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just-a-creep-babe · 2 months ago

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What Makes You Tick - Chapter 12

(Ticci Toby x Reader)

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Taglist: @nyx-daughterofchaos98 @kindadolly @guineveresghost @cedarwood-05 @mojo-jojo-1 @yourmom132

Divider by @plum98

Masky and Hoodie are nowhere to be found when you return from the hike. Which, in all honesty, is a relief.

You end up back in the room you woke up in—your room by now, you suppose. You close the door, lie on the bed, and let the last hour or so wash over you.

It wasn’t nearly as much information as you would’ve liked—but fuck, it's better than nothing.

You close your eyes, and the image of Toby dappled in the sunlight comes to mind. Something tugs at your chest, like a mix of disdain and admiration, longing and homesickness, pity and envy. You turn to your side, trying to banish the thought of anything that has to do with Toby.

But that only lasts a few minutes before your mind wanders right back to the thought of him.

Truthfully, don't exactly know just how you feel about him. You're worried you don't resent him as much as you should. You’re worried you don’t resent him at all, actually. And, maybe most of all, you’re worried there’s a reason you have a tendency to stick by his side, one that you don’t want to admit even to yourself.

As if you need more things to worry about.

The one thing that lightens your conscience, ironically enough, is the idea that he's not doing any of this of his own volition. Selfish as it may be, you feel better imagining him as a puppet on some strings, rather than a free person.

Duty, obligation, blackmail—whatever the strings may be, all you'd need to do is cut them, sever the ties to the puppet master, and he'd be free.

You sigh, and turn to the side, facing away from the window.

You try not to think too much about everything Toby must've endured to reach the point where he is now.

And then you don’t know when, exactly, you pass out, but when you reopen your eyes, the room is draped in darkness. You blink wearily, that familiar migraine pounding in your head again.

You try to cough out some of the tightness in your chest, and then with bleary eyes, you glance out the window. The trees are motionless, the air hanging dead in the woods. Yet despite the uncanny stillness of the forest, every now and then, you swear you see brief blurs of motion darting through your peripheral, emphasized by the faint swaying of the branches.

You’re thirsty.

If it were up to you, you’d ignore your thirst and let sleep claim you once more. But you know your migraine will only worsen in the morning if you don’t deal with it now.

So, begrudgingly, you stand.

You could’ve sworn you’d closed the door yesterday, but as you stumble through your room, you notice it’s wide open.

You dismiss it.

Through the hallway, you make your way to the kitchen in the dark.

You don’t know what time it is, but it feels late enough to be surprising when you hear the low murmur of people talking.

You stop in your tracks, holding your breath. And when you recognize the voices, you quietly creep closer to the source; the kitchen.

“…spiders?” you hear the end of Masky’s sentence as you press near the wall. “She arachnophobic or something?”

There’s a brief half-second pause before, who you assume to be Hoodie, snickers and answers, “She’s about to be.”

Toby clicks his tongue—the pitch and intonation all too easy to recognize.

“Can’t we push it off by, like—like-l-like—a day or two? She just…”

It sounds like Hoodie answers Toby, but his response is too muffled to make out, which has you daring to inch closer. You press your ear to the knotted wood of the door and listen, trying your best to be as silent as possible.

“…have time for that,” Masky says. “He’s already not too pleased that we lost the lead on the journal.”

Toby’s quick to retaliate. “Yeah, but he’s—he’s happy we have her in—in-i—“ he interrupts himself with a verbal tic before finishing, “—have her in exchange. It more than makes up for it.”

Hoodie snorts. “You’re happy we have her in exchange. I’m sure he’d rather have the notebook instead.”

“That’s not true!” Toby’s frustration mounts. “You guys still don’t get the role she plays in this. You—you won’t listen.”

“Yeah, yeah—“ you can almost imagine Masky waving his hand as he brushes Toby off. “We get it, we get the role you want her to play. It’s not every day you find someone who isn’t completely put off by you.”

There’s a pause, and then you hear what sounds like him putting a glass down after taking a drink.

“Who knows,” he continues, “if you keep sticking your neck out for her, maybe eventually, she will feel indebted enough to blow you—“

He barely finishes his sentence before there’s a loud crash of a chair getting knocked over. The impact of someone falling resonates beneath your feet, and then there’s grunting and swearing like another fight's broken out.

You stumble back, shocked and scared and confused, and then you bump into something or someone behind you.

You don’t know who the fuck else is in the cabin if all three men are in the kitchen.

But as you spin around to face whatever the hell's behind you, a loud burst of static fills your mind.

It’s accompanied by a barrage of colours—so many colours. Too many. Flashes of dark and light overwhelm your vision until they’re all you can see. Dreams or memories resurface, mixing and melting together into one nauseating blur.

Glimpses of a forest flash behind your eyes. The green of leaves shudders in the wind, slowly at first, between cacophanies of strange sounds and jarring images that disorient you beyond recognition. With every flash of interruption, the wind picks up, and the leaves jerk and shake and darken before something sharp and jet black, like a spider’s tendrils, slashes through them.

The tendrils crackle through your vision, a mirror breaking, and then the cracks erupt into thick black smoke before bright vapors of red and orange eclipse the darkness.

It all happens within a split second, and then, faster than your mind can process it, more and more visions flash before you.

You see your neighbour’s face, laughing, and then sparks of red flood your sight until you realize she's bleeding. Skin flays from flesh, revealing the deep red and pinks of her inside, all while she laughs hysterically. Her face is mutilated and contorted into something beyond recognition with every heaved breath of laughter.

Pages of a worn journal flutter open to reveal insects—handfuls upon handfuls of maggots, worms, beetles, black flies—all writhing and squirming about. More visions of things you can't fully decipher cloud your vision until it’s like you're swimming upside-down in black, murky water and you can’t see the end of it.

A spider’s leg, as impossibly long and sharp as the last, tears through fabric, and then you're falling.

All around you, you hear your neighbor's laugh. You see her between jolts of colours, her face melting, eyes rolling back as some long, thin line splits a perfect cut across her forehead.

Like some kind of parasite, a black, squirming worm erupts from the cut. More insects crawl out of the fissure, and then something round and blindingly white amongst the sea of writhing insects appears; an eye.

It rolls back, then suddenly snaps its full attention on you. And as it does, your neighbor's jaw drops open and she screams that same fucking scream.

You're in hell.

You feel it; feel some other plane of existence beyond the edges of your reality. Waves of pain and agony, sorrow and regret, hatred and bitter-hot rage roil just inches from the precipice of your mind.

And then you hear choking. It's wet and guttural, and sounds absolutely awful.

You see your neighbor's throat cut open in a thin line, identical to the one that'd appeared on her forehead. And as she chokes on the blood filling her throat, she reaches a crooked hand out to you.

You want to recoil. But you're frozen in place.

Something black and pointed protrudes from her neck, the skin around it expanding like a bubble about to pop. And then that same spider's leg crawls out from the wound. And everything goes dark.

A black veil washes over you, bringing with it an impossibly cold front. The chill stings you down to your bones, washing over you like the guiding touch of death. And then there’s… nothing.

There’s no noise, no colours, no visions, nothing.

After everything you've just seen and heard, the emptiness is nothing short of blissful.

But then you feel it; you're not alone. Something else is with you in the darkness.

And then you hear Toby calling out to you.

***

You've been asleep for what feels like way too long.

Everything's stiff and sore, and that same fucking migraine is pounding in your head like an old, resentful friend.

The first thing you see when you open your eyes is Toby.

He isn’t wearing his goggles. It's the first thing you notice; the full, unobstructed view of his eyes. Honey brown eyes, with flakes of green and gold visible even in the darkness of the room, are framed by long, dark lashes.

The second thing you notice is that he looks concerned. His brows are furrowed, worry creasing his otherwise soft, freckled skin visible over his mouthguard. Even worried, something about him looks so sweet, so gentle. It always takes you a moment to remember they're the eyes of a killer, and even after, it takes you another moment to believe it.

“(Y/n)…”

He speaks your name quietly, like he’s afraid of startling you.

You realize you're on the floor, and he's cradling you in his arms, propping you up to keep your head lifted. You must've fallen.

“What… what happened?”

Something of a nightmare dissipates behind your eyelids.

You sit up, or, at least, you try to, but a wave of dizziness has you crumpling back into Toby's warmth.

“Easy, easy,” he murmurs.

With the delicacy of an angel, he helps sit you up, and when the nausea rises from your stomach to your throat, he lets you lean against his chest for support.

You recognize his smell; something warm and familiar in its woodsy-ness, and after a few seconds of breathing him in and out, the fog clouding your mind clears somewhat.

When you finally have the capacity to look around, you realize you're in the living room, right between the hallway and the kitchen, and Hoodie and Masky are also there, staring down at you.

Masky has his burly arms folded over his chest, and for the life of you, you can't read him. Especially not with his mask on. You can't tell if he's frustrated or annoyed or intrigued, and you don't exactly know which one you'd prefer, in all honesty.

Hoodie, on the other hand, is leaning against the back of the couch. And even with his mask on, he seems calm and relaxed, unlike the other two. He tilts his head to the side when you glance over him, though you can't tell if it's out of amusement or curiosity.

Not caring to find out which it is, you return your attention to Toby.

“What… what happened?” you ask.

Your voice escapes you in a low, weary croak, like you've either been sleeping or screaming for a long, long time.

“You..." Toby flinches, cracking his neck. "W-well, you, y-you—“

“You had a seizure,” Masky interrupts Toby’s stuttering with a flat, matter-of-fact kind of tone.

A seizure?

Bouts of flashing visions pound in your mind, leaving behind a throbbing blur of pain. You groan.

“How… how do you feel?” Toby asks, and you don’t think you’ve ever heard him sound so cautious, so tentative.

“Bad.”

“You see anything?”

“Mh?”

You look up at Masky, who’d asked the question.

The last few remnants of those images, as brief and fleeting as ever, evaporate behind your eyelids. Like they’re withdrawing from your grasp, and try as you might to catch them on your fingertips, you just can't recall them.

But something's changed. You can't tell what, exactly, is different, and whether it's just inside your head, but you feel it. Like something isn't what it used to be. Something isn’t right.

And then you notice what’s wrong.

You're not alone with the three men. There's... something else in the room with you.

A presence lingers in the dark edges of the room. You can feel it waiting, watching. It sits heavily, weighing down like it's on your shoulders, inside your mind—like it's everywhere.

You don't know what it is, or if it's always been there and you've only now noticed it. But even though it doesn't have eyes, you're almost certain of one thing; it's staring right at you.

“I said you see anything?”

Masky repeats the question, which thankfully snaps your attention away from the unnerving presence.

You purse your lips, shake your head no, but your lie isn't very convincing, even to yourself.

“Well,” Hoodie clicks his tongue, the sound slicing through some of the tension as he pushes off the couch, “better get used to it.”

He tosses something at you, but before you can even flinch, Toby catches it mid-air, saving you from the hit. He shoots Hoodie a hard glare.

If Hoodie notices or even cares, he certainly doesn't show it. He merely turns and walks away, like he has better things to do.

You expect Masky to leave as well, but he doesn't. He stays behind, keeping his arms firmly folded over his chest, as he carefully surveys you.

You push down the instinct to nestle into Toby, to hide into his hoody as though he might be the only thing that could protect you.

And after what feels like a small eternity, Masky huffs, and turns to leave as well.

You don’t miss the way Toby hisses the word “pricks” under his breath as Masky leaves. And, again, if Masky hears or even cares, he doesn't show it as he walks out.

And then you’re all alone with Toby.

Despite being pressed up so closely into him, you wish you were closer.

You feel the heat of his body, the warmth of his skin, the scent of everything safe and familiar and comforting, and you have to resist the urge to lean in and bask in it, bask into him.

You mentally try to shake the instinct away.

You're about to ask him something—just what, exactly, you don't really know. But then he opens his palm and reveals what Hoodie had thrown at you; a bottle of pills.

You stiffen.

The orange-tinted bottle is half empty, with only a few pills still rattling about. But there's no mistaking it; it's the same prescription you saw on the table. It's the exact same bottles you've seen littered around the cabin, even around the forest.

What the hell have you gotten yourself into?

At the sight of your reaction, Toby closes his hand around the bottle and looks away.

“You should… you should keep these on you,” he murmurs. “Even if you’d rather not take them—take them now, you should at least keep ‘em—k-keep ‘em close.”

He hands them to you, and against your better judgement, you accept them.

“Just… just in case something like that happens again.”

You don’t press him for more information like you usually would’ve. As much as it scares you, you think you might be starting to understand more of what's going on. And you're definitely starting to understand that the less you know, the better.

"C'mon," he hums, "I'll help you back into bed."

Before you can protest, he pulls you closer into him, hooks an arm beneath your thighs, and then he's lifting you up like it's nothing.

You still don't feel fully stable, certainly not enough to walk, so you don't argue as he brings you back to your room.

He sets you down on the bed, and as soon as he pulls away, you immediately miss his warmth.

"W-wait..." you reach out to him, fingers tentatively grasping onto his clothes before he can leave.

He pauses at your command, his deep brown eyes flickering curiously over the nervous look on your face.

"Don't..." you hesitate, "Don't leave me. Please. Stay with me."

You feel like an idiot asking this of him, but you’d rather feel like an idiot than be alone right now. So when he seems uncertain about your request, you nervously explain.

“I… I don’t want to be alone. I’m—I’m scared, Toby. I don’t feel safe without you. Please don’t leave me alone.”

Something in his eyes softens, something like a tension you didn’t realize he’d been holding. And, with a nod, he accepts.

He slips into the bed next to you, pulling the covers up so that you’re both tucked in. There’s a clumsy kind of awkwardness about his movements, like he’s not exactly sure how to go about this whole thing, and he keeps twitching and jerking and muttering things under his breath like he can’t get his tics under control.

When you both eventually settle, there’s a gap between your bodies, but he’s just close enough for you to still feel safe.

And it somehow feels easier to ignore whatever followed you, whatever's still watching from the corner of the room.

#creepypasta #creepypasta x reader #ticci toby #ticci toby x reader #crp

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possesseddesiress · 3 months ago

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Switch Up: Miles' Ambition

CONTENT WARNING: This story includes themes of transformation and body control with a suggestive approach. If this type of narrative is not to your liking or you do not meet the recommended age, we suggest you do not continue. All images used (if any) belong to their respective owners. I claim no authorship over them and they are only used for illustrative purposes.

If you decide to go ahead, welcome to Possessed Desires, where mind and body are never completely under your control.

Switch Up: Miles' Ambition (English Version)

Part One: First Level

Part Two: Logan's Revenge

Part Three: Ethan's Relief

Part Four: Miles' Ambition

Part Five: Conclusions

I thought about asking Ethan and Logan for help. After all they were my best friends, but they both seemed so unfocused on flexing their new muscles or almost sniffing each other, they looked like children.

I didn't mind raising suspicions, more than one person had seen us in the library, some curious, some even judging. but what would they do? They had no way of checking that there was anything wrong with “Caleb” and ‘Ruben’, much less in “Alan's” new behavior.

Alan's body was certainly a good acquisition: handsome, attractive, muscular, rich, even his scent was... A delight.

However, he was a far cry from my “final destination”, the only reason I had started doing the check-up: Blake Jones.

The best athlete in all of high school: He had been captain of the swimming, soccer, Greco-Roman wrestling and basketball teams. And he could have been captain of more teams if he wanted to, he was such a freak at sports, I didn't even know where he found the time to practice and represent the school in every discipline, but there he was, being the star.

I wanted that.

You might think that being an athlete, his average would be low, lots of muscles but little brains, right?

On the contrary, Blake seemed to have everything in the palm of his hand: fame, body, brains and money.

The perfect springboard to reach the pinnacle of success. I had always been made to feel lesser because of my appearance: lots of pimples, a spinal problem, glasses and to make matters worse, I also had braces.

To others I was just another nerd with a hissing problem and a computer geek. But I was more than that, and the control was the perfect test of my abilities.

Blake's body was the ideal opportunity to bring out my intellect, such a hot body accompanied by a brilliant mind? Success was assured.

Thousands of inventions created by me - Steve Jobs and Einstein would be dwarfed by me! The control could go on the market long after, perhaps, sell for a huge amount of money and ensure a way that no one could take my new body away from me and everything would be perfect.

But there was no use fantasizing without my lottery ticket.

I made my way to the sports area of the school, right where the pool was, the soccer field or the soccer field, even the gymnasium. There was no way I couldn't find Blake.

A few guys waved at me, which caught me off guard until I remembered what skin I was in. It felt good to be noticed, if a body like Alan's was flashy, I couldn't imagine what I'd get with my favorite stud.

I arrived at the gym, empty. For a second I thought I had failed, when I heard soft breathing, I turned to look a little closer, searching for the source. Until I saw Blake sitting on the steps, agitated and wearing his compression shirt, he watched me for a second, raising his palm.

- Hey - he sighed with a smile.

It was as if my brain stopped working, there was an awkward silence until finally something escaped my lips.

- Hi

That made him raise his eyebrow.

- Why so serious, Alan? - he leaned over to get a drink of water - Your essays not going well?

- Nah, bro - Fuck, didn't that sound too forced? - Teacher Rivera sprained her foot or something, they suspended rehearsals.

- Too bad - He nodded slightly. Another silence - Are you sure you're okay, dude? You're feeling quieter than usual. Also... Ugh. What's that smell? - He motioned, starting to sniff around him.

Holy shit, holy shit.

He walked over to me, sniffing.

- Dude... - he sighed in denial, looked up. And what followed next took me by surprise - Since before? Today you woke up bold

He murmured to grab me by the back of the neck and pull me close to him for a kiss. It was intense, but what was going on!

- Wait... - I mumbled pulling away.

- Too exposed? You're right, I jumped the gun. I'm sorry, but you just, you smell too good, dude - he smiled only to almost throw himself at me again.

Blake was gay? Alan was gay? The two of them were... together? Fuck, I'm supposed to be smart, how could I not notice?

They hardly ever speak to each other in public, they don't even belong to the same social circle and share few classes. But... Blake always goes to the theater performances, and Alan goes to all the games.

He kissed me on my neck with intensity, caressing my waist, slightly lifting my shirt to sink his fingers into my skin. I let out a sigh, it was like my brain was fried, I couldn't think anything!

I wanted more of him. I knew what my goal was, but what was the likelihood of getting this on my body? Never. And after I get Blake's body? Impossible.

I kissed his lips intensely, then moved to his armpit to sink my face into it, smelling like crazy.

- Woah, easy, looks like someone's excited!

He giggled with that charismatic smile, loaded with desire. I continued to lick and smell his armpits, filling my face with his sweat, his scent.

He grabbed me with some force from my buttocks, massaging them obscenely. I closed my eyes, panting and lost in the sensation, that I didn't even realize when he pulled out his grip.

- What is this? - he asked curiously, weighing the box. I was about to take it from him, but that would be suspicious, what would someone like Alan do with something like that? I mean... it looked like a control and already at first sight, but to bring it with you?

- I found it - I mumbled - It was lying in one of the aisles

- And why did you take it? - more than confused, he seemed curious, with a chuckle at the end of his question.

- I found it conspicuous

He nodded

- It is - He ran his fingers over the buttons, fiddling with it, he didn't even notice when he pressed the yellow button, just when he had it turned towards him - Will it work with batteries or something? - He turned it over again.

And suddenly I was holding the controller in his hands. I couldn't help but smile.

It was a strange thing, when I went from my body to Alan's, it certainly felt different, he was taller, had a slender body, but now. Damn... I felt strong from head to toe, his calves, his arms, his pecs felt like melons and his abs felt like steel! I felt so... Powerful.

I looked up, meeting the gaze of the body I'd been in just moments before.

- What the fuck? - he shouted. He looked down at himself, touching himself in panic.

I had never been good at acting. Science and math were my best weapons, acting? I could barely pass in theater. But I had to do it, at least if I wanted to fit the nails in this time.

- Blake? - I said in a frightened tone. I had to make every effort not to start groping myself like a madman.

The new Alan looked at himself in amazement, he stood in front of a mirror. He didn't say anything, he was just puzzled. And when I least expected it, he smiled. - Not bad... - he murmured caressing her arms, the frame of her waist and even taking her buttocks to shake them - Yes you do have a big butt! - he teased giving her a few slaps as he laughed.

I thought he would be more scared or even reluctant, but he seemed excited exploring his body. It took him almost no time at all to slip his hand inside his pants.

- You're not bad yourself - I murmured to start touching my new ample chest, it was so satisfying to feel those fat bulges. I was no longer puny, now I had muscles all over me! - And just smell this... - I said raising my arm, enjoying all the stinky stench that was now emanating.

Strong, musky and pungent. It smelled like a real man, an alpha male.... “Alan” kept touching himself with care, even taking out his phone to take a couple of pictures of himself showing off his arms.

- Oh yeah? - he raised his eyebrow as he started to move towards me, slowly.

- Yes... Alan.

He stood still for a second, but then smiled.

- You should let me try it, Blake.

And it was like touching heaven. Tasting all my fantasies, the future in the palm of my hand.

- Go ahead.

I lifted my shirt to give him direct access to the body that seemed to devour him with my gaze, plus his pants left nothing to the imagination.

A prominent silhouette was forming, and I didn't even feel that “excited” yet. I felt the weight of his attributes, heavy as a bull.

He knelt down to start licking my abdomen in its entirety, it felt good.... too good. Like an obedient and attentive object ready to serve. I grabbed him by the hair to rub him again and again against my skin, which made him let out a moan.

- Ah, ah, A-Alan!

- No. My name is Blake.

I demanded. Squeezing his hair, which made him gasp more.

- Blake... - he murmured obediently.

- That's the way I like it, puppy...

I smiled.

When I least expected it, we were both slammed up against the mirror, his pectorals clashing on the cold surface, and his rod rubbing over and over in the reflection.

- Ah, ah!

I nibbled on his neck, squeezing his waist tighter, the back and forth between our bodies was continuous, sweaty and intoxicating. As if we had both surrendered to simple instincts, but geez. Getting the body of my dreams and having that same guy at my feet could make me last for hours.

- I-I'm going to finish - he sighed with his eyes closed, anxious. I was about to hit him harder when I thought, with a wicked grin. I stopped the movements, which made him feel more desperate - Why are you stopping?

- Tell me you'll always be Alan.

I stroked him gently, as if at any moment he was going to take his hand away.

- What? What the hell are you talking about?

- And I'll always be Blake.

I smiled.

- Dude, I'm not liking what you're saying, I think...

I was about to speak when I pushed back against him, burying my tool even deeper.

His eyes widened, his cheek pressed against the glass as he gasped for more, thrust again and again. Enjoying the sound of the skins slapping against each other, saliva even seemed to drip from his mouth, a goofy, lost smile on his face.

- Say it.

- I-I...

- Say it! - I applied more force again. What seemed to break him was when I touched that sensitive spot inside him.

- Ah, I'm Alan! Your Blake! Ah, ah! - he gasped with a smile, nodding. I couldn't help releasing my seed inside him, immediately, he did the same, spilling that whitish liquid against the reflection.

I let it spill with satisfaction on my face. Alan's breathing looked ragged, a mess, he watched me closely.

I thought he would have a fit of rage, or try to hit me, even complain: but instead, he just smiled.

- Blake...

He muttered.

The days went on after that. I knew people could notice the “new” behavior in Caleb, Ruben, Blake, even Alan. But many preferred to ignore it, besides. What would they say to popular guys?

Exactly, nothing.

The new Logan was very meek, Ethan and Miles on the other hand? For a while they were annoying, but after a couple of talks, discipline and their mouths being occupied for more than just complaining, they became as obedient as he was.

And everything seemed to be perfect, I loved being Blake, just look at these muscles!

Everyone was looking at me, everyone was crazy about me, drooling at every step I took in this school, where I was finally the king.

Slowly I started to wear more revealing clothes. Fuck it, what does it matter?

Sexy, an adonis. At first I worried what I would do about Blake's sports, he had the brains but not his athletic abilities. But we quickly learned that the talents and abilities of our current bodies seemed to be preserved.

Ruben was quite a sensation for the works, they said he had become a little more... “spicy.” The rumors of dating girls had disappeared but mysteriously seemed to have been replaced by rumors of dating boys.

Caleb, well. He was still sweaty-smelling and fond of exercise, but he had improved his grades, as well as acquiring a new taste for superhero costumes. He almost seemed obsessed with watching the spandex stretch to highlight his muscles.

The new and improved Blake, was quite the star. Skilled at sports, more strategic than before, even ruthless? And well, more exhibitionist.

But you know what was best of all? The new Alan. He became a star of the theater, almost on Ruben's level. And shortly thereafter he spoke to me to “formalize” our relationship.

It had worked out well for everyone, hadn't it?

To be continued.

----

I hope you enjoyed this story as much as I enjoyed writing it. If you liked it, don't forget to follow it and share it so more people can discover it.

I'm always open to suggestions and ideas, so if you have any fantasy or scenario in mind, let me know in the comments or in messages.

This is the fourth part of “Switch Up”, a new series for the blog, I hope you like it. The story of Ethan and his friends is almost at the end... But what other adventures will the control be able to give?

See you in the next story... Who knows what body you will occupy this time?

---

#body swap #body switch #malebodyswap #bodyswapping #mental change #nerd to hunk #twinktohunk #hunktotwink #switchup

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lovingniamh · 1 year ago

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₊˚ʚ 🩷 ₊˚✧ ﾟ. locked in ― Leah Williamson.

summary: you just cannot seem to tear your gaze away.

warnings: none really.

word count: 1.4k.

a/n: been reading way too many Bridgerton fanfics lately, so, if the dialogue seems really formal, blame that. also, hiya

There’s only a limited number of ways one can keep themselves from chasing what they truly desire, and sometimes those ways can disappoint us. Right then, your feelings were brimming at the top of your mind, and no distractions that you tried to think of were holding a red stop sign to hold you back.

You had never realised how captivating one could be. Well, you could. You have seen her in rather many manners, a few in which you found daunting, and the images of her stuck playing on your mind, whirling around on repeat like a record. But this time, it felt intimate. Like she had finally been snapped into reality and noticed you, playing her role for you.

Your heart rate did not seem to get steadier as you tried so hard with the innocence you had left, and the scene in front of you only made your breath hitch for longer and your eyes grow hazier. God, she was gorgeous, and however many times you tried, you just couldn't remove your burning stare away from her.

The buzz of the club was blurring around you; the obvious natter and thumping of the bass were now in the back of your mind. All focus was purely on the blonde, and the blonde only, paralysed from the neck up with a sufficient source of longing and lust.

There was no going back now; you were now shoulders deep into your trance, and once her gaze caught onto yours, you were in fear of never breathing again as your thoughts encased your senses further.

Nothing was to ease you away, talking with expressions across the private area that you had grown accustomed to over the years. Every time the team made their annual visit, she managed to become more alluring each time you met her, the recent winning glow adding to the tonne of beauty she radiated. Nothing seemed out of place, and you started to believe what you were seeing was just a dream – a drunken dream.

It was with a blink that she caught on to your frozen state, obvious from the fact that you were not going to stand up and make the first move. With a few sips of liquid courage, you followed her eyes with every step she took, neither of you seeming to let go of the mesmerism you had locked in.

Once you realised she was becoming increasingly close, your eyes were just about peeking through your eyelids by the time she made it in front of your cowering state, actualising that your thoughts had literally granted your wishes without a word. A slight taunting smile graced her lips as she stood above you before she smoothed the material of her trousers down as she sat beside you – your stare still caught onto her like a mouse stuck to the glue of a teasing trap – and now, coincidentally, everything felt sticky.

She leant towards you once she had turned her body, her expression swelling with more amusement at your reaction. You felt the decency to lean further backwards, but she took a pinch of your top to stop you from doing so, continuing to place her face closer to yours. “I think you have won.”

Still quiet, she edged away from you, analysing your expression as she bit her lip to hide a giggle at the minor furrow of your eyebrows, yourself still talking with your eyes as they glistened over with a sheen of evident confusion.

“You can speak; you know, I don't bite.” She spoke into the indistinct silence that had appeared around the both of you, tilting her head to the side before you shifted in your seat, the backs of your thighs seemingly tacky against the material. Your mouth just parted before she cut you off again. “Unless you want me to, take it as a reward from me for winning the contest.”

“What contest?”

“Oh, she speaks!” She gasped comically before lifting the lipstick-stained rim of her glass back to the designer, sipping and swallowing delicately. “You’ve always been quite reserved, haven't you? But never invisible.”

“I-”

She swallowed the final bit of liquid from her drink before she continued, not until she wiped her lip with the tip of her finger before moving her hand onto the bare of your thigh. “Not in the way you think you are; do you think that I do not notice, y/n?”

The fixation of your stares was finally torn in half as you took more fancy of the warmth of her palm, the tips of her fingers rounding the edge of the inside of your thighs. The mugginess of the room just grew ten times hotter as you calculated in your head the multiple different consequences that could occur, some of which you had been dreaming of for as long as you could remember.

She had become fed up with your frigid way of flirting: “I’ve seen you, you and your glances, gander, and gawks. You’re starting to become insufferable, y/n.”

A wave of embarrassment washed over you like a tide returning, knowing the feeling all too well from past experiences. “I, um, I’m sorry. I just can't help myself. I promise I’ll stop-”

“Who said I wanted you to stop?”

Squinting your eyes marginally, you voiced your interpretation: “You, you just said that I was basically a burden.”

She shook her head softly, reaching up with the hand that was on your thigh to instead brush away the furrow in your eyebrow, her touch then trailing down to your cheek. “No, I said you were insufferable because you won’t act further. I’m tired of waiting, and now I have to make the move myself with the feelings you had first.”

Heart completely in your throat, you made an effort to try to remove it before you spoke, but your words came out with a squeak before it was gone: “You have... you have feelings for me?”

She scoffed, “More than just feelings.”

Mouth agape, you peered around the room, trying to gather yourself away from the bomb the blonde dropped. A bomb that you had been begging to blow up now for a very long time, so why are you turning away? She gathered you back to her with a light touch of guidance under your chin. “I bloody well hope you still feel the same way.”

“Kiss me.” You whispered, head lifted by her fingers, still as your eyes pleaded for her lips to touch your own. A few blonde curls fell in front of her face as she took the chance, although she hesitated once her lips brushed gracefully against yours. The both of you shivered, goosebumps arising on your skin as you closed your eyes, awaiting more, but nothing came. You peeked one eye open to find her admiring your relaxed features, your impatience bubbling in your stomach. “Leah.”

“Shh.” She placed one finger over your lips before tucking a stray lock of hair behind your ear. “You really are beautiful; did you know that?”

“Leah.” You caught her hand in your own, seeking home on your cheek. Your eyes found themselves back to square one; both your gazes bore into each other as the people around you became properly unknown and unnoticed. Totally forgotten.

She ripped into the silence before you and uttered, “I want you to kiss me.”

Bringing your hand back into her grip, she transferred it to her cheek, and your mouth ran dry at how soft her skin was. A burst of desire overflowing your body had your noses beginning to nudge as you chased her lips with eagerness, predator to prey. A role you had never played before.

You moaned in surprise at your own doing, relief flooding through your veins as you finally reached your true desire after hours, months, and years of pining after the English captain, but this time she told you what to do in a much different way.

The kiss was feverish, and you had to keep yourself from clawing at her, sticking to one spot as you let your mouth do the work whilst she followed your steps. Everything and everyone around you were now completely withdrawn from your mind. It was Leah and Leah only, and god, how you wish you were, in reality, completely alone.

When you thought she couldn't get any anymore intoxicating, the bite she gave your bottom lip injected you with more lust for her, and you were obsessed with the taste of her. You wanted more, but before you could adjust yourself to press more into her, she pulled away.

“That was more than what I was expecting.” Her breaths were laboured as she remarked, yourself not listening, as you sought for her once more, beginning to get a hand with the whole dominance role, if that's what you would call it. “Easy, tiger. We can continue once we get home.”

#woso #woso community #woso x reader #leah williamson #leah williamson x reader #engwnt x reader #awfc x reader #awfc #lionesses #woso imagines #leah williamson imagines #lovingniamh

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matramancer · 10 months ago

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🌸KIKORU THE WINGMAN | Narumi Gen x Mitsuri! reader

Synopsis: As much as she admires her two mentors, seeing the two of you pine over each other was INFURIATING. Perhaps it was time to take matters into her own hands. Unfortunately.

part 1 | Mitsuri! reader Masterlist

Tags: fem! reader, HCs w scenarios, Narumi x reader, Kikoru and Mitsuri!reader found family ft. Narumi, JEALOUS NARUMI, Narumi Gen is an idiot, fluff, mutual pining, Kikoru the wingman

By the time Kikoru’s batch rolls in, she’s already gotten word about several of the unique heavy hitters in the force. She wasn’t her father’s daughter for nothing–an extensive knowledge of the Defense Force is a part of keeping yourself up in the game.

She knew about the infamous First Division—home of Japan’s Strongest Anti-Kaiju Combatant, and the more recent officer who made a name for herself as the Pillar of Love.

However, it still didn’t prepare her for the rather… lousy introduction her supposed new captain and mentor gave her. And the chronic gaming addiction. And the Yamazon addiction. And everything else in between.

When she thought things couldn’t get any rowdier, she was very bombastically introduced to you.

“Captain Narumi! You wanted to see me?” The blonde turns at the new voice entering her ears, your figure standing by the doorway. At a glance, she was taken aback at the mountain of sakura mochi on a tray in your hands, your expression an immediate stark contrast to all the officers she’s ever seen in the force.

As she locked eyes with you, your smile only widened, and Kikoru wondered if it was possible for a human to emit their own light source.

Nothing however prepared her for your figure to zero in on her in a flash, your movements so abrupt she had to take a few steps back to process them. “HELLOOO! YOU’RE SO CUTE! Do you want some sakura mochi? Though I only have a little.” A little?! You were holding a MOUNTAIN!

“Platoon leader (L/N)! Great timing!” Hasegawa keeps his grip strong on Narumi, even as he wriggles about. The man then proceeded to point at his BS5, which the other officers in the room were trying to fit into a trash bag. “HELP ME FARM A DUNGEON! IF WE START NOW WE CAN 100% IT TONIGHT!”

The room is silent as Kikoru watches on, mortified. Hasegawa is seconds away from bloody murder. You were still holding onto your plate of sakura mochi.

“…I’ll just leave these here.” you set down the plate and slowly try to make your escape— “COME BACK HERE PLATOON LEADER!”

If it weren't for the kaiju attack that happened soon after, Narumi’s image would’ve been permanently tarnished in Kikoru’s eyes.

And not only that, she actually also caught a glimpse of you in battle—that was when you really made an impression on her. She solidified her choice by then. She was going to get stronger, with your help.

Although Kikoru was mainly Narumi’s disciple, it soon became clear that the responsibility had also fallen to you. If Narumi wasn’t training her, you were.

It was really based on two things. One, you already spent lots of time training with Narumi, and second, Kikoru had approached you herself.

“You want to train together?” You blinked owlishly as Kikoru stood before you.

“Yes. I saw how you fought–” Kikoru starts. Truth to be told, she couldn’t keep her eyes off of you. She was assigned to your platoon, which gave her front row seats to you on the battlefield. “--Those maneuvers you did, your consistent energy distribution…”

She recounts the battle she witnessed, finding herself staring in awe as you finished off a group of yoju with your machine gun, before strapping said weapon to your back and immediately winding through the street with fast maneuvers. Even with the suit, your speed paired with such strength belonged to no one in the low combat power bracket. Then, the next thing she heard was your unwavering voice, commencing that the neutralization in your zone was complete.

She was absolutely flabbergasted. She hadn’t even registered the weird shape of your sword before you sprung forward, flooring her even more with your superhuman strength. She was a bearer of a heavy weapon herself, but seeing you jump so cleanly with all the weight of your weaponry was on another level. Not to mention how precise each and every move you did was. Anyone with a lower level of skill would’ve cut themselves with that sword!

On the other side of the comms, she hears Narumi send her a taunting chuckle. “You seeing this, newbie? You’re going to have to go on par with that.”

Back to the training grounds, she holds a determined expression on her face, surprising you with a bow, even. “...It would be an honor for you to train me, Platoon Leader.”

“Eh–EH?!?!?!?!?” Kikoru looks up from her bow to see your nervous stupor, a complete 180 from what she saw a mere two hours ago. “ME?!?!?!?!!?” Yes, you.

(Kikoru does not know if she made the right choice).

Usually, you’d be correcting Kikoru’s form and giving her pointers, then holding a sparring session to demonstrate how your techniques flowed. In particular instances where you both used your weapons, you’d move to the specialized training areas.

Narumi in all of his glory would be stuck to his console before you unceremoniously plucked him away from his lawn chair and forced him to participate.

During her training, there was one particular day that stuck out for her. The day she watched you and Narumi spar for the first time.

For once, Narumi had a look that was indescribably amused hidden under his normal demeanor. Excited even. He was the one that initiated it, after all.

“Kikoru, watch.” He says, a lazy smile curling on his lips as he gets into position. A hand to hand spar .No weapons, no gear.

“--I wanted to say that!” You sulked a bit in your mind, biting your lip.

Whenever the two of you sparred, it was always a spectacle. That much was evident on Kikoru’s expression as the two of you went at it, the lighthearted banter from prior completely abandoned as Narumi went on the full offensive.

He was ruthless, not sparing a single punch even as you took a defensive note in your steps. Even if you were dodging his blows, you did so very narrowly.

And then, you flew. An elegant figure belonging to the one deserving of the title “Love Pillar”. Your body twists and contorts with not only polished skill but extreme calculation. If you were even a centimeter off base, Narumi would finish you. It was like you knew where to dodge, and Narumi knew where to hit.

Every single one of your moves had so much thought put into them, which made sense given your weapon of choice. Similarly, Narumi was a master at switching stances, knowing when exactly to go on the defensive before he’s sending another strike to your hazy figure.

It was then that Kikoru realized that she wasn’t just watching any fight–but a culmination of efforts and hardwork that brought the two of you together in this ring. An undoubted match up of strength that solidified your places in the force. That solidified your positions next to each other in battle.

Yeah, she’s never gonna doubt you guys again (or at least, your strengths) as she watches the fight come to a close, courtesy of an announcement by the megaspeakers.

Narumi curses as he hears news of the 3rd Division’s arrival, already muttering not so clean words at the mere thought of their vice captain (you on the other hand were the total opposite, excited at the prospect of seeing some long distance friends).

“We’re going to crush them!” Narumi grunted, cracking his knuckles with the biggest stink eye while you happily tugged Kikoru along, not interested in hampering the mood. “I wonder if we can catch the captain and vice captain! You must miss them, right Kikoru?”

“Haah?! Don’t you DARE even mention Hoshina’s name!” Your captain’s rage immediately intensifies, like a man out for murder. Something Kikoru wanted no part of.

Unfortunately for poor Kikoru, out of pure bad luck and personal circumstance, she had unintentionally gotten herself caught in the front view seats of her captain slash mentor’s unexpected dilemma.

You ignored Narumi’s blatant hostility, smiling ear to ear. You couldn’t wait to catch up with your friends. “Just in time for lunch too! I wonder what’s on the menu…”

Narumi zeroes in on this, already knowing the answer. In fact, he’d even request the chefs to make today’s portions extra bountiful, under the guise of the 3rd Division’s visit.

He cleared his throat, “casually” mentioning your favorite food, and your reaction after is expectedly, a surge of excitement.

Having spent lots of time with you already, Kikoru thought nothing of it–your attitude with a superior present was certainly a bit unrestrained, sure, but after seeing your bond with Narumi, she chalked it up to you guys just having mutual respect and friendship.

Yeah, friendship. Her eyes drift a bit to Narumi, seeing his side profile. Surely, with Narumi being super nonchalant about all this, he was…

wait.

She sees it. Bared witness to it. Lays eyes on it.

A TINT of red on his cheeks. And the aversion of his eyes soon after.

Oh no. Oh no no no. OH NO.

She refuses to get involved, not in the lives of her superiors and DEFINITELY not in the sad lack of love life that belonged to loser master Narumi.

Okay, it was a bit impossible not to. Not when it was one of those things that you’d definitely always notice after realizing it once. And she was spending hours every day with these people.

In Narumi’s defense, he didn’t know how or when it happened. He didn’t even really take note of you until around the time where you earned his acknowledgement, as harshly as that sounded.

His principles, his life revolved around results. Around skills. Around the Defense Force. As far as he was concerned (and hilariously mortified at), you suddenly carving your presence in his psyche and imprinting your being into his heart was not part of any life plans he had in particular.

Sure you got more and more involved with him, sure you just became a regular part of his day, sure you were the number one person he’s most comfortable fighting side by side with, but as anticlimactic as it was, there was nothing spectacular involved. He just noticed it one day.

He especially realizes that something about you in him has changed when he barges in on two officers (nobodies, he didn’t even bother to remember their faces) throwing jabs at how air-headed you seemed. Without even thinking, his brows had furrowed and a scowl was already forming from his face, and when he came to, the officers had already scurried.

At first, he thought it was just acknowledgement and respect for your strength. But thinking about anyone–or anything badmouthing you, calling you names or underestimating you for just being yourself absolutely had him seething.

He got more particular about you all of a sudden as the feelings hit him. He thinks about it all–Your already bright smile that widened just a bit more when you saw him. How you lit up, whether it was from a good day of training with him, or when he would surprise you with a meal. How he has your face memorized by then. He especially loved when you were enjoying a good lunch by his side, when you won a game together, and–

Huh, that’s particular… Did he always notice all of that stuff from you?

Kikoru knew it was over for him when you gathered in the mess hall, and although Narumi had his console in hand, she saw him sneak more than a few glances to your ever joyous figure, your 5th bowl in hand as you excitedly chatted with Captain Ashiro.

And his eyes were full of love.

Hell, he was still quipping with Hoshina, but that’s exactly the thing. The four of you were sitting on the same table in close proximity. Rivalries aside, you were quite good friends with Mina and Hoshina and were always one for conversation, but he and the Vice Captain were usually at each other’s throats. Why was Narumi willingly sitting through this? CALMLY, no less.

These people (you two) were driving her NUTS. Crazy even. It was tolerable at first, hell, things were smooth sailing when she was none the wiser. But now? His lingering gazes, how he lights up when he gets texts from you, how he’s been pushing for your presence more and more often…

Don’t get her started on the special treatment. Did he think he was being smooth?! Kikoru was LOSING it!

Kafka, oh poor Kafka, got dragged into this mess too, via Kikoru finally spilling the beans in a frustrated burst of emotions.

“I can’t take it. It’s disgusting,” she feels like tearing her twintails out, airing out her grievances to Kafka. “The Captain is bad enough as he is.”

The older man just scratches his head with an awkward laugh. The situation reminds him a bit of his high school days. “Well, sometimes the best way to make it stop is to let it happen. Sorry, Kikoru. Young love calls.”

Kikoru groans. “Nevermind that. I don’t know what’s worse. How hard he’s trying–”

Their gazes land on the training grounds where you were chatting with Mina again, before Narumi’s figure emerges from your side as he offers your favorite grilled onigiri nonchalantly. As you thank him with a smile, you‘re completely clueless over how even Mina notices the way his hand brushed against yours for a tad bit too long. How he’s so clearly not doing this for just anyone.

“--Or how oblivious she is.”

So begins the adventures of Kikoru the unwilling wingman.

As much as she’s unwillingly involved in… whatever this was, she joined the Defense Force for a clear reason. She’s not going to toil on this and let it hinder the progress of her training, for her life’s mission.

But there are times where she throws in a gentle push. Not directly getting involved in things by the slightest, but you were quite the talker. What better way than to plant the idea in your head and handle your obliviousness this way?

She ended up learning a few things–one, you were obviously super comfortable with Narumi. Two–you amassed a great deal of respect for him, and was gracious over the opportunity you had to get close with him. REALLY close. Receiving surprise gifts and playing games together in secret during the night type of close. Three–despite all that, you had no idea about the obvious truth.

“You better pay me back for this, idiot master.” Kikoru thinks to herself sometimes.

Don’t mention how you were so good at love advice (love pillar and all, it’s in the name), having been a good ear and cupid for the 1st Division when clearly the one who needed that the most was you. It only frustrates Kikoru more.

So how does Kikoru function as a wingman despite her total unwillingness? Well, she does it through the most unconventional methods… Which is to steal you away from her idiot master instead!It’s a win-win, because she gets to one up her captain and not suffer any consequences–lest he upsets YOU.

On the occasions where Narumi wants to train one on one with you? Nope–Kikoru booked a slot first. You’ve got Friday off? Whoops, girl’s day out with Kikoru and she made you promise.

It was peak “I’m just a girl”. A concept you loved and could heavily indulge in with Kikoru. You’re not sidelining the things you love doing with Narumi, you’re moreover doing things that were more up to you and Kikoru’s forte.

How could you not? Kikoru was an absolute sweetheart, and you’d taken to her like a mother duck. Not only did she see you as a mentor now, but also as a sister figure.

When she started to call you nee-san, you were absolutely ecstatic.

Narumi was understanding. At first. But when even your gaming sessions, which was a sacred bonding time for the both of you, had been slowly taken over by Kikoru’s rendezvouses, that was when the seeds of jealousy started to plow through his skull.

“Ah, Kikoru-chan wants to go shopping.” “Can’t, sorry Narugen! I got tickets with Kikoru and Rin…” “No way! That’s OUR Gossip Girl rewatch marathon and you’re not allowed in.”

And oh does it work. It DEFINITELY started a reaction in him. Narumi has upgraded her status from idiot disciple to menace.

All of a sudden, a new competition rolled in town, and the First Division had a new point of interest to watch.

The rivalry of Isao’s brightest disciple vs his rising star daughter for the attention of the Love Pillar. (Coming to a division near you!)

Both are now vying for your compliments, and sometimes the comms get so loud with their bickering that the operations room has to work overtime over the noise pollution.

Narumi is seething because it seems like Kikoru always wins, your attention so doting on her, your favor clearly present as you never fail to praise her. Hell, the little brat was now on HUGGING terms with you! You even braid her hair the way you did yours some nights. It was driving him crazy.

Kafka’s also always at the scene in the worst timing possible. At more than one instance, he’d walk into the training grounds just as Kikoru successfully stole you away again, and he was forced to endure his daily training under an unmerciless Narumi Gen in a bitter mood.

What made him grumble at the same time was as much as he hated how Kikoru was monopolizing you, you looked absolutely joyous enjoying things with her–and he just couldn’t take that happiness away from you. No, he absolutely won’t allow it.

He wouldn’t ever reveal it so lightly at this point in time, but you meant so much to him.

And as he grows more and more obvious with the shift in his demeanor, how much he’s wagging his tail, even Hoshina had noticed and sent his tips to the betting pool.

If it weren’t for Kikoru’s sleight of hand however, the slow burn you had with Gen would’ve probably lasted longer than the existence of kaiju itself.

When he’s FINALLY able to steal you away from Kikoru, he’s taken aback by how vigorously he was vying for your time in the first place. How he felt so victorious over catching that empty spot in your schedule before his menace of a mentee dragged you away from him.

And when he finally catches himself unable to hold back a grin as he sees you all dressed up pretty on the train with him, it hits him deeply with the realization that you had made yourself home in his consciousness. That he values the many moments he gets to spend with you so much.

Maybe that was okay. Maybe he wants to treasure the little moments he has with you. Maybe… maybe this normalcy the two of you fostered together was alright.

You made him feel normal. Like the two of you were just young adults given a glimpse of a life outside of the Defense Force, where he could imagine days like this with you to come. Like he was just a boy, no captain or anything. And you saw him as just that.

That was what went through his mind on a nice afternoon out in the city, Narumi insisting he be the first to bring you to this new restaurant that served your favorite kind of dishes.

Equipped with disguise gear of great caliber (a mask, sunglasses, and two hats you had lying around), the two of you comb through the crane games and rhythm machines in the arcade, working up an appetite an hour before your reservation.

His eyes couldn’t stop glancing at your excited figure at the small plushies in the crane games. He chose your favorite songs on maimai. He made sure to reserve seats in the restaurant beforehand and nearly even used his name card to guarantee them.

And later on, when Kikoru’s eyes scanned the photostrip you were showing her taken at a purikura booth you and Narumi tried, she nearly fell down over how loving his gaze was on the last pic.

When it was finally time to enjoy your meal, you were beaming in absolute delight as you finished bowl after bowl, plate after plate, offering Narumi a share of everything.

He gladly accepted, absolutely reveling in how you spoiled him. Especially with how there was no Hasegawa around to hold you back. He was practically on your lap, figuratively.

Yapper gf x listener bf to the max as he sat beside you with an expression so soft in comparison to the rest of his unruly personality, being absolutely glued to everything about you.

Well, that was when he was facing you. Narumi had secretly turned away and glared at any other patrons who dared to even attempt to send a nasty look your way from “how much you were eating” .

“You got a problem with that? Do you want me to shove the rest of the food down your throat instead, huh?” Was what Narumi’s intense glare communicated, immediately causing the aforementioned judgemental patrons to look away in embarrassment.

Then, he’d immediately whip his head back when you addressed him, completely at your mercy.

As you finished the last of your food, you were completely obvious to Narumi’s sudden change of demeanor, a wave of nervousness washing over him as he fidgets with the inside of his pocket.

He hopes you’ll like this gift of his.

[restaurant scenario - coming soon]

“I had lots of fun today!” You gushed with your usual cheerful demeanor, sinking into the bathwater next to Rin and Kikoru. You were recounting the eventful afternoon you had to them. “I have so many new plushies now, and there’s so many new stores in that shopping district that just reopened. Let’s go there together next time!”

Kikoru huffed a bit, hearing about your day. She was both lightly covetous over how Narumi somehow managed to steal a slot of your time before her, having grown very attached to you and your attention, yet at the same time, she was absolutely floored at just how smitten her idiot mentor was for you from all the pictures, videos, and stories you showed her when practice finished. If anyone who didn’t know any better saw these, they’d IMMEDIATELY assume it was a date. Hell, that was what Rin thought when she joined the conversation!

You in your Sunday best? Taking you to a specialty restaurant that had your favorite food? Sharing bites? Winning you all those plushies? And…

She recalls just how eye catching the subtle change of your appearance was to her when you returned to the base with him. When you didn’t take off the new item you acquired until you hit the showers.

“Gen got me this today,” as you finally removed the accessory from your hair, you eagerly showed Kikoru and Rin the gift Narumi got you, barely noticing the other two girls’ wide-eyed, open mouthed stare at three things. One, how you addressed your superior, THE Narumi Gen by his first name so lightly. Second, THE Narumi Gen being thoughtful and paying attention to your tastes. He knew you loved cute things. Third, how your cheeks were glowing just a bit more radiant, how your tone had a slight change to it. How…

The love in your eyes was so evident.

“You’re so dense,” Rin’s comment brings Kikoru back to the present, the former crossing her arms and furrowing her brows. “Are we not seeing the same things here?” She continues, recalling all the times he’d been so partial to you. He’s still mean to you, yes, but there’s such an obvious touch of softness and mutual standing there that everything just speaks for itself.

You blink. “What things?”

Rin sighs, more than familiar with your disposition. “You’re going to kill me.”

The blonde watches as you haphazardly rise up from the water in a frenzy, Rin screaming as you dart towards her direction, arms reaching out to catch her. Water spills in every direction as you wrestle each other in the tub, you bleating pathetically for answers while Rin attempts to fight you off.

“SPILLLLLLL!” The other woman shrieks as you push into her body, a comedic expression on your face as you tackle her sides.

Immediately trying to regain her balance, Rin lets out a chorus of strangled noises as your body pressed against hers, desperately trying to squeeze out an answer. She attempts to steady both of your bodies as she feels you move around way too frantically. “HOLY SHIT– Your breasts are going to spill out BE CAREFUL–OI!”

“TELL ME RIN!!” You cry out again.

“IT’S LITERALLY SPELLED OUT IN FRONT OF YOU, YOU DUMMY!”

“WHAT IF I CAN’T READ?!”

Amidst all the banter, Kikoru finds herself lost to her thoughts, drifting back to her thoughts of you and Narumi. She couldn’t wrap her head around it at first, but something felt so familiar…

Then, it hits her, recalling the stories between her own parents during their youth in the Defense Force. How Hikari Shinomiya was quite the spunky, passionate youth akin to her namesake, and how Isao Shinomiya was the much mellower, passive homebody, yet had loved her with so much passion all the same.

History seemed to repeat itself.

At the sound of the water splashing, you watch in surprise as the top of Kikoru’s head dives down into the tub, seeing air bubbles form on the top. You quickly call out to her in concern. “Kikoru-chan?!”

“I didn’t expect it to work too well…”

i cant wait to write out what went down in that restaurant... here's the expression that Gen remembers the most, and the face he fell in love with. waaaaa

#after this its angst btw #kaiju no 8 #kaiju no. 8 #kaiju no. 8 x reader #kaiju no 8 x reader #gen narumi #gen narumi x reader #narumi gen #narumi gen x reader #narumi gen x you #fem! reader #mitsuri! reader #kaiju no 8 headcanons #kaiju no. 8 headcanons #reader insert #headcanons #scenarios

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missmimii · 1 year ago

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☏ 𝐃𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐓 𝐄𝐒𝐂𝐀𝐏𝐄𝐒 | 𝐌 － 𝐒𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐎𝐋𝐎

－ 𝐒𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬 | In which Matt and the reader have a long distance relationship due to his career, the lonely aspects of the relationship catches up to the reader.

୨ৎ — 𝐂𝐖. Brief mentions of mental health, and a whole lotta angst ♡︎

ℳ𝒾𝓂𝒾’𝓈 𝓃ℴ𝓉ℯ𝓈 －Almost 300 followers? Ily all so freaking much

☆彡－ The vibration from the girls phone tickles her palm, the sound of static dialling being the same sound that filled her ears before she succumbed to sleep every single night, for the past nine months. He’s probably busy, the time zone is all over the place, maybe he forgot. With a sigh of defeat, her phone fell from her hand and toppled on the pillow aside her. “Hey it’s me Matt－they already know that if they’re calling you － shut up Nick,” her eyes fell shut, a lazy smile gracing her lips as she listened to his voicemail. “I’m probably sleeping or driving if I didn’t a answer this call, so .. call me back later? －just end it!”

☽－ She felt her body numb to feeling disappointed or sadness, too wracked with grief and exhaustion to care whether or not her boyfriend was purposely dodging her calls. It was rare when he did, but she’d notice it being a reoccurring event for the last few days. Matt would send her short texts throughout the day, a soft smile appearing on her lips as she swiped up on them with her thumb at work. ‘Sometimes I wish I was an owl.’ Was a particular one she found herself amused by.

☆彡－ His added reply came not long after, said amusement growing by ten. ‘just so I could fly across the world and see you.’ The girls heart warmed at the silly clarification, the miniature interaction between the two sealed in the back of her mind permanently. This was rare, seeing as Matt often forgot to open anyone’s texts, let alone send back a reply. And in result of that, FaceTimes and phone calls were the couples main source of communication.

☽－ As the girl’s eyes fluttered back open, she was met with her own reflection. The mirror faced aside her bed, aiming perfectly at the outline of her body that was positioned on her side. It was faint, the image of her own body. All that could be seen was the hair framing her face, a faint view of her nose and eyes. Darkness enveloped her entire bedroom, the only source of light being found from the street lights blaring in through her window.

☆彡－ With a drawn out sigh, she slipped a hand under the pillow her head rested on, shifting a bit to find comfort. God, she was restless without his voice. Sleep came easier after coming to terms with Matthew’s absence, but it didn’t cure it. Nothing but him could cure this pit in her heart.

☽－Buzzzzzz’. Vibration rattled neck to her ear, sending a shiver through her body as she peeled her eye lids open. As much as she did want to grasp her cellphone, the hesitation that fell over her kept her set in stone from her lying frame. It didn’t matter how much she tried to convince herself that he was busy, or that he fell asleep － the girl knew he’d forgotten. Beep.

☆彡－ Beep.The ‘Missed call’ icon was the top notification her eyes laid on as she powered her phone on, upon one message underneath. “You awake?” It read, making the girl’s thumb halt against the screen. Whatever, she thought to herself, fingers tapping across the surface. “I can’t sleep.” The girl replied, seconds after being sent his name popped up across the top of her screen. Incoming call: Matty.

☽－ “Baby,” Matt’s voice came through the speaker, a hint of husk in his octave from sleep deprivation. She wasn’t the only one who lacked sleep in each other’s absences. Silence filled the male’s end of the phone for a moment before he spoke again. “I’m sorry for missing your call.” Too sorry to send a message?

☆彡－ The tired girl’s lips parted to speak but only elicited a soft yawn, making Matt’s lips twitch. “S’okay,” pulling her hand from under her pillow, she grasped her phone and sat it on her chest while rolling onto her back. Boom, boom, boom. The triplet let his eyes slip shut as he stretched out across his mattress, feeling warmth course through his body at the sound of the girl’s heart pattering through the speaker. He missed the real thing so badly. “You sleepy, kid?” He murmured lowly, fighting a yawn himself.

☽－ “hm?” She misses his hands against her skin, she yearns for his sweet nothings to be lulled against her ear as she slept － she missed him so fucking bad. Matt opened his eyes, hearing her barely audible sniff. “How much did you sleep last night?” He knew. The girl sighed, shaking her head, forgetting he couldn’t see her. “That’s so boring, what did you do today?”

☆彡－ Matt immediately shot in. “Don’t do that.” He stressed, running a hand down his face in frustration. Guilt wrecked the boy inside out, churning his stomach as he fought his inner subconscious. Why did he have to be such a douche? The least he could’ve done was answer her call. Sigh. “I’m tired.” He heard the girl’s meek tone utter.

☽－ The girl felt her chest tighten, emotions running high in her system. So long she kept them in, knowing that Matt had no way of fixing the pain that tore her apart. Too far, he was too far to fix her. “.. I’ll call more often －” Matt trailed off, hearing a small whimper come from his girlfriend’s end, statics breaking the sound apart. “baby,” oh god, what has he done to his girl.

☆彡－ Suddenly wide awake, he shuffled up in bed, resting his back against his headboard while holding his phone in his one hand. “Listen to me, doll.” Matt attempted to get ahold of the girl, running a hand down his jaw. Cries emptied her throat, a blubbering mess she became as the exhaustion fell over her entire body. “I’m so tired.” So tired. Her head felt heavy with unspilled tears that begged to fall, making her skull ache as she buried her the side of her face into her pillow.

☽－ The pillow no longer carried the natural scent of the male, the lack of his presence resulting in a faint linen smell, along with a slight undertone of his musk. When he left it smelled just like him. But just like him, it was fading. “Why didn’t you call last night?” She whispered finally. “Baby-” she cut in. “Or the night before?” Or the night before.

☆彡－ Matt’s eyes flicked down to his side, breathing out a stuttered breath as his hand fisted the blanket next to him. Owl’s could fly. His hand slipped around the plush material, bringing it to his face as he breathed in the aroma of her. “Take it,” she giggled, Matt’s eyes rolling playfully as he felt the warmth weigh on his shoulders. “Is it really necessary?” He murmured, seeing his girlfriend’s eyes narrow. “pretend it’s me hugging you whenever you cover up at night.” Matt blew out a chuckle, but pondered on her words. Maybe he should take it..

☽－He awaited the end of her sobs and pained cries as he squeezed his eyes shut, a lone trail of water escaping the corner of his eye, sliding down his cheek leisurely. Not that he’d voice it in such a selfish manner, but hearing his poor girl in such a way left his chest aching in a way he was convinced hurt more than her. Matt couldn’t hold her, look at her as she broke apart, or even talk to her, fearing that he’d end up revealing his sorrow, but in tears.

☆彡－The girl shakily placed a hand atop her mouth, because when it rained, it poured. And it wouldn’t stop －it poured down on her entire body. Maybe it was the exhaustion, or the fact that she’d cried everything out she could muster, but slowly her cries calmed into hiccups, and the hiccups drifted into sniffs. Boom, boom, boom. Both parties unknowingly listening to each’s pumping hearts, the two fell an inner deprived feeling of sleep come over their bodies.

☽－ Eyes fluttering shut, dried tears coating water-lines, trembling of hands. “I don’t even like owl’s.” A husky voice spoke up, the end of his sentence crackling a bit as he heard his girlfriend shuffle around in her no cold bed. Matt rubbed his one eye with his two fingers, water tainting the skin as he heaved in a breath that fought away sobs. “I don’t like planes, birds － I don’t like anything, really.” She listened overtop his heart. Boom, boom, boom.

☆彡－“But I’d rather face everything I don’t like in this world if it meant I’d face the one thing I love.” Her, it would always be her. It didn’t matter how many midnight calls he’d missed, or whether or not he texted her meaningless messages throughout the day －that really did have meaning, Matt would always choose her. He wouldn’t choose a FaceTime call, a picture － every single time, he’d pick her. Face to face, skin to skin contact, eye to eye, lips to lips － just his girl.

☽－ Despite loving the melody of her tired voice at night, just before he drifted off into a broken slumber, it wasn’t enough. He craved the feeling of her warm body pressed against his as they slept, the scent of her hair blowing into his nostrils as he placed affirming grazes and touches against her untainted skin. Because the love he felt for her across the world, was too strong for an electronic device － or mere words.

☆彡－ Boom, boom, boom. “Matt..” A mixture of her own heart and voice filled his ears, and for one second, it felt real. So real that he swore he felt the itch of her hair falling against her neck as her back pressed into his front. So fucking real, that he felt like there was a chance for a split second. “Call me tomorrow? Please －” but it wasn’t.

☽－ “No.” Her eyes drew open, the pattering in her chest shattering while falling to her gut. No? － “I can’t do it anymore －I can’t handle it.” Matt’s voice cracked nearing the end of his confession, the gut wrenching sound being followed by his harsh inhale. Don’t cry, Matt － don’t fucking cry. “I need you here － or there. Anywhere. Fuck, I’d drop everything in a heartbeat if it meant I could have you now. Feel you, be with you.”

☆彡－ If you loved me you would, she didn’t care to say. But she almost did. Because it wasn’t until he was thousands of miles away, that she dared to question his love for her. “Then do it.” The girl whispered, hearing her boyfriend’s breath hitch. Rolling onto her back, she sucked in a deep sigh. “Because I’m not sure how much longer I can handle it.” The statement was a reminder we that not only he felt such a way, it was consuming the both.

☽－ Boom, boom, boom. “I’ll have Laura book my flight tonight.”

𝒯𝒶𝑔𝓈 － @fratbrochrisgf @jetaimevous @sturnstvr @sturnrc @stonermattsgf @imwetforyourmom @st7rnioioss @endereies

#chris sturniolo #sturniolo triplets #nick sturniolo #sturniolo fanfic #sturniolo x reader #writers on tumblr #christopher sturniolo #matt sturniolo #matt stuniolo fanfic #sturniolo smut #chris sturniolo smut #christophersturniolo #fanfiction #fanfic #smut #oh yeah

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brooklynisher · 1 year ago

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Hey all, you ever hear of Jaunty?

[x]

Do you WANT to learn more about Jaunty?

Well I dug deep, and found some things I never thought I could find. I'm really excited to share what I've found with y'all. This post is sort of a little journey of how I found Jaunty.

There's a few sections to this.

Skip to But where does Jaunty come from? If you just want answers

Is Jaunty even a real character?

Jaunty, from what I originally found, is SUPPOSEDLY a Steam Powered Giraffe character. But where have we seen this character before? Was it the comic? Was it the timeline? Maybe in a song cover? Does the band ever talk about Jaunty?

And to answer all of your questions, no! At least not that I knew of. The only source of Jaunty’s existence is here.

The Steam Powered Giraffe Wiki

So that makes this whole thing pretty complicated right? The wiki has info, and it’s not too inaccurate most of the time, but some of the lesser known/more nuanced information tends to get scuffed.

It really doesn’t help knowing that David has mentioned before that the information on the wiki wasn't that accurate.

What I’m saying is, the only proof we have for the existence of this character is on what might be one of the more unreliable sources of SPG information.

But despite that, this page is special in the fact that SUPPOSEDLY it was uploaded by Steam Powered Giraffe themselves!

[x]

However, there isn’t really much of any information on this user at all. All we know is that they founded this wiki, added a few characters and a bit of information, and then became inactive. Really our biggest reasoning for believing that this was an actual SPG member is the fact that they are the founder and have been around for a very long time.

Okay, suspicions aside, let’s see what I found about this thing.

What the wiki tells us

One, this image was touched by the founder of this wiki twice, it was uploaded in 2011, and in 2014 they protected the page, which means only the administrators can edit the page.

[x]

Both are pretty major years for SPG being the year Upgrade left the band and the year Rabbit transitioned, but there’s not many connections you can make with that.

This user was first active in 2010 and last seen in 2015 [x]

Cool dates to have, but not a lot to work with. It mainly gives us a clear vision of what SPG was looking like at the time of the creation of this page. I can see this thing being used for a special, slightly themed show.

Of course, the information the wiki alone offers is very limited, but we know two things for sure. One, this character is a robot being under the category of robots, and two, these photos were taken by Cineria.

[x]

So, here's the problem, you'd think that by having the name of the photographer, we could get far with that, but unfortunately, it is such a vague name, that there is just no way we could figure out who Cineria actually is. It really doesn't help that they don't seem to be a professional photographer. The only page I could find that connects both the name Cineria and Steam Powered Giraffe is this one.

Useless information

I started searching for stuff by reverse searching it. It wasn't really successful, as I was expecting, but I did find one thing.

A different source.

This source doesn't go anywhere must you know. The ORIGINAL site, florist.buketbunga.com is still up an active serving as an Indonesian site for selling flowers, but this very specific link is broken, and the Wayback Machine doesn't know a thing about it.

The good news is, the link title alone gives us a ton of stuff to work with! Appropriately, the last part of this link translates to "Flower Bouquet Florist Shop Address Nearest 24 Hours Online", which makes sense.

What DOESN'T make sense is everything else coming before it. Specifically the Team Fortress 2 Wiki. This made me believe that someone used these sites to create a scam link, but it's weird because somehow, it's relevant?

Yandex was able to match these images of Jaunty to this site, and what's crazier, Jaunty is in the title of the link! But it's not just Jaunty, it's the Jaunty Explorer.

I did some searching, and discovered that the Jaunty Explorer originates from a TF2 livestream charity event called Tip of the Hats! Donations can earn you medals known as the Jaunty Explorer ($10 Donations), the Jaunty Ranger ($30 Donations), and the Jaunty Mountaineer ($100 Donations). They can come in many different color variations, but here are the main ones.

[x] [x] [x]

There are TWO connections between this and SPG. One, the shared name of Jaunty, and two, hats. Steam Powered Giraffe is pretty big on hats. But, bad news, these are completely unrelated. Main reasoning? The image of Jaunty was posted to the wiki back in 2011, while Tip of the Hats as an event started back in 2013. Can't even take the "SPG was inspired by TF2" route with that.

Okay, but what even IS it?

Now we get into the visual aspect of this!

I tried to see if there was at least any way to identify what this is, but that solely relies on observational skills. There are two images of this thing, but the image with the blue background is much easier to make out.

[x]

There's a lot that's going on with the design of Jaunty. Unfortunately, I'm not smart enough to identify what half of the doodads are. This machine, whether it's an actual machine or just a prop, is definitely a one of a kind as I couldn't find anything like this.

I talked with @boneinator about this, and he was able to read the text: "STAND CLEAR!" on the top of the doors of this machine which lead him to believe that it might be a time machine of sorts.

What we both managed to agree on when it came to the design of this thing however, was that it looks like a cabinet.

Now, like I said, this thing has a one of a kind design, so it's not going to look exactly like one thing or another, but it has similar features to other things such as to this cabinet

[x]

Two longer doors on the upper half, and two smaller doors/drawers on the bottom. Is that actually what it is? I didn't know, but there is a resemblance.

One thing that's REALLY interesting about this machine is the intense amount of steam it lets out.

[x]

So it's definitely a very active machine.

But where does Jaunty come from?

Something I've been wondering is how much of this is actually connected to SPG.

Is it theirs? Is this a part of a bigger thing? Is it just associated with them?

A bigger thing. There is one example of a big SPG show that comes to mind, and it was not just them.

During their 15 Year Anniversary Livestream, the band was asked about their favorite memories. Bunny mentions that one of her favorite memories was at a show called Clockwork Vaudeville. This was one of the band's first time having a massive audience. According to her, this was a time traveling show, and they performed alongside others.

I looked into it and found that the full name of this performance is called Clockwork Vaudeville Circus Cabaret. And there, I found a little advertisement for it as well!

youtube

The Kickstarter for this show started in late 2010

I did some more searching and realized there is a bunch of video from this show out there though all these clips are recorded at random intervals. Assuming that the uploader posted these clips close to the date of the actual show, we can see that this show took place in February of 2011!

About one month after this show, this page was added to the wiki.

I checked the clips, and guess what.

[x]

Right there in the corner, there was Jaunty.

But that's not all

Not only have a found a video that contained Jaunty, I found a video that contained Jaunty in action!

[x]

Unbelievably enough, it was a video of the band performing Honeybee alongside a pole dancer. And thanks to the title, we now know that this show took place February 19, 2011

Which all this confirms 100% that Jaunty IS a time machine.

Now with all things considered, Jaunty is not necessarily an "SPG character" as in they didn't create it. It's hard to say if Jaunty is even a character at all at this point! But it does exist in their world and they actively interact with it!

Who cheered? I cracked the code!

#so hyped about this you guys don't even know #steam powered giraffe #spg #my stuff #spg info #vintage!rabbit #tw michael reed #jaunty spg #big post yall

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just-a-space-duck · 6 months ago

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Abstract ART

A Murderbot Meta Essay

My favorite thing about fandom is seeing how everyone interprets the same source material. And as someone who's most into character design, it’s so fun seeing how different artists draw the same character, even when said character already has a very clear canon design. What elements do artists leave behind as just part of the official art style and which parts do they interpret as core parts of the character's design? Where there's ambiguity, what do they add? How does each person depict “wide sunny eyes” or “quite tall for an elf”?

And with The Murderbot Diaries, characters are given very little physical descriptions, even for a book series. Even with the official illustrations and out-of-text author statements (which I choose to put into an optionally canon status; it's the TLK fan in me) we're working with relatively little in terms of what the characters look like. And that makes Murderbot fanart so fun for me.

And maybe one day I'll gush about the designs of the other characters, but you saw the title, and I'm here to talk about the most fascinating fanon character design trend I've thus seen: Abstract ART/Perihelion.

ART is a spaceship. Ok, it's also sometimes drones. The way ART functions, out of any character in the series, the argument that its true form is merely the physical stuff composing its brain is the most founded. And Murderbot does sometimes make specific reference to ART's brain as being what ART specifically is. But without getting too far into a philosophical discussion on the relationship between the mind and the physical world and what constitutes the self, ART is largely presented to us as a really large ship that can easily connect with other tech. Murderbot does frequently describe it acting in ways similar to a being with a more human body like rolling its eyes and breathing over Murderbot’s shoulder, but it's all clearly metaphor. And that works for a word-only medium.

But what if you want to create an image of these characters, especially one that had little to no accompanying text or audio or only words in dialogue? What if you want to draw the giant spaceship that all of the puny humans (and puny human/bot constructs) walk around in actually rolling its eyes?

Well, you abstract it.

And that's really fascinating to me. People depict ART as all these things that are definitely not a spaceship or a drone or any machine for the benefit of the viewers.

Given that this is largely a fan invention, there's far fewer restrictions on what Abstract ART looks like. (Well this is fiction, so really the only restriction is the imagination of the creator(s).) We do get some information to use as a guideline. ART early on is described as “big and diffuse”, it's able to give a lot of focus to a lot of things at once, and most of Ship ART (Murderbot, why'd you have to nickname your mutual administrative assistant that?) and its crew uniforms are dark blue, black, and white. Those few things as well as its personality paint how people draw it.

Now onto my favorite part, all of the different trends I've seen with Abstract ART. I've not delved that deep into MB fanart so this is very far from comprehensive.

It’s Just Ship ART:

Just keeping it to what it literally is in the books. I love all Abstract ARTs, but this one I like both for how closely it sticks to canon and the sheer creativity needed to show a sentient spaceship/transport emoting, thinking, and interacting. We already have stuff like this in the books, like when it flickered the bathroom lights to communicate with a certain angry secunit, but there's tons more that can be done: movement of the cameras, images on display devices, various appliances running, etc.. It’s a tough one to work with, so props to anyone who takes this approach.

Abstract Abstract ART Art (Yeah, my brain hurts too):

I'm kinda just lumping every version here that isn't ART's physical form(s) nor resembles a human or other animal. This is my favorite take because ART is just weird already. It's a super intelligent, scary machine whose existence is kept secret so it can fight capitalism while simultaneously doing a hundred other things ten times better than you can. If you're going to give it a form separate from its machine body/bodies, I say make it strange, eldrichian even. Make it a bunch of pixels, a starfield, a giant flame, many many eyes (oh I'll get to the eyes), a glowing sofa, everything everywhere all at once.

Creature ART:

I find this take interesting just cause there's a lot of fun to be had with picking an animal (or animals or fantastical critters) and applying their attributes and stereotypes to our favorite anti-corporate research vessel. Plus they work well in representing both ART'S human-like attributes and its very much not human-like attributes, with fantastical or hybrid versions having a more eldritch or cryptid vibe. While you could go with any animal, off the top of my head the ones that feel real fitting are an octopus (high intelligence that evolved separately from humans, multiple limbs for doing multiple things), a hydra (multiple heads, multiple areas of focus), a blue whale (giant, fits ART'S colors, rare, travels far), or really any bird (it's a spaceship).

Humanoid ART:

Probably my least favorite interpretation (all interpretations are valid, don't listen to me) just cause I feel more could be done to highlight that ART is, well, a bot and not at all human. However, I do get it. If you're going to give ART a form for the benefit of the audience, might as well make it look like what most audience members would have the easiest time reading the emotions and actions of (and it's not like ART doesn't have human-like qualities). Plus, you can still get weird with it: have this form change shape, give it unnatural proportions, make it a clearly non-human color, etc. And there are things the human form can do that a cat or a circle or a literal ship can't and maybe you want ART to do those things.

Eyes:

It’s very common to give ART eyes, or even just have ART be mostly eyes. For one, it gives it easily readable emotions, even if it lacks other facial features or means of making human gestures. Secondly, eyes work really well with ART's abilities and personality. ART can focus on multiple things at once. ART can be very scary and overbearing. It even works with ART's gentler side, if given the right expression.

Color:

ART is already associated with the colors dark blue and black (and to a lesser extent white) in canon. Like Ship ART is literally blue, at least parts of it are. And because of this, I have yet to encounter an Abstract ART that isn't at least 80% blue. (Fun fact: I used to associate ART with the color orange. Can you guess why?) Interestingly though, a large number of artists go with a powder blue or turquoise/azure for ART. I do not mean to be a color snob; please classify colors however. I just find this to be a particularly fascinating trend, cause most English speakers would classify those shades as light blue or at least not dark blue. I wonder if this has anything to do with the light/turquoise blue = high tech association. Now that I’m writing this out, I’m curious what color terms are used in translations of TMBD. Looking at you Russian version.

Diegesis:

Ok, so, final point: how real in-universe is Abstract ART? I hypothesized that the reason for this trend is to make ART easier to portray in images for viewers, but I wonder what in-universe explanation people have for this, if any. In most fanart, other characters (or at least Murderbot) interact with Abstract ART as if it is actually there or at least visible. I go with the headcanon that only other machines and some augmented humans can see its abstract form. This does stretch if not completely contradict canon, but fuck it, this is fiction and we get to have fun with it.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed my little ramble about a fandom trend. I'm gonna go eat a sandwich now.

#Murderbot #the Murderbot diaries #asshole research transport #perihelion #tmbd meta #Murderbot diaries #tmbd #ART #Murderbot spoilers #the Murderbot diaries spoilers #Murderbot diaries spoilers #tmbd spoilers #My rambles

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hellsite-proteins · 1 year ago

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Featured Protein: Bacteriorhodopsin

this fantastic protein was suggested by @imperialinquisition, and i'm so excited i finally got around to putting together some information about it!

this protein is found in archaea – specifically Halobacterium salinarum, which are halophilic (live in extremely salty environments) obligate aerobes (need oxygen to function). it has 7 transmembrane domains and is an analog to human rhodopsin (a G-protein-coupled receptor protein in the rod cells of our eyes *note: bacteriorhodopsin is NOT a G-protein-coupled receptor, but is still in the 7TM receptor family) and forms distinct purple coloured parts of the cell membrane. this protein is also the source of a lot of interest from an engineering and biotechnology perspective.

this is one of several types of proton pumps, which transport protons across a cell membrane against an electrochemical gradient. however, the feature that makes this one so interesting is that it is powered by sunlight. when a photon of light is absorbed, all-trans-retinal (one molecule attached to each of 3 protein chains) is isomerised to 13-cis-retinal. this induces conformational changes in the rest of the protein through a 9-stage photocycle, altering the pKa values of a few conserved residues and allowing one proton to be transferred outside the cell. through this action, the inside of the cell is made 10,000-fold more basic than outside the membrane! this proton gradient is used to power ATP synthase, making most of the cell's ATP

sources:

i wasn't able to download a version of the structure with all three chains, but i found some cool images of the structure:

as always, if i made any mistakes, please let me know!

#science #biochemistry #biology #chemistry #stem #proteins #protein structure #science side of tumblr #protein info #protein feature

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ghostlehh · 5 months ago

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So here’s some surgeries/body and other modifications I’ve thought of to make myself more kitsune/wolf like.

I’ve actually thought about nose surgery to make my nose look more animal like, kind of like how the Na’vi in avatar have their noses, not the flatness/width, but with the like cat nose type crease and shape. I’m kind of wondering if anyone would actually be willing to do that for me… would be hard to find I’m sure, so I may just resort to makeup for now at least.

Also surgical fangs. You know how people get permanent fangs with their actual teeth through modification.

Growing out my nails to make them sharp and pointy as well. Kind of like this (images found on Pinterest)

And this one is sort of optional/not that much of importance, but pointed ears surgery as well. This one is kind of optional for me though since it doesn’t really make any change which is the most animal like. Least to me

Also, piercings, snakebites and/or angel fangs. I’ve also thought about a forehead/vertical bridge piercing for the kitsune aspect. I’ve also thought about regular bridge piercings and collarbone piercings since I like how those look. I might get all of those in the future even if I don’t get the other modifications. I’ve found jewelry for snakebites at least that have white fangs on them, and if I were to get angel fangs I would use clear or red balls on the top part and white or silver spikes on the lower part. For a vertical bridge piercing I would want to find a piercing which has large gems on it which are sparkly.

I’ve also thought about custom face piercings to look like whiskers, like how from what I know two people have done. But the issue with this is I would want them to be thin and semi transparent like actual whiskers. Not to mention I’d need enough room on my eyebrows, triple eyebrow piercings on both sides. or, I was thinking if I did get any on my lower face they would be cheek piercings. Might get both. And said cheek piercings would have three or more strands sticking out in different directions to look like whiskers. A custom jewelry like this though might be expensive. But I would love for them to be sparkly as well.

I may have to make them myself which might be difficult but not impossible. Just would need the right supplies. Probably would have to use fishing wire or jewelry skin safe wire and skin safe nontoxic permanent glue or however you join together jewelry metal. Since the whiskers would just be on the flat surface relatively larger of the piercing I don’t think it would be harmful especially if I used surgical or some other type of glue safe for human skin and such.

Next is face paint/makeup. Which I would like to wear every day and in public if possible. But this also means I would hopefully find a way to coordinate my outfits with it as well to make it look good. As well as some cat eye yellow contacts or just regular golden/yellow contacts, this or white ones. If I can’t wear face paint I would likely still do makeup to look like a wolf or kitsune, obviously by face paint I don’t mean to paint my entire face black or anything. I would only paint it white if I were to do a kitsune look with red markings, and for a wolf I would just make the nose/whiskers etc.

And ofc I need ears, as well as a tail or multiple tails if I want to look like a kitsune. I want to get ethically sourced real white fox tails, as well as an ethically sourced black wolf tail. Both of which I can easily find online. And ears I am hoping to find the style I want on Etsy. I’m looking for these ones, but if I can’t find these then I plan to get other ones that are hopefully still cute and fox like. Also I found these off Pinterest. Or I may get them custom made. I might have to order a custom 9 tails too.

And yes this is what I will be working on slowly throughout the next few years aside from college. Mainly the piercings and finding or having custom made the ears/tails. I will try to set money aside once I get a new job for a couple of months

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anki-of-beleriand · 1 year ago

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Bad Liar ch. 16

Summary: Life is about lessons, and Wanda has been learning some harsh facts that had define her life and taken her to a place in which she was given a second chance. Then, all of a sudden, she meets you, and she realizes why it's easier to lie to yourself than to accpet what's right in front of her.

Pairing: Wanda Maximoff/ Female!reader - America/Kate - Mentions of past Vision/Wanda - past Natasha/Reader - Some Female!Reader/Carol Danvers - Mentions of Natasha/Maria being married

Warnings: Slow burn - Enemies to friends to lovers - Mentions of abusive relationships - Toxic relationships - angst - drama - mentions of abuse - violence - mentios of abused and sexual assault - more tags as the story progress.

Author's note: The aftermath of the confrontation with Vision, and the realities Wanda now needs to face.

Guys, we are almost there!!! Two chaptrs to go! Please rmemeber English is not my mother tongue so forgive my grammar, spelling and funny mistakes, hope you like this one.

Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 4 - Chapter 5 - Chapter 6 - Chapter 7 - Chapter 8 - Chapter 9 - Chapter 10 - Chapter 11 - Chapter 12 - Chapter 13 - Chapter 14 - Chapter 15 - Chapter 16 - Chapter 17 - Chapter 18

Chapter 16

New Year’s Eve

There was a constant beeping inside your head.

Your mind broke into several images at first, your ears twitching trying to grasp the source of the beeping noise without any success. At first, it was difficult to get a hold of your consciousness, your mind was a pool of different sections of memory that made you dizzy at first, then it stopped.

A gun.

Screams.

Wanda!

The beeping became a deafening whistle and then it stopped.

Your eyes popped open only for you to close them again with an exclamation of pain leaving your lips. You tried to lift your left arm but it was heavy, numb to any other sensation; thus, trying to protect your eyes from the lights above your head was impossible. You grunted, clenching your eyes close tightly, until a soothing hand placed itself on your right hand.

“Y/N?” America mumbled softly; her voice denoted the tiredness the young woman felt though there were traces of excitement right there. “Y/N?”

“Ugh, just give me a few minutes, I feel like my head is going to explode.” You whispered back making a face while trying to open your eyes once more, this time around slowly and squinting your eyes so as not to bother the retina.

America sighed in relief, her lips drawing a sad smile while she grasped her sister’s hand. The moment she had been brought into the hospital; America feared the worst but was soon calmed down by Tony telling her nothing too life threatening had happened. Just a gunshot on the arm, and a few badly cured wounds and bruises you couldn’t keep up with any longer.

“Wha-What happened? Wanda…Wanda, the kids…America!”

You jerked awake completely almost falling on your side while trying to sit up, America jumped away only to go back to you trying to push you back on the bed. She frowned, shaking her head until her eyes finally found yours, reading in them the desperation you had been experimenting all day.

“I’m here, they are here, we’re fine.” America tried to sound reassuring, pressing you back on the bed, “come on stop struggling, you idiot! You’re hurt and need to take it easy for a moment.”

It wasn’t until then that you noticed the bandages covering your sister’s wrists, she too held some bruises and cuts on her face but otherwise America was unharmed. Your eyes went big, this time around you lifted your good arm cupping your sister’s face.

“Kiddo, are you alright? God, I’m so sorry…”

America swallowed down her emotions nodding curtly, “I’m…I’m okay. I’m fine.”

“Your wrists…”

“I-I cut myself trying to get away from the ropes.” She explained looking at the bandages, “I couldn’t and perhaps if I had done so…”

“You would be dead.” You replied wrapping your right arm around your sister putting her to you. “I’m sorry, I put you in danger kiddo, I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you. I’m sorry.”

America slumped down holding onto you with tears forming in her eyes, her arms sneaking under your body until she was hugging you tightly. You felt your own tears prickling in your eyes, holding onto the only family you had left.

“I was so scared.” She whispered between sobs, “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, I’m sorry that…that she didn’t tell you everything.”

You blinked slowly while pushing America away for a moment, you tilted your head trying to sit down. America soon was by your side lifting the bed and helping your position on the bed, she was still crying softly but relief was quite evident in her features.

“What do you mean everything? Who was supposed to tell me everything?” You dragged the words tilting your head, America tensed with her brows knitting together.

“Wanda.” She spat out shaking her head, “Me and the others found out she had been living with that asshole for a time now, I confronted her when things with you were getting serious, she told me she would speak with you but…”

“Wait, you knew about Wanda’s husband? You dug into her past without consulting me?” You snorted, shaking your head, “she told me about Vision. She told me…”

“That he almost killed her and the twins several times? That the last time she was put into the hospital she decided that was enough because the man burned a knife on Tommy’s back while she was out?” America exclaimed with her voice getting louder and louder with every word.

“That the man had a restrained order? That…that, I almost lost you?” America was shaking by now, it was as if she had been containing herself until that point and seeing you like this, all hurt and weak finally broke the resistance inside her.

“It is her fault! It’s all Wanda’s fault!”

You winced trying to incorporate, almost falling on your knees you grabbed America and pulled her towards you hugging her as tight as you could. A part of you understood where this was coming from, America had never seen your parents’ bodies the way you had to, she had only gone to the funeral so she was never there to see their broken bodies still, the trauma lingers and the fear that was trying to consume America was something you had already experienced. You were her only family, if she lost you then what would be of her?

She hugged you back sobbing silently against your chest, your body protested at the stress you were putting it into but you didn’t care. You waited until America seemed to calm down, your voice finally reaching out to her more logical part instead of her emotional one.

“It’s okay to be angry, Kiddo, it’s okay…” You whispered with your hand drawing soothing circles on her back, “but it’s not Wanda’s fault, or yours, or mine…Kiddo, what others do, what others decide to do is not our fault…This is the fault of a man that wanted to be evil, Wanda was just a victim, like you, like me…but we cannot blame ourselves when he is the one that should be carrying with this.”

America took a breath holding back her rage and her fear, she didn't agree nor she denied your words, instead she stepped back giving you a quick check up. You were wearing a hospital gown, your left arm had been put on a sling holding your arm tightly against your chest. Your face was covered in bruises, with your hair badly combed with a paleness that came with the concussion and the tiredness you felt the day before.

“You were lucky,” America stated pointing to your arm, “the crazy woman, she went mad shooting like crazy she just hit your arm, the…they have to shoot her down.”

You gulped nodding curtly while glancing at your arm, you didn't remember much after the initial shooting. But you remembered the burning pain, the numbness going on your left side and then just giving into darkness.

“What about…?” You didn't finish the question, America shook her head.

“He was arrested, not before he almost killed Wanda with his bare hands.”

America had heard enough from Tony and that one eyed man, she had been taking care of the twins when this was mentioned and of course she had seen Wanda come into the emergency room right after you. Everything had been so confusing she could barely remember anymore, or at least tried to pinpoint where to go whenever she felt lost. Kate had been released early in the day and while she offered to stay, America knew Kate’s mother would want to be with her.

You sat down on the bed again, your knees trembling under the weight of your body. You winced finally feeling the effects of the medication wear off.

“How is Wanda?” You asked tentatively, America tensed up nodding to the door.

“She is at the other end of the hall, with Billy and Tommy.” Then after a moment of hesitation, “Hope is with them.”

“Have you talked to Hope already?” You inquired lifting a brow at your sister, the young woman shrugged looking away from you. “America…”

“I'm just happy you are okay.” America let herself drop right beside you, you smiled wrapping your good arm around her.

“I'm happy you and the others are okay.”

America sighed, closing her eyes, “do you want something? I need to tell the doctor and the nurse you are okay.”

“It's Vodka an option?” You teased, America snorted, shaking her head.

“I can try.”

“Please do, and while you're at it try to record their reaction.”

America chuckled, pushing you playfully while standing up.

“If you're cracking bad jokes already, that means we will be home on time for the New Year celebrations.”

You frowned, cocking your head while speaking again.

“What do you mean? What day is today?”

This time around America was the one frowning, “It's New Year's Eve, more exactly we are eight hours away from the new year.”

“Woah, so I was unconscious what? Twelve hours?”

“More or less, yes.”

“I was lucky.” You stated absentmindedly, America glanced at you for a long time before nodding.

“We were lucky.” America didn’t say much after that, you furrowed your brows trying to actually feel the strength coming back to your body.

“Even if I’m not release today, we should celebrate New Year today,” you dared to glance at America who pursed her lips nodding curtly, “I mean, we shouldn’t stop celebrating the good things in life, and well…”

America let out a heavy sigh, she passed around the room stopping right in front of you. Her hands placed carefully on your shoulders and for the very first time you saw your stepmother in her, the same determination behind her brown eyes and her serious features.

“I have never felt so afraid before, Y/N, and while I was there trying to get away I was…I was feeling powerless to help the twins, to help Kate, to help Wanda.” America trailed off never breaking her eyes contact with you, she swallowed down her tears opening her mouth with a quivering lip.

“I thought what you would do, and when I heard him said he had killed you,” America snorted, “I was ready to do something foolish, yet I felt so defeated.”

“America…” You started but she then broke into a half smile, shrugging while squeezing your shoulders comfortingly.

“Then I heard you were okay, that you were trying to get me and the twins out of it and I knew.” America rolled her eyes punching you lightly on your good shoulder.

“What did you knew know?” You asked when America didn’t elaborate, the young woman lifted her chin stepping back nearing the door.

“That you are in love with Wanda, that you love those kids as if they were your own, and that you would never let anything bad happen to me or them, even if you have to sacrifice yourself.”

You broke into the same smile, shaking your head you offered a sheepish stare to America.

“What can I say? It is the foolish in me, perhaps in another life I was a hero.”

“Perhaps, you doofus, I think…it would take time, but I understand.” She mumbled with her eyes shining lightly.

“I know, kiddo, I know.” You called to her and she stopped right before closing the door, “I think more now than ever they will need a big sister, you know?”

America snorted shaking her head, “it’s good then that I learnt how to be a good big sister from the best.”

And with that, America left you alone while she went to look for the doctors. You kept your eyes on the white door for a long time, your mind numb giving into the growing pain on your left side. You didn’t dare to let your thoughts wander towards Wanda or the twins for fear of just jumping to your feet and running to her room. Whatever had happened, whatever stated she was in the last thing you wanted to do was to overwhelm her or scared her away. You could still remember the fear in her eyes, the sudden changed in her whole demeanour while she gave into a state of numbness that broke your heart.

You took a deep breath, looking around you found America’s mobile and after a moment of hesitation you grabbed the gadget watching the time and the day. With a trembling thumb, you decided that you wouldn’t let this to change things with Wanda or America or even Billy and Tommy.

A plan already forming on your mind.

__________________

It took fifteen minutes for everyone to come rushing into your room as soon as the news of you waking up reached them up.

As you expected it, Christine and Strange were the first to come rushing into your room ready to check over your wounds and bandages. Your chest exploded into a wave of warm affection when they started fuzzing around you making you go back to the bed to make a full check-up while asking questions about your physical health.

Soon Hope came in as well with Tony, Reed and Sue who had made sure to be there as well. This time around the questions changed into a more deep, emotional speech to find your emotional state, with everyone being careful of mentioning Wanda or her children. When it became too much, and your anguish grew without everyone taking noticed of this, Christine and Pepper came right in hushing everyone out of your room with only America, Christine, Hope and Pepper staying behind.

You closed your eyes slowly, wincing when the shifting on the bed made you pressed your weight on your left side.

“Easy there, Y/N, it would take some time to get use to it but the pain won’t last that long.” Christine spoke soothingly, she offered a shaky smile at you while helping you get comfortable. “You were really lucky she was bad with guns, and her aim.”

You gave a crooked smile, “I was lucky indeed.”

Hope glanced at America then at you, the exchanged didn’t go amiss by you and soon your eyes were on your best friend.

“How is Wanda?” Finally, after almost two hours of avoiding the topic you brought the white elephant into the room.

Hope sighed stepping closer to you, “she is not okay, this really shake whatever progress we made in the past and has been affecting her greatly. She feels guilty, she feels as if she doesn’t deserve you.”

“She actually thinks you hate her.” America chimed in playing with her lower lip, “and I may have led her to believe she was right.”

You glared at your sister but said nothing, it was okay. It was only natural. The situation had been less than ideal, and everyone reacted differently to these situations, you couldn’t blame America more so than you could blame Wanda or yourself. Hope grabbed your right hand squeezing comfortingly.

“She will need a lot of support, Y/N, if you…” Hope took a deep breath, “if you are serious about her, about a relationship with her then I suggested you start working on convincing her that she deserves to be happy. And that you don’t hate her.”

You looked away finding Christine’s eyes on yours, the young woman smiled gently at you already knowing the answer. You nodded turning to America then to Hope.

“I am very serious, Hope. I wouldn’t have done what I did with just anyone.” You stated serious grabbing your best friend tightly, “I fell in love with Wanda because of who she is, I don’t know if she feels the same or if she even is ready for this but I won’t give up.”

“I know, Y/N. It will take time but…well, I cannot say she feels the same, I can say though that she really feels strongly about you.” Hope shrugged stepping back, “so, who knows?”

“Right.” You sighed turning to the door then back to Hope and Christine, “I need a favour.”

“What is it?” You offered a half smiled wiggling your brows and soon America knew you had planned something incredible reckless and crazy.

Christine and Pepper exchanged a glance pretty familiar with the mischievous glint of your stare ready to see where this favour of you lead them.

____________________________

You were ready to go out of your room, you were tired already of staying in bed more so if there was no need for you to stay overnight.

“You really should try to follow Christine’s advice,” America mumbled helping you inside your pants while shaking her head, you almost fall flat on your ass if America hadn’t hold onto you.

“Ugh, please I’m okay, just bruised and in pain but at least I can get dress, and besides I want to see Wanda and I wasn’t about to flash my but to everyone in this wing.” You glared at the hospital gown before turning to your sister.

America winced making a face at the mention of your butt.

“Yes, I agreed, we don’t need that anymore than we need to.”

You chuckled sitting down on the bed while watching as America went to grab your sneakers and put them on you. Just as she was finishing up the last of them the door to your room opened without any warning, you were about to scold at whoever had come in unannounced when you found yourself staring at Nick Fury and Peggy Carter.

Both agents came into your room, closing the door behind them. Peggy stepped closer her eyes checking you up before the fell on America. The older woman offered a warm smile stretching her hand to your sister.

“You must be Ms. Chavez, I’m Agent Peggy Carter.” America took her hand lifting a brow at her.

“A pleasure.”

“So, agent Carter, Agent Fury, what can I do for you?” You asked right away with your eyes going from Peggy to Fury.

“We came here to inquire about your injuries and your general state,” Peggy started taking a seat on the closest chair, “and then, if you were agreeable to the idea, we are also here to take your testimony.”

“As you can imagine, the case against Jarvis is going to take high priority since he broke into a private airport handle by National Security so, now only is he under some federal charges, he is also being investigate for terrorism and treason.”

You snorted shaking your head, not really understanding how all those charges came to be but happy to know the man would have it really difficult to go out of the trouble he got into. America stood right there glancing at you then at the agents, she bounced on her feet before nodding curtly to herself grabbing her phone and moving to the door.

“In that case, I’m out of here and directly to help Christine and the others with your…surprised.”

“Go on, Kiddo, I’ll be in Wanda’s room if you need anything.”

Peggy watched as America left before settling her eyes on you, Fury took a seat on the sofa and soon both agents had their attention on you.

“Well, where should I start?” You finally asked, Peggy put her phone on the table the recording app on.

“You can start from the beginning, when did you meet Wanda and how you became involve with her, and Jarvis.”

You raised a single eyebrow before nodding, for a moment you kept silent contemplating how much had happened in the last six months of your life. With a deep breath, you started telling them the first day you met Wanda, the different encounters, and the conversations you held with her. It was not relevant, but soon just to humour yourself you started talking about your changing feelings, how you started seeing the other woman and the shaky friendship that blossom one day when you first got to see the scars of the abuse in the boys.

The story then went directly to the confrontation you had with him the day before. His words inviting you over to see something he had been working on, then the surprised attack and you fighting back up until the moment they showed up and cooked up the plan that almost cost you your life and Wanda’s life as well. Peggy shifted uncomfortable, her eyes glancing fast to Nick then back at you.

“Now, I want to know what happen to him,” you asked glancing at both agents, “You promised me nothing bad would happen and I got shot and Wanda was almost killed by the man.”

The reproach was quite evident in your voice, Peggy glanced at Fury then back at you, she leaned forward placing her elbows on her knees making sure you could not look away from her.

“He was already on top of Wanda by the time Agatha shoot you,” Peggy shifted as she recounted what happened while you were unconscious on the ground, “we were supposed to arrest him right there and then, but we never expected him to get to Wanda and tried to strangle her before we could pull him away from her.”

“He knew he had been caught, so his last act before going to jail was to make sure he would kill his wife.” Fury continued shrugging, “he was just a fucking coward.”

Peggy glared at Fury but the man didn’t even flinch, you scowled shaking your head.

“What is a dead woman if he is the sole survivor and the only guardian to his children?” You snorted, shaking your head, “he knew you needed him alive if you were to keep building a case against the criminal organisation he had been stealing from.”

Peggy nodded curtly, not even bothering in denying your words. clenching your jaw, you sit up trying to get out of the bed, Fury stepped forward helping you out of the bed while holding you up.

“I will make sure that man doesn't see the light of another day, Agent Carter, he tried to kill me and my family.”

“I know.” She replied softening slightly, “I'm sorry you have to go through that, you and Wanda…”

“Whatever information he is offering you, I can double it. You have my resources at your full disposal as long as there is written guarantee he won't have the kids custody; his name will be erased from their records.”

Fury lifted a single eyebrow quite impressively while Peggy tried to hold back her expression into a neutral facade. You shrugged pointing a finger to the door.

“I don't know if the movies are real or not, but if the government can make it happen I want that man like the iron mask prisoner from Dumas’ book.”

This time around Peggy cracked a smile nodding curtly, “I shouldn't tell you this but, he wouldn't be our first iron mask prisoner.”

You opened your eyes before squinting them with a hint of suspicion there.

“I can't promise you he would be put away in such a secure place, but I can promise you the other part of your request. He won't have any claim on the children or his ex-wife or his freedom.”

“Good, now I think I'm going to see my girlfriend. If you excuse me, you gave me the perfect chance to run from this place.”

Fury and Peggy watched you leave the office, Peggy waited until she heard your footsteps far along the hall.

“So, tell me why we never recruit her?”

“Her father threatened to skin you and Steve alive if you ever tried it.”

“Right, like father, like daughter.”

_________________

The energy you had spent re-telling your story for the last six months was soon building up again. Your hand hover above the doorknob of Wanda’s room, with you standing right outside waiting for courage and the right words to find a way into your mouth.

You played the words of Hope inside your head, and you went over what America and everyone else had told you so far about Wanda’s real physical and emotional state. You needed to play this right so as to ensure Wanda would not run from you; you lifted your face ready to go in when a couple of questions creep into your mind, what if Wanda really didn’t want anything with you? What if things really change?

The white door was suddenly heavier, bigger and it stood before you as a silent guardian of what was at the other end. You remembered your sister's anger, the fragility of life as your left arm pulsated with the ghost of a bullet piercing your skin and muscle.

Wanda.

Everything you did up to that point had been for her, right? Then, why were you hesitating?

With more courage that you felt, you grabbed the doorknob and pushed through.

The room had the light of the TV projecting colours of a children’s program on the wall, there was only a single lamp projecting a different light resting on the bedside table. You stepped into the room closing the door behind you and effectively calling the attention of the little lumps resting on the sofa. Billy and Tommy both turned to the door, their eyes growing wide while they expression changed from one of boredom and tiredness to one of happiness.

It caught you by surprised to see as the both of them came rushing to you meeting you halfway and wrapping their arms around you. You winced when Billy got to you first, he crushed into your left side while Tommy grabbed your right side.

“Hey guys,” you greeted them softly, wrapping your good arm around Tommy while later on ruffling Billy’s hair, “it’s good to know you guys are okay.”

“Mommy said…” Billy trailed off stepping away from you, frowning he then pointed to the sling, “she said dad hurt you.”

Tommy pressed his lips together looking down in shame, “we’re sorry.”

You opened your eyes kneeling while putting a hand on Tommy’s shoulder.

“There is nothing to be sorry about, Tommy.” You replied looking at the boy before turning your eyes to his brother, “never felt sorry for what other’s do, guys. He hurt me, but it was not your fault.”

Billy clenched his jaw close stepping closer to you, “he hurt mommy too, and Tommy.”

Tommy trembled feeling the tears in his eyes, you softened your features cupping his face while offering a smile to Tommy.

“I’m sorry he hurt you, Tommy, but he won’t be able to do so anymore, I promise.” Tommy then stepped towards you hugging you tightly hiding his face on your neck.

You wrapped your good arm around him drawing soothing circles on his back, you could see Billy hesitating though this time around he was looking at you with a glint of hope in his eyes.

“Are you…mad? Mommy said you saved her but…she was crying.” Billy furrowed his brows glancing at the bed where his mother was resting then back at you, “I don’t want mommy crying anymore.”

Your heart melted right away, these boys had been in constant fear yet always ready to defend and protect their mother. You shook your head nodding to Billy to come closer to you.

“I’m not mad, Billy. I was worried sick about you guys, and Wanda, I love you guys.” You said without a hint of hesitation, “and I’m sorry I was not there to make sure nothing bad happen to you, or Tommy or Wanda. But I promise you, this won’t happen again. And he…he won’t be able to hurt you again.”

“You promise?” Billy said lifting his right hand, putting his little finger out, “you pinkie swear it?”

You held back your smile, you let go of Tommy for a moment taking Billy’s finger with yours.

“I swear it, Billy.”

And you meant it.

You would do anything that was in your power to protect this family from any harm, they didn’t deserve to keep on suffering the way they had done in the past and if you could offer them something different you would do so.

Billy nodded curtly before he too came into your arms hugging your tightly, you closed your eyes for a moment enjoying the embrace these two kids were sharing with you. You smiled when they let go of you and put their fingers on their lips turning to the bed where Wanda was still sleeping.

It wasn’t until that moment that you noticed the state she was in.

If at any point you doubt your love for Wanda, and what the future held for the both of you it soon crumbled under the weight of your emotions and your beating heart. Your eyes softened at the sight of Wanda sleeping on a hospital bed, there was nothing relaxed on her expression and the way she seemed to be clenching her jaw and fist told you she was probably having a bad dream.

“Dad hurt mommy.” Billy mumbled looking up at you, “can you make her feel better?”

“I will try, kiddo, why don’t you and Tommy go back to the sofa, okay?” The twins glanced at one another then back at you and then at their mother before nodding and running back to the sofa.

You stood by Wanda’s bed taking in the bruises on her face and the bandages covering parts of her body. You were trembling by now, your hand lifting to touch at the bandages covering her neck. The man had tried to make s much damage as he could, and Wanda was now paying a price she shouldn’t be paying. You made a silent promise to the skies to never let anyone or anything hurt her the way Vision had done so.

With a softness that surprised you, you grabbed her hand in yours, drawing soft circles on the back of your hand while leaning in to place a single kiss on her forehead.

Wanda stirred with her eyes popping opened all of a sudden, you could see the flash of panic in those green orbs and the tension of her body pushing her to almost sit up and put herself in unnecessary risk.

“Hey, wait, it's me, Wands.” You tried to soothe her, this time around you placed a tentative hand on her shoulder, tilting your head. You tried to offer a shaky smile but Wanda just shook her head trying to get away from your touch leaving out exclamations of pain from her lips.

“Hey, Wands, wait…” You tried to calm her down, with the twins standing up coming to the bed while looking at you and then at Wanda.

“Y/N? Mommy?” Billy asked tentatively, hearing her son was enough to make Wanda returned her attention to them then back to you.

“Hey, love it’s okay.” You furrowed your brows, while Billy and Tommy were not understanding such a reaction for you was crystal clear what it meant.

The words from Hope came back, and now you understood what they really meant. The fear she was flashing on those green eyes were the silent symbol of the fear she was feeling of getting closer to you once more, of perhaps living the rejection coming from you and experimenting the hate she thought you had for her.

Wanda never lost the tension on her muscles, she tried to ignore you while turning to her children that were looking at her wide eyed.

“I’m okay.” She tried to speak but her voice came hoarse with dried undertones and broken words.

Billy frowned grabbing Tommy by the hand then turning to you and Wanda.

“Y/N is here, mommy. You can sleep again; she pinkie promise dad won’t hurt you. Ever again.”

While Billy offered a tentative smile to his mom you could see the widening of her eyes, and the tension coming back to her. You grabbed her hand, trying to be as careful as you could while making sure she returned her attention to you. Wanda pressed into the bed keeping her face hidden from you while keeping her hand limp.

“Wanda, look at me, please.” You spoke clearly, without demanding but asking as a favour.

After what seemed like an eternity the young woman turned to you and the tears were filling up her eyes.

“You want some water?” You asked lifting your good hand to brush some locks of hair away from her face, “I notice your voice was hoarse and…well, I know why but perhaps cold water can help some with the swelling.”

Wanda felt her lower lip shivered, she was trembling waiting for you to start screaming at her, for the words of finality to leave your mouth. But you never changed your posture, or the softness behind your expression, or even the tender caresses from your hand. You locked your eyes to hers lifting an eyebrow at her.

“Well? You want water or, I can also offer you some Vodka, but that will cost you a kiss at least.”

You chuckled when Tommy and Billy made gaging sounds before erupting in giggles and going back to the sofa. Wanda frowned opening her mouth ready to speak, but with her breath caught in her throat when you placed a single finger on her lips.

“Don’t, Princess, try to not put any unnecessary stress on your voice. Let me bring you the water, and then…” you trailed off leaning, “then we will talk.”

Wanda trembled nodding slightly, you winked at her and then asked the boys if they wanted something to drink asking them to come with you while leaving the room for a moment.

Wanda was soon left alone with her thoughts, she thought the first time she would see you again after the whole ordeal she would be far away, perhaps ready and strong to face your hatred and the finality of whatever relationship you two had built in the last couple of weeks. She had been waiting for you to hate her, to perhaps blame her for what had happened the way America had done so hours ago.

She never expected you to behave the way you were doing, or for you to offer her the smile she loved so much. Or for you to just be you. She held back her tears, her heart beating heart against her chest while she tried to quiet down any whispers of hope that had been trying to grow inside her head and heart, she couldn’t allow herself to hope only for you to perhaps coming back with a breakup and hurtful words against her. Her heart wouldn’t take it.

Ten minutes later you came back alone, your lips curled into a sheepish smile while lifting a glass of water with a straw.

“America and her friends were down in the cafeteria, and Balder was there and the twins wanted to talk to him, I hope you don’t mind.” You stepped closer to Wanda helping her up before offering the straw. “Here, drink some water.”

The woman hesitated before drinking form the straw, her face broke into a mask of pure relief while wincing lightly feeling her throat pulsated with the water flowing inside her. She then opened her eyes, looking directly into yours.

“Thank you.” Wanda whispered looking away for a moment, getting ready with the huge speech she had prepared in your absence, her mouth opened but whatever she had prepared came crushing down and the only thing she could say was a shaky, “I’m sorry.”

“Wanda…” You started but the other woman put a hand on yours gripping your tightly, her green eyes big and desperate.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…I…It wasn’t my intention, I’m sorry, please don’t hate me…”

You could hear and see the effort she was making into talking, her voice was trembling just above a hoarse whisper. You waited until it was impossible for her to continue and then, you leaned in to kiss her forehead tenderly.

“There is nothing to be sorry about, Love.” You whispered for her only, breaking into a tender smile while letting her see the love you felt for her.

She shook her head, tears rolling down her cheeks her lips trembling. You brushed your hand against her cheek, wiping away the tears while brushing her hair.

“I have never had so much fear in my life that the fear I felt knowing I couldn’t stop him on time and you and the twins and my sister were in danger.” You said softly, furrowing your brows while looking at Wanda.

“I was so afraid that something was to happen to you and them, when I finally got him to leave the kids and America behind my next concern was to make sure you were okay.” This time around you let your fingertips trace a line to the bandages around her neck.

“I’m sorry he hurt you, Wands.”

“Why?” She finally asked, and that single question held everything she wanted to tell you.

Why were you still there with her? Why did you keep coming for her? Why?

You opened your eyes blinking away a couple of times, “I thought it was obvious.”

Wanda furrowed her brows shaking her head, you softened leaning in making sure she was looking deeply into your eyes.

“Because I’m in love with you, Wanda, and from the moment I met you I realized I want nothing more than to make you and the boys happy.” You shrugged offering a tender smile, “I thought it was that obvious, but let me correct that, from now on I will show you every day how much I love you, and I will tell you so, to make sure you know without a glimpse of a doubt.”

Wanda felt her lip quivered, she wanted to say so many things. She wanted to ask for your forgiveness because if she had told you the full story of Vision nothing would have happened. She wanted to tell you that she would understand if you wanted to end whatever it was the both of you have, she had put you and your sister in danger and she would understand. She would understand if you hated her, if you wanted to leave.

And then, you came over to crash all of these thoughts by confessing the most wonderful thing to her. She felt her heart stopped for a moment, and soon she opened her mouth wanting to tell you the same, that she had been in love with you from quite some time. She locked her eyes with yours, her mouth opened ready to say those words…

I love you.

She gripped your hand tightly, and your heart broke at the fragility you found there. Your own tears welling up your eyes, offering a comforting smile when you hold her hand.

“I know.” You said to her silent confession.

She lowered her gaze, gasping when you brushed your lips against hers.

“Wanda, I know life has not been easy or kind to you, but I want you to know that I will be here for you, for Billy and for Tommy.” You all but whispered to her, “whenever you are ready, I still be here, and I won’t leave unless you tell me to. So, you better be ready because, If you want to, I’ll be by your side until we are old and living in an Italian coast watching our grandchildren grow.”

Wanda offered a shaky smile clenching her eyes closed thinking she really didn't deserve you. Or happiness. When she opened her eyes again, you were still there smiling softly at her, and Wanda had to ask herself if she was ready to be with you in such a way. To finally step forward and give herself to you. You whispered sweet, comforting words to her, trying to ease out the sobs leaving Wanda’s lips until the young woman finally fell into an easy sleep.

-------------------------------------------

Wanda was not sure when she fell asleep, her body stirred painfully under the weight of recovery and sleepiness. She could hear the muffled conversation happening in her room, and the excited chatter coming from her children but her eyes refused to open, only giving her the comfort of the sounds of conversation.

She let the voices soothe her worries, her heart shrank deeply hearing the snickered from her son's and the conviction behind your voice. She loved the tenderness in which America chided them but also the way she conspired with the twins. Wanda didn't know when she let the smile showed on her face, but the moment she opened her eyes your hand was comfortingly wrapped around hers.

“Hey, sleepy head, are you ready?” Your question caught Wanda by surprise, she furrowed her brows opening her mouth only to close it again.

You chuckled turning to the bedside table lifting the glass of water with straw that was left there by a nurse. You offered the straw to Wanda and, after some hesitation, she drank some of it trying to clear her throat while locking her eyes with yours.

“Ready for what?” She finally said in a raspy, guttural voice wincing at the effort.

“For New Year’s celebration, of course!”

It wasn't until then that the young woman noticed the change in your clothing. You were wearing a loose shirt, your left arm still wrapped around the sling, your legs covered by a nice black jean and some Vans. Your hair out up in a ponytail, freshly washed and ready for an afternoon stroll apparently. She turned to see the twins were both wearing black and khaki jeans with matching jackets and light blue shirts. America wore a beautiful dress and everyone was just ready to go out, Wanda tried to sit up with her eyes slightly open glancing around her room with her heart beating fast and a tingling down her abdomen.

“I brought you a dress that Billy and Tommy select, and a nice coat because, baby is cold outside.”

You chuckled winking at America who rolled her eyes making gagging sounds while Wanda returned your smile blushing lightly.

“I would offer to help you get dressed, but you know…” you pointed to your arm sheepishly, “Nat is coming over and we will wait upstairs, don't take too long, Wands.”

Wanda opened her mouth to say something, but soon enough her words tangled on her throat when you leaned in, placing a kiss on her forehead.

“Just go with the flow, love.” You winked walking backwards before hurrying everyone out of the room.

The room soon felt empty, with just a tad of cold breeze making Wanda shivered. She sat on the bed for a moment until the door of her room opened and there was Natasha with a huge smile.

“I hope you're ready because Y/N really outdo herself this time around.”

Wanda was not sure what to say, the tears were back and her heart was just trembling under the raw affection trying to overwhelm her. Soon her eyes fell upon the dress, Wanda narrowed her eyes trying to calm herself down while letting the older woman assist her still confused as to what exactly was happening and not obtaining any direct answers from the redhead.

“Nu-uh, you will have to wait, Wanda, and you won't regret it.”

Half an hour later Wanda and Natasha were making their way to the elevator of the Hospital, not many people were left in the halls. Midnight was almost there, and many were either in their rooms, on their homes, or on the rooftop. You waited patiently by the elevator, your eyes growing big when you took in the appearance of Wanda who was holding Natasha tightly.

“You look beautiful,” you stepped closer offering your arm to her, Wanda hesitated before taking yours her cheeks burning brightly while her eyes lowering shyly.

“You look good, too.” She replied softly, you chuckled winking at Wanda.

“I want you to have the best New Year’s celebration ever, we were supposed to go to Stepehen and Christine’s party but…since we can, I brought the party to you.”

You explained while standing in front you Wanda, the young woman furrowed her brows turning to the open door of the elevator then back at you. For Wanda you were a box filled with surprises, one after the other, you had always shocked her in ways she never thought possible. She gulped wincing when her spit went down her sore throat, closing her eyes she then lifted her hand to cup the side of your face stepping closer to you.

“I wish I could show you the same, our date was cut short last time,” she shook her head stopping any reply from you, you clamped your mouth shut letting her finish, “I’m sorry about everything, I still think I don’t deserve you…but I will make sure to be worthy of your love, of your company.”

Your heart leaped forward, and your eyes fluttered close when Wanda leaned in kissing you tentatively on the lips. It took you a moment, and soon the both of you were sharing the softest kiss you had ever experienced in your life. By the time the both of you parted, you two were equally flustered, smiling at the other with the same affection growing in your eyes.

“Well, then let’s go.” You said holding onto Wanda and leading her to the elevator where a very amused Natasha had waited all along.

When the doors of the elevator opened in front of you, you smiled hearing the gasp coming from Wanda. The young woman stepped forward glancing around the place while admiring the decorations and the people filling out the place. The night was completely dark, with a cold breeze traveling around the celebrations goers that were wearing heavy coats and drinking warm beverages.

The place had been decorated with lights and torches, tables were set up and many patients with their families and friends were sharing light conversation and food, doctors, nurses and staff members had also been invited and all of them had also chosen different tables to enjoy the music and the tension just before the clock hit midnight.

Wanda turned to you, and you could only smile at her shrugging.

“I thought we need to start the new year with a huge celebration, not on a hospital bed.” You said simply earning yourself a tight hug before she grabbed your hand dragging you down the different tables to the furthest part of the rooftop.

The lights of the city twinkling down the streets, and the music was sometimes interrupted by the host of the radio station someone had put on. Wanda approached the group and soon she found many familiar faces she had met before, she stopped dead on her tracks with you wrapping your arms around her midsection while putting your lips on her ear.

“I told you I call everyone.” You whispered making her shivered under the caress of your voice.

Wanda soon spotted her children talking with Balder and Morgan, while America was standing with her friends laughing and drinking alcohol free cocktails. At the other end was Hope with Reed and Sue, and nearby was Tony, Thor, Sif, Pepper, Stephen and Christine all sharing a good meal. There were to spots free right beside Christine, facing Eleanor Bishop that was trying very hard to not glare at you.

“Thank you.” She whispered at you, you winked at her pointing to the table.

“Let’s go to eat.”

“Here they are!” Tony stood up calling everyone’s attention, he lifted a hand then pointing at you and Wanda just as you two took your seats, “please everyone, let’s give it up for these two women that had shown us that the power of love can do everything and anything!”

You rolled your eyes with your lips drawing a smile, while Wanda dipped her face trying to covered the blush on her cheeks. Soon conversation resumed, and Wand found herself the subject of Christine’s fuzzing.

“Now, I know this may be difficult at first, but nothing spicy, or acid or anything like that, I chose your food for today, and only cold drinks. Well, lukewarm so as to not to hurt yourself.”

You chuckled grabbing your fork with your good hand watching as Wanda gaped at Christine who was like a mother hen trying to tell the young woman what was good for her sore throat. The table was buzzing with light conversation, the food was soon finished and the dessert along with the flutes of champagne were brought over. All around the rooftop people were getting ready to receive the new year, people glancing at their watches while others were just calling their loved ones.

“Are you guys ready?” America came from behind the both of you, you turned around seeing as America rested her stare on Wanda.

Wanda shifted nervously nodding while offering a tentative smile to the young woman. For a moment you waited, you knew America had been mad, she had told you as much as well as the heavy discussion she had with the redhead. But after you spoke with your sister, you thought whatever disagreement she had with Wanda had been cleared out.

“Wanda, I just…” America started, you could see as Wanda tensed clenching her fist while leaning back with her eyes lowering to the ground, “I’m sorry for all the things I said to you. It was not your fault, I just… Y/N is my family, and I almost lost her, I…”

Wanda shook her head placing a hand on top of America’s, her eyes going wide opened gleaming in disbelief.

“No, I’m sorry.” Wanda replied hoarsely, she put a hand on her throat standing up. “I’m sorry, I put you and Y/N in danger, I…”

America did something you never thought possible, she stepped closer wrapping her arms around the woman holding her tightly.

“Stop talking, you fool, you’re going to hurt yourself even more.” She said tenderly, “don’t apologise, I’m sorry for the way I treat you, it was not fair.”

America looked out of the corner of her eyes to see your smile there, she returned the smile before stepping back grabbing Wanda’s hand in hers before grabbing yours and joining them with hers wrapping around your joined hands with Wanda.

“I know there is no one better to be with my sister than you, just don’t hurt her.”

“I won’t.” Wanda whispered looking at you, you stood up intertwining your fingers with hers.

“I won’t either.”

“Good, now get ready is about to be midnight.”

Wanda turned to you, everyone was getting ready around you. You could see the hesitation in her eyes, with a nod of your head you locked your eyes with hers offering a comforting smile.

“It is going to be okay.”

“I don’t deserve her forgiveness.” Wanda replied, she closed her eyes allowing the comforting squeeze from your hand to warm up her heart.

“Whatever happens, Wands, I want to be right there with you. I want to live with you, to grow old with you…to love you, if you let me.” You said softly, “you deserve forgiveness, and you deserve happiness, Love.”

“I'm scared.” Wanda confessed while unable to tell you the reason behind her fear.

She didn't need to tell you, though. You knew, you could imagine the guilt and the fear she held inside her mind for everything that happened, for the things that came in between. You placed a soft kiss on her hair, putting her closer to you.

“Me too.” You replied, chuckling lightly, “but I prefer to be scared and have you by my side than miss the chance to be with you.”

“You're so sappy.” she leaned back offering a teasing smile you returned with a wink.

“Only for you, Princess.”

Wanda relaxed in your embrace, everyone started standing up checking their watches and grabbing the flutes of champagne.

“Okay everyone, it's about time!”

The music stopped and soon it was replaced for the local radio station in which the announcers were ready as everyone else to start the countdown to the new year.

The rooftop vibrated with excitement, families and friends came together, everyone talking and exchanging their new year's resolutions.

Wanda stepped back welcoming her children in her arms, and America stood right beside you with Kate hugging her from behind. Your eyes soon found those of Wanda and the man in the radio start counting.

“10, 9, 8…”

You chuckled when the twins jumped excitedly, Billy dragging his mom closer to you while also grabbing his brother.

Kate watched the scene with a softening stare kissing America on her cheek.

“You guys look like a happy family.”

“...3, 2, 1 Happy New Year America!!”

The fireworks broke into the sky, everyone gasped and celebrated while Wanda leaned in tilting her head and kissing you openly in front of everyone. Wanda never imagined her year would end in such a way, when she ran away from Vision’s grasp she did so with one thing in mind: To survive.

Now, standing on the rooftop of a hospital with a woman kissing her slowly, tentatively, she realized that love was possible, that being loved was something she also deserved, and that loving someone might not be as bad as she was led to believe. Just as you stepped back with a huge grin adorning your face, Wanda knew.

You two would be forever.

_______________________________________

Next Chapter: Wanda and Reader need to have that date, only family fluff and a bright future ahead of them. With some decisions to be taken, and Wanda finally giving in.

#fanfic #wanda maximoff #wanda maximoff x reader #wandaxreader #female reader #imagine wanda maximoff #wanda maximoff x female reader #reader

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