyone you explained it too.

///

"I've forgotten to get something to bring! I've never not brought something to dinner." You panicked, feeling your pockets in a last-ditch effort to find something to keep the tradition alive. George let out a little chuckle as you stalled in his parent's driveway. You reprimanded him for not being just as panicked as you, but he just laughed harder as he reached for your hand.

"Well how about this time I bring you."

A new set of nerves danced on end when you remembered the ring on your finger. You'd walked into the entry of his parents lavish countryside home like clockwork, without a gift but with very big news. But even in the strange twist of events, the familiar setting and George's calming presence meant nothing was out of the ordinary. You were only making the decision to keep it that way. Surely everyone would understand.

As you waltzed further into the home, there was no grand greeting. His father was sat in the living room, focused on a game that flashed across the telly. He turned his smile to the pair of you just before shouting back at the team he was rooting for. George's mother was in the kitchen, and upon hearing the pair of you come in, started rambling about how dinner wasn't quite ready and how hectic her day was.

You and George stalled in the entry of the kitchen, sunbleached wallpaper and worn old furniture welcomed you. When George's mother turned from the stove with a huff and a hand on her hip, she glanced between you and her son and asked why you were both just standing there.

"Has something happened?" She asked in a grave low tone.

George glanced to you as if to ask you for permission to say something. Or maybe to warn you he was about to, anyway. You knew it was best to rip the bandaid off. So you gave the smallest nod and held your breath.

With a look across the way to his father clicking the telly off in perfect time, George made his announcement.

"We're getting married!"

Despite George's sound excitement and the glowing smile on his face, his mother let out a breath with a hand to her heart.

"Oh thank God, I thought someone had died." She explained, reaching back to turn a knob on the oven. Her relief was comical, and just as she spoke up, you realized all the excitement you'd expected, was stored away in the girl bounding down the stairs.

George's sister nearly tripped over herself as she squealed into the room. You might have wanted to plug your ears, but the girl bound your way, babbling incoherently, grabbing your hand to see the ring she expected to see there.

"I knew it. I can't believe this day has come but I knew it would." She gasped like she'd just become a billionaire, as if her very own dreams had just come true. George's father sauntered closer, glancing at your ring with a pleased hum, offering a simple and pleasant congratulations on his way to steal a bit of dessert before dinner.

"So now I can finally expect some grandchildren, yeah?" George's mother shuffled toward the cabinet full of wine, a place she only searched through when the very best and worst news hung heavy over your weekly dinner parties.

"I don't think that's possible." You choked out in a hurry, as George's sister dropped your hand, spinning to face her brother who was holding back wild laughter at your expense.

"You can always adopt, dear." His mother pushed, spinning back to the oven when it dinged. George was in the middle of explaining your plans to his sister, who was shaking her head in disapproval.

"No! No way will I stand by and watch you get married without throwing a party. Can't we talk about a big white wedding? Oh please." She turned to you with big pleading eyes.

"No, no no no. I can't do that. I'd pass out before saying I Do and what's the point of that? We're just gonna get it done." You pointed.

"I'll just see about that." She stormed deeper into the kitchen at the sound of her mother asking her for help finishing your traditional Sunday meal.

"I'll try and thwart her plans to decorate the register's office with rose petals." George brought his hands to your shoulders with a smile you shared, as he led you to the table. His parents argued over what bottle of wine to open, while his sister went on making plans of her own, just for you. Normalcy remained.

///

"You two cannot be serious." Dean sat slack-jawed across a high tabletop in your very favorite pub. He'd barely touched his scotch, but you and George were on your second round of drinks you'd been downing while waiting on your friend to show up to tell him the news.

"Who else would we ask, Dean? You're our third wheel." You laughed, leaning in to shout past the music overhead. You'd already told George's family and asked his sister to be one of your witnesses. The girl was more excited than you and George for your big day. Dean was the only other person you could imagine inviting along, whose presence wouldn't make you break out into a nervous sweat.

"No, I mean you can't be serious about getting married!" Dean laughed, keeping his wide, dark eyes boring into yours.

"We've already worked most everything out. Will you please come?" George leaned in closer, taking his turn at coaxing his best pal into being there for the two of you.

"Yeah, fine," Dean softened, his smile reaching his eyes. "But I'm bringing a cake. Not to celebrate, but to stress eat." The fellow raised his glass in a silly toast. You laughed as you clinked your glasses together, then swiftly ordered another round.

"Well I don't want to steal your thunder but I've been meaning to tell the both of you something..." Dean shifted in his seat as you and George settled into a quiet focus on your friend.

"I've been seeing someone. Only been out a couple of times, but I quite like her already" Dean explained, a blush creeping under his eyes. George encouraged his friend to tell everything about the girl he'd been dating. You urged Dean to bring her around some time, thrilled at the prospect of having a fourth wheel to join in your nights of fun.

As Dean went on telling the tale of his first date with his new girl, your drinks came.

"Won't you miss dating around?" Dean seemed to worry, after thanking the waiter for his drink.

"I haven't missed it this far." You shrugged, sipping your fresh cocktail all the while. As free as you'd been till now, the thought of getting to know someone new, letting your guard down, building trust, just thinking of it all exhausted you.

When George leaned over you to accept his new drink, he flashed the waiter a tipsy smile.

"We're getting married!" He chuckled, and you did too. As you two broke into drunken giggles, the waiter offered unimpressed congratulations. Dean slammed back his new order in time to ask for another; either to catch up with you and George or to deal with the pair of you, you couldn't tell.

───※ ·❆· ※───

taglist: @whenthe-smokeisinyoureyes @andux @imaginationandlove @velvetgoldsilver​ @queen-bunnyears @maria-josefin​ @dearevansamham​ @belledamsceno​ @nilletellsstories​ @haileymorelikestupid​ @loulouloueh​ @visionsofmelodrama

[valor-selfships]

dancing lights in your eyes [jjba rispro oneshot]

You can read this on AO3 here! Please like, comment, reblog, kudos if you enjoyed this! It fuels me to make more content.

Summary

"Prosciutto rubs his hands over his face. Of course it had to be him. The first man of the group he even got with, all those years ago, the first one he met besides Pesci, the first one he shared his home and bed with. Of course it would be that man, the one who made the lights dance in his eyes, who would be the father of his first child.

Risotto Nero."

Notes

so this takes place in my "everyone lives, but there's still Stands and shit, and also it's modern day and the Joestars are essentially all cousins so everything takes place in the same timeline" au! i'm just a little gay bitch who wants soft shit. i just got into jojo like 2 weeks ago but that ain't stopping me

i am a trans man myself! please don't accuse me of fetishising anything, as i am not. just projecting, babey!

also i should note everyone in la squadra is dating and the doppio situation is expanded upon later on in future stories so don't worry about that for now :3

remember to kudos and comment if you liked! it helps me want to write more.

Story

Prosciutto has had his suspicions. In fact, those suspicions began, almost comically, when the group found out about Doppio's unexpected pregnancy. Yes, Prosciutto has always known that, despite the testosterone and the protection he uses, there's always a chance that he could end up pregnant, by any one of his lovers in the group. It's kind of like how there's always the possibility that a tree will fall on you and crush you when you walk outside, or the possibility that he would go to assassinate someone and end up getting killed himself. It's always in the back of one's mind, but in Prosciutto's, it's not something he wastes time thinking about extensively because the chances are so low.

Even so, he can't deny what's been going on. His periods have always been incredibly regular, happening during the first week of every month like clockwork.

And then the first week of May comes and goes, with no blood, and he starts to worry. Combined with the intense nausea that even Pesci has noticed by now, the constant soreness of his body, the headaches, and exhaustion, that tiny chance grows.

But the reality of it isn't one that hits him until he's standing outside of the doors to the clinic, having just finished his appointment, staring at his reflection in the glass doors for a few moments before turning briskly on his heel and walking away.

Prosciutto is eight weeks pregnant. For two whole months, he's had a tiny human being growing inside of him, and he didn't even realize it until now. Or, perhaps, he didn't want to realize it.

Generally, for a man with four partners who could have potentially gotten him pregnant, Prosciutto would be in a similar situation to Doppio, not knowing exactly who the other father of this child is. But Prosciutto lives his life on a schedule, and that, strangely enough, includes his sex life. It's fairly easy to rule out most of the group (Melone, Doppio, Ghiacchio, Sorbet, and Gelato are out, as none of them save for Sorbet possess the necessary equipment to even get him pregnant, and Sorbet and Gelato don't sleep with anyone but each other anyway), and he's able to narrow it down further thanks to the appointment confirming how far along he is.

Two months. Who was he with two months ago? He doesn't have to check, because he already knows. He knows exactly who he was with and how this probably happened.

Prosciutto rubs his hands over his face. Of course it had to be him. The first man of the group he even got with, all those years ago, the first one he met besides Pesci, the first one he shared his home and bed with. Of course it would be that man, the one who made the lights dance in his eyes, who would be the father of his first child.

Risotto Nero.

His hands fall into his lap as he looks up from where he sits on his couch in his little apartment. He plays with the folds of his clothes for a moment, thinking about how it won't be long before he'll need to buy new ones. Something tells him that suits won't be terribly comfortable for him to wear for much longer.

But, more importantly than all of that, Prosciutto needs to speak to Risotto.

He checks his watch. Risotto's schedule is unpredictable, as are most of their's even now that they've split from Passione, but he usually makes it home on these days around the same time. The group has been talking about pooling their money to buy a house, a real one they can all live in, by the time Doppio's due date comes around, so at least they'll have the upper hand on the ex he refuses to name in case he comes around (and they all want to live in the same house anyway, all things considered), so Risotto has been working harder than ever to make it happen.

Despite everything, Risotto Nero is a good man, who will make an even better father. Prosciutto needs to speak to him, but not through a text or a phone. He needs to say this face to face.

So he folds his hands on top of his lap and waits.

///

Risotto walks through the door of the apartment at precisely 8:00 PM. It's been nearly six hours now since Prosciutto discovered the truth about his condition, and since then, he's effectively cleaned the entire apartment and re-organized his bookshelf, and by the time Risotto walks in, he's in the middle of fixing up the cabinets where the dishes are. As soon as the door opens, though, he nearly drops the glass plate he's holding, and has to fumble to ensure it doesn't fall to the floor and shatter.

Risotto doesn't miss the unusual jumpiness of his boyfriend. It isn't like him to be like that. Even so, he keeps his composure as he walks over to Prosciutto, who keeps his back turned to him for the moment while he closes up the cabinets.

"Tesoro," Risotto greets, leaning in to wrap his arms around Prosciutto's waist and rest his head in the crook of his neck. He trails a few kisses from below his ear down to his shoulder. "What has you so nervous?"

He's had six hours to think about how this is going to go, Prosciutto thinks, but now that he's facing the situation, all of his planning feels like it was for nothing. His clear blue eyes meet Risotto's black-and-red ones (the black sclera tend to throw off most people and make them nervous, but to Prosciutto they are enchantingly beautiful) as he turns around to face him, and everything falls away in that moment. It's just the two of them...

Well. The three of them, really.

Prosciutto takes a deep breath, while Risotto cups his cheek in one hand. He rests his hand on top of that one, laces their fingers together.

"I... well. It was silly. I had worked myself up for something that doesn't even frighten me anymore," Prosciutto replies, his voice soft. Risotto reaches up with his other hand to thread it through Prosciutto's blonde hair. He's worn it down for the past few hours, and without the gel keeping it in place, it's soft and silky. Touch has always been so important to Risotto, ever since he was a child. Autism and a natural want to be alone means that Risotto is rarely one for being touched by or touching others, but the team brings out a side of him that never wants to stop touching, being touched.

So many people fear Risotto's hands, but Prosciutto feels anything but fear when his fingertips meet his skin. His hands are cold, but that doesn't bother him anymore.

"Is that so?" Risotto murmurs in response. "Then, would you rather not talk about it?"

"Ah... well, it's still important," Prosciutto replies quickly. "I would have told you sooner, but I wanted it to be planned and perfect. I realize now that was foolish of me -- the planning, not waiting for you -- but what's done is done." With the hand that's still holding Risotto's, he carefully pulls his hand from his cheek down his body to rest on his belly. There's nothing there to feel, not yet, but that isn't the point of his actions.

It's the first time Prosciutto has ever seen Risotto truly speechless, his jaw dropped completely, normally stoic face painted clearly with shock.

It takes him a few moments to work out what to say.

"I -- amore mio, is it true?" Risotto finally says. His voice is breathy, quieter than Prosciutto's ever heard him, but so full of emotion. He can see the shimmering of his eyes, and Prosciutto feels a lump in his throat; however, it comes from a place of happiness. "Are you -- we -- un bambino?"

Prosciutto nods. He can feel the tremble in his own hands, in Risotto's hands. "Yes. I wanted to make absolutely sure -- I had an appointment, earlier in the afternoon. I'm eight weeks pregnant."

Suddenly, Risotto's arms are around him, pulling Prosciutto in close as he buries his face in his neck, pressing kisses to his neck and jaw while he speaks and cries at the same time: "Oh, oh cuore mio, a child -- our child -- you are la mia anima, la mia vita. You and our child will both want for nothing, I will promise that."

Prosciutto sniffs again, feeling the warm tears sliding down his face, making no effort to stop them. It's like everything is hitting him all at once, but in the best way possible. He holds Risotto as close to him as the other man does to himself, then he leans in to respond, close to his ear: "Mio caro, luce dei miei occhi, sei la mia vita. I trust you. Our child will love you, you - will be an incredible father."

Risotto squeezes him tighter, though not too tight, then pulls back a bit to look at his boyfriend once more. Tears shine on his face, but before Prosciutto can reach up to wipe them away, he kneels down in front of him, rests his cheek on his belly and his hands on his hips.

"Do not sell yourself short, either," Risotto says. "Our child will love you, as well. You will be an amazing father. There is nothing the two of us can't do for this child."

The truth of his lover's words are nearly palpable. Prosciutto knows as well as anyone else that once Risotto comes to a decision, he sticks to it. If he says that their family will be taken care of, then so it shall be. And Prosciutto doesn't mind the prospect of being pampered for the next few months (after all, growing a whole human inside of oneself is no small feat, he knows that much). Especially not if it means he'll get more moments like this with Risotto.

Prosciutto smiles through his tears when he feels the warm press of Risotto's lips against his lower belly. Yes, there truly is no reason to be worried, he supposes. Risotto loves this child, and the rest of the group will love them, too, of that he has no doubt.

He can only hope that, somehow, their child can feel the love their parents have for them already, and will return it with a love of their own when the time comes.

///

little translations:

tesoro - treasure amore mio - my love un bambino - a baby cuore mio - my heart (very romantic and old-fashioned, by the way) la mia anima - my soul la mia vita - my life mio caro - my dear luce de miei occhi - light of my eyes sei la mia vita - you are my life (in the context used, he's basically saying that he can't live without risotto because he's also his life)

[tinytony-snack]

Boy bands and movie marathon

[Superhusbands, superfamily, omegaverse, making-out, fluff & smut]

~~~

A two-day mission wasn’t the longest time he spent far from home, however coming back felt strangely like returning after an entire month of radio silence. Every hour he spent without his family was wrong under many aspects, especially during cold days, when all he wanted was to wrap his arms around his Omegas and little Alpha, cuddling with them while watching a kid movie—he almost forgot any other movies still existed.

The only thought made his chest warmer, like only a sweet kiss from Tony, or a good sip of hot chocolate, could do.

He entered the new Avengers compound and slid his shield off his shoulders, setting it aside on the floor. Sometimes also Captain America could be a little messy, by leaving the shield anywhere, or the dirty dishes in the sink, or putting coffee grounds in the disposal. Nothing that Tony didn’t know already.

The air inside was warm, the atmosphere peaceful; it was pretty soon in the morning, shortly after dawn, and a Sunday no less. A lazy day by textbook, that even Sam and Nat were probably still asleep or quietly reading a book, and they were the most morning people of the team, after himself.

With his mind and body already relaxing at the idea of getting into bed near his husband, Steve stepped into the living room of their quarters, only to stop again, that time surprised by what he saw.

Tony wasn’t sleeping in their bed, curled on Steve’s side, his face pressed on Steve’s cushion, fluffy bed-hair sprawled everywhere. He was crouched on one sofa, working on the StarkPad, wearing a big blue sweater that was falling down one of his shoulder—definitely not one of his own—comfy, old sweatpants and a pair of socks with a pattern made by little Steve’s shields.

The Alpha’s gaze laid immediately on him, beaming in the view that was his mate covered by his own clothes; Tony was a thief, that’s been clear since the beginning of their relationship, and even after many years of marriage Steve still felt his possessive side being teased by it.

Tony looked back at him, his brown eyes sparkled when he saw the Alpha. He couldn’t get up though, his movements were limited by a blonde head resting on his lap, and by another bigger body curled around his sister and half pressed against Tony’s side. Their children were sleeping on him, wearing their favorite Captain Marvel and War Machine footie pajamas.

Steve memorized the scene, to draw them exactly like that, a warm image of the loving Stark-Rogers family.

“Welcome back,” his husband whispered, tilting his head in that adorable way that made Steve wanting to kiss him all over.

“Hey Omega. What’s happening here?” He kept his voice down too, looking sweetly at their two sleepy children. The more they grew, the more their sleep became light, just like the both of them. Steve was sure his Omega was holding his charming purrs to avoid waking them up.

He walked closer to the couch, stepping out of his shoes along the way, just to be stopped by the finger Tony held up in front of them.

“Don’t sat on my couch with your dirty clothes,” he warned, putting aside the StarkPad.

Steve rolled his eyes but stopped, for the moment, to undress from his work suit. Tony loved his furniture.

“Yesterday I told the kids you were coming home early. They woke me up one hour ago, begging me to let them stay awake until your arrival,” the Omega explained, gently moving one of Mary’s blonde lock away from her gracious face.

Steve’s heart melted. He took a deep breath of his family’s scent, looking at them with the most devoted gaze. He was the luckiest man on earth; his family was beautiful, they made him happy, and cherished, they were everything he always wished he could have when he was only a young soldier, but didn’t think it could really happen.

“I appreciate the effort,” he joked lightly, his voice shaking a little. “You should go back to sleep too, honey”

Tony shook his head, resting it against the back of the sofa. “I prefer what I’m doing now,” he said with a smirk, desire coming out of his eyes as he was ogling at Steve’s massive body. “Mmm yes, slowly,” he murmured, slightly parting his lips.

Steve restrained a chuckle, but did as Tony ordered, gradually unzipping the suit from the back. It was very innocent considering the things they did together… or to each other, but the Alpha’s chest raised with pride in being desired by his beloved Omega, and he released a low, deep rumble.

Tony’s eyes opened wide, not in awe but preoccupied, knowing that once the kids were awake, nothing could’ve made them sleep again, until night. Steve froze, with his suit open but still on, then his mouth curved into a bright smile.

“Pops!” Mary chirped, lifting her head and looking stunned at her dad. Peter followed her right after, opening his chocolate eyes and smiling excited. “You’re back!”

“Hi there, miss scientist,” he greeted Mary, scooping her up as she left her spot on the couch to throw herself at him. “Morning baby boy,” he said to Peter, who circled his waist with his arms and pressed his chin against his stomach, looking up first with a sunny smile, that was all Tony’s, then it became a little pout with a frown. Most of his facial expressions were all Tony’s, really.

“I’m not a baby,” he answered, as Steve placed one hand on his head, ruffling more his bed-hairs.

“Yes, you are, Petey,” the young Alpha responded seriously, while also climbing her Pops. Steve wasn’t sure why she always did that, trying to get over his shoulders or his head, it was just funny and sort of cute. His cute little monkey.

“You’re both babies, that’s it. Now that the case is closed, let your father be a good husband and kiss me properly,” Tony got up and hugged both Steve and Peter—since he was still attached to the big Alpha—making a comic kissy face.

“Ew,” both the kids whined, Mary curved against Steve’s shoulder, with her upper body dangling from his back and her feet almost kicking Tony’s face.

Steve growled playfully, planting a rather loud kiss on his Omega’s lips and blocking Mary’s legs before she could hurt him.

“So bossy,” he whispered, with his mouth still pressed against Tony’s.

“You missed me,” the Omega retorted laughing, a sound that filled Steve’s heart with more love. He should’ve always laughed; it made his eyes wrinkle at the corners, and the cheerful smile took the Alpha’s breath away.

“Papa, guess what Ned and I did last Friday!” Peter exclaimed to obtain his attention.

“Let’s see, have you two… been to space? Joined an alien boy band?” He faked thinking about it, while circling Tony’s thin waist with the arm that wasn’t holding Mary’s legs. His mate pressed himself against Steve’s side, nuzzling on his cheek while purring low and steady. They could’ve spent hours wrapped around each other like that, talking and laughing with their kids.

“Noo,” Peter giggled, like his dad was really silly. Then he halted, looking up again with a questioning look. “Do aliens play music? Could we join their bands?”

“Absolutely not,”

“We’ll ask aunt Nebula,”

Steve and Tony answered, then exchanged two very different looks.

“Don’t put those kinds of ideas in my son’s head,” Tony threatened him, trying to glare, but still looking all soft and cute.

“Then what did you guys do?” For the sake of his marriage, Steve followed his instincts and didn’t press more on the other topic.

“We stayed up past midnight, watching a Star Wars movie running!” The little Omega squeaked, looking so excited for doing something for the first time.

“Don’t you mean a movie marathon?” Tony snorted, looking down to pet his son’s hair with Steve. Peter nodded, pressing back with his little head, making their hearts squeezing when he purred.

“Uh, you’re a big Omega then, staying up ‘til late with your friend,” Steve praised, his voice soft, coaxing his family with a gentle rumble from his throat.

“I got A for my art project,” Mary interrupted, kicking lightly again to move from her current position.

“Easy there, monkey,” Steve helped her sliding down to sit on his arm, then she got two kisses on her forehead and cheek from both of her dads. “And great job, I knew you’d make it.”

“Does that mean I can join the alien band too?” She asked, pulling off her best round puppy look, that she totally didn’t learn from him.

“Daddy and I will talk about it,” Steve answered, before Tony could react again. His Omega gave him a severe look, mouthing a ‘no’ without saying it.

“I’m hungry,” Peter announced, just when the Alpha was leaning down to kiss Tony again. He couldn’t resist the Omega when he acted sternly.

“Go with your sister in the kitchen and get the ingredients for pancakes, we’ll be there in a moment,” Steve instructed them, putting Mary on the ground.

That got him two excited squeaks, and an involuntary purring from his still slightly upset husband. Tony loved when he used the Captain’s voice, and he might or might not have done it intentionally.

He opened his mouth, but Tony shushed him. “Are you willing to risk adding something else that could put you in more troubles?”

Steve thought about it for a moment, gazing in his Omega’s smug eyes. They weren’t fighting, but that little argument was keeping them from having some other kind of quality time together, and after two days he needed more than chaste touches.

Instead of answering, he circled Tony’s waist with both arms making him bend over, following right after, kissing him properly.

The Omega muffled a surprised moan, but followed his lead smoothly, intertwining his long fingers through blonde hairs. After a long, innocent yet very affectionate kiss, Tony’s mouth opened for him, and Steve bit down at his bottom lip, harder enough to make him yelp, before sliding inside with his tongue, swallowing the delightful sigh.

They separated only for the time of a breath, diving back in the second after. That time though, Steve’s hands went down and insideTony’s pants, to take a full handful of his gorgeous ass, earning another pleasant moan that escaped the Omega’s wide opened lips.

Steve felt the familiar fabric of his mate’s underwear, he stroked the fancy, delicate lacy and Tony kneed when the Alpha squeezed him tighter, kneading at the hot flesh of his ass. “I did miss you,” the Alpha let out in a growl, lifting him up with one quick jerk.

“Me too, Alpha” Tony answered out of breath, panting heavily, his legs going around Steve’s waist automatically and a rush of wet coating his tights.

Steve rubbed noses with the sweet Omega in a fond motion, waiting for Tony’s lungs to fill with some air again, and when he rumbled in his ear, he felt his mate melting against his body, purring until the Alpha bent to devour him again.

“Sweet, perfect Omega,” he murmured, nuzzling at Tony’s cheek, squeezing his ass, while his mate got to work on his neck, nibbling and licking to the soft spot. Steve rocked his hips, pressing against Tony’s own hard flesh, and they both moaned loudly, like two horny teenagers that couldn’t control their instincts.

“You smell incredibly, I can feel how wet you are for me-”

“Dad, Pops! Are you coming?” Peter’s voice made them groan and growl in disapproval, but Tony didn’t stop leaving a trail of warm kisses up to his jaw, purring louder to keep the Alpha’s focus all for himself.

“Settle,” Steve forced the word out, his hands leaving their favorite place to land on Tony’s hips.

“Alpha,” he whined, but doing as his Alpha commanded, pressing his forehead against Steve’s shoulder. They both huffed and sighed, but there weren’t much they could do.

“It’s still very early,” Tony commented, exhaling again, while Steve strolled toward the kitchen, carrying the Omega with him. “There are high chances they’ll be asleep again for a couple more hours, if we can stuff them with as many pancakes as possible.”

“They aren’t turkeys, you know?” Steve smiled, sniffing Tony’s scent. God, it was a mix of love and sex, and he wanted nothing more than biting him.

“Oh, I know, but I also know they got your appetite. That’s tons of eggs, flour and milk,”

“And chocolate chips,” the Alpha added in agreement, before stopping to walk.

Tony raised his head and looked confused at the sudden halt, but all Steve could see were his red, swollen lips that he couldn’t wait to taste again, and again, and again.

“We’ll feed them, and then I will have my own breakfast,” he said suggestively, having no doubts Tony would’ve taken the hint. In fact, his Omega looked very interested, even as he tried to maintain a straight face.

“Well, what are you’re going to have, Captain?” He asked, with a voice as tempting as the fully kissable mouth that formed the words.

“You,” he said hoarsely, more of a growl than anything. “Pretty Omega, I’m gonna eat you out so well you’ll forget what day it is.”

Tony jumped, his mouth falling open on a gasp, and Steve took advantage of it, shoving his tongue past his lips, digging his fingers into his hips to keep him still, in a possessive streak.

“Let’s- Let’s make children… I mean food, let’s make it. Oh god, let’s make it,” and really, there weren’t anything more lovely than a flustered, rambling, mind blown Tony. Steve was finally at home.

[flightfoot]

We’re The Same ch. 2

AO3/FFN

Oh yeah, a little background on Maya; her father's an assassin, and also an abusive asshole. He went after Damian, torturing him and taunting him into killing him (apparently. I haven't gotten my hands on that comic unfortunately). So Maya went after Damian for "revenge" supposedly, saying that she'd kill him after he'd finished his redemption quest, but that she'd help him in the meantime because he CLEARLY needed help.

...yeah, she's never killed anyone before, and it was really blatantly obvious that she wasn't going to go through with it even then. She was just paying lip service to what she thought she was "supposed" to do. Later once they've pretty much finished the quest, she ended up being the one to comfort Damian when he believed himself to be irrevocably stained with blood, forgave him, declared herself his sister, and gave him a hug.

I wish I had more material to draw from for Maya, I like what little I've seen of her.

Disclaimer: This is a Lovesquare fic, with Identity Reveal, Hawkmoth Reveal, and Hawkmoth Defeat. It is NOT a salt fic.

Thanks to @mini-minou for betaing!

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Damian peered up at the manor in front of him. Huge, imposing –

“How quaint.”

– if you didn’t happen to grow up as the prince of a society of assassins and the son of a billionaire, that is.

He took stock of his surroundings. There were cameras at the gate, but ONLY at the gate it seemed.

“Tt. What brain-dead simpleton designed this security system? Does the owner REALLY think this will be sufficient to catch any criminal infiltrating the place? Idiot.”

He launched himself onto a rooftop, getting a better angle to see the whole manor.

Two things stood out from the new vantage point; an open window that seemed to lead to a boy’s bedroom, and a weird patch of wall that wasn’t quite flat. To the casual observer it might appear to just be some strange design on the wall, perhaps an artistic choice.

Damian was NOT a casual observer.

He narrowed his eyes. “Things just got a little more interesting.”

He swung over to the patch of wall, running his fingers over it. Grooves spiraled across it, fitting together in just such a way that…

“I see. So this patch of wall is some sort of covering that can expand and contract. Now why would a perfectly ordinary, everyday citizen – well, aside from being rich – have one of these?”

There was nothing more he could do with that patch of wall. Time to investigate the window.

Swinging back around the manor, he took a better look at the room… and its occupants.

He narrowed his eyes. Seems I wasn’t far off about the spirit of the cat.

Inside a boy typed away at his computer, looking up news reports about Robin. Not a huge surprise, seeing as how the boy was almost certainly Chat Noir.

Slightly MORE surprising was the tiny black cat-like creature stuffing his face with cheese.

Seriously, how was he even eating that much, that cheese was bigger than his entire body?!

Oh wait, magic. Stupid question.

So he’d almost certainly found Chat Noir. Not exactly why the tracker had disappeared, but he had a start.

Time to do a little digging.

He brought out his phone and got to work.

Hm. Seemed like this mansion belonged to Gabriel Agreste, a world-famous fashion designer. He’d been reclusive ever since the disappearance of his wife nearly a year ago, only making a handful of public appearances. Judging from what little he could dig up, he seemed like a rather cold man who didn’t put up with anything he considered nonsensical or silly, such as when he was called into a game show without apparently having agreed to it. Damian actually agreed with his displeasure at being tricked into participating, but his tone and body language… it was a little too familiar for his liking.

There wasn’t much info on the wife, Emilie. Apparently her maiden name was Graham De Vanily. Her family owned a studio called Graham films. From her few public appearances, it appeared that she’d gradually been getting sicker and weaker over the months before her disappearance, though there was no news of her being diagnosed with any illness.

And then there was the final member of the family, Adrien Agreste, AKA Chat Noir. A fourteen year old model, he had plenty of professional photos and lots of celebrity appearances.

Damian’s eyes narrowed. 

Plenty of celebrity appearances… but little outside of that. Not until a few months ago, when he started going to public school. Then he started being tagged in other people’s photos, being talked about as a friend. Before that the only person his age who seemed to know him on a personal level was Chloe Bourgeois, and it took only about a minute of research to figure out that she was a stuck-up rich brat. It was always possible that his personal life was just kept private before this, but… well, Damian’s instincts were telling him that something was very, very wrong here.

Time to get a little more hands-on. Luckily the security of the mansion was ABYSMAL. Seriously, if Gabriel had lived in Gotham, both he and Adrien would have been kidnapped dozens of times in the last few years.

He didn’t need to make much of an effort. A few minutes after he’d put down the phone and started surveilling the mansion, a woman – judging by her appearance, most likely Nathalie, Gabriel Agreste’s assistant, opened the door. The little cat creature disappeared into Adrien’s shirt, likely to conceal himself from her, and Adrien left the room. Luckily for Damian, he left the window open.

He quietly alighted in the room. It was huge and had a lot of stuff in it, but nothing of interest, except-

He followed his nose. And wished he hadn’t.

“YUCK!”

So that cat creature had an entire hoard of the stinkiest cheeses that Damian had ever smelled in his life. And judging by how huge the stash was, he ate a LOT.

He swiftly closed the cabinet door. If anything else was in there, it wasn’t worth sacrificing his nose to find it.

His next discovery was a little less nauseating to his senses.

Damian pulled out a photo from the trophy where Adrien had hidden it and several other similar photos.

So the flirtations weren’t just banter then. Great, he’s lovesick.

Damian rolled his eyes and put the photo back. It was always a pain to deal with couples on a team, they were always making googly eyes at each other and being gross and NOT concentrating on the mission.

There wasn’t time to investigate much else – not without risking discovery. He planted a few bugs and cameras and moved on, entering the air duct.

He pulled up the floor plans of the building to use as a map… and soon frowned. The floorplan differed slightly from what he’d seen from the outside, especially with that strange covering. Not TOO big a surprise – that covering was obviously meant to conceal SOMETHING – but the size of the difference was pretty staggering. It seemed like at least a 500 square foot room had been secretly added to the mansion and NO ONE had noticed.

But even that didn’t explain what he saw in front of him.

He frowned. Now where was THIS little fork in the road supposed to go?

The duct split, one piece of it following the regular floor plan, as shown in public records, and the other decidedly NOT following that, instead curving steeply downwards.

A secret place that – judging by how long and how steep the ductwork was – lay underneath a mansion? If it was some sort of cave he should get Bruce to sue for copyright infringement.

It was not a cave.

A huge chamber stretched before him. It looked almost like a mausoleum, with its high ceiling, ornate windows, and general over-the-top atmosphere.

A cult, perhaps? They were fairly common – WAY too common – in Gotham, but he’d been hoping to maybe not run into them as often elsewhere.

He should have known better. Sheep existed everywhere in the world.

Still, if it was a cult, it must be a small one. The walkway wouldn’t be able to fit more than one or MAYBE two people, and the “island” at the end of it wasn’t exactly huge. Speaking of which…

He walked to the end, peering at the closed pod. A human-sized pod that was obviously supposed to be the focal point of the room underneath the manor of a millionaire who he strongly suspected wasn’t Father of the Year, when his wife had disappeared under mysterious circumstances. Yeah this boded well and wasn’t suspicious in the slightest.

He prepared to hack the pod to open it up, or at least to get information on what was inside, but discovered there was no need. There was no security on it, it only required a button press to open.

Seems like Gabriel Agreste hadn’t thought to include any contingency measures for someone breaking into his lair.

The pod doors opened, revealing pretty much what Damian had expected.

Because of COURSE Gabriel was keeping his “missing” wife in a pod underneath the manor. Naturally. Why wouldn’t he? That’s a perfectly normal thing for a perfectly normal man to do.

Question was, was she alive and in some sort of coma or suspended animation, or dead and being kept preserved?

He examined her closely, checking her for signs of degradation and any sign of life. If she was breathing it was so low as to be undetectable, and her heart rate also appeared nonexistent. However, while her vital signs were missing, she appeared to be in good health otherwise, with no sign of rot or decay at all.

Suspended animation it was then.

After taking a picture, he closed the pod. If she was in suspended animation it may still be possible to revive her. He didn’t want to be responsible for more death.

A small insect flew by – a white butterfly.

What was a butterfly doing here? Then again, what was ANY of this doing here, especially the foliage.

Wait… a white butterfly – like the one that had been released when the akuma was purified.

A butterfly emerged from a cocoon on a nearby branch. Dozens of similar cocoons hung nearby.

A reclusive millionaire who was hardly seen out of his house, two massive rooms that didn’t appear on the floor plan, one of which housed his supposedly missing wife, and dozens of the same type of butterfly that Hawkmoth used to create his akumas?

It was possible that Gabriel Agreste wasn’t Hawkmoth. It was also possible that Damian would spontaneously grow wings and decide to become an opera star. Both possibilities seemed equally likely.

Might as well set up some cameras and bugs and then get out of here. If Gabriel descended the elevator, he’d have trouble leaving without being spotted. Wouldn’t be a problem if Gabriel was only down here for a short period of time, but if he wasn’t…

Swiftly he returned to the duct, heading back to the surface.

As he crawled around the vents, he left numerous bugs everywhere he could without leaving the vent, along with tiny cameras at each vent opening. When preparing to break into the lair of a supervillain, it paid to be prepared.

He shot off a quick text to Ducard, telling her to meet up with him at a certain rooftop he’d spotted that had some good cover. They needed to exchange notes.

It was time to take down a supervillain.

[jiminniethemarshmallow]

Release (Drabble? #11)

1. “I missed you so much.” 12. “I really don’t care. You still look hot and I’m trying not to kiss you senseless right now.” 15. “Are you sure? Once we start, I might not be able to stop.” 37. “Always so fucking tight for me.” 41. “Oh fuck, don’t stop.” 53. Bedroom 93. Just sex ;)

A/N: This is 8k words and I’m only calling it a Drabble because it was requested from the prompts list (yes, I’m aware that was over a year ago and yes, I still have some of the drabble game requests still in my inbox). Anyway, enjoy this domestic Jimin scenario.

Warnings: Squirting... fear of getting caught by a child. That’s pretty much it.

“Okay, I finally got them down to sleep.” Your husband sighs as he trudges through the doorway of your bedroom, hand pressing into his shoulder muscle to release some of the built up tension there.

“Did you make sure Siwoo has his-“

“Yes, I gave him his stuffed teddy. I know he wakes up and cries when he doesn’t have it near him.” He interrupts gently from his place at the bottom of your bed.

“And did Min-Sun wash up?” Your voice is muffled through the foam and toothbrush lodged in your mouth, eyes looking at Jimin through his reflection in the mirror.

“Yup, I helped her brush her teeth and wash her face. We even sang her favorite song as she got dressed and she settled down pretty soon after that. I told you, jagiya, I got this, don’t worry.” His eyes flick up to stare at you through the open door, giving you a loving smile which you return tiredly. You know Jimin is a great dad, he pays such good attention to the little details and puts in the extra effort when helping out with the kids, even though his hectic work life has him constantly stressed and on edge, and you couldn’t appreciate him enough for how hard he tries. Most nights Jimin wasn’t home in time to put the kids in bed, leaving you to hush their questions of “where’s Daddy?” as you tucked them in. They always gave you extra kisses and goodnight wishes that you promised to give to him once he came home, and you always relayed every single one as soon as you saw him. But nothing felt as good as seeing him go through their nightly routine with them and being there to receive their kisses himself, your children’s eyes alight with joy until the moment they fall asleep. He’s always been their favorite parent, understandably— he’s your favorite person too if you’re being honest— and it always warms your heart to see the three of them interacting.

“I know. I was just checking.” You reply after spitting out your toothpaste. He’s no longer looking at you, but instead focuses his attention on unbuttoning his shirt.

“Did I pass your evaluation?” He quips, quirking up an eyebrow.

“With flying colors.” Jimin gives you a toothy grin as he pulls open the fabric, slipping it from his arms and revealing the tight undershirt he sports underneath, which he swiftly pulls off in one smooth move.

“Siwoo is starting to look more and more like you everyday.” He comments, disappearing deeper into the room while unbuckling his belt.

“Yeah? Well he acts like you. I know they call them the “terrible two’s” but he just never stops laughing— and that would be completely fine and totally adorable if it wasn’t for the fact that he only laughs when he’s doing something he knows he’s not supposed to. That child definitely inherited your mischievous spirit; soon, I’m not gonna know what to do with him!” Jimin giggles at this, similar to the way Siwoo does when he’s getting into trouble, and your heart nearly melts out of your chest.

“He’s always good for me.” You hear the sound of drawers opening and closing as you finish up in the bathroom, preparing for bed. Jimin hums a soft tune as he gets dressed, smiling to himself as he thinks back to his children.

“That’s because he likes you better. He doesn’t- ...have you seen the face wash?” You huff, rummaging around the counter briefly.

“It should be on the left side,” He points as he climbs into bed and underneath the sheets. “That’s where I last saw it.”

“It’s not there... are you sure you didn’t use it all?”

“Hm? Oh, I bought a new tube, it should be in the medicine cabinet.” You open the cabinet and search for the cream and just as he’s about to get up, you spot it.

“Ah! Found it.” Your fingers flick open the packaging while he settles, resuming the conversation as if nothing ever happened. “He doesn’t listen to me unless you’re there or unless I bribe him with snacks.”

“He’ll come around, Sunni did. And he always follows her lead, so as long as we’ve got her loyalty everything should be fine.”

“Yes, but Min-Sun is a great listener and she always had her eyes on us. Sometimes I feel like Siwoo doesn’t even notice that we’re here.” A small pout forms on your lips and Jimin can sense it’s presence without even needing to see your face. Managing a two year old and a five year old is hard work, especially when one of them refuses to acknowledge your authority as the adult, and your husband can tell that you’re having trouble without him.

“Maybe he’s just not interested in us.” He shrugs, idly scrolling through his phone as he waits for you in his side of the bed.

“That doesn’t make me feel any better.” You mumble, scrubbing bubbles into your skin. Five minutes later, you emerge from the bathroom to find Jimin’s eyes droopy as he stares at his phone screen, but it isn’t a tired look— instead it’s a look of weariness and exasperation that makes you just want to curl up into his side and cuddle him until he feels better. “Enough about the kids, I want to hear about your day. How are you?”

Sliding into bed beside him, you eye his side profile worriedly, trying to gage his emotions. With a rough sigh, Jimin locks his screen and opens his mouth to reply, turning to look at you and choking on air when he’s greeted by the emotionless cover of your panda shaped face mask. His eyes bulge comically before he bursts into laughter, throwing his head back to reveal his beautiful neck and letting out musical giggles.

“Stop laughing!” You whine, waiting for him to compose himself enough to answer you. But he keeps laughing, losing it every time he glances back up at you until he’s holding his stomach, eyes squinting shut and brimming with tears.

“I’m sorry I just,” He gasps, attempting to sit up straight again. “I was not expecting to see that.” Yup, he’s silly. Just like his son. But you’re used to this by now.

“Jimin, stop avoiding the question.” You try again, holding your straight expression so your face mask doesn’t fall off. “How was your day?” You push, and he finally returns to seriousness after taking a deep breath.

“My day was... tiring as always.” You give him a look and his mouth straightens into a line, the corners downturned at the worry in your gaze and he moves his hand to rest over yours. “I’m fine jagi, really, I just don’t wanna talk about it. I’m home now and it’s the weekend and I’d rather spend time thinking about you.” It’s now that Jimin gets a good look at you, particularly at what you’re wearing as you sit atop the bedsheets applying lotion to your legs. You’re dressed in a silky night gown lined with black lacy embroidery and it hangs loosely from your figure in a way that just barely outlines your curves. You begin speaking again, talking about how you’ll always be there for him if he ever wants to rant, and how he doesn’t have to push himself to the limit all the time and blah blah blah, but he zones out with a blank expression that you don’t catch as you ramble on. Unintentionally, his eyes land on your chest to find your nipples subtly poking through the material and all he wants to do right now is fit his mouth over one of them and suck. His gaze moves on to your exposed legs, following the motion of your hands as they run along the skin there, and suddenly his hands itch to lift up the short fabric to get a peek of the tops of your thighs and what lies between them.

Finally you look back up at him and catch his eyes directed southward, and you purse your lips behind the mask. Your hands move up to cover yourself intentionally, wanting to see his reaction, but Jimin barely bats an eye, instead focusing his attention to your covered crotch and boring holes into you like he could see right through your clothing. Letting your hands drop to your sides, you wait for him to notice you’ve stopped talking and look up at you, but all he does is move his hand to your high inner thigh where there’s still a streak of lotion present, warm fingers squeezed in the crevice of your legs and thumb moving idly just under the hem of your dress.

“You had some lotion there. It was bothering me.” He says in a low voice, although he doesn’t look the slightest bit meek or sheepish at your accusing look. If he wanted to touch you so badly he didn’t have to make an excuse for it. His eyes lower into seductive slits and you know it’s unintentional— he has this way of being very sexually persuasive without even trying or knowing he’s doing it, and you wonder if he’s trying to initiate something or if you’re reading into it too much. You would think you’d have him all figured out by now after being married to him for this long, but some things still remain a mystery to you.

“Do you want something?” You ask outright, knowing that the easiest way to figure something out about him is to ask. His hand remains between your legs and the atmosphere around it is becoming damper and damper the longer it’s there. Jimin blinks at you silently for a second before responding.

“No, not particularly.” While he says this, his hand gradually ascends up your thigh, fingers eventually making contact with your center to find that you are completely bare underneath. Teeth biting into his lower lip, he represses a groan before his eyes flick to the open bedroom door. “I was just thinking about how sexy you are.” His voice is barely above a whisper and you lean in closer to hear him better.

“I’m sexy? Even with this scary looking face mask on?” Your tone is teasing compared to his, delicate and sweet and alluring all the same, and a smile threatens to dislodge the cover from your face.

“Face mask or not, I really don’t care. You still look hot and I’m trying not to kiss you senseless right now.” This time he lets on to the desire swimming in his eyes, a crooked smirk on his lips as he stares at your pink ones sticking through the opening cut out of your mask. A flash of heat rushes through you and you squeeze your thighs around his hand, feeling it press against you slightly. “Baby, can we?” He asks even quieter, fingers tracing your slit. “It’s been so long.”

“Hold that thought.” You interrupt after a second of thought, pulling away to crawl over his lap and stride to the door, looking into the hallway at your children’s rooms before closing the door soundlessly, locking it, and making your way back to the bed, immediately planting yourself on your husband’s lap with legs on either side of him. You can feel him starting to harden beneath you and your excitement grows as you push away the sheets from his legs so you’re sitting directly over his loose shorts. When you open your mouth to say something, the alarm on your phone interrupts and both of your heads snap toward the noise, your fingers swiftly reaching out to silence it before it wakes the children in the rooms next to yours. Before you can even lift your fingers so remove the thin mask from your skin (as signaled by the alarm), Jimin reaches up and gently peels the slimy material from your face, throwing it into the trash can nearby and sitting straight up until you’re face to face again, noses nearly touching.

“Hi.” A smile breaks free from you at his close proximity, the word leaving his lips playfully as he takes in your glistening skin.

“Hi.” You respond, biting your lip briefly before leaning forward and taking his between your own. He lets out a surprised grunt when you press against him, chest smushed against his hard enough for him to feel your nipples rubbing with his, and he brings his hands to your damp cheeks, squeezing them together just enough to part your mouth for his tongue that you gladly accept. Kissing Jimin is one of your favorite things to do, not just because of how soft and puffy his lips are, but because he’s just so damn good at it. The way he envelopes your whole mouth and takes over you completely never fails to send sparks and tingles down your body, those familiar butterflies doing somersaults in your stomach. It’s like you can’t get enough of him, of the way his scent covers you, the way his taste has you diving back for more even when his tongue is stealing away your breath, and soon enough your restraint dissolves and the two of you are making out messily, teeth and tongues clashing and hips grinding into each other. His hands slide down to your ass, grabbing on tightly and pulling it apart in that way that makes your pussy lips separate and you moan into his mouth at the feeling, not missing the way he grins slyly against you. You finally gather the strength to pull away from him enough to speak, panting out your words quietly. “What were you saying before?”

Your husband licks his lips, eyes boring into yours as he leans his head back against the headboard, eyes sliding lazily up and down your figure. “Jagi, please let me fuck you. I want you so bad.” He gives the globes in his hands a small squeeze before gliding his palms around to your thighs, thumbs now dangerously close to your center and kneading teasing circles into the skin there as you ponder your answer.

“I want you too.” You say with a nod, dropping your forehead down onto his, and Jimin must take this as enough of an answer since you find yourself being flipped over in an instant as he trails hot kisses down your neck and chest.

“Are you sure? Once we start, I might not be able to stop.” He murmurs when he reaches the top of your gown that sits just above your breasts. He politely waits for your response, staying still and looking into your eyes with a stern gaze that demands your confirmation.

“Yes Jimin,” Sitting up slightly, you cup his handsome face, communicating your sincerity with your eyes. “I’m certain, don’t worry.” Your eyes flit to the locked door of your room and his do the same, a sigh leaving him as he relaxes a bit, swiftly taking off his shirt and throwing it elsewhere.

His hands find the bottom of your dress, pushing it all the way up until your nipples are exposed, and he spends a few minutes teasing the buds, licking over the hardened peaks and sucking them into his mouth until you’re moaning out for him, back arching up for more. You forgot how sensitive you were, it being not too long ago that you stopped breastfeeding Siwoo, so the different stimulation coming from Jimin affected you more than you expected. The moment the sound leaves your lips he stops, sending you a glare as he continues to leave a galaxy of bruises down your body, nimble fingers still rolling the buds between them.

“Be careful baby, don’t wanna get caught now, do we?” His hands skim along your sides, making you squirm and lift your hips up because of how close he is to where you want him. Smirking, Jimin plants kisses on your hipbones and inner thighs, already able to smell how wet you are for him just from a couple of kisses and nipple play. A droplet of wetness skids down from your slit when his thumb makes contact with your clit, the other free hand coming up to spread your legs wider so that you’re more exposed for him. No matter how many times he’s seen you intimately like this, Jimin still can’t help but marvel at how pretty you look, taking a few seconds to admire your glistening folds and pink lips that drip with arousal for him, because of him. And you never can seem to get your reactions under control every time he does this, feeling the blood rush to your cheeks and heat your face. “You’re so beautiful.”

“You aren’t so bad yourself.” Your voice comes out as a hoarse whisper as you take in the view from your position. Jimin’s head between your open thighs, eyes sparkling in adoration and tongue slipping out to wet his plump lips, his deep breaths fanning over your drenched core. At your words he smirks, shooting you a fake glare as he pushes harder on your clit with his thumb, starting tiny and fast circles that make you gasp.

He watches as your juices accumulate from his ministrations, his face inching closer and closer until just before you begin to leak onto the sheets, his tongue darting out to lick a fat stripe up your slit and catch everything you spilled. A low groan comes from him at your taste and he doesn’t try to restrain himself from diving in for another lick, thumb rubbing even faster now. You know Jimin loves to tease and you’re so wound up that you think you’ll snap on him if he decides to play one of his games tonight, but it’s been so long that he doesn’t have the patience to work you up to the brink of insanity today. Instead, he takes his time relishing in your essence, dipping his tongue inside your entrance and curling it against your walls in a way that makes you keen.

“I love how you taste.” He rasps, licking his lips lewdly when he pulls away, eyes never leaving your center. Using his thumbs, he spreads your lips apart, exposing your pink clit that peeks out from under its hood shyly, and oh god, you could cum just from the way he’s staring at you like you’re his favorite meal. And he eats you as if that’s what you are, mouth kissing the pearl before enveloping it, tongue pushing past its hood to lick and suckle at it in the most raw way. Just watching him enjoy you sends sparks throughout your body, his eyes closed and expression in pure bliss as if he’s getting direct pleasure from this. His hips grind into the mattress and you notice that at some point he pushed down his shorts enough to pull out his cock, and it rubs against the smooth silk of your sheets in time with the flicks of his tongue. Your hands entangle in his hair, pulling him closer, and the two of you are sucked into your own world of pleasure. Jimin allows you to grind yourself against his face as he continues to lap you up, and he watches your eyebrows knit tightly together as you start to lose yourself, eyelashes fluttering over your closed eyelids when your legs start to tremble.

It’s getting hard to contain your noises, light gasps and sighs escaping you as your breathing becomes heavier and heavier and you almost want to warn the man between your legs and tell him to back off a little. But the larger part of your brain is silently begging him to keep going, to make you cum like this, and it doesn’t help when he adds a finger into the equation. It circles your tight hole and slides in gingerly, causing you to buck your hips into him to feel it deeper and you start to pant rather loudly when he inserts a second, then a third. Eyes squeezed shut, you bite down hard on your lips, whining low in your throat to let him know he’s doing it right, and you can feel the grin on his lips as he sucks on your bud harder, pumping his fingers faster and creating wet noises as your slick coats his thick digits.

His grin doesn’t last long, however, because suddenly you hear the sound of a door closing in the hallway and your eyes snap open, head whipping around to glare hard at the door. Jimin hasn’t moved yet— mouth still closed over your pussy, keeping it warm— but his eyes shift back and forth from your face to the doorway, both of you holding your breath as you listen for more sounds. Pretty soon after that, you hear the telltale sound of the toilet flushing and you relax a little bit more.

“It must be Min-Sun.” You breathe out, meeting eyes with your frozen husband whose eyes are still very wide. You’re proud of her for using the toilet instead of wetting the bed— she is five years old after all— but you don’t voice your joy out loud for risk of destroying the mood. You and Jimin had a rule that you made when Min-Sun was born that you wouldn’t talk about parent things during sex because neither of you wanted to think about your children during such intimate moments. Understandably.

For now, though, you focus on getting your breathing under control, realizing that you are panting quite harshly and it might be audible through the door. Taking deep breaths, you try to calm down a little, but it’s hard for you to do that when Jimin’s mouth is still attached to your most sensitive places. It’s almost like he can tell how much you’re struggling because his tongue moves the tiniest bit against you in a way that makes you practically choke on the air in your lungs, and when you hiss at him his eyes crinkle into cute slits that let you know it was 100% on purpose. You finally hear the bathroom door open again and small feet treading sleepily down the hall until you can’t hear them anymore. You both let out a deep sigh, but then Jimin is curling his fingers into the spongy spot inside you and your back leaps off the bed.

“J-Jimin,” You gasp, trying to keep your volume quiet. “What the hell are you thinking?” Your words lose their edge because of the strained quality of your voice, shakily trying to hold in your moans.

“The door is locked, we’re fine.” You’ve always been the paranoid one in these situations, but Jimin never seems to mind, fingers working at an even faster pace than before and aiming for that one spot inside you. The bud between his lips swallows as he continues to prod at it and the familiar tingling in your lower belly surfaces with urgency. You curse when you feel the heat growing within you, legs trembling and sweat dripping from your skin as your hips grind up into his mouth greedily.

Pretty soon, you forget what was worrying you a few moments ago and begin to chase your high, fingers threading into the soft tuft of hair on Jimin’s head. He grunts when you tug at it, his own hips bucking with stuttering jerks and he has to stop himself before he accidentally cums all over your sheets. The thought of him doing that, reaching his orgasm without you even having to touch him, arouses you so much more and you let out a small whine as the pressure in your abdomen builds. “Baby, c-can you focus on my clit a little more, I’m gonna cum.” His eyes look up at you, tongue flattening and rubbing over the hard bundle of nerves in precise circles and stripes, making your hips lift off the bed. “Oh fuck, don’t stop.”

“Cum in my mouth, jagi.” Jimin encourages, scissoring his fingers inside you and pressing them into you fast and hard in time with his flicking tongue. Your walls contract once, twice, and with one more harsh suck to your clit, you’re flying over the edge with a broken gasp, hand pushing his head against you and lips sucked between your teeth to prevent any noise from escaping. He can feel you convulsing around his fingers and throbbing against his tongue and honestly, it takes everything in him not to lose his load right then and there watching you wiggle and shake in overwhelming pleasure and sensitivity. “You look so beautiful when you cum.” He smirks, helping you through it with his fingers.

When you come down, he kisses your inner thighs with his wet lips, skimming up your body until he reaches your mouth and shares your taste, tongue flicking against yours lazily. Your hands come up to push him onto his back, making your way between his legs and pulling his boxers down the rest of the way as you go while he adjusts himself on the pillows. The way he looks down at you makes you feel like the most beautiful woman alive, his eyes holding an admiring glitter. You reach for his length as soon as it’s exposed, grasping it firmly just to feel his heartbeat pulse through it, and his head immediately tilts back at the feeling. The veins in his neck are straining already and you crave to suck bruises over them, to mark him like you so loved to do in the honeymoon stage of your relationship, but you refrain, instead flattening your tongue against his cock, licking from balls to tip and tracing its thick, winding veins. Electricity shoots up Jimin’s spine from the contact, causing his legs to straighten and flex at the intense stimulation, and his eyes flick down to connect with yours just as your tongue is circling over the head and teasing his frenulum.

“Fuck, you’re so good to me.” He whispers when your mouth envelopes the head. Your hair is smooth between his fingers as he pets your head, nails scraping soothingly against your scalp as you work your way down his cock until you feel his tip nudge at the back of your throat. Dragging your nails down his thighs, you swallow around him, pulling back as soon as his hips buck into you. The slickness of your saliva and his precum coats his shaft, a small trail connected to your lips as you use your hand to pump him a few times, making your way up to his body. “Baby~” He whines when you reach over to retrieve a condom from the drawer of your night stand.

“Sorry jagi, but I’m not ready for baby #3 any time soon.” You know how much he loves to raw you, how much he loves cumming inside your pussy and telling you to keep it in all night. But you’re not having any of that tonight. You shoot him a look through your lashes as you move to sit on his thick thighs when he pouts. The muscles there make a perfect seat and spread your legs wide as they straddle his. The sight of his cock sitting so close to where you want him, twitching as it rests against his taut stomach that has lost the definition of its abs but still contains strong layers of muscles beneath. You can’t resist running your fingers over his member, feeling the soft and silky skin there that is such a contrast to the intense veiny hardness of the flesh it covers. Deep inhales come from your husband as he tries to control his reactions, so worked up that he can barely stand the feeling of your small hands rolling the condom over him.

As soon as it’s all the way on, you raise yourself above him, hovering just over his tip and wasting no time sinking down. You both groan quietly, biting lips and panting heavily as you ease yourself down smoothly on his length. With his girth comes the familiar sting that you have to get used to each time, and even after giving birth twice, it’s still a snug fit. His hands roam your front, pulling off your night gown that has fallen back down to its original length so that he can see you. His palms massage into your waist and over your stomach that’s covered in the stretch marks that he loves to touch. You remember when he would spend hours kissing your belly and chest, reassuring you that he absolutely doesn’t mind seeing evidence of you carrying his children, both while you were pregnant and afterwards when your body had reverted to its original size— mostly.

“You’re so sexy.” He mumbles with a smile, tweaking at your erected nipples a little before resting his hands on your hips lightly. When you’re halfway down his shaft, you lean forward onto his chest, wrapping your arms around his neck. He helps you the rest of the way down by lifting his hips until his balls are pressed against you and you can feel him deep inside.

Your lips brush his tantalizingly, but you don’t kiss him, lingering there until he tilts toward you, to which you lean a way to instead rest your forehead against his, lips just out of reach. A giggle bubbles from your throat when he opens his eyes to glower at you, moving one hand to the back of your head to pull you to his mouth for a sweet and passionate kiss. You gladly welcome his tongue into your mouth, gasping when a hand comes down to slap your ass with a loud smack that echos throughout the silence of the room. A sound of disapproval comes from you but Jimin swallows it, smirking against your mouth and pulling you closer. You’re the first to pull back for air, leaning on his forehead again to catch your breath.

“You okay?” He asks, grabbing onto the curve of your ass as you sit on top of him. Nodding, you lift yourself up only to drop back down, the slide becoming easier with every slow movement and Jimin can only throw his head back in pleasure, digging his fingers into you. “Shit, baby,” He sighs, bucking his own hips to meet yours. “Always so fucking tight for me.” The words come out in a low growl that you can feel rumble against your chest and it sends shivers up your spine.

Your arms tighten around his neck as you bury your face into his shoulder, letting out soft moans and whimpers the faster the pace gets. He feels heavenly inside you, rubbing your dripping walls in just the right way that makes you crave more. You can feel every ridge of his cock, tip penetrating deeper with each downward stroke, and the heat between your bodies builds. It seems like his hands are burning a trail of fire on your skin as they move along your ass, waist, and up your back with the need to touch you all over, to feel you against him and hold you closer. Your chest is already smashed against his, nipples sensitive as they slide along his increasingly sweaty skin, and you know he can feel it too with the strangled sighs he releases against your neck.

“Harder, Jimin.” Your request is immediately answered, voice shaking with the force of his thrusts, and it takes an incredible amount of self-control not to make a sound. If you were alone in this house tonight, he would no doubt have you screaming his name at the top of your lungs. If you were alone, you would relish the slapping sounds of the skin of your ass sticking to his hips and the wet sounds of his cock drowning in a pool of your slick. If you were alone, you would definitely ask him to go even harder and maybe even smack your ass again. But you’re not alone in this house and it makes everything feel so much riskier, more dangerous, even if your bedroom door is locked. And the adrenaline rush feels amazing. Leaning away from him, you sit upright and reach for the back of his thighs, dragging your hands up them to hook under his bent legs, and you almost lose it at the angle he hits like this.

“Fuck,” Jimin gapes when your walls squeeze him in delight, and he’s put in a trance by how you seem to suck him in every time his hips press up into you. You’re bouncing now, a combination of your own will and the power of his hips below you, and the bed groans with every one of your aggressive movements. He cringes at the noise and tries to readjust, but you stop him with a hand on his chest.

“Feels so good like this, stay.” You breathe as your eyes beg into his, and he obliges you for a few more minutes, watching the way you bite your bottom lip and drop down on him harder, your perfect breasts jumping with you and just begging to be sucked on. One of his hands is pressed to your lower back and the other steadies you by holding your thigh, but he can see the way your pretty clit peeks out at him from between your spread legs, tempting him and pulsing in need for him to touch it. Bringing his fingers to the front, Jimin moves in hard circles against the bud, his own hips speeding up when your walls clamp down on his member in response, a loud moan almost slipping free of your lips before you catch it behind a shaky hand. “Oh my god.” You whisper, head tilted back and body oozing sexiness, and he doesn’t even know where to focus his eyes. Sweat droplets trickle between your breasts and glistens on the surface of your skin, your flushed cheeks and messy hair all adding to the appeal of the pure bliss on your face, and Jimin wonders how he got so lucky to have you as his wife.

He sits up against you, chest finding yours unexpectedly, and you gasp as you’re nearly thrown off balance, but he has you, one arm firmly around your waist and the other looped under your arms to hold you to him intimately. Immediately your head drops to the crook of his neck, muffled moans coming out into each other’s shoulder, and he covers your mouth with his own to better hide the sounds of pleasure escaping both of you while your legs wrap around his waist to pull him closer.

Everything is slower now, the pace turning into a slow rocking of hips now that placates the noise of the bed to a subtle creaking as he drags you over his cock repeatedly, giving his hips a break to use the strength in his flexing biceps.

“I missed you so much.” You whisper against his lips, only pulling back enough to speak.

“But I’ve been here the whole time baby,” He places a kiss to your neck, moving strands of hair out of the way. “I didn’t go anywhere.” You open your eyes to see him staring at you and it makes your core throb with the way he’s looking into your soul.

“Yeah, but I missed having you like this.” Grinding harder against him, you punctuate your words with a smile. “I miss touching you and being touched by you. And God, I missed this cock.” You’re breathless now, panting with him as your hips rotate to feel him deeply inside, his tip barely brushing the sensitive spot within you that has you quivering. Instead of responding, Jimin simply leans forward and connects your lips, licking into your mouth in a sedated kiss. Your fingers lace in his hair, forcing the kiss into something hungrier, and you can feel him groan against you when you give it a little tug and bite on his lips softly. Smile spreading, you do it again, only to receive a reprimanding thrust, but all that does is make you want to do it again, so you do.

“You think you’re being funny, baby girl?” Jimin challenges lowly into your mouth, his voice significantly deeper. At the grin and giggle he feels come from your lips, he digs his fingertips into the flesh of your ass. “We’ll see if you’re laughing in a minute.”

Suddenly, you’re pushed down onto your back. There’s not even enough time to reorient yourself before he has your hips in his hands to hold you still as he briefly repositions and then drives into you. The air is knocked from your lungs at the first snap of his hips and you claw at the sheets for some sort of traction to keep you from skidding off the edge into insanity. He’s fucking you hard and fast, the precision of his hips leaving little room for any other movement and soon the only noises you can hear are the sloppy sounds of your sopping pussy and the heavy breaths coming from both of you. Your legs shake, moans just at the tip of your tongue but you at least have half a mind to hold them in, mouthing swears and dirty words that he can just barely hear.

“Jimin!” You whisper shout when he raises your hips higher so he can kneel over you. The angle change let’s him hit your sweet spot just right and you would have collapsed if it wasn’t for his strong arms holding you up. Your feet are planted firmly on the bed and your back muscles strain with the effort of holding yourself up against gravity, but the pressure that quickly builds in your gut distracts you.

“Fuck, you’re getting so tight, baby.” Jimin whines above you, going even harder— which you didn’t think was possible— causing your ass to sting with the impact. His fingers cut into your skin, sure bruises to be revealed in the morning, but you can’t focus on any of that. It feels like tingles are spreading throughout your body, unraveling you at the seams and making you fall apart. It’s all encompassing and addictive and with every push of his cock that splits you open and rubs against that one spot, you begin to lose yourself.

“Gonna cum-“ You let out a hoarse squeal of the words, voice high pitched and airy, and you’re sure you look like you are in intense pain. In fact, you’re on the verge of tears, the aggressive force of the mounting pleasure overwhelming you to the point where you can barely let out any noise. And Jimin never lets up, not even when his arms get tired from your weight when your own body fails you.

“Cum from me.” He whispers desperately, drenched in sweat and fighting for his own orgasm that he knows isn’t too far behind. The shaky quality of his voice has you cracking open your watery eyes to take in his knit eyebrows and puffy lips, the bright rosy color on his cheeks from exertion and the cuts of muscle that appear all over his toned body, and that visual is all you need to bursts the bubble inside your core.

You knew this would be a big orgasm, but you’re still completely blindsided by just how hard you’re hit by it, your whole body getting involved as you buck and writhe in his hold. You can’t control the shaking of your legs when you finally release, and Jimin watches in awe and fascination as your jaw drops in a silent scream and your head cranes back so far he’s worried you’ll hurt yourself. He can hear the unbelievable wetness before he can feel it, liquid splashing out around his length as he continues to fuck into you, dripping and splattering all over both of your bodies and onto the comforter. Your walls quake around him, contracting and releasing as the waves travel from head to toe and back up again, searing through your veins. All of your muscles seem to spasm at once, reducing you to a whimpering and quivering mess on the sheets. He’s dropped your hips down to the bed by now, giving it to you hard and slow while you keep squirting around him, and he can’t handle it, how beautiful you are, how your pussy suctions around him like an air tight seal, how fucking soaked everything is, and with a few more thrusts, he’s cumming into the condom, curses that you don’t hear pouring from his lips under his breath.

Your orgasm must last for at least a few minutes because by the time he’s coming down from his own high, your body is still thrashing and contorting in the most gorgeous way. Hands opening and closing and back arching in waves, he can see the ecstasy crawling through every inch of your figure, making your limbs go rigid and out of control, and when he pulls out of you, it’s like he’s started the whole process all over. Jimin holds your thighs together as you ride out the last waves of your extended pleasure, rubbing his hands along your skin soothingly and whispering sweet nothings in his raspy voice. Your hands are in your hair as you start to come down and your chest heaves, breasts moving up and down with every inhale and exhale you take. When your eyes finally open, you’re met with your husband’s smiling ones, the lust drained from his face and replaced with pure amusement. Then, all at once, it’s like your body gives out on you and you become a lifeless noodle, limp and loose in the center of your bed. Your lover bends down to peck you gently, chuckling lightly at the fucked out expression on your face, and you can’t bring yourself to reprimand him for laughing at your blissed out state. He wipes your fallen tears with his thumbs, fingers tracing your cheekbones and the sides of your face.

“I love you so much, jagi.” He smiles, and you force your arm up to push his hair away from his eyes.

“I love you too, baby.” You manage to murmur as you let your eyes shut, energy completely spent. Jimin lets you lay there for a few minutes to regather your strength enough to sit up, and you whine when he speaks again.

“I need to change the sheets.” He whispers to you, rubbing your arm softly.

“I can’t move... and I have to pee.” You say with a little giggle, giving him puppy eyes. He sympathizes with you and picks you up from the bed to carry you to the bathroom where he helps you stand on your own so you can make it to the toilet.

“Go pee, I have the sheets.” Sending you a wink, Jimin walks out of the room to pull everything from the bed and gather them in his arms, first pulling on the loose shorts he finds discarded at the bottom of the bed before walking out into the hall toward the laundry room. If it hadn’t been for the tuft of hair he spots from the corner of his eye, Jimin wouldn’t have seen his meek daughter walk out into her bedroom doorway to peer at him with innocent eyes. He’s a little startled at her sudden appearance, but his face softens when he sees her eyes glazed over with tiredness, much like yours had been. “Hey, princess, what are you doing up?” He asks quietly, setting the blankets on the ground and guiding her back to her bed.

“I keep waking up.” She pouts, a small furrow between her eyebrows. In the darkness of her room, Jimin can see the stern features of her face despite the baby fat that rounds her cheeks. For a moment he’s worried that she might have heard something coming from your bedroom a few minutes ago, but her words dismiss this thought. “What happened to your covers?”

“I have to wash them.” Jimin tries to avoid giving any details, but she presses on.

“Why?”

Although it’s a single word, it causes him slight panic and he has to think quickly to respond, biting his lip in thought before a sly smirk catches onto his lips. “Because mommy wet the bed.” He can imagine the scowl that would be on your lips if you could hear him and it makes him smile playfully. “She’s not a big girl like you. Big girls don’t wet the bed, isn’t that right?” Min-Sun mirrors his smile with a pleased glint in her eye, thriving off the praise just like her dad.

“Yup. I used the toilet today.” To prove her point, she runs her hands over the blankets covering her mattress to show him that they were dry.

“I’m proud of you.” Jimin raises his hand for a hi-five and when she moves to hit it, he attacks her in a hug so he can lean forward to kiss her forehead. She squeals and he hushes her in fear of waking her brother. “Okay, what do I have to do to get you to fall asleep?”

“Mm,” Her button nose scrunches as she pretends to think, bringing her eyes back up to look at him. “I think I need another goodnight kiss.” He’s thankful she didn’t ask him to sing with her again because his voice is out of commission for the night and has entered its deep and hoarse state. Then he’s grinning, knowing full well that she loves receiving affection from him. He doesn’t know how much longer this will last before she gets “too big” to be a daddy’s girl, but he enjoys every second of it. Without hesitation, he moves closer and puckers his lips, cheeks puffed out cutely, and the little girl in front of him giggles as she gives him a peck and pokes his cheeks.

“Alright princess, go to sleep.” He pats her head as she snuggles into the sheets and he tucks her back in, kissing her forehead before getting up and making his way to her door.

“Goodnight, love you daddy.” Min-Sun whispers, watching him as he leaves.

“Love you too, Sunni.” Then he pulls her door until it’s cracked open a little and heads toward the laundry room to put your bedding into the washing machine, stopping in the kitchen to bring you a bottle of water. He peaks into Siwoo’s room to see the 2 year old sleeping in the same position he was in when Jimin first put him to bed. When he enters your bedroom again, you’re sprawled on the empty mattress in his shirt, eyes closed and on your way to Dreamland. He sighs as he gets new sheets from your bathroom closet, working around you to make the bed again, and you finally crawl under the blankets when he’s finally done.

“How did I get so lucky?” Your eyes sparkle as you cuddle into his chest, head resting on his shoulder.

“What do you mean?” He mumbles, allowing his own eyes to slide closed.

“How did I find a man who can make you squirt and also clean up afterwards; who also just so happens to make an amazing father. That’s rare.” You laugh, and he beams at your words.

“Shut up.” He can’t think of anything else to say and he blushes in embarrassment, although you can tell that he loves it. “It’s late, jagiya.”

“Mm, it is.” You snuggle into him deeper as he turns off the bedside lamp. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, baby.” He whispers, already falling into his slumber, and you take comfort in knowing that tomorrow is the weekend and you get to sleep in and recover from tonight.

[bushybeardedbear]

So Season 7 of Voltron Legendary Defender... Oh Boy...

I had so much spoiled before watching it. Thanks email alerts. So after seeing so much spoiled already, I started lurking in Tumblr again. By the time I’d actually got round to watching the season I felt like I’d already watched most of it and was primed with all the various thoughts and opinions people were sharing online. In the days beforehand I was up and down like a yoyo on a rollercoaster. Hopeful one day, thinking it’s not even worth watching the next. Hovering my finger over “delete” on both this blog and my fics at points... Even contemplating that right now if I’m honest. Maybe I should have been Bushy Bearded Drama-Llama?

In any case, having finally sat down with rock bottom, possibly even sub zero expectations and watched, here are my thoughts now season seven is over... Well... In short, I think it suffers a lot from being so rushed. And before you say it, no, going in with low expectations wasn’t a self fulfilling prophecy. Psychologically speaking the opposite is true. If we go into something with low expectations, we tend to have a better opinion overall than we would have if we went in with sky high expectations. And whilst it may seem like I hated it so far...? Well, no. I didn’t hate it. There were some parts that didn’t gel with me, but to say I hated it would be an insult to everyone involved. But that doesn’t make it free from criticism. If you care what this bear’s about to growl about, strap in, it’s not a short one. Not kidding. This is long. But I guess I needed to get my feelings down and hopefully have someone patient enough to read it and see that I’m not completely insane. And, thought I shouldn’t have to say this... None of this comes from a place of hate. No, I don’t think regardless of how you feel about this season that hatred to the creators is ever acceptable. If you feel you must, then voice your grievances calmly, rationally, but the second you resort to hate you have already lost. Though what I would suggest is to just accept this season as it is and move on.  Moving on is partly why I’m compelled to write this post. Maybe if you are going to read this monster, bring some caramel to counteract the salt...

The Season Itself

So within the first episode, I’m already full of mixed emotions. Yes, the Plance moment was great. Yes, the dynamic between Hunk and Romelle was cool. Coran was great, supportive Crolia, the none too subtle dig at Prometheus as Lance and Pidge ran from the grass... (Don’t think we didn’t spot that you writer rascals! Run at an angle!) I remain in Sheith Limbo trying to reconcile they met when Keith was literally a child and relationships can grow and develop with a worried dash of will people misinterpret this as grooming if they got together...? But a lot of it was by the by. Honey I Shrunk The Paladins was a great fun start to the series interspersed with great emotional character building for Shiro and Keith. It fleshed them both out in ways I wish we’d seen sooner and as others have pointed out drastically reframes a lot of the protective over Shiro moments in the context of his degenerative disease. And yet, it doesn’t make Shiro a victim, nor Keith a white knight, it keeps them both flawed yet strong heroes. Tiny cute paladins, Lance’s cargo pilot reference. As always the design of the planets is gorgeous. Lance sharpshooting. The attention to detail with little things like in scale surface tension! I can’t overstate how much time, effort and thought has gone into this! The narrative parallels of the speeder bikes. Honestly, there is SO much to unpack in just one episode that could easily be overlooked as silly and/or filler. But it’s so much. Keith’s growth is such fun to watch, confirmation of certain fan theories is great yet so sad at the same time...

It allowed Romelle to actually have a character that wasn’t just “Lotor Plot Delivery Service” and her interactions with Hunk were pretty adorable. “Are all ancient Alteans like this?” Was a great subtle piece of world building as well. And yeah, pretty sure I saw @hailqiqi mention this already, but Hunk and Romelle are so the audience surrogates. The one and only thing that bugged me, given the fact that so much of Voltron has had to be rushed or cut for time... Did we really need the flashbacks in this episode shown twice back in the quantum abyss episode...? Couldn’t that time in the QA been used for something else...? But that’s a very minor gripe. Overall, I massively enjoyed this episode but I’m still nervous given the priming from the fandom going forward... But that last hug? Saving Shiro with his voice / quintessence maybe?

The Road home starts off well, though the idea that still nobody knows or comments on Katie’s name being such did disappoint me a little... The space road trip starting up was so cute, even if Lance’s logic of passengers is lost on me...aside from maybe cutting Pidge some slack. Let me Headcanon that little touch of unconscious favouritism, yeah? Though his taking charge in the battle here, being the right hand man, was really nice to see here. From the audience perspective, he may be stating the obvious, but in canon, that’s what we call battlefield awareness. Imagine season 1 Lance doing this? Nah. Buthe’s had no growth, so people say... “It’s super dangerous, it’s perfect!” Wonderful! And Keith’s leadership! Great stuff. (Almost) Everyone getting a chance to shine in the cave combat was also awesome. Full on frenetic energy, a little flourish of comedy from time to time, great characterisation, calm before the storm leading to a sudden yet satisfying cliffhanger? Full on Voltron to a T.

"I will help you look for that passage.” Is a cute Plance moment that others are overlooking I feel. Coran’s memoirs are something I would personally read the hell out of. I don’t know about the rest of you. But seeing the entire saga retold through Coran’s eyes...? I’d love to see it. I’m also kinda happy to know how “Acxa” is pronounced! The slow reveal of the time skip up until the reveal at the end is nice, though honestly not as mysterious as the show seemed to think it was. Maybe it was just that I got spoiled? Evil power couple were great as well and it was nice to see the ice pop mystery solved. A return of Altean shapeshifting was nice to see. “Sweet on that one with the flippity hair” and “your favourite paladin” “never wanted to kill him” “true love”? Seems a little out of left field. Unexpected? Maybe not, just rushed? Axca and Keith seemed a little sudden. To me felt like they just needed to pair a spare and keep Kieth and Allura apart. Which, I get into later. Keith being able to transport his bayard seems...fine...? Why are people complaining about this? Paladins summon their bayarads all the time. He just did it from a few extra feet...?  I do wish Coran had a chance to play to his strengths though. Aside from his courage. He has brains and feels like he needs to use them more or be written in scenarios where he can use them. The three year time skip, when revealed, seems like it was just a convenient way to avoid the immediate aftermath of Lotor losing the throne. It works in that regard I suppose. But by the end of this episode I wasn’t really sold on it.

Nice new haircut though Axca. Really sells the redeemed rebel former baddie archetype. And thank goodness for your exposition. Tell don’t show, am I right? One of the ways we can see the show was rushed I feel. Though again, maybe just being picky...

The Game Show Episode. I was expecting this later in the season honestly. It was good for comic relief I guess, so it served it’s purpose. Seeing the first family of the Galra along for some comedy was great if only for Neil Kaplan having such fun. But it felt like it was missing something. I can’t quite put my finger on what. It was nice to get insight into how the Paladins feel about each other but again, it felt like a way to get those ideas and characterisations out into the open without having to, y’know, show them in natural narrative progression. It’s probably the weakest of the comedy episodes so far and it felt a little like it was all just happening until it eventually stopped. It didn’t feel like the little hints of “tv flickering” implying something artificial were necessary. In fact, as soon as I saw the concept I thought “so, all powerful being captures them for reasons?” and that’s pretty much what we got. It was...ok. Just ok. And y’know what...? After seven seasons, maybe we do need to drop the “Lance is the dumb one” joke? I mean, yes, he’s not as smart as the rest of the team. No doubt. But if he’d been given a chance to shine on his own terms, with his own abilities, if they’d subverted the goofball archetype rather than doubling down on it I think this would have made for a more interesting episode. Just because it’s comedy doesn’t mean it doesn’t have to be compelling. The Voltron Show for instance literally dealt with Coran pushing himself so hard to help the Paladins that he was willing to resort to what was essentially a mind altering drug and forcing himself to kick the habit. Where was the actual plot in this episode? Funny moments need a framework and this kinda lacked a framework in my opinion.

Really episode 5? A Kobayashi Maru scenario...? Indeed, running a simulation when the lions are running on fumes...? Ok, you do you I guess... Little self referential humour from Coran was nice, but a little on the nose. And honestly, I think these episodes are starting to feel like, I dunno, filler material? Like, nothing is really being furthered in terms of the massive plots they still need to deal with. Did the journey back to Earth really need to take so many episodes, or could these have been more efficiently used to deal with countless plot threads that remain unresolved...? It’s a strange thing to be feeling at this stage, but maybe there’s more to come...?  And...it felt like another clip show filling out the backstory of the three years of Voltron being missing... Maybe it’s just me, but if you have written yourself into a scenario where the only way out is repeated massive exposition dumps... Maybe you need to rethink your story just a touch...? The fact it was also told from an unreliable narrator also means it wasn’t just exposition...it was literally pointless exposition that was likely mostly a combination of lies and half truths. And I’m sorry but, were people really clamouring for a rematch between Keith and “That One Nameless Druid...?” Really? You won’t hear me denying it was cool fight scene, yes indeed, but the set up wasn’t exactly great in my opinion.  As for how Keith managed to win? Ok, sure, I guess summoning the Bayard from a few feet was a build up to something else, something even more special that may or may not get resolved this season. I’m writing these as I go. Or will it be one more plot point that will need to be resolved in the next season with limited time and episodes to do so? Keith and Krolia’s goodbye was sad. I do hope for a reunion, but honestly don’t expect it. I imagine she’ll die off screen for shock value. Sadly, I already know the fate of Altean colony and why Haggar has forsaken her druids, so, no real hook for me there. 

So the halfish way point. Lost in space, desperately trying to force plance out of every interaction... And ultimately, just getting bored. I mean, yes, I get that they need to reconnect with each other... But there are countless ways it could have been resolved other than this. It didn’t really feel like there was need for this particular journey into the darkest cave. It also feels a little forced that after saving countless realities by working together, they now all get forced apart...? Hunk saving the day, saving the team, great. Really wonderful stuff. He’s been overlooked for so long. But the idea that they needed to become friends again...? To reconnect...again...? I don’t know that it felt necessary. If after all these years, literal years together there isn’t already a profound connection...? I just can’t really buy that. And again, it felt like a filler episode. And Hunk Priming the audience for the concept of passing the torch? Yeah, that didn’t go unseen.  Maybe it’s just me, but after six episodes where it was already established that they can travel at crazy speeds to be told “yeah no, it’s not that the lions were drained, it’s just these people who’ve literally saved the universe together aren’t quite best friends enough...”? That just feels silly.  And yes, I know “silly” is relative when we’re talking about a powerful group of robot magical cat things that are powered by love and freindship. BUT what I feel was silly was the idea that their friendship was strained at all. It felt as though the season wanted there to be this divide between them but...the comedy episode just a little while ago established they’re all willing to sacrifice themselves for each other.... 

That’s just....fundamentally contradictory. Are you guys barely even connected as friends or are you willing to die for each other? You can’t be both... It makes the whole “struggle” of getting back to Earth feel false because it’s predicated on the assumption that they’re a fractured team this episode yet there’s been literally no sign of that until now... Still, as always, the visuals were cool. The Space Angler Fish is a great concept. The music was great. The voice acting was on point. Everything was so SO good except...the writing... The writing in this particular episode in the context of everything preceding it just felt... Bad. Rushed. Forced. Contradictory. Drama for the sake of drama. Artificial... What’s going on guys...?

So a multiparter? Let’s see. Ok. Seeing how awesome Sam Holt is, fine. Seeing him reunite with Colleen. Also fine and dandy and cool. And it tugged at the heart strings... But do we really need him to literally tell us everything we already know in a power point presentation...? The audience doesn’t need to be caught up on the events.We don’t need a massive chunk of the episode’s run time devoted to playing catch up. We have the time for this, but apparently - according to the spoilers - we don’t have time to establish that Allura is getting over Lotor and Falling for Lance...? Not even a throw away line, or a glance, or a suggestion of that fact that needs establishing after her season six reaction to the mice... But we do have time for the events of the show to be repeated to us...? What!? I am literally bewildered at this choice. Flabbergasted. Gobsmacked.

The worst thing about this so far, is that under all the EXPOSITION there’s a great story that wants too be told. I think we’re only seeing fragments of that story. Sam and Coleen struggling to find their children again and fighting against political nonsense. But real talk... This was all stuff that could have done just fine implied. The Paladins arrive on Earth, they see the new ships piloted by their inevitable replacements in the new series they seem to want to make, Lance asks, “What are those?” Sam responds, “A fusion of Galra, Altean and Olkari tech. The culmination of months of Earth’s greatest minds working together. It was a struggle, but we got them made in the end...” BOOM. Done. Efficient use of what is obviously painfully limited time. Did we NEED the power point, the montages, the backdoor pilot for the new team...? Did we - good as they were - even need the Holt Family suffering...? Couldn’t Coleen’s transmission to everyone on Earth have been enough to get the point across that they’re awesome...? In my opinion, we didn’t need this. Not like this at least. It could have been done so much more efficiently, so much less padding. But we did get to see snippets of the messages back home. That was nice. But it doesn’t change the fact that the majority of the first episode felt really... Unnecessary. But that’s just how I feel after part one... So, the first half of the second episode? Superb. Can’t fault it, good heroic stuff, Sam stepping up. A realistic invasion of Earth, ie, we lose that’s rare to see in most media. Can’t fault it. Then the second half kicks in. The four archetypes we’ve been barely introduced to, go on a mission that narratively speaking is utterly unnecessary. I know that the Atlas gets built thanks to spoilers. But even if I didn’t, what function does this part serve? We may not be able to build a thing. Later on, that thing will be built. Do we need to into the minutiae of how the supplies were gathered...? Well, I suppose we do. But not because of how it serves the overall plot of Voltron Legendary Defender, but how it sells these new kids to us for the new series they obviously assume they’re making. But if it wasn’t for that? 

Then it defaults to more exposition... More information that could have been relayed to the audience in much more engaging ways.

This could have been, rather than a messy and kinda redundant two part episode with occasional brilliance, it could have been trimmed down to a truly brilliant single part. I’m not invested in these new characters. Let me get there or not when I see them in their own show. And if they’re literally just there as homage to the sequel series from the 80′s...then they don’t need this much focus. The actual paladins and their interpersonal dynamics do. Rift creatures do. Lotor’s fate does. Why are we wasting the limited time that remains on this unless it’s a back door pilot? Why should the current series suffer just to promote the next one...? It’s just exhausting and disappointing. By the end I was agreeing with Keith. What are we waiting for...? The continuation of the series we came here for. What kept us waiting was either an advert for the next series or a massive misstep in pacing.

And now, finally back to the real story and after two episodes establishing that Earth is screwed over, Earth can barely contact other parts of itself, Earth is on the brink of collapse, Earth is holding on by a thread... In the first scene we have Earth, somehow, triangulating a jamming signal into the outer edges of the solar system and remaining undetected as they do so...? Even assuming they are “just” sending commands to satellites and installations elsewhere in the solar system, The Galra would detect that command signal. And given how much we’ve had it stated, overstated, hammered home that Earth is in such bad shape...that feels like a real ass pull. 

I am being nitpicky, yes, but this is the second time this has happened on such a large and frankly contradictory scale. So I’m calling it out again. First The Paladins are willing to die for each other, or at least be trapped for eternity, then they are barely friends. Then, Earth can barely contact it’s own countries, but sending an undetectable command signal to at least three satellites in the solar system is fine...? Why not just have Voltron get the signal sooner!? Why not have Pidge send a jamming signal...?

And in terms of introductions to the new team? What we got after the drone attack? Perfect. It didn’t need to be an entire episode of establishing them because it isn’t their story. But the Paladins meeting their families? The reconciliation with Iverson? Shiro grieving for Adam. Where was all this before now? Why hasn’t our focus been where it belongs. On the Paladins? Now, I don’t really want to get into the whole debate about unfair representation of LGBT characters. I can see both sides of the argument as being valid. Shiro remains a strong canonically gay character even if the man he once loved is gone. Adam, though dead, is not immune to tragedy just for being gay. What we did see though was a man openly crying for his lost love. There’s plenty to be critical of the series for. But personally, I don’t feel the treatment of Adam and Shiro is “queerbaiting” so much as it is a couple unfairly separated by the horrors of war. A canonically and unambiguously gay couple. That’s representation. Just it may not be precisely what everyone wanted. But don’t let me stop you writing out impassioned critiques, don’t let me stop you airing and venting your grievances. I’m doing that right now, aren’t I? Just please please please don’t send any more hatred at the creators...

Now, this whole section of the Altean enhanced tech...? Why is this being reiterated again? This could stand on it’s own as an introduction to the concept of Earth meets Alien tech. Why are we being shown the same things twice, first in the two parter in depth and again now...? Why do this when there is so much else that needs addressing in ever dwindling episodes...? Though aside from that, Hunk and Keith connecting is great. Hunk finally having a dedicated arc to save his family also great. Hunk being the outsider to the Garrison Trio dynamic and spending time with Keith again? Also great, wonderful even. So where was all this previously...? But even this, even this has to be if not overshadowed then frankly hijacked by the new characters they want to sell to us. It’s getting tiresome. I don’t want Hunk’s moments overshadowed, his spotlight taken... But damn, if he doesn’t still stand proud regardless. This is the Voltron I’ve been missing for most of the season.

I was going to post the image of him crying, but couldn’t do it... So here, Happier Hunk.

Don’t know how I feel about Hover Hand. I get they’re setting it up for the final conflict with Sendak, so that Shiro will be his literal and visual antithesis...but...hover hand looks kinda goofy. And being the counterpoint to your nemesis doesn’t need to be so literal all the time. And again, the new characters forcing their way into the story with a half baked excuse to sell you them. I think from now on I’m just going to comment when Team Replacements don’t force themselves in...Even the fact one of them was Veronica felt a little frustrating, because Lance’s family dynamic with her is overshadowed in my opinion by her being part of the new forced team of replacements. Allura giving up her crystal tiara for Shiro was a nice moment. 

Okay, now imagine the whole infiltration section without Team Replacements. Just the Paladins, doing their thing. Let’s assume their resident tech genius has a way to stop the sentry drones sending out distress calls. 

What did they contribute other than a few quips? Are we really expected to believe our paladins, the protagonists of the story need these people...? No. It was just written that way to force the new guys in. What we need to wonder is why and the answer is most likely... Back Door Pilot. Over multiple episodes. That undermined the series I was already watching. And finally, despite it being the supposed new canon ship in town, we see our first indication that Lance and Allura might be interested. Or do we? No, we just see Lance checking her out and being teased. Then immediately afterwards we see Pidge implementing Lance style silliness and even a Lance style distraction with her own spin on it. But no, let’s focus on the blushing and the eyeballing. I’m not salty. I’m dead sea levels of salty. But I’ll put that aside for now... And roll my eyes at the Wilhelm scream... Ok, so I was all ready to be excited about the plan, but then the super forced Allurance twin blush happened. Was it...was it really supposed to hit home when there was no build up to it this season...? Or was checking her out through the sniper sights enough to replace any hint of them coming closer or Allura setting aside Lotor...? Sure, she’s bound to do it in time, but all I’d want is something to suggest as much on screen. Just a throw away line or two... Is that so much? Cut a scene or two with the Replacements and give us more Paladins.

As the paladins all fly to their thematically and elementally appropriate battlegrounds, I want to agree with some posts I’ve seen arguing that Pidge doesn’t just look concerned, or in the zone as the other paladins do. For at least one shot she looks sad. Troubled. Maybe I’m reaching. Probably reaching. Almost certainly reaching given the almost immediate Allura calling to Lance moment... The sequence of connecting with the lions though? And Lance protecting Veronica? Pretty much resigned to die before being saved by red...? Yeah, heavy and cool stuff.

But Admiral Asshole somehow getting in touch with Sendak? Betraying the entire planet? No. Just no. She can be a thorn in their side and an antagonist without being so utterly stupid. At this point she’s gone from concerned alternative view but essentially a good person trying to save the planet in her own way, to being pantomime levels of stupid. What a daft choice. What a needless choice. You know what would have worked better...? Sendak baiting the Paladins. It would play into his military genius archetype. He didn’t need intel from Admiral Asshole if the entire purpose of the planet killers was just bait for the paladins... We didn’t need admiral asshole to make a faustian pact with the people responsible for planetary genocide. Some of the choices this season just bewilder me. 

Well, at least no combining sequence before the Big Zapper Cannons hit. That’s something. I guess they can occasionally cut unnecessary scenes for time. 

The Paladins are asleep and it’s time for the replacement team to take centre stage again. Even with their own repeated launch sequence animation. Guess they can waste time after all. Admiral Asshole...

...yeah. Who would have thought that the mass murdering alien wasn’t to be trusted...? Except anyone written with an ounce of sense. I won’t deny, I completely and utterly lost interest during the Team Replacements moments. If you like them? Great. They were kinda written to be made valid off the back of the existing series so, I guess it worked for some, just not for me. I might even have been more keen on them myself ha they been secondary characters. But this season, they have so far felt like the focus. Yet also, they felt so undeveloped that they were like filler. They took up far too much focus that should have been on the Paladins. The characters I’ve been watching for six previous seasons. The characters I’m invested in. Even the launch of the Atlas - is it supposed to be a reference to The Gotengo in ship mode? - being powered by the Castle Crystal felt like a passing of the torch moment. There’s still a season left guys, can we wait until after this series ends maybe...?

Can we do The Paladins justice in their own series and make them the focus in their own series? Can we do the replacement team justice by making them the focus of their own series...? No? We’re going to try to do both at once and ultimately make both the worse off for it? Great, ok. Seems like a plan... SIGH

Soul-riding the lions? Now that’s a cool extension of the lore. That’s a cool new addition. That’s building more upon and actually watching Voltron again. Have I mentioned that it sometimes feels like I’m not watching Voltron any longer this season? Because, yeah, that. But during the parts where I was watching Voltron, it was great. Shame I couldn’t care more about Admiral Asshole’s sacrifice. They went beyond the pale with her outright betraying Earth. Noble sacrifice for an act of stupidity was just...meh. Didn’t feel like she’d be any additional motivation for the Paladins that earth already was. 

But damn does Shiro look good as the captain of a starship. Kudos where it’s due. The artists did a damn good job.

So, the final episodes... Great set up for a final confrontation. Yet within the first half of the first episode. Oh no. Voltron has been pinned. Oh no. The Atlas can’t do stuff. What will we do? Oh gosh I hope the new team of plucky do-gooders can save the day. Whatever would we do without them? I hope we can buy their toys soon. Stop it. Why won’t they just stop it...? Stop making them such a major focus. This isn’t their show...or yeah, maybe it is now. Maybe the Paladins are the side characters now? Sometimes it feels that way. They spent a lot of time out of commission, damaged, pinned or otherwise unable to act except in montages.

“Lance, I’m coming to help!” Yes, because Allura is just there to support and look shyly away from lion glances. Sigh. Can we have Allura who didn’t need to be defined by a love interest back please?

Then again, Shiro had some time to shine which was really appreciated. The Sendak/Shiro fight was...ok? I mean, it had a lot to live up to after the Kuron / Keith fight. And it just fell short in my opinion. And much as Keith saving Shiro is kinda the default... Given how they were building Shiro up to be the anti-Sendak, it felt like the final blow was robbed from Shiro just a little.

Then of course, we get The New Robeast. More powerful than anything they’ve dealt with before and utterly unannounced. Ok. Well at least they didn’t just go to sleep for a bit and let the new guys do everything. But they still found a way to force them in even now. Wouldn’t have shocked me at this point though if the new group had just beaten the robeast. The twin swords are cool, but sadly a Plance moment it wasn’t. Maybe it would have been in old Voltron. Formed by a stronger bond between the two. But not so much now. Just a thing that happens. Like Pidge’s new gun thing. Thing that happens. No build to it really, just happens. No lesson, no moment of clarity, no greater connection, just, happens. How does the Atlas have back up generators that can make it functional when it’s already been established the only thing that can power it is the castle crystal? It was a pretty big plot point. Until it was just forgotten about. The Atlas mech formed by Altean magic was pretty cool. Shiro has a lot of moments with Allura leading to it as well. More than she had with Lance even. I’ll come back to that. Fake out Pala-deaths was cheap. And if they only reason they put the focus on the new guys was for that fake out...? Screw that. What a waste.

Seeing Hunk and Shay reunited was nice but too brief. Nice to be wrong about Krolia, but I’m not expecting she’ll last the next season. Shock factor you see. Watching Earth change and develop in flash forwards and montage now makes me wonder why that couldn’t have happened earlier. And my answer is, probably to sell the new team. And that sucks. I’m not really looking forward to another season of the Paladins taking the back seat. I do kind of expect it though. In fact, I expect it will only get worse.

And of course, now in a mere 13 episodes we have to wrap up Lotor, Haggar, the rift creatures, any and all ships, don’t forget set up the new team, because I think there were a few subtle hints there’s a new team they want us to care about. How about that new team guys? New team! And do all that without it feeling like a giant rushed mess. Heh. Won’t hold my breath.

Overall? Season Seven as others have said for many reasons, is Voltron Legendary Disappointment. Now to be fair, the art, the music, the animation, the voice acting - even given some guff lines, kudos to Josh Keaton for making “Their very home” not sound stupid... All of that was great. All of those staff members involved? A plus, amazing. But the writing...? Oh my good gravy the writing is all over the damn place. Yes, I just write silly fanfics and they’re professionals so what do I know? Their paycheck invalidates my opinion, right? But to be frank some of the mistakes and I do mean mistakes are elementary continuity gaffs. Redundancy. Repetition. Over reliance on exposition. I mean, if this is considered professional then standards have dropped...  That’s not to say there weren’t moments of great writing. Moments where it felt like I was actually watching Voltron again rather than an advert for the new guys. But for the most part...? It was odd choice after odd choice. Daft move after daft move. Mess after mess. Forced and contrived plot point after forced and contrived plot point and if I was judging the series solely on the writing... I’d ask why nobody proofread the first draft.

But to literally everyone else involved in the show from the voice actors to the background artists to the intern fetching coffee...? You all did an amazing job with the mess you were given.

The Obligatory Over Long Shipping Bit

It’s not all about the ships, but... To some extent, it kinda is a little. Maybe even a very BIG little... At it’s most basic, a story, any narrative, has three parts.

The Beginning: The Status Quo, the ordinary world.

The Middle: A Challenge To The Status Quo, conflict, introduction of the special world.

The End: A New Status Quo, conflict resolved, special and ordinary world merge or become aligned to create a new standard.

And ships? Well, they’re an aspect of both the conflict in the middle and the New Status Quo at the end. Ships matter. The connection we feel to two or more characters and the connections they gain with each other? They matter. They are the story. So when I bang on about ships beneath, keep that in mind. Keep in mind that watching characters grow and grow closer is an integral part of narrative, romantic, platonic, whatever. Watching dynamics develop and shift between characters matters. That includes ships. And, I’m not calling the show bad because ships. The show itself is flawed, but overall still good. still very good in fact. All I want to do here is share my disappointment and frankly my confusion at the way that all the ships seem to be playing out right now.

But to start... Allurance. 

Let me say, emphatically state, that if you enjoy this ship I have no beef with you. I am not against you enjoying it. I am not trying to tell you you’re wrong. If you and I having different opinions on this is enough for you to unfollow me, then fair enough, goodbye and have fun elsewhere, no hard feelings. However, my opinion remains as it has done from the start. Whilst this could have been a solid canonical ship if things had been written differently, as it stands... I can’t support it and feel it’s the worst outcome for these two characters.

Now, I’ve seen the argument that “maybe it all happens off screen” and that I addressed in a post here. The long and the short of it, I want to see characters develop on screen rather than off screen. That is literally what I watch for. The On Screen Developments. Not off screen assumptions. On screen this season, Allura had more bonding moments with Shiro than with her supposed new love interest. Does that make sense to you? Because it doesn’t to me. Then there’s the argument that Lance’s feelings have grown and matured and changed. But honestly, on some level, if Allurance becomes canon, it feels like they haven’t. Let’s go through it on a very basic level.

Allura and Lance meet, he hits on her. - Lance wants to be with her. They work together. He continues to hit on her. - Lance wants to be with her. They keep working together. He hits on her and is jealous and possessive of anyone who even comes near her.  - Lance wants to be with her. Lance tones it down a little. Starts to be supportive. You’re the heart of Voltron etc. - Lance wants to be with her. Enter Lotor. Lance remains jealous and possessive, but plays it off to Allura as a joke. “You need a third wheel?” But to everyone else, including the mice, he makes it very very clear this makes him unhappy. - Lance wants to be with her. He makes that speech to the mice about wanting to be a better person, how he’s unworthy etc. etc. etc. - Lance wants to be with her. Allura finds out about this, seems less than pleased. - Lance wants to be with her. Allura breaks up with Lotor after finding out the man who changed her life is a genocidal space vampire. - Lance wants to be with her. Lance does the supportive hug scene. - Lance wants to be with her. Some stuff off screen presumably and Allura is suddenly over it. - Lance wants to be with her. Dual blushing scene, soft gazes lion scene etc. - Lance wants to be with her and suddenly Allura wants the same thing.

Now, to me at least, I never felt like Lance’s feelings for Allura changed. What changed were his tactics in pursuing that desire. The ultimate ulterior motive of wanting to be with her at no point altered. To me, that severely undermines his and Allura’s growth together. It re-frames the supportive friend hug in season six into the only possible on screen moment that she fell for him and to me that makes Allura seem weak willed, flighty and frankly weak as a character to be rushed into needing a new man so soon after Lotor. It makes Allura into the opposite of what she has been all along. It reframes Lance as being a creep who’s not being entirely honest and is just hanging on to get some Altean Action. It’s unwittingly supportive of the concept in toxic masculinity of No Doesn’t Mean No and I think that’s a dangerous message to be sending these days. We should know better. No means No, it does not and should not mean pursue them like an object you want to possess. In reality, that attitude being normalised can lead to obvious and dangerous extremes. In a story, the pursued partner loses their dramatic agency and is reduced to a prize or else wants to be possessed and is thus framed as less capable. I think the idea of Lance and Allura shifting their dynamic to “genuine romance” between  seasons and off screen is cheap. Overall, I feel it devalues both of them rather than enriching them as a ship and an end to two character arcs should. Maybe, like resurrecting Shiro / Kuron early being down to executive meddling, the same is true here? Maybe the plan was for Lance to break the mould of the stereotypical nice guy waiting in the wings? Maybe Lotor being bad was also executive meddling? Or maybe that’s just the scapegoat for the roads we missed out on? The potential lost...

Now, the weird thing is, I’ve seen the argument made that you wouldn’t say that about allurance if allura was a guy. Well...yeah I would. Because if nothing changed except Allura’s sex and/or gender but the events were otherwise identical then it would have exactly the same narrative issues. It would still be undermining both character’s growth and arcs. Chasing someone who isn’t interested is still toxic behaviour regardless of who does it to whom. But if you want to assume that I’m just saying this “because Allura’s a woman” then I guess I can’t stop you, but I hope you take my honest statement that it’s not the case as far as I’m concerned.  On the other side of this argument of well if x was y you wouldn’t z, well, that’s just you creating and answering a hypothetical question. Let’s say someone shipped, I dunno Keith and Cosmo. And the defence was “well you wouldn’t call it bestiality if cosmo was human.” And yeah, I suppose if something was changed so drastically there wouldn’t be a problem. But Cosmo is a wolf in Canon. And Allura is a woman in Canon. Maybe nobody would be saying Allurance has problematic elements if Allura was male or maybe the would. I feel that I certainly would see the issue regardless. But that argument is purely hypothetical and anyone who makes it has no way of proving it or supporting it.

There is however another issue in Canon that nobody seems willing to address. Alteans live for centuries. Centuries versus decades of lifespan. That kind of relationship will have the functionally immortal one watching the person they love ROT before their eyes. It will have them mourning their true love for CENTURIES or else callously moving on. It will, if they have or adopt kids, leave the functionally immortal one, watching their own descendants die. The functionally immortal partner will see their love reflected in their descendants eyes and faces. Forced to relive their loss generation after generation. I don’t want to contemplate that end for characters I care about. But that’s what would happen between Lance and Allura. I don’t want to think of Allura watching generations of hers and Lance’s kids and great grand kids dying like flies and thinking of her reliving that loss every hundred years or so as their next batch of descendants die in front of her. Maybe you see it as romantic? I see it as horrifying. And if the issue of Human vs. Altean ages is never dealt with on screen, I’ll assume the creators either didn’t think about it or assumed the audience wouldn’t care. Well I’m sorry, but you made characters that we love, they are part of a lore that we paid attention to. We do care and it does matter.

What I will admit is that maybe, just maybe the way I’m interpreting things isn’t what the creators intended. As much as I am a proponent of Death of the Author, I won’t disregard authorial intent. To those of you who don’t know, Death of the Author essentially states that; all media is a collaborative experience between audience and creators. That no one interpretation of a text is more valid than another. That interpretations can shift and change based on the time and context through which the text is viewed. That interpretations the author never intended are valid. Now, a lot of people seem to have this idea that “Death of The Author” means audience interpretation matters more than that of the author and completely overlook the idea of shared meaning and no one true interpretation. I’m coming at this from the point of view not that the audience owns the text but that we all, audience and author, equally share it and it’s infinite valid interpretations.

So that said, the authorial intent may well be that Lance and Allura’s relationship isn’t and was never meant to be a creepy guy being persistent. That it wasn’t meant to suggest that despite being rebuffed, he should carry on chasing. Maybe it wasn’t meant to seem like he was dishonest, swooping in after a break up to pick up the pieces. Maybe we’re supposed to ignore the ulterior motive to get into her pants that never changed from season one episode one? It may well be their intent was to show a relationship developing healthily and organically but they were rushed and it ended up feeling incomplete? But, that less positive interpretation is just not how it comes across to me and many others. Intent or not, we can only interpret what we see. We don’t hate the idea of these two characters being happy, we just feel like the way it’s portrayed so far doesn’t seem strong enough or doesn’t make it explicit enough that there has been sufficient growth and change on screen to really make us buy it. You may disagree. That’s perfectly valid. The authors may disagree. That’s perfectly valid. I disagree with those opinions and that too is perfectly valid. I don’t hate any of you for feeling the way you do or for reading the text the way you do. Everyone interprets media differently. Please do me the same courtesy and don’t hate me for my interpretation. We can both make valid points yet still disagree. There is not one true and absolute interpretation.

I suppose that leads me here. At this point, given the way that almost every ship possible has been hinted, teased, alluded to or given time onscreen... I wouldn’t be shocked if there aren’t any canonical ships by the end. Just hints. Forever hints. Because if nothing else, the Allurance shippers don’t deserve to be baited and switched. Even if I disagree with the way it’s been portrayed, even if I feel it was rushed and needed time on screen to develop, those shippers deserve a decent payoff if the show is going to tease it so damn hard and so damn obviously. The Sheith shippers have had plenty of hints as well. Kallura looks on the cards half the time. Hunay, Hunelle, Hidge/Punk all got hints at the possibility this season. Keith and Acxa, I was thinking they’d pull that as soon as Keith found her in the weblum. Plance, I may or may not have strong feelings about. Who can say? 

But given that the series so far has given so many contradictory hints, even assuming the caveat of multiple interpretations, how could anyone be happy by the end? I mean, if Plance happens and I still believe it makes the most sense for Lance and Pidge’s journeys and character arcs... Well what about the Allura / Lance dual blush moment...? The Allurance fans will ask that and rightly so. Why even include that if it isn’t going to go anywhere...? Chekov’s Gun. I can’t even deny myself that if the plan really was for Lance to move on, this would have been the season to explore that to make it feel organic. If Lance ends up moving on in the next season, then that will suddenly feel forced as well. The amount of ship baiting going on is a little frustrating. I can’t see how it could end in a satisfying way for every baited ship. So, maybe they’re just going to have nobody end up with anybody canonically? At this stage, part of me would rather have that than have my OTP confirmed in canon. Because if what has happened so far is anything to go by... I’m just going to be disappointed at it feeling rushed and artificial. Unearned and pulled out of left field at the last second. With all the build up to Allurance, whether I think it hit the mark or not, it feel like it would be cheap and rushed to have him suddenly move on in the next and last season. Plance might end up feeling not organically developed, just, info dumped into existence for time constraints. I’ve been seeing hints between Lance and Pidge since episode one. Waiting for them to change their dynamic for all that time and seeing hint after subtle hint, seeing how perfectly their two stories align. They literally and narratively complete one another. And yet, if it comes down to it that one line or one half baked scene or even one future still image in a montage at the end of the series, is the confirmation of them hooking up...? Then even I won’t feel like my ship was worth coming true in canon. I’d rather have it never come true than have it come true as badly, as forced, as potentially interpreted as toxic, as contrary to the narrative and as ultimately unsatisfying as Allurance seems to be right now. I have no issue with Allurance being the end game. I would just have wanted to see it done justice and right now... It just isn’t. Don’t agree? Ok, well...

Compare and contrast... One person in this series, Allura creates - using Alchemy - a means to be whole again. A weapon capable of overcoming a nemesis in visual dramatic parallel. Having learned Alchemy through tainted means from her Evil Ex, she’s now able to put it to physical tangible use for a new person. Not only that but she sacrifices her crown, her symbol of office, one of her last remnants of her dead home world in order to make that creation whole. She has shown this person nothing but respect and kindness otherwise.  Another person she barely interacted with aside from telling him to shut up then in the space of one episode they’re all blushy because reasons.

I’m being a little facetious, but let’s be honest.... What this shows is that Allura literally has a more meaningful and narratively significant set of interactions with SHIRO than she does with Lance this Season.  Shiro’s arm represents her turning the bad experience with Lotor to good. Her giving up her symbol of Altean Royalty shows she’s willing to sacrifice anything for him. And through that bond, she grants him the power to turn the Atlas into a giant robot. Where she created the Sincline out of a dishonest partnership, the Altas-Mecha is formed by honest...well, it looks like LOVE to me. Now I’m not saying I ship them. But if you showed me this season out of context with any of the rest of Voltron, I would be shipping Shiro with Allura even though he’s Gay. Because frankly, in the story told on screen this season that actually makes way more sense than shipping her with Lance. Even out of context, even assuming no Lotor, no previous issues, Lance and Allura being hinted just seems...out of nowhere this season.

Maybe I should just wait for the sequel series where everyone ends up with total randoms off screen that nobody is happy with? Maybe the ships that make the most sense and have been hinted at the most will be forgotten or end up with off screen unhappy marriages as some vague and irksome attempt at being “mature”. Yes, I’m still salty about Toph/Sokka as well as Kataang, what of it? Sometimes you just want the characters you have grown to love and adore to have a happy ending together. Is that too much to ask...?

So, season 8 predictions...?

After a heartwarming episode that teases Coranecker, Lotor will finally get his redemption arc. And by arc I mean, episode. There will be an entire episode devoted to info dumping how he wasn’t really a space vampire the whole time and Romelle got the wrong end of the stick. This episode will tease Lotura again as well as hinting at Hungar, Huntor, Hunlia and Huray, the Polyship of Hunk Coran and Shay. Haggar, having now established herself as the dark queen of the Quantum Abyss will send wave after wave of Altean-Robeasts at Voltron, before the series finally ends in, you guessed it, another big battle with another new big robot. There will be a “we won” montage, Sendak will somehow be resurrected or a void creature will emerge from Daibazol to set up the Big Bad for the sequel series. Maybe both. Nobody will end up with anyone and the next series and/or movie will be hinted at. We might end up with a cliffhanger to tease the sequel series. And we’ll all go away a little disappointed and a little happy all at once. Oh and Black Paladin Kaltenecker of course.

Salty semi-joking aside, at this point given how rushed the series has obviously become, I really would not be shocked if Lotor DID get a redemption plot that was dealt with in a single episode. Or a single sentence. Just like the way he was turned into a Genocidal Space Vampire in a single episode, I’m sure they can turn him into the Space Pope in a single episode. Maybe blame it all on a rift creature? Or maybe save that plot thread for the next series, given that in 13 episodes there’s no way they can cover everything they want to AND cover it as well as they want to. Or just never mention them again. It’s not like they were set up to be majorly important or anything. 

Also, if the whole of Voltron Legendary Defender is now going to be a backdoor pilot for Voltron The Garrison Guys or whatever, that seems disappointing more than exciting. Voltron Legendary Defender should be it’s own show first and a sequel should organically follow based on success or failure. If there was always a plan to have more seasons as a sequel series then...

USE THOSE EXTRA SEASONS TO GIVE THIS STORY THE ROOM IT NEEDED!!!

Make VLD the best it can be before assuming we need a sequel series at all. We wouldn’t have half the problems we have now of story lines feeling rushed if, get this the story lines had more episodes to not be rushed! We could have had more Past-Paladins. Keith’s backstory could have been explored as a full episode or two not spoon fed to us by time flashbacks. Allurance could feel less forced and artificial. Lotor’s betrayal could have been given more than a single episode info-dump. We could have actually explored Allura’s feelings and hr process of getting over one of the most important relationships in her life turning to shit. Give this story the time and space it needs to breathe and grow. Let THIS story be told in a well paced way rather than being forced to rush to hit the deadlines for the sequel series. If VLD ends up being less well received owing to bad or rushed writing, we may just end up with zero interest in the sequel series anyway. It’s self defeating!

Don’t have entire episodes devoted to characters who show up, info dump and then are mute for the rest of the season. Don’t have entire plot threads be rushed and resolved in time less than they deserve! And if you can’t do that...

THEN TRIM THE FAT!!!

We can probably all point to a bit that felt “rushed” or “forced” or “out of left field” and that all comes down to a single fact. So far, there has been far too much story to tell in far too few episodes. So certain plot threads end up suffering as a result. Not being fully realised. Not being given anything more than flashbacks and montages rather than full episodes examining in greater emotional depth and deeper narrative exploration.

I would rather see a simple story well told than a complex story rushed for time. What we seem to get in seasons 6+ of Voltron are attempts to tell the entire story they wanted but being forced to cut it short for time. Sadly, what would have been better than telling the full story badly would be telling as much of it as you can save well and discarding the rest. Maybe that’s already happened? Wouldn’t shock me.

Lotor deserved better. Allurance if it becomes canon, deserved to have been built upon to make it seem more deserved, less creepy nice guy. Allura deserved to have on screen time to adapt, grieve and move on from Lotor. Matt could have had time to develop his relationship on screen. Plance if it becomes canon deserves time to shine, because for many fans out there if it does becomes canon in season 8 then for them it will seem rushed, sudden, forced. Or worse, Pidge will always seem like Lance’s backup girl... As Said before, even me as a hardcore Plance Shipper feels like it can’t possibly be given the time it deserves to feel earned when we have just one season left to tie it all together....  So again, maybe all they can do at this stage is shrug and only ever give hints as to whom ends up with whom in this massive cast...? And then just spew out the sequel series. Because we gotta sell those new toys.

I cared and invested in the VLD characters. I wanted their story to be their story and not just a vehicle to sell the next series that, to be honest, I’m probably not going to be remotely interested in.

The Salt Floweth To An End

There is SO much potential in VLD that was squandered by things being rushed, compacted, cut and yet also being massively bloated despite this. Then there’s the obvious executive meddling that can’t have helped for a second... It just ends up making everything messy and unfocused. This season was a mess. Entertaining, yes, compelling, yes and damn good overall but with so many moments that just hit shy of the mark the creators obviously were aiming for. Almost all of it down to the writing. Because the animators, musicians, actors and all the other cast and crew did an amazing job. But the writing was...just a totally confused mess.

Overall, it ends up being Great rather than Exceptional which breaks my heart. Because the first 5 seasons? Exceptional. Every aspect. Especially the writing. But from Six onward? Everything seems to just crack and fray around the edges, the polish wears thin and the whole thing feels just slightly less like everyone involved gave 100%. Maybe a solid 90%, and some still went above and beyond... But things, in my opinion, shifted. Sometimes in service of “surprises” and sometimes just because they needed to rush. Whatever the case, it feels like somewhere along the line the writers stopped caring as much. If at all. Will I watch season 8? Sure. But I’ll always know it could have been so much more if they’d been given more time and more room to let the story flourish. At this point I doubt it’s possible given the already obvious lack of focus in the writing, that we’ll see every plot thread tied up to satisfaction. I’m not even going to kid myself that they’ll do it all well because that’s just not going to happen. I’ll be shocked if they manage it at all. Frankly I’ll be shocked if the last season doesn’t focus more on the new team again... I am not looking forward. It feels like a chore now. Will I watch the sequel series if there is one. No. Probably not.  I wanted Voltron Legendary Defender to be given all the time it needed to be exceptional. I didn’t want to watch an advert for the next series and the next group of characters and toys. Especially if we’ll just end up seeing them all wasted, rushed and never allowed to live up to their potential as well. I was invested in VLD and it sucks that my investment is used as a marketing ploy for a potential new show before being discarded. Ah well. There’s always fanfics I guess... Though even that tastes a little bitter now... Like I'm just another part of the Voltron Hype Machine and not even getting paid to do it... Sucks and it taints what I plan to do and what I already have done... I do want to continue supporting the show and the ship I love along with all the fans out there in The Garden, but right now... I’m left feeling so conflicted. In two minds about how much I enjoy this show and yet despite that, how often and how glaring some of the errors, missteps and plain crazy choices they seem to be making along the way... It’s hard to feel 100% positive, but I did make this post and I stand by it. If the Voltron writers won’t give us the reality that makes the most sense? We make it ourselves. I did make these three posts and I stand by all of them as well. Even now as it seems like the writer’s minds are falling apart like chunks of wet cake, I still maintain that Plance makes the most sense in the story for those two characters I loved. Will it still make sense at the end of the series? Honestly, yeah. I’m sure it will still make more sense than whatever the writers eventually decide to churn out. Here’s hoping Season 8 is...something...

[snowblzr]

UPDATE: Paranatural

New comic! Today's News:

Hey all! Thanks for reading, as always. Life's been trying lately... my partner's father passed away after battling COVID-19, and we lost our beloved old cat last week, just a month after that. I'm a pretty private person, so stuff like that's against my instincts to share, but I wanted to be frank about where I'm coming from when I say please go tell someone you care about that you love them, and give any pets you have a hug. Little moments really matter, that's how I feel, and I'll be happy knowing I can spur even one on. That's all for now! I'll see you next week. Until then, stay safe and be well!

~

[Transcript]

Spender shot a glance down towards Isabel, subconsciously expecting her to share his giddy smile. This spooky hike was just the sort of fun activity he used to do with Doctor Burger and the gang when he was young, or, if they ended up fighting a deadly phantom in the woods after all, just the sort of thing he used to do with Agent Summers. Those memories were painful now, but he was glad to be sharing the spirit of their best days with the next generation of Mayview spectrals.

Isabel, however, was not smiling. Instead, she was all focus... pure determined effort. Whenever Spender overtook her, Isabel would scuttle up to stay beside him, looking a little more frustrated with her tiny legs each time. Spender was instantly reminded of the fighting stance she'd snapped into that afternoon. She's training right now, he realized. This isn't fun for her. It's just a test.

Spender felt silly, then more than a little bit ashamed. He should have noticed sooner. He'd brought her out here to relax... but his presence had poisoned that goal, at least the way he saw it.

When Ángel, Isabel's father, had cut ties with Master Guerra—no, perhaps even before then—the old ghost's hopes for him had fallen onto her and Spender both. 

For Spender, this was a gift. Attention, guidance, belief in his potential... these were things that he'd been missing since the Burgers disappeared; since wild, one-eyed Shrike had passed; since Agent Walker went full company man; since Agent Summers proved a fickle savior. 

But for Isabel it was a weight, that much at least was clear. Master Guerra, gruff as he was, had little praise to spare, and Spender's efforts always seemed to siphon it from hers. Of course she wasn't having fun, not with him here, not after she'd been challenged by those teens. Spender was the score to beat. Even without her grandpa watching, Isabel could still measure her worth against his protege.

"Isabel..."

She started when she heard her name, looking up at Spender as if expecting some critique.

Instead, what she saw was the beam of his flashlight squeezed upwards from its origin in one swift motion, condensed into a thinner, brighter line, and tapered to a sharp point with a pinch. Spender brandished the beam sword that he'd made with his light powers and did his best Darth Vader breath impression—which, with his voice, sounded much more like a printer out of ink.

"...I am your father," rumbled Spender, glowering nerdily. He grinned right after, awaiting Isabel's big impressed reaction.

She just looked confused. "My father can't do that," she said, then, "My father hates swords."

"O-oh?" Spender sagged, his attempt to break the tension fallen flat.

"Because they make the choice to kill for you. He says a weapon that does that is for the weak. He says a weapon's only worthy use is self-defense, and one you wield that way should make you bear the weight of that responsibility. That's why he fights with sticks."

"Is... that... so...?"

"He's wrong though 'cause swords are cool, and all weapons kill. Plus Grandpa can beat him without any."

"Dang. Your family's wack, kid." Jean had apparently been listening in. Isabel shot him a scowl, then snapped back to scan the darkness in a huff. Spender tugged at his collar, flashlight beam sword hanging limply in his hand. As much as he wanted to help her, he was just no good at this.

"...I wish I could do that."

Spender perked up, curious. He couldn't see Isabel's face; she was a few feet ahead of him now.

"Do what, Isabel?"

[a-flower-that-writes]

Klance 2018

Finally able to post my Klance week! This is my fic for @sunflowerscientist picture!

If you like what I do, buy me a coffee!

Read on Ao3

He had been looking forward to this break for a long time now. It was seriously overdue and now he basked in the warmth of a star that he knew. A star he never thought he would come to miss. There was the sounds of cars down on the street, children laughing without a care and a parent warning them to mind the other people walking. It was...peaceful. These people and their simple lives that went on like a slow stream below him.

It had been a really long time since they could properly relax. Between keeping the castle battle ready, training both on foot and in the lions (and that was not even counting the political stuff!) they had all been looking forwards to a nice break from it all.  Even Coran and Allura had been looking forward to a relatively safe planet to recoup their energy on, one that still existed.

Keith took a slow breath and held it, letting himself relax against the balcony railing with a content hum. Smelled like they were going to get rain. He liked the rain here, no risk of it melting anything important or smelling like rotten eggs. Just simple sweet rain that would feel soothing on his face when he turned it up into the drops. He could also smell the plants nearby, they were blooming soon. He made a note to take a few clippings with him when they went back but for now he just...basked.

Everything was so calm here, hard to believe it was chaos anywhere else. Is this what it was like to live in a bubble? Had this been everyone, before? Before Zarkon, before Lotor, before…...everything. He could feel the sun warm his skin and hair and wondered if he’d tan at all. Lance would be happy at that, he always did think Keith was unhealthily pale. ‘You turn red in harsh artificial light’, he’d teased. ‘I’d love to see you on the beach.’ Rolling his eyes, the paladin shuffled his weight from foot to foot. Keith thought he was just fine thank you, not everyone needed to look like they walked off a magazine for skin that was ‘kissed by the sun’ or ‘made out of honey’ or some other equally silly title. Lips pulling into a smile, he muffled a laugh as he remembered Lance’s reaction to that comment. He loved making Lance laugh like that.

He wasn’t sure what alerted him, maybe a soft scuff of a foot or perhaps just the air moving but a smile crossed his face just before arms wrapped around him from behind with a body pressing against his back soon after. “Gonna rain tonight I think.” Lance commented, chin resting on Keith’s shoulder. No matter how many times it happened, Keith wouldn’t get tired of how easily Lance loved. He loved Keith, loved the rain, loved hugs and kisses and touching and just being. Lance loved the rain more than anyone did and could always be counted on to try and go out and just run around in it. No matter if it would get him sick or not. (The first few times, however, they learned that not all rain was created equal. A few embarrassing medbay trips and stinky ointments later, Lance learned to check out the atmosphere before carelessly running out into bad weather.) He was also king of trying to bait people into it as well, and it was hard to refuse him when he was just so excited about it. Even though it usually ended up with Lance tackling someone into a puddle. Usually, that person was Keith and usually, that turned things into a mudball fight. A big, messy, slippery, staining mudball fight.

Keith nodded without a word, hand going to lace through one of Lance’s as they stood on the balcony. “Where are the others?” He asked after just soaking in the rays for a little while longer. They had been cooking, which meant Hunk was cooking, and the other’s were loitering around and using the cover of ‘being helpful’ to steal bites and nibbles as if Hunk was not very aware that they were doing it. But no matter how many times they would be chased out of the kitchen with a spoon, like unruly kittens, they would eventually migrate back toward the smell of food to bother the chef some more.

Lance rubbed his cheek against Keith’s loose hair as he answered. “Got kicked out, it was Pidge’s fault.” He replied with a haughty sniff, which meant it was definitely Lance’s fault, and he just didn’t want to admit it. He took a deep inhale, nose tucked into Keith’s hair before speaking again. “Shiro went to go help the neighbor with her twenty evil giant dogs. What kind of crazy guy likes taking so many giant dogs for a run when on break??” he asked incredulously as Keith laughed.

“She has three, very sweet and not at all evil dogs and they are well behaved, they just do not seem to like you.” He replied, turning to kiss Lance’s cheek to soothe his pout. “I don’t see why not!” Lance couldn’t help the upward quirk of his lips, however. “Pidge go back to catching up on their forums?” He guessed, knowing how much the green paladin enjoyed trolling ‘alien hunters’ at this point. It had become something of a game for them, using various emails and usernames and a slew of images to get the forums all up in a froth. Only a small portion were any real photos of aliens, most were off center and blurry images of the team. ‘Cryptids’, they’d called them.

“Naw, went to go hit the pool. I think their last ‘cryptid picture’ broke the forum.” Keith could not  help but start laughing, knowing damn well that the ‘cryptid’ was just a only somewhat blurry and out of focus Shiro after falling into what amounted to mostly swamp water but a weird shade of very gross purple. It took 6 hours to get the stuff out of his hair alone, nevermind his clothes.

His laugh was infectious however, and soon Lance was laughing as well, the two ending up clinging to each other as they recalled just how miserable Shiro had been when the picture had been taken! Covered in gross looking goop that also smelled so weird. Of course being laughed at most likely did not help their case when he decided that revenge was a dish best served with bear hugs. Sticky, greasy, funky, swampy bear hugs.

“I can not believe it actually smelled like hot dogs of all things!” Keith giggled when they finally started to calm down, rubbing at his eyes with a few remaining snickers. “Not even the good ones, either. Stale ones that have been left in the water for two hours.” Lance added with a grimace, tongue sticking out of his mouth. A pregnant silence filled the air, not uncomfortable as the sound of laughing children drifted up from below once more.“This is nice.” He sighed, hand coming up to comfortably rest his chin on, while Lance did his best octopus impression. He had to shift his very bony chin a bit before they could settle down for a good cuddle, that thing could be a weapon all on its own.

“I think I recall a certain someone wondering if Hunk could cook it.” Lance commented, as if that someone had not been himself. The elbow he got for the comment was worth the laughing oof it wrung from him. “It was worth a shot!” He insisted, backing up when Keith turned to swat at him again. “Abuse! Betrayal! I knew this inevitable day would eventually come!” He shouted, dodging Keith’s swats in the most dramatic fashion he could manage on the balcony. “I expected the betrayal to come in space though! Not here on Earth, a double betrayal! You devious fiend!” Lance would have kept going, he had a few more lines in reserve after all, but he hit a pot and went down on his ass with a thud. Only for Keith to follow, not having expected there to suddenly be legs flailing right where he had been moving!

Down he went with a yelp and a thud, followed by another thud as one of the plants tipped over. Likely due to a limb flailing into it at some point. “Ow…” Lance whined, blinking a few times and lifting his head carefully to feel the back. A little bump, his elbow hurt more where he smacked it against the surprisingly solid flower pot. “You okay?” he asked, looking down at an almost comically confused looking Keith.

“....pft..” Lance watched as Keith started to snicker, making a valiant effort to stifle it only for it to grow into full blown laughter that drew Lance in. They lay there on the wooden flooring, pot dirt likely getting into Lance’s hair and laughed until they were crying. Every time one of them started to calm, they would look at the other and off they both would go once more. By the time they managed to calm themselves, they were both very lightheaded and wheezing.

“Oh...oh my stomach...please…” Lance wheezed, clutching onto Keith as if he could squeeze the giggles out of them both. Not a likely outcome but the best he could manage after laughing so hard. “...there is so much dirt in my hair..” he added after a moment, tone almost nearly petulant and grinned as it set Keith off for another round of short snickers.

“Quit that, my cheeks hurt” He gasped as he sat up slowly, rubbing said cheeks but his eyes were still smiling. “...Yeah you’re laying right in the dirt.” he informed Lance without a shred of mercy just to watch him groan about his precious locks. “Come on, up. Let’s fix this.” The pot itself had managed to survive quite well but the dirt and plant itself needed some rescuing. “Go see if there’s an open bag of soil while i find the broom?” He suggested, looking inside and spotting it just by the doorway.

Sweeping the dirt was easy enough and Keith was done before Lance returned, lugging a half full bag of dirt. “So..do you have any idea how to do this?” Lance asked as he set the bag down with a slight oof. Who knew just dirt was so heavy!

“Do what? Put dirt in a pot?” Keith replied slowly, not sure if Lance was messing with him or not. He looked between the pot and partially uprooted plant, camomile he thought, and back to Lance with a shrug. “Put the dirt in..?”

“Yeah but how do we tuck the plant in right” Lance clarified, nodding as Keith made a low ‘ooohh’ of understanding. That left two Paladins of Voltron standing there, staring at the pot and bag of dirt. Heroes of the Galaxy, bested by a potted plant.

“Okay..weelll...let's stand it up at least” Keith eventually suggested, kneeling to start fixing the very lopsided plant, settling it more standing in the pot. “Maybe just pat dirt in around it?” he said, shifting over so Lance could bring the bag closer.

By the time they were finished, both of them had filthy hands and Keith needed to sweep again but the plant looked pretty rescued. Leaning on the broom, Keith grinned at Lance. “I think that’s a solid point for team Voltron, yeah?” Lance threw a small pod of dirt at him before standing.

“Ugh I have dirt under my nails.”  he complained, leading the way to the kitchen so they could wash up properly. At least it started as a proper wash up, but Lance shook his hand and it flicked water at Keith, who splashed him back and it was only not wanting to clean up another mess that prevented a water fight.

The two wandered back to the patio to let the sun finish drying them off, not wanting to waste the last bit of it before the rain started. Lance waited till Keith settled against the railing comfortably before plastering himself against his back and letting Keith take his weight with a grunt. There was some grumbling but Keith didn’t shrug him off and soon they settled down. Not even Lance’s pointy chin could ruin the moment by jabbing his poor shoulder.

“This is nice” Keith commented after long moments, hand having moved to lace his fingers with Lance’s own to squeeze gently.

“Yeah...wanna go play in the rain tonight?” Lance asked kissing Keith’s ear loudly, grinning at the half hearted kick that got him. “C’mooon, you know you wanna run around in the mud. I’ll bet we can coax Shiro to come bring us towels and then nail him with mud balls..” he cajoled, knowing he had him when Keith perked up.

“....Only if you can convince Pidge to hide as our secret backup when Shiro ends up tackling you into the mud again.” he bargained, closing his eyes into the sun again as Lance gave a cheer. It was good to be home.

[craving-horans-hug]

Wolf Rage - Harry Styles imagine

Request: Definitely an imagine with Harry styles, please. One where he gets jealous about my love for teen wolf and the hot dudes lmao. And it kinda blows up into a fight but we make up. Cheesy I know!

~~

Y/N - Your Name Y/F/N - Your Friends Name Y/H/T - Your Home Town

~~

“Oh my god I know right?!” I exclaim into the phone talking to my best friend, Y/F/N and I are watching the weekly episode of our favorite show Teen Wolf. We would normally be together tonight but she’s back home in Y/H/T and I’m traveling with my boyfriend Harry while he does press for his new movie. I love Harry so much but I miss home immensely, that’s why I look forward to spending my Sunday nights on the phone with my best girl friend watching my favorite show. “She needs to stay away from Stiles, I’m gonna get my big ass in the tv rip those cheap hair extensions out of her annoying ass head!” Y/F/N yelled into the phone. “I think her hair is real Y/F/N.” I say laughing, I hear a door shut behind me and turn my head to see Harry closing the front door.

“Hey gorgeous.” I say, I can hear him taking off his shoes and walking towards the back of the couch in our living room.

“Hello love, how was your day?” Harry says placing a kiss on the top of my head. “Hold on a sec Y/F/N Harry just got home, I’ll call you back after the commercial break. Okay bye.” I hang up the phone and face towards the couch wrapping my arms around Harry’s torso, placing my chin on his chest. “It was fine, I called my mom she’s says hi and that she loves the movie, how was yours handsome?” Harry smile and rubs his thumbs over my cheeks. “It was good, lots of interviews as usual but Fionn invited us to go out for dinner tonight. I just came up to get you and to change.” Harry said with a smile on his face, I felt so guilty. “Honey you know I’d love to but Teen Wolf is on tonight and Y/F/N and I on the phone watching it together.” I say smiling nervously hoping he understands.

“So you’re telling me you would rather stay home and watch some dumb teen tv show than go out for dinner with adults?” Harry answered back clearly agitated. I unwrapped my arms from his torso and leaned back into the couch, and gave him a confused look.

“Harry you know this is important to me, I haven’t seen Y/F/N in months and the only time we can talk together is when-”

“You’re gushing over shirtless ware wolves, I see how it is.” He said backing away. “Harry what is this really about? The fact like I like to spend my Sunday nights with my best friend who is thousands of miles away or about the guys in the show?” I say raising my voice, I can’t help but let out a humorous huff as this is such a ridiculous thing to be arguing about but here we are anyway.

“It just seems that you get a little too into the show sometimes, when we went to comic con you ran into one of those wolf blokes and completely ignored me.” Harry said obviously hurt by my love for the show and cast, I felt horrible. I didn’t know Harry felt this way about a silly show, clearly it’s taken a toll on him over time.

“Harry I’m sorry. Honey if you felt this way why didn’t you tell me? It’s just a fun show that I like to watch, it doesn’t mean I want to be with any of the guys in the show!” I say trying to make a point but sound sincere, Harry bows his head down running his fingers through his hair. He always did that when he gets nervous. I walk up to him and cup his head in my hands forcing him to look up at me.

“Listen Harry, I love you. Only you, and no one else. Well maybe Y/F/N a little to.” I say and we both laugh, “the only reason I make such an effort ever Sunday to watch the show is because I miss my friends. It’s just a fun thing to do and something I look forward to especially when I’m home sick.” I say quietly, I don’t mean to make him feel worse but I want him to know my reasoning.

“I’m so sorry love, I know you don’t get to see your family and friends that much.”, as Harry said that the phone rang it was obviously Y/F/N calling back. “Go answer it,” Harry said smiling,“she’s probably biting her nails in anticipation of who will be shirtless next.” He says laughing, I smile and lean into his chest and place my lips on his. I can feel him hum into the kiss and wrap his arms around my waist, I run my fingers through his hair as he rubs tiny circles on my lower back. “Before this goes to far,” Harry whispers low against my lips, “go enjoy your Sunday night.” I pull away from him slowly and smile up at him,“thank you darling.” I say and give him a quick peck on the lips.

I run towards the couch and pick up the phone on my way, “Hey I’m back! Oh my god, he did not!” I click the tv on and turn to Harry leaning against the doorway with his arms crossed smiling at me. “I love you” I mouth as Y/F/N catches me up on what I missed, Harry brings his hands up to his face, covering the sides of his grinning face and mouths “I love you too.” Oh this is the man I love.

~~~ Thank you so much for requesting this @fairlygothparent I hope you enjoyed reading this and please feel free to request more!! ASK BOX IS OPEN !!!

[franeridart]

hi. hello. this is a bit embarrassing but i'm trying to buy my bf a tablet sort of thing so he can draw his arts. he's been wanting one forever but hasn't rly shown me which one he wants. i want to surprise him n buy a good one worth the money n was just curious if you had any suggestions. i've looked into wacom products, but i'm just such a noob to these things n was hoping you can help... i understand if this is silly, you don't have to reply! ur just so amazing, ur opinion is trustworthy 😅☺️

Okay, so, this is just my opinion and since it’s based completely on personal experiences it’s gonna possibly be incredibly different from other people’s opinions, so I just wanna make clear from the start that this is a personal preference and isn’t in any way meant as an absolute truth

Anyway, as far as I’m concerned when you’re just starting out you don’t need anything fancy at all. As an aspiring digital artist your bf might have looked up tablets and cried tears of blood over how much he’d like a cintiq or anything similar, but my very personal opinion is that fancy stuff is gonna be pretty much useless to you and be generally a waste of money? You’re just learning, you don’t need anything more than the basics. My suggestion is that you pick something simple and easy to use - I own this wacom intuos, had it for a long while and I like it a lot, but there’s also less expensive options you can go for too that people seem to like just as much! I’ve lately read on my dash about the Huion H610, they say it doesn’t cost much at all but it’s just as good as the Intuos, that could be a good option for you~

Anon said:  Hey!!! I was wondering if its ok to rb your oc art? I realized a lot less people rb those and i get anxious easily so... also i really don't want to disrespect either! But i always thought of rebloging as a way of saying "i appreciate your art" and i really really (really ) like yours (both the style and itself in general). (I hope you dont mind my bad english ha ha) i hope you don't mind this stupid ask! Im still kind of new to tumblr

It’s 100% okay!!!! *O* Thank you for liking them enough to want to reblog them ;A; !!!!

Anon said:i miss ur bokuroteru so much 😭💕 i love ur art but whenever i see ur header, i just remember ur bokuroteru comic and my heart cries storms for them to be seen again.

Aw anon I’m super happy you like my stuff for those three but as of now inspiration in that department is... super low... and tbh the haikyuu fandom is being incredibly unresponsive and non-vocal about their appreciation of fanworks in this period so even when I do have ideas for that fandom I sort of. Let them go. Or just sketch them out and never finish them.

Like, you know the whole deal about having to draw for yourself and not for others? That’s what I do 100% of the times when I’m starting a drawing, but to draw for myself I don’t exactly need to finish a drawing, you know? Sometimes there’s a scene I wanna see and I sketch it out in a super rough way and as far as my personal desire to see it goes I’m satisfied with that, and everything after that - the cleaning and lining and maybe even coloring - I put the effort in it because I want to share it with people. And the deal with the Hq!! fandom lately is that they don’t share my excitement for it. They either only like it, or don’t comment on it, or comment only to complain about this or that thing. In the worst case posting hq!! only ends up with people asking me to draw something else (ie I feel like drawing Karasuno so I draw it and post it and no one comments/rb/says anything about it but there’s 20 asks in my inbox asking me why I haven’t drawn any bok*ro lately)

When I think about posting stuff for hq lately I automatically compare it to posting stuff for bnha where I could draw a background character that appeared once 120 chapters ago and there’s still gonna be people that go “yes! that character!! I love that character!!! can’t believe there’s actual art for it oh my god!!!!” - that’s... that’s the sort of reaction that makes you wanna share stuff

I dunno, maybe I’m just expecting too much out of the hq fandom. But anyway, sharing for bnha makes me way happier and glad I decided to finish a drawing lately, so I guess that’s what’s happening there.

Anon said:Every time your soft doods art shows up on my dash I have to pause and take a deep breath and just thank god for all the good in the world because I'm blown away every single time

This is s o s w e e t oh my god ;A; thank you so much!!!!

Anon said:Johnny is a fucking angel dammit. Have you read the new DGM already?? I'm in tears. I love this manga so much. The frequency of the releases are killing me... it has such a great story and great characters. It needs more love

I did read it!!!! And yeah the fandom used to be way bigger, but honestly I’m glad it’s just the couple dozens people it is. Like a small town where everyone knows everyone else. No drama, no discourse. Everyone ships what they want and we all pass each other tissues to dry the tears. The only argument that happens regularly is people complaining about the relase schedule and the old fans telling them to let Hoshino live. A good place, this fandom’s a good place.

DGM was my playground for most of my experimenting as far as creating art goes, I really did reach in all directions with it through the years and it helped me shape myself a lot, so I really want it to stay quiet and nice and peaceful, that’s my dream for it haha smaller fandoms have a better chance to keep that freedom

Anon said: Oh man, I live for that Togata x Amajiki interaction

You talking about the color spread cause yes that was adorable!!! ;A;

Anon said:I look a little, and do you still draw Bakugo x Kirishima x Kaminari?

Sure, it’s still my main ship for Kaminari and my main ot3! Just wait for Denki to start being relevant in the manga again, I’ll probably fall headfirst into it all over again haha

Anon said:Your art is so wonderful you're wonderful everything's so wonderful i'm crying omg

SOB no anon you’re wonderful!!!!

Anon said:Due to my brain not wanting to cooperate with me (ever), Bakugou Katsuki is now Batsuki Katsuki in my head.

This is the funniest thing I’ve read today and I’m in t e a r s hahaha

Anon said:Artistic!Mina making pop art and colorful paintings :o what are ur thoughts

HELL YES that’s my main headcanon for Mina, she’s definitely an artsy girl!!! I like the idea of her sharing it with Bakugou t b h

Anon said:I'm still just repeatedly looking at your newest KiriBaku because hot damn.

I’m super glad you liked it!!!!!!! oh my gOD!!!!!!!

Anon said:Heyy please rec Kami comics please! I'm in a Kami art shortage and I currently can't find art as awesome as yours...

I’m so sorry I wish I could help you with this but I don’t know anyone who draws lotsa Kaminari either ;---;

[beastsoulsauthor-blog]

Beast Souls Volume 1

‎9/‎5/‎2014                                                                                      

Aaron McCoy 

Beast Souls

(Scene: California redwood forest, an advanced style tree house centered at the top of the middle one in the shot. Blaze; a fiery haired shaggy young man with a half hoodie, "fireball" necklace, and swim trunks with flame print. Sits beside a huge Fu dog style statuesque figure made of fire with glowing green eyes "Ember". They're leaning against the tree looking over a sheet in Blazes hand)

Blaze: "Man, look at this sad list!"

Ember: "Sad?"

Blaze: "Yeah! None of these bounties are over $500!?"

Ember: "Isn't their bounty directly related to their class and skill?"

Blaze: "Yes? What's your point?"

Ember: "My point IS; are you really MAD there aren't MORE dangerous people in the area?"

Blaze: "Not EXACTLY, it's just, we got bills to pay! Plus we need to eat! On top of that class ones are boring now, they're not even challenging anymore. We'll never get stronger at this rate."

Ember: "Hmmm...I guess you have a point. That IS the amateur list though. It’s not like we're proud souls."

Blaze: "AH! Proud Souls. Now THAT's the life! Hunting hardcore baddies for big pay and privileges."

Ember: "Seeing as its invite only guess we'll stick with the small fry for now"

Blaze (annoyed face): "I guess so. Hmm. How about this guy? Bounties $500, highest on the sheet, says has been mugging young rich ladies in the market."

Ember: "What despicable behavior! We should teach him better manners!"

Blaze (serious face): Yes.....yes we should."

(Scene point: Last shot in scene is bounty page with picture of a man’s face and the names Fig and Twig at the top with a bounty of $500)

(End scene 1)

(Scene: Blaze narrates a flashback accompanied with coinciding pictures of the places mentioned, him running away from a house, under a tree, etc.)

Blaze (narrating): "I've been living day by day this way since the very beginning. The day I first met Ember, my very own beast soul.

I had ran away from a bad home in the middle of winter before a terrible snowstorm. Guess that wasn't the brightest idea.

I finally found shelter inside a huge hole in a tree. Only problem was the hole was so big that snow was blowing in making it almost impossible to start a fire. Notice I said almost? I had found rocks to serve as flint, but were getting wet from the snow, and I was getting colder."

Child Blaze: "COME ON! Light already! If you don't light....ILL DIE!"

(Scene: as child Blaze slams the two pieces of flint together in one last ditch effort they explode into sparks and the small explosion becomes a puppy made of fire)

Child Blaze: "WOAH!? What.....ARE you!?"

Blaze (narrating): "I was in complete shock. The puppy seemed to be made of fire but it didn't burn me when I got near it or touched it. It kept me warm. I thought at first I was hallucinating until..."

Ember (puppy): "I'm.....Ember."

Child Blaze: “HEY! I hear you in my head!?"

Ember (puppy): "Yes, I'm here because of you! I'm here to help you survive."

Blaze (narrating): "I didn't understand then completely what I had done. It was only when I made it to the city and a man named Argyl appeared before me with a certain letter that I truly understood."

(Scene: Now in a big city back alley with child blaze and a man in a black/blue suit with open lapel and lacey undershirt tucked back collars and red shoes, strong dark hair and eyes (hair of below shoulder length) Argyl )

Argyl: "You unlocked your potential and summoned your Beast Soul"

Child Blaze: “Beast...Soul?"

Argyl: "Yes, An amazing creature summoned forth to exist by using a sliver of your soul! It's part of you!"

Child Blaze: "Wow! COOL! But......how did I do it?"

Argyl: "None know for sure WHY some have this strange ability, BUT what IS known is that it's been around for a VERY long time, and only extreme circumstances, instincts, and large releases of adrenaline can cause a potential soul to fracture."

Child Blaze: "Wait.....so you're saying I summoned it because I thought I’d die from the cold!?"

Argyl: "In your case, yes, it would appear that way. As a result Ember is made of pure heat. Many of these beast souls have powers; How you use them is up to you, however, you should read this letter very carefully first."

(Scene: Argyl stops pacing and hands Blaze a letter, blaze looks down at the letter)

Child Blaze: "Okay, but I still don't get why....."

(Scene: Blaze looks up to notice that Argyl has already disappeared)

Child Blaze: "HEY! Where'd he go.....? Hmmm..."

(Scene: Blaze looks down at the letter again then opens it carefully, its contents now fully displayed. The letter reads as follows; "Dear Blaze, Congratulations on your recent awakening and welcome to the world of Beast Souls! We are The Society of Myth, a government of sorts for Users like yourself. Do what you will with your newfound powers; but know this, we WILL be watching. If you commit evil deeds or disrupt the world in any way we WILL find you. You have been warned. Sincerely, Mr. Koji P.S. This is your ONLY warning!" after this blaze continues to narrate with pictures of him through the years hunting, cooking, and finally some shots of him handing over Rouges to Argyl)

Blaze (narrating): "Naturally as a young boy the letter had terrified me. I definitely DIDN'T want the Society after me. I ended up using my powers mostly just for hunting and cooking.

Eventually, once I was old enough, I was informed of the Amateur List and Bounties (a list of low level trouble makers other users can catch for money). So I decided that's how I and Ember would make a living.

We've been fighting ever since."

(Scene 2 "flashback sequence" End)

(Scene opens to current day a California local marketplace where The List said Fig would be. Blaze walking around the high end of the market)

Blaze: "Man! Sure is busy today!"

Ember: “It IS Saturday you know”

Blaze: “Good that means lots of Richie teen girls will be out shopping. Perfect bait for our bounty!”

Ember: “That’s….not necessarily a “happy” thought.”

Blaze: “Don’t worry Ember. I won’t let anyone get hurt, we’ll be ever vigilant!”

(Saying this Blaze does a comical hand above eyes back and forth scan?)

Ember: “Blaze, look over there!”

Blaze: “WOAH! She’s obviously the richest girl here!”

(In the distance a women with nice clothing, expensive jewelry, and even a servant carrying many bags.)

Ember: “Yes, but if WE noticed her that easily, then that means….”

Blaze: “Our bounty might too!”

(Scene: after tailing the girl only a couple of minutes they notices a shadowy figure wearing sunglasses staring and following her intently)

Blaze: “Hey, looks like that guys watching her too!”

Ember: “Yes, and its way too cloudy for sunglasses.”

Blaze: “Definitely, looks like we’re on to something.”

(Scene: They keep following the young girl as they do the man follows also)

Blaze: “Looks like he’s our man!”

Ember: “We can’t be sure until he makes his move, harming civilians with our powers is against the rules. We have to be sure he’s Fig”

Blaze: “I know, don’t worry, we’re reaching the end of the market if he’s planning on making a move he’ll have to do it soon!”

(Scene: They finally end up in a more deserted area of shops. Closed or out of business signs dot the windows. They overhear the woman)

Woman: “Oh my, it appears we’ve come too far James”

James: “Yes madam, we should find our way back immediately. This place looks unsavory.”

Woman: “I think the main market is this way?”

(Scene: Just then the dark figured man steps forward)

Man: “I can show you the way back miss.”

Woman: “Why thank you kind sir”

Man (smiling intently): “My pleasure!”

(Scene: saying this the man leads them instead down a back alley”

Blaze: “Here it comes!”

Ember: “Don’t go down there until he reveals himself!”

James: “Hmmm. This doesn’t look right at all”

Man: “You’re right. That’s because, IT’S NOT!”

(Scene: saying this the man discards the jacket and sunglasses revealing the face of Fig from the wanted poster)

Blaze: “IT IS HIM! I KNEW IT”

Ember: “Alright LET’S GO!”

(Scene: Racing in Blaze steps in front of the lady)

Blaze: “You might want to get out of here lady, it might get ugly.”

(Scene: Saying this Blaze throws out his hand wide as an explosion occurs summoning Ember into existence)

Woman: “OH MY GOD! WHAT IS THAT?”

James: “My lady we need to leave NOW!”

(Scene: Saying this the man and woman drop their bags and high-tail it from the alley)

Fig (scowling): “YOU BASTARD! I don’t know who you are but that was my catch of the day, and you scared her off! You won’t get away with this.”

Blaze: “Sorry. I never did have good luck with the ladies. Ha ha ha.”

Fig: “ARGH! You think this is FUNNY!? I’ll show you the PUNCHLINE!”

(Scene: Fig claps his hands together. As he pulls them apart a long smooth brown object materializes between them. A giant stick bug creature is revealed.)

Fig: “Meet Twig, my faithful companion. The most powerful stick in the world!”

(Scene: Seeing this Blaze and Ember look at each other. Then back to him. After which they burst into teary-eyed laughter.)

Blaze: “OH MY GOD! That’s got to be the worst Beast Soul I’ve EVER seen!”

Fig: “Yes, I suppose he doesn’t look very impressive eh? But I assure you looks can be deceiving.”

Twig: “Yes my good sirs, do not count me among the trash just yet!”

Blaze: “HUH? You talk silly too!?”

Twig: “Yes, I suppose to a barbaric simpleton such as you my linguistics are quite strange.”

Blaze: “Barbaric simpleton!? That’s an insult……right Ember?”

Ember: “Yes, but you’re not exactly helping your case.”

Blaze: “Ugh, whatever let’s just fight already. Then I will SHOW you “barbaric””

Fig: “As you wish!”

(Scene: saying this they step forward Ember growling at Blaze’s side and Fig brandishing Twig as a wooden sword)

Blaze (smirking): “Your move stick boy”

Fig: “Indeed”

(Scene: Fig rushes forward jumping over Ember and coming down with a heavy strike toward Blaze, Blaze then rolls back and stands as Twig slams the ground breaking it up a little)

Blaze: “Ember GO!”

(Scene: Ember jumps toward Fig spinning into a giant fireball slamming Fig right in the chest and up against the alley walls)

Fig: “I see you are well practiced.”

Blaze: “Oh, you have no idea pal!”

(Scene: Fig and Twig stand quickly back to ready stance)

Twig: “We should enlighten them to our true power sir”

Fig: “Yes, I believe you’re right Twig!”

(Scene: They rush Blaze again jumping over Ember they swipe at Blaze’s feet as he jumps Twig changes direction and grows in length until Blaze is slammed against the opposite wall)

Blaze: “Argh! Damn! What was that?”

Ember: “HE STRETCHED!?”

Fig: “Very observant, Twig can stretch himself to any length without reducing strength in blows or structural integrity.”

Twig: “Now you see don’t you!? You’ll not be getting close to us again, and my reach is ABSOLUTE!”

Blaze (shrugging): “So!? You think a parlor trick like that is gonna scare me? Ember…..Time to get serious”

Ember: “Good, I was getting bored hanging back”

(Scene: Blaze stretches out his left hand fingers apart palm to the sky. Ember becomes a flame tunnel racing down Blazes arm. When he reaches the end Ember transforms into a glowing sun-shaped ball)

Blaze (jumping): “Blazing SHOT!”

(Scene: Blaze strikes the growing glowing sun-shaped sphere of fire with his free hand. HARD. This sends it spinning, flaming, and flying toward Fig and Twig)

Fig: “ARGGHH!”

(Scene: Fig uses Twig to try and block the shot. It overwhelms them. When it clears they are on the ground and Blaze is facing away from them.”

Blaze: “Alright, let’s call Argyl.”

(Scene: Even while saying this the bloodied Fig and Twig start to stand)

Fig: “Don’t count me out yet!”

(Scene: Saying this Blaze turns as Fig pulls a hidden sword from twig and it grows into and through his shoulder pinning him to the brick wall)

Blaze: “NOT AGAIN!?”

Ember: “A sword!?”

Twig: “I’m actually a SHEETH”

(Scene: Blaze grabs the blade with both hands, the blades cut his skin)

Blaze: “I’m SICK of playing your GAMES!”

(Scene: Saying this with gritted teeth he pushes the blade out and Fig and Twig away.)

Fig and Twig together: “NO IMPOSSIBLE!”

Ember: “USE IT!”

Blaze: “Yeah. Let’s finish this!”

(Scene: Fig grows the blade swinging at Blaze. Blaze jumps dodging the blade as it slices the brick wall clean. As Blaze lands he outstretches both hands together into a “Gun” Shape. Embers flame tunnel goes through him over shoulders down arms and to his fingertips glowing like a red star.)

Blaze: “Fire-Gun Finger”

(Scene: A giant white hot beam is shot from his fingertips)

Fig and Twig together: “NOOOOO”

(Scene: Blaze and Ember looking down over the charred scratched up body of Fig. Twig now gone because of Fig being passed out.)

Ember: “Well, he was certainly a handful”

Blaze: “He was annoying.”

Ember: “Yes, He’s out now for sure though.”

Blaze: “Good let’s call Argyl for real this time”

(Scene: Pulling a black feather from his pocket and holding close to his head closing his eyes)

Blaze: “Yo Argyl we got Fig here.”

(Scene: In a whoosh of feathers and flapping Argyl and his raven Nevermore appear. Seeing the condition of Blaze’s Shoulder.)

Argyl: “Hmmm……that’s the first injury you’ve had in a while.”

Blaze: “Yeah, he surprised me because I didn’t take him seriously. That WON’T happen again!”

Argyl: “Let’s hope not. Especially if you plan on accepting this!”

(Scene: Argyl then hands Blaze a letter with the society seal, a dragon around an eye gem.)

Blaze: “Well, this takes me back!”

Argyl: “Just open it.”

(Scene: The opened letter reads: “Dear Blaze, I’ve noticed great potential within you as you’ve hunted down these amateurs. Yet, you lack structure and discipline. Sometimes the only way to force these traits is dropping a great responsibility in one’s lap. Such as, an invitation to become a Proud Soul. Not just a regular but a leader of a Souls Unit. It would honor me for you to accept.

Sincerely, Mr. Koji)

Blaze: “Is this…..is this for real!?”

Argyl: “Yes, it’s quite real. The Seeing Souls have monitored your progress for some time now. From the reports Koji thinks the position is perfect for you.”

Blaze: “It’s just, I’ve been dreaming of this for a while now, and…..now that I’m actually faced with the decision it’s a lot to consider.”

Argyl: “Understandable. The Rouge Souls you’d be hunting as a Proud Soul are two times or more strong than you currently hunt. Also you’d be uprooted from your current home to a more secure home of our choosing. Finally any and all monetary needs would be met by the Society.”

Blaze: “That last bit sounds nice, but….leaving my home, and having others depend on me sounds tough.”

Argyl: “You’d be a fool not to give it some thought. Know this however, Mr. Koji has personally vouched for you. This hardly ever happens, but when it does you can be sure it’s with good reason. Mr. Koji Never acts without thinking out every possible consequence first. You have until tomorrow.”

(Scene: Saying this he vanishes with Fig in a cloud of feathers.)

Ember: “Lets head home for now. We can think about it there.”

Blaze: “Yeah, you’re right.”

(Scene: In Mister Koji’s office now: Argyl appears knelt before a big desk where Koji sits, his face obscured by dark the figure of a dragon sleeping behind him against a wall of windows behind the desk.)

Argyl: “I’ve delivered the invitation”

Koji: “Very good. His brash nature and blind bravery are a front to how truly unsure he is of himself. That may be the cause of his arrogance. Regardless he will accept…..and he will grow immensely.”

Argyl: “Either way he only has till tomorrow, but you’ve never been wrong before.”

Koji: “Perfect. You are dismissed. Go find his first teammate.”

Argyl: “Yes sir”

(Scene: bowing deeply he disappears again. Koji turns toward the dragon his face still being cut off, he looks down)

Koji: “His growth will be most interesting to watch eh, Thaimat?”

Thaimat: “*grunt*”

(Scene: Back at Blaze’s treehouse home)

Blaze: “I can’t believe it, The Proud Souls! Head of my own unit….”

Ember: “You were just complaining about these amateur lists being too easy”

Blaze: “Yeah, but a LEADER? Me? A loner maybe, sure! But I’m no leader.”

Ember: “You know we haven’t seen much of the world, perhaps you underestimate yourself?”

Blaze: “Maybe……we have been alone a long time.”

Ember: “Familiarity however comfortable will never beget change. Only change causes growth.”

Blaze: “I DO want to become stronger….”

Ember: “Then accept the offer. We’ll see new places, meet new friends, and possibly gain new strength.”

Blaze: “A-+ND have all our bills paid FOR us” (snickering)

Ember (laughing): “Yes there IS that too I suppose.”

Blaze: “I’ll get to travel, make friends, and help the world? Who could say no to that job?”

Ember: “Good. We should pack.”

Blaze: “Yes, I think we should. He’ll be back tomorrow.”

(Scene: Blaze and Ember stand on the deck of their treehouse home fondly admiring it they turn bags and luggage at their heels to see Argyl appear)

Argyl: “So. Have you given it some thought?”

Blaze: “Yeah, a lot. I’ve decided to do it. I want to see what else there is out there, and how strong I am. Plus, it would be rude to mister Koji having placed his faith in me.”

Argyl: “I’m glad to hear that you feel that way. I’ve known you since you were a boy you’ll make The Society proud.”

Blaze: “Aw shucks! Don’t go soft on me!”

Argyl (chuckling): “My apologies…….Now; I will explain how it all works and take you to your new home.”

Blaze: “Explain how what works?

Argyl: “Yes. Well you see there are 3 major divisions of The Society of Myth. The Seeing Souls which monitor the world for news of Rouge Souls, and who also do our spying. They are the ones who watched your progress and reported it to Koji”

Blaze: “I was being watched!?”

Argyl: “Don’t feel bad most users are monitored somewhat to make sure the world stays balanced. At any rate, the next group is the Inquisitive Souls. These are our scientists, mechanics, inventors, and all around researchers. They also keep our lore dating back to the dawn of mankind. Finally, there are the Proud Souls, which your are now a member of. These users risk their lives in teams called “units” in order to guarantee peace in the world. Despite those Rouge Souls who wish to abuse their gift. These Units get assignments from handlers around twice a month.”

Blaze: “A MONTH!?

Argyl: “Yes, many of these tasks will take days, even weeks to complete. You must realize this is no amateur list these Rouges know how to hide their presence and they do it well.”

Blaze: “Ah, ok. Then I have a question. Which of the branches are you and Mr. Koji?”

Argyl: “Good question. We along with one other user are called the Cerberus. The “Three-heads of The Society”. We lead the Seeing Souls. Us along with the head of the Inquisitive Souls, and the top ranking Proud Soul leaders, make up the Societies governing body.”

Blaze: “So what rank will I be?”

Argyl: “You well start at Novice, as you gain notability and new members you will be given harder tasks. Complete a difficult task or show great promise, and we will reward you a new rank. All the way up to Master Souls. Master Souls help run the Society and insure the safety of the entire world, their powers are immense. Right now there are only two. That’s how rare the position is given. Now that that’s explained shall we go?”

Blaze: “That’s a lot to take in, but I’m sure I’ll figure it out. Yeah, we can go.”

(Scene: Taking one last somber look back at their home Ember and Blaze disappear with Argyl. Reappearing outside a rural apartment in Japan)

Argyl: “Welcome home.”

Blaze: “What!? This whole place!?”

Argyl: “Of course. You won’t be alone long. You’ll have a team remember?”

Blaze: “Oh yeah! So…..where are my teammates?”

Argyl: “Most Proud Souls pick their own unit by hand out of friends or through hiring channels. But, since you have lived as a loner for most your life your options are low. Which is why me and Koji have picked your first teammate and Co-Captain for you.”

Blaze: “Whoa REALLY!? Is he strong?”

Argyl: “Oh yes, most likely in ways you might not understand. Look this over and I’ll go fetch him”

(Scene: Argyl hands Blaze a Seer’s Sheet a page with information on a User collected by the Society)

Blaze: “My first teammate…..”

(Scene: The last shot is a black outline of a body and the name Eugene at the top of the page)

[gentlemenclubbbz]

101. “Don’t be an asshole. Asshole.” (Ian)

This feels like its ripped out of a shoujo tbh. Warning: cheesy lol. Pls forgive meh.

***

You loved Ian’s smile. It had a certain something that you couldn’t quite put your finger on—it simply mesmerized you without him doing anything special. It was just a natural phenomenon, never forced or too excessive. Showed the boy’s feelings flawlessly—even though it wasn’t hard to make Ian smile. A silly joke could have him grinning fondly at you, or he’d start talking about something he likes; that would make him go endlessly. And he’d wear that beautiful smile of his, so large and happy…

However, he’ll never know that! He might think you’re weird. Or worse—think you have a crush on him! Not as if you didn’t have a crush on Ian, but he was your classmate. You were best friends and there is no way Ian liked you back. You knew about his crushes and you just weren’t his type. An impossible romance—but you’re ok with that. To some extent, anyway (after all, you got very jealous whenever a girl talked with him). So that’s why you never said anything about it. You rather preferred having him by your side than ruin everything with your silly emotions.

And more than ever, you tried to perish the thought that right now, you were on a date. ‘This isn’t a date, [name]!’ you kept on repeating to yourself, feeling nervous about it all. You had your reasons to think so—Ian never asked you out before. It was always you who always told him to hang out, dragged him out of the house or bothered him. Or you simply ended up somewhere after class…All happened naturally. Today was the first time that he asked you to come join him at this festival—you didn’t even know he was interested in this kind of things. But he looked rather embarrassed when he asked you, not even daring to look you in the eye. He pretended to tap on the keyboard—but he still asked you out.

“Oh…” you froze, staring at him weirdly. “Ok.”

And here you were, in the crowd, trying not to get lost. ‘Too many people…’ you internally complained, already feeling nauseous. Ian was walking, tall and proud—at least you won’t lose him since he’s so damn tall. “Ian!” you called out to him, as you felt him slipping  away, getting small by the swarm of people. You believed he won’t hear you over the sounds of the music and chatter. But he does, turning around to look at you struggling to catch up.

“Here,” he waits for you and then extends his hand. “Hold my hand so you won’t get lost.”

Your eyes must be deceiving you—you could’ve sworn you saw a light pinkness dusting the boy’s cheeks. You stared at his hand, at those long fingers…

What?

He rolls his eyes, impatiently, took the lead and grabbed your hand. “Come on.” He starts to drag you after him, gently, until you’re at his side. “Don’t let it go, ok?” Ian instructs and you nod, at a loss of words. Ian was acting weird—it made your heart ache with hope. Was this the beginning of a beautiful relationship? ‘Yeah…as if…’

But you let him guide you anyway, wordlessly. You don’t know where you’re going but you’re high school students and you have plenty of time to figure it out. You just follow the flow of the crowd, enjoying the warmth of your conjoined hands—he’s holding onto you pretty tight. And you like that feeling. You didn’t think you’ve ever felt this conscious about holding hands with Ian. Ugh, why did had to happen? You were supposed to try to forget about him, seeing that you were graduating school soon and you probably won’t meet as often. But here he was, making you feel alive—just what was he planning?

“Hey, want some cotton candy?” You were so deep in thought that you didn’t notice he stopped. “I heard girls liked that…” he muttered afterwards, furrowing his brows when you didn’t answer and stared at him weirdly.  

“Hmmm…” you stared at the vendor, trying to figure if you wanted or not. Then you shrugged, playing it cool. “Sure, if you pay,” you grin at him and he scoffs.

“Knew you’d do that,” he sighs comically, but he doesn’t seem to mind. He walks with you there and orders one cotton candy for you—meanwhile, you’re just too self-conscious about the fact that you probably look like a couple. And, if people saw you like that: did you look cute together? You’ve always wondered. You think you probably did, but—

“[name], you don’t want it?” he snaps you once again out of your daydream, shoving the soft cotton candy in front of your face.

“Ah—“ you make a grab for it with your other hand, but he’s too fast and holds it in the air. High above your head.

“Too slow~” he grins like a Chesire Cat, from ear to ear as you start pouting in a childish manner.

“Ian! Give it, it’s mine!” you demand angrily, unaware that he was still holding your hand.

“You didn’t seem like you wanted it, sooo….” He chants, licking his lip as he stares at the white cotton candy on the stick. “Maybe I should just eat it myself. After all, I paid for it.”

“Hey—wait, no!” you tried to reach it, but he was holding it high up without any effort. He was smirking at you with mischief, but you weren’t going to be defeated by that. You tiptoed, stretching your arm and body as much as you could—but in vain. Without realizing, you were resting your palm onto his chest, missing the rapid beats of his heart. “Ian!”

“What do I get in return for this, huh?” he teased, watching you with those perfect hazel eyes behind the rim of his cat-eye glasses.

You stuck your tongue at him as a response. “Nothing. Now—ugh. Don’t be an asshole! Asshole.”

“That hurt me,” the boy feigned it, shaking his head. “B-But—“ he started with a stutter, suddenly losing his cocky attitude. “—if you can’t think of anything to give me, then I’ll just…” he gulped, but you weren’t paying attention.

You were still trying to get the stick, seeing that he was so preoccupied all of a sudden with something else. “Hah! Almost—“

“…kiss you.”  

He dips his head low, meeting your mouth halfway. Your lips collide clumsily, both taken by surprise by the action: you, because you weren’t expecting it and Ian because he didn’t ever think he’d have the guts to actually do it. But it’s a fact—you two were kissing.

‘Huh…?’ Your mind couldn’t process it, but you felt it. You tasted Ian’s mouth as if you’ve done it before. It feels familiar, as if they belonged there. He doesn’t know how to kiss—and neither do you. But it doesn’t matter. With this kiss, there is no need for any other words. You both knew where this was going, the aftermath…

Your body is frozen, the cotton candy forgotten. You can’t breathe, the world is spinning and your eyes stare at Ian’s long eyelashes. Unfair. Then he gets too eager, tries to bring you close by the waist and accidentally hits you with the rim of his glasses.

“Ouch…” you back away from him, but you’re not letting go of his hand. And he doesn’t leave your waist, still keeping you close. But you recover quickly, staring at him with parted lips. “I-Ian..?” Bet your face was like a ripe tomato—mirroring his own.

He doesn’t say anything for a few seconds; but then he smiles sheepishly.

You loved Ian’s smile.