#i have to upload this one now before i start my break bc i'm handing the reins over to oasis

[thetomorrowshow]

every hand’s a winner

trust au masterlist - previous

I COME BEARING FLUFF.

also a little note: due to personal reasons, i will be stepping away from social media for an unforeseeable amount of time. because of this, fics/updates will be posted once a month on the second tuesday either until i get back or until they run out. for january expect some esh au, and the next part of hubris in february :) additionally, my queue will be posting every other day either until i get back or until my queue runs dry (unlikely, as there are close to 300 posts in it lol).

forget all that, though!!! bc i have some people being happy for you!

cw: blood and injuries

~

Scott goes home that very evening, like most of the other emperors—bar Jimmy, who is slated to stay overnight in the infirmary. They’d tried to keep Scott as well, fussing over his bloody nose and torn skin, but he’d promised to check in with the Rivendell healers at home to make sure time in the Void of the End won’t seriously affect him.

For once in his life, Scott willingly goes to the Rivendell infirmary, leaving with a couple of bandages and instructions to write down any strange symptoms.

The thing is, nobody has ever fallen into the Void before—let alone the one in the End—so there’s no way of knowing what might happen further down the road. Scott’s an anomaly of sorts, and it looks like he’s now the subject of a medical study.

He hasn’t noticed anything apart from a slight lingering dizziness, so he writes that down, feeling somewhat stupid about it being the only symptom he has to report, especially when that could be caused by a myriad of other things. It’s not like he’s never been dizzy before. He practically didn’t stop being dizzy back before he figured out how to sleep.

That night, he luckily doesn’t have to deal with his insomnia—he’s up until the sun rises meeting with various advisory groups: working out the best way to lock down Rivendell whilst still keeping trade routes open, mobilizing the layman army, and deciding how to go forward with various declarations of support for other empires. Within the night, four different ambassadors turn up to arrange an alliance, and Scott knows that his fellow emperors are awake dealing with the same things.

He doesn’t get a moment alone until well into the next day, after he has to send out a formal announcement that his and the Codfather’s betrothal is postponed until after the war (if Jimmy still wants such a relationship, of course). He can tell that many of his advisors don’t necessarily agree with this decision, but they recognize the direness of the situation (and Ilphas, Aeor bless them, defends Scott’s choice with a fervor), and allow the postponement to occur.

It’s past four in the afternoon before he finally has a moment to relax, kicking off his boots and bathing before changing from the travel clothes that he’s been wearing for almost two days straight into something clean. The sight of Jimmy’s robes in the closet next to his almost makes him cry for some reason, but he pushes past them to the back to dig out a pair of hose and a skirt, tucking an embroidered but comfortable tunic into them.

He can’t sleep.

Several months have passed since the torture of fWhip’s basement, his wounds entirely healed, but he can’t quite convince himself he’s safe to sleep alone. He really thought he’d be over it by now.

It’s no use trying, of course—after so many long hours, he doesn’t want to risk a panic attack. Instead, Scott lies in bed and just breathes, trying not to think about all the war preparations that he’s just spent hours making.

He also tries not to think about Jimmy.

That’s a whole other issue to deal with.

For a couple of minutes, he’s able to lie there in peace, shutting down any thought as soon as it breaches his mind.

Then his bedroom door opens.

Scott sits up, ready to reprimand whatever servant is entering—he’s in his private quarters, he could be without his veil—but he’s not meant to have a veil anymore, is he—

It doesn’t matter anyways, because it isn’t a servant at the door.

It’s Jimmy.

“Hey,” Jimmy waves awkwardly, slipping in and shutting the door behind him. “How—how’re you?”

Jimmy looks terrible.

Well, he looks beautiful, as per usual, but his fall through the Void has certainly taken its toll. There are bags under his eyes, his hair greasy and limp, and he walks with an unsteadiness that tells Scott he’s been experiencing the same dizziness. Most notably, his face isn’t bandaged anymore.

It had been hard to see in the End, when Jimmy’s face was pretty fairly just a mess of blood, and impossible to see when there had been bandages plastered on half his face, but it’s clear now that Jimmy’s lost almost all of the scales on his face.

They had run in patches up from his throat to the line of his jaw on both sides, some speckling across his cheeks and a handful clustered around both his mouth and eyes. Scott had always found them gorgeous, little sparkling jewels on his face that truly brought out the flecks of green in his eyes. Now there’s maybe three around his eyes, ten total over the entirety of his face. In place of all the missing scales is torn skin and scabs, blood shining on his jaw from where the scabs have split.

Scott feels a little sick looking at it. Jimmy’s throat is still wrapped in bandages, and he can see some tied around his hands, so he can only guess at how many are missing across the entirety of his body.

He’s not sure why the dressings are gone from his face, but those wounds look ripe for infection. They shouldn’t just be out in the open.

“Jimmy, where have your bandages gone?” he asks instead of replying, swinging out of bed. “You need new ones, come here.”

Jimmy follows him into the washroom that leads off from what was once their joint sitting room, fidgeting nervously with the hem of his sleeves. “They made me take them off at the door,” he explains. “To make sure it’s me, and all. It looks pretty gross, I know.”

“No, it’s not—it’s—I don’t want them getting infected, is all it is,” Scott says absentmindedly, digging through his healing chest for the proper materials. He finds a basket of bandages and a roll of gauze, which he removes and sets to the side. His hands pauses over a regen potion, glancing uncertainly at Jimmy.

Jimmy shakes his head. “No potions, doctor’s orders,” he says. “They’re afraid it won’t . . . grow back right. It’s a wait-and-see thing at the minute.”

Scott passes over the regen and the health potions, landing instead on some disinfectant ointment. He closes the chest and gestures for Jimmy to sit on it, turns away to wash his hands before twisting open the ointment.

Jimmy doesn’t sit still as he applies it, jiggling his knee and wincing and pulling back every time Scott touches him. His injuries must really hurt, then—Scott’s being as gentle as he can, barely touching his cheeks as he rubs the ointment in.

“Sorry,” he murmurs when he cleans a particularly ugly patch and Jimmy actually cries out a bit. Jimmy shakes his head, face twisted into a lopsided grimace.

“It’s fine,” he grits out. “Thanks.”

Well, it’s not as if Scott was going to let Jimmy patch himself up. He’s not sure what he’s getting thanked for.

He finishes up quickly and efficiently, hesitating at his mouth and eyes. The bandages are too blocky to work with the curves there, so he tears one up and uses the pieces to line any awkward spots.

Jimmy really doesn’t look any better once he’s done, covered in so many bits and pieces of bandages that barely any skin is showing. He forces a smile anyhow, shows Jimmy his reflection in the mirror.

Jimmy stares at himself for a long moment. “I’d laugh if I could move my mouth that much,” he comments, and the smile on Scott’s lips becomes just a bit more real. He’s making jokes. That’s got to be good.

Then Jimmy takes one of his hands, and Scott’s heart skips a beat.

“What’s this?”

Scott follows his gaze down to his hands—Scott’s knuckles have similar bandages wrapped around them.

“Same as you,” he says, flexing his wrists. “I escaped with just losing a bit of skin, fortunately.”

Jimmy nods. “Right. Scales—on a fish, perfect protection. Bit weak when you combine it with normal skin. It—it makes sense.”

“And you were in there for longer,” Scott adds. Jimmy shrugs, looking away and down. Every which way, except for back at him.

Scott leads the way back into the sitting room, gestures for Jimmy to take a seat on the sofa (it’s his favorite spot, Scott knows, the velvet of that left cushion still brushed back weird from when he’d been sitting there last). Scott almost sits in his preferred armchair, but makes a last-minute decision to sit beside Jimmy on the sofa.

They’re quiet for a moment, and it isn’t a gentle quiet, nor a comfortable one. It’s awkward, filled with tension, and Scott’s certain they keep looking at each other but never managing to catch one another’s eyes.

He’s got to say something, but all he can think about is Jimmy’s exhausted eyes, love confessions falling from bloodstained lips, impulsive kisses and a slippery grasp on his lover’s bleeding face.

He has to say something.

But Jimmy speaks first.

“I really like you,” Jimmy says, looking away, and Scott takes the moment to gaze at him, truly take in the fatigue lining his face and the droopiness of his eyelids. “I didn’t—I have for a while. Months, really. Ever since . . . I don’t know when. I just—well, I tried, that one time—” he grimaces— “I just . . . I didn’t feel worthy, I suppose, of you. You’re—Scott, you’re so perfect, always all put-together and—and rescue-y and everything, and I’m just . . . me. Gosh, I’m sorry for rambling—I really just meant to say that I like you and—and I kinda hope you like me too.”

Scott blinks.

If his heart flipped when Jimmy took his hand earlier, it’s positively doing cartwheels now.

Jimmy likes him.

And apparently, all that pining was for waste because he could’ve confessed this whole time and Jimmy would’ve reciprocated.

Scott can’t help it: he laughs. Just a little, a giggle that slips out accidentally, but it’s enough that Jimmy freezes and glances over at him, eyes terribly fearful.

Scott waves frantically, pushing closer to him. “No, no—I—I wasn’t laughing at you,” he’s quick to correct. “I was—Jimmy, I’ve liked you for ages, but I was so afraid of you rejecting me that I didn’t dare say anything. Just think what might have happened if we both actually used a bit of logic for once in our lives.”

Jimmy blinks. A surprised laugh bursts out, one that’s quickly stifled as Jimmy winces and covers his mouth. It’s really not funny—it must hurt to laugh, with his face in such a state—but Scott can’t help it. He laughs again, lightly punches Jimmy on the shoulder.

“Don’t laugh,” he reprimands, still laughing himself. “You’ll start bleeding again, and we can’t have that.”

Jimmy clearly can’t help it, his shoulders shaking as he struggles to not even smile. Scott’s smiling too, he’s gazing at Jimmy beside him as he tries not to laugh and. . . .

He’s really in love, huh? Because Jimmy’s always shone like a star, he’s always been so breathtakingly beautiful, but he’s somehow so much more so now that he’s his. Now, Scott gazes at him, wave after wave of glory hitting him like waves of heat from the sun.

He’s in love, and it’s wonderful.

“Um,” Jimmy says after a moment, and Scott realizes that not only is he staring at Jimmy, but Jimmy is staring right back.

“Sorry—” he starts to say, looking down at his hands, but Jimmy interrupts him.

“I actually—I know you’re busy, with . . . with everything going on, and I am too, but if you wanted to just have one night before all that? I’d still like to—to go stargazing with you.”

It’s wartimes. He only has the one night to offer Jimmy, and no promises for the future.

Scott smiles. “I would be honored.”

-

There’s no snow on the ground where they pick to stargaze, a stone shelf in the side of the mountain that Scott’s lain on many times past. He spreads out three blankets on top of one another and leaves a fourth bundled to the side, in case the air gets too chill.

Jimmy splays out immediately, just like how he’s always first in bed—an incredibly intimate thing for Scott to know, and something inside him seems to almost purr at the realization. Jimmy is his, and he is Jimmy’s (at least for tonight).

Scott eases himself down next to him—his lover, Jimmy’s his lover—and, in a split-second decision, shifts a bit closer so that their hips touch.

Jimmy doesn’t move away.

Scott’s heart flips a little.

Exor’s hooves, you’re acting like a teenager, he tells himself. You like him, and he likes you. Just—be normal.

He can’t be normal. There is no way he can be normal.

The world around them has been gradually growing dark the entire time they spent hiking up to here and setting up, and now it’s dark enough that Scott can barely see Jimmy’s face.

He hadn’t been able to see Jimmy’s face then, either.

He’d seen him fall.

Scott had just caught sight of it as he regained his sense of balance from the End portal. He’d looked up to find an unfamiliar island, the world surrounded by the darkness of the void, and on the other side of the island—

Even from that distance, Scott could tell that Jimmy’s fall was the most graceful he’d ever seen.

He spread his wings and took off without a second thought, abandoning the others who followed him through the portal.

He had to try. He had to.

He’d passed fWhip, who was laughing—who tried to grab him—as he went over the edge of the island.

And then, wings pulled tight to his body, nose down, he dove after Jimmy.

“Scott?”

He blinks, looks around. Jimmy’s at his side now, head propped up on his arm. Jimmy quirks an eyebrow, still barely visible. “You good? You kind of zoned out for a second there.”

Scott blinks again, looks up. The stars are starting to twinkle into vision, bright and lively, and Scott almost waves up to them.

Perhaps Jimmy doesn’t know much about elven beliefs, doesn’t know the significance of the stars. He doesn’t know that Scott could point out a dozen or two elven legends and heroes—Gelidrian, Calireth, Alinar. And others, more mundane—his parents, the nurse who had raised him, the palace guard from a mere two decades ago.

Someday, Scott knows he will join them all. Hopefully not any day soon.

“Whoa,” Jimmy whispers. Scott glances over at him, his face illuminated by the exaltation of elves. One of his hands is raised slightly. “They're so close.”

“They really are.”

They watch in silence for a while, more and more bundles of light appearing in the sky. When the entirety of the Stags is visible and bright, Scott points it out, taking Jimmy’s hand (his heart jumps, Jimmy’s his lover) to trace his fingers down the lines of stars.

“That’s the Clash of the Stags,” Scott tells him, tracing it over again. “On the left is Aeor, see His antler?”

“That’s your god, isn’t it?”

“Yes, that’s Aeor.” Scott smiles just a little bit—somehow, every time Jimmy knows something about elven history, it makes him ten times more attractive. “And then below Him and to the right is Exor, His brother.”

“I’ve heard you say his name before. Is he your god, too?”

Scott can’t help but snort. “No. Exor may be Aeor’s brother, but they don’t get along. Exor was cruel, controlled those under his domain, sacrificed the weak and oppressed the followers of Aeor. Aeor, meanwhile, ruled with kindness and respect, befitting of the last remaining gods.”

“What happened to the others?” Jimmy asks. “There are others, aren’t there?”

“Yes, we believe so. I’m sure you’ve heard Pix mention the Great Slumber?”

Jimmy nods, the movement scrunching up Scott’s sleeve. Jimmy’s so close to him, close enough that Scott can feel his every twitch and breath.

“Aeor and Exor were the only gods not to fall asleep. But when Exor became corrupted, jealous of his brother’s rule, Aeor knew He had to do something about it. So He gathered all His power and wielded it in a mighty battle against Exor—the Clash of the Stags. See how Aeor is kicking Exor down?”

Jimmy nods again. The nerves in Scott’s arm are tingling at his every touch, and he has to take a moment to swallow back the squeak that threatens to break his voice. “Um. Aeor used everything He had to seal Exor and his followers within a mountain forever,” he says, thankfully with no cracks. “Then He withdrew from the people, still hearing their prayers and granting small blessings, but separate from them. He lost much of His power in that fight, and has spent many thousands of years resting and caring for us—as any god should.”

Jimmy’s silent then, and when Scott looks over at him, he’s staring up at the sky, eyes flicking from point to point. Scott doesn’t look away, and while Jimmy’s eyes trace the stars, Scott’s eyes trace Jimmy’s face.

In the dark with the stars as their only light, the raw patches around his mouth and eyes that they hadn’t been able to bandage are invisible. The lines of exhaustion are impossible to see, as are the shadows Scott knows ring his eyes.

Instead, Scott sees the way his nose twitches. He sees long eyelashes that flutter gently. He sees golden hair that’s starting to curl around the gills, long in a way Scott’s never seen it. He sees lips that move soundlessly, lips that are looking more and more kissable by the second.

“There,” Jimmy says, and Scott pulls himself out of his reverie to follow Jimmy’s finger. Scott squints up at the sky as Jimmy traces a triangle shape out of the stars.

“That can be the mountain,” Jimmy says, sounding proud of himself. “The one that Aeor trapped them in. Do you guys know where that mountain is?”

Scott giggles a little—he can’t help it, it has to be a crime to be so cute—and traces along Jimmy’s triangle as well. It’s part of another constellation, he realizes after a moment—the Crystal of Rivendell, made up of stars of rulers who have passed on. “The mountain probably wasn’t real, Jimmy. Rivendell scholars have searched for it for literal ages, and they’ve not found evidence of it yet. Besides, I find it hard to believe that a mountain could entrap a god.”

“It was a magical mountain, you said so,” Jimmy says stubbornly. “Aeor sealed it. And I think it would be a great idea—some mountains are older than the ocean, you know, surely they have some sort of power.”

“Well, when you fight a god, trap him in a mountain and let me know how it goes.”

Jimmy laughs too, then cuts off abruptly as a cold gust of wind blows over them. He shivers, shifts close enough to Scott that he’s practically curled up in Scott’s side, head resting on his shoulder.

Scott’s certain that his heart actually stops.

Which is stupid, because—because they’ve done this before! Almost every morning, Scott wakes up pressed into Jimmy, and it’s fine. Well, it’s nerve-wracking and overwhelming and suffocating, but it’s been weeks since he last blushed and apologized, and much longer since he stopped pretending that Jimmy isn’t a very physically affectionate person. Romantic intentions or not (and now, in retrospect, Scott knows that most of them likely were romantic in some way and isn’t that something), Jimmy hugs him or leans on his shoulder on a near daily basis. This isn’t anything new.

Somehow, though, it’s the strangest sensation he’s ever known.

He’s been quiet for some time, he realizes suddenly, and before he even knows what to say he’s blurting out, “What’s your favorite constellation?”

Jimmy jerks a little bit. “What?”

“I—that’s how it started, isn’t it?” Scott says, and he just knows he’s paler than the stars right now. “You asked me what my favorite constellation is. Which one’s yours?”

Jimmy doesn’t answer immediately, pulling back a bit to gaze up at the stars properly. After a few moments, he takes Scott’s hand (the hairs on his arm stand up) and guides him up, much further to the left than the Stags. There, he traces out a strange shape—almost a lopsided rectangle, but with five sides.

Below it are two stars that are very familiar to Scott, he realizes with a jolt—

Staying up late every night—he’s just a child, he ought to be in bed, but instead he creeps over to the window and looks up at the stars.

His nurse had taught him to make a wish on the point of Aeor’s antler, and if the God was willing, his wish might come true. Scott can’t really remember where it is most of time, but he can always find those two bright stars to wish on—and that way, he would get two wishes!

He wishes twice for himself, or sometimes he uses one for Xornoth, or sometimes he uses one for his parents.

Most of the time, though, he wishes twice for himself—and he wishes for a friend.

Jimmy traces it again, the soft bandages on his knuckles rubbing against Scott’s matching set. “That one. That’s my favorite.”

“What is it?”

Jimmy’s hand falls to his side, almost in slow motion. “I don’t know,” he says, and there’s something wistful in his voice, something terribly sad. “But it feels like home.”

-

It gets too cold to stargaze, so Scott packs everything up and helps Jimmy back to the palace, flying in through his window so as not to get caught out by the guards.

And sure, it may be the beginning of the end of the world, war hovering over them like the executioner’s axe, but Scott can’t stop giggling. He and Jimmy are sneaking around like teenagers, trying to not be seen as they clamber in through his window. It’s so very cliche that he can’t help but enjoy it, can’t help but be entirely wrapped in the feeling of new love.

They both collapse onto Scott’s bed, both laughing, even though Jimmy’s covering his mouth and wincing like it hurts. He doesn’t stop, though, eyes sparkling as he snickers.

“The funny thing—the funniest part is, it’s not even funny,” Scott gasps out, and it isn’t—he thinks they’re more laughing because of the absurd pressure it is to sneak into a building that you belong in in the first place. It’s more stupid than anything—it would have been just fine to go in through the gates, really, but they’d decided to do it proper just for the fun of it.

Jimmy laughs harder at that, cutting himself off with a small “ouch!”. He presses his sleeve to his mouth for a moment before pulling it away, examining it for any blood. Apparently satisfied, he lets his arm fall and stretches out a bit.

“This was really good, Scott,” Jimmy says after a minute, and dear Aeor, even the way Jimmy says his name. . . .

“Can I kiss you?”

Scott blinks, sits up. Jimmy’s watching him, a blush spreading across what’s visible of his face. He almost looks just as surprised as Scott feels that those words fell from Jimmy’s mouth.

And really, props to Jimmy, because it’s not a bad idea. It’s a very good one, in Scott’s mind.

But they really need to talk about it first, don’t they?

Scott sits up, runs a hand through his hair. “I’d like to apologize, actually. For our first kiss.”

Jimmy frowns. “Yeah, I—it was sensory overload, yeah? I don’t think you need to apologize for that.”

“Wha—when did I say it was sensory overload?”

Jimmy sits up too, scoots along until he’s sitting beside Scott. “Well, I didn’t figure it out until today, actually. I sort of thought you hated me at first, but yesterday, when . . . and then again, earlier. You said—you’ve liked me this whole time, right?”

Scott nods.

“Right. Well, I figured if you did like me back then, you probably wanted to . . . do the whole kiss thing. And it’s really not like you to just run away like that. And I know you get sensory overload real bad sometimes, so. . . .”

Scott slides his hand toward Jimmy’s, loosely tangling their fingers together. It’s a conscious movement, one that sends nerves sparking up and down the very bones of his body.

It’s dangerously close to too much.

Yet it’s everything he’s wanted for so long.

“How about this,” Jimmy continues. “We—we’re . . . courting now, right? Um—that—that’s really nice to say—so how about we always ask first, before a kiss? And stuff like that. That way, neither of us is taken by surprise.”

Thrills go up and down every inch of Scott’s skin when Jimmy says that they’re courting, his breath stolen from his chest. They’re courting. They’re in a committed relationship. Jimmy is his, and he is Jimmy’s, and it’s true because Jimmy said so. It’s real.

“That—that sounds good,” he manages. He takes stock of himself—definitely on-edge, but he can handle one kiss. As long as they make sure it’s just one. And maybe if they do some pressure cuddling afterward.

“Can I kiss you?” Scott asks, his voice almost a whisper. What’s visible of Jimmy’s face under the bandages goes through a series of emotions—anxiety, enthusiasm, warmth, and then settling back on anxiety. He nods, a little uncertainly, and turns to fully face Scott, drawing his legs up criss-cross on the bed.

They’ve kissed three times before, but everything is different about this one.

There’s an awkward sort of lean-in, of course—the first and second times had been sudden, passionate, and the third filled with the thrill of survival. For this, they move slowly, telegraphing each movement carefully—akin to trying not to spook a wild stag, Scott thinks offhandedly.

And then their lips meet.

Scott’s always led kisses in past relationships, his lips slotted above his partner’s, but Jimmy takes the lead here, leaning up a bit to match Scott’s height—and Scott thinks he likes it. His lips are warm, far warmer than Scott’s, and wet, and so very very soft.

It’s not the burning fireworks of their first kisses, but it’s warm like a cozy evening by the fireplace—there are so many nerve endings, he can feel his shoulders start to raise at the overstimulation—and it’s Jimmy and he loves him so much and it’s overwhelming, it’s perfect, it’s underwhelming compared to the first time because Scott knows that Jimmy has very sharp teeth and knows how to use them—

But Jimmy pulls away after just a moment, their lips parting slowly, and offers a small smile. “Good?”

Scott can only manage a squeaky noise in the back of his throat, and Jimmy giggles. The sound is a little bit loud for his sensitive ears.

Scott stands and pulls off his cloak, muttering something about putting on softer clothes before ducking into his walk-in closet. He can hear Jimmy laughing behind him.

Normally Scott would consider himself the smooth one—why is he so uncollected? He can’t even find the words to make any sort of dirty jokes. Jimmy must think something’s wrong.

(And so many things are wrong, of course, but definitely not this.)

He changes into soft pajamas, emerging to find Jimmy having also changed—he’s in a loose shirt and shorts, hair mussed and occasional bandages wrapped around his arms and legs. Luckily—or unluckily, depending on how one looks at it—his face and hands had taken the brunt of the damage, only a couple of patches bandaged on his arms and even fewer on his legs. Jimmy smiles brightly when he sees Scott reenter.

“I sort of assumed I’d be staying the night. You looked overstimulated, do you need anything?”

Scott points to the bed. “Sleep?” he suggests, swallowing half of the word back. Jimmy nods, pulls back the covers.

“Do you want me on top of you?”

Scott can’t help it—he snorts. Jimmy goes totally red, sputtering incoherently.

“I—you know I—Scott!”

“Very forward, Jimmy, and on the first date too—”

“Oh, come off it!” Jimmy shakes his head, sighs, then adds, “We’ve been engaged for a while now; I don’t think it counts as a first date.”

Scott quirks a brow, and this is more familiar, this is how their banter is meant to be, flirtatious and comfortable and not at all awkward. “So you’re saying you’re open to it?”

“You are a menace,” Jimmy tells him, but he’s smiling, and it really does feel like before all of their issues. Except now Jimmy’s actually his, and the awkward dancing around each other in a newfound relationship hasn’t passed, but maybe they can become like this again soon enough.

Scott climbs into bed, turning down the lamp on his way in. He curls on his side, pulling the blankets up to his waist, his wings resting on the cushioned shelf built into his bed for this precise reason.

After a moment, the bed shakes as Jimmy climbs in beside him, then slowly, carefully, rests an arm around Scott’s waist.

“This okay?”

The weight of his arm is heavy and warm, the perfect amount of pressure, and Scott rolls to be fully on his stomach before pressing closer. When his head is up against Jimmy’s chest, and their knees are bumping at every readjustment, he nods.

He can be close to Jimmy. He doesn’t have to be self-conscious about wanting to touch him. He doesn’t have to restrain himself in private, pretend that the physical affection is all for show.

Scott moves one arm up, wrapped under Jimmy’s arm and up his back, and sighs. This is comfortable. This is right. This is real. Their bodies know how to fit together, weeks of practice in their sleep lending subconscious knowledge to Scott as he presses up against his lover, his Jimmy.

This is real, he tells himself, and it’s perfect.

[yummyyumberries]

WELL I'LL BE. your writing is SO scrumptious ma'ma!?

Lemme get 2 the point 🤦

JONGSEOB.

I NEEEEEEEEEEED IT. I NEEEEEEEED MORE.

can you maybe do a write abt a fem reader having a thing for being marked, but like too shy to say?

Idk where I'm going w this y'all 🧍

DO WHAT YOU WILL WITH THIS

(like a gentle dom jongseob x fem reader who wants/likes being marked)?

Neck Kisses 💋

gentledom!jongseob x afab!reader

warnings : smut, hickeys obviously, making out, fingering, lmk if i missed anything

a/n: sorry for no uploads for a minute ur girls brain was DRY 😢😢 TYSM RAE FOR SAVING ME!!!! i had a seobie fic in the works but when i saw this request i shoved it to the side SO FAST LMAOO ilysm rae and i hope u enjoy reading 🤍 (also wanting to dedicate this to literally the best seobie writers ever @kisseobie @348kg love these guys and make sure to check out their work bc LORD.)

you and your boyfriend, jongseob, have been dating for a while now. you had noticed very quickly that he LOVES neck kisses. while everyone else’s boyfriend were kissing their cheeks, hands and lips. he would always give you a soft kiss on your neck, and it always turned you on. you loved every time he did it, internally hoping that one day he would bite down marking you.

while you were at his house you decided to ask him about it. “Seobie?” you say while you were laying on his lap. “yes angel?” he says putting his phone down, giving you his full attention. you sit up from his lap and ask “why are you always kissing my neck?”. his gaze softens and he slightly tilts his head. “do you want me to stop?”. your eyes widened and you quickly reassure him and sit closer.

you place a soft kiss onto his lips and you feel his familiar hand go up your shirt. jongseob deepens the kiss and starts to pull up your shirt. you break the kiss and help him take off your shirt, leaving you in a bra and shorts. jongseob being jongseob he starts to kiss your jaw slowly going down to your neck. you feel him smile against your neck and you immediately get nervous. whenever he did that it always meant he had an idea.

you were scared until you felt him bite down on your neck. “ah..” you let out a small whine and he immediately stops to look at you. he cups your face with his hand “are you okay? did i hurt you?” “i’m fine.. don’t stop” you were looking down avoiding eye contact but you could tell he was smiling.

“you’re so adorable” he says softly laughing. you open your mouth to respond but he latches onto you neck before you could. his hand was fidgeting with the button of your jean shorts. you would take them off but the feeling of him biting your neck and all across your chest is insanely distracting.

he manages to get your shorts off without your help and you didn’t even notice before he shoved his fingers into you without a warning. you let out a cry of pleasure and you look down at jongseob to see a display of hickeys all across your chest.

“seobie..” your voice is cracking and you could barely get any words out. he ignores you and laughs against your chest. he detached from you chest and stares at his artwork. you could feel your mind going fuzzy as he quickens the pace of his fingers.

you were trying to be quiet beforehand due to the thin walls (you learned your lesson from last time..) but you couldn’t anymore.

he added a third finger, stretching you, scissoring you open as he worked your clit with his thumb. "You're so fucking wet for me" his fingers pumped in and out, curling to hit that sweet spot inside you that had you crying out and squirming.

" 'm gonna cum," you cried, your body tensing. "cum for me, angel," he urged, speeding up his fingers. "let me feel you come around my fingers."

your orgasm crashed over you, wave after wave of pleasure rippling through your body. you cried out, shamelessly, your hands grasping at jongseobs shoulders as he rode out your climax with you, his fingers never stopping their magical motions. Gradually, the intensity of you orgasm subsided, leaving you spent and breathing heavily.

he pulled out his fingers and put them in his mouth licking them clean. you were panting still trying to catch your breath. his hand grazed over your chest and neck. he lets out a small chuckle “i think i got a little carried away.” “you think?” you reply jokingly. “i’ve been wanting to tell you about this for a while actually..” you say as your hand pushes the hair out his face.

“really? you should’ve told me sooner” he smiled. “i was too shy..” you smile back and look down. “what a shame, i had just bought a new tube top” you say looking down at your chest. “who says you can’t wear it?” he tilts his head “are you trying to get me in trouble?” you spat. he shakes his head “you can show off that you have a beautiful, amazing boyfriend”

[sstardustt3]

Johnny cade headcannonsss

Authors notes- um so my writers block is gone (yipeee) and I decided that from now on this is just going to be a general writing account instead of something focused exclusively on one fandom (I'm still gonna do creepypasta stuff dw) but I didn't realize how much writing for one singular thing burns the fuck out of you so I'm doing this because it's much more easier and I'm gonna upload more because I'm on summer break. Anyways I'm on an outsiders kick rn so this is the result of it

tags/ warnings- mentions of abuse, johnny being a gossip whore, angst, fluff, johnny thinking negatively about himself, brief mention of romance, someone please give him a hug-

-Johnny is really fucking strong despite looking kinda scrawny but he believes no one when they tell him this (he thinks they're just trying to make him more confidant)

-If he did have a s/o then nine times out of then they've asked him to carry them everywhere

-he hates physical contact he can't stand it especially if he's not ready for it like if you hug him from behind. mostly because everytime someone touches him it's to hurt him but also another is because he just hates being surprised

-his body is so unbelievably cold all the time that even if there was a heat wave in the area at like 120*f he would still feel like he's on the brink of dying from hypothermia

-something he picked up from Dally is being rude to people for like no reason he doesn't even do it intentionally he just kinda says the most outlandish rude shit about people and does not even realize it

-adding onto things he's picked up from hanging with dally is how to talk to girls, contrary to popular belief he's actually not (completely) clueless with girls and he can sweet talk if he really wants to (he starts off stumbling like an idiot though)

-he's failling a good percentage of his classes for half the year because he figured that he wasn't gonna go far in life even if he didn't end up dead by 18 and his parents don't care about him enough to check his report cards

-at the end of the year the week before you can't do any more retakes and turn in late work he'll just do everything in one go because he doesn't really wanna be held back (he ends up passing with b's and c's)

-he's actually really good at making shit he has a drawer full of small little trinkets he's made in his spare time

-he learned how to make things to pass the time because before the gang he really didn't have friends and he didn't have a good excuse to go out anyway so he just locked himself in his room and began making things out of paper and rearranging action figures he stole from the junkyard or from second-hand stores

-more than half of his creations look like the shit Sid from toy story made

-he's so oblivous when people like him it's ridiculous and when he does realize they like him he just kinda is like "oh...oh...OH?!!!"

-even when he does like them back his first instance is to distance himself from them he thinks it's something that'll like pass

-he's dyslexic which is why he always makes Ponyboy do his English homework and read his homework to him in general

-adding onto the headcanon about him being cold all the time, for that very reason you'll never catch him out of him dead out of his jacket (well I guess that's not true bc he died without it but wtv)

-another reason is that he has a lot of scarring and bruises from his parents that he hates seeing

-dally was the first person to meet Johnny and he was kinda like "damn look at that little possum...it's coming home with me" and when he asked Johnny his name he had mumbled it so when he said it it sounded like Johnny cakes so for like half a year dally called him that before randomly correcting him

"yeah, so johnny cakes here-"

"Johnny Cade."

"huh? What you say, little man?"

"My name's Johnny Cade, not Johnny Cakes."

"..."

"..."

"are you serious-"

-Johnny's a gossip whore whether he admits it or not. the perks of being quiet and going unnoticed is that people will say there business loud and proud in front of you because they have forgotten you were even there.

-he will without a doubt tell Ponyboy after.

-and since Ponyboy has little to no understanding of the meaning of keeping things to himself he will in fact tell the rest of the gang

*requests for hcs/ or fics are always welcome*

[hwanchaesong]

Altschmerz Teaser

a/n: imma give you a sneak peek for now to give y'all some idea about my works (i'm terribly sorry bc like i said, i type so slow idek why and my brain lags every 5 mins) this is an apology i can manage for the mean time 😭😭 pls do not hesitate to tell me, whatever means, if you wanted to be added to the taglist, tysm! 🥀✨

genre: angst, fluff, smut, university au, part of the ATEEZ Minisode Series

It is a good day to live and breathe like any normal person.

The weather is actually nice, a little cloudy with a nice touch of spring air, the skies are bluer than Taylor Swift's eyes and said singer's song titled 'The Man' is blasting through your earphones. You feel vigorous, your pristine white uniform for your medical course gives you a certain glow. Your classes went well, acing all of the assessments without much studying done, oh, truly a lucky day for you.

Then all hell breaks loose when your lovely friend, Felix, spills the tea during lunch at the cafeteria, his thick aussie accent that you usually love screeched like a racing car's tire in your ears.

"I heard that Kim Hongjoong of the music department has a crush on you."

"What the fuck?"

He held his hands up, explaining that he heard it while passing by their building. The way people narrated the 'girl' sounds exactly like you, and you couldn't help but roll your eyes at the information as Felix lists out the descriptions that caught his ears.

'She's from the Allied of Health and Sciences department.'

'She's really intelligent and kind, well, that's what the professors had said.'

'A fluent speaker! Shy at times but really bubbly with her friends.'

"I did say that I want some spice in my boring college life but not like this!" you exclaimed, stabbing a kimchi with your fork and aggressively eating it, the spice further heating your head up.

"Not like what?" just then, your other friend Lily, sat down beside you with her own tray of food.

"Felix here is spreading some fake news, he said that someone named Kim Hongjoong has a crush on me." you explained, side eyeing the freckled man before continuing to eat the remainder of your lunch.

"Oh yeah, he does. Some people are already shipping you together."

Then you choked at Lily's nonchalant reply, making her grimace and pat your back as an attempt to soothe your burning pharynx.

You did not expect her to agree at all, and you made sure to tell her that with the way you glared at her.

"He's not that bad, yes he is a music major like Hee-" you stare at her hard, not wanting to hear that specific name. Lily clears her throat and rephrases her sentence, "It is true that he is a music major, but you don't have to lump them all in one category. He's nice, my cousin knows him."

Felix nods, gulping his food before speaking, "Plus, it's just a crush. It's not like he's gonna court you all of a sudden."

They have a point, you don't have to make a big deal out of it. Besides, it's a rumor, most of the time it's plain bullshit.

You need to calm down. You're having a great day, a great start of the semester and you'll be damned if it'll be ruined this early.

Then the students at the library squealed like dying squirrels when they saw you enter. The other music majors at the university gates gave you a wink, hell, even one of the freshmen congratulated you and even said, 'You and Hongjoong-hyung will look good together!'

You mustered a smile throughout the ordeals, opting to finish the day peacefully like how you started it. Whatever happened today shall pass.

Well.. it should be but then you find yourself stalking the man's social media. You have already found his facebook, twitter, instagram, even his fucking youtube account (he has uploaded some guitar covers and you have to admit he's great at playing the instrument.)

You could defend yourself and blame curiosity later, but now, you'll indulge in some information that you could find on the internet. Surely you haven't seen him before, his face is unfamiliar, heck, you don't even know his name, not until your friends brought it up today.

Kim Hongjoong. A music major born on November 7, plays a lot of musical instruments, can write lyrics and is also a good producer. He sings, raps and dances (he was tagged in a dance cover on instagram, courtesy of someone named Park Seonghwa.) A passionate one in his career you assume as you watch one of his vlogs on facebook. You also listened to his recordings posted in his accounts, and you have to give him applause for his aesthetic instagram account.

He takes nice photos of his surroundings, even himself, and he does know how to make himself look good. He definitely knows the colors that suit him, outfits that make him stand out yet fully blended in the crowd if he wanted to. His hair is also unique, seems healthy despite the dyes that had stayed there for months before being layered by another one.

You lie on your bed, thinking that maybe the man himself isn't that bad. That you may have judged him early prior to knowing him. A fault on your part but it's not like you're going to meet or get to know him or the likes, you were simply curious about him and now that you have seen that his surface isn't dry nor rotten, your curiosity shall now die before the cat inside you does... and it's 3 in the fucking morning and you have 7 am classes so really, you'll still die either way.

What you did not expect though, as you wake up at 6:00 am, getting ready with max speed, was a notification that had you stumbling over your feet.

'Hongstagram has followed you back!'

Follow you back what? Since when did you follow him on his instagram?

You were careful! Very careful in what you were clicking and all that shit, not wanting to leave a trace of your visit in his social media accounts but you were so fucking wrong. You could blame the fuzzy feeling of drowsiness but you were so sure that you didn't click anything out of the ordinary.

Fuck your life.

That was your motto all day long, going as far as being dramatic with your friends during lunch break. Rambling about how he'll think you're a creep for stalking him or, or, how he'll think that you're interested in him when you swear to every rat out there that you're most certainly not.

It was horrible, except for the fact that you gotta eat coffee jelly for dinner because your father bought tons during a sale in the grocery and he couldn't resist his sweet tooth ass to buy some desserts.

Maybe you can sleep all of this away, yes, one night of beauty sleep will rejuvenate all of your worries except when Kim Hongjoong himself messaged you.

You jumped up from your bed when you accidentally tapped the notification on the upper half of your phone, due to your persistent tapping all over the screen because fuck that chop chop filter in tiktok (you're pretty sure you can cut that cucumber up to 200), opening the message and you contemplated whether to left it on read or be polite enough to reply.

You chose the latter, not really wanting for your name to be tarnished if this Hongjoong guy goes around and says that you're a snob.

Hongstagram: Hey Y/N! Sorry to disturb you, but may I talk to you tomorrow?

You: Good evening Hongjoong! I'm sorry my sched is kind of packed tomorrow, you can tell it now though.

Hongstagram: It's kind of embarrassing to say it through dms.

Oh my god. No fucking way. He's gonna confess.

Hongstagram: But okay, here goes nothing.

Hongstagram: I heard that you're one of the best students, so, could I borrow your notes for History? I've been meaning to ask you this for a while now because Mr. Lee talks about you every time he's in class and tbh, I couldn't care less about the minor subject. But still, I need to pass it in order to advance soo..

He was yapping so hard and you're ridiculing him inside your head but, the guy needs help and you're not some kind of witch with a stone heart. So you, being the kindest soul out there, decided to help him out.

You agreed to give him your notes and print-outs, but you didn't reply to him when he sent you a time and place for the meet-up.

Imagine his surprise when you arrived at the said café, on time and with a big, thick envelope in your hands, sitting in front of him without any trace of hesitance.

"Hi." you greeted him calmly, offering a handshake which he accepted with a smile, "Y/N here. Nice meeting you Hongjoong."

"Likewise. Thank you for entertaining my request." he replied, short but enthusiastic nonetheless.

Still, the awkward air is suffocating you and thank god the coffee and pastries can provide you some distraction because you truly cannot do this without going crazy.

Whatever confidence you had before was some kind of fallacy because you're a nervous wreck in front of this man. You're suddenly hit by the realization that this is the same guy that was rumored to have a crush on you and now you're sitting in this coffee shop with him, alone.

If someone from your university sees you two, that will surely cause a ruckus and your friends will probably bombard you with questions.

"Thank you for this, by the way." Hongjoong speaks up and it brings you back to reality, this time, you took a moment to take him in.

He really is fashionable, you'll give him that. His previously pink hair had turned into burgundy, he pairs his denims with leather better than anybody, and his color scheme for today is on point.

"You're most certainly welcome, I-"

"Listen, I know you know the rumors."

He cuts you off, rude. But he's getting straightforward now, nice.

Then you held a breath, is he actually confessing? If he did, how should you react? How should you answer?

You gulped, your palms getting sweaty and you couldn't help the tiny bit of excitement that coursed through your veins.

Your first ever confession after your dark, thunderous days of romance.

"Yes, I heard about it." you answered truthfully, giving him a small smile which he purposely avoided. This baffled you, shouldn't he be happy that you're giving him the time of your day?

"I'm sorry for the inconvenience but my friends are idiots. It's not you that I like." he admits, biting his lower lip and cautiously peers over your confused form.

You almost sputtered your coffee out, the sweetness of your iced hazelnut compensates well to the bitterness that was starting to spread out.

You faked a cough, sporting a feigned understanding countenance before asking for more elaboration, "If not me, then who is?"

He beams at you giddily and his answer almost made you want to leave.. almost.

"It's your friend, the cute one that you always help out during 21st Century Literature, Sakura." 

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

taglist:

@hyuckilstan @gwenchwana @minkiflwr @yeosangsbiceps @charreddonuts @justyoonsworld @hwadump @marievllr-abg

[basicallyjaywalker]

For the ask game >:3 ✂️❤️

🎨 I know you have OC’s but I know embarrassingly little for being a mutual this long. Hand them over rook :)

Edit: I forgot to say hi 😭 sorry I saw you mentioned OCs and literally just. mind blank got the zoomies started stimming forgot my manners. Anyways

Hello Oli :DDD

One thing I would change: I mean. I would rewrite a lot of the series but mainly I would wanna give Nya a more prominent and starring role early on. Let her have more Samurai X moments and quit putting her on the sidelines while the boys do things!!

Favorite ship? Canonically Pixane ngl. I love Jaya but Pixane is soulmate coded for me I break Jaya up at the drop of a hat for funsies I feel bad breaking up Pixane.

Do I have OCs? You're goddamn right I do I have wayyyyyy too many. I'm working on character sheets for the main ones now but until those are uploaded have a taste!

Nataly Chumsworth: Master of Love, half Serpentine, menace to society. If the name did not clue you in she's Pythor's daughter and they have. A relationship.

Roxie Andrews: Master of Peace, local stressed out mom friend, former student at Marty Oppenheimer's! Old friend of Cole's and someone i imagine Nya being besties with.

Jasmine Bucket/Julien: Master of Nature (secondary: Ice), engineer at Borg Industries, made before Bolobo I swear. Zane's half sister but neither has any clue about that yet

Jackie Fei: Master of Magic (I have a whole system set up for this), chronically tired and depressed but gets to have a glow-up, chaotic good incarnate. My favoritest little blorbo ngl

Hannah Stone: Master of Music (different from sound and again swear she was pre-S4), punk rock girl, Chen's former... student is not the right term. Embodiment of that one audio: "they got their weapon, I got cheated out of my childhood)

Kyle Stone: not an elemental master but a former member of Chen's cult kinda (born into it), instead of masking his trauma with anger like Hannah he masks it with bubbliness, chronic overprotective disease. He and Hannah aren't blood related but they're also the closest thing to family each other has

Master Twyla: Master of Light, the teacher of these fucking kids, trying her best to keep the memory of the former EMs alive. Bops her on the head this bad girl can fit soooooo much trauma she's trying to overcome in her, goddamn

Ivy Crest: Master of Wind except not fully until S5 (thanks Morro), Morro's bio daughter and Ronin's adopted daughter (bet you can't guess who she prefers), expert in forgery and shit at mechanics. She and Nya form a close bond in S5 and Nya continues to try and teach her mechanical stuff (it does not work)

Luna McCallister/Garmadon: Master of Dreams, long lost Garmadon daughter who?, big fucking nerd. I have no idea when she and Lloyd realize their related but it makes their interactions at the comic store beforehand a lot funnier (for reference: she is about 2 years older than him)

Jonathan Borg: heir to Borg Industries, curious about the supernatural elements of Ninjago, knows about something he probably shouldn't. His place is not fully figured out yet but I feel like he's gonna start wanting to prove more useful after S7 to mixed results, esp bc his sister is way cooler than him

Willow Whispernight: yeah check back later chief I am reworking her ENTIRE lore lmao. Currently also connected with nature in some way and Jasmine's step-sister

Ahahaha that isn't even all of them. it's been over a decade I am soooo normal. I do not have *checks notes* approximately 20 OCs, named and unnamed, with various places in stories and development

[writers-ex]

Yuna x you theme park date, fluff prompt/idea

i literally love you lily this is so soft <3 let's try a fall carnival bc its fall and i'm pretty sure there are mini carnivals out there where people make cute memories from uwu enjoy~

if you had one goal it would be to win your girlfriend a stuffed animal at the carnival the one she always talked about and pointed at everytime you would passby. after saving some money you eagerly countdown the days until it opened and you both had a free day. "don't we look like the cutest girlfriends ever~ i can't wait to show you off this time button." (shit i'm soft for this nickname now T_T) rolling your eyes you let yuna drag you inside the fall themed event. "what should we do first? get some pumpkin pie, play in the bumper cars, go on the ferris wheel-" putting a finger to her lips you shake your head and smile.

"nope! i'm going to do the thing i've always watned to do for you~" cupping her face you place a light peck on her lips before drawing her attention to the infamous game yuna's eyes widen as she looks at you.

"button…you're-you're going to get it finally? my dream teddy? are you serious? is that why you've been practicing your pitching skills with ryujin unnie all this time?" nodding yuna pecks your lips back and smiles. "you know…even if you don't get it its fine i'll always love you…just a tad a less." in a teasing voice she escapes your grip and rushes over to the stall. following after her you pay the worker for some balls and warm up your hands. taking a look at your excited girlfriend you hope and wish that all those weeks of practice would be worth it to see her beaming with pride. closing your eyes you take a deep breath, aim for the already rigged tin cans and throw the ball with all your might…

"…kill me…please yuna just do it, i'm tired of living."

"button it's just a teddy bear. it's not worth all of your savings, i could buy the bear off amazon or something-"

"nooooo i wanted to be the one to win and hand it to you, i'm your girlfriend and i had one job-" cupping your face in her hands she makes you look at her straight in the eye with a serious look.

"button, listen to the words that ar going to come out of my mouth right now- i didn't fall in love with your pitching skills i fell for the annoyingly stubborn girl with the pretty eyes that can match my stubborness and keep me in check." blinking you take a look into her geunine eyes and feel a smile slowly grow on your face. "so stop being so negative and lets go eat some candy apples and crash your stress away with some bumper cars ok?" giving her a small nod yuna's serious face turns upside down, taking your hand she starts dragging you toward the food booths and together

enjoying your time together you feed each other candy apples and enjoy a very sweet kiss while waiting in line for the bumper cars. yuna shows you no mercy as you crash multiple times against each other with you almost losing your phone as she literally rear ends you while you try to record her having a good time to upload to SNS. taking a bathroom break yuna runs off leaving you alone for a few minutes, looking around the fairly crowded carnival you spot the same booth from before and feeling the last of your funds in you pocket. debating you decide to give it one last try and either the worker was showing you pity from spending an hour there earlier or you got some ryujin like strength but you manage to knock out all the tins and win the prize your girlfriend wanted. beaming with joy you quickly rush back to where you had left her and hide the toy behind your back the best you could.

"hey button i-" pausing her steps she sees some fur stick out from behind you. "um…what is-OMG BUTTON YOU DIDN'T!!!" covering her mouth yuna squeals as you reveal the stuffed teddy and hold it out for her.

"i did!! yuna my love, my angel, my spoiled princess i got you the teddy! who's the best-umph!" unable to finish your sentence yuna engufls both you and the toy in a big hug and messy lip lock laughing the whole time. pulling away you hold her waist as she hugs the bear.

"button oh my gosh you're amazing!! you're the best girlfriend ever~ this day just got 3000% times more better!! i love you so much right now!" kissing your lips once more her squeals get louder drawing the attention of the crowd around you. too excited to care you spin her around smiling.

"i love you even more yuna, but now….shall we find our new child a sibling~?”

“BUTTON!!!”

[forbidding-souda]

I don't know if you still do all d2 girls, but I you do, maybe all d2 girls with an S/O that wears a full face mask (like forehead to jaw) because of facial scars?

SDR2 girls with a S/O who wears a mask because of facial scars

i'm addicted to chiropractically adjusting my own body it's so bad

i was waiting in a video game rank waiting room while writing this and i looked down and I had been in the waiting room for 21 minutes.

fingerspelling nanami is so fun

you can tell how long this took me to write bc of the random unrelated thoughts i've written up there lmfao ^

currently listening: lips like sugar by echo & the bunnymen

playlist: for my second book

- Mod Souda

Mahiru Koizumi

❤ It makes seeing your smile even more precious to her. She wishes she could see your face more, but it's not like it bothers her or anything. Just, in reference to photographing people being like her 'love language' - seeing your face would make it easier to portray you in her work! She does take pictures of you sometimes, and when she uploads them her audience just falls in love with you uniqueness. They all find such a beauty in the fact that you wear a mask. In the art world, this is ground-breaking, and inspirational.

"Look, you're so popular now." She teases as she leans against your shoulder, showing you the reviews she's gotten on her recent portfolio. "They like you a lot."

"Oh," you nod. "That's good."

"Isn't it, though?"

You get a closer look at the photos - she hadn't shown you the results when she took them. Your mask really does make you look like a treasure. She perfectly captures your aura, and somehow also capturing her love for you.

❤ You are very recognizable in public as that-person-in-the-art.

❤ ^ Whether that's a good or bad thing - you decide.

❤ She always keeps good eye contact. Sometimes she forgets that it's a mask and not your actual face. She's so used to it.

.

Sonia Nevermind

❤ She sees it as a plus sometimes. If you are wearing a mask then she doesn't have to worry about being too affectionate in public - PDA messing with her reputation. In a royalty sense, you wearing a mask can just be an easier way to hide your face from a crowd, similar to modesty and veneration. She absolutely loves unique things. You wearing a mask would be one of them. She never asks you what your face looks like - she has also never directly asked you why you wear it. She just accepted it as something you do.

She shows you a bunch of fabric testers, putting them up to your body before nodding to herself and writing things down. You can see her brain working and it's very pleasing. Still, the close attention she's paying to your body is a bit nerve-wracking.

"These colors," she holds up a handful. "Are the colors I usually wear to events."

She puts a few of them down. "And these remaining ones are the ones that look good with your mask."

You lean forward. "And?"

"If we are going to match then I got to find a color that looks good on you, too." She smiles.

❤ Pressing soft kisses onto the forehead of the mask.

❤ She stands so close to you all the time that your mask starts to smell like her. Her and her lipgloss.

❤ ^ Sticky... annoying to clean off lipgloss.

❤ But the kisses are very nice so win some lose some yolo.

.

Hiyoko Saionji

❤ Is incredibly in love with your aura. It draws her in - and she has so many reactions to the mask you wear. At first, she wonders if it's because you have low self esteem. For a solid second she begins to get annoyed - what, you get to wear a mask and nobody else does? All of this dissipates when she learns that it's because of facial scarring, and she very quickly accepts the mask. Plus, it's a bit fun, she can draw on it and put stickers all over it.

❤ Will probably convince you to wear something like an oni mask or a kitsune mask. She loves her culture, is all.

❤ Okay but there's no way you're going to have any serious-looking masks after she gets her hands on them.

❤ She literally will not listen to anything you say about "don't mess with my-" she don't care!

❤ If her face had scars then she'd probably wear a mask all the time too so she literally can't say anything about it.

.

Peko Pekoyama

❤ She thinks it's insanely beautiful. Your mask is a lovely part of you - one that she both envies and adores. There's something appealing about being so mysterious. And with that mystery comes the sense of something 'unknown'. Not knowing something makes it interesting: she thinks you are interesting, that's why she was able to talk to you more clear than she could her classmates. She would have never put so much effort into befriending somebody she deemed boring.

The sound of her rapping against your mask catches you off guard. She pulls her hand away as if you had shocked her.

You lean back. "What was that for?"

"It wasn't for anything," she says. "I was testing how hard the material is."

"Why?"

In a frightening way, she doesn't answer, instead turning her head away from you and avoiding your attention altogether.

❤ In reference to in-canon events, I imagine in the killing game the idea of her pretending to be Sparkling Justice would have been inspired by you: the mask wearing.

❤ She likes analyzing them when you take them off - what do they feel like?

❤ I don't think Fuyuhiko would say anything because he respects Peko but if he does she is going to give him the ugliest mug ever.

.

Ibuki Mioda

❤ She wants you to feel less like an outcast. She'll start wearing a mask around, too. She might even make it apart of 'her thing' - like on stage, she will have a masked pulled to the side, resting around her ear area, and have it as a part of her costuming. It might become a trend - other people wearing them in public too. You'd get way less stares and it would be partially more normalized. Whether you appreciate this or not is dealer's choice.

❤ Sometimes on her setlists she'll doodle you and your mask.

❤ (Also I'd imagine her wearing one that's identical to yours).

❤ She might be another person that would try to decorate it - adding stickers or a mustache or eyeliner.

❤ Around the house, if she notices you aren't wearing it, she'll cover her eyes and start screaming.

.

Akane Owari

❤ Thinks it's incredibly badass. It's like those operas with the magnificent costuming - that's how you remind her. She will cup the sides of your face and pat your head whenever she sees you. The mask doesn't stop her from being overly affectionate with your face. She'll still kiss your cheeks and press her nose against you and lean her forehead against yours. Sometimes she'll even lick your mask, making you lean away in disgust (this motivates her to do it more).

❤ Really wishes she can see you eat with her but you turning your back and shortly lifting the mask is good enough - at least she gets your company!!

❤ She's still going to share food that she's eating with you.

❤ (Maybe try to sneak a peak of your lips - just for her imagination).

❤ Out of all of the girls, she'd be the one that would try to slyly see your face.

❤ Completely off topic but because your mask covers your vision a bit she is going to take this opportunity to jumpscare you.

.

Mikan Tsumiki

❤ She sees people with facial coverings all the time. She's completely used to it, and she would be able to give you specific medical masks as well as other medical things you might need, depending on how recent the scars are. She has never asked about your actual face - never asked to see it nor what it looks like. There's no surprise there. If you're comfortable, then she is comfortable. And she's extremely happy that you found something that makes you feel safe, that's all that matters to her.

❤ I think when you shower she will sneak it away and put it on to smell you.

❤ She'll probably clean them for you - I feel like she has a lot of experience and knowledge about that.

❤ She is the most supportive and the most accepting out of everyone in the planet - being with a health professional can help you settle anxieties about whether or not your partner will support you.

❤ If she does see your face, whether on accident, like her walking into the bedroom while you're changing, she will act as if nothing is amiss and continue on without commenting on it.

.

Chiaki Nanami

❤ I doubt she even notices the mask. Through her bad eye contact and constant gaming, she would take a second to realize that it's actually not your face. She would hardly have a reaction. When she realizes she is just like, okay cool, and then continue gaming. Even as the two of you get closer and more romantic it has never been something she'd consider unusual or uncomfortable. The mask is always room-temperature, and it doesn't freeze her lips when she kisses it, it's satisfying.

❤ Honestly you can just walk without your mask near her and she'd probably not notice anyway.

❤ The mask makes you look extra appealing when you're laying in her thighs. She likes the way your eyes look through the holes.

❤ She doesn't kiss the mask nor ever touch it - she doesn't know if it would make you uncomfortable, and she's never bold enough to ask.

❤ She'll just hold your hand or wrap her arms around your bicep.

[theres-an-impulstor-among-us]

Hello! Your answer to that last request absolutely ruined me (in the best way possible)

If you'd like to leave it completely ambiguous that's fine, but I was wondering about an Impulse POV of what goes through his mind when he wakes up and sees Tango? Depending on whether the game ends immediately after that, whether him and Brody have to do something extra to end the game, or if you want to go full bad ending and have the game carry on in that broken state forever.... It could be very different each way, but I'd certainly love to read that aftermath if you would enjoy writing it (because obviously I'm not in enough pain already :D /s)

this is a sequel to this one :D very glad that two of my favourite requesters liked it enough to ask for a follow up!

I also love my Patented Vaunna Uncertain Endings (as Shade put it lol) bc it leads to at least one person yelling at me and at least one follow-up request demanding to know what happens (/pos ofc i love all you guys’ requests)

also yes i’m so sorry Raven i only just realised i wasnt following you asdfghjkl i thought i already was

…

Impulse opens his eyes. Letting out a groan, he sluggishly pushes himself into a sitting position. His head feels like it’s being clamped in a vice, but he has enough wits to register the scene in front of him.

Tango is lying in a pool of blood just a foot away from him, arm outstretched towards him as if trying to reach him.

He can’t stop staring at his best friend’s body. Tango is clearly dead, and Impulse remembers causing it. So why hasn’t the game ended? It should have ended when Brody killed Endless, but it didn’t. Now the only two people left on the ship are the two imposters. There’s literally nothing else that can be done to end the game, except…

Impulse glances down at Tango’s tablet, then at the upload panel. At this point, he’ll do anything to end this game, even if it means losing.

So he picks up Tango’s tablet, ignoring the almost painful tingle shooting through his hand. The game’s code is uncomfortable with him picking up a crewmate’s tablet. And even though he can’t see the screen, he knows what the last task is. So he hopes that the game will let him complete it. There shouldn’t be any protocols in place to stop this; after all, when would an imposter EVER want to do a crewmate’s task?

“What are you-?” comes Brody’s voice suddenly.

Impulse turns to find Brody freezing at the sight of Tango’s body.

“We’re the only two left,” Impulse confirms. “We gotta finish the last task, even if it means we lose. Otherwise we might be trapped here forever.”

Brody slowly nods. He and Impulse are in an odd state; the imposter bloodlust is slowly starting to wear off, leaving him with an uncomfortable mixture of satisfaction and horror at the sight of his old friend’s dead body.

“I think I might throw up,” he groans, turning away and doubling over, hands pressed to his stomach.

Impulse just keeps going with the task, his heart starting to beat faster. He hopes this will work. If it doesn’t…

...he can’t think about that.

As the upload finishes, he squeezes his eyes shut and holds his breath.

He feels something shift around him…

…and when he opens his eyes, he finds himself back in the lobby.

But only one other person is there with him.

Impulse and Brody slowly look around the room, registering their situation, before simultaneously meeting each other’s gaze.

“This is really bad,” says Brody after a moment, stating aloud what they’re both thinking.

Impulse nods, trying and failing to suppress the feeling of cold terror rapidly growing in his stomach. “Y-Yeah. Where are our friends and why aren’t they here?”

Recalling Etho teaching him how to access the code, Brody pulls up the admin screen. Impulse anxiously watches him tap away at it.

“Is it possible to go back to that exact game?” he asks hesitantly.

“I think so. Gimme a sec.”

After a tense few minutes, an open doorway appears in the side of the lobby. Through it, Impulse can see the Skeld cafeteria.

“I’ve altered your code slightly so you should be able to see and hear ghosts,” Brody says. “Go see if you can find out where our friends are. I’ll stay here and make sure you don’t get trapped there.”

Impulse takes a deep breath. “Okay.”

“Good luck, my friend.”

“I’m gonna need it.”

Impulse carefully steps through the door, half expecting it to vanish behind him. But to his relief, it doesn’t.

Where the heck is he supposed to start?

After a moment, Impulse goes into admin. But the admin table tells him nothing except his own location. Next, he rushes over to security. Again, however, the cameras yield nothing useful.

Time for Plan C.

“SKIIIIIIIIIZZ!” Impulse shrieks, running madly through the hallways. “TANGOOOO! ETHOOOOOOOOOO!”

For a worrying minute or so, there’s no replies at all.

Then…

“Impulse!”

He skids to a halt in the hallway between weapons and shields, his head automatically snapping round to face the direction he heard the voice yell his name from.

That’s when he sees two ghosts flying towards him from navigation. “Tango! Etho!”

“Impulse, you can see us?!” yelps Tango. “And hear us?!”

Impulse nods. “Yeah! Oh my gosh, a-are you two okay? I’m so sorry!”

“This isn’t your fault, Impulse,” Etho says firmly. “You were just playing the game. And don’t worry, I’ve managed to save everyone else.”

“What?” Impulse’s heart skips a beat. “How?”

“I was able to access their code and send them back to their respective servers. Skizzle, Joker, Astro, Mrs Tango, Endless, and Evil are all safe.”

“Oh, thank God,” breathes Impulse. “What about you two?”

“I couldn’t manage to access Hermitcraft’s code,” Etho responds. “So I couldn’t send us back there. I think it’s something to do with the firewalls X put up a few years ago.”

“Damnit. What’s going on, Etho? Why’re there so many glitches?”

“I don’t know. But if we get out of this alive, we should definitely give this game a break for a while until it’s fixed.”

“I’ll second that,” Tango mutters. “But wait, how did you get here?”

“Brody managed to open a door here from the lobby. Oh, wait! Maybe you can come through it with me!”

He takes the ghosts to the cafeteria, where the doorway to the lobby is still shimmering.

“Brody, I found Tango and Etho,” Impulse reports to his friend. “Everyone else is safe. Can they come through the doorway?”

Brody hesitates. “They should be able to. Come through first, quickly.”

Impulse goes through the door again and turns back to face his friends.

“Will it be safe for us to come through in ghost form?” Tango asks nervously.

“Ah…” Brody grimaces. “It should be fine.”

Tango is not encouraged by his friend’s tone. “Are you sure?”

“I’m not,” admits Brody. “The likelihood that the game will either glitch or not let you through and delete you forever is worryingly high, but… I think this is the only way. If we don’t give it a go, you’ll be stuck in this weird purgatory forever.”

Tango shoots a glance at Etho, who’s gazing at the doorway anxiously, and makes a quick decision. “I’ll try it first. Then you’ll know if it’s safe for Etho or not.”

“What?” Etho glances sharply at him. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah. 100%. I’m terrified outta my mind right now, but there’s no way I’m watching you go through that thing and disappear forever. No way in hell.”

Not daring to meet Etho’s eyes, Tango turns to the doorway and takes a deep breath.

“Tango, wait.”

Tango pauses and turns back to his friend. “Yeah?”

After a moment, Etho grabs him in a hug. “If we never see each other again, I want you to know that I’ve cherished every second with you and I’m honoured to call you my friend.”

Tango blinks, a lump rising in his throat. “D-Don’t. You’re gonna make me cry.” But he hugs his friend back. “I love you, buddy.”

Finally, he releases Etho and turns to look at Impulse through the doorway. Their gazes meet and Tango sees his own fear reflected in Impulse’s eyes.

“See you on the other side,” he says, his voice cracking audibly. “One way or another.”

With that, he steps through the doorway.

[deathbypixelz]

🖍☕🎼 for artist asks! :D

🖍 - When did you start drawing? Do you remember?

I started VERY young, the earliest I can remember is in first grade or maybe even kindergarten. Every single piece of paper my teachers handed me, they’d get back covered in doodles. I didn’t start seriously trying to improve my skills until just before the pandemic, though. I got hyperfixated on Gorillaz and seeing Jamie Hewlett’s art inspired me so much I just… dove back in headfirst, after taking a break from art for a few years before that.

☕️ - Do you do warmup sketches before drawing? (Bonus: do you have any to share?)

No, I usually don't, but I know it’ll help me a lot so I’ve been trying to get into the habit. Side note, but it turns out the concept of “warmup writing” applies too! I have a million notes in my phone of random chunks of dialogue and stuff, and I always find it much easier to work on my main WIP after doing those, even if the dialogue isn’t part of that story. Back to drawing though, here’s some of the few warmup drawings I've done (not calling them sketches bc a lot of the time I like to refine them more than is necessary lol):

(all the characters in the first one, left to right: Tyalagosa (dragon/true form), Tyalagosa (humanoid/high elf form + horns), Cedryn, Nora (alpha design, still working on her), Sairann)

You may have noticed a lack of construction lines. That's because I am insane and also self-taught, so I never really learned to use construction lines, which is another thing I'm trying to change. The most you'll see out of me right now is a line for where limbs should go and maybe a head circle.

🎼 - Your favorite music to draw to right now?

Lots of lofi these days. A personal favorite is Breathing Break by Sofasound from the League of Legends Sessions: Vi album, although I really like most of the songs from that album. I’ll change music to reflect the mood of what I’m drawing if I feel like it, but lately I’ve been gravitating towards calmer stuff regardless of what I’m drawing. Either that, or I'll pull up a video essay (or just a long video) on my laptop to listen to while I draw on Procreate. Favorites include A Brief History of Homestuck from Sarah Z and the youtube upload of RTGame's Bugsnax playthrough. I've rewatched both of those so many times lmao

[stargazer-balladeer]

Crush [Pokémon]

[Steven Stone x Female! Reader]

Inspired by: Crush - David Archuleta

Note: I decided to upload my works from both Quotev and Wattpad here. Hope ya’ll don’t mind :) And I hope ya’ll enjoy this (bc Steven Stone is my husband -///w///-)

Warning: none

[Y/N] groaned as she entered her apartment with exhaustion written in her face, it was a tiring day for the young lady. Constantly getting told to do this and that and this and that, constantly running around to do some errands for her stupid boss and getting told off for not doing her job right. It's just not her day today. She sighed as she removes her shoes and leaves it on the welcoming mat near her door, as she groggily stomped her way in her apartment. It was a relatively small apartment but a shelter nonetheless. It has a kitchen, dining table, living room, bathroom and bedroom. And it fits with her daily salary so win-win. 

[Y/N] plopped down on her [F/C] couch as she laid down on one of the cushions, face plat on it. And then she screamed at it, getting rid of her frustration easily. Then she hears her PokeNav vibrating on her bag. She looks up to look at the time, only to see it's quarter to midnight already. She groaned once again. "Who the hell is calling me this late?!" Catty, Delcatty, purred as she jump to sit with her master. "Hey Catty." [Y/N] greeted while petting Catty on the head, which made the cat-like Pokemon purr more. With one hand, she rummaged her bag for her PokeNav and once found, pulled it out. She didn't bother to check her caller's ID as she pressed the green button and put it on her ear. 

"Hello, who is this so I'll know who to murder tomorrow." "That's one way to say hello." [Y/N] jumped when she heard a familiar laughter coming from the PokeNav, and feeling her heart jumping from her chest. "S-Steven?! H-Hey!" [Y/N] laughed weakly, now embarrassed that she told her childhood friend that. "Hey to you too, [N/N]." 

[Y/N] and Steven were childhood friends, having met accidentally on Meteor Falls. They were on a Journey at that time, and coincidentally bumped into each other. Catty was still a Skitty back then, and wanting to evolve it must've been the reason why [Y/N] was there in the first place, looking for a Moon Stone. Ever since then, they've been close friends. You can say they were rivals, though [Y/N] never participated in the League challenge. Now that Steven was the current Champion of Hoenn and [Y/N] starting to work, they've hardly talk anymore. So [Y/N] was surprised to have received a call from Steven so late in the night where they're supposed to be sleeping.

"What's up? Why'dya call this late?" [Y/N] asked as she brings her knees up and hug them with one arm, while the other held her PokeNav to her ear. Catty curled up beside her and fell asleep. She hears Steven humming on the other side. "I don't really know. I just have this sudden urge to hear your voice." [Y/N] feels her face heating up from Steven's blunt statement. If her heart was beating rapidly awhile ago, now it's beating thrice as much than normal that [Y/N] thought it's gonna burst out of her chest.

"W-Wha--?" "Besides.. we haven't been talking to each other for a while now... and.. I just miss your company." "I swear Steven if your doing this purposely, I'll go there and kill you myself" [Y/N] took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down, before smiling. "I also miss talking with you, Steven." The other line went silent, which worried [Y/N], thinking she must've said something wrong. What she doesn't know is that Steven was dying of heart attack from the other side. "H-Hello..? Steven? You still there?" Steven snapped out of trance as he hears [Y/N]'s voice from his PokeNav. He shakily took a deep breath before answering his crus-- friend.

"Sorry. I thought I saw something." Steven lied while staring at the view from the window of his office. He's been doing paperwork for a while now, and he needed a break. Then he remembered [Y/N] and decided to call her, and suddenly remembering that its quarter to midnight when he click her number. He actually prayed to Arceus that [Y/N] was still awake or else he might feel the wrath of the woman again. He learned his lesson, he swear, he just forgot from the fatigue building inside of him. "Oooooh. Is it a ghost?" Steven chuckled as he shake his head. "Nah. I'm just seeing things."

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

"You did what?" [Y/N] laughed along with Steven as he told her a story between what happened to the dinner of the Elite 4. It turns out it became eventful as Steven watches it unfold while eating his food. It started out simple and fine, no chaos. But Sydney and Phoebe started fighting about something and started throwing food at one another, but it seems like one hit Glacia. And the fight started. Drake also joined in as food were thrown everywhere. "I'm serious! I was merely enjoying my food while they fight." Steven laughed as [Y/N] giggle.

Soon it became silent for the two of them, neither speaking. You can even hear the background noises. Steven took a deep breath, it’s now or never. “Say... [N/N].” Steven called with a shaky smile. [Y/N] hummed in response, letting the platinum-haired man know that he has her attention. “What if.. you have a crush on somebody.. but you don't know what to how to tell them?” Crack. That was all [Y/N] could hear. The cracking sound of her breaking heart, as she lets out a shaky laugh. 

“W-Wow! Y-You? Having a crush? What a surprise!” [Y/N] feigned surprise as she feels her eyes getting blurry. She could hear Steven laughing on the other side. “I-Is that so surprising?” [Y/N]’s [E/C] betrayed her as a tear came out and began rolling down her cheek. She swiftly wipe it as she took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. What she didn’t know however is that Steven could feel something was wrong with [Y/N]. 

“[N/N]? Are you alright?” Steven asked, worried about his friend. [Y/N] forced a smile on her face, even though Steven couldn’t see her. “I-I’m fine.” She reassured him, well, tried to atleast. Steven knew she was lying but decided to shrug it off. “Y-You just got to go with it. If that girl doesn’t like you, then she i-isn’t worth it.” [Y/N] responded to Steven’s question. “I-I gotta go. I need to sleep. Bye Steven.” [Y/N] simply said. Before Steven could protest though, she already hung up.

[Y/N] threw her PokeNav to the table in front of her and hugged her knees closer to her chest, bursting into tears while doing so. “I-I should be happy! W-Why the hell am I crying for?” She whined as she used her sleeve to wipe away the tears overflowing from her eyes. But as she wipe them, more tears came. Catty woke up from [Y/N]’s cries as she puts her paws on her thighs and whined her name to get her masters attention. [Y/N] looks at her with a pained look on her face, which Catty returns with a concerned face. 

“O-Oh Catty. I’m a horrible person..” [Y/N] trailed off as she hiccups and sniff. Catty whined her name as she tries to comfort [Y/N] the best she could. 

Meanwhile with Steven. Steven stared at his PokeNav, which was beeping, signalling that his friend hang up on him. He frowned deeply as corncern and worry overtook his face, his fatigue long gone now. “What happened to you, [N/N]?” Steven whispered as he stuffed his PokeNav into his pockets and standing up. He grabbed his jacket from the rolling chair and put it on. The only thing in his mind is [Y/N].

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

“[N/N]? Are you in there? It’s me, Steven! Open up!” 

[Y/N] groaned as she blocks out the noise, not wanting anyone in her apartment just yet. It seemed like [Y/N] fell asleep while crying. Steven, who was outside of her door, frowned when he didn't hear anyone inside the apartment. He's been here for quite a while now, constantly knocking and calling for her. One neighbor opened their door to see what was the noise all about, which Steven sheepishly explained. Steven tapped his foot repeatedly on the concrete floor beneath him while eyeing the door. "[N/N]! Open the door!" Steven called for the sixth time now, getting annoyed. 

When [Y/N] still didn't open her door, he sighed, bringing his hand to his forehead. "I'm so sorry, [N/N] for doing this but since your not opening your door.. I have no choice." Steven mumbled as he brought out a familiar looking red-and-white capsule from his pocket. He pressed the button on the middle and it became the size of a tennis ball. "Come on out, Metagross." Steven called as he threw the Pokeball upward and out came the familiar Steel-type Pokemon. It made a noise, similar to a wondering sound. Probably curious why its been let out. Steven smiled apologetically at it.

"Sorry to disturb you, Metagross. But do you mind using Psychic to open the door? [N/N]'s not answering the door, I'm afraid." Steven explained to the Steel-type Pokemon. "This is actually invasion of privacy but it must be done." Steven mentally gulped as Metagross obeyed Steven and started using Psychic on [Y/N]'s door. After a few minutes, it opened. This made Steven grin. He turned to Metagross. "Thank you very much, Metagross. Have some rest." After he said that, he returned Metagross to its Pokeball. Steven put the Pokeball back to his pocket as he entered [Y/N]'s apartment.

"[N/N]? Sorry to intrude but you weren't answering so I had Metagross to use Psychic on your door.. Hope you don't mind." "OF COURSE I WOULD MIND! THIS IS AN INVASION OF PRIVACY STEVEN!!" [Y/N] mentally screamed when she heard footsteps coming near. [Y/N] pretended to sleep as she felt Steven's gaze on her. Steven sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair. Steven stared at her sleeping face, now noticing dark bags under her eyes. He frowned at this as he crouch down to level her face. He lifts his hand to run his thumb underneath her eyes, which made her (accidentally) flinch. Steven quickly drew his hand, afraid that he might've woken her up. But he saw she's still sleeping, he sighed in relief, still not noticing that she's awake the entire time. 

Steven stared at her face with a deep thinking face as he watch her breath, not creepy at all (-_-). He sighed as he ran his hand over his hair once again before settling on the back of his neck. "Why did you react like that over the phone?" Steven mumbled, whether he's really asking her or talking to himself, [Y/N] doesn't know. She just remain sleeping. Catty woke up when Steven entered, she went away to give her master and Steven alone time (I swear Delcatty is more aware of their situation--). He took a deep breath. "Why did you react when I asked you about me liking someone?" 

[Y/N] was internally panicking in her mind, and trying to calm her still beating heart. BUT her nose pick up something that it made her sneeze. This made Steven jump in surprise, while [Y/N] is more embarrassed than ever. "WHY DID YOU BETRAY ME NOSE?! YOUR MY PARTNER! YOUR A PART OF ME FOR ARCEUS' SAKE!!" She then heard Steven chuckle. "Cute." Steven whispered, which made [Y/N] open her eyes. "What?"

Now this made Steven jump in surprise, he practically stood up while staring at [Y/N], with wide-eyed and mouth agape. "Y-Y-You're--?!" [Y/N] sweatdropped as she sheepishly laughed. She made a surprise motion with her hands. "Surprise!" She announced weakly. Steven stared at her before heating up. "D-Did you h-hear what I s-said?!" [Y/N] looks away, which is enough for Steven to realize that she was aWAKE THE ENTIRE TIME. "W-W-WHY DIDN'T YOU SAY ANYTHING?" Steven couldn't help screaming while asking, more embarrassed than her. [Y/N] sheepishly laughed. "I..."

Steven sighed as he took a deep breath, effectively calming himself down. He stared at [Y/N]'s [E/C] eyes before looking away. Both of them were covered in silence as neither talked, probably too embarrassed at this point. Steven broke the silence with a cough, whether to get her attention or clearing his throat, [Y/N] doesn't know. But it made her snap to the flustered Stone. She quirk her brow at his odd behavior, almost like a lovesick puppy.

"Y-You said over the phone that I should... be front about my feelings.. c-correct?" Steven nervously said as [Y/N] tilted her head before hesitantly nodding her head. Her mind conjuring all kind of scenarios, none of them with Steven returning her feelings though. He took a deep breath before weakly smiling at her. "T-Then.. would you like to b-be my date for the upcoming Champion's ball?" "Oh? Sureee.... wait... date?!" [Y/N] screamed the last part as Steven sheepishly nodded his head.

[Y/N] froze, blinking once, twice, thrice.. Before gasping, face overheating and staring at Steven with a shock expression on her face. This action made Steven think that she doesn't return his feelings, as he smiled sadly. "I-It's okay if you don't agree though.. I understand.." Steven trailed off while looking away from her. [Y/N] stared at him, her mind unable to understand his words yet. When her mind finally caught up, her eyes became blurry as tears started pouring out of them. 

Steven's head snapped to her when he heard her sniffle, only finding her in a crying mess. Did his confession be THAT bad?! Steven quickly went to her side and gather her form in his arms. He rubbed her back in a soothing matter as he comfort her. "Are you alright, [N/N]?" [Y/N] then started laughing in delight, which made Steven confused. "Actually, better question is, is your mind okay?" Steven rephrased, now fearing his friend's sanity. She shook her head as she drew back from Steven's warm hug. She has a big smile on her face and affection and adoration dancing in her eyes. Steven could feel his heart beating more rapidly than before, and feels his face heating up. "Of course I'll go with you to the ball, Steven." She laughed. This made Steven hug her with a huge smile also present in his face, laughing alongside her. "Oh Arceus! You don't know how my heart stopped at that moment." [Y/N] hugged him back as her laughter became giggles, before stopping entirely.

"I-I-I thought.. you liked.. May." [Y/N] asked, now remembering why she thought Steven didn't like her. Steven furrowed his brows. "May? She has a crush on Brendan though.." Steven stated, remembering the cheery brunette girl. [Y/N] was now embarrassed, not realizing that the cute brunette girl has a crush on the Gym Leader's son. "Ah.. is that so.." 

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

"Who knew that this started with a crush.." [Y/N] laughed as she and Steven enjoyed the view from Mossdeep Space Station, watching a meteor shower together. It's been a 2 years since they've started dating, and became official. Now, [Y/N] was living with Steven in Mossdeep and Steven now being the Devon Corporations new president, after his father retired due to old age. Wallace managed to beat Steven, effectively gaining the title of the new Champion. Steven would admit that he was saddened at the fact that he wouldn't be a Champion anymore, but he was glad that Wallace beat him though. It means spending more time with his precious girlfriend. Steven laughed alongside [Y/N] as she cuddled beside him.

"We were like teenagers in love." Steven chuckled, [Y/N] laughed even more at what he said. After their laughter died down, plastered on their face was a content look with a smile. "Hey.. do you mind getting off me for a second?" [Y/N] pouted at this as she complied and move away from Steven. "I'm not heavy!" "Says who?" Steven snickered as [Y/N] hit his arm while glaring at him and huffing, returning her gaze at the sky. Now that she's distracted, Steven quickly grabs the velvet box from his coat. It's now or never after all..

[x] Main Page || [x] Pokemon RSE, Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire Page

[embrassemoi]

(1/8) You're really out there publising new chapters in such a short amount of time and each chapter is better than the last one!   I'm seriously in awe of your talent! It's so difficult to pick a favorite chapter but this one might be one of my favorites. First of all, I loved what you did with the chapter title, whiskers literally taking padfoot's place in the order they were named on the map. It was sirius' worst fear and it happened. Also Remus and mc's chemistry is so great. I'm a big fan

I've had so much inspiration and free time this past week! and I'm going to start getting really busy this upcoming fall so I want to try and upload as much as possible!

(2/8) of how naturally their friendship and relationship grows and how different their dynamic is compared to mc and sirius. The way she was braiding his hair in common room and the way map practically flirts with her. Their little moment in the halloween party was so great as well, mc (who is dressed up as mcgonagall) drunkly playing with remus' (who is dressed up as FILCH) is probably one of my favorite moments in the sbtmas. Speaking of the costumes, I wish I was a good artist so I could draw

yeah! it's always a struggle to write two different dynamics when it comes to a love triangle because you don't want it to be:

a) the same

b) have it be unfair (although rn it's kinda unfair but hey, sirius will have a chance)

c) please both remus and Sirius stans (its been hard bc sirius stans are so mad with me rn LMFAO its kinda hilarious. I'm sorryyyyy! I SAID SLOWBURN DIDNT I? I WASNT LYING)

and oh my gosh - this chapter was literally so fucking fun to write and I think that really showed in my writing this time. the map - omg - since it's technically remus' magic for his little messages, the map is unable to insult her and I think it's just so cute :)

and I think dressing up as the professors would be so fucking cool! actually, fun fact - this idea was originally supposed to be for fifth year. Sirius was supposed to be McGonagall and MC was still supposed to be a cat but I obviously flipped shit around. for seventh year - I've had their costumes all picked since I started writing and I CAN'T FUCKING WAIT TO WRITE IT MY GOD

(3/8) a fanart of them. Lily as a 20s flapper, marlene as carrie, dorcas as dorothy (it's official, dorcas is the cutest person in this entire series) and sybill as the crazy cat lady (hands down best costume)! And of course marauders as teachers. Remus as filch was son unexpected yet brilliant! I almost died when marlene started flirting with mc for a grade and james called her hot (and also mcgonagall took a photo with her, minnie and marauders era students is always so fun to read about. Can

THE FACT that you would even think of making drawing fan art is literally the most ego-filling thing ever. woah. Thank you for even just mentioning that lmfao.

also, I love Dorcas. I love her. I adore her. the version of her that I created in my head - I'm obsessed. the same goes for Lily. omg I can't forget to mention Marlene! omg I'm a mess. I love them all.

(4/8) you imagine her keeping all of those memories in a box and looking at them after most of her students from that time period die in the war.) Peter had some really good costume ideas after all. But honestly, thank you for... giving peter a personality. In most fics he's just there, only eating in the background (similar to movie!ron). But in sbtmas he's so great and has a great sense of humor (he got his hands on a pen and chose to write "evans' bitch on james' face, an icon). I feel like

okay, that hurt my feelings. I can just picture McGonagall getting teary eyed as she stares at a picture of the Marauders after the second wizarding war, wishing she could have saved her students.

(5/8) this is going to make his betrayal so much better when it eventually happens. I mean, I was genuinely disturbed when james started to talk about how sneaky he was (famous last words). I loved all of the pranks they did in this chapter as well. The exorcist music and ballpoint pens were so creative (and they gave us that adorable scene with dorcas and nifflers) and also... funny. I feel like in a way, it showed how much marauders learned from "The Prank" and matured because of it. Last year

Peter was a marauder through and through. he was just as sneaky as the others, brimming with personality and just as smart. maybe not in academics, but the fucker had strengths in other areas. It was such a pet peeve of mine when they didn't include him in the fics I used to read. idk, sbtmas is everything I guess I wanted in a fic that I didn't get 💀 (I sound a bit egotistical here. If it comes off that way, I don’t mean it to)

(6/8) their halloween prank with spiders was a bit cruel. But this time, it's somethig that would make everyone laugh and maybe a bit annoyed, but still less harmless. Everything was funny and great and honestly, while I was reading this I was laughing the entire time... until I got to the "five years" part! Now that was cruel! You really did used costumes and pranks as a distraction and hit us with the angst! One second I was laughing and the next moment I was having an existential

oh definitely and I'm happy that you caught on to the change in severity from their pranks!

(7/8) how we have no idea about what future will bring and you can never know how much time you will have with your loved ones before it's all taken away from you. But I guess that's the appeal of the marauders era, we all know about the tragic ending they will have but still want to learn about their hogwarts years. And of course the song you chose perfectly captured that. It's halloween 1976, exactly five years before lily and james' death. And they have no idea about how they only have five

(8/8) years together. James and lily was laughing along with peter! There was something so beautiful yet disturbing about the innocence they have and you captured it beautifully. I can imagine sirius, sitting by himself somewhere, thinking about how he lost his friends and not having any idea about the tragic things that'll happen to him (or how he'll try to break into hogwarts on halloween 1993 to kill one of his friends). Okay now I made myself even sadder, I'll just shut up. -🌸

aw, sirius :(. I obviously didn't add him in this chapter but while writing, I imagine him to be in Padfoot form, silently watching the fireworks. just thinking. :((((( I just made myself sad again :( I think I even wrote a small blurb of that part but I can’t remember if I deleted it. If I didn’t, I’ll totally upload it to the outtakes eventually

[squishmallow36]

Keeper of the Lost Prepositions - Sixteen

Word count: 1.8k

Tw: n/a but lmk if you want me to add anything bc I'm not sure

Taglist (lmk if you want to be added/removed!): @stellar-lune @ichor-on-my-hands @kamikothe1and0lny @nyxpixels @snowflakewolves @poppinspop @crystallinewalker @uni-seahorse-572 @tiergan-andrin-alenefar @books-over-boys @florida-llama-46 @when-wax-wings-melt @k00laidcrush @bowlcut-boyfriends @good-old-fashioned-lover-boy7 @dexter-dizznee @jamesdeangf

On Ao3 or below the cut!

    About a half-hour of trying to access the system later, Fitz decides he will be helpful and leaps over to Havenfield. 

    He’s there for another half-hour, and I still have another firewall to get past before I can access anything.

    “There’s one advantage to this taking so long,” I say, closing my eyes for a quick break. 

    Sometimes when I get too focused, I think my eyes forget to blink.

    “And that is?” Fitz asks.

    “At least we know it’s as hard for me to get in as the Neverseen, maybe even easier for me because I’ve worked with Tinker personally, so I know their tells that make it easier to bring down her security.”

     After another hour of Fitz watching over my shoulder and distracting me, feeling way closer than he actually is now that I think about it, he gets up and starts pacing.

    I can tell his confidence in my ability is rapidly deflating with each time he has to turn around to avoid a pile of stuff.

    A suspiciously Keefe-like smirk tugs at my lips as I finally break through the last barrier.

    “I’m in! Can I have the picture of Alvar, s'il te plaît?”

    I’m learning French on a human language app. It helps with my English. 

    “I’m not even going to ask,” Fitz mutters as he hands me the projection of his brother.

    I add slight tweaks to the facial recognition algorithm that I already have, trying to get it as close as possible while not having it take forever.

    “Well, someone’s typing quickly,” remarks Fitz.

    “Tinker has a randomised security check system, and if it detects that we’re in here, it’s designed to stop the feeds, then Forkle will know what we’re doing and try to talk us out of it,” I explain as quickly as I can. 

    Fitz stops pacing at that and starts watching me again.

    “Can you go back to pacing?” I request. “It helps me think.”

    “And so does blasting music. You Technopaths make no sense.”

    “I think it’s just me, and we can debate my craziness later.”

    I upload the algorithm in record time, and cover any trace that I’m in the system, disguising the Alvar one as a remnant of the human one, until you actually look closely at it. 

    I can’t do anything about that, though.

    Being out of immediate danger, I release a breath that I think I’ve been holding for almost three hours.

    “So...we’re good?” Fitz asks, noticing how much I relaxed.

    I nod, and before he can ask, I answer, “No, I don’t know how long it will take. He has to actually be in view of the camera, so if he’s dead in a ditch somewhere, we won’t be able to find him.”

    “I thought we came to the conclusion that he isn’t dead,” Fitz argues, sitting back on the bed next to me, and every cell in my body goes back on alert. 

    Why does he have to be so handsome?

    “But if he’s hiding or vanishes when he’s in view of the cameras, then it can’t see him. In three days, if we haven’t gotten a hit, I’ll hack back in and add an infrared filter so we can still see him if he’s vanished. Although, I’ll have to test that on Biana first.”

    “If you can make it portable, I will worship you for all time”

    A few seconds of uncomfortable silence followed, before Fitz asks, “How exactly does it work?”

    “So I’m thinking, and this is just a hypothesis so don’t quote me on this, that vanishers vanish by letting light pass through them, right? But they still have volume, as seen by Wraith’s floating cape. This leads me to believe that they still radiate body heat, which can be detected using an infrared camera. Humans have a whole bunch of them.”

    I find an old pair of sunglasses in one of my piles, and figure it will be a good starting point...assuming the Neverseen don’t steal either the idea or the glasses. 

    I’m always worried about the Neverseen’s Technopath. They haven’t come into play in a major way since the Lodestar Initiative, so we’re due for a tech problem.

    Unless…

    No. That doesn’t make any sense.

    But what if…

    She—that can’t be.

    Think about it.

    “What’s the problem? ‘Cause you stopped in the middle of getting parts for the thing,” Fitz interrupts.

    “My brain just decided to drop an unwanted hypothesis, but it’s crazy enough that I don’t want to worry you,” I explain.

    “Well, now I’m curious.” 

    “It’s probably nothing.”      

    “The more you argue against me, the more you’ll realise that it’s like arguing against Keefe,” he claims.

    “Except for the fact that Ro and I can blackmail him when he’s being extra stupid.”

    “Then why don’t you go get him back?”

    “You think I don’t want to? Ack. I ended a sentence in a preposition.”

    “The rest of the prepositional phrase was implied. You’re good, according to the rules of grammar. I did my homework. Now, theory time!” 

    I meet his gaze, like the complete and total idiot I am sometimes, and the plea behind his eyes—those teal eyes—can’t be denied in any way, shape, or form. 

    I sit on the bed, however dumb that decision may become in the near future.

    “I was thinking that the Neverseen’s Technopath would probably be important in an upcoming problem, because they haven’t really done anything since the Lodestar Initiative.”

    I take a breath, with a bonus of a dramatic pause.

    “But that wasn’t the most recent problem caused by tech. That was when Tinker’s null worked too well during the Celestial Festival.”

    He can probably see where I’m going with this, swearing under his breath.

    “I’m now wondering if that was intentional. She’s hiding their identity, which could be nothing or it could be that she’s playing both sides. Even Forkle doesn’t know who they are. And she has a weird anti-fire thing, and so did Brant, well, when he was pretending to be Talentless anyway. Also, the Neverseen haven’t expressed any interest in allying with the Goblins, and she’s very anti-goblin. Lovise has to stand outside when I’m there and everything.”

    He took a second to process, and when he next spoke, it was no louder than a whisper.

    “That actually makes some kind of sense. A twisted, demented kind of sense, but…” he trails off.

    Lovise calls from outside, “Don’t even think about it. Don’t. I know what you’re thinking and you need to stop.”

    From downstairs, I hear Lex yell, “OOH, DEXY’S IN TROUBLE!”

    At least, I’m pretty sure it’s Lex. It doesn’t sound like Bex and I’m almost certain that Rex has still locked himself in his room. I really should check on him, but I’ve always been a horrible liar. And not a great brother, apparently. 

    “What is she thinking you’re going to do?” Fitz asks, a hint of genuine concern in his eyes.  

    “Keep going to visit Tinker on a fortnightly basis to see if we can learn anything about the Neverseen’s plans. Assuming my insane theory is true, which it probably isn’t because why would my brain drop in an actually helpful theory like, oh, I don’t know, the Collective’s identities perhaps, or even Glimmer’s identity. That would be helpful.”

    “But you have no actual proof of your theory, so isn’t it still safe?” he asks.

    I can tell, without any indication, that there’s an angry goblin bodyguard outside. 

    “Allow me to channel Lovise for a second.” I pause, and raise my voice to Lovise’s usual high pitch.

    “I am not going to willingly let you go into a possible member of the Neverseen’s hideout alone while I stand outside for no real reason.”

    “That’s creepily accurate,” Fitz notes. 

    I clear my throat to make sure my voice isn’t mimicking Lovise anymore, I say, “And I don’t think Tinker suspects that we had this random hypothesis, so there’s no more danger than there was any other time.”

    “Just because it isn’t more dangerous than any other time doesn’t mean that it’s safe—you can’t become immune to drowning by drowning yourself a little every day,” Grizel cut in from the darkest corner of my room. 

    I don’t remember seeing her hide there, but, at this point, it’s the least of my worries.

     “And, anyway, the next required scheduled meetup is in nearly two weeks. I was there the day before yesterday, and our current schedule is every other week, even though we exchange approximately five words while we’re there.”

    “So we deal with it when we get there,” Fitz offers.

    Neither of the goblins were very pleased with that idea, but, well, at least Lovise decides it isn’t worth the fight today. It’s not like I’m going to run off today and burn down one of Neverseen’s warehouses.

    “Lovise is one hundred percent the nicest goblin bodyguard ever,” Fitz states.

    “I think Grizel’s going to be mildly offended by that,” I reply.

    “Nah. She threatens with silver pants and dancing too often.”

    “That’s only when you deserve it,” she argues.

    “Like you don’t enjoy it,” Fitz snaps.

    “Just because I enjoy watching you get all embarrassed doesn’t mean that you don’t deserve it. And for that, I’ll make sure Biana can come to your next punishment.” She smiles a tad bit evilly.

    “Oh, and Dex, if you want to come, I’ll let you know when and where,” she adds. 

    I blush, which has been happening way too often for my liking,at the thought of seeing Fitz in those sparkly silver pants.

    Grizel melts back into the shadows after that, and I finish getting parts for my infrared glasses.

    When I turn back to Fitz, he has my laptop, trying to figure out how it opens. 

    “You want to watch another human movie?” I ask, debating whether to help or to leave him adorably struggling. 

    Decisions, decisions. 

    He nods, and begs, with the cutest crease between his brows if I do say so myself, for help.

    I take it, careful not to brush his fingertips. We all saw how that worked last time. 

    I unlock the latch, and he exclaims, “What kind of sorcery is this?”

    I laugh.

    I submit my three different passwords, which I have written down somewhere around here, but at this point, there’s no point in trying to find them. 

    I open up Netflix again and, this time, I turn on a Pixar movie called Up, which was bought by Disney, so I can still claim it as my own.

    He doesn’t take away the parts for my infrared glasses, even though I could tell he wants to.

    Stupid prepositions.