#i ended up focusing on how some rules are good and helpful while others are not LMAO

[strangesmallbard]

there is not nearly enough media about the bar/bat mitzvah process. anyone remember watching a kid do their fun drash about jacob wrestling the angel and thinking How the fuck. am i going to write a speech about leprosy protocols

[is-nini]

They're Good Girl

A Neuvillette x reader x Wriothesley

You'd always have a fun time between the oh-so-sweet ludex and the rough Duke.

Minor DNI!

Tw: pussy slapping, filthy words, slut calling, size kink, overstimulation, dumbification, pussy slapping, spanks(near the end), double penetration, breeding, manhandle. (Aftercare at the end) Word Count: 2k

The Duke and the Iudex rarely meets eachother. It makes sense. The both of them are in a different line of world. One is underwater and the other one is up above the water.. but, if anyone wanted to meet them both at the same time, they know who to look for. You.

No one know specifically what you're relationship between you and the two powerful man are but.. one thing for sure is they don't want to know.

The last time someone tries to make a story about your relationship and the two man, they ended up retired and never wanted to talk about the duke or the ludex. No one knew why but seeing that, the Fontaine people has a unspoken rule to not talk about you and your relationship.

Both Wriothesley and Neuvillette are a very private and mysterious characters to other people, but you.. you get a special treatment.

Of course you'd be special. Always listening to they're beck and call. Always ready to accept they're rambles and gossips about tea or about the new case that has been going around. Such as now.

"This case has not end yet though. After much consideration there are things that seems to be in the fog's" Neuvillette ended his observation regarding the newest case. He has never been afraid talking to you because he trusts you with his secrets. How could he not? You'll forgot about whatever he said an hour ago. Such a dumb cute girl of his is the only person he can trust.

"Are you listening darling?" He asked as he looks at your trembling and embarrassed form Infront him. "N-neuvie! Pl-please th-this is embarrassing" you whine as your legs are wide open for your dear ludex to see.

Your cute pussy clenching around nothing as you try your best to keep your legs wide open. Afterall you wanted to help Neuvillette to focus on his work.. you wanted to make sure that he is satisfied so that he can focus properly.

"Embarrassing? My dear y/n, I have already seen everything. There's no such need to be embarrassed" he said as he stands up and walk around the table to stand Infront your your small figure.

Such a beautiful sight. Your cute skirt bunch up around your waist as the both of your feet placed on top of the seat that you sat on currently. "Ne-Neuvi" you whimper out as his hand started to leaves ghost touches around your inner thighs.

Your body shiver as his gloved hand grazed your little bundle of nerves. Your body immediately jolts up, making the chair shake with your reaction. Neuvillette looks at your reaction with his sharp eyes as he slowly puts down your leg back to the ground.

"come here love" he gently picks you up princess style and laid your down on his desk. You hold yourself up with the both of your hand behind you as your feet dangle. His hand softly pushes your skirt upward, letting your very wet pussy be seen again.

Neuvillette sat down on his work chair amd goes back to focusing his attention on your parts. "No matter how much I look at it.. it's always so enticing" his finger picks up some of your essence from your wet parts and let's out a chuckle. "So wet" he whispers as he took of the gloves that he uses to touch your pussy.

You can feel your pussy throb again looking at his act which of course didn't go unnoticed as you gain a laugh from him. His deep laugh gave you goosebumps all over your body, making your nipple harden as it pokes out of your white shirt.

"do you enjoy my voice that much my dear?" He asked all the while he bend down and gives a little huff to your pussy. You squirm and squeeze your eyes shut, embarrassed and shy about the situation.

Being the gentle dom he is, Neuvillette pulls away and kisses your forehead with love. Kiss that is reassuring but gentle as he make a circle motion around the outer layer of your pussy.

Although he is definitely much more lenient to you, his patient is so so much higher, meaning that as long as his cock is not buried deep inside you, he won't stop the tease until he is satisfied.

"My, what an adorable sight" he sigh out, looking at the overflowing juice that your pussy made. Your body tremble and twitches, aching for something - anything to just insert your pussy. "N-neuvi! Pl-please please!" You beg as you slowly open your eyes to look at him with teary eye.

"Please what, love?" Neuvillette asked in a gentle tone with underlying darkness behind his voice. How could he not? He is slowly being hypnotized by you because you and him both know, after you answer his question, he would do anything for you to make your wishes come true.

Your lips tremble as you try to make a coherent sentence "N-need your c-cock-!" your sentence was cut off when another voice decided to join the fun.

"Oh? Starting the play without me?" A very familiar voice speaks out with a fake sadness underlying his voice. Your body jumps a little with surprise hearing wriothesley's voice suddenly joining in. "I assure you we have not started...yet. I was merely preparing her for us" Neuvillete speaks out first after you move your head to face the duke who is walking ever so calmly towards you.

"Then I owe you my thanks, Neuvillette" Wriothesley smirked and looked at you with a dangerous glint in his eye. He looks at your sensitive parts that are still being played with Neuvillete's fingers. You thought that he would also play with your pussy but your body shakes a little when he pinches both your perky nipple from behind.

"Ngh! Ha-" your chest puff up as if you're asking for more. One of Wriothesley's palm stroke your sensitive nipple while the other holds your waist down. Neuvillette is making himself busy as he slowly insert two of his long finger inside your pussy with much ease.

Neuvillette looks at the way your pussy eat his finger. He can feel your walls clenching around his finger. Wriothesley saw more and more of your wet part let's out more and more juice. "So wet. Such a slut" Wriothesley comment. "Wriothesley.." Neuvillette warns him almost with a growl. "Come on Neuvillette, you can feel her pussy clench on your finger can you? She likes it" Neuvillette will be lying if he said he didn't notice your pussy clench when Wriothesley degrade you like that.

"I feel no need to degrade when she can also clench the same way if you praise her." Neuvillette finger you faster and harder as he smile, looking at your trembling leg "Sweet girl, are you going to cum? yes?" oh the way you melt with his sweet words that brings you to the edge. "Would you like to cum sweet girl? go ahead, princess." One command is all it takes for you to just unknot the tie on your stomach. " Ngh! A-ahn! Neuvi- ha-" fat tears are pouring out like water.

Your juice splashes everywhere, wetting the table and the porcelain tile floor. "Ng-ngah! Neuvi-Neuvi!" You squeal out. Your pussy spasm and your chest heaves up and down. Wriothesley feeling a little bit left out so he stuck his mouth to the nape of your neck and suck on it. Your brain has slowly turning in to mush.

Neuvillette pulls his finger out slowly as the squelching noise filled the room. He looks at Wriothesley and step away from your pussy to give Wriothesley a sign that he is done prepping you, although you will never be used to they're size.

Wriothesley walked and changes place with Neuvillette. He looked at your cute pussy throbbing on nothing. He groaned and cup your pussy, smirking at you. "Such a slut. Look at your pussy begging for something to enter it" he then gave is a slap. Your body jolt's up as he slap your pussy as then he proceeded to give a couple of little slaps. Laughing at how your body react.

His open his pants, freeing the suffocating cock inside it. "Okay then princess. It's time for your reward" you almost perked up when you hear the word "reward" but before you can say anything, Wriothesley slowly insert his girthy cock inside of you slowly.

Your back arch and a sultry moan came out of you. You make grabby hand at the table, trying to catch a breath as Wriothesley fully insert it in. Neuvillette grabs your hand and kisses the back side of it. "Doing a great job baby. Doing a great job for us" he whisper while caressing your hair lovingly, contrast to Wriothesley who started to thrust hard and precise into your sloppy cunt.

"Good. Slut. Our. Little. Slutty. Girl" every word he makes sure to thrust deep into you. Your legs are wrapped as your eyes roll back.

Neuvillette pulled down his pants and slowly rub his already leaky cock. His cock is similar with Wriothesley in some ways but it is longer and just a little less girthy than Wriothesley. Doesn't mean his cock feels less better.

Wriothesley looks at Neuvillete while thrusting in to you. "Just stuffed her mouth Monsieur Neuvillette" Wriothesley said teasingly. Neuvillette grunt and slowly shook his head "I want to hear her". Wriothesley immediately took your waist with ease, pick you up in his arm while his cock is still deep inside you and bring you over towards Neuvillette.

"I'm sure she can take another cock inside her ass" you widen your eye and whine as you claw on Wriothesley's shoulder. "Hng-! Neuvi!!" You whine out. "She can be a good girl and take Neuvillette right?" Wriothesley whisper as he kisses your cheek. "N-Neuvii pplease!" You moaned out Neuvillette's name, desprate to try and be a good girl for the both of them.

Neuvillette rubs his cock on the entrance of your pussy and slowly pushes in. "F-fuck.." one of the rare times Neuvillette moan as you scream "ha-hng! Big-big-ah! Please! Oh-!" You babble out and scratching Wriothesley shoulder. Neuvillette looks at you with concern "A-Are you okay princess-fuck so tight.." Wriothesley laugh and shake his head "She's fine Neuvillette. No worries. She can take is like a good. Fucking. Girl" Wriothesley started to thrust again although it's not fast, you can feel absolutely everything.

Your ass is full, your pussy is full and your brain is full of the word 'Neuvi' 'Wrio' and 'cock'. They have fucked you dumb at this point.

Once Neuvillette started to move, oh gosh the pleasure is overwhelming. Fat tears came out, your tongue is hanging from your lips, and your eyes are rolled backwards. Beautiful sight for Wriothesley, making him thrusts harder. Neuvillette rubs your stomach and pushes it once in a while. He can feel Wriothesley cock deep inside your stomach and it bulges everytime he thrust.

"So beautiful princess.. keep going. Ngh-so so good baby..such a good baby" Neuvillette moans to your ear as he also pick up the pace.

They're tempo are similar but everytime Wriothesley pulls out, Neuvillette would make sure he fills you so that both of your holes would never be empty at the same time.

The tempo picked up fast. You can tell they're on the edge because you can feel they're cock getting bigger inside of you, ready to shoot. You whine as your leg tighten around Wriothesley. Your pussy are also clenching around them so sweetly. Wriothesley too your mouth and kisses you sloppily in the midst of the kiss.

Neuvillette rubs and pinch on your right nipple while still holding on to your stomach with his other hand. The pleasure is overwhelming as you spew out words between you kiss. "Cum! Wan-wan' cum! Ah! Pleaseplease" you babble out.

Neuvillette grunt and bite on your shoulder, leaving a mark. Wriothesley pulled away from the kiss, he wanted to ask Neuvillete if he's willing to let you cum now but looking at Neuvillette's flushed face and seemingly too deep in pleasure to talk he decided to take control. "Cum like a good slut come one" he rubs your clit, bringing you closer to release.

Your stomach tightened and you squirted out clear liquid as you scream hard. Your pussy and ass hole tightened a little, getting Neuvillette and Wriothesley closer to the edge. "F-fuk! C-comming" Neuvillette grunt as he thrust faster.

Wriothesley's pace also fastened as the both of them cum together inside your body. You squeal as you legs shakes because of the pleasure. "Ng-Ah!!! So ghood! Pleasepleaseplease! Fill me! S'good!". You scream out. You can feel both of them feeling you up so deliciously.

"F-Fuck- such a good girl- like being filled up by two cocks huh?" Wriothesley growled as his cum slowly drips down your pussy. "H-ah.. g-good girl. Sweet princess" Neuvillette moan out, he slowly rubs your stomach that has been filled to the brim with Wriothesley's cum. Neuvillette's cum also filled your asshole the heavily filled to the brim.

"Ngh-ha!" You let out little hiccup as you cry out of overstimulation. Neuvillette breath and huff up and down as he whisper sweet nothings into your ear while Wriothesley is admiring the way your cunt flutters when he pulls out. His cum flowing out of you like waterfall.

Neuvillette rubs your belly and pushes it slowly, his cum inside you ass also flowing out but it is so mesmerising. Wriothesley's kisses your cheek softly and gave your ass a one good slap, making your body jolt as your sensitive body take the hit. Neuvillette looks at him questioningly.

Wriothesley smirked "hold our cum in princess" he teasingly said, making you whine weakly. Although you're fucked out of your mind, he can see you try to tighten your pussy. Wriothesley laugh happily but Neuvillette just sigh and readjust your position as he carry you princess style to the sofa in his office.

"Wriothesley, please stop being such a tease" Wriothesley just shrug and smile at Neuvillette. "Ah, but you also enjoys it Monsieur" he teasingly said as he took a couple of tissue and walked towards you, he took care of your face, slowly wiping your tears and saliva so your face would feel better.

Neuvillette sigh as he knew what Wriothesley say is right. He took a cloth and wet it with his hydro power and proceed to clean the lower part of your body. He softly touches and wipes your over flowing pussy making your body twitch.

After the both of them makes sure you're clean, they clean up after themselves. All evidence pointing to sex has been taken care of. Wriothesley draped his coat on top of your body while Neuvillette also drape one of his many layer of clothing on top of you to make you warmer.

"Such a sweet girl. You have trained her good Monsieur Neuvillette" Wriothesley teasingly said to Neuvillette. Neuvillette smile softly as he proceeds to comfort your must be aching body. "I too, admit that you have given her a proper... Punishments".

They're eyes looks fondly at your sleeping figure. So peaceful and relaxed after such a rough session. While waiting for you to rest up, both of the man decided to have a nice and relaxed tea and water while talking about some cases. They kept they're voice low but even so, they're voice is calm and soothing as you fell deeper into slumber hearing them talk while Neuvillette stokes your hair and Wriothesley softly hold and message your thigh.

[tinyarsonist]

Volume: Down

"If you don't keep it down, the kids will hear you."

Summary: You and your group finally debut! After a heart breaking accident, leaving you feeling less than you've ever felt Chan shows a side to you that leaves you wanting more.

Rating: M, TW under cut

Pairing: BC x Reader, FWB -> friends -> lovers

Italics are in Korean. Bold is in Spanish. Rest in English.

Volume Series: Part One | Part Two | ?

MDNI, 18+ Only

TW: idol!Chan, IdolTrainee!Y/N(fem!), No use of 'Y/N', slight angst, mentions of drinks, piv, unprotected sex (wrap it up), smut in general, dirty talk, cunnilingus, swearing, mentions of masturbation, semi-public sex, fellatio, insemination, PleasureDom!Chan, let me know if I missed anything!

Word Count: 13k

Est Reading Time: 40min

“Always so good.”

Chan groaned as he kissed your inner thigh. His hands held you nice and steady for him as his tongue glided over your core. Chan had finished just moments earlier, gracing your skin with his release. But, when he saw on your face that you didn’t come, he wasted no time in cleansing his palate for dessert. Licking up his remains before traveling down south, you tried telling him that it was fine. That you were just distracted but he didn’t let you finish your sentence; “Well, then let me help you relax.”

Your grip tightened on the sheets as you squirmed underneath him. Every time he pulled just slightly away; your hips jutted up to follow him. Craving any form of friction they could get.

It didn’t matter how often the two of you would meet up. Your body responded to every touch he could give. Chan made it his job every time to make sure your mind was just as focused as your body was. And it--he--never disappointed.

You weren’t thinking as your hand reached out slightly towards his black curls. As if he could feel your hesitation, he nipped around your bikini area. “Go ahead, baby. Use me.”

It didn’t take long for you to finish once your hand met the back of his head and did exactly as you were told. Chan had to hold in his smile as you rode out your high, still grinding against his tongue despite all the shaking in your thighs. Ever the gentleman he was, Chan kept you propped up until you finally cooled down. He wiped your essence off his face with the back of his hand. That famous smirk of his never leaving as he crawled next to you in bed and pulled the sheets over the two of you.

You and Chan had this newfound rhythm when it came to your little “rendezvous,” as he liked to call them. Sneaking in and out of his dorm every so often for a quickie followed by some cuddling at the end. You usually slinked out of his arms once his soft snores filled the room, leaving him with that empty feeling in the morning when his alarm went off. Ever since that unfortunate incident with Felix in the kitchen, you kept the shenanigans confined in his room as an unspoken rule. And due to his insomniac schedule, it was easy not bumping into the other members as they're usually already fast asleep. Speaking of sleep--

“You look like you're about to knock out,” you laughed as his arms wrapped around your waist and held you close to his chest.

“Don't tease me,” he grumbled as he squished his face on the top of your head. “Had to give it my all, okay?”

“Okay, okay.” You chuckled and stretched a bit in his hold. You could feel your body shutting down and knew you should start heading out. You had an early day, with training for your debut schedule starting. It was exciting, but definitely nerve-racking. Your company did not tell you when or where your group would make your debut, just that you should be prepared for it. Exciting. Not exactly helpful, but exciting nonetheless! “I should get going soon.”

Chan heard your words and instantly groaned. He just got you, couldn't he have you for just a little while longer? It felt like most nights without you in his bed were even harder to sleep despite you never being there in the morning. “Okay,” he sighed and pulled back a bit to look down at you. Already planning when he can get you back in these sheets. “You free for next Friday?”

“Can't,” You shook your head. “My schedule is crazy this week with practice, I'll barely be getting enough sleep as is. The Tuesday after?”

“Flying out to Paris for a charity event with the kids on Thursday. Probably will stay a week and a half after that…”

Silence clung between the two of you like his duvet. “So…” you bit your lip. “It'll be almost a month then until either of us are free?”

His eyes locked on yours. The grip on your waist tightened a bit as the realization settled over the both of you—a whole month. Chan does not even think it has been more than 4 days without seeing each other ever since this nonverbal agreement started. “Yea…”

Without a word being said the two of you locked onto one another. Pulling and grabbing at each other like one measly month would undo it all. Trying to satiate your hunger in each other until the next time finally rolled around.

Screw it. You'll just sleep during rehearsal break.

“Shit!” You huff in frustration as you slump to the training room floor. Your group has been practicing non-stop for the debut. Recently getting word that there was a time slot at Inkigayo with your name on it, your team was pushing every fiber of their being into getting this performance right. All of your team's hard work was paying off and showing. Why else would your company invest in such a big debut? Even the meat suits in tuxes could see the team’s worth. You couldn’t have been prouder of your girls.

If only you weren’t the one holding them back.

No matter how much you practiced, you couldn’t stick that tumble during the bridge. Your footing kept slipping as you tried to get back up. It wasn’t horrible, but it wasn’t perfect. One wrong weight shift and you could twist your ankle in the worst way possible. You could already feel the strain on the backside of your tendon.

“Let's take a five,” your youngest waved off the other two girls to grab some snacks before taking a seat next to you. During your time together, the two of you became extremely close and she naturally took the role as your ‘second.’ Becoming the person, you knew you could lean on when things got tough. You were made, and trained, to support your girls, but her? She volunteered to support you. “You okay?”

You nod your head and stretch your foot to help relieve some tension on your ankle. She watches you as you try to brush off her question. “You seem distracted... More tense than usual.”

For some frustrating reason, your body was refusing to release despite your favorite toys coming out of their hiatus to fill in the time without Chan. She would be tense too if she couldn’t orgasm for 2 weeks straight and had another 2 weeks to go.

“I’m fine,” you smile at her. But that little grin of yours didn’t fool her. She gave you a look before leaning her head on your shoulder. Giving some comfort in the only way she knew how. You smile as you lean your head on hers.

“Is it a boy?” She said quietly after some time causing you to stiffen a bit. The rest of the group knew that you and Chan had met during the interview. However, they knew nothing else of that night. Even though it was eating you up on the inside.

If word got out that a soon-to-be-debutee and one of the world’s leading K-pop artist were seeing each other, your group’s image would be ruined. Even if the two of you weren’t together in that way and just used one another to forget the stress of your jobs for the night. That was the downfall to the marketing of the industry. A horrible negative to have the world hear your music—your love life was never your own.

“No,” you fibbed. The younger lifted her head slightly to look at you, not fully believing in your rebuttal, but deciding not to pry any further. The two others returned with a bounty of snacks to last a lifetime. The four of you giggled and chatted as the food was passed around.

“Speech! Speech!” your youngest smiled at you as she held up her soda can in a make-shift toast. Everyone else followed suit. Comradery spreading amongst the four of you. In one week, everything you worked for will be known. Spreading like a wildfire, your music will finally reach those willing to hear. The long years of being broken down will be worth it. The rise you’ve been so desperately craving is finally coming your way.

“Soon, everyone will know our name!”

The dance studio erupted in cheers and laughter. You smile as you look at your three girls, pride racking through you like never before.

Look out world. Ready or not; here you come.

Chan woke up from his bed as he smelled the freshly cooked bacon wafting into his room. A grin spreading from ear to ear as you pushed open the door with your hip, a bed tray filled with homemade cooking spread beautifully was placed across his lap. “Good morning,” you smiled at him as he sat up in bed. “Hungry?”

“Starving,” Chan placed the breakfast off his lap and next to him on the bed. The food smelled delicious, but he had something else in mind for his first meal of the day. Before you could even question it, Chan pulled his duvet off from himself and pulled you onto him instead. Your giggles filled his room as one of his hands found the back of your head, pulling you in to plant wet kisses along your neck. His lips then interlock with yours. Bodies molding into one as the sun’s light filtered through his curtains. Finally pulling away, Chan smiled up at you as his hand brushed some falling strands of hair behind your ear.

Seeing you like this, above him and smiling, no thoughts of his day ahead. Just you.

Only you.

Chan’s heart dropped when he finally woke up. It's been 2 weeks since he last saw you. Even in his dreams, he was flooded with visions of you.

Groaning, he turned his alarm off. The back of his head hit his hotel pillow again as he tried to go back to his slumber. Trying anything he could to continue the domestic scene his subconscious created for him. Trying being the keyword. Within a moment of peace, his hotel room door was barged open. Changbin and Jisung happily entered the room, knowing that waking up a sleepy Chan might result in a pillow or two thrown at them. So, as they rounded the hallway corner, they held up a bag of food, and some drinks, as an offering. Hoping to appease the groggy wolf.

“Everything bagel with harvest cream cheese?” Chan glared at them. As they both nodded, Chan sighed and gestured for them to come in. Jisung happily plopped on the bed next to Chan as Changbin laid out the food for the 3 of them.

“Stayed up late?” Changbin asked as he pulled up a chair next to the bed. Chan just nodded, still trying his best to wake up.

Jisung took a massive bite of his bagel, tilting his head as he asked a follow up question. His cheeks full, giving his staple chipmunk-pout; “You okay? You’ve been sleeping less and less these past couple of days.”

“I’m fine,” Chan took a sip of his smoothie. He was trying his best to deal with his insomnia, but it’s doubled ever since their flight into Paris. Most of his nights were spent working on some new tracks, trying to keep his mind distracted. It didn’t help that every waking moment flashes of your rendezvous nights kept playing at the worst timing possible. During dance rehearsal, staff meetings, while on the way to a photoshoot; his body would feel hot every time his brain would remind him of the way your lips would wrap around him. “It's just jet lag is all...”

Changbin and Jisung shared a knowing look. It was a look only life-long friends could partake. A look that knew Chan was bluffing. “Well,” Changbin drew out the word. “we got some good news and bad news for you.”

“Bad news;” Jisung wrapped his arm around Chan’s shoulder before Chan could open his mouth. Knowing he would just complain even more about not getting any sleep. “we leave tonight. Ah, ah—no no don’t you dare!”

Jisung couldn’t contain his laughter as Chan groaned and pulled the duvet back over his head. This was the last thing Chan wanted to hear; just as his sleep schedule was somewhat getting back to normal, he gets to sit in a plane and travel back home. Another recipe for more jetlag. What great fun. Jisung tried to unravel Chan from the cocoon he created, but to no avail.

Changbin watched with a side smirk as Jisung tried his best to wrestle Chan out of bed. “The good news;” Changbin leaned against the chair with his arm crossed. “we were able to get a time slot at Inkigayo later this week.”

“I heard a certain new group would be debuting that same day.”

Chan peeked from under his covers. You would be there?

Of course, the other members knew of you. Poor Felix had to trauma dump to someone after what he witnessed the morning after your first night together. Chan had suffered tremendous teasing for weeks before they all finally cooled down. But, he knew that despite the hell they were putting him through, they would never let word get out about anything.

It would be nice to see you after these past couple of weeks. To root for you on your big day...

“When do we leave?”

Today was the day.

Everything was on the line. You could barely sit in your seat as your stylist finished up on your hair. Your girls were essentially bouncing around the dressing area; adrenaline coursing through them. “Hey,” you laughed as you watched them jump on the couches from the vanity mirror to chase one another. “Save the energy for the stage, ladies.”

“Yes, all mighty leader,” your youngest giggled as she bounded over to you as your stylist left to clean up her equipment. The rest of the girls followed suit, leaning onto one another to squeeze into the mirror’s frame. You placed your arms around them as much as you could, squeezing them in even closer. Giggles filling your ears as you looked at your team's reflection; trying to etch the image in your mind forever. “Hey,” your youngest looked down at your outfit. Her eyebrows scrunched up together as she pinched the fabric around your shoulder. “This looks like its fraying a bit.”

Viewing the fabric through the mirror, you could see the garment starting to undo itself. Muttering a small curse, you looked around. Your stylist had already left. Grabbing a safety pin, you tethered the fraction of the fabric together before exiting out of the dressing room. This was no big deal, you had to keep reminding yourself as your anxiety started to rise. All you had to do was find your stylist so they could sew it back up before your time slot.

Everything will be fine. There was nothing to worry about. Everything will go according to--

You didn’t have time to squeal when you felt a hand pull you sideways as you were walking down the hall and into a supply closet. Your back pushed against the wall adjacent to the door. A strong hand covering your mouth as the other found its place on your hip. A fluttery feeling in your gut as your eyes adjusted to the dim closet and focused in on the face dawning that dorky grin at you.

“mmphan?”

His grin never left his face as he removed the hand from your mouth to the back of your head; “Missed me?”

Your lips found Chan’s in a frenzy. A fast clash of flesh as every second the kiss was deepened. His hand tangling with your hair and pulling you flush against him. A small groan leaving his lips as your arms snaked around his neck and tugged at his roots. As you pulled away for a breath you couldn’t help but tease; “A little.”

Chan gave out a breathy laugh as the two of you clung onto one another. His span of Spanish was fairly low, but loved the way you always let your actions show him exactly what you meant.

His mind wandered about making his dream a reality and littering your neck with his mouth but knew better than to mark you up before your big break. No matter how much he wanted to. Just seeing you here, in the flesh, was more than enough for him. So, he let his hands wander, taking perch right under your shirt just to feel you. Every touch sent warmth through you as you unconsciously arched yourself closer to Chan. A slow rhythm between the two of you grinding on one another formed. Eager to feel anything after the long time apart.

“What’s this for?” Chan played with the safety pin on your shoulder. Never stopping his other hand from feeling your curves, now sneaking towards your back to press you even closer. As if this was all but another dream he was going to wake up from.

“Strap is coming loose,” you couldn’t help but lean in close to whisper in his ear. Shivers running through him as your teeth lightly grazed his lobe. Something was taking over you, something that you couldn’t explain. It could be from the long weeks of not seeing him, or the stress of having to perform soon. “Can’t have a nip slip on today of all days.”

Chan’s hand went from the safety pin to your ass. Kneading it softly as he guided you to raise your leg so he could press his clothed bulge on your core. The pressure making your head lean back on the wall, sighing from the contact. “I don’t know,” Chan smirked as he placed small kisses on your shoulder. “I wouldn’t mind seeing that.”

“Dirty boy”

That was a word Chan knew well. It somehow became his nickname after every rendezvous night. It was almost a Pavlovian response as he felt his boxer space start to constrict as he grew. It took everything in him to pause for a second. You were breathing heavily, eyes half lidded as you gazed up at him. Your smile sending butterflies throughout his body. “Maybe,” Chan bit his lower lip, “you can show just me? Hmm, later tonight?”

You didn’t mean to nod your head as quickly as you did. Your enthusiasm pulled a chuckle out of Chan as he placed a soft kiss against your lips before taking a step back so you could fix yourself. "Break a leg,” Chan smiled as you fixed your hair and went towards the door. “We’ll be rooting for you.”

As you were about to say your thanks, the closet door swung open. Chan pressed himself as flush as he could against the wall. The door blocking your stylist’s view of him. “Where have you been?” She scolded as you just stood there rigidly, trying your best to not cast your gaze at Chan who was doing his best to blend in with the drywall. “That little beast of a girl said you were looking for me—what are you doing in here?”

As she tried to peer into the closet, your hand flew to the side of the door to hold it in place. Blocking her view of Chan. “Nothing! Just—trying to see if there was a sewing kit since I got lost and couldn’t find you.”

She looked like she didn’t believe you, but she, and you, were on a timeline so she really couldn’t care less. Huffing, she grabbed your wrist and started guiding you back down the hall towards your dressing area. Chan had to contain his laughter as you casted him a terrified look before stepping out with the slightly-horrifying-older woman.

“Where did you run off to?” Minho grinned as Chan reentered their private dressing room. Everyone was lounging around on the couch as the group waited for their time slot. And these boys weren’t made for sitting still. So of course, they turned to teasing Chan as soon as he stepped in. Lucky him.

Taking a quick look around the room and confirming there were no cameras amongst the group, Chan casted a glare at Minho; “Shut up.”

“Or what?”

“Minho,” Hyunjin laughed from his seat, “don’t get him mad. Please. You’ll get him cranky.”

Minho rolled his eyes and leaned back on the couch; “He’s been cranky this past month. What difference will it make?”

“But you don’t have to share a wall with him when he decides to take that anger out on--”

“Hey!” Chan laughed and threw a pillow at Hyunjin to cut him off. Jisung, who was just starting to rest his eyes before their performance, shot up and covered Jeongin’s ears with his hands who innocently asked; “Taking it out on what??”

Changbin was a giggling mess as Chan bounded over to Hyunjin to playfully wrestle him on the couch. Once they settled down, Changbin commented, “Seriously, have you considered sound proofing?”

Chan groaned as he covered his face in his hands from embarrassment. The rest of the members laughing and poking fun at him wherever they could. The only pause of the teasing was when Felix shushed everyone and pointed at the TV. Your group had been announced and was walking the stage. The team settled down on the couch, Felix turned up the volume as they watched you interact with the crowd. A sensation of warmth mixed with a little pride filled him as you worked the crowd into getting excited, even though a vast majority of them didn’t even know your name. Laughing as the youngest in your group was behind you mocking you, causing you to send a glare her way. The room erupting in a chuckle as the two of you feigned a fight as the staff was setting the last of the stage up.

“She’s spunky,” Seungmin chuckled from his seat on the couch.

As you and your team got on your marks, music played. A beat that brought the room to sway a bit to in their seats. The choreography started, as did your time to shine, and Chan was completely immersed in the performance. The way you sang, your hips swinging to the music until your next verse, you flashing your beautiful eyes directly into the camera. Christopher knew it was for the audience at home once everything was edited, yet somehow it felt that it was all for him.

The bridge came on, a cute little dance to showcase each member and bringing it in together for a cohesive formation. Before the chorus started up again, the team tumbled on the floor before popping right back up. You did as well, and to the naked eye everything seemed to be going along perfectly. But in the room, everyone leaned a bit forward as you came back up. It was almost instant, the flash of pure pain across your face, before you went back into work mode and continued on. A look of pain that everyone in the dressing room knew a little all too well.

The song ended and you waved. Your youngest immediately finding you to hold you by your waist and help guide you down the stage before the audience could catch on.

“Do you think she’s--”, Felix turned to look at Chan, but he was already gone. “--okay?”

‘Stupid, stupid, stupid!’ that little voice in your head rang as your manager and team helped you to the room. Your ankle was starting to swell and turn purple with every step. The tumble you had practiced on for so long, still proved to be too much for your body. Everyone suggested leaving it out, but you insisted that it made the choreography even more amazing, and part of you wanted to prove that your team – you – could do it. You didn’t want to hold them down.

Chan stood for a moment at the door frame of your waiting room. The crew of Inkigayo, upgraded your team to a private area after you hobbled off stage for some peace. You were on the couch, hands covering your face as you let quiet tears fall. Feeling overwhelmed with the adrenaline of the performance and having to hide your pain--it was all too much. The rest of your group decided to give you some space, seeing that despite their attempts to cheer you up they were doing no good. He gave you a moment to brush the tears aside and notice him.

“Chan,” you sniffled and blinked away any water that was pooling at your eyes. “If you’re here to tell me how ‘great’ I did--I don’t want to hear it.”

“Okay,” Chan leaned off the door frame and made his way over to you. Your usual smile was replaced with a frown as you watched him close the distance between the two of you. Irritation was overtaking you from all the coddling from your teammates and management. Telling you that you did great, despite the slip-up and injury. That you kept your composure the entire time and no one in the audience could tell. That the debut was a hit! All those compliments fell on deaf ears--your own thoughts were too loud and massive to even take note of what everyone else was saying. Only focusing on how you screwed it up. You were supposed to be the leader. And the first time to show the world what your team was made of--you were the one to fuck it all up.

“Christopher,” you growl. “I mean it. I’ve had enough pity for a lifetime…”

“I know.”

You watched in silence as he knelt on the floor next to you to slip off your shoe on your injured leg. Holding it steady, he pulled out a compression wrap from his pocket and started to gently dress your ankle. “I always keep one on hand,” he said quietly as if he was scared to spook you. “Had a nasty slip back in my early days, learned to always keep a small first aid kit lying around.”

Chan made the last wrap around your ankle, making sure the elastic was nice and snug to give you any support you needed. Grabbing a pillow from the armchair next to him, he set it next to you and guided you to lay your injured foot on it. “Keep this elevated.”

You sniffled a bit as he grabbed some tissues on the coffee table and dabbed around your cheeks, cleaning up any make-up smudged from your tears. His eyes were focused on wiping away any evidence of your fears. But you? You couldn’t keep your eyes off him.

The way he took his time caring for you made you feel something you hadn’t felt with Chan before. Warm; a weird bubbly sensation in your gut that made everything twist and turn. It was different from all the times spent with Chan during your nights together. It was a deeper connection. One that scared you, but you didn’t want to lose the feeling of either.

“I have to go,” Chan put the tissues aside and stared up at you. He cupped your cheek, his thumb running softly against your skin. He didn’t want to go. It’s been so long since he’s last seen you, not counting the supply closet, and seeing you down like this made his heart hurt. He wanted nothing more than to hold you and chase those fears away. Chan wasn’t a stranger to those inner thoughts; that self-doubt that clouded every fiber of your own being. But his time slot was coming up soon. “You’ll be okay?”

“Yea…”

Chan stood up and made his way back to the door. “Chan?” You called out. When the two of you locked eyes, you bit your lower lip. It almost broke you to show him, or anyone, your most vulnerable state. It was different than when the two of you were in the sheets. This was somehow more personal. More intimate.

“Thank you.”

“Are you sure you don’t need anything?” Your youngest looked down at you, concern etched in her face. The team was invited to film an interview at Lotte World, and though your injury was manageable, your manager was concerned that being on your feet for a long period of time would just worsen your condition. The rest of the group was already loaded into the van waiting outside, but your youngest kept leaving the dorm only to return to check in on you. Like a little lost puppy who only wanted to bring comfort. You couldn’t help the side grin that came across your face as you pinched her cheek, causing her to wince a bit in discomfort.

“For the fifth time—I'm fine,” You scolded her lightly as you released her cheek. She pouted slightly and tried to rub the redness away. Nodding your head towards the door; “Now get out of here, you’re keeping everyone waiting. You’re going to be late.”

“Fine, fine!” She rolled her eyes at you as she headed towards the door. Stopping just briefly to lean dramatically at the hallways corner to give your big doe eyes. “I get it—you just hate me.”

Squeals of laughter flew from her as you chucked a pillow her way, finally jogging to head out. Sighing in relief as you heard the door close behind her. You settled in on the couch, keeping your foot on a pillow to rest it as you mindlessly scrolled through your phone. Content filling you as silence, finally, filled the dorm. As much as you love them, living with three lively girls was overwhelming from time to time.

Resting your head on the couch, you let the peaceful lull wash over you. For about thirty seconds.

“For God’s sake,” you huffed as you got up from your place. The light knocking on your door making you irritated. Swinging the door open your put your best reprimanding face on to chastise your youngest. “What now? Did you lock yourself out this ti--”

Chan stood there wide eyed as he became the target of your annoyance. He gave a meek smile as he held up some take-away as a peace offering. You paused as the two of you stared at one another for what seemed like eternity. That warm bubbly feeling making its reappearance as he stood there awkwardly; “So, um—can I come in?”

“Y-yea, sorry.” You shook yourself out of it as you stepped to the side and gestured him in. He took off his coat and laid it on the kitchen island as he started to lay out the takeaway. You slowly stepped towards him as he essentially made himself at home.

“You guys have a nice place,” he said nonchalantly as he busied himself. He felt confident when he came up with the idea of surprising you but seeing you in person made his conviction rattle just a bit. It’s been a week since he’s last seen you after your trip on stage, and despite his attempts to reach out--you remained silent. “A lot cleaner than when our agency piled all eight of us together.”

“Chan--”

“You have any plates?” He walked over to the cupboards in his search. Searching high and low for some bowls.

“Chan--”

“Seriously, how many mugs do you guys need?” He grumbled to himself as he opened the second cabinet. Stopping his hunt to look at you as you closed your distance and reached a hand out to touch his arm gently. His heart skipping a beat as he took in your appearance. The way your hair was coiled into a bun, some strands leaving its confines to frame your face. Your oversized shirt and sweats still somehow complimenting your curves. This homely version of you was comforting in some way.

“What are you doing here?”

“You... didn’t answer,” he replied softly. Trying his best to downplay the anxiety that racked through him this past week. “And--I wanted to make sure that you were okay.”

You didn’t miss the way he glanced at your ankle before his gaze reached back up to yours. His face etched with care. The side smirk that you gave only caused the mood to lighten as you took a step back and opened the cabinet next to the one he was searching in. Grabbing a plate, you handed one to him before making your way to the platters filled with food. A comfortable silence between you two as you cram as much as you could into the tiny plates. Chan took a look around, subtly opening your drawer to peer into to find utensils.

“Ah, ah—nope.” You joked as you threw a plastic fork his way from the takeaway bag before making your way over to the couch. “I am not doing any more dishes than we need.”

Chan plopped next to you with a cheeky grin; “I could always do dishes.”

“You’re a guest,” you propped your leg on an ottoman. “Can’t have guest doing my chores, what kind of host would I be?”

“Well, considering you swung the door open like you were about to punch me—I say you’re not off to a great start.”

“Shut up,” you shove your shoulder on his, earning a small chuckle from Chan. As the two of you ate and watched daytime television your shoulder never left his. Supporting each other in the simplest of touches. Chan felt all his unease from the past week melt away as the two of you paid attention to the flat screen. No words needed to be spoken, just simply enjoying one another. The little crinkle forming around his eyes as he felt you leaned further into him. He couldn’t help but remember the first night you spent together with him. How the two of you fell into an easy rhythm of searching YouTube and just chatting the night away. Two pieces of a puzzle.

“I’m sorry... for not calling or texting back,” your quiet whisper brought him out of his thoughts as he turned to face you. He could see the guilt in your eyes. Your habit of biting your lower lip while thinking, sent a wave of warmth through him. Finding it extremely endearing to see you in such a state.

“Don’t worry about it. I understand, you needed your space.” You both set your plates down on the coffee table. As he said the words, part of him wanted to tell you what he was holding back. Tell you that he wanted to be there for you. That no matter what; his shoulder was yours to cry on if you needed it. It didn’t matter the time or the place, he would drop everything to be by your side. But, even as the thoughts rolled through his head, he stopped himself. Another part of him scared to voice them. Not only to you, but to himself.

You smile softly at his words. Your anxiety was soothed away by his reassuring demeanor. Time felt like it stopped as the two of you just stared at one another. It was starting to feel like these pauses in these instances were becoming more frequent. As your rapid heart rate. Especially when Chan leaned in a bit further; “But you do still have to answer my question.”

Question?

Your eyebrows scrunched together as your brain racked through what he was mentioning. What question? Did you dissociate during your time together and forget something?

He leaned a bit closer. You could feel his breath on your cheek as his eyes bore into yours. “Why...” his whisper was soft. Shivers running down your spine in anticipation. You didn’t know for what but knew that you were ready for whatever Chan threw at you. His hand slowly rising to brush a strand of hair behind your ear. Fingertips lightly grazing your skin.

“...do you guys have so many god damn mugs?”

The bark of laughter that coursed through you made those dimples you love reappear on his face. “You’re a fucking twat, you know that right?” You giggled as he moved his arm from your side to rest around your shoulder and pull you close to his chest. He feigned hurt at your words as he used his foot to move the ottoman with you, trying to keep your leg comfortable in the new position.

“It’s a genuine question; I’m concerned.”

“If you must know, we are caffeine addicts in this dorm.”

“Again--concerned.”

As the two of you laughed, you rested your cheek against his chest. Continuing the banter as the television continued its schedule. You weren’t sure how long had passed before Chan pulled out his phone and sighed a bit.

“I should get going,” he sounded annoyed. He knew he should head out and leave before your group came back from schedule, but his body didn’t react to his rational thinking. Fully content with you in his arms. Heart nearly melting at the sight of you looking up from his chest, lips pressed into a scowl at the mention of his departure.

“Don’t leave,” you nuzzled as close as you could. Grinning, as you could hear his heartbeat just a little faster at the gesture. “You just got here.”

Chan grinned as he pressed his forehead against yours. Scrunching up his nose a bit as his brushed the tip of yours. His smile infectious as his hand cupped your cheek. “Yea, still don’t understand Spanish, but when you’re all healed up, we can catch up again. Okay?”

“Okay,” you huff as you both pull away slightly. But his hand stops you from pulling back all the way. Thumb rubbing gently on your cheek as he stared down at your lips then back up to your eyes. Was he... asking for permission? This was new territory for both of you. Usually when together, it was a flurry of passion. Skin against skin, mouths usually too busy exploring each other’s bodies, clothes thrown aside. Nothing needed to be asked. Yet here you were, giving Chan a small nod before meeting him in the middle and pressing a gentle kiss on each other's lips. It was sweet. Lamblike. Nothing like the whirlwind that arose when the two of you were usually together. Chan felt his blood pumping through him, and for the first time it was not heading straight to his dick. His hand tried to keep the two of you as close as possible. Lips moving together in slow, almost calculated, motions. His tongue briefly brushing against your bottom lip with each rise and fall, but never fully making its way into your mouth. You could’ve groaned at the teasing, yet it somehow didn’t feel like that was his intention. It was almost as if he wanted to take his time with you. Prolonging what he could control.

Chan didn’t want this to end.

But when he finally pulled away to catch his breath, he looked down at you. Your eyes bright and wide. Showing him exactly every constellation of the universe in those wonderful orbs of yours. He opened his mouth to speak but you beat him to it.

“Do you want to go on a date?”

Your brain so rewired from the kiss you didn’t even realize you asked him in Spanish. You hadn’t meant to ask him out at all in fact, just out to a simple cup of coffee or something, not wanting to be as far away from him as you were these past couple of weeks. But as those dimples appeared on his face again—you knew you couldn’t take it back. It was now or never.

“You know I have no idea what you’re saying.” Chan could gather it was a question directed at him, but that was the extent of his knowledge.

His face-tinged pink as you placed a chaste kiss on his cheek; “Figure it out, and get back to me.”

God, it was just like you to reel him back in. Without realizing what you were doing, you still somehow knew how to push all his buttons in all the right ways. Just as he was about to lean in again, the door to the apartment unlocked and your team barreled through. Stopping at the corridor corner to stare at the two of you. Their laughter halting just as quickly as their feet. Chan and you quickly created distance from one another.

“Hi, ladies.” You gave a small smile as Chan cleared his throat and abruptly stood up. His face turning red as he tucked his hands nervously into his pockets.

“Ahem, er, well. I’ll be on my way out!” He gave you an awkward bow before making his way to the door. Bowing nonstop to your team, who was still frozen in place, their bodies moving with him as he attempted to escape.

“Chan?” His head popped from around the corner. The poor man looked like a bat out of hell. Two parts of equally embarrassed and terrified, with his face turning crimson and his eyes wide with fear. His body language was tense, as if he didn't know what to do or where to go. Trying to hold back your chuckle, you nodded towards the kitchen counter. “Your jacket.”

“Ah, right right!” He bustled past your girls, more awkward bows as he grabbed his jacket and returned to the door—making a haste retreat out of the apartment—leaving you to clean up the mess. How sweet.

Your youngest turned to you with wide eyes. A deer trapped in headlights. The other two just had their mouths open, staring at the closed door. As if their minds were tricking them to see the Bang Chan leaving their living room in a hurry. “So, um...” you clap your hands together and gesture to the takeaway on the counter.

“Anyone hungry?”

"Are you sure you’re getting the pronunciation right?”

Changbin, Hyunjin, and Jisung were gathered around Chan, their eyes glued to his laptop screen as they tried suggestions to type into Google Translate. It's been two days since you told Chan to ‘figure it out’, and though he thought the question was harmless, it was eating away at him. Tossing and turning throughout the night, there was nothing else he could fully focus on. His dorm mates found him hunched over his keyboard, furiously typing away, trying his best to decipher your phrase late at night when they decided to help in any way that they could. Between the four of them—it was just one brain cell rotating back and forth at midnight.

“How many different ways is there to type out this word?” Chan grumbled as Changbin pulled out his phone.

“Depending on the context, about three. Each one meaning different things somehow?”

“Dear, God!” Chan groaned and held his face in his hands. Hyunjin patted Chan’s back sympathetically.

“You know what you have to do.”

“No, no—anything but that.” Chan turned his head to face Hyunjin, his brows scrunched together in frustration. Not wanting to admit defeat. Jisung sighed and put his hand on Chan’s other shoulder.

“We’ve been going at this for hours--”

“Ten minutes.” Changbin corrected Jisung.

“--for what feels like hours.” Jisung rectified, “You have to put your big boy pants on and call her.”

“It’s almost one in the morning--”

“Hyung,” Changbin groaned. “Stop being a baby and just call her. We all know she’ll be up. She’s practically an owl.”

Chan swiveled in his chair as he watched them leave his room one by one. “Wait, wait—please don’t! We can keep trying Google!” Jisung mouthing a ‘sorry’ before he closed Chan’s bedroom door. Leaving him to do the one thing he knew he would never hear the end of.

Pulling out his phone his finger briefly hovering over the contact before sighing and hitting the video call button. It rang once, twice, and on the third ring he was met by a zoomed in eyeball on his screen.

“For fucks’ sake, Hannah, can you be normal for once?”

Hannah held her phone out at arm's length, giving full view of her in her bed. Some journals and crumbled up pages littered her bed giving indication that she was up late trying to express herself in her own creative process. Apparently, insomniac gifted night owls ran in their bloodline. “Geez, you’re in a mood,” Hannah grumbled as she sat up in her bed, “What’s up?”

She listened as her older brother described the events from two days ago. Chan tried to ignore the growing grin on her face as he continued on, trying his best to pronounce the words you whispered to him to the best of his ability. “So,” Chan fell into his bed with a ‘thump’. His head hitting his pillows as he stared up at his phone, holding it above him as he waited, “what did she ask?”

Hannah continued that shit eating grin of hers as she sang her next words; “Channie’s got a girlfriend~”

“Hannah--”

“You like like her, huh?” Hannah talked over Chan as he just rolled his eyes. Proving his case and point that he was going to regret this call.

“Hannah, for the love of God. Can you just tell me?”

“I’m sorry what was that?” Hannah cupped her ear and feigned confusion. “I think you were missing a word or two there. Probably bad cell connection.”

Tricky little--

“Hannah,” he replied as nicely as he could through his gritted teeth, “can you please tell me what she said.”

“I believe my name is ‘sister-that-is-always-right'.”

“I’m hanging up--”

“Wait, wait!” Hannah’s giggles rang through Chan’s speakers as one hand still held his phone above him and the other hovered over the ‘end phone call’ button on his screen. “Okay, okay! I’m sorry.”

“Geez,” Hannah gave her brother a knowing look, “you’ve got it bad, huh? She’s got you all in a tizzy.”

“Hannah, its late. And I haven’t slept in two days. Can you please just--”

“She asked you out, idiot.”

More laughter from the speaker could be heard as the phone slipped from his fingers and fell square onto his face. Hannah taking a blurry screen shot before it made contact—still able to see the look of pure surprise, sprinkled with elation, in the candid photo.

A week. One whole week. No text, no call. Pure silence.

As much as you enjoyed solitude, especially when it came to your teammates, you couldn’t help but feel at lost from not hearing back from Chan. Your mind was constantly racing, even as you currently sat with your girls on the couch, watching Singin’ In the Rain—your thoughts were consumed of Chan and his out of character ghosting.

Maybe he couldn’t figure it out? Maybe he was busy; he was a global sensation after all. His schedule was probably fluctuating like water. You couldn’t blame him. He was living his dream, and there was nothing in you other than pride.

And some self-doubt.

Because as much as you wanted to believe that he was running back and forth like a crazy man, there was still one thought that rang louder than the rest—maybe he just wasn’t interested. It wasn’t a far-off idea. You knew that all those rendezvous' nights had one unspoken rule—for that one night, and those one nights only—you were his and he was yours. But it was never supposed to go past that.

Stupid Chan for being so sweet to you; bandaging your ankle at your most exposed moment and coming in to check on you when you were too embarrassed at yourself and running away from any form of confrontation. You once told DIV studios that you were immune to Chan’s flirting—but you never said anything about his affection.

“Ah,” your youngest sighed from her next to you on the couch. She craned her head to look at the door after hearing a soft knock. “That’s probably the pizza.” Without another word, all four of you started to play rock-paper-scissors. Ultimately ending with your loss, and the girls whooping their celebration as you got up and made your way to the door. You opened it without taking a look in the peep hole.

Chan stood there, wearing a black mask to go with his hoodie and beanie. Despite half his face being covered you could tell it was him from the way his eyes crinkled. Was that—nervousness you saw?

“I would--” Chan cleared his throat when you just stood there, unable to form words on your mouth, “I would love to go on a date with you.”

When you didn’t speak, he shifted a bit more on his feet. “That’s um... all I know how to say.” Chan chuckled to ease the tension. You take note how his hands are tucked into the front pouch of his hoodie. No doubt fiddling with his rings anxiously as he shifted in his place. Chan felt like he was back in middle school asking a girl to dance for the first time. Butterflies, knots in the stomach, all the works, were rushing through him.

"Say something, you idiot!” You heard your youngest hiss at you. All three of them are leaning over the couch’s backrest to watch the scene unfolding in front of them. Ears and face flushed all you could do was nod your head. You wanted to speak. Wanted to jump and giggle your way into his arms. But hearing him speak Spanish—everything in you was so hot and flustered. A hold that you just couldn’t bring yourself to get out of.

“Great--cool,” Chan was glad for the mask. That way you couldn’t see him biting the inside of his cheek. “Did you...want to go now?”

“Now?”

“Now?” your girls parroted, and you finally got out of your frozen state to glare at them. Your youngest making a motion of zipping her lips and throwing away the key.

“I have a packed schedule for the rest of the week.” A blatant lie. Truth was, Chan couldn’t wait anymore. He wanted to see how this would all pan out. He just didn’t want to show just how desperate he was to spend time with you. But the way you bit your lip and stood aside to let him in, he knew that part of you could see through it all. You quickly excused yourself to your room to get ready, knowing that your oversized comic shirt and sleeping shorts would not cut it for a night out.

Your girls’ eyes narrowed as Chan stood in the hallway. Another awkward bow towards them in greeting as he waited for you. When he first knocked on your door it required all of his resolve to remain in place, as he struggled to overcome his desire to bolt and flee. The intimidation he felt about you potentially passing on the offer was too much, but he pushed through it. The thought of you saying yes outweighed the cons that tumbled through his head. Yet, as he stood under the prying eyes of your team, he felt that same fear overtake him because he knew this wouldn’t be a conversation.

It would be an interrogation.

“Where are you taking her?”

“Somewhere special.” A spot he held close to his heart, he wanted to add, but they cut in before he could express his words.

“Late at night? Why?” One quipped before another added; “Trying to pull something sly on her?”

“What? No, I-I, I’ve had a busy schedule--”

“Oh, so everything should be based on when you’re available?”

“What? No! It’s just--”

They were going so fast, Chan barely had time to think of a response before the other fired off another question.

“You think because you’re famous, you can just jerk her around?” Your youngest glared at him. He opened his mouth quickly, but another was quick to intercept him.

“Such typical male behavior.”

“Alright, that’s enough!” Everyone quickly turned to you as you stepped out of your room. Putting an end to the girl’s questioning, much to Chan’s relief. You smiled as you leaned over the couch to pinch your youngest cheek before turning back to Chan.

“Shall we head out?”

“Wow,” is all you could say as Chan lead you to a lone bench. After about a half mile climb up the staircase, the two of you finally reached your destination—on top of a hill overlooking Seoul’s city lights. With the late hour, the city was asleep leaving the feeling that it was only the two of you in the world. The both of you sat on that bench for an hour or two, just catching up from the week you spent apart. Conversation flowing naturally between the two of you once again. Chan told you that he would sneak up here every now and then to clear his head after working his expected long hours. Everything was quiet enough for him to just detach--but your howls ringing through the clearing was just as welcoming to his ears.

“Okay, okay!” You laughed as Chan had to explain putting his pride aside to ask his younger sister for help. His arm was around your shoulder, pulling you in close as the two of you watched the quiet city below. “So, you went through all of that, but you didn’t think of calling me for like a hint or something?”

“You said to figure it out!”

“Not if it meant selling your soul!”

Chan chuckled as his grip around you tightened a bit, shaking you as you laughed. His eyes locked on to you; the way your face was red due to the chilly night, the crinkles around your eyes as you smiled, and the way you scrunched up your nose. “For you—it was worth it.”

God, how much you wanted to pull down that damn mask of his and touch his lips with yours. Everything about this night was perfect. But soon, the clock hit 3am and the two of you decided to head back before your girls decided to send a search team for you. Getting up with a groan, Chan laced his fingers with yours as he led you towards the exit.

Chan noticed the way you stared down at the stairs, your eyebrows pinched together at the thought of having to walk all the way down. He wondered briefly if your ankle was still bothering you. It's been weeks since the sprain, but if you soldiered your way climbing up the steps there was a chance that you were feeling some tension on the tendon. Without a word, he let go of your hand and went down two steps and leaned a bit forward. Casting a glance over his shoulder he gestured for you to ‘hop on’. You giggled as you jumped and latched around him like a koala. He feigned a groan at the impact as he adjusted you before grabbing onto the underside of your thighs to hoist you up.

“Hey, hey!” Chan giggled as you hooked your chin on his shoulder and blew into his ear. “Cut it out or I’m leaving you here!”

You giggled as you muttered an apology as he continued to descend the steps. Chan hummed as he became your personal lackey, taking in the night sights and the clear star filled sky. Your eyes never leaving his profile as the gears in your head turned; “Why did it take you so long to say yes?”

Chan stumbled on a step for a second before readjusting you in his grip. “I figured since you asked me in Spanish,” Chan kept his gaze focused on the trail ahead, “that I should reply in Spanish.”

“You practiced for days to get it perfect, didn’t you.”

The embarrassed chuckle from Chan was all confirmation you needed. And, though you didn’t think it was possible, you felt you heart swell as you snuggled closer to his nape.

“Did we not have a great date?”

“We did.”

“And now it’s coming to an end.”

“It is.”

“Then--,” you huff and cross your arms across your chest. Chan smiles and leans his shoulder against your door, looking down at you as you pout and look anywhere else but at him. He could tell that you were trying to pull something out of him. What it was he wasn’t exactly sure, but seeing you turn red, and struggle was entertaining to watch. You were being cute.

To both of your disappointment; the evening was coming to an end. And despite your subtle attempts to pull some physical intimacy from Chan during the car ride back to your dorm, Chan was doing his very best to hold himself back in anyway that he could.

“Then?” Chan grinned down at you. His fingers lightly grazing your chin and tilt you head up towards him.

You finally bit your lower lips and looked up at him. Yes, you were beating around the bush. But him? He was just fully toying with you. His Libra was showing. “Then…

Why haven’t you kissed me?”

It felt like everything was going backward. Ever since he asked you on this date, it felt like he was trying to distance himself. Holding back in any way that he could. But that wouldn’t be it--would it? The way your eyes kept roaming to his lips throughout the night should’ve been more than enough to hint at what you wanted most. Unlike Chan, you were not holding back. You craved anything he was willing to give. He caught you--hook line and sinker.

Chan took note of the way your breath hitched as his hand reached out to place a strand of your hair behind your ear. Your cheeks flushed as he slowly closed the distance. His hand now sneaking behind your head to hold you still as his lips press flush against yours. Once he felt you bring your body against his own, the desperation between you both became almost palpable. Chan's hand found its way to your waist to make sure there was no space left, while the one holding the back of your neck tightened around your roots. The tension caused some slight pain, causing you to moan against his kiss.

“Do you…” You attempted to catch your breath. Despite breaking away from the kiss, neither of you made a move to detach from one another. His grip on your waist tightened as he subtly tried to rub himself against you. Chan’s restraint was slowly dissipating at finally having contact with you after all this. “Do you want to come in?”

Chan groaned as he felt you press your pelvis even harder against him. All the teasing was thrown out the window. All he could think about was how long it had been without feeling your bare body against his. But he knew better. There was something he wanted more than just another night of passion.

He wanted you.

“No,” Chan shook his head before placing a small peck on your forehead. “I--I want to do this right.”

You were checking your phone every hour. You hated to admit just how much of a hold Chan had on you and yet here you were-- waiting at a bar entrance when he texted you in the middle of the night that he was finally free to meet up. It was a long week since your first date with Chan, who was immediately busy with album prep the very next morning. Being the sweet man he was, he promised to take you out for a drink to make up for it. Though he really didn't need too. You constantly teased him over the phone that you no longer wake up to your alarm, but to the sweet -cheesy- texts that he sends every morning. Or over the fact that he video calls you right before bed, his snores filling your room even when miles apart. A gentle reminder that he hasn't forgotten about you despite the conflicting schedules.

"Five minutes," the text on your phone read, "Felix and Jeongin decided to pop by to convince Bin and the others to join them for barbeque - be there soon!"

So immersed in trying to find the perfect gif as your reply back, you didn't notice the lone man who was smoking a cigarette, eyeing you. He slowly made his way over, and when you finally spotted him from the corner of your eye , you gave a small polite smile as he attempted to start conversation with you. You let him drunkenly flirt with you - again-just trying to be polite. And from the way he was holding the conversation he didn't seem to be a threat of any sort. So you laughed at his attempts to flirt, stumbling over himself constantly whenever he would meet your eyes. "Sorry," he mumbled as he scratched the back of his head , "I'm usually better at this."

"It's okay," you chuckle softly, "but I think it's best to let you know that I'm not looking for anything right now.”

"Ah," the man gave an embarrassed smile ,"should've known someone as pretty as you would have a boyfriend.”

It was an innocent comment, but it threw you off guard for a moment, and your thoughts were thrown into a silent chaos. Being in training for a majority of your life, it wasn't like you had full experiences in relationships. Some kisses and fun here and there, yes, but you never had the chance to dive into the world of dating. Chan and you only had one date, and he did say that he wanted to do this right-- did that constitute a relationship in his eyes? It did in yours, but was that enough to have his eyes not stray? To shoot down someone whenever they would come up to him and drunkenly try to shoot their shot?

A hand wrapping around your waist and pulling you closer to their side, stopped your thoughts from spiraling. Your head inclined to see that profile you had imprinted into your mind as he carried you down those steps without breaking a sweat. Despite the mask covering him you knew who it was-- however, that crinkle around his eyes was gone as Chan glared at the man you were speaking too. "She does," he growled uncharacteristically. A warning to the man as he claimed what was his. Chan didn't give the man a moment to respond as he looked down at you, his dark eyes finally shedding some light as his gaze locked with yours. "You ready to head in?"

Even though it was a question, Chan didn't allow you to answer as he guided you the opposite way down the sidewalk. Walking right past the bar he invited you out to. "Wait aren't we—”

“Changed my mind," Chan grumbled as he kept leading you down the sidewalk. “Too many drunk idiots. I know a place we can sit and eat. I'll buy you as many drinks as you want, or all the galbi you can eat? I know a joint that also makes really good jerky—”

When you paused in your tracks, some anxiety washed through Chan. Did he take it too far? He couldn't help it seeing someone trying to make their move on you—

“You called me your girlfriend,” a cheeky grin plastered on your face. Chan felt his checks heat up and he cleared his throat to turned to look away. His hand never leaving your waist.

"Technically, I just confirmed that you have a boyfriend."

Without missing a beat you stepped in front of Chan and lowered his mask to rest on his chin. You made sure to tuck his hoodie over his head to cover his face from prying eyes even though it was late at night and the streets were virtually empty. Chan gulped as you stared right at him. Not at the physical body standing in front of you—at him. "Say it," you breathed out. Chan had to steady his heart as you spoke. It wasn't a request, but a demand. Your hands staying on his hoodie as you waited for him to comply.

"You have a boyfriend," he gave a cheeky grin back as you groaned. Knowing exactly the words you wanted to hear, but decided to tease you just a bit.

"Chan—”

"You're my girlfriend.” Chan placed his hands back on your hips and absent-mindedly traced little circles just above the trim where your skin was slightly exposed. He suddenly felt nervous as he realized he was just staking a claim without talking to you about it. But the way you were almost begging to hear those words, let him know that you wanted this as much as he does. Yes, you only had one date. But the months leading up to that were the best months he had in a very long time. "And if you want, I'll be your boyfriend ..."

As you stayed quiet, he felt those damn nerves coming back up. He tried to gauge your reaction as you just stared at him, but got nothing. " What?" he joked to lighten the tension and his anxiety. "Want me to say that in Spanish to—”

Using the grip you had on his hoodie, you pulled his head down towards you and crashed your lips against his. His little squeak of surprise was muffled as your tongue grazed his bottom lip to ask for entrance. The circles he was tracing stopped immediately as he tightened his grip around you and pulled you closer. Deepening the kiss as much as he could without it being too inappropriate out in public.

You whispered against him as the two of you finally parted for air. "Let's get out of here."

Dinner was forgotten as Chan practically ran the two of you back to his dorm room. Your shirt was ripped off of you the moment he closed his bedroom door with his foot. Chan grinned wildly as you parted from his flushed lips to kiss his neck, trailing your little love bites more and more down south until you fully rested on your knees before him. Watching excitedly as your fingers made quick work of his confines and taking him into your mouth. As your eyes batted up at him, Chan let out a shaky breath and rested his head slightly against the wooden door. You couldn't contain your moans around his length as his fingers threaded your hair, gently guiding you to take him all the way to the back of your throat. Nose pressed to his pelvis.

"Look at you," Chan cooed as your eyes pooled tears from his intrusion, "all desperate from calling you mine."

Hearing you gag around his growing cock made his hips buck. Your hands found the back of his knees as he continued to rut into your filthy mouth. Your roots being slightly tugged as he tried to ground himself. The feeling of your tongue rolling around the underside of him while you suctioned in your cheeks to create a vacuum almost had him unraveling in you right then and there.

He pulled on your strands, your mouth leaving his erection with a wet 'plop', to have you standing upright before him. Your lips were parted as your chest heaved to take in deep breathes. Face flush and lips swollen he felt his cock twitch at your fucked out expression. You could've sworn you heard a growl escape him as he hoisted you up, your legs wrapping around him instinctively, lips crashing against yours and threw you on his bed. You discarded the rest of your clothes as Chan watched you, licking his lips. He could still taste himself from the residue on your lips. Ready to pounce and devour you, as if his eyes weren't already doing that enough.

"What?" Your teasing tone brought Chan out of his predatory gaze. He watched as your fingers trailed down to your core. Lightly grazing your folds, enticing him as you spread your arousal around. "Cat got your tongue?"

"Don't worry," Chan purred as he crawled onto the bed. His mouth hovering right above your mound, breath tickling your skin. "There's only one cat that has the pleasure of my tongue right now."

You gripped his sheets as soon as his tongue made contact with your bundle of nerves. Wasting no time to insert a finger to prep you. Not that you needed it, he moaned at the thought, you were already so wet. Just ready for him. All for him.

With another finger, he curled against your walls, setting the exact pace that he knew you loved. His palm keeping that delicious pressure against your clit as he moved his body up to catch a nipple between his teeth. Sucking onto it as if he was expecting something to come out of it. The thought had you reeling as your hand found his head. Holding him close against you as your hips ground against his fingers.

'I would love to go on a date with you'

'No, I want to do this right.'

'I wanted to make sure you're alright. '

Simple little sentences here and there. Words formed by the man that made you absolutely weak to your knees. Each one lead you to where you were right now—closing in on your orgasm with the most perfect man practically worshipping you.

"Chan," you whimpered, "Channie, need you in me."

Need to come around you.

The words you didn't say. But as Chan removed his lips from your breast and glanced up at you—he knew. Knew how much you craved something more than his digits to take you all the way. That you needed that stretch that only he could provide.

You squeaked as he ripped his fingers from your depths, grabbing your hips, and practically throwing you onto your stomach. He growled as you rested on all fours, arching your back and presenting yourself instantly, his teeth biting your cheeks and finally leaving those marks he desperately wanted to give you in the Inkigayo supply closet. The same growl that vibrated through him when he spoke to the man that flirted with you outside the bar earlier tonight.

Deep and guttural. Almost feral.

You almost came right then and there.

Chan and you hissed as he pressed his tip against your entrance. Chan's hand coming to the curve of your back and gently guiding you to bend a bit further for him. Your check rested on his mattress as he rubbed up and down your folds, coating himself with your arousal. "You gotta let me in," Chan teased as he experimentally pressed into you again. Still to no avail. All those weeks without one another made you lose the shape of him it seemed. Chan clicked his tongue and pressed a kiss on your spine. He didn't mind; it just meant he had to keep reminding your body. He'd gladly do so all night long if he had too.

You, on the other hand, we're starting to get frustrated. You needed him in you, it's been far too long without you wrapped around him. Your fingers, the toys you hid in your room, nothing compared to this. To him.

You pushed against him, mind too foggy to even care about the burn. Thoughts were wholly consumed of him. Chan moaned as he felt himself slightly press into you. "Careful,” he hissed as he grabbed your hips to stop you, "you're going to hurt yourself."

You turned to look over your shoulder. Your hair that was once pulled back for the date was coming undone. Strands were thrown around your face. Completely disheveled.

"Don't care."

Chan felt something in him snap. Those two words were all he needed to push himself entirely in you in one thrust. You practically screamed, and Chan was quick to wrap his hand around your mouth to muffle you. His hip never stopping their pace as he leaned down to groan in your ear; “If you don't keep it down, the kids will hear you."

By the time the two of you entered the shared dorm, the rest of his roommates had already returned from their time at the barbeque and were deep asleep in their rooms. Guess they decided against a big meal and went out for something quicker. So, you did your best to keep it down as much as you could. But by God, was that one of the most difficult things to do as Chan kept reaching the deepest part of you. Scratching that itch that you haven't been able to reach yourself for months.

Chan hoisted you up once he felt your walls adjust to him, hand still on your mouth as your back pressed flush to his chest. The other wrapping around you to rub messy circles against your clit. Your eyes rolled back as you felt your thighs spasm, pure unadulterated ecstasy coursing through your veins. Your mouth hung open as you panted heavily into his palm. The loud moans that escaped you were traded out with small whimpers. Silent little pleas for Chan to take you there.

His lips never left your skin. Kissing on your neck, jaw, ear—anything that he could latch onto so he could muffle his own noise. Only allowing the slaps of his thighs against yours to fill the room.

"Are you close?” Chan groaned in your ear. He could feel you clenching around him, closing in on your orgasm. "Where do you want it, stomach or behind?"

You shook your head at his question, whimpering against him. Neither of those is what you wanted. Him. You wanted him.

Chan felt his brow furrow slightly. This was a first. His hips slowed as the pieces of the puzzles came together. "Oh, oh?"

He withdrew entirely, earning a grumble of protest from you, and flipped you to lie on your back. He couldn't deny that he wanted it as well, and he'll be damned if he couldn't look you in the eyes as you felt his warm seed enter you for the first time. Chan's hand rested gently on your lower abdomen, kneading the skin underneath his fingertips. "Is this where you want it? Here?"

You didn't know it was possible but you could've sworn a mini orgasm washed through you as you heard him ask in Spanish. Chan chuckled quietly as he lined back up with you and gently pushed in until he was nice and snug in your warmth. Hand still on you, "I guess I can oblige. After all this is mine, right?"

"Yes, yes—” You instantly replied as he picked up his pace again. Chan's mouth finding yours in a messy kiss. The gentle touch of his palm turned into a pressure as he started to push down. No words could explain the obscene thoughts that went through his head as he felt himself move through you. He breathed in your moans that grew louder and louder with every thrust.

A crescendo as the waves of pleasure rolled higher and higher. Until it all came crashing down. Your hands found the back of his head, holding him close, as the surge flooded your mind, body, and soul with pure white hot ecstasy.

With the pressure of you holding him tight, on both ends, Chan found himself releasing deep inside you. Coating you with the very warmth you've yearning for months. Claiming everything he ever wanted.

As the ripples started to quell between the two of you, you and Chan finally parted for air. You couldn't help but give a teasing grind of your hips, earning a hiss from Chan as he pulled gently out of you before collapsing on the bed next to you face first.

"What are you doing?" You laughed as Chan just groaned in response.

“That was so good, I think I died.” His voice came muffled though his sheets. You propped yourself on your elbow on the bed before smacking your palm down on one of his cheeks. Your laughter roaring through the room as he squealed before turning on his side to find you looking down at him with that shit eating smirk. "Come here," he laughed before pulling you to lay on his chest.

Your head laid on his bare chest, listening in to his heart beat and the air that flowed in and out of his lungs. Chan's arm wrapped around you as one of your free hands traced idle circles along his collarbone, the other resting under his head in the afterglow. “Stay," he whispered so softly you barely heard him.

A plea for you to not leave him in the middle of the night like you used to before. "Of course,” you place a small kiss on his jaw before resting your eyes. Afterall, this wasn't a redezvous. This was something more. And for the rest of the night, Chan held you snug against him.

Chan only woke up when the sunlight flitted through his curtains. Groaning he turned to his side, arm stretched out in search for you. Only to be met with his sheets. His eyes flashed open and the dark brown orbs frantically scanned the room. His heart sank when he couldn't find your figure.

You promised.

Dawning some sweats, he made his way to the shared bathroom. Stopping in his tracks when a familiar giggle echoed through the dorm.

"Look who's finally awake," you smile. Chan took notice that you stole one of his hoodies and sweats as you, Jisung , and Changbin sat at the dinning room table. Hair up in a bun, completely tilted off to the side, as if you lived here your entire life. You belonged.

Images of his dream during his time in Paris flashed through his mind briefly.

You giggled as Chan walked around the table to wrap his arms around your shoulders and kiss your neck in greeting. Changbin and Jisung made gagging noises, but Chan just flipped them off before sliding a stool to sit next to you. "What are you guys talking about?"

He took note how your cheeks flushed and looked away from the table. Suddenly interested in the fruit bowl that sat on the kitchen island. Jisung made himself busy by clearing out the dirty plates and walking over to the sink. Deciding it wouldn’t be appropriate to have that kind of discussion with his elder. Changbin, however, was a stark contrast from the two of you. He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Oh," Changbin said with a drawl, “nothing much."

"Just trying to see how we can sound proof your room so the rest of the dorm can sleep without any," Changbin casted a glance at you, “interruptions."

Author's Note: I want to say I apologize for how long this took me! Work, life, and everything in between has been dragging me down and I lost some inspiration during the time away. I want to thank everyone for their kind words for part 1. I do have an idea for part 3. However, I won't have a timeline of when it can be done, since work has been leaving me a bit more drained than I imagined and I'm usually a zombie by the time I get home. Hope you enjoyed it and so sorry it's so long

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[collegeishardbutwritingisharder]

Male Yuu! Reader (Platonic Yandere) Part 2

The part 2! Let's hope that I can put the rest of the story into this! If not, then my bad! Note after nine months: I did not fit the rest of the story in here. Not even close. There are going to be so many more parts. I apologize for being gone for so long. I hope you all enjoy this and put down in the comments: which dorm you all would like to see next? That will definitely help me in the long run.

I felt a panic attack starting to form in my chest. Kidnap me? Keep me safe? From what!? I started to hyperventilate and fell to my knees.

"(Y/N)!"

Grim rushed to me and started to snuggle into my chest. He started to purr to calm me down. Thankfully, it was working. Focusing all of my attention on the rhythmic purring did wonders for my nerves. I got my breathing under control and cleared my mind.

"All right. I'm good."

I looked down at Grim with a weak smile. I needed to get business.

"Who... exactly are looking to keep me safe?"

Grim looked uneasy before spilling names.

"Basically everyone. Riddle wants to hide you in Heartslabyul. Teach you all of the rules. He said something about a Jabberwocky. I don't remember everything exactly. Riddle can be very boring."

Grim started snickering while I gulped. The Jabberwocky was a dragon-like beast, or at least in my world. How could Heartslabyul have a Jabberwocky? Or am I the Jabberwocky? Eh, that doesn't make sense.

"Then Leona said that you didn't need rules. What you needed was your pride to keep and protect you. He was yelling with Riddle, Floyd, Vil and Sebek for hours on end. It was funny to watch him struggle to get his way."

Pride... Pride... Leona kept saying that I needed my pride to protect me. Did he mean a lion's pride? Ohhhhh, this hurts my head right now.

"Azul and the tweels argued that you need to be underwater. Something about you drying out. Azul also talked about having an underwater garden to keep you in."

Oh boy, I wonder if any of Azul's failed debtors are in that garden as well.

"Kalim talked about how his family was expecting you at Silk City. He threw a tantrum when the others tried to tell him no. He nearly tried to drown Ramshackle with Oasis Maker!"

That... sounds about right. Kalim didn't appreciate it when I told him no before my brain washing.

"Vil wants to... basically make you into a doll. Or at least that's what it sounded to me. He was very passionate about keeping your beauty preserved. Rook agreed full heartedly. They both were so weird."

A lump formed in my throat. Did... Did I play in that idea just earlier? Is that why Vil picked a photo shoot?

"Ortho was there, talking about how the prefect had to start in the perfect place. Idia was there from his tablet, showing off some diagrams of some weird looking temple."

"Temple? Like... For the ancient gods?"

"Yeah! Just like those!"

That doesn't comfort me.

"Horton was there as well but... The only thing he did was watch. It was unsettling. Every once in a while, I was pretty certain a lightning strike hit the dead tree out front."

Great. If Malleus has his own plan, I'm dead. HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO AVOID A TOP FIVE MAGICIAN?! I took a deep breath to calm myself down once again.

"Okay. Now that I have more information. It's time for a game plan. NRC is no longer a safe place for my existence anymore. Time to find a new one!"

I got up from my bed and rushed to one of the storage rooms. I started to search and quickly found the maps. Sometimes when I had free time, the ghosts and I looked over all of the maps and saw how the cartography of Twisted Wonderland has changed over the years. We even found one of the current Twisted!

I grabbed the current one before taking it back to where Grim was. I rolled it out and quickly got some pins. I started to stick them into different areas.

"Sunset Savanna is a no. With Leona as a prince, he'll send out troops to find me with no problem. Coral sea is also a no mainly because we can't breath underwater. Hmmmm, Shaftlands is Vil and Cater's territory. People know them there and would most likely send pictures of me. Scratch that, no matter WHERE I am, if Vil or Cater send out a bounty for me, people will take pictures of me."

I kept muttering to myself and apparently, I was boring enough to put Grim to sleep. His sleep comments were really comforting to hear. I haven't seen him in so long. I put my hand on his head and started to scratch behind his ears.

"Sweet dreams, Grimmy. I'll try to figure out a way to get us someplace safe."

I quickly put the map stuff away before crawling into bed myself. I know that I shouldn't be letting my guard down right now but... I need a night's sleep at Ramshackle. An actual comforting place. I wrapped Grim in my arms and held him close to my chest. Finally, sleep started to claim me.

When I reopened my eyes, I wasn't staring at Ramshackle's ceiling. The roof was much too tall and too dark. I'm in Diasomnia, aren't I?

"Human! You have risen from your slumber!"

I flinched at Sebek's loud tone. Yep, I'm in Diasomnia.

"Quickly! Stand up! We must get you ready for Waka-Sama! He is expecting you for breakfast!"

Sebek grabbed my arms and pulled me up. Grim fell flat on the floor, successfully waking him up.

"Mrow! What's happenin'?!"

Grim was put on alert and surveyed the room.

"This ain't Ramshackle!"

"OUT, YOU DISGUSTING CREATURE!"

Sebek kicked Grim to the wall. Grim let out a screech of pain. I quickly ran to his side and picked him up.

"Grim! Are you okay? What's wrong with you, Sebek!?"

I turned to Sebek and gave him the biggest glare possible. He flinched and had a pitiful expression on his face.

"No, no, no! Please don't be upset with me, (Y/N)! I'm only trying to protect you!"

"The only thing that needs protection is Grim from you! I'm leaving!"

Sebek snapped back to his guard mode and gripped my wrist.

"I cannot allow that. That... feline... must be confusing you. I'll take care of him for you! Silver can help you get ready!"

Sebek pried Grim out from my arms before taking him to the window. He held Grim outside of the window frame. Grim still hadn't recovered from the kick.

"Sebek, don't!"

Sebek dropped Grim without hesitation. I rushed over to the window to only see that we were in one of the highest towers over seeing a bunch of brambles.

"No... Grim..."

"Pest taken care of! Now, I'll go get Silver."

I was mildly frozen. I couldn't bring myself to leave the window sill. I was half tempted to fall out of it as well. Just to see if Grim was really down there. A hand grabbed my arm and led me away from it.

Silver gently guided me to a mirror before walking into the closet.

"Hmmmmm... Here it is. Father did get you a proper uniform."

Silver walked back in with a Diasomnia uniform but there were some modifications made to it. The spools of thread that they have normally on a belt were weaved into a white cape that reached halfway to my bicep. The other thing is that my cap looks like Malleus'. Without the little horn details that Silver has.

"There we go. I hope that you like the cape. It was my idea."

Silver started to help me with the uniform. The shock was just starting to wear off. I tried to move away from Silver and get my original clothes back. I'm glad that I changed out of the fancy clothes that I accidentally stole from Vil before bed.

"Hey, hey... Stop moving. I want to make sure that your clothes are on properly."

Silver gripped my wrist and was quick to immobilize me. I forgot that Silver was training to become a knight. Diasomnia was a dorm full of strong magic users and strong people in general. Bad dorm to be stuck in.

"There we go. Now, let me get the rest of the uniform on."

Silver finally finished before he let me move once again. I tried to reach the door but he just linked our arms together.

"Now, now. I understand. Sebek informed me about the creature. You don't need to worry about it anymore. If you want, after breakfast, you and I can take a nap in your room. Just to calm you down."

Silver started to walk to where breakfast was. I tried to break free from him a few times but I couldn't get him to budge one inch. The doors opened and there was Malleus sitting at the head of the table.

"Silver and my little bat!"

Lilia fell from above and landed in front of Silver and me. He grabbed both of us in a hug and squeezed us tightly.

"Hello, Father."

"Ummm..."

"Thank goodness, you've arrived! Malleus was starting to worry. Come along, little bat! Take your seat."

Lilia gestured to the chair at the foot of the table. Silver unlocked his arm with mine to let me walk to my chair. I looked around the room and noticed the door on the other side of the room. Although there was one problem. Whose name was Sebek. He stood there with a proud smirk, taunting me it felt like.

I turned away from Sebek and met Malleus' gaze. It felt as if Malleus wasn't even blinking. A small push was given to me, from who, I don't know, to get my legs working. I walked to my chair and sat down. There was no food on the table which confused me. I thought it was breakfast.

"Child of Man."

I twitched my head from looking at the table to looking at Malleus. His gaze really made me feel weak and powerless.

"Yes, Horton?"

"It's a pleasure to be able to feast with you this morning. It has been quite some time since we've been able to see you last."

I only nodded my head. He was right. I've been held captive for a while. Which caused a question to pop into my head.

"Yeah, well, I've been busy with other people. Sorry for worrying you but how did you know that I came back to Ramshackle?"

"Oh, silly, little bat! Your dear big brother visited Ramshackle every night since you went missing! Just in case, you've finally decided to return home!"

Lilia answered for Malleus but that caused a shiver to run up my spine. Grim didn't mention that Malleus was visiting every night.

"Were you hurt?"

Malleus' question was sudden and it felt out of the blue. My head snapped up to look him in the eyes and it caused me to think for a bit. I don't think that I was hurt. I mean, Deuce and Kalim did cause me discomfort when they hugged me but I wouldn't count it as harm.

"No... I don't believe that I was harmed."

"Oh, little bat. You shouldn't lie to your family."

Lilia budded into the conversation once again. Floating over to Malleus.

"He... lied to us, Lilia?"

"I didn't, Horton!"

"Sebek! Silver! Calm your younger brother down."

"Yes, sir!"

Sebek and Silver moved. Silver picked me up and caught me in a hug before sitting down in my chair. Sebek then pulled out a handkerchief and tied it around my mouth.

After being sufficiently muzzled, Lilia continued with his story.

"(Y/N) was first hurt by Professor Crewel! That ungrateful professor continuously calls my dear sweet child a mutt! Little bat, I want you to know that you are so much more than a lowly mutt."

Lilia looked at me with such a warm gaze that it mildly made me forget about the position that I'm in.

"So, the nickname 'mutt' isn't a good one..."

"No, Malleus. It's basically calling him incompetent."

Malleus's eyes widen before slamming his fist down on the table.

"How dare he! Doesn't he know that the Child of Man is more competent than most on this campus?!"

"I know! Humans can hold such weird judgements of one another. The next people that hurt him were those Heartslabyul first years that he enjoys to hang out around."

"Hmmmmm, I did notice how they would always drag Child of Man into their dangerous antics before."

"Mmmhmm! They've been hurting our dear human from the very beginning!"

Lilia then continued to recall all of the different slights that people have done against me. All of the different schemes that I was pulled into, the overblots, Floyd's mistreatment during the healing process, the Scarabian kidnapping, and the one that made no sense to me, the Pomefiore photoshoot.

"Thank you, Lilia. Now, Child of Man, please. Let us enjoy breakfast."

Other Diasomnia students then walked through the doors that Sebek was originally guarding. They were carrying silver dish trays and were quick to set them down before taking their own posts along the walls. Sebek also took out the handkerchief out of my mouth. The food looked really good, which meant that Lilia didn't cook it. I tried to get my arms free to get food but Silver still hadn't let go of my arms yet.

"Ummm, Silver. Buddy. I kind of need my arms to be able to eat."

The only response that I had gotten in return was light snoring. Silver had fallen asleep with me in his arms. Normally, I thought people would loosen their grip when they fall asleep. But obviously not Silver.

"Allow me to assist you, (Y/N)!"

Sebek shouted before pulling up a chair next to mine. I felt the eyes of all the Diasomnia students watching me. Sebek cut through the pancakes that they had made before putting some up to my mouth.

"Now, open your mouth, Human."

Sebek's tone was soft for once. What is happening? Why is everybody acting like I'm an infant!?!?!?

"Open. Your. Mouth."

Sebek's harsh tone came back along with a glare. I shook my head before gritting my teeth together.

"Don't be insolent! You should be thankful that your real family is here to protect and care for you now! Unlike those false 'brothers' that abused you. Now. Let me help you with breakfast."

I kept my mouth shut.

"Awwwww, there's no reason to be fussy. Let's see. Ahhhhhh."

Lilia put his hands on either side of my jaw before pressing on it. It was quite painful and I regretfully opened my jaw. Sebek then took advantage of my pain and fed me. I tried to spit the food out but Lilia changed tactics and forced my jaw closed.

"Chew it all up! As your father, I'll have to get used to feeding you like this! Especially if you keep choosing to be fussy over nothing!"

Lilia sounded so happy while force feeding me. I was feeling very cramped with three people all around me. Eventually, I gave up and started chewing the food myself. Anything to stop the dull ache that was beginning to form in my jaw.

"Ahhh!"

"Sebek."

Sebek lowered the fork from my mouth before turning his head to Malleus.

"Yes, Waka-Sama?"

Malleus stood from his own chair and walked over.

"I want to feed the Child of Man."

I looked at Malleus with wide eyes. Sebek only nodded his head before leaving his chair for Malleus to take his seat. Malleus took the chair before picking up the fork himself.

"Ahhhhh, Child of Man."

Malleus had such a soft look in his eyes that made me feel safe? In a weird way.

"Ahhhhhh."

Malleus put the fork with the pancakes in my mouth.

"It feels nice to take care of your younger brother, doesn't it, Malleus?"

"It does, Lilia. Is this how you felt when taking care of Silver and myself?"

"Oh, yes! Taking care of those who are the most dear to you is the best feeling in the world! Make sure you treasure these moments, Malleus. They fade much too quickly."

After what felt like three hours but was actually around ten minutes, breakfast had finally concluded. The Diasomnia students, who were just watching, took the plates before leaving.

"Now. I overheard from earlier. You and Silver were going to take a nap together, right (Y/N)?"

"That was the plan, I think. Although, I don't know how much Silver is going to want to take a nap now."

"I'm always willing to take a nap with you, (Y/N)."

I jolted a bit. I didn't notice Silver waking up. I guess he really is the King of Naps.

"Perfect! Then I suppose that having a little group nap wouldn't be a bad idea! Malleus, Sebek. Are you two willing to join us?"

"I would gladly attend."

"If Waka-Sama will take a nap, then I must be there to ensure his best sleep!"

I started to think fast. Trapped in a cuddle pile won't help me get out of Diasomnia in the slightest.

"W-W-Wait a minute!"

My shout got all of the attention, which was exactly what I wanted.

"I-If we take a nap now, you guys will have to get up in a matter of minutes for class! I-I'd rather wait until you guys will be able to hang out for longer!"

The quartet of Diasomnia students just stared at me for around thirty seconds before Lilia's face gained a smirk.

"Awwwww, my baby~! So worried for your brothers' education and your own father's as well! You're such a sweet, little boy! Alright, we can wait until classes are done for today."

Lilia then clapped his hands and two other Diasomnia students appeared out of the shadows. I jumped at their appearance. Lilia then cleared his throat to address the two students.

"Please escort my little bat to his room. He will need to stay there while classes are happening. Last thing that we would need is one of those brutish students from one of the other dorms stealing (Y/N) away from his true family."

"Yes, Vice Dorm Leader Vanrouge!"

Silver let go of me and I stood up. The two students flanked me, making sure that there was little to no room for me to run away. I just gulped before walking towards where I thought that my room was located.

"We're so happy that you've finally come home, (Y/N)!"

"The whole dorm was worried sick when the rumors of you being kidnapped by the other dorms came around. Dorm Leader Draconia and Vice Dorm Leader Vanrouge were so lucky to have found you!"

"Not to mention how lucky we are! We get to spend some time with our brother too!"

The students kept talking while I tuned them out. What type of hypnosis spell went over the entire campus? Could this be some sort of attack from RSA? Although that doesn't really sound like something that they would do.

"Hold it!"

One of the students grabbed me before I opened the door to the room I was in originally.

"Huh? What's wrong?"

"This isn't your room."

I slightly tilted my head.

"But this is the room that I woke up in?"

"This is Sebek and Silver's room. Your room is elsewhere."

"Follow us please!"

The first one started to walk up a bunch of stairs while the other stayed behind me.

"This room was prepared by Dorm Leader Draconia himself! He tried to make sure that it was to your liking!"

The student in front of me opened the door to what was a near replica of my Ramshackle room. If it wasn't for the fact that the view from the window showed the outside of Diasomnia, I could have swore that I was transported back to Ramshackle.

I took a few steps forward to observe the room. I wasn't expecting for the door to be shut and locked behind me. I rushed over and tried to get it to budge.

"Hey! This isn't funny!"

"Sorry, Little Brother! We all were specially instructed by Dorm Leader Draconia and Vice Dorm Leader Vanrouge to keep this door shut while we're at classes."

I stared at the door before letting go of the knob.

"We wish that you would be able to walk around Diasomnia but the threat of another dorm finding you is too large right now."

I didn't respond before just flopping down on the bed. I thought about my morning so far.

"Grim..."

Tears started to stream down my face. Anguish and anger wrapped around my heart. I clenched my fists together and started to punch the pillow while huge tears were unleashed. After a minute of just punching, I started to take deep breaths before wiping my face clear of tears. I will get out of here. For Grim!

As soon as my little pity party was done, I got up from the bed to take a look outside. The tower was quite high. I felt my fear of heights kick in and I backed away from it. I think I'd rather live here than escape that way. I decided to explore the room a bit to see if I could find something else to help me escape.

Malleus did a really good job at replicating my room, I'll give him that. Although there are a few minor adjustments. For example, the attached bathroom, the Malleus, Lilia, Silver and Sebek plushies on my bed, and what appears to be a family portrait of all five of us on the wall. They're really selling the family idea, aren't they? How did they even get a portrait like this?

"What a poor little boy."

"Who would keep him trapped in a tower?"

"Just like a little princess."

I heard new voices that I've never heard before. I started to spin my head around trying to figure out where they were coming from. Three small balls of light. Red, green and blue.

"Hello? Who are you?"

"Why, we're the good fairies!"

"Please child. Explain as to why you're stuck here in such a... dreadful place?"

I thought of the best way to explain my situation.

"Well. People who I thought were my friends decided to kidnap me. 'To keep me safe' they say. Although I've never felt more trapped in my life."

"That just won't do! Listen up, boy! We'll help you out! We can give you three blessings! But you must use them wisely, okay? They will only work once."

I nodded my head. If there's one thing that I pride myself on, it's my wisdom. The red fae started to glow brighter.

"My gift shall be the gift of free falling. This will prevent any injury from falling."

The green fae was next.

"My gift shall be the gift of speed. Use this to outrun your pursuers."

Finally, it was the blue fae's turn.

"And my gift shall be the gift of invisibility. For a short period of time, your entire presence will be hidden from existence."

I gave the faes a light bow.

"Thank you so much."

"It's no problem, child. We hope that our magic will be of great assistance to you. I hope that our paths will cross again one day."

We said our goodbyes and then the faes disappeared in a poof of sparkles. I had to use these gifts wisely. I do only have one shot after all. It might be best to use them later. I don't know Diasomnia's layout well enough to plan a good escape route.

My best plan of action right now is to play along with their delusion, despite how much it would kill me. Play nicely, you get the upper hand eventually. Although now, I wish that I had asked if memories of me would be erased for the time that I would be invisible.

To pass the time, I decided to take to the bookshelf. Maybe I could learn something that would prove a use to me. A majority of the books appeared to be children's books. Despite those being quite entertaining, they weren't exactly helpful for knowledge. Although there was one that held important information.

The book was called 'Be Careful, Titinia!'. It was an entire book on things that can hurt faes or weaken them. The main things that I took note of were iron, salt, ash wood and sweets. I want to avoid using iron since it causes them direct harm while salt and ash wood only weakens their powers. Sweets can be used as a distraction.

"I don't know why I thought that they would leave a book to help me escape. They aren't dumb."

I spent the rest of the time contemplating. My life, my decisions and that stupid, STUPID fall. This is what spurred all of this unnecessary panic. At long last, a knock broke me out of my thoughts.

"(Y/N)! We've finally returned from our classes! You should have seen all of the other sniveling humans! They were so pathetic! They were crying out for you. Although, I must admit, I was annoyed by such displays. As if they thought that they were worthy of being with you."

Sebek walked in, followed by Silver. He seemed to be very proud of what he was relaying to me.

"Sounds stifling."

"Oh, it was! Such whiny creatures!"

I took a deep breath before getting into my role. I think that it would be beneficial if I played nice.

"D-Do you want a hug? I want to help cheer up my Big Bro!"

Sebek and Silver looked over at me with huge eyes. It's like they weren't expecting me to say that. A bright, pink blush appeared on Sebek's face before he started yelling.

"OF COURSE, I WOULD ENJOY PHYSICAL CONTACT, MY YOUNGER!"

Sebek then wasted no time in throwing himself at me. He wrapped his arms around my waist and started to snuggle under my chin. I think that I even heard little gator squeaks coming from him.

"A-Am I allowed to join in the hugs?"

Silver looked a bit desperate while looking at me with fearful eyes. It was like he thought that I was telling him that I hate him or something.

"Of course! You're my big brother as well, Silvy!"

Silver then also gained a blush and a soft smile. He seemed to have enjoyed the nickname that I just came up with.

"Hey! If he gets a nickname, what's mine?!"

Sebek looked up at me with a pout. This is reminding me of taking care of toddlers instead of dealing with kidnappers.

"Hmmmmm."

I closed my eyes while I was running through the nicknames that I could come up with.

"Tic Toc Croc?"

Sebek wrinkled his nose at that name.

"Or maybe Bolt?"

Sebek gave a smile at that one.

"Bolt it is!"

Silver got behind me and pulled me flush against his front. So, now, I was sandwiched between the two guards. Sebek let out slight squeaks while Silver was just lightly snoring in my ear. Their warmth and the noises became a form of white noise that started to lull me to sleep.

"Awwwww, what a cute sight."

Lilia had arrived and spoke in a whisper. He jumped onto the foot of the bed frame to look at us.

"My little bat looks so sleepy~ Why don't you just close your eyes while I invite Malleus? We can have that nap that we planned earlier."

I tried to keep my eyes open to the best of my abilities. Silver actually started to sway which in turn, rocked me back and forth slightly. Lilia came back with Malleus.

"Little bat! I told you to close your eyes and sleep!"

Lilia yelled in a hushed tone. It was clear that he was slightly annoyed with me but didn't want to risk waking up Sebek and Silver.

I shook my head.

"I wanted to be awake to see Malleus."

Malleus' eyes widened a bit before he gained a huge smile.

"Child of Man..."

I think that I actually saw a few tears start to form in Malleus' eyes. He then walked over and joined us in our cuddle pile. Lilia let out a laugh before joining us as well. The amount of warmth and constant soft sounds made it even more impossible to keep my eyes open.

"Shhhhhhh~ Just close your eyes, little bat. We'll all be here when you wake up~"

I felt Lilia's fingers gently close my eyelids and from there, I was asleep. I don't know how long we napped for but when I woke up, I was the last one awake.

"Little bat! Did you enjoy your little nap? I sure hope so because Papa has a lot of plans for you!"

"Papa?"

I never even called my Dad papa.

"Yep, that's me! If you ever need something from me, call out 'Papa!' and I'll be there as soon as possible! Either way, we must continue on with our plans!"

Lilia was quick to leave the cuddle pile. Sebek and Silver were still holding on to me, almost as if they were afraid that I was going to disappear.

"Did you have sweet dreams, (Y/N)?"

Sebek was looking at me with a huge smile. It seems that the nap had really refreshed him.

"Y-yeah, although, I don't think that I really had a dream."

"We all have dreams, Child of Man. You probably just don't remember it."

Malleus was the second to get up from the cuddle pile. He also looked quite refreshed.

"Silver! Do you remember where I put the stroller?!"

I felt myself blanching at that statement. What does Lilia need a stroller for?!

"Father. I really don't think that (Y/N) needs a stroller."

"But what if he gets tired on our walk?!"

"I can carry him for you, Master Lilia!"

"Hmmm, that's an option. What would you prefer, (Y/N)?"

"I think that I would prefer if Bolt would carry me if I got tired."

I let out a noise of surprise when Sebek suddenly tightened his hold on me.

"Oookay, but next time, I'll make sure to bring the stroller. Just in case of Sebek not being there with us!"

Finally, Sebek got off of me which made it easier for me to get off of Silver. Although Silver didn't make it such an easy feat.

"Uh, Silvy? D-Don't you need to get up and ready for this walk as well?"

"Hmmmmm, yeah."

He finally stood up and took me with him. I tried to get up on my own feet but Silver was still holding me. It caused me to trip over my feet multiple times.

"I thought that we would be walking."

"We will be."

"Then... Can I walk?"

A slight blush appeared on his face before he set me down.

"I... apologize. It's just...I felt very comfortable with you in my arms."

"It's okay, Silvy."

It really wasn't. But sadly, I have a part to play. Man, if only Vil could see me now. Eeehhhh, on second thought, if only past Vil could see me now. I don't think I want to see present Vil anymore.

"Alright, boys, let's get a move on! We have to start our walk now or else we're going to be late for dinner! I don't want my children hungry for long."

Lilia walked out the door, leading the way that we're going to take. Malleus walked up to me and looped his arm around mine.

"Come along, Child of Man. Lilia will outpace all of us if we wait any longer."

I only nodded before I started moving. I ended up tugging on Malleus slightly before he matched my pace. Sebek and Silver closed the door before catching up to Malleus and I. It took us ten minutes to catch up with Lilia. Well, catch isn't the right word. Found is a better one for the fact that we had to roam the hallways of Diasomnia. We ran into so many Diasomnian students, who seemed to be more than excited to see me. Some even gave me hugs or other forms of affection.

"There you kids are! I was worried for a second that someone came in and stole (Y/N) away!"

"If there was someone so foolish enough to even attempt at taking my young kin, I would have boiled their insides before ripping them to shreds."

I gulped at Malleus' words. Having someone who is part dragon be possessive over you is worse than just having a human be possessive.

Finally, after playing the waiting game for so long, we continued on with our walk and we went outside of Diasomnia. The environment surrounding the castle was, as usual, spooky but perfect for a get away. We made it slightly deep into the forest before I decided it was time to use the other faes' gifts. I started to slow down a bit before stopping completely.

"Hmmm, what's wrong, (Y/N)?"

I took a deep breath before answering Silver.

"Just needing to tie my shoe, Silvy! I would hate to trip and fall after all!"

"Let me, (Y/N)!"

Sebek moved before I could bend down. What was the most interesting part was the fact that he untied my shoe to just redo the knot. I debated in my head to wait for a different opportunity. I decided to wait for only a little longer.

Sebek stood back up and gave me such a proud smile. I nod my head before giving Sebek my own smile.

"Thank you, Sebek. I appreciate it."

"You're welcome, (Y/N)!"

Sebek turned back around and I started to take the back of the group. I watched Lilia talk animatedly while Silver was trying to avoid falling asleep. Malleus kept his posture straight and focused on our path while Sebek was scanning the forest.

They were distracted. I try to activate Blue's invisibility. I watch as blue magic sparks start at my fingertips and go down my entire body. I couldn't even see me! Using the fact that I was now invisible, I started to walk away from the group as fast as I could. I was about twenty feet away when I heard this.

"AH! (Y/N)! WHERE ARE YOU?!"

"What do you mean, Se- LITTLE BAT!?! WHERE DID YOU GO?!"

They had no idea where I was but I still had some way before I could reach the mirror. I start running and I know that I'm making a bunch of noise at this point. Sebek, Lilia and Malleus obviously know where I am based on noise.

I turn my head and see Lilia nearly grabbing the collar of the Diasomnia uniform that I was wearing. I let out a small scream as I dodge his grasp.

"Little bat! It isn't wise to make me mad!"

I was so preoccupied with Lilia that I nearly got hit by Sebek's baton.

"STOP RUNNING, HUMAN! BEHAVE FOR YOUR FAMILY!!"

Sebek's eyes were blazing with fury. I had to make a decision quickly. I remember that Green gave me super speed and tried to use that. I saw green flashes on my feet. Next thing that I knew was that it felt like my feet were flying out from underneath me. I was moving faster than I could really control it. I nearly ran into twenty different trees.

I felt the ground shake and noticed that Silver had actually sent a spell into the ground and it was erupting beneath me.

"I'm sorry, (Y/N). But I can't let you escape."

The spell caused an explosion beneath me, sending me flying into the sky. I let out a scream, my fear of heights kicked in. I heard Sebek scolding Silver for using such a spell on me.

I quickly get my brain under control and focus on using Red's free fall. I saw my body flash red and I felt more confident. I then started to glide through the air trying to get to the mirror, I could see it. I heard an air whistle and noticed that Malleus was flying straight for me.

"(YYYYY/NNNNN)!!!!!"

I narrowly avoid Malleus' dive and quickly land on the ground in front of the mirror. I watched as I blinked blue, green and red to signify that the gifts had ran out. I looked around, noting how close the four of them were before rushing into the mirror. Once in the Hall of Mirrors, I look around before choosing a mirror to hide away in.

[lupinescribbler]

Tips to Writing Emotional Dialogue!

No hard and fast rules here, just some things I've seen in media and incorporate into my writing that I think can help emotional dialogue hit the mark. Use or discard as suits your writing/story!

Build up!

Emotional dialogue will hit harder when the groundwork has already been set. There's lots of ways to do that. One is what I call the "naming", let something exist in the story without being properly addressed or labeled, until it finally is. A character bitterly saying "I never was (a child)" (hello Dean Winchester) is going to hit a thousand times harder if you've already seen that. If you've seen glimpses of their childhood, or how their childhood has affected their adulthood, if there's been jokes or throw away lines, or stories/storylines that surround that idea without naming it, if you've watched the character come to turns with it, or treat it blithely, or hide it. You need to build something up in order to pay it off.

2. Action!

Dialogue in general, especially long stretches of dialogue, can end up feeling stale when nothing is happening during it. I tend to like to use action to reflect and support the dialogue. I don't mean action as in a fight scene (imo, drawn out conversations in the middle of a fight scene can end up feeling too unrealistic). I try to focus on how an action can serve as a backdrop to reflect the emotion of the conversation of the scene. If a character has been avoiding the issue they could avoid it both verbally and physically by performing a distracting task (taking the groceries in, sharpening their sword, fixing their car, etc). Or it could reflect something about the lifestyle of the characters or their current headspace. I also like using action to reflect the emotions entering into and progressing through the dialogue. Is the task frustrating them? Do they abandon the task when the dialogue starts intensifying, or redouble their efforts? What can happen in the action to progress it alongside the conversation? Do they slam the fridge door? Do they ask the other person to pass them a wrench? Do they give up?

3. Setting + Context!

Similar to action, but often more passively, I like using the setting to influence or emotionally enhance the conversation. How does the environment shape how the characters are feeling or the conversation unfolds? Are two people having an argument in a public place, one embarrassed and trying to shut it down while the other escalates? Are they shoulder to shoulder in the cabin of a sinking ship, listening to water sloshing, thinking they're going to die and they better get this off their chest? I find describing some actions and environmental factors can help change the pacing of a conversation, generally by slowing it. If there's a pause in the dialogue, make the readers and not just the characters feel it.

4. Tone + Expression + Movements!

These can be delicate to balance. Personally, I tend to overemphasize the tone character's are speaking in, and am working on doing just what is necessary to establish the emotion instead of everything possible. Mostly I'd recommend 1) focusing on where a description of tone/expression/movement is most helpful/impactful. 2) varying how and what you're describing (don't have someone shrug a million times in a scene, or voice crack every sentence, etc. It will mean less every time it pops up). 3) Vary long/prosy stuff with stuff that's short and hard hitting. Be willing to cut out good lines to make better lines hit harder. If you tend towards either one of the other (long vs short) edit through to add more variation in the other direction. 4) Weigh exact word choice, especially if you're naturally more wordy (like me, lol) sometimes you have to sacrifice a little nuance for impact, and sometimes you can switch out two words to a third that encapsulates both, etc. Or if you tend to be short, you might figure out a place where an added description would add more clarify and nuance.

Final thoughts:

I hope this was readable and maybe helpful :) my best recommendation is always to reflect on what best suits your voice, and what you find most impactful in what you read/watch. So many different voices/styles of writing can crush an emotional scene in their own way. For example, I've been reading Jack Reacher recently, which has a way more blunt, taciturn, and factual approach to emotions/emotionally heavy scenes, and frequently knocks them out of the park in ways I never would have thought of.

[moosewinchester]

sam fic rec list

i have read an incredible amount of fanfiction in the past few months, and it seems only right to share some of my recent favorites in honor of sam's birthday! everything on the list is completed, i've only recced one fic or series per author (though i highly recommend checking out these authors' other fics), and i've kept the list to fics with under 500 kudos, because i'd really like to shout out some lesser-known works.

there's so much more wonderful fic out there that i've read in recent months that i'm going to be kicking myself for not thinking to include tomorrow. but here are a twelve that i've either read or reread recently! i've got a small variety going on here, but many of the fics i've listed are focused on either sam's cage trauma or his psychic abilities! i've never done a fic rec list before, but i hope people enjoy taking a peek at some great fics <3

Forged by @withthekeyisking-writer 21,225 words | mature, gen

Tim and Reggie said they'd be back, and it wasn't an idle threat. This time, they won't give Sam a chance to say "no".

i love everything i've read from this author, but this might be my favorite. it's gotten multiple rereads from me, and while the whole fic is great, i think my favorite part has to be the moment at the end once sam's been found. i could read a 200k epic taking place after the fic looking at its consequences. i'm so fascinated and i love it so much

Like a Little Splinter Buried in Your Skin by lemenday 7,007 words | not rated, gen

Sam and Dean successfully take out a witch while on a case, but not before she curses them to swap bodies. Now Sam’s hungover, Dean can’t handle being freakishly tall, and it doesn’t help that weird things keep happening all around them. To top it all off, Sam’s clearly hiding something.

i haven't read many body swap fics, but i'm so glad i read this one. i love the look into how sam's powers and blood might affect what that could look like. i love dean's hypocrisy about the psychic abilities here, because it's so funny. genuinely a hilarious take on the premise!

To Mend a Broken Heart by daydreaming-scribe 74,970 words | teen, Max Banes/Sam Winchester

Jody and Donna call Sam up for help on a case in Iowa. He jumps at the opportunity, ready to get out of the stifling atmosphere of the Bunker. Once he gets there, however, he makes a surprising discovery. Set right after The Scorpion and the Frog.

such a stunning series that hits on so many of my favorite things to see in fic: an exploration of sam's trauma in regards to intimacy, a look into his autonomy issues in regards to dean, the return of his psychic powers, and a really great rarepair! i'm not tagging the author's tumblr as it doesn't look like they're in the fandom anymore, but i wholeheartedly recommend these fics.

The Voice by @broken-cinders 37,702 words | general audiences, gen

It's supposed to be a witch. It's supposed to be easy. Sam and Dean shouldn't have to do more than help burn the body. But, when Sam and Dean are faced with an unknown monster, the consequences will be life-altering for all the Winchesters. Will they be able to fix the problem, or will Sam have to learn to adapt to the newest challenge in his life?

the first fic is really good, but i think the sequel of little shapshots from later in the timeline is my favorite. the first fic does a great job of exploring how sam losing his ability to speak might more metaphorically affect how much of a voice he has within his family. and i love that there's no easy fix. the scene with the little girl in the airport and the snapshot with mary in the sequel are so incredibly good. i love sam using asl <3

sink your teeth in 'cause now i gotta feel it by @songsforskyline 13,482 words | mature, gen

There’s ten seconds of nothing before everything goes to hell.

i am slightly obsessed with everything ad_castra writes, and if it weren't for my self-imposed rules for this rec list, there are so many other fics by them i would be considering including! but i do particularly love this one. 10x03 fics that do something interesting with demon dean my beloved. the exploration here of the idea of dean possessing sam is so good.

You Can Always Go Home by safiyabat 29,656 words | f/m, Jessica Moore/Sam Winchester + Josie Sands/Henry Winchester

When Henry Winchester casts his time travel spell as seen in 8.12, it brings him to Stanford University in 2005. More specifically, it brings him to the apartment of young psychic Sam Winchester and his witch fiancee, Jess Moore. Abaddon follows. Can Sam, Jess and the Men of Letters reconnect with the hunters in their family in time to stop a bloody rampage? And what about the Yellow-Eyed Demon? How will his plans be affected by the sudden appearance of a Knight of Hell?

i had to highlight this one because i think it's absolutely criminal that there isn't more fic with henry and sam. as a sam fan, this is just some wish fulfillment-y fun. sam gets to be psychic, and everyone gets to live, including henry, and including jess.

bad faith by sheepishlion 5,851 words | not rated, gen

Jimmy glances around the room, eyes darting, and Sam feels almost nauseous watching him. Something that’s not Castiel is in Castiel’s body, Sam’s mind supplies in a panic, but another part of him corrects that thought: Castiel is the something. The body is back in its proper state. The story of Jimmy Novak is Sam's worst nightmare, which is something he didn't fully consider until he was left alone in a room with the guy for an hour. Sam thinks it could've gone worse. It definitely could've gone better.

i am so incredibly normal about this fic and its concept. i love how this explores the horror of being a vessel. sam and jimmy novak just having to sit there and talk to each other long after jimmy has died is so good. so horrible for them both and i love it.

Nothing's Safe by @rockstarsatan 26,070 words | mature, Castiel/Sam Winchester

In which the only way for Cas to save Sam in the Born Again Identity is to possess him. Sam, however, does not know what is going on, and sees him as Lucifer. -- "It was funny. Of course, the thoughts came in flashes, and they were somewhat bland in flavour, like the world was still in colour but the synapses in his brain were all turning through a disconnected filter. He remembers wanting to ask Cas about if his brain was alright. He remembers the first time Cas healed him, and how he felt like he could think clearer than he had in years. He remembers looking at Cas and making sense of everything including him through new comprehension. He remembers seeing nothing but love. It’s all so funny. Because with one touch, Cas also destroyed him."

another author whose fics i am always excited to see posted or updated! i really love this one and the way it explores cas and sam's relationship as well as sam's autonomy issues. such a good combination of things (including cas and sam, into one body)!

Vital Signs by @ambersock 42,905 words | teen, gen

With shaking hands he stabs at the buttons, missing once, twice, and he has to force himself to take several deep breaths to subdue the panic. A very deliberate, controlled motion lets him pop up the contact details of the text with the intention of auto-dialing the number, and he does a double-take because the number associated with the text isn’t Amelia’s. But he does know whose number it is. An AU where Sam doesn't fall for Dean's fake text and confronts Benny instead.

once again, it's difficult to choose a favorite ambersock fic, but i really enjoyed following this one along as it reached its end. sam and benny absolutely deserved to become friends, and this is such a good take on them and on sam in season 8.

we were never gonna make it out alive (we're still barely getting by) by Duck_Life 12,144 words | teen, gen

Lucifer walks the Earth, determined to track down Kelly Kline and his unborn son. He's wearing a familiar face.

genuinely flabbergasted that this only has 58 kudos. lucifer possessing jess in season 13 and everything that concept entails is so fascinating. we also get to see apocalypse world jess!

Saving Grace by @cas---2y5 37,139 words | explicit, Gabriel/Sam Winchester

There were a few things Sam couldn’t quite figure out: why was a prince of hell baiting him, who the hell was Samael, and why could he all of a sudden sense grace? Lucifer’s free, the apocalypse is looming, and Sam feels…off. Is something changing, or is it just finally clawing its way out? Sam finds his answers in Gabriel, and will have to make the hard choice between who he is and who he’s supposed to be. Even with Gabriel’s help, will it be enough to stop the apocalypse and save the world?

in the best way, this is the type of story that i would fall asleep thinking of where my favorite character gets super cool super op powers. one of the tags is "i wrote this for me but you can read it too," and that is exactly the energy it exudes. a super fun read for op power wish fulfillment purposes!

Regrettable Situations in Storage Room 3 by @bradycore 6,198 words | general audiences, Castiel & Sam Winchester or Castiel/Sam Winchester

It’s not easy to get to the Farmers Market in the middle of a pandemic, but desperate times call for desperate measures. Sam would do anything to get some fresh air and sunlight, Cas really, really wants his organic honey, and most importantly, Dean’s not home to stop them.

cas and sam just. share a body for a bit! for fun, and for healing, and for the farmer's market. i once again just highly recommend occasionally_always' fics in general, because they do a really great job of exploring sam concepts that i don't think i see as often but am so happy to have the chance to read.

[daisyvisions]

Lend a Helping Hand - (kv.m)

➺ Pairing - gym spotter!Kevin x fem!gynmast reader

➺ Summary - Rule number one in the gym: “Never fall in love with your teammate”. But it doesn’t count if he helps you in more ways than one, right?

➺ Word Count - 2.2K

➺ Warnings - Smut (18+, minors DNI), gym spotter!Kevin, fingering, sexual massaging, lots and lots of sexual tension, strength kink if you squint, soft!dom tendencies (?), reader’s got a crush on Kevin (and vice versa), cursing, some jealousy, pet names (sweetheart, baby), mentions of boners, inaccurate mentions of a gymnast’s life most likely, let me know if I missed anything!

➺ Author’s note - late birthday gift for the one and only Kevin Moon! Been sitting in the WIPs for months now. Please know I’m not a gymnast nor do I have vast knowledge on the sport, so if there are any errors… just ignore them. I got inspired by a video I saw and just had to write about it (definitely wasn’t thinking of Kevin’s arms flexing too in the process 🥴) Prompts 5,55,66 were used from this list! Proofread once.

➺ Taglist: @deoboyznet @winterchimez @snowflakewhispers

Thinking about gym spotter!Kevin, who you end up meeting for the first time during practice.

Your usual gym spotter had sprained his arm the other day and because you didn’t have the time to wait for him to fully heal (since the competition was a few weeks away), your coach decided to pull in a substitute for you instead.

At first you didn’t really pay attention to him as you enter the gym. You were too focused on perfecting your routine that you immediately zoned out everything around you. It was the qualifying round for nationals, so you had to keep your head in the game no matter what.

But as you accidentally miss a step while doing your routine, you nearly fall off the beam almost land the wrong way. As your heart starts beating rapidly while your life flashes before your eyes, a strong pair of arms were able to luckily catch you just in time before the fall.

“Hey are you okay? Are you hurt?” His hand cradling your face impulsively as he checks on you. Your heart starts beating fast for an entirely different reason suddenly.

God this guy was really hot! Wait a minute… Who the hell is this guy?

“I-I’m fine.” You stutter. “Thanks for catching me.”

“Anytime.” He gently smiles back at you, his hand still cradling the side of your cheek as his free arm holds you tightly around the waist.

You couldn’t help but quickly gawk at the size of this arms as he pulls away and helps you get up, his muscles flexing naturally under the lights you had to make sure you weren’t drooling right in front of him.

“Sorry, what was your name again?” You ask as you try to divert any intrusive thoughts taking over.

“Kevin, you sub spotter-” He gives you a firm handshake. “-didn’t get to introduce myself earlier since you were wearing headphones.”

“My bad, a habit of mine before I practice.” You answer sheepishly. You don’t know why you’re getting shy all of a sudden around Kevin. Your usual spotter was just as good looking as he was so you should’ve been immune to Kevin’s natural charm instantly. But then it clicks… It’s because he’s exactly your type.

No, you can’t do this. You mentally snap out of it. The first rule you told yourself from day one was to never ever fall in love with your teammate.

You have to focus on winning and making it to the top, nothing else but that. But you realize that rule you made for yourself gets harder to follow as the days go by with Kevin around. As you got to know and spend more time with him, you discover how well you two actually get along, making the butterflies in your stomach flutter every single time and harder to resist him entirely.

But of course, with every little crush a girl has comes the ugly green monster out of nowhere, especially now as it hovers over your shoulder while you watch Kevin spot for another gymmate of yours from afar. Your eyes seething with jealousy as his hands expertly grab her waist, or the way she looks at him with that look.

C’mon, get it together, you mentally slap yourself. You can’t be acting or thinking like this at all! Not when the competition is just a few days away. You shake your head, trying to not give into your emotions and focus on practicing your routine again.

As your body follows to the rhythm of your routine, you couldn’t help but hear your gymmate’s flirtatious giggle at Kevin, distracting you from landing properly as you miss an important step. A loud thud echoes throughout the gymnasium as your body falls to the ground rather harshly.

Your shriek of pain reaches Kevin’s ears at an instant, his head snapping at your direction before he sprints your way. He doesn’t hesitate to scoop you in his arms, carrying you bridal style and moving swiftly as he rushes you to the infirmary.

Just his luck, the nurse happened to be taking her break so he decides to take care of the situation himself and lay you down at the nearest vacant bed. He tries his best to console you while he gently asks you what happened and what parts of your body hurt. You attempt to reassure him that you’re alright, but with the held back tears in your eyes it was obvious you weren’t okay at all.

“Please, tell me where it hurts.” Kevin’s concerned voice tugging at your heartstrings.

“No, you’re going to laugh-” You try to hide your face.

“Sweetheart, I promise you I won't. I want to help you.” The nickname flying over your head as you try to calm down.

“Fine.” You sigh. “It’s a good thing I landed on my ass instead of my head. But now it hurts real bad.” You let out a hiss as you try to adjust your position.

“Lie on your stomach. Let me try to massage it out alright?”

“O-okay.” You stutter as you slowly flip to your other side, letting out another sigh as you get into a comfortable position.

“Just a sec, let me find a lotion that can help soothe the ache.” You hear Kevin’s footsteps walking to the other side of the room, searching for the muscle ointment. As soon as he walks back, you feel the pads of his fingers press down on your lower back.

“Does it hurt here?” He asks and you shake your head in response.

“How about here?” The pressure of his fingers now moving on top of your tailbone.

“A little, but I think it might be lower than that.” You reply.

Then suddenly you feel the heel of his palm pressing on your ass cheek. You let out a mix of a moan and a groan as you start to feel the ache of the pain but at the same time how warm his hand feels on you right now.

Out of all days to be wearing your most revealing body suit to practice it had to be today…

“Y-yeah right there…” You croak, trying your best not to moan.

“Got it. Is it alright if I massage you here?” Kevin asks. God he’s such a gentleman, the way his hands feel on you and his soothing voice make your face feel like it’s on fire.

“S-sure. Go ahead.”

Kevin opens the bottle, squeezing the liquid onto his palms and rubbing his hands together before gently placing them on your skin. The cold liquid spreading on your skin makes you slightly jolt at first, but you later ease into it as Kevin slowly works his hands on your lower part of your glutes.

Your eyes flutter shut, finally relaxing as you feel the pain slowly going away (his hands are really something else…)

“I'm gonna lift your body suit a bit to get a better coverage is that alright?” Kevin asks for your consent again before going any further.

“Yes, just do what you need to do.” You mindlessly let out a sigh of content.

His hands start kneading your skin, making sure he’s really massaging those pain points but at the same time trying to get you to relax. He noticed how tense you were since you entered the gym this morning, thinking of ways to get your mind relaxed before the competition.

This wasn't the ideal scenario he had in mind but the way your eyebrows start to relax tells him this was more than alright.

And it didn’t help that you were moaning under his touch. Every sound you made had his cock slightly twitching with need while he continues to massage your sensitive muscles. He doesn’t know how long he can stay composed, especially with how your skin feels so soft beneath his calloused hands.

As the heel of Kevin’s palm presses against a particular spot on your skin, you involuntarily let out a deep groan.

“Fuck, right there Kev. Keep going.” You don’t realize the impact of how you sound as you say these words to him, his throat drying up each second that passes as he tries to hold back from letting out any involuntary moans of his own.

He continues to massage that spot, the one right below your ass cheek. His fingers go deeper between your inner thighs, the heat from your core radiating off you so much that he could feel it at the tips of his fingers.

He’s so tempted to rip your body suit in half and bury his face in-between, running his tongue against your skin until he goes straight into your-

“Feels so good Kevin.” You whine.

“Yeah? You like it when I massage you there?” He slightly teases.

“Mhm.”

“Good. You’ve been so stressed lately-” Kevin’s voice goes one octave lower than normal. “Been wanting to make you feel better these past few days.” His fingers inch closer to your sex as he says these words, making your breath hitch.

“W-want me to make you feel better?” His now sultry voice oozing into your ears. You’ve been trying your best not to squirm under his touch since you got you into this position, but right now all you can think about is hands roaming and massaging your entire body.

Gym rules be damned. You need him and his fingers in your right this second or else you might just explode.

“God yes, please. Touch me Kevin.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice.”

Kevin continues to tease you a bit with his current massage pattern until his hand starts inserting between your inner thighs, the pads of his fingers grazing the covered entrance of your cunt. He slowly pulls the panties of your suit to the side, slipping a finger between your folds as he finds you sensitive bud.

“Fuck- baby you’re so wet.” He hisses at the immediate contact. You do nothing but moan in response, trying to subtly grind yourself on his finger.

“Tsk, impatient now are we?” Kevin catches you.

“Don’t worry I got you.” You suddenly feel the warmth of his body hovering over you.

“Let me take care of you yeah? I’ll do the work.” His bottom lip brushing against the shell of your ear before he inserts two fingers inside your wet heat, slowly curling them in and out of you until he starts to pick up the pace.

You try bury your face against the pillow you've been lying down on, muffling down your moans of pleasure as the squelching noise of you being fingered echo through the room.

“Mm I can do this all day-” Kevin mumbles under his breath as he watches his fingers fuck your entrance.

“Only I get to touch you like this, okay?”

“Yes! Please!” You whine out. “Moreeee-” Your words start to slur before they get caught in your throat as you gasp, feeling Kevin stretching you out by adding another finger inside you.

“You’re doing so good for me baby.” He praises you.

“Please, please, please-” You beg, “Am so close.”

“Yeah? Wanna cum on my fingers is that it?”

“Uh-huh” You grip the pillow for dear life as three fingers continue to pound into you. He can feel the wetness of your cunt growing by the second, your walls fluttering tighter around his digits as you get closer to your high.

Kevin leans forward, his lips close to your ear once more. “Let go sweetheart, I got you.”

And just like that, a gush of warm liquid flows onto his fingers as you scream into the pillow. Your essence dripping onto his hand as he slowly pulls out his fingers from your entrance. He stares at the the pearlescent coat on his fingers in awe, inspecting it like it’s a national treasure.

As you slowly turn your head to face him, you catch him sucking at his cum coated fingers, letting out a near animalistic growl as he tastes you on his tongue.

“Looks like you’ve got me all hot and bothered.” Kevin chuckles as he looks down to see the outline of his rock hard boner beneath his gym shorts.

“Y-you need some help with that?” You playfully tease him.

“After the competition. Can’t have you too distracted now can we?” He smiles back at you as he helps you flip over onto your back, leaving a gentle kiss on your forehead. You pout in response, making Kevin find you cuter than ever.

“Alright, how about this… Let me massage you one more time after practice at my place-” His face going dangerously closer to yours. “And if you nail your qualifiers I'll take you out on a proper date. Deal?”

You suddenly give him a mischievous smile in return as your hand runs down from his abs down to his hard cock, teasing him as you lightly tug on his length. A surge of confidence suddenly running through your veins at his reaction.

“Deal.”

[astropookie]

intrusive thoughts astro version

mamoru yamamoto

I’ve noticed earth mars in signs or degrees gets aroused when their sexual partner it’s having a good time, adding that’s because of them.

if asteroid rhiannon (16912) it’s about running away, what would happen if it’s on 12H. ik what about it but 😭 I can’t help it but point it out.

rhiannon (16912) conjunct mercury means escape from situations thanks to their persuasiveness

return venus conjunct natal venus -in venus return chart-: you’re finding your aesthetic/style you feel more comfortable and that vibes with your vibe 😝. also the energy of your sign/house and degree is PRESENT, that’s why during all that period of time you could feel too prideful without hesitation. mine was sag venus 11H 6° (virgo degree), i was feeling a little too optimistic or enthusiastic and cut out people. you’re being kind of truth to yourself?

natal jupiter square return pluto -in venus return chart-: you’re in a period of rebirth and thanks to your lucky nature -natal jupiter- you’re deciding not to end it. wanting it or not, you have this feeling of overcoming things.

when I used placidus system, my moon was in 1H, then I used whole sign system and my moon changed to 2H. for a while I preferred placidus bc I didn’t feel seen by the 2H moon chart. then I realized the 2H characteristics where in front of me the whole time. I wanted to feel understood, 1H moon was comforting the idea that I’m sensitive and feel emotions insanely deep. besides, 2H moon it’s about craving for comfort and security. I was only focused on the financial part, the stereotypical and superficial part. it’s a good thing to compare both charts to analyze how they can guide you.

uranus 12h in Eros persona chart shows u crave for intimacy 😭

idk why every time I end up getting stressed and bored about a friend is when I have mercury square their neptune. -reading note: she’s still my friend, we just have different point of views or forms to process information. the mercury part doubts constantly about others opinions and arguments and they see neptune as impulsive and kind of ignorant, bc their way of believing in things.

referring to the solar eclipse -April 8, 2024- my 3H has been affected -aquarius ascendant-, days after, out of nowhere -I havent had connection with them- I’ve received a voice message from the lilith person I was talking about on my posts, someone I used to be friends and distanced myself away from them. I decided to listened to it on the day of solar eclipse without thinking thinking about this coincidence -solar eclipse, 3H is affected-.

natal neptune sextile transiting venus: i felt like I was high even though I took my adhd pills 😭 I was so in peace? I felt emphatic? transits with your dominant planet have a huge effect on your mood. mine’s neptune and was sextile transiting venus.

I’ve noticed people with saturn 8H are kind of like a libra venus, in a way they’re afraid their love experience won’t be as they dreamed. saturn 8H creates restrictions on sexual attitudes and matters. imo 8H mix love and sexual desires, they need something that would drag them out of their secure space, they’re afraid. they’re late bloomers when’s about their first kiss or etc.

3H stellium at a distant, it’s giving introvert or distant vibes, they try to process things logically and could be a little slow to catch a joke?

I have a friend I thought was mean and in her energy💅, could be described as intimidated. she’s the opposite. when I saw her birth chart it made total sense, coming from an aquarius ascendant -saturn ruled like capricorn-, I had no clue she was a saturn ruled. it always surprises me how defined some rising’s energies can be presented.

sun 4H brings a sense of familiarity, even more when your mars is 4H, you feel more comfortable with them -sun 4H-, they remind you of your family or the vibes.

pisces 7H in solar return chart could tell you’re expecting a lover, doesn’t mean you’re having one 😭 i swear this solar return was like that, I meet a person and then proceed to imagine a relationship with them.

(*ᴗ͈ˬᴗ͈)ꕤ૮꒰ྀི⸝⸝> . <⸝⸝꒱ྀིა ∗ ࣪ ˖༺ ♡ ༻˖ ࣪ ∗ */ᐠ - ˕ -マ✩ (˶˃ᆺ˂˶)∗ ࣪

♡ Based on personal experience and I’ve analyzed in my surroundings.

♡ English is not my first language.

♡ I’m not a profesional astrologer.

Thank youu. baibaiii🫣🫶🏼💋

[starreyblueberry]

UGHHH it hurts me thinking about how Peri could very much take after Timmy and also have a Huge diligence into not being like him. For one he's Snarky as HELL, he has comebacks to almost everything, which I wonder who else does that. Peri had to watch Timmy grow up with these awful parents and watch him basically be adopted into his family. Timmy made SO many loopholes, he made so many world-ending wishes, as well as him being the son of Cosmo and Wanda- two very infamous fairies who've been on trial more times than you can count. He didn't want to be like them or cause destruction; he just wanted to give some kid a bit more light in their world, like how he saw it with Timmy. The problem with Dev though was he needed someone like Cosmo and Wanda, he needed those fairies who were willing to bend the rules a bit, and form a close connection with their godkid. Peri was just too distant, he was too focused on being a Godparent he forgot that what Dev needed was a parent. Or at least some sort of adult-figure in his life that showed him care, which Peri (while he was trying his best!) was not rlly good at. This could be for a lot of reasons, but I really do think the underlying issue, was Timmy. Timmy was considered to be one of the best and worst godkids for christ sake, Do you really think Peri wants someone like that first go? or if he even know HOW to godparent like that! Cosmo and Wanda have been godparents for THOUSANDS of years, and yes while Timmy was unique to them, I'm sure them having been godparents to who knows how many kids helped with raising Timmy to be the best him he can be. (In my opinion, dev and hazel should have had their fairies swapped, but hey that's just a me thing). Peri had to loose a godkid that he got so, so attached too. It's not impossible that he just doesn't want to experience that type of attachment again, but for a kid like Dev, he kinda needs too. I want a scene where Peri opens up about Timmy to Dev, and explains how he's trying his best, and that he wants to be there for Dev idk :( I think that there's so much potential in the next season to directly explore the dynamic between Peri and Dev, while also reflecting upon Peri and Timmy! How without Timmy, Peri wouldn't be who he is today, he wouldn't go and be a Godparent, and how he would never replace his older brother, but that he also needs to learn about connection with other kids. Dev needs a Cosmo/Wanda in his life, he needs someone who while explains the rules, is able too loophole and teach Dev a lesson. Who pays attention to him, and sure not be a father, but be whatever he needs at that moment!

This was suppose to be a Timmy essay how did it turn to a peri and dev one omfg

[rottenpumpkin13]

I keep thinking about what would happen if the firsts+Turks had to take care of children/babies they had to rescue from a village while they wait on their parents to get them. I feel like it would be a nice mix of pure chaos and wholesomeness.

➜ Genesis gathers the kids around for storytime (don't ask him how he had a children's book readily available on hand), doing exaggerated tones, dramatic gestures, and silly voices that make the kids hang on to his every word. Hearing them beg for "just one more story" makes him feel all warm and gooey inside and he's definitely holding back tears. He also plays dolls with the little girls and teaches them a few swear words because he comes up with telenovela scenarios that are not fit for children but shh focus on the good (˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶)

➜ Zack is like a giant kid himself, so he has no qualms about playing pretend (and taking it seriously, okay? the man will scream his head off if a kid says there's a dragon in front of him and will fight the air). The kids adore him because his energy is contagious. Definitely the most popular with the kiddos but shh don't tell Angeal. But Zack also encourages the kids to climb trees and play in the mud so perhaps he's not the best influence…

➜ Reno, surprisingly, turns out to be a natural with the kids. He’s quick to organize a makeshift sports team with Rude, splitting the children into teams and coaching them through impromptu games…He did pull a whistle out of nowhere and refers to the kids as "snot noses" but he's surprisingly patient as he explains the rules and makes sure everyone is playing fair…until one boy questions his authority and Rude has to hold him back from fighting a child.

➜ Sephiroth is visibly uncomfortable in the presence of so many tiny, inquisitive humans. He tries his best though, answering their endless questions with serious consideration, as if he's in briefing—he refers to the kids as 'sir' and 'ma'am' and they love that he treats them like tiny adults. And then the children start playing with sticks as makeshift swords. He steps in, adjusting their forms and offering practical tips while sharing stories of how he made good use of sticks as weapons when he was a boy…..Ignoring the fact that Sephiroth taught a bunch of kids how to wield stakes, he somehow ends up in a braid train with some older girls. Eventually one child falls asleep in his arms and he refuses to move a muscle. He feels fully responsible for this child now.

➜ Tseng is initially stiff and uncomfortable around the children, but then he encounters a little girl with wide green eyes and a brown hair who reminds him so much of Aerith at that age. He crumbles immediately. Tseng is now playing with dolls and enduring the pang of guilt, remembering how innocent Aerith was, and how much she’s endured since. He pushes the feeling down, focusing on making the little girl laugh, determined to protect her if only for a little while.

➜ Angeal and Cissnei are dealing with the aftermath of Sephiroth teaching the kids how to successfully use sticks to attack each other, and are actively running around confiscating the sticks.

*Zack sees Cissnei taking away a stick from a child* Zack: Aww, what are you? The fun police?? *Angeal is wrestling a stick out of a child's hands in the background—he's losing* Cissnei: Do you have any idea how dangerous this is? Someone could get seriously hurt! *Angeal is thwacked in the face with the stick* Zack: Don't be silly! Sticks are great toys for kids! *The child hits Angeal in the shins. He falls down* Cissnei: ….Hm…I guess you're right. Do you want to come help me gather more so we can assemble an army? Zack: Do I! *More children have appeared with sticks to gang up on Angeal. Sephiroth will pay for this dearly*

[neahtrix]

Hi :) how are you? I wanted to ask do you have any TUA fanfic suggestions?

Boy do I ever! All of mine are Five centric since he’s heavily my fav, but a lot of other characters are involved too.

Dealing with doppelgängers is a good one for alternate Five who never time travelled. The Hargreeves we know have to work with him to get back to their timeline and it features lots of angst and plot twists!

Dystopian Misopedia is a S4 theory fic centred on Five and how he navigates a Reginald-rules world as a physics 13 year old. Haven’t reread this for some time but was one of the first multi chapter fics I read

Counting blessings is a pre-S4 release where Five ends up living with Diego and Lila (a personal fav trope of mine) and has to open up about his struggles of adapting to their new world

Guilt Trip is where Five gets spiked during a fight with the Commission and ends up attacking his family. Lots of angst and feels but the comfort is worth it

Lila and Five Vs The New Timeline is a really good series about Five and Lila in there new timeline and how they’re adapting to it. Features 2 fics with their fair share of angst and hurt/comfort. Please do read the tags on this one though

Holding It Together is one that everyone recommends but for good reason. I adore this fic and its whole series. Features yet another alternate Five who never time travelled as well as 2 OC’s who are such good characters and help out Hargreeves to get back to their timeline while helping Five with his mental state

Thought Contagion is a really good fic where Reginald shows Five the future and uses him as the Commission did to show the future how he wants. The fic follows after his funeral and how the siblings try to help Five recover from his past

Cozytober is a collection of fluff and hurt/comfort fics about Five and other characters. Really good ideas in here with a small 2 chapter AU - also recommend checking out the author of you like Five & Diego as a duo

suffer no fools is another fic where Five lives with Diego and Lila post-S3. Features an autistic Five and delves into a more childlike version of him but is really good for angst

somewhere ages and ages hence is about Five seeing his siblings in the clothes they died in and how he reacts to such, as well as taking the clothes that he’d stolen in the apocalypse. Ch1 focuses on the angst while ch2 is more comfort

What If I Just Didn’t Do It? Is another S4 idea where the siblings reconnect with Five after they all split up and it shows Five’s life in foster as well as retconning a few S4 plots

A Little Psycho a Little Longer is a fic where the symptoms of Paradox Psychosis last longer than in canon and how Five deals with them

These are all the fics in my bookmarks but there’s tons more of you dive deep enough. As always, check the tags for all these fics jjst in case!

And shameless plug of my own AO3 account where I try to write fics when I have time. A small multi chapter one might be coming soon tho!

[noctilucid]

Dannymay Poetry - Day 18 King

"Oh!  Can I go next Mr. Lancer?" Kwan asked, raising and waving his hand from his seat in the middle of the room.  

"Wait, wait—" Dash leaned forward to clap a hand on Kwan's shoulder.  "I can't go after you, man, your poem is better than mine!"

"Oh, ok.  Mr. Lancer, Dash wants to go next!"

Mr. Lancer glanced between them.  "Is that so, Mr. Baxter?"  

Dash paused, his mouth pressing into a thin frown, before he sighed and levered himself up with his desk's help.  "Yeah, ok.  May as well."

He skirted up to the front of the room, notably less confident than usual.  "Ok, nobody expect me to be good at this," he said, looking out over the classroom.  "And if any of you start thinking I'm some nerd, you know what'll happen!"  He fumbled with his paper as he unfolded it.  "Um.  My poem is called.  The Fluffy Clouds All Look Like Footballs." 

At the back of the room, Sam straightened in her chair.  "What?"

Kwan jerked his head to look at her over his shoulder.  He gave his head a tiny shake.  Sam glared back.  

Mr. Lancer's stapler clicked at the front of the room as he finished with Val's packet.  "Just a moment if you would Mr. Baxter."

"You gave him your poem?" Sam hissed while Lancer was busy. 

Kwan slipped out of his chair and ducked back to an empty desk next to her.  

"He worked on it! It's better now!"

"Oh BULLSHIT!"

"Ms. Manson," Mr. Lancer called from the front of the room.  "We are being respectful." 

Sam let out a very long sigh and forced a wide, clearly fake smile complete with a thumbs up.  "You got this Dash."

Lancer nodded to Dash, "You can start when you're ready."

Dash nodded and focused on his paper like a deer in headlights.

The fluffy clouds all look like footballs

We are stretching on the grass

The sun is warm and traffic hums

Out on the road as we practice passes.

Dale throws to Mitchell 

And Zach pairs with Jake 

We all run drills until we're tired

My team is so great!

When game day comes and our fans cheer 

The other team will cry.

They aren't as strong or fast as us.

The Casper Ravens rule the sky!

It's great to be the team captain 

I lead us in the plays

They chant my name like I'm the king

These are the best of days! 

When the sky is blue and the sun is shining 

The whole world seems right 

They talk about my college career 

But for me, that future's out of sight.

I love football, I'm a star!

But every captain knows 

There is no I in team;

We work together and it shows 

We can't all go to the same school 

When senior year ends 

And in a few years, that school ends too

What will we do then?

A king without his land to rule 

Is just a paper crown.

No matter how we win today 

That perspective brings me down. 

When we win, the crowds are happy!

Our parents and coach are proud.

Why should we have to leave this behind?

I think we should be allowed 

To make our own way of things

Here where we are loved

Not cogs in a warehouse machine 

Making money for corporate thugs.

I wi— uh, want, that I could stay here

With all of my good friends 

But I know that's not how life works 

And high school has to end.

So cheer extra loud for us

Next time you're at a game 

Because right now we're kings and queens 

And the future's kinda lame.

Dash paused and looked out at the other A-Listers clustered in the room.  "So, uh.  That's my poem."  

"Pobrecito," Paulina crooned, and led the group in respectful snapping.  Kwan clapped and gave him two thumbs up from the back of the room.

Sam sighed and propped her face on her hand.  "...Ok, I take it back. He did kinda improve it."  She snapped a few times with her other hand.  "But I'm only saying that because he gave the middle finger to our corporate overlords."

"I told you, he worked really hard on it!" 

"Very good Mr. Baxter.  A strong choice to maintain ABCB rhyme structure throughout, and I appreciate the earnest subject matter.  Could you tell us your three poetic devices?" 

"Uh."  Dash looked at the top of his paper.  "Um. Alliteration. Allegory. And."  He squinted at his writing. "Ana— Anaphora."

"...Could you provide an example of where you used alliteration in your poem?"

"No, I'm not a nerd."  Dash smacked his paper onto Lancer's desk and ran back to his friends, pumping his arms above his head like he'd just completed a successful play.  The A-Listers cheered accordingly.  

[danwhobrowses]

Since Critical Role's big endgame battle has begun (as of ep. 113) and looks to give us a fair handful of Lv. 20 combat across the board with VM and later the Nein - and also since the Omen Archive are yet to do a level up overview for Bell's Hells to Lv. 15 like I expected them to do after ep. 112 - I find myself optimistically and curiously wondering how Bells Hells would shape up should they reach Lv. 20.

Admittedly, I do remain worried about how underleveled they are; I know it's intended since the Hells are the 'underdogs not meant to be in this position' group but still, for comparison Essek debuted at Lv. 15 in C2 and Vox Machina ended their campaign at Lv. 18 when the stakes were slightly lower than what we have with Ludinus, the Vanguard, the Imperium, and Predathos. Still, with nothing we can do but pray they make it out alive - and I hope they do - I've decided to indulge that rare bout of optimism and deep dive into what would their Lv. 20 state look like? While also considering what they may add during this final arc should they level up in between like they did the last time they were on Ruidus.

We're gonna go through each character one by one for this, so I'll start with my favourite (aka the one I wanna talk/ramble the most about).

Ashton is perhaps the easiest endgame build to tell class-wise, it's likely Tal will have them go the full 20 since Grog has already done the Fighter dip and there's not many other multiclasses that can be of a greater benefit to them; the intrigue however with Ashton focuses on the ASI they get at levels 16 and 19, the first one particularly if there's still a level up mid-battle. The obvious route for the first ASI is to get back the CON they lost in the shard incident - which I still find an unfair penalty since they gained nothing from surviving the bold and deemed impossible action, 'your reward is you get to live' doesn't stick with me given that the 10 rolls (well, 9 plus the resurrection ring) are proof of survival anyway - and absorbing Dusk Hunger sadly didn't give back, adding to their DEX instead - which, also kinda stubborn of Matt, adding 1 AC isn't exactly worthy of absorbing a legendary item especially compared to what Orym got with Ishta, they were better off trying to dual wield it if Matt's not gonna give stats that'll suit Ashton's wheelhouse, STR and CON, and let the tank be a tank - so it will likely fall into Tal's hands to get Ashton's stats to where they want them to be. Either way, Ashton's STR and CON are going up if they hit Lv. 20 as pure Barbarian, Primal Champion adds 4 to both and increases their max to 24, so without ASI Ashton will have 22 STR and 20 CON by Lv. 20 anyway, with ASI however Ashton can go 24/22 in either direction - and we can't rule out more absorption in the future, since Legendary loot may be yielded from this endgame battle plus Otohan's Backpack, Zathuda's storage cloak and maybe any other armour from the two could be Legendary items just gathering dust among the group, but if Ashton were to take any of them they'd have to wait a day since the Harness only grants 1 permanent and 1 temporary buff per person, and each person who uses it on the same day risks it breaking by 20%. However, we also can't rule out Ashton taking a feat instead of ASI, it's a slim chance but there are some feats that can be of use for Ashton in general or specifically vs Ludinus; Mage Slayer, Strike of the Giants (Hill or Stone Strike, of the two I'd go for Hill because of it causing the prone condition, which will help Ashton and allies, like Orym with that 1d6 extra Force Damage, stack critical damage), and Great Weapon Master could be powerful if they don't focus on ASI. The Tough feat is always good for being tanky too, but such a feat would likely only be used at the Lv. 19 ASI/Feat domain to get the most out of it. The only other places Ashton can get major potential buffs - outside of any new enchanted items that aren't armour - are from Dunamancy and their Titan powers, but neither have provided a clear opening for improvement as of yet. Ashton hit their final Dunamancy path at Lv. 14, where they got Mark of the Messy End (which compared to Essek getting access to stuff like Reality Break doesn't seem to balance out but I guess Wizards are glass cannons so Dunamancy does more with them), but there is a quiet, lingering mystery over how Potions of Possibility and Luxon Beacons will behave if Ashton and their Dunamancy brain interacts with them, given how they have many potions on hand, in general and gifted to them by the Kryn Dynasty before they met with the Nein, and Ludinus using Luxon Beacons as power sources, there is potential for Ashton's Dunamancy to increase that way - or simply through Matt adding an extra Dunamancy path in place of an ASI/Feat, a Dunamancy-based feat, or swapping Primal Champion with something else. The Titan Form could also improve by level, and I kinda hope it does, it's powerful but given the time limit and Exhaustion it's still below the level of Grog's Titanstone Knuckles in terms of utility, if more power or less limitations are imposed the higher their level it could scale Ashton up further in a similar manner to having a Vestige or, in Orym's case, a Relic of the Red Solstice.

Speaking of Orym, you'd assume that he'll also go for the clean 20, but this is Liam O'Brien we're talking about - he gave Vax a Druid level for his love of Keyleth, so you can't put it past him to add a level in Bard for Dorian. Like Ashton, Orym has 2 ASI waiting for him at levels 16 and 19, due to maxing his DEX - and absorbing Ishta overclocking it (a DEX increase that actually makes sense as a Finesse blade Fighter, adding +1 to AC and attack rolls and a higher DC for enemies to save against superiority die attacks) - Orym has already dipped into feats a lot but could always find room for more. Great Weapon Master, Shield Master, Mage Slayer, and Tough again at level 19 are viable options for Orym and his build, but there's also a unique option of, instead of taking a level in Bard, Magic Initiate: Bard in lieu of Dorian; taking the feat lets him gain the 4th attack Lv. 20 Fighter yields while adding some handy Bard magic such as Friends, Thunderwave, Command, Bane or Cure Wounds - all of which are Level 1 Bard spells. While adding a level in Bard would be a nice gesture, the Magic Initiate feat would probably work better for Orym's build if he wanted to reference his connection to Dorian this way, since he doesn't need 4 extra 1st level spells and he already has a lot of proficiencies and bonuses to cover his rolls anyway, plus he still carries the sending stone if he doesn't want to do either. If he went for ASI, Orym could try to rival Ayden's passive perception by buffing his WIS, but I doubt anybody would hold it against him to be less perceptive than a god. Regardless of ASI and feats, a pure 20 in Fighter does up Orym's lethality immensely, getting a potential 12 attacks with two Action Surges - the second gained in Lv. 17 - in one round (16 attacks if hastened and 17 if hastened and a Time Rage Mark of the Messy End - which I believe allows you to attack with Bonus Actions - is used on an enemy), which would make him an extra efficient killer and protector for combat, which suits his character as well. While multiclassing is an uncommon trait to reference a partner, in Orym's case it's probably moreso cute but unnecessary flavouring.

Adding an element of their partner into their build is something Imogen has done already with decent effect, however. Imogen is another pure 20 likelihood; she has 2 ASI, a Metamagic choice, her final Origin Feature - Warping Implosion: essentially you teleport and anyone within 30 feet will be caught in a gravity fissure - and Sorcerous Restoration - 4 sorcery points restored per short rest - waiting for her at the full 20. As alluded, she already has Laudna influences in the Shadow Touched feat and a vial of her blood in her equipment so she needn't use a feat or a multiclass in further reference to her, which means it comes down to what options she chooses for her ASI/Feats and future skills. With her CHA maxed out already, the two ASI would need to go elsewhere or to feats; War Caster could be used to help her concentration spells, such as the reskinned Hunger of Hadar, Telekinesis, and Investiture of Lightning, unused spells such as her mother's Reverse Gravity, Hold Person, or Globe of Invulnerability, or future 8th-9th level spells such as Dominate Monster, Gate, and Mass Polymorph (turn them all into horses!). Otherwise using one of those ASI to add 1 to INT and WIS will add to saving throws of those stats (+1 for INT and +2 for WIS), she can also remove all her stat negatives by adding an ASI to her STR in place of a feat. Imogen also has options with choosing a final Metamagic from Sorcerer; she has Quickened, Distant, and Twinned Spell already, so the next one needs to also be helpful in combat; the potential of Extended and Transmuted Spell are decent, but Heightened Spell may be the best fit for her - spending 3 Sorcery points to impose disadvantage on a spell save can be very useful when using Imogen's spells such as Psychic Lance, especially against powerful magic users like Ludinus. Going a little extra meta with things, Imogen at Lv. 20 is only going to exist in one-shots or guest appearances - which means short rests aren't likely to faze her as much, also recovering 4 out of a total of 20 Sorcery Points per short rest isn't a lot when you get all of them back after a Long Rest. If Imogen were to pull a swerve and multiclass she could simply sacrifice an ASI for an 18/2 split or just take a 19/1 dip without it doing any negative effect to her current build. Of the multiclassing options, I find that the Tempest Cleric could gel pretty well with her build; connecting her lightning magic and her storm analogies (and her attempt to reach out to the Stormlord) from a narrative perspective, while combat-wise she'd get to use Wrath of the Storm to damage anyone that attacks her (as many times as her WIS, so 1-3 depending on her ASI usage) and, if she goes for the 18/2 split, she can use the class' Channel Divinity to max out a spell's lightning damage - which if used on a 9th Level Lightning Bolt is 76 damage without enhancements! - she also gets some minor healing to add to her repertoire, and with a group without a pure Cleric you can't really have a shortage of players who can heal even if it's a little bit. I can't see any other dip doing her as much benefit, so the full 20 is more likely, even if the maxed out Lightning Bolt would work wonders.

You know who also knows Lightning Bolt? Well, a fair amount of players and NPCs but also Dorian! Let's talk our Boy in Blue - no I did not say 'Blue in Boy' in my head when typing, shush! - he's our last PC likely to be a pure 20 of the group, also because the rest have already multiclassed, but like Imogen there is also the opening for a little bit of multiclassing. The ASI in levels 16 and 19 are probably best put into maxing his CHA stat that's currently at 16, DEX could also go up to 20 for additional Gambolcleft damage but the sword is pretty powerful as it is - it depends if Robbie wants Dorian to focus on Spell or Melee output for stats, but casting is probably the better way to go. Not many feats would help Dorian outside of maybe Tough and War Caster, perhaps Slasher but they do seem like minor additions he can go without, so ASI is likely the best route to take for him. Unlike with Orym where a dip in Bard wouldn't do much good mechanically, Dorian could easily take a dip in Fighter and have it be a solid investment; the Bard's Lv. 20 ability Superior Inspiration only helps if you've used up all of your Inspiration, and as said with Imogen that probably won't come up in a one-shot scenario where Lv. 20 Dorian would likely appear, but by Lv. 19 he will already have added spells from any magic class via his final dip into Magical Secrets - and honestly I have no clue what one he could take because like, all of the spells! Wish is probably the go-to one but Dorian doesn't want anything from the gods so maybe not? - and he'll already have a 9th level spell slot from earlier levels. A 1-level dip in Fighter can give Dorian Second Wind for some self-healing and another Fighting Style to choose from: either Superior Technique - like Orym has - or Duelist would suit best, and if Robbie sacrifices an ASI he can go up to a 2nd level for Action Surge, which is handy should he focus on melee. There aren't many other 1-level dips that would suit Dorian narratively, there was probably Warlock potential in EXU: Prime when the crown was in play but since, again, the group lacks a pure healer, Dorian is probably better off investing his stats and skills towards Bard spells - which in turn bolsters DPS as well as healing.

From one Bard/DPS healer to another, Braius debuted with some pretty high stats to begin with, with only WIS being a negative modifier. As a 12/3 multiclass he can go a few different directions - much like his character arc and selection of deity - but it leaves him at a crossroads - also like his character arc. The 12 levels in Oath of the Ancients Paladin means he's locked out of getting Bard's Magical Secrets, if he maxes out his remaining levels in Bard he gets 2 ASI, a College of Tragedy feature (make crits be at rolls 18, 19 and 20 after an ally is hit with a crit plus a '+10 on a roll but a -10 penalty on the next' skill), Countercharm, and his Bardic Inspiration dice will go up to 1d8, but all of those are kinda covered by Dorian's higher level Bard class and Ashton's Mark of the Messy End while in Luck Rage to a higher or better extent. The 3 levels in Bard however has locked Braius out of Paladin's Aura improvements and the big Elder Champion buff, which is a big loss, if maxed out in Paladin they'll get Cleansing Touch - end a spell on yourself or anyone you can touch as many times as your CHA, one ASI, a 5th level spell slot (handy for Banishing Smite, Circle of Power, Destructive Wave, and Summon Celestial), and Undying Sentinel - which is just a once-a-long-rest Relentless Rage with no CON save. Build-wise, it would be best for Braius to go one of three different paths; either go for a 15/5 split - so no 5th level spell but he gets 1 ASI, Undying Sentinel, and Font of Inspiration for the 1d8 inspiration - a 14/6 split - where we swap Undying Sentinel for the college feature, or go the unique path and add a third class - while the 5th level spell slot has powerful spells Braius' combat is much more melee-based so it is a less likely option. A 14/3/3 triple split sacrifices his ASI/feats but 3 levels in Fighter gives him another Fighting Style, Action Surge, Second Wind, and a Fighter subclass to add to his combat prowess. One unlikely Fighter subclass that could suit Braius is the Rune Knight; with 3 levels Braius will have access to 2 runes, which can be tied to his character's artistry, to add to his gear - the Fire and Cloud Runes being the most useful to him from what I see - they would also get Giant's Might as a skill for an extra 1d6 of damage once per turn. Fighter isn't the only class Braius can benefit from though; he would only need to dip 2 levels in Cleric or Druid to gain their subclass-based abilities; a Shepherd Druid would give the group a slight benefit with the Hawk Spirit skill, using a reaction to attack with advantage and having advantage on perception checks, but similar to Imogen he'd probably benefit a bit more from dipping into Cleric - particularly Grave, War, Ambition, and Peace Domain Clerics, who each have abilities that can further empower him. A dip in Barbarian would be handy for Danger Sense - not so much Rage because you can't use spells - maybe opting for the Zealot path subclass, which also suits narratively, for an extra 1d6 damage, or a dip in the Monster Hunter Ranger to aid in picking out weaknesses. A 12/4/4 split could also work, forgoing Cleansing Touch to grant Braius 2 ASI or feats if Sam wanted them; with that they can balance their WIS to 10 and then max out their CHA and another +1 elsewhere, or just do a feat like Fey Touched - since he was touched plenty by a Fey Hag all across her manor - to max the CHA and gain a spell like Hunter's Mark to aid in combat.

Speaking of Hunters, Chetney may not have been designed to survive the campaign but with Travis rolling the fatal 0 when playing as Grog that old man is still, somehow, kicking. If Travis doesn't pull a Bertrand and allows him to continue defying the odds and live to Lv. 20, Chetney would be in a similar position to Braius - having gone the Tealeaf route and locked himself out of the full 20 in Blood Hunter by having a dip in Rogue - in being in a crossroads of classes. If he invests his remaining levels in Blood Hunter to 19, he still gets a lot from the class; 2 Order Features (advantages on bloodlust saving throws and on any branded creature, then unlimited hybrid transformations on the next feature), 2 ASI, and an extra Blood Maledict. Chetney's 1-level dip in Rogue however means he could also invest into any Rogue subclass for a 17/3 split (or a 16/4 split if he sacrifices a Blood Maledict for 2 ASI over one) instead; Assassin would help his damage output especially since he likes going Invisible, but the Revived subclass would be funny implying that he died but miraculously came back and no longer needed to risk dying in his sleep because he doesn't need to sleep anymore. Chet could also triple class like we suggested with Braius; 3-5 levels in Artificer - since he's a toymaker his toys can be infused beyond the enchanted distractions, going for the Armorer subclass can also be handy for the Thunder Gauntlets ability too, 2 levels in Fighter - for Action Surge, 2-4 levels in Monk - which has decent potential if his chisel is made a dedicated weapon plus the possible boons from Kensei, Mercy, or Open Hand paths, or even 3 levels in Ranger - where Hunter, Gloom Stalker, and Monster Slayer subclasses each have skills that could help Chet in combat, can all be seen as options, but it can also run the risk of being overcomplicated. Despite a Feat sidestepping Chet losing control in his Hybrid Form, logic says that Chet would likely stick with the 19/1 route since the feat only imposes a disadvantage against losing control and he can still do collateral damage, character-wise he'd likely want to keep his Lycanthropy on lock as much as he can. Plus, going to 19 Blood Hunter levels yields unlimited transformations and the second ASI hits at Lv. 19; with the two ASI - which he cannot get from triple classing - he can max out his STR and buff up his CON, DEX, and/or CHA for any additional bonuses, he has no negative stats so any are fair game. I don't see any feats that'd be too helpful, but outside of AC or DC boosts from increasing CON or DEX, upping CHA could also help with persuasion and being persuasive and tricksy.

Persuasive and Tricksy are some of many words you can use to define Fearne, who is also a Rogue multiclass. Her current 10/5 with Wildfire Druid as the majority allows her some wiggle room for her to go a few different directions. The 5 levels in Rogue have locked her out of a second ASI in Druid, the timeless body (not really a big deal for a fey), additional Wild Shape perks, and the 9th Level Spell Slot though, but if she invests only into Druid levels for the full 15 she does still gain one ASI and her Wildfire Feature 'Blazing Revival' - where once per long rest Mister can sacrifice himself (I don't think it's a permadeath sacrifice just like an 'off the board until resummoned' sacrifice) to revive her to half HP if she's downed - alongside a 6th, 7th and 8th level spell slot. If she goes for an even spread of 10 levels each with Rogue's Arcane Trickster however, she gains 2 ASI, 2 more proficiencies, Evasion, Magical Ambush, and a few more lower level spells. Both have valid directions - and as much as Fearne is a 'collector' I think a third class probably won't suit her and will perplex Ashley further - for her character even with mixing the level splits; a 12/8 split will grant her 2 ASI and a 6th level spell slot, while a 14/6 split grants one ASI, a 6th and 7th level spell slot, the Blazing Revival, and 2 proficiencies. Since Fearne doesn't do many sneak attacks and uses her Rogue abilities more for pickpocketing, it would probably be sensible to lean more towards Druid; a 15/5 split if she wants that 8th level spell slot for Sunburst, Incendiary Cloud, or Feeblemind, but a 14/6 split if she can do without - Plane Shift could narratively be on her radar so she can travel to the Feywild as she pleases, but Fire Storm is still a mighty 7th level spell that can be additionally buffed by her titan form which as mentioned with Ashton could also potentially scale up with levels - would give her more stuff to work with, plus extra Druid Levels buffs up Mister's health so he could be looking at 75-80 total HP (5+(Druid Level x 5)) depending on whether Fearne goes level 14 or 15. Since Fearne took War Caster already from her last level and her WIS is already maxed out, ASI to CON could be looked into to add health, AC, and DC, while also improving her chances at holding concentration for her saving throws, alternatively she can up her DEX to improve her pickpocketing so she can finally claim one of those eggs, since she's tragically 0-2 on that. Feat-wise, there is still the Elemental Adept: Fire feat to bypass enemy resistances to Fire too, lots of enemies will have Fire Resistance after all, so if she doesn't want to use ASI there is still that to use it on. So level-wise there is some wiggle room but class-wise she is better off picking one to focus on.

Our final member of the Hells Laudna has already picked her focused class; on a 12/3 Sorlock with her patron bound to a soul anchor - get fucked Delilah - she has implied to go pure Sorcerer from herein. Marisha has previously stated that she saw no gain in any more Warlock levels even when Delilah was still active and while a 6th level in Warlock would grant her an ASI at Lv.4 and unlocks Grave Touched - change damage to Necrotic plus 1 extra damage die when in Form of Dread, which is pretty solid - it does indeed suit narratively for Laudna to avoid more Warlock levels. The 3 levels she has gained from Warlock though have (war)locked her out of her final Sorcery feature of Umbral Form - which would've made her resistant to everything but Force and Radiant Damage, so like Braius' Primal Champion it's quite the loss - but she still looks to get Shadow Walk which aids her mobility, providing that there's darkness or shadows in the vicinity, as well as one ASI and another Metamagic option by continuing the Sorcerer's path, not to mention a dangerous 9th level spell slot. Unlike Imogen, Laudna opted for Empowered Spell in her current Metamagics alongside Quickened and Twinned, doing Heightened or Transmuted probably wouldn't suit Laudna like it does her partner though. Instead, Careful Spell could be a good choice for Laudna since her CHA is maxed out, so she could pick 5 creatures to auto-succeed a saving throw to a spell she sends, but since she doesn't have many AoE spells Extended Spell may be the better fit to keep up concentration on spells like Animate Objects, Mirror Image, or any future powerful concentration spells she'll have access to like Eyebite, Globe of Invulnerability, Reverse Gravity, or Blade of Disaster - which Delilah used pretty effectively in Aeor - ongoing. Even so, the one ASI remains; the Amulet of Health puts her CON to a fixed 19 so if she added one CON it'd be 16 without attunement, which is still pretty good but worthless if she just keeps using the amulet, she could put +1 in her woeful STR so it's a -2 rather than -3, or opt for feats such as War Caster - for those powerful concentration spells - or another Eldritch Invocation with Eldritch Adept, such as Armor of Shadows or Eldritch Spear, which may be more fitting for her fun scary nature.

And that's all of them, for a TL/DR I expect Ashton, Orym, Dorian and Imogen to do the pure 20 for their classes, while Chetney will go 19/1, Braius and Fearne go 14/6, and Laudna goes 17/3. But if it were me, the only ones I'd adjust from those would be Dorian (19/1, adding Fighter), Imogen (18/2, adding Tempest Cleric), and Braius (14/3/3, adding Rune Knight Fighter) just from a meta/fun perspective. Either way I'll just be happy to see them make Level 20, so fingers and every other digit I have stay crossed for whichever route they choose.

[cloveroctobers]

SWEET DREAMS — Terry Richmond [October Prompts] 🧡

A/N: It’s really making me happy that I have someone new to write about! And now I get to do that some more during my favorite season? You know I had to! Thanks for all the previous love on my first work about this stunning lion looking man! Hope to do more for the next season too 🤩

WARNINGS: Get your sage & holy water ready! This fic includes — Fluff, grief, and Mike is alive! Most likely language, written with a black woman in mind, & this ended up much longer than I intended! Basically…fuck around and find out?

SYNOPSIS: Life is short, shorter than you can imagine but sleep can feel like a eternity.

Firstly this is inspired by the haunting of hill house just a little + PROMPTS can be found here & I’m using: 25. “Well, it is a seance.” / “Good thing the person I want to see is already here.” + 28. Playing with an Ouija board.

<- read my previous spooky anthology prompt here.

๋࣭ ⭑⚝ 𓉸ྀི ๋࣭ ⭑⚝ 𓉸ྀི ๋࣭ ⭑⚝ 𓉸ྀི ๋࣭ ⭑⚝ 𓉸ྀི ๋࣭ ⭑⚝ 𓉸ྀི ๋࣭

Terry remembers her roller set digging into his collarbone as they lounged on their couch together one (always) warm autumn afternoon. She often complained about wash days but each one was different when it came to how she wanted to style it for the next two to three weeks. He helped her roll and clip the back of her head once she started to whine that her arms were about to fall off. He may have worked her too hard in the gym two days ago but regardless, dealing with a crown like this would always be a task, so he didn’t mind taking on some of the weight.

He made sure to kiss her temple once she stated that she can handle the rest, while he left her to get started on dinner. It was always a rule between the two to have dinner at the table, since they hardly got the chance to experience that in their own upbringings. Majority of the time, this rule was followed but that day she struggled to keep her head upright as she shuffled around the waterfront raised french provincial home.

Terry was pretty commanding and even guided her to the table once everything was ready, although she wanted to throw a tantrum, a tender kiss to her lips snapped her out of it as they sat across from each other to have dinner. Once that was over? He had no issue lounging on the couch for a while; her nodding off with the aroma of rosemary being prominent from her roots.

“We should be fall shopping since scary movies aren’t really our thing.” She croaked, through slits in her eyes, as some football game was playing on the flatscreen.

Terry snorts, “I told you I was down for: it’s the great pumpkin, Charlie Brown.”

“What are we, five?” She sassed.

Terry leaned away to peek down at his girl, “Huh? You’re more of the scary one out of the relationship than I am.”

“…SO?” She huffed, followed by a yawn that ripped through her lips.

Terry chuckled, “yeah you must be real tired because that comeback was not challenging enough.”

She hums, tightening her crossed arms as she closes her eyes once more. Terry loops an arm across her chest, leaning the elbow of his other arm along the arm of the couch while pressing his knuckles against his mouth, eyes focused on the game now while he let her get her nap on. He already knew the deal, that he wouldn’t let her sleep too long since she had to go into her regular shift down at the library the next morning.

She’s been taking up extra hours, (since the mortgage rates continued to go up rather than down around here) even went in on her day off for four hours before she came back home to get started on her hair. So he’d wake her up so this nap didn’t disrupt her night routine in the next thirty to forty-five minutes.

Terry, always the active one and grew tired of the game—since he wasn’t rooting for a particular team anyway—left her with a honey colored Sherpa blanket to finish out her slumber and ventured outside underneath the house, through the carport to his workshop to see what he can get into. He had his timer set on the Apple Watch she got him last Christmas, although he was used to just tracking time on his regular wrist watch, he appreciated the gift.

She came and found him before time was up, arms sneaking around his waist while Terry’s humming along to Luther Vandross’, “Don’t you know that?”

He was too in his zone, fixing up Mike’s bike and jamming to old classics that he didn’t even hear her come in, which he should scold himself for but with the way she held onto him so lovingly, nuzzling her cheek against his back, made him put that on hold for now.

“Having a good time without me, Grandpa?” She teases while Terry turns to face her.

He runs a thumb over her cheek as she smiles up at him, “Never. You’re just who I was waiting for, grandmomma. All you’re missing is the moo-moo.” He jokes back, using his other hand to flick one of her rollers which she tries to smack his hand away to not mess with.

Soon that hand is up and intertwining with her’s as Terry leads them into a sway to the beat. She’s well enough rested as she grins up at him with a slight shake of her head, knowing Terry’s in a good mood now that he has her out here slow-dancing in this muggy workshop.

“Who knew that your simba looking self would be a big softie?” She tells him as he leans towards his woman.

He keeps his intense eye contact locked only on her and stops humming to reply, “You secretly love it.”

“I do…and you too, I guess.” She jests with a whisper, also inching forward so their lips can meet once more.

There’s a red light behind Terry’s eyelids before he decides to open them. He rolls onto his back, staring up at the ceiling for a while and picking up on the chirping of birds, buzzing of bugs, and the possible motor of a neighbors’ nearby boat in the water. His senses were always heightened. It’s late, he knows it but he doesn’t move as the door to the back patio across from the bed is pushed open.

There she is, surrounded by the orange sunlight that fights against the fog. It’s almost too bright that he can’t make out her facial features, when he knows he usually can with his eyes closed.

“Good, you’re up.” She says closing the door behind her but the opacity still blocks out her features yet not her hair, “I thought you were going to sleep all day.”

He wants to move but finds his body stiff and unmoving. There’s a furrow of his thick brows as they start to search the brightness of the room, which is a contrast of what it’s been like for months. Terry flicks his eyes downwards, trying to move his fingers but they stay put.

He feels the dip of the bed and the clinking of a utensil against a teacup that looks an awful lot like his mother’s. She takes a sip and sighs while she then says to Terry, “This feels familiar doesn’t it?”

Terry swallows, his throat feels extremely dry and as if a lump has formed there. He wants to cough but makes no motion to do so. He keeps blinking, hoping that he can figure out what’s going on but part of him feels like he should already know.

“Don’t worry, honey. Just be thankful that you got the prettier version of me to haunt you, instead of whatever I was forced to see when I got like this.” She informs Terry, leaning over to finally show him what he remembered her to be.

The softness of her eyes, the way she sounded, the way her tongue pressed behind her front teeth when she smiled along with the way she smelled.

“I just hope you keep having sweet dreams and not what the night brings.” The last of her words echo off his ears before Terry is able to sit up with a sharp gasp of air.

His hand goes to his throat, massaging the space and clearing it as his wide eyes look around the room for her but she’s no longer here. He feels the beads of sweat appearing on the back of his neck, and the vibrating of his phone already tells him that it’s one of three people that’s probably calling him. Terry reaches over to take a peek, declining the call and sending a text that he would catch up with them later, then drags himself into the bathroom to get ready for another long day.

The obnoxious ringing of his doorbell, makes Terry stride quickly to the door to reveal his cousin, Mike along with their old friend, Summer McBride. She’s got her hands full while Mike straightens up from his position of getting ready to send a horse kick to Terry’s front door.

“I’m convinced you lost your mind.” Terry says to his family member, who just grins at him, “And I know auntie Josie taught you some manners, help Summer out, man.”

Mike scoffs while Summer sends him a knowing look with her doe eyes, “She almost chopped my hand off when I tried to take the bag from her, fam. So I did try.”

Terry steps aside to wave the pair in before saying to the short haired woman, “I told you that every time you visit, you don’t have to bring anything.”

“The only good thing my family taught me,” Summer speaks over her shoulder as she makes her way through the foyer, “was to never show up empty handed and this is nothin’.”

Terry and Mike unfortunately got to meet her (racist) family down at the usual court dates Summer had to attend. Every time they turned around her ex husband was having her down there and although Terry attended more so than Mike—not that it mattered—he had his own trauma of not wanting to be in any more courtrooms, they all showed up for one another in various of ways.

“Tell that to my still stinging hand.” Mike comments while the blonde sets her things down onto the wooden dining table.

He heads into the kitchen while Terry exhaled before moving around his own home as well.

“Oh, you complain more than my own kid!” Summer sassed while Terry gives a small smile at their bickering.

He finds himself tuning them out as he checks on the sides again before turning the stove off. When he turns back around he sees Mike rubbing his hands together in excitement, “what’s on the menu, cuz? You never answered the texts?”

Terry inhales as he glanced over his shoulder at the various pots and pans, “Nothing too crazy, thick cut pork chops with three options since I’m not sure what Summer prefers: hot sauce, applesauce, or smothered in gravy and onions.”

Mike scoffs, “well aren’t you a kind hearted son of a bitch. How come I don’t get options when we have dinner together on Thursday’s?”

“You’re just a picky eater and don’t nobody got time for that.”

Mike sucks his teeth, “you did all that extra work and watch Summer like her shit borin’ and plain.” He turns back to the blonde who stands by the side of the island counter, awaiting her answer with his brown eyes.

Summer sheepishly smiles, “I actually brought a mini hot sauce in my bag if it wasn’t an option.”

“See,” Terry laughs at Mike’s shocked face, “we got to know our friend by now, she ain’t regular.”

Summer questions, “Thank you?”

“Yeah it’s a compliment, Goldilocks. Now tell us what you did bring because if it’s coleslaw with raisins? I’m taking my plate to go.” Mike informs while Terry pinches the bridge of his nose followed by a chuckle, before moving around the kitchen to start grabbing plates.

Summer frowns, “do I look like a coleslaw kinda woman, Michael? And lucky for you, I can’t cook so I just bought over some fall inspired things that we can all try later.”

Mike pretends to gag, “this lady tryna to kill us with that pumpkin shit.”

“Mike, clear the table for me man, so we can have a clean space to serve ourselves.” Terry encourages while Summer just folds her arms and sticks her nose up at Mike’s actions before circling around to look at the prepared food until it was time to bring everything over.

Dinner was never awkward by any means. This wss a routine that they picked back up, having Sunday dinner or if they couldn’t make it or if Terry wasn’t feeling up for it they would come over for leftovers on Monday. Since Summer moved closer to where Terry and Mike resided in Lullin it was easier for her to stop on by. On Thursday’s Terry and Mike would mostly spend time at Mr. Liu’s for dinner. Although they had a business together where they saw each other every day, it was always important to continue their bond outside of work with food.

That’s been instilled in them since they were children, meeting up at Terry’s grandmother’s house and Mike’s grandfather—Terry’s great uncle—would always come by with Mike underneath his arm. That’s what started their bond thanks to their grandparent’s tight sibling relationship.

Sometimes Terry would even put on (grandpa, as she would like to call it) music while they carried on a conversation, it would mostly be Mike and Summer debating over something while Terry intently listened. If you didn’t know him, you would probably think he’s blocking them out but he could repeat back everything that was said. Since Mike was the only drinker and the pumpkin beer was mainly for him, he deemed it as not bad, shocking Summer who mocked him into giving her some credit and he even asked if he could take the remaining three pack home with him.

This was all after they stepped in to clean up the kitchen, Summer was on dish duty, Terry was putting everything into containers and making to-go boxes for the two, while Mike sipped and wiped down the counters and placed the decorations back on the dining table like how she used to have it.

Soon they were all seated on the couch, binging some ridiculous show Summer put them all onto before Mike pointed out that Summer never showed them what was in her large reusable bag that she brought with her. The blonde peeks at the time on her spot on the two seat sofa and sighed, “I guess now is a good enough time as any.”

Mike’s eyes are already low lidded as he’s lounging on the couch and looks over at Terry who simply shrugs at him.

“I’ve been thinkin’…Terry hasn’t been getting the best sleep lately, rightfully so and I thought maybe there was a way to get rid of that weight in your heart.” Summer speaks as she brings the bag over to the living room.

Terry blinks but there’s confusion in his light eyes, “I’m fine.”

“No you’re not!” Summer argues, “Sure you’re going to those therapy sessions but I know a sleep deprived person when I see one, believe me.”

Mike mumbles before taking a final swing from the bottle, “Blondie ain’t wrong, cuz. Normally you’re on your game and you always push through—don’t get me wrong—but I caught you sleeping in the office lately and that ain’t like you.”

Terry looks back and forth between the two but still speaks calmly, “so…this was your plan this dinner? To plot on me and have some sort of intervention?”

Mike shakes his head, “I don’t know what summa summa summa time brought with her, I don’t play no parts in that. I just know the anniversary of losing her is coming up and we just want to make sure you’re good, is all.”

There’s this slight ache that wants to punch through the numbness in his chest but when Terry sits up, burying his elbows into his knees, he’s able to make it subside some.

“…Because we care and we show up for one another.” Summer added, “and you started telling me about one of your dreams before in pieces but they were still so vivid. So I thought maybe she’s trying to tell you something.”

Both sets of eyes flicked to Summer as she turned to the bag that sat next to her on the sofa, her hands digging through the bag to pull out a board.

“…I know she fucking lying.”

There in her lap sat an Ouija board.

Terry drops his head while Summer blows out a breath and tries to plead her case.

“Before you all go houndin’ me about doing white shit, I just want you both to know that this was very effective for me. I got the chance to speak with my pawpaw—

“Oh yeah sure, Paw-Paw!” Mike does air quotes while Summer waits for him to be done.

“…He’s the only stable adult I had in my life and talkin’ to him through here instead of at a gravesite did me a helluva lot good. I just thought it could help you too.” Summer speaks, making Terry lift his head to meet her eyes.

Terry and Mike have known Summer for a while and she’s always been genuine. Maybe this did help her grieve her grandfather, Terry always gave people the benefit of the doubt and the chance to show their character or right their wrongs. He didn’t think Summer would purposely steer him wrong yet he’s seen some things going through training and being a marine.

He didn’t break then.

He still didn’t break when he lost her.

He couldn’t.

“You got me?” Terry finally finds himself asking Summer after a brief silence, who holds his stare before slowly dipping her head.

Summer affirms because Terry was keen on words, “I do.”

Mike wasn’t having it so Terry and Summer moved to the office that used to belong to her. Summer sets the board on the built in desk once they pass through the double doors. Terry grabs a chair from the main desk that’s in the center of the room for Summer and grabs the second from another but much smaller built in computer desk off to the side by the windows for himself.

“You’re going to have to walk me through this since this isn’t my expertise. I normally don’t mess with spirits and if this ever gets out to my grandmother—

“It’ll be our little secret and Mike’s.” Summer squeezes his shoulder before motioning for him to sit and then drags her bag in between the chairs, “it’s simple work really. We light a candle, you have something that was special to her, and we call upon the spirit realm to reach her. Then she’ll talk to us through the board.”

Terry’s expression held skepticism but Summer double checked if he wanted to go through with this. He said he would after pausing, feeling a draft at the back of his neck. He been cut the air off on the first day of autumn and was more of a let the fresh air in while she once preferred the automatic timer for the AC.

Since the evening was here already, Summer didn’t have to make the office dark. She closed the double doors per Mike’s request and lit the candle.

Playing with an ouija board was not on Terry Richmond’s bucketlist.

Ever.

“So—

Summer starts but Terry is glancing around him, “Did it just get cold in here or is it just me?”

The blonde also peers around herself and around Terry towards the wall on his right that shielded the other closed door that led to the loop of the rest of the home.

“Well, it is a seance.” Summer tried to ease her friend’s worries with a crooked smile while Terry just blankly stared at her from underneath his lashes.

“Not yet,” he mutters and fiddles with a trinket that belonged to the late love of his life.

A third time Summer asked if he’s ready before asking the second most important question, “What did you bring?”

Terry’s whole hand was wrapped around one of the many trinkets she once collected. It started in twenty-twenty when lockdown happened. The depression was hitting and she needed something that brought her out of it, she couldn’t safely continue doing piano lessons like she wanted once the library had to shut down for a while. This was her side hobby turned hustle, being musically gifted with the piano and composing.

Most of her sheet work was safely in one of these drawers.

It was really something to watch her get in her zone. Eyes closed and dainty fingers just barely touching the keys but the music always flowed and captivated. Terry was more into the physical connection with his body whereas the mental was more on her. With lockdown, Terry still knew how to manage and pushed himself even harder with keeping his body right, whereas she fell into a reading slump for awhile and started to play off key on the keys (which she hardly ever missed) along with her sleeping habits becoming problematic.

She’s always loved little trinkets, while she joked calling Terry a grandpa because of his music choices, he also joked that she was grandpa’s baby. The obsession with Calico critters actually brought her out of depression some and although she would wait weeks on weeks for the packages to arrive on their doorstep thanks to shipping delays, he never forgot learning how important these were to her.

And how by placing one, specifically from the new collection at the time, the hedgehog family, Maxwell the son and brother was placed right on her keyboard that used to rest on the main desk behind Terry and Summer. Apparently he was the pianist out of the family and was that little source of encouragement that watched her play. Sure it was kiddish by first glance but many don’t realize they have to heal their inner child to live. So you can look back at whatever you dealt with as a child and make them see, as you grow into your adulthood that this was all worth it.

Terry had no problem listening to her view on her latest obsession once the teasing was out of the way. He even tried not to be a little jealous that this toy got to give her some joy back and find her passion for piano again. He was stuck listening to her gift from around the corner instead of taking one of the chairs and sitting it in backwards in the same room to listen like he used to do. She had plenty of trinkets all over the house here and there or in plenty of storage boxes she got from tag sales. Yes they were toys but people aren’t just people, they have stories.

They talked about children before and Terry even speculated that she maybe keeping a certain secret from him (she wasn’t) once the overload of figurines started to take over but Terry wanted to be married first. Plenty already had a lot to say since they lived together, bought a house together without being married but what worked for them didn’t have to work for everyone else. She was a product of divorce because of infidelity, Terry was a product of a single hard working mom who raised and provided for him mostly whenever his grandmother didn’t step in to help.

She and Terry agreed that their marriage had to be the best example of love, they didn’t have to try very hard but they wanted the way they loved to be what their kid should expect. That love can kind, patient, fun, overwhelming, have unity, it should feel and show all the good things but also something that can be built and shaped within that unity when it got tough. They didn’t want to repeat a cycle or screw their future kid up but Terry had to remind her that there’s no perfect parent. No perfect love story but it could be perfect enough just for them two. Sometimes she had her head way up in the clouds, she was the dreamer and sometimes he had to reel her—not down but beside him again. To see that dreams are beautiful yet sometimes reality can be a nightmare and not on purpose.

They could always handle it together and not particularly with only one taking the lead.

This hedgehog full of hair as big as her’s, whenever the shrinkage stopped playing around! symbolized a lot. The rest of Maxwell’s family was around here somewhere and this is why Terry chose this one specifically to bring out because trinkets maybe of little value as a standalone but once you get them into your hands they become so much more.

Terry wished he had infinite time with her.

He’s been so lost in his grieving that he missed out on the candle blowing out on its own. The scent of the blown out wax hits his nostrils and he loosens his grip on the critter as he sits up now.

“Terry? You alright?” Summer questions, although her doe eyes are searching around the office.

He hums, not sure how to answer that as he just got hit with multiple memories.

He missed her so much.

The candle lights itself again and Summer meets Terry’s eyes, her hands clasped right in her lap, indicating that she did not do this as the lighter was placed back on the desk and away from the ouija board.

“…are you here with us?” Summer says her name first, while deciding to be the one who asks.

Terry feels himself holding his breath, his chest feels tight as Summer reaches out for the critter to place above the ouija board. She raises her fingers to Terry, who lightly shakes his head, leaving her to do the honors of placing them on the planchette.

Within seconds, Summer’s hands are moving over to: YES.

That makes Terry rub at his goatee, feeling his heart race. He peeks at Summer who already has her eyes on him, “you’re not playing a prank on me are you?”

“I swear I’m not. This is the real deal and if you want proof? Ask her something and I’ll keep my hands off this time.” Summer encourages while Terry starts to bounce his knee.

He thinks about what he should say, anything that he asks and if the planchette moves on its own without Summer’s hands, he just might lose his shit.

“Were you alone when you passed?” Terry struggles to get the words out and Summer squeezes his shoulder, knowing what he’s getting at.

He was on the phone with her just an hour before she died. Terry wasn’t the biggest fan of her driving alone at night but she was dedicated to her job and drove out an hour and forty-five minutes to fight another round to keep the library afloat. If Terry and Mike weren’t swamped with their own business that weekend, he would have taken the drive with her. It went much longer than she expected and Terry encouraged her to just stay at a hotel for the night and take the drive back home in the morning.

There was nothing out of the ordinary on the call, the insomnia started to kick back in again for her recently—which is why she wanted to get the drive over with—and Terry claimed it as stress but she always vouched that it was something else.

Someone else.

He would wake up in the middle night, hearing sharp breaths and when he would roll over to see her face…He knew something was wrong. There were warm tears gliding down her cheeks and majority of the time she would be frozen in fear or fingers scrunched up as she balled up the sheets. They made appointments and medically they couldn’t find anything wrong but of course some sleeping pills were encouraged that she didn’t want to take.

All she kept saying was the figure that lingered in the dark it had a top hat, a hole in its chest, and the blood that dripped from its fingertips always flicked towards her, almost as if it was conducting a symphony, as it came close to the bed before she snapped right out of the paralysis.

The planchette shifts on its own over to: NO.

Terry scoffs out a breath, head wanting to drop as his suspicions came to light. The investigators concluded the crash as an accident but Terry always felt like it was more. They claimed she either fell asleep at the wheel or fell into cardiac arrest first and that’s what led to the collision with the tree but cars just don’t randomly end up on top of trees. Swerving to avoid something else on road was certain but not at this type of impact.

This confirmed it.

Before he can ask more the planchette is moving again to spell out: I-T-S-H-E-R-E-T-O-O.

“Terry?” Summer whispers, picking up on the sound of a piano but Terry relocated her keyboard from the office down to the workshop some time ago, “this didn’t happen with the seance I did for my paw…”

He doesn’t hear the symphony Summer was hearing but he gets a whiff of a smell he’s familiar and loved being intoxicated with. He looks up from his lap and peered over his shoulder, to see her sitting in a rust colored dress on top of the desk with her back to them, “Good thing the person I want to see is already here.”

Good on his part but bad for Summer as she starts to pant at the dark silhouette by the window.

She speaks to Terry, “I told you the sweet dreams don’t happen at night, didn’t i? Now look at what Ms. Summer’s about to see.”

He swallows, locked in only on her because of how radiant she appears as Summer gets to her feet, chair falling behind her while she whips around to let out a scream, which she struggles to cover once she gets sight of what only she and her can see but not Terry.

Taking his eyes off her for a second, Terry gets to his feet as well, reaching out for Summer but her blue-green eyes begin to change to a cloudy milk color as she holds onto her chest, fighting for her breath.

“The fuck is happening?!” Terry yells as he grabs onto Summer’s arms.

The voice that used to be so sweet and loving changes as she floats over to him quickly that if he had been watching he was sure he would have had whiplash, a gush of cold waves over Terry’s frame, almost bringing him to his knees but of course he fights against it, “he’s winning, you welcomed him in.”

There’s a knocking and wiggling of the knobs at the double doors and it sounds like Mike but Terry only feels his body shuddering as Summer slumps over to the side. He catches her before she can hit the ground. Terry still holds onto his friend as they both are lowered to the ground for different actions being done to their bodies. Terry still isn’t able to see what is taking control over Summer but he feels the frigidness of her hands while he tries his best to keep his friend up right.

She’s holding onto his face now, caressing it as her smile is wicked opposed to pleasant. “You can grieve now,” she tells him in a voice that no longer belongs to her.

That’s when the burning happens and Terry is yelling out in pain, using one hand to squeeze at his chest. He’s palming at his shirt, attempting to peel it off but raises it to see her name being carved into his pec.

He’s down on his knees, one arm holding onto a comatose Summer, chest burning and aching with the touch of her. A caress to his cheek allows a tear to spill from both corners of his eye.

A wink, a smile, and the humming of an old classic tune is all that is left but Terry still finds himself reaching out for her, doubling over as she steps back. A hand goes to her chest, patting just where her name is on his own before fading away from his view.

The shuffling of the board can be heard but Terry can’t move from his position as the double doors are yanked back by Mike who runs into the office to his aide.

The ouija board reads: S-W-E-E-T-D-R-E-A-M-S

Once it stops at the last letter, a sweaty Terry feels his eyes close followed by a cold yet gentle kiss upon his cheek.

๋࣭ ⭑⚝ 𓉸ྀི ๋࣭ ⭑⚝ 𓉸ྀི ๋࣭ ⭑⚝ 𓉸ྀི ๋࣭ ⭑⚝ 𓉸ྀི ๋࣭ ⭑⚝ 𓉸ྀི ๋࣭

Continue with my October anthology prompts here.

[flamingpudding]

Modern (Fenton) Ghost Hunting Part 1

Ties to: Post from under 'It started with a Ouija Board' found in the Masterpost

A/N: I got a little stuck with this and there is another bigger fanfic project I started working on that has me distracted. But I wanted to post at least part of this before I might end up in radio silence for three weeks cause I am visiting family out of country and have no idea about internet access there yet 😅

Danny was in a good mood as he slurped the ecto-shake his mom had made upon his return from the Zone. It was one of the more harmless and ghost helping food inventions his parents had come up with, once the truth was out of the bag when he was more or less forced to take on his kingly duties. Though his mom's ecto-fudge special (that was also one of the few ectoplasm infused foods not coming back to life) made for only him and Ellie was even better than the shakes. It wasn't better than their special family recipes their Dad loved so much but it came a close second.

He sipped on it more as he fell back into the couch as he flicked through some TV channels. His last trip to Gotham had been a month ago and he mused that he probably would need to visit soon to update Lady Gotham on the status of the Garbage Disposal Leaks. It was a pain to deal with but hey at least he, for once, got to be the mean guy to yell at the observants how they could have left these alone for over a hundred of years.

Seriously? If he could, he would stick Sam and one of her righteous rants onto them too.

So yea Danny was in a good mood he had gotten rid of another leak which only left a couple more to take care of and then put the observants into their place with another petty with hidden insults filled and Sam inspired as well as co-authored lecture.

He would give Lady Gotham a present for giving him such a great opportunity with this problem, even if that wasn't her intention. There was also a rumor in the GZ that Box Ghost and Walker had gotten beat up by Lady Gotham several times while he was busy, he would like to hear what that was about.

In all this Danny completely forgot about his encounter with the vigilantes and that his parents told him about a new business partner that was interested in their Fenton Ghost Tech that wasn't weaponry but focused on co-existence, like the Fenton (blob-)ghost feeder.

So when the doorbell rang and Danny went to open the door, thinking it might be one of his friends. He nearly choked on his ecto-shake as he came face to face with a person he only knew from paparazzi shots or Tucker's endless rants about their technology.

"Hello, I am Tim Drake-Wayne! I believe I have an appointment with the Drs Fentons? I am not too early am I?"

-------

Red Robin was on his wits end. After the first success he had used various more 'modern' summonings in hopes of getting their ghost to show up again. But most of them ended with the same white ghost or only one other ghost claiming their name as Box Ghost to appear. Strangely when they did appear, after about a minute after their appearance an invisible force started to attack them to which these ghosts instantly turned tail and 'unsummoned' themselves. They didn't even give Red Robin the chance to ask anything.

In the end after the third time of summoning that white ghost called Walker, the ghost peeked out from that portal once and the moment they spotted him sunk back into it. Not even bothering to tell him about any rules RR might have broken. Since then none of his summons appeared to work anymore.

Though the vigilante at least concluded that whatever had attacked their teenage ghost most likely was also the driving force behind Walker or any other ghost refusing to answer his summonings. He had suspicions that might have something to do with Lady Gotham, the teenage ghost mentioned and had been unable to summon at all.

Of course Red Robin couldn't leave it like that so he dug deeper into the whole ghost cult thing and came across published research papers. Apparently the ghost cult wasn't just an occult but also a science, that he highly doubted was real. The deeper he dug the more concerned he became, for one that ectoplasm they mentioned looked awfully a lot like Lazarus Water, and second the research from the Drs Fenton he found was awfully a lot biased until a year or so ago when they suddenly invalidated all their previous research and published a nearly completely different thesis.

Though the teenage vigilante had to admit everything they offered on their website looked a whole lot more modern and right out of a SyFy movie than any of the tools he had already purchased, from a ghost Wikipedia (which surprisingly included information about Walker and that Box Ghost), to protective gear, to feeders and ectoplasm infusers.

So after a small recon with his siblings and listening to their disagreement and another rant from their youngest about Pit Demons, Red Robin made the decision to check these Drs Fenton out undercover. And who better to do that than Tim Drake-Wayne, CoCEO of Wayne Enterprise who got interested in their ectoplasm-powered gadgets designed for co-existing. After all Gotham might just be as hunted if not more with the crime rate they had.

His siblings were not happy, he knew that but he took the earliest chance he had, to take a private plane to Amity Park and made an appointment with the Fentons on a saturday afternoon.

He made sure to smile pleasantly as the son of the Drs Fentons opened the door and took his time staring. Before finally inviting him in after a shout from the Drs. resounded somewhere behind him in the house. Tim of course eyed the glowing green shake the other teenager was drinking, already forming plans on getting a sample of it the first chance he got.

"Mr. Drake! Such a pleasure to have you here! You have already met my little boy Danny, my husband will join us later he got hold up by my daughters. But we do have a couple of inventions prepared for showcasing, we could also go over some of the theories first if you prefer until my husband can join us.." A woman came up shaking his hand and the teenager, Danny, stepped away from them retreating further away but staying in earshot, Tim noted.

"Dr. Fenton, thank you for having me. I am looking forward to learning about this ecto-energy and your Fenton-inventions, I believe one was called an Ecto-Infuser?" Did he imagine it or did that boy cringe? Also the boy was clearly watching him, he tried to appear nonchalant but the way the other teen's eyes followed Tims every move as well as the guarded look in his eyes was making it obvious.

"The Ecto-Dejecto, originally designed to weaken ghosts but is now one of the many medical tools that can help a ghost survive if they do not have a steady supply of ectoplasm." Dr. Fenton easily explained while leading him over to the seating area.

"Danny be a dear and bring our guest something to drink. Coffee or Tea?"

"Coffee would be fine." Not like he would actually drink it. As much as he and his siblings made fun of Bruce's paranoia, he was not about to drink coffee offered by people who research ghosts. Besides, looking around, he wasn't sure how well they followed OSHA and he wasn't about to potentially drink a coffee infused with Lazarus Water. If that ectoplasm was Lazarus water. But he would take it with him as one of many samples.

"Sure things mom. Should I bring out the fudge too?"

Tim's ear twitched and he turned ever so slightly in the direction of the son. No it couldn't be, could it?

"Oh please be so kind."

"Will be right back."

Now Tim wished he had forced at least one of his siblings along. Because if his ears didn't betray him then this teenager had the same voice like the ghost kid. Though his memory could be slightly impaired because of the time frame since he had last heard it. He would need to get a voice recording now too and play it to his siblings.

[madamspellmans-met-tet]

yes maybe any rules you follow while writing or what you think is important? would really help and I bet there's lots of ppl who wanna know

ok so I’ve put together a few but these are just my opinions. I’m not a fan of writing rules, so keep in mind that these are just my personal guidelines that I’ve learned over years and that always have exceptions. The most important thing is to have fun and to develop a feeling for what works and that’s something you only get through experience. My first fanfiction was crap but I had a blast writing it anyway. Hope this helps, lmk if you have questions 💕

Beginner:

Formatting. This is about reading economy for the reader. get rid of empty lines (there’s shortcuts in word for that). Use paragraphs (there’s info online when to start a new one). Use quotation marks (“” or »«, don’t get fancy). Punctuation (em vs en dash, comma goes before the quotation mark etc.). No caps lock. Use bold or italic for emphasis.

Consistency. choose whatever narrator you prefer, the tense to write in and the pov—stick to it throughout. See also: “head hopping”

Grammar & spelling. Doesn’t have to be perfect but just using a simple spell checker helps get rid of major issues.

Advanced:

in medias res. start as late as possible in the scene and leave at the earliest point. skip the simple stuff like waking up or falling asleep unless you have a reason to. This keeps the tension up.

always say less than necessary. give as little info in dialogue as possible. Usually I’ll write what I want the character to say and then go over it again and cut it to the bare minimum. People never say what they actually mean. I aim for not more than 2-3 sentences per direct speech section.

Avoid info dumping. Don’t have a character tell you their backstory. Show how it affects them today and drop subtle hints at it. Use environmental storytelling. When describing environment, sprinkle details throughout instead of putting them in a paragraph and try to always relate them to the character. Like what do they think of the carpet? Do they have a memory attached to it? Maybe the forest seems dark and lost to them because they have been kidnapped and feel lost. Stuff like that.

Rule of 3. This is for foreshadowing etc. once you mention something 3 times for some reason it gives the reader a sense of consistency and “roundness”. Referencing something that happened earlier in the story also helps make the world feel more real.

Avoid head hopping. Don’t switch from one character’s pov to the other’s in the same paragraph. Better even avoid it in the same scene or chapter. It’s hard to follow.

Overused phrases. “She released a breath she didn’t know she was holding” and more (you’ll find lists of that online).

Very niche:

Remove the filter. Whenever you’re tempted to write words like “saw”, “felt”, “heard” or other words pertaining to senses, see if you can rephrase the sentence. Just describe the thing directly. Ex: instead of writing “I looked at the clock.” write -> “The old fashioned clock on the wall showed it was already past lunch time.”

Said is not dead. Don’t overdo it with the dialogue tags. Said is a word that the reader skips over and doesn’t notice. It focuses the attention on the story rather than the writing, so no need to show off your vocab. Again, this is a case of do everything in measures. It’s not forbidden to use other dialogue tags on occasion—dosage is key!

Dosing adverbs (words ending in -ly). Same thing. Whenever I use an adverb in my writing followed by a verb, I try to think about whether there is a stronger verb to use so I won’t need the adverb. But sometimes it’s perfectly okay to use it. Like when you try to show a contrast. “She smiled happily” is redundant because a smile usually indicates happiness and you could use “she beamed” instead. But if you write “she smiled sadly” it’s an oxymoron and therefore a strong use of an adverb.

Metaphors/purple prose. Good and necessary but don’t overdo it. Rule of thumb for me is: use metaphors and similes etc to describe sensory input but keep it simple when describing actions. No need to write “she removed her elusive presence from the limited space of existence surrounding us.” Instead of “she left the room.”

A good scene for me ends in a different place (emotionally or/and physically) than it began.

Character voice. study the way a character speaks and try to mirror that in your writing. What kind of vocab do they use? Where are they from? Do they swear? What terms of endearment do they use? Do they speak more formal or informal or even slang? Where do they come from?

My favourite story structure: chiastic or reversed chiastic. Not gonna explain it here, if you’re interested you can look it up. This is just a personal favourite.