#i love him for it though like gender goals for real

[nycteris-g]

Éowyn, Tolkien's views on gender roles and on war.

Although its length may suggest otherwise, this post is not an essay; my goal is to seek answers from those dissatisfied with Tolkien’s treatment of Éowyn. If you're willing to answer or simply add links to posts/papers on this, I'd greatly appreciate it.

My doubts—and believe me, they are exactly that—stem from, admittedly, too many hours spent reading "war books," both fiction and non-fiction about the Great War and WWII, particularly accounts from real soldiers, which may distort my perspective of Éowyn. My attraction to these stories has little to do with History itself and everything to do with the soldiers’ stories. And one thing they have in common is this: those who fought in the wars rarely saw their sacrifices as glorious—quite the opposite. Deaths in war are almost always portrayed as utterly senseless and unreasonable.

And Tolkien, very notably, was one of them. Now, I don’t know if he explicitly addresses this topic in any of his letters. What I do know is that, likely because of my readings, I notice—or misinterpret—the soldier in Tolkien.

I’m particularly focusing on The Children of Húrin and Túrin as an example, though I’ve traced similar themes in other characters throughout his entire legendarium.

A defining trait of Túrin is his hunger for vengeance against Morgoth. His ambition is to gather a sizable force and storm Morgoth’s fortress. Many characters (Beleg and Gwindor in particular) tell him outright how futile this ambition is. Even if he’s lucky, they argue, he will at best inflict minor losses on Morgoth’s forces, but he will never truly defeat him. Túrin stubbornly insists that any victory, no matter how small, is worthwhile: "For victory is victory, however small, nor is its worth only from what follows from it.”

Yet others, especially Gwindor, suggest that even these so-called victories serve no real purpose ("Petty victories will prove profitless at the last," says Gwindor) and may ultimately do more harm than good. Why?

At the very beginning of CoH, we glimpse Morwen’s perspective on war. She argues that those who go to battle forget the suffering of those left behind—especially when their loved ones don’t return. She tells Húrin this, and when he fails to come back to her, her life (and those of her children) becomes a living hell.

This is precisely Gwindor’s point when he tells Túrin: "You think of yourself and of your own glory, and bid us each do likewise; but we must think of others beside ourselves, for not all can fight and fall, and those we must keep from war and ruin, while we can.”

Note how Gwindor frames Túrin’s thirst for glory as selfish, in contrast with the need to protect those who cannot fight. What happens to them when nothing and no one stands between them and destruction?

This is where I perceive the soldier in Tolkien: he does not glorify Túrin’s bravery. His pursuit of battle is senseless because he cannot win the war. And if he cannot win, his death will be meaningless—and worse, it will bring greater suffering to those he seeks to protect.

Now, back to Éowyn. Does Tolkien truly dismiss her experience as a shieldmaiden, treating it as something she must be “tamed” out of? Does he believe her natural, ultimate, and rightful state is that of a traditional feminine role?

I think the answer is both yes and no.

Éowyn’s grievances are consistently dismissed by the men in her life. Honestly, I’d punch Aragorn. Of course, she does not wish to fight only for glory; she fears being caged—both in the literal sense of a conquered people facing enslavement and in the figurative sense of her role as a woman. She is not free to choose her fate, and the cage that traps her is built by the men around her.

Yet her desire for battlefield glory is one of her motivations for fighting. And my take is this: for Tolkien (as I interpret him), glory is not a genuine reason to become a soldier at all.

Faramir, the man who ultimately “tames” her, is also the one who says: "I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend."

The only true, valid reason to go to war is to protect others—our loved ones, our people, our comrades.

Éowyn’s greatest accomplishment is slaying the Witch-King, but she does so not for personal glory, but to protect her kinsman.

Of course, in the end, Eowyn goes back to the role of a care-taker — except, her exact words on her future endeavors are: “I will be a shieldmaiden no longer, nor vie with the great Riders, nor take joy only in the songs of slaying. I will be a healer, and love all things that grow and are not barren.” Healing is not the same as becoming a homemaker. In modern terms, she essentially chooses to become a doctor. While Tolkien frames healing as a feminine role, there are notable male healers in his works—Elrond, for instance. Given that Éowyn is a noblewoman living in peacetime, healing is a meaningful, self-directed path for her.

And once again, it is Faramir who “tames” her. To me, this means he helps her realize that her hunger to prove herself on the battlefield is futile—not because she is a woman, but because war itself is futile. As many soldiers have said: War is hell. It is not a proving ground for personal merit or growth. 

I deeply love both Túrin and Éowyn’s courage. And while I think Tolkien’s experience as a soldier influenced how he wrote Éowyn’s “taming,” I can’t completely dismiss how his beliefs about traditional gender roles likely played a role.

So, my question is: does my reading (which, as I’ve made clear, is deeply influenced by my non-Tolkien readings) distort and fail to fully grasp the sexism in her portrayal? I’m trying to be more critical of Tolkien’s treatment of his female characters. At the same time, I don’t want to do Éowyn a disservice by reducing her arc to "No, no, it’s not sexism. Tolkien just rejected the idea of glory through battle altogether, regardless of gender."

[bedforddanes75]

ross is such a MAN like i feel like slaps his knees and goes RIGHT when he has to leave somewhere and like. has really loud sneezes or something. he's just so Man even with the way he stands

[featguler]

Kylian!bf headcanon?

our hearts are free ────── i'm a flower, you're my bee.

♡ ────── pairing : kylian mbappé x reader ♡ ────── tags : reader's gender, ethnicity, nationality, and appearance is not specified. ♡ ────── wordcount : 513 ♡ ────── notes : i have another ky headcanon post that you can read right here!!. this is pretty short :( sorry. title and desc is from father john misty's real love baby ♡ masterlist.

This man is expensive—literally, and well, figuratively. He lives beyond comfortable, and has everything on the tips of his fingertips, including: you!

He does not like seeing you work! He will be the first to admit it! Call it his ego or whatever, but he feels as though you don’t gotta do it, you know? He doesn’t mind seeing you work, but Kylian has got probably enough money to propel you into early retirement—and he would do so happily.

Sometimes he sees you working after a long day, eyes heavy and shoulders slump, and his gentle voice, coaxing you to strip bare of your profession, would always begin.

He genuinely stresses seeing you so stressed out! You’re his baby, and he has to take care of you! But he won’t really force it upon you—while he doesn’t see the rationale behind you having to work when you have him, he understands the mindset of having to stand alone.

And he understands you. (As long as you understand that he is there for you too ♡ )

Kylian wants to get married. There are footballers who prefer not marrying— hell, there are people who prefer not marrying. But him? Nah.

He simply does not believe in not locking it down; he lets you know early into the relationship about his end goal. The matter of kids or no-kids is something that can be discussed and negotiated, but he wants to be your husband.

Boyfriend is cute the first two years, and fiance even better for the next. But he wants to call you his, in every sense possible—literally, lovingly, and legally.

And another reason why he wants that ring on your finger… he’s possessive.

He’s territorial, he’s possessive, he gets jealous easily—what the fuck! Name it whatever the fuck you want! Kylian does not like seeing you with other people—with other men.

But he keeps his cool whenever jealousy begins to run through his veins. He doesn't make a scene, he does not flip a table outside down. What he does is pout. He trusts you enough to not actually get upset, but he still lets himself the luxury of being immature by wallowing in his self-made misery.

“I’ll marry you.”

There you two are again, on the bed. He’s propped on top of you, arms clinging around your waist. You are scrolling on your phone, barely paying him any attention as your hand pats the back of his head up and down.

Kylian presses his nose to your neck.

“That sounds like a threat, Kylian.”

He scoffs hearing that. “It will be if he keeps touching you.”

You can’t even find it in yourself to be upset at how silly he is being, chuckling softly.

“He wasn’t touching me, baby.” 

“He was,” he whines quietly, still hiding away in the crook of your neck. “Once I get that ring on your fingers, he’ll know.”

“Yeah, yeah,” you kiss the top of his head, before focusing back on your phone. “Make sure to get my size right, huh? We don’t want the ring not fitting.”

[dokries]

forever

pairing: kwon soonyoung (hoshi) x gender neutral reader

genre: fluff, established relationship

word count: 851

warnings: pet names, talks of marriage (in the future!), they go to ikea and hoshi acts like a house husband

author note: OMG i actually love this hoshi so much i’m not even joking thank you eishi for requesting this!! lots of love <33

masterlist

“would you like a cup of tea, perhaps?” soonyoung holds out the teapot that was previously on display with an exaggerated bow, his eyes betraying his humour.

you sigh before giggling, taking the pot and placing it back on the counter for safe measure—you’re only at ikea to window-shop, and the two of you definitely can’t afford to pay for any accidents. “maybe we shouldn’t pick that up, okay sweetie?”

when your boyfriend pouts, you guide him to sit the bar stool by the kitchen island set up beside you. “anyway, isn’t the goal of us being here pretending to have our own house? maybe we should go somewhere else, and not just stay in the kitchen showroom.”

soonyoung immediately shakes his head, pulling you down onto the stool beside him. “no way. you said you liked this one, so we’re staying here.”

“well, i do like the light fixtures…” you sigh contently, leaning into his arm—he giggles and puts his head on top of yours—instead of trying to convince him to move to another space.

besides, you had walked around the entire ikea at this point, and it’s probably a good idea to take a small break before leaving to go home and finally rest after your boyfriend dragging you everywhere he could.

after a few minutes of peace, your boyfriend decides to get up unexpectedly, and he grabs a towel to hang over his shoulder before he walks over to the sink, pretending to turn it on by imitating the sound of water falling.

he whistles before looking over his shoulder at you, as if he didn’t notice you’re at the counter. “oh, hey! how was work, sweetie?”

you raise an eyebrow, putting your elbows on the counter in front of you to stare at him. “it was alright…? kwon soonyoung, what are you doing right now?”

“what do you mean? i’m just being a good husband!” he grins, happily pretending to rinse dishes, and you blush slightly before smiling at his sound effects.

you look around to see if anyone might be judging the two of you for pretending to be married but surprisingly, there’s no people strolling around this specific part of the store. the lack of crowd actually makes this feel as if you actually have just gotten home from a busy day at work, and your boyfriend—well, husband in this case, is washing up after cooking dinner or something.

in the meantime, soonyoung slows down, realizing the same thing as you. it’s like you have your own home, and he thinks that maybe…it’s not so bad.

you move towards him, making your way around the island and wrap your arms around his waist from behind, placing your chin on his shoulder before he can even comprehend what’s happening. once he does though, he almost melts in your embrace, putting his hands on top of yours on his stomach.

“so, soonie…” you start, and he can feel your grin with the way your head tilts to look at his cheek. “is it time for dessert yet?”

he giggles, sliding his hands up and down your arms before sighing happily. he turns to look at your face and freezes, realizing that this scene…could be real. he knows you’re only playing along with this act of being married but now the gears are turning in his head, and his eyebrows scrunch up in concentration.

though he doesn’t know it, your mind wanders to the same topic you two have talked about fondly: eventually settling down, if the both of you agree on it in the future.

it’s not like your relationship is completely new anyway, and marriage has been in the back of his mind for a while now. besides, soonyoung’s made it very clear that he’s serious about you…at least, he hopes he has because it’s true; he would go on a million ikea weekend dates if you were by his side.

“soonyoung, you alright?” he blinks when you call his name, and shakes his head.

“i’m fine!” your boyfriend smiles at you but you can tell he’s thinking about something, and you shrug. he’ll tell you eventually if he wants to, so there’s no need to be concerned—he can’t keep a secret for the life of him.

you move away from him to make sure that all the showroom pieces are in the right place, and he stands there to watch you, realizing this fantasy will be…well, just that when the two of you leave.

soonyoung pouts, crossing his arms. “babe, can’t we stay here forever?”

you turn back to look at your boyfriend and smile softly, walking over to grab his hand and almost push him towards the exit when he won’t move.

“well…we can’t stay here forever but…” you pause to place a kiss on his cheek. “maybe we could stay together forever, if you’d like?”

and as soonyoung nods excitedly and kisses you on the nose gently with a giggle, he knows that he’ll make sure that the forever he’s now thinking about comes as soon as possible—even with the horrible housing rates.

home. (follow up fic!)

[vibingandsimping]

I always feel so awkward/flustered requesting things, but the bg3 brain rot is so real. Could I ask for specifically Gale’s, and/or also anyone else of your choice (if you want obvs), like reaction to a virgin!Tav, like never had more than a peck on the hand or cheek inexperienced? I’m just absolutely feral over a shy, never been kissed Tav and companions~~~

Tav is just like me, fr. I appreciate you pushing your comfort zone and asking. Never feel ashamed to request something on my blog. <3

I liked this idea so will count it towards my second follower goal special. Funny how both of them ended up being Gale requests, honestly. Attempted to keep it gender neutral.

Word count: Around 2,000

Forewarnings: Tooth-rotting fluff, partial loss of virginity, oral (receiving), undergarment stealing, porn with little plot.

Gale, himself, had been quite inexperienced before Mystra. He just had himself so deeply rooted in his books and studies he thought the time was… wasted. It wasn’t that he couldn’t seek a partner, no, he just didn’t fare the effort. Mystra sought him out and how in the hells could he turn a literal goddess down? That relationship burned and crashed. Honestly, he was thankful for it now. He met you. You struck him like no other. You were more than Mystra. So when feelings reciprocated? Gale was elated.

He judged on your nerve that you either found him stunning, or, you lacked experience. He thought the latter. Whenever he held your hand and gazed into your eyes you seemed to shake. It was cute. His palm cupping your cheek and you’d flush so deeply he’d fear you suddenly fell ill. Often times, you’d break it off before things escalated beyond a hand holding or a gentlemanly kiss. Gale didn’t take to it harshly, at first. He yearned for your skin, your lips, your touch. He tried to make that clear in his language. Hands reaching for you more often, bodies closing the distance. He’d never push too far, though. Gale’s shame would be immense if he scared you.

Some gentle probing finally pulled some truth from you, one evening. You were a virgin. Never even having been kissed before. He wasn’t sure whether to comfort you or take a primal hunger in the idea of being your first. Lips and body, hopefully. He brushed it off initially, saying that he’d tend to your needs when you were ready. His words lingering in the air as he made it apparent that he craved you. Lusted and loved, in every sense. You nearly combusted and stammered. Gods, you were going to be his ruin. Mystra, forgive him but he believed you more enchanting than she ever was.

The first time he tasted your lips was under the guise of moonlight. Northern lights dancing in the sky as the moment you shared tender. You relaxed in the privacy and comfort of him. He bore his heart to you that night. Explaining his fears- his worries and his longing. It was shocking to see you make the first move, your hand cupping his face this time. You drew him in and he closed the distance. He swore he was flying when he pressed against the plush of your lips. Moving in and out, feeling the breath of each other dance along skin. His hand reached out and rested on your knee. You covered it with your own, grasping it in your hold. Fingers interlocked and he took the initiative to deepen the moment. His tongue flicked against your lips and the whimper that followed made him shiver.

As soon as it happened, he pulled away with a pant. Doe-brown eyes searching your expression as his mind raced. “I apologize if I am taking things too far or too fast. Your beauty strikes me and all I wish is for this moment to last an eternity.” You laugh, squeezing his hand reassuringly. Then, you shake your head and draw him in closer. “No, it’s okay. I think i’m ready. I want you, Gale.” His nostrils flare at the words and he steels himself, watching you intently. Nerve trickled in your voice but there was no outward hesitancy in your desires. He sits for a moment and soaks everything in. The satisfaction and sight of you presenting yourself to him. Vulnerable and so willing. He trailed his free hand to your shoulder and gently pushed you onto the grass. Intertwined hand next to your head as he claims your lips once more.

You could only lay and enjoy the sensation he was giving you. His fingers tickling down your shoulder to your chest. He was more than happy to lead you in this dance of pleasure. It would pave a path into many nights where you could enjoy each other. He’d be able to forget what it was like imagining your flesh. His tongue parted your lips and licked at your own tongue. You exhaled a sharp breath through your nostrils, sloppily trying to reciprocate. He smirked a little and continued to guide you as his hand lowered to where your sleep-shirt rested at your hips. His fingers were a little cold from the air as he slipped underneath it to feel your stomach. Gale parted from your lips to your jaw, continuing his love there down to your neck. Arousal from the touch of another was strange- but definitely not unwelcome. Gods, no, it’s so welcome. Your thighs clenched as he kissed over a particularly sensitive spot of your neck. Seemingly noticing your shift, he nibbles and sucks on it. The sensation causes you to gasp and writhe underneath him.

His palm presses flat on your stomach, using his strength to keep you still. Once he finds enough satisfaction after leaving a hickey, his lips trail down to your shoulder. A final kiss is left and he lifts himself to meet your gaze. His lips are wet and a tad swollen as his lids are halved. The sight made your loins tingle. It spoke all lust and admiration. He took such pleasure in watching and feeling you succumb to his touch. He nods downward at you, gesturing to your shirt and you nod in return. With the confirmation, he slips your shirt over your head and soaks the sight of you topless in. You can feel him shake a little as he hovers over your body. He lowers himself and slides downward to plant kisses against your collarbone. They follow to the middle of your ribs until he’s level with your nipples. He looks upwards through his eyebrows as he wraps his lips around one. You keen- arching your back as he suckles while his fingers tend to the neglected.

You hardly notice when his lips meet your lower stomach. Reaching to your pelvis as he slowly works your pants down your legs. You help him by shimmying your hips- and he groans in satisfaction when the skin is revealed. His hands contact your thighs and hold you down while he continues kissing along your pelvis- tickling the undergarments you wore. Your breath hitched and fingers twitched at the grass underneath you. Torn between admiring the sky or him as he worked your body so beautifully. A nibble caught your daze and you whimpered. He parted and cherished in the kisses and little marks he’d left. “Love,” he whispered and you craned your neck to look at him, “It is not too late to stop. I won’t force this upon you.” Admittedly, you paused for a moment and stared at him. Smiling and reaching out, his face was cupped in your hand. “No. I want this.” He visibly perked.

“Then, may I?” His fingers slipped under the waistband and tugged. You nodded with a twinkle of amusement. The cold air on your sensitive flesh made you hiss- but he was quick. Fingers and tongue meeting with little hesitance. You jerked at the sensation and he simply hummed, easing you down. It seemed he waited a moment for you to adjust before working his magic (pun intended). His tongue licked and worked you in circles while his fingers explored the flesh around. Your thighs, your rear- anything he could touch. He was keen to listen to your whimpers and observe your movements. He’d stop when you’d flinch and he’d continue when you moaned. Quite honestly, the coil in your stomach twisted and wound faster than you’d anticipate. He collected the mix of your arousal and his saliva onto his fingers. They circled your entrance and gently prodded, allowing you time to recognize his desire through the haze that was pleasure. It didn’t come easy when he started to push them in- no, you tensed and cried out. Gale continued working your sex while his spare hand caressed your flesh comfortingly. Once he was past the first ring- everything began to slowly ease.

His eyes watched you carefully as he slowly began to explore the inside of you. You were thankful for how patient he was being. Stopping whenever it seemed to overwhelm you and continuing when the stillness became unbearable. It was a few minutes before you could finally find a deeper pleasure in the touch rather than the discomfort or pain. He hummed approvingly against your sensitive parts- and you whined. His fingers were relatively thick but mostly long. They searched inside you until your body writhed as he brushed against a spot that made your eyelids flutter. It was over after that, he didn’t miss a heartbeat adjusting his tune to increasing the intensity of his mouth and tongue while abusing it with his fingers. You couldn’t contain the depraved sounds you made after that. Gripping at whatever you could; settling on his hair with tight white knuckles. Breaths were shallow as everything came to a crescendo and- crashed. It crashed hard. You were a writhing mess under him as a strangled cry cut from your throat.

Gale happily licked and cleaned up any mess you made as he worked you through your orgasm. Thighs clenching and unclenching around his head as he milked you of all you’re worth. He pulled away when the brink of overstimulation set in, wiping at his face with a grin-eating smirk. You lay like a fish out of water, riding the high and twitching with aftershocks. The man curled up beside you and cooed comfortingly in your ear while you recovered. You could feel his erection press into your skin through his robe but he paid no mind. He laid with you for however long until you could breathe and think with some sort of clarity. Recognizing that, he spoke. “Beautiful, truly beautiful. I have craved to see that for ages now. Yet, nothing my imagination could supply would have compared to it.” He laughed softly while you melted at the sound. “Do you need some… erm-“ You gestured towards the mass against your leg. He blinked, looked downward and smiled bashfully. “No,” he claimed and you blinked in shock. “I wore you out thoroughly with that. I will be fine- there are opportunities ahead. It will make it all the sweeter. Besides, I want you to cry my name out next time.” He shushed any rebuttal you had with a kiss. Soft yet passionate- with the aftertaste of you on his lips.

He grabbed your discarded garments and began to wipe the rest of the mess from between your thighs. You flinched and shivered at the touch of the highly-alert flesh. He kissed your ear tenderly to reassure you before curling the fabric into a ball and pocketing it. You gave him a pointed look- questioning. “Keepsake.” He muttered with a blush. A shiver ran down your spine at the perversion of the act. Yet, it made you feel so desired all the same. “Do you need anything? Food or water?” His eagerness to confirm your comfort made your chest swell. You shook your head and claimed you only wanted to relax with him. Gale visibly softened at that, almost awestruck. He assisted you back into your clothing and fixed your sex-messed hair. The night was still after that. Wrapped in his arms as his breath washed over you from the proximity. His fingers danced along your skin and traced unknown shapes. Everything felt as close to perfect as you’ve gotten in… a long while. You knew you couldn’t stay there the entire night. It just felt right to enjoy the rest of the moment with him til you had to return. Return to the madness that was your current life.

For now, you could forget the tadpole. You could forget anything that wasn’t the feeling of his warm body pressed to yours and the afterglow of everything that occurred.

[afreakingdork]

You Are My Sunshine, My Only Moonshine - Chapter 20 - Finale

RotTMNT x Reader

And here we have @sheep-turtles-and-pizza with the final chapter art that pretty much encapsulates the fic, dont'cha think?

Rated: Teen and Up Audiences

Relationships: Michelangelo (TMNT)/Reader, Michelangelo (TMNT)/You, Donatello (TMNT)/Reader, Donatello (TMNT)/You

Warnings: POV Second Person, Gender Neutral Reader, Anxious Reader, Introverted Reader, Stuttering, Aged-Up Mutant Ninja Turtles, Romance, Love, Love Confessions, Falling In Love, Unrequited Love, Rejection, Aromantic Asexual Michelangelo (TMNT), Bisexual Donatello (TMNT), Pansexual Leonardo (TMNT), Lesbian Cassandra Jones | Foot Recruit, Demisexual April O'Neil (TMNT), Implied Cassandra Jones | Foot Recruit/April O'Neil/Sunita, Endgame Donatello (TMNT)/Reader, Romantic Love, Platonic Love, Panic Attacks, Sexuality Crisis, Agoraphobia, Social Anxiety, Happy Ending, Fluff

Synopsis:  You’ve lost most of your life to anxiety and fear. Now, in your late 20s, you are desperate to reclaim it and during one such outing you encounter the sun personified. With his and his similarly celestially inspired family, will you finally reach your goal or will you lose yourself along the way?

I want to take a moment and acknowledge what today has been like. For many of us, it has been unending hours of shock, rage, and terror. It feels weird, in a way, to post this now, but at the same time I can't help but want a bit of normalcy. I'm hoping a dash of light and hope might be a comfort and if not, I understand, but I still present the finale of the fic I've worked so hard on.

Also available on Ao3

First 💛 Previous

He could do this.

With his phone alarm blaring, Mikey fought his lids.

He had to get up. If it wasn’t for this alarm, then he needed to before the next. He had been the one to set them in order of growing and grating noises, but that didn’t make it any easier. With little thought he hung there in stasis and listened to the first chime time out. There was exactly five minutes to the next, but he didn’t care to count. Instead his mind slipped and brought him closer to a dream when the second blare scared his lids up.

With the curtain drawn that meant it was time to move.

It came with liquid limbs which he threw without mercy.

They weren’t asleep so when one banged the wall, he was forced to wilt in weary pain. He brought his wrist, the wounded soldier, back home, and held it to his chest. He allowed it to rest there for the duration of the war which he traveled in leagues to the bathroom.

A splash of ice water to the face took him the rest of the way to wakefulness.

He preened after that, washing up and fixing his hair. He’d need it out of his face for the day and secured for the antics that would ensue. That meant extra fixing and Raph soon wandered in where Mikey had left the door open. The larger acknowledged the challenge his little brother was facing and brushed his teeth off to the side, giving Mikey the full span of the mirror.

Spitting became the real issue and Mikey refused to give up real estate. With Raph’s size though, there would be no victory, so Mikey took to the air. It meant the older brother ducked down to drink from the tap and Mikey got his last lock in place just before the other came up. It perched the younger brother on his older’s shoulders and they rode together to the kitchen.

Donnie was there facing the coffee pot with shut eyes as it spat and churned bean juice.

Greetings were exchanged with grunts and Mikey floated down to his feet to take up meal duty. This was his moment of zen and his favorite part of his morning routine. His mind immediately shut off and he only moved through the memorized motions.

Preheat pan.

Eggs.

Butter.

Gently melt.

Crack as needed.

Whisk.

Season.

Cook.

Mikey could make omelets in his sleep.

He might have done so once or twice if he trusted his brother’s stories.

He still wasn’t sold.

Going for a classic and simple French-style today, he dished up four of a normal size and one enormous one.

Donnie picked the crispest fold.

Leo sauntered in and grabbed the one with the most chives sprinkled atop.

Raph got the behemoth choice.

Mikey divided his portion into bites first and allowed his dad’s to cool for storage until whenever he woke.

They ate with minimal conversation that mostly related to the day.

“They’re gonna be fighting.” Leo pointed with his fork.

“How can they be fighting about the same thing, again?” Raph pressed, still chewing.

“Give me the count, D.” Leo turned to his fellow middle child.

“The visor versus sunhat debacle has played out twelve times that we know of.”

“Today is the baker’s dozen!” Leo tried to fold Mikey in with a glance.

Mikey raised his hands off the matter.

“A baker’s dozen!” Leo didn’t seem deterred and tried with a different connotation towards Raph.

“That doesn’t mean it’s a pattern!” Raph rolled his eyes.

“‘That doesn’t mean it’s a-’” Leo mocked before turning toward Donnie. “Do the stats, stats man!”

“I both relish and resent that you use me for data.” Donnie quipped and rolled his eyes over to Leo. “As little as two events establish a pattern with more solidifying.”

“They don’t keep having the same fight!” Raph cleaned his plate first.

Leo threw his hands out to Raph and sent his disgust at Donnie.

Donnie commiserated with a tip of his head.

“What’s that!?” Raph banged his plate.

Leo took his last bite and hopped to his feet. “Nothing, brodeo.”

“That ain’t nothing!” Raph frowned with his hands on his hips.

Donnie scooped his last bite and Leo stole his plate before he got it to his mouth. “Excuse you!”

“It’s too early for this!” Leo chirped and rounded past the sink without depositing his load. “Michael?”

“Not done!” Mikey had been carefully sectioning off bites to make it last.

If he kept eating then he didn’t have to move again.

He wasn’t quite awake yet which he would admit was his fault. He knew today had been coming up for a few months now, but he neglected to get his sleep schedule in line. The night before he had been nagged about his movie’s start time, but it was hard to battle the urge when he was in the mood for a particular one. His attention was fleeting enough that he usually chose to listen.

Which was something he should have been doing then because he had missed quite a bit of the current conversation while he was ruminating about his mistakes.

“Right now! You’re doing it right now!” Leo was flapping a hand at Raph.

“I do not! Donnie, tell him!”

“Two dost make a pattern…” Donnie petered off.

“Dost nothing!” Raph bumped Donnie’s chair.

“Alright, alright…” Mikey left his last quarter of his omelet and got to his feet. “How about that coffee?”

“Almost…” Donnie held up a finger and everyone paused.

The last few drips fell and the pot registered as full with a blink of a light over to a warming plate.

“Done.” Donnie spun and lifted out of his seat in a perfect rotation.

“Coffee.” Mikey reiterated and moved past to pat both Raph and Leo’s shells.

There were relenting grunts and mugs were split.

Donnie took his to-go in a thermos of his own making and departed with words of packing.

Leo sipped a mug loudly on purpose which summoned a growl from Raph.

Mikey gestured for Raph to drink.

The oldest almost did before he remembered cream and sugar and went for that.

The moment he was gone, Mikey shot Leo an irritated look.

Leo raised his hands as if he held no blame.

Mikey narrowed his eyes.

Leo tried to exaggerate his pose, but his coffee sloshed and dripped onto him. “Dang it! Come on!”

“That’s what you get.” Mikey spoke proudly.

Leo sneered and repeated the line. “I didn’t like this shirt anyway!”

“Liar, you picked it out last week.” Raph rose with an oversized mug to his lips.

“For shame! Picking on your brother like that!” Leo scoffed with his entire form.

Raph cocked his brow ridge.

Leo fled immediately with excuses on his lips about needing to get a detergent pen.

“You good?” Mikey checked on the oldest.

Raph said nothing and only gurgled with a thickened honey as he drank down his coffee.

Mikey gave the oldest’s arm a squeeze before he went in search of his phone. The object had been left behind due to its relation with alarms. It sat dutifully still plugged in and Mikey allowed unplugging to wake the screen. There were already a litany of messages from you lined and he tabbed through them lazily.

He penned replies and hobbled back to the kitchen where he’d forgotten to put dad’s omelet up. Raph had left so it was a tug of plastic wrap before it was lovingly slammed into the fridge with a sweet orange note applied. The fridge door closed and Mikey puzzled over what he had forgotten. It took a full rotation of his body to find his coffee and that it was now lukewarm. His tongue lolled out at the temperature and he dumped it.

Microwaving such things was sacrilege and Mikey instead messaged you asking about beverages.

You had a list seemingly ready for him and he smiled at it while saying you should take your pick.

Your response bubble disappeared and he could see you dropping everything to scroll the presumably tiny menu on mobile.

He could see you struggling with the page’s optimization and he shook his head.

Mikey would say he couldn’t believe how much he loved you, but that was patently wrong.

He knew the exact lengths.

He walked them one step at a time while holding your hand.

He treasured those times.

They also felt like something from a million years ago even though it had at most been a year.

Or maybe more.

Mikey wasn’t that great at dates outside of birthdays, but that was because he’d set reminders.

He should set another one and fiddled over to the calendar only to forget when he saw Piebald’s birthday coming up.

He already had a gift, but her party was one that split his attention.

You would be there too.

His best friend in the whole world.

Probably soon to be in-law with that recent geology expedition Donnie had gone on.

Rocks usually bored him to tears so the connection made sense.

You would say yes.

You would become family.

You would always be more.

You held a place in his heart that no one else dared get close to.

He had fallen in one love and then into another with you.

He was forever grateful and more so that you would always be by his side.

You responded back with your drink order and an updated file that Mikey didn’t bother opening. The last time he tried the text was so microscopic that it made a mockery of some online menu board. You would explain it to him when you met up anyway and he already knew the basics. You were overprepared and that was your normal song and dance. You would fret and he would find a way to make the day’s plans even better.

Assured, Mikey’s phone chirped with a new message and it was Leo’s final boarding call.

Realizing then that he had done nothing else to prepare, he made a literal hop, skip, and jump across the lair and back into his room. He placed himself in the dead center of it and took one deep breath before his ninpo charged. He was then off like a rocket, doing calculated slips through space to grab everything.

Comfy shorts for walking.

Cool vintage tank top he found to stay cool.

Fanny pack in a blinding color so he wouldn’t lose his belongings.

No hat because his hair was already done.

A lather of Donnie’s special sunscreen that was matched for his exact pigment.

A pair of sunglasses that he planned on losing.

He came to a halt and flicked off residual orange sparks totally ready to leave.

“How’s that for prep work!?”

The room didn’t respond.

“Exactly!” Mikey whooped and spun out of his room.

He continued to do twirls all the way until he reached the TV room where Splinter was groggily looking up at Donnie.

“There are thrill rides in New York!” His dad scoffed and flapped his hands.

“Not like these.” Donnie tried to reason with him.

Splinter made a disgruntled noise.

Mikey jumped over to him. “Omelette in the fridge, daddio!”

“Thank you, orange.” Splinter held his head up for a kiss.

Mikey obliged him. “Where’s Leo? Didn’t he say it was time to go?”

“I did.” Leo’s voice drifted in from the side. “And I perfectly timed how late you would be.”

“And didn’t bother to tell anyone else.” Donnie folded his arms.

“Pattern.” Raph grunted.

“Okay that was funny like an hour ago, but I’m over it being a whole day thing.” Leo cocked a hip.

“Another pattern!” Raph held out his arms in accusation.

“That was my point-!” Leo threw up his hands to stop himself. “Nope. Breaking the cycle!”

A beat of silence went through the room.

Raph didn’t take the bait and only looked over at Leo.

Leo shined him an honest smile.

Raph gave him a nod that said this version of apology was acceptable.

“Alright! Now that that’s over, choo-choo! Leo train is now boarding. Please line up single file. That’s hands and feet inside the line at all times. Some universal mishaps possible so try to keep within the portal’s boundary, please and thank you!” Leo moved to an open space and manifested a sword.

Donnie led the line behind him.

“Have fun wasting time with your loopsie loops! The premium entertainment is right here!” Splinter rubbed the remote against his cheek.

A few affectionate goodbyes were tossed and Mikey joined to be last in line.

“Three total stops, and here-!” Leo sliced a portal that went straight into April’s apartment.

Everyone stepped through in a continuous line as if they weren’t walking straight through miles of land and two people were added to the queue.

“We-!” The next portal cut through your apartment.

You joined in line with a wave.

“Go!” The last blue disk sent the now larger group to an amusement park’s gates. “Thank you for riding the Leo Express, we knew you had a great trip so do send over that five star review as soon as possible!”

Everyone warbled out of the rigid placement and reformed in a circle.

This was it.

Everything would devolve into that Hamato chaos from here.

Mikey smiled at the prospect.

Raph was the first to break with a barely withheld snort.

“Sing it, big guy!” April crooned.

“Don’t… you… dare…” Casey lowered her posture and prepared to launch herself if necessary.

The barest twitter emerged from Raph who had lifted to his full height and was fighting strain with all of it.

April bounced behind Casey’s back. “What’s it look like!? How about now!? You see it, you say it!”

“O’Neil…!” Casey threatened.

“You look like an old timey lamp in human form!” Raph blurted out.

April cackled and cut through the circle to laugh against the oldest brother. “I asked if she was going to share her poker chips!”

That garnered more giggles.

“Fools!!!” Casey hissed and threw up a defensive finger.

“Watch out, s-she’s gonna have to recount the m-money!” April barely managed.

Raph slapped April’s back so hard she fell over.

Casey stormed straight towards Mikey.

Mikey assumed the position and was immediately held up in display.

“Look at this one! Pathetic! He has no cranial protection at all and the covering for his eyes impedes his vision! My superior visor blocks UV, reduces eye strain, and will not be lost in our conquest of delights!!” Casey shook Mikey so hard his sunglasses came off.

He chuckled all the way in leaning down to pick them up. “I’m team sunscreen.”

“Sunscreen!?!” Casey threw him up into the air.

Mikey altered his trajectory with a kick of his foot and landed by Leo. “You put on sunscreen, right?”

“You cannot put sunscreen on your eyes!!” Casey seethed.

“Huh? Sure. Yeah.” Leo spoke dismissively with his gaze over his shoulder.

“This is a hat versus visor debate!!” Casey stomped at being ignored.

Mikey’s grin grew at the sign of more mischief.

Leo was up to something else entirely.

Mikey bet he stoked the debate fires this morning to throw others off his trail.

Today was shaping up to be extremely entertaining.

Donnie openly thought.

You tacked away with a flurry on your phone, no doubt looking up some park policy about the recommended sun protection.

“Goggles is team visors, don’t try to ‘hotdog is a sandwich’ your way outta this one!” April shouted.

“They are their own category!!” Donnie bristled.

Casey rushed Donnie. “Join me!! With your brain and my all around balanced skill chart, we shall make the hat wearers rue the day they trifled with secure headwear!”

“No. I’d rather not.” Donnie speed walked out the way.

Casey chased after him. “Give in!!”

Donnie went straight for Leo.

Leo had to double take before he realized Casey was now heading towards him. “Wait, no! I’m not part of this!”

In a speedy grapple, Donnie and Leo fought over Leo’s bag.

Donnie came out victorious with a pair of blue rimmed sunglasses that he slammed onto Leo’s beak.

“A turncoat!” Donnie exclaimed before sidestepping toward Mikey.

“You fiend!” Casey caught the loops of Leo’s tank top before he could run. “As leader you should be setting an example!”

“Of dork-i-tude? I think not!” Leo’s sunglasses slid down his beak and he looked at Casey dismissively over them.

She shook them straight off of him and yelled so loud her words became unintelligible.

Raph helped April back to her feet where the two were still snickering.

“Was the new sunscreen formulation tolerable?” Donnie leaned against a guard rail and regarded his youngest brother.

“Oh yeah, went on good! No lasting goopy feeling!” Mikey chirped.

“And a hotdog is a sandwich!” Leo clawed Casey off of him and threw her at Raph and April.

The pair squealed as Casey switched to a fighting stance in the air.

“That’s good, I analyzed new products on the market and found-” Donnie droned on.

Mikey pretended he understood anything his brother was saying.

“And meet up squabbles… Check…”

Mikey turned at the comparatively small voice.

It was obviously you and you smiled at your phone before looking up.

You met his eye and your gaze softened.

He returned it.

He needed to ask you about those drinks.

He was about to when you suddenly broke your gaze away.

He watched with a falling smile as you built up determination and took a single step forward.

Your body language read sturdy and your lips parted. “Alright… L-listen up!!!”

It took a bit of tapering, but as each person caught on to the owner of the voice, they all quieted in different forms of awe.

Your eyes didn’t leave your phone, but you didn’t look like you were reading from something. “I thank you all for coming today! It m-means a lot that you would join me! You p-probably already know about my, um… trouble with anxiety. I’ve been working really hard and today is a culmination of breaking that down. I… never thought I’d ever go to an amusement park, let alone leave New York, but I’m here now, t-thanks to each of y-you, so… thank you, truly…”

Your eyes rose in gratitude and everyone shifted with emotion.

April opened her mouth to respond, but your expression shifted to a threatening one.

Again, the group stiffened in surprise.

“That being said… This is my plan!” Phones started to ping around the group, but no one dared go for their device. “You’ve just been sent a copy of today’s itinerary. If you do not follow it, you will be left behind! T-that said, I did a ton of research and took as much into account as I possibly could! I t-think it’s doable…” You checked your phone. “My spiel is done, you now have 15 minutes to look and decide before the g-gates open…”

Hands flew for their phones.

“It really is 15 till…”

“How…?”

“Woah, what…?”

Mikey’s entire body tipped to the side.

He was only one of two people not acting on your instruction.

You had returned to checking something on your phone and swipes of your pupils said you were moving things around.

Mikey looked around.

“We’re being split up…?” April was sharing her phone between Raph and Casey. “Ride team and prize team…”

“How did pipsqueak know I was going to make the carnies cry?” Casey rubbed her chin.

“You’re not supposed to make them cry! You’re supposed to win cute prizes!” Raph tutted her. 

“Victory tastes sweeter when seasoned with tears.” Casey only nodded appropriately.

“I did only want to do coasters…” April remarked, still studying her device.

Leo chuffed and immediately tried to muffle it.

April caught wind and started scrolling on her phone with purpose before she lit with anger. “Hey! Now, hold on! What’s up with this!?”

Leo pointedly looked away.

“’Leo and April shenanigans!?’ Why do I get moved off the ride rotation?! What does that mean!?” She threw her phone out and walked it into Leo’s face.

“Oh, nothing!” He failed to conceal his laugh. “Y/N wrote it!”

April’s eyes narrowed.

“Leo’s meeting up with someone.”

A few pairs of eyes shot to you, but you were still working.

You gave a sly smile to mostly yourself. “He’s the only one I couldn’t figure out so I asked for his help.”

“Smart move. I would have gone rogue otherwise.” Leo shrugged.

“What’s that got to do with me!?” April rounded on Leo.

“Nothing!” Leo raised his voice and ducked around April in a smooth twirl that sent his mask tails twisting like a graceful pair of ribbons. “Just maybe I have a hot date with someone you just so happened to know and might not approve of…”

“What?! Who!?” April spun around with a low center of gravity to latch onto him if need be.

“Oh, is that the ticket guy!?” Leo skipped away.

“Leo! Leonardo Hamato, you get your ass back here right now! Who!?” April chased after him.

“I’m kinda glad…” Raph pressed his fingers together. “Takes the stress offa trying to get on the rides with the weight limit and all… Y/N even scheduled me tram time. How’d you know?”

You gave a slight wiggle at the praise, but didn’t respond.

“It is rigid, yet a lethal plan of attack.” Casey smacked her phone approvingly. “I may have to reevaluate your position in my ranking board of weakness if the outcome is favorable.”

Leo laughed loudly as he dodged April in the parking lot.

Mikey felt like he was out of his mind.

That was it?

You suddenly did something he would have never guessed in a million years and everyone only cared for a few minutes’ tops.

This was more than your progress.

This was something completely new.

It made no sense.

In a slow swivel, Mikey looked at the only other person who had yet to move.

Donnie was right next to him and lounging against the rail he was leaning on.

On his face was an expression that was nothing less than love struck.

“My nova…” Donnie mooned quietly. “Ever expanding destruction. Stunning.”

He then moved over to you and it was only for him that you parted your attention.

You shared your screen with him and he curled around, not quite touching you, to take it in with all his adoration.

Mikey was still leagues away.

His limbs felt clunky as he went for his phone.

There at the top of his notifications was your itinerary. It was clearly labeled and he clicked on it. The day was laid out before him in exact measure. There were blank fields ready to be filled in with approximate ride wait times. As soon as entry to the park was granted, the tables were divided into two clear columns for those who sought thrills and those who preferred less stomach churning activities. Along with scheduled drink and bathroom breaks, the snack segments were drop down lists that had food stand opening times along with full menus.

One of which was highlighted in orange and was sporting a coffee bar menu.

Mikey shook with a dry laugh.

“Time!” You clapped once and moved straight to the ticket counter with purpose.

You hadn’t purchased the tickets ahead of time, he knew this.

There had been something about an in-park discount. You were the first person in line and ended up buying for the lot with a quick card slip from Leo. Mikey identified that as the Hamato joint account. It had alleviated many petty squabbles. You dutifully went to each person and gave them a ticket like it was the most precious thing in the world.

Mikey accepted and the otherwise boring slip seemed like it glowed in his hand. He tucked it into a particularly safe pocket of his fanny pack as everyone moved inside. There were sounds of interest as soon as you entered the gate. The fracture split the group and there were no hard feelings.

You parted from Donnie with only one solidifying glance.

You two were always like that.

Donnie’s pet names were seemingly the only overtly romantic thing of note. Otherwise, the two of you displayed next to no PDA. It wasn’t just Mikey; Leo had questioned if you two were still dating more than once. It made Donnie furious every time and he declared your relationship was healthier than ever with each prompting. Mikey never saw it as a bad thing, but he could admit his bias. 

Mikey was also closer to you than anyone else. 

He knew your looks and the way you talked about Donnie. 

You were not left romantically wanting and Mikey would bet his existence that you two were in it for the long haul.

It felt like an odd rumination to end on as you left your boyfriend and headed straight towards him instead.

“Ready for that coffee?” You pointed in the direction of where it presumably was.

“Uh, yeah…” Mikey responded dully.

Casey yelled charge and jumped on Raph’s shoulders.

Raph pretended to rear before setting off.

April tugged ruthlessly on Leo’s mask tails and walked with Donnie towards growing metal pyres of rollercoasters.

“You okay…?” You tilted your head. “Need motion sickness meds?”

“No. I just didn’t… What… what team am I on…?” Mikey couldn’t remember where his phone was.

You tapped it where it was sticking out of his fanny pack. “Mine.”

“Yours… being…?”

You took a leading step and he followed after.

“Team duo!” You held up eager fists.

“Duo…?” Mikey pointed between him and you.

“We’re the only o-ones who want to do both!”

“Both…?”

You looked out fondly at the park. “Our special designation. I’m m-making the most of it… I… I’m n-not sure about the whole… coaster… adrenaline junkie thing. I think… I’ve had enough fight or flight for one lifetime, but… you can’t come h-here and not ride a coaster!”

Mikey nodded along.

“We’re d-doing two rides for sure…” You held up two fingers. “The f-fastest one and the o-one you were talking about…”

He thought and got himself a little straighter. “The one that free falls…?”

“Exactly!” You hopped a step.

“Huh…” The corner of his lips quirked.

“My heart’s already racing…!” You squeezed a hand to your chest. “Coffee w-won’t help, I think I’m gonna get something less caffeinated. Tea…? I was thinking tea…”

“Tea’s good.”

“Iced.” You agreed.

“I’m…” What was he doing?

Was he going to spend all day like this?

You were clearly over the moon with excitement.

You’d made this incredible list.

Everyone had split up, but seemed to be having a blast.

This was the final item on your mega list.

He was going to be your buddy for the day.

Was he going to miss that chance?

Never.

“I’m…” Mikey repeated and then jumped forward to block your path. “I’m going to get the most sugary thing and drop four shots of espresso in it!”

“M-Mikey!!” Your hands came up in a worried flurry.

“Try and stop me!” Mikey cheered and ran towards the only food stand that was open.

It was clearly the coffee station and you chased after shouting his name.

He placed his order before you reached him and you panted yours out when you got there.

The person moved to make them after taking payment and you scolded him for what would definitely happen. While the hyper-dose of caffeine would momentarily settle him, it would also eventually process along with the sugar. The resulting stimulation would send him bouncing off the walls until he eventually crashed. You added notes about forcing snacks on him to prevent that and he breezily accepted.

You got your drinks and headed out.

He found Casey by her voice alone and found her arguing with a worker in the carnival area. Raph stood by, unable to do much other than apologize and Mikey swooped in to get her away. The woman griped around having won and Mikey told her to get the next one. A huddle was had and there was discussion on how the games were rigged. It broke apart with an agreement that a little mysticism would go a long way and games were then chosen in a rotation.

It started with you picking a water gun game where you won nothing more than a bouncy ball.

Mikey and you played with it as Raph took his turn next and drove Casey up a wall because he had trouble deciding. You had a great time walking around and talking amongst it so when Raph finally picked it almost seemed like an interruption. His stall of choice came with ring toss and extra fuzzy looking plush prizes. You all took turns throwing, but no one got close enough to win anything.

Casey went next and immediately chose a stall that had balloons to pop. She forewent the weapon to throw kunai which spooked the employee. It took the manpower of the rest of the group to calm the man down before Mikey casted a small memory shifting spell. It had come in handy more than once for removing blame from his dad, but he kept the origins of the spell to himself. The mechanics of which he happily shared. The employee lost five minutes at most and Casey was removed from the stall kicking and screaming by Raph.

That left Mikey, who stopped at the sight of a giant spinning drill bit. It was an oddity amongst the other dime a dozen games and he felt compelled to ask. A kind man offered him a metal rod with a hole in it and explained that the game was one like Operation. If Mikey could get the hole all the way down the twisting and turning piece of metal without making contact with it then he would get a prize.

Raph was staring straight at a teddy bear the size of him and of a much higher quality than any other stand.

Mikey pretended to push up his non-existent sleeves before he claimed this was the game.

The buzzer of failure rang within 15 seconds.

Casey shoved him out of the way and screamed about how she would be the successful one amongst them all.

Her alarm came in seven seconds.

She spit about cheating and Mikey held her back so Raph could go.

Raph was sweating bullets as his giant hands meant it was more difficult to hold the rod.

He maneuvered the hole as far down as he could before his mass impeded him twisting along with the moving drill and he was outed around the 25 second mark.

That left you where you hopelessly grabbed the rod.

Without a drop of faith on your face, you studied how to best approach it and threaded your rod against the drill.

Moving slowly and methodically, you worked down the corkscrew that had taken out both Mikey and Casey.

You then rounded a looping arch that had removed Raph.

Down into a rectangular area that had you making snap gestures with your wrists, you then cleared it for a final flight straight down until the rod sat flush with the base of the game.

There was a beat of silence.

You then looked up at the employee.

“T-there was a mistake…” The man uttered. “The top there. You touched it, but the machine glitched and didn’t go off.”

This time Casey wasn’t the only one who fought back.

Mikey shot forward with the other two to bowl the mean man over with complaints.

Your praises were sung.

The man was bitter in gesturing to the wall, giving up on the matter and letting you pick a prize.

“Raph… which was it…?” You checked with him.

“You sure?!” Raph’s eyes watered.

“Very.” You nodded for him to choose.

He hugged the bear so tight there were waning stitches.

It was Casey who urged him to back off and with that you were off for your first snack break.

The sugar and caffeine were commingling in Mikey’s stomach so he launched himself forward with purpose. He ended up getting too far ahead and bet a random employee about guessing his weight. The man ended up being wrong and gave him a superhero cape for his troubles. It was a far cry from his cloak, but Mikey ran around making it soar nonetheless. You eventually caught up and purchased a variety of popcorns. They had a ridiculous amount of flavors and the pot was shared amongst the group. One selection was tossed while another was fought over and after you forced Mikey to down a bottle of water, you were on your way to the ride of his choosing.

The freefall ride was immediately selected and you were soon led to a shaky basket. It sat ready to be lifted up a set of tracks. Raph bowed out as there were three seats and he couldn’t fit in any of them. He seemed more than pleased to watch with his stuffed animal cradled tight and you were moved into the middle position. Casey complained about not needing shackles which the park attendant ignored as he made sure everyone was strapped in. Mikey looked all around in obvious excitement while your anxieties heavily contrasted him. You politely asked the man to double check your safety bar. He did so without complaint, but tacked on that you should be ready because the ride dropped at a rate of 30 feet per second which did nothing to quell your concerns.

As the man moved away to start the ride, Mikey caught a glimpse of teeth. 

It unnerved him and he continued to stare long after the guy manned a control panel. As far as Mikey could tell, he didn’t do anything else out of the ordinary which left him wondering if he had been mistaken. The ride began to ascend the tower and you clung to your safety bars with white knuckles. Mikey switched to soothing you by wondering if you’d been able to see the ride team when you achieved your maximum height. You stunted out a question about what coaster they were on and the ride clinked to a halt at the very top while Mikey tried to guess.

The entire park was laid out in front of you.

Mikey watched over it with a huge smile before turning it to you and finding the same awe inspired twinkle in your eyes.

“These are the best seats…” Casey mumbled.

You nodded in agreement.

“Nice pick, orange peel.” Casey tipped her chin to Mikey.

“Thank you!” Mikey beamed.

The moment lingered on.

A little too long. 

Casey squirmed and grunted about the wait. 

Mikey’s eye wandered before he peeked over the carriage to see what was going on below. 

From this angle, he couldn’t quite see the ride operator. 

You mustered up the courage to wonder, “Isn’t it… s-supposed to fa-?”

The beams holding the cart released with a chunk and whatever was left of your question went up into an outright scream as you rocketed down the ride. The basket then tipped and flipped over at the end, cutting off the intense inertia and churned the contents of everyone’s stomachs. Casey belched loudly and Mikey weakly thanked you for the water. You only shivered in your seat and didn’t move a muscle until the cart was righted and you were allowed to exit. There you made it a few feet before you wilted into Raph. “I-I l-lifted!”

“Lifted?” Raph offered you his stuffed animal.

You grabbed it with a might that rivaled its owners. “I-In m-my s-seat…! I-it w-wasn’t t-tight t-to m-my b-body. I l-lifted up i-into t-the a-air!”

Mikey spun around to glare at the employee, but he was strapping new guests in.

“Let’s go!” Mikey grumbled and ushered the group along.

You nodded shakily and it took walking halfway across the park before you steadied a little. It was there that you met up with the ride crew fresh off their coaster and oozing adrenaline. April was hollering about going a third time and tackled Casey. The former recruit hoisted her up and paraded April around. Mikey passed you off to Donnie who animatedly regaled you about the ride they’d just been on. He had the history of it and listening to him seemed to take your final edge off.

It was only to be built back up as this reunion was so you could hit your coaster.

The park capacity had grown as time wore on. It meant a lengthy wait in the line which was happily filled with conversation. Catching up on everything that had been missed, you updated the schedule before it was your turn. This time it was four in a row and Mikey high fived Leo to signal he’d ride with him. The couples took the first car and Donnie had words about how being in the front had its advantages.

You didn’t seem to agree, but you were soothed when this park attendant didn’t have the same odd edge. She secured you into place with a heavy click and pulled so hard on your seat belt that you appeared to have the air squeezed out of you. Donnie prattled on about how you would achieve 50 miles per hour and an employee joked about you losing your shoes. Mikey used his last free motion to zip his fanny pack up tightly and there was a ticking counter for takeoff.

The entire train shot like a bullet out of the station. Without a single building momentum, it instead bounced with turns and rotations that mimicked a balloon caught in a wind tunnel. Mikey screeched with excitement as he saw ground, then sky, then ground again, in a seemingly endless loop. His body was rocked violently side to side, but little of him went anywhere with the safety equipment.

With its hurtling speeds, the ride appeared over as fast as it began and Mikey was giggling his head off.

Donnie disengaged first, but you didn’t move.

He immediately rounded back on you and the employee came along with alarm on her face that immediately shifted to outright laughter. “Omigosh! Look at your hands! You made indents with your f-fingers! I’ve never seen that!!”

“Let go, nova dearest…” Donnie urged you.

You made a weary noise and didn’t seem to know you were safely docked.

“You’re alright. You can let go now.” The attendant joined in.

“You’re all good! Still got your zapatos on!” Leo cheered from where he was already back on solid ground.

Mikey followed after him. “The schedule, Y/N!”

That got you and you disengaged your fingers.

The attendant and Donnie helped you to the platform.

Your hands were out and stuck in a claw-like positioning.

“This is when you-!” Casey caught a finger and pulled hard.

It popped the joint and you squeaked in pain.

April immediately went on both attack and defense.

She kicked Casey down a short flight of stairs and helped you check your finger. “It’s not out of socket… You good?”

You nodded, teary eyed.

“Alright, alright…” April shushed you and slung an arm around your shoulders. “Where’s Raph? I bet he wants to do tea cups!”

“Tea cups! Spin off, bro!?” Leo whooped and turned toward Donnie.

You murmured out Raph’s location.

Donnie shoved Leo away and moved into yours and April’s shadow.

Casey butted up to Mikey’s side. “Was that… a grave mistake…?”

“No…” Mikey turned to her with sympathy. “Too much at the wrong time? Yes, but you’ll be forgiven, I guarantee it.”

Casey didn’t seem convinced.

“How about this…?” Mikey ducked his head down to share a secret.

Casey came with severe attention.

“When we have souvenir time, pay close attention to what Y/N looks at. If they pass on something, but look back at it, you know they actually want it. Get them that and say sorry then. It’ll be perfect.”

“You are sure?”

“I…” Mikey softened. “… know Y/N better than anyone. Yeah, I’m sure.”

“I see… Understood.” Casey gave a nod and broke the walking huddle.

Raph was back with the gang and had a churro that was almost as long as him. Apparently a cart man had taken his size on as a challenge and made this one special. Raph was unfazed at having not ridden any rides yet and munched happily. Your spirits raised and by the time you were at the tea cups, you asked to sit out. April offered to join you, but you urged her to go as you wanted to watch and take pictures.

That was enough of a go ahead and everyone smashed themselves into a single cup even though there wasn’t enough room. The attendant at this ride didn’t seem to care as no one else was on and started up the cups. All six cup members grabbed the center wheel and began to turn it with reckless abandon. The cup immediately exceeded some upper limit and the resulting g-forces forced Mikey to let go first.

He slammed, carapace first, into the wall and found he couldn’t pull his limbs back to return to spinning. Leo’s lips flapped as he challenged Casey who was directly across from him. She took him on with a wild expression and April was the next to hit the wall. She seemed to suffocate on the oxygen being spun away from her and Raph’s clambering claws slipped.

He had little space to fly and only seemed to open up more room for the final three. Donnie held out as long as he could, but he too was knocked out by the rotations. That left Leo and Casey who, to Mikey’s eyes, were never going to stop. The ride continued to spin longer than Mikey thought possible. Though it was only in millisecond clips, he sort of caught the vision of you talking to the employee. You pointed towards them and he thought maybe it was to stop you, but Mikey also caught a clip of the employee laughing.

The ride wasn’t going to stop until someone won, he realized then.

“Gonna… be… sick…!!” Donnie retched.

“I’ve been puked on before!” Leo cackled, not backing down.

“Try cleaning up frosting vomit!” Casey matched him.

“Been there, done that!” Leo seethed.

Raph’s eyes spun and his head lolled.

“We lost Raph!” April screamed.

Donnie and April latched onto the arms of the largest half-conscious brother to keep him from flying out of the ride.

The tea cup began to wobble.

“U-uh… G-guys!?” Mikey squeaked.

“Give it up!” Leo’s words slurred.

“Never!!!” Casey screamed.

A bit of spit exited her mouth.

As if caught in the middle of a vortex, it seemed to slow around the tornado.

Mikey watched as it hung before choosing a direction.

It hit Leo directly in the eye.

The slider let go and flew back with enough force that there was an audible bang against the metal cup.

A song played that signaled the end of the ride and no amount of gentle slowing could adjust everyone’s equilibrium.

“I… win!!!” Casey managed before collapsing right out of the cup.

The others similarly fell to the floor and half crawled their way in different directions, unable to tell which way they were going. You rushed into the ride and helped the best you could. It meant you flew from April almost hitting a guardrail to Raph who regained consciousness, but could barely speak. Donnie dry heaved and the attendant had to use a crowbar to remove Leo from the cup. There was light conversation about paying for damages which was turned into an elaborate lie instead so the park employee wouldn’t get in trouble for his various infractions.

Something convincing was agreed upon and half the group took a break.

Leo said he was fine otherwise and said he’d be hitting the restroom. April checked her phone as he was walking away and screamed at him about the time. He immediately took off running and she pursued him all while asking why he felt the need to flee. Raph said something about needing to move since his ear drums thought he was and he gravitated towards a nearby slide. Mikey watched after, nursing a new water. He glanced at his companions and found you soothingly rubbing the back of Donnie’s neck while Casey lay in a limp pile.

“It’s two to a carpet…” You told Mikey without looking.

“Isn’t Raph the two?” Mikey chuckled.

You smiled and flicked your eyes to give him permission to go.

He returned the grip and tipped his water in gratitude before chasing after the oldest. This line moved swiftly and Mikey and Raph butted together to walk the straight line between the bars. They were soon sitting on a soft rug and then pushed down an enormous snake. Black, red, and yellow flew by and it was oddly grounding as they slithered through twists and turns. By the time they were off, the vertigo had lapsed and Mikey ran back to you with the good news.

You had moved over by a trash can where you were patting Casey’s face with a wet towel.

“She get sick?” Mikey asked.

You opened your mouth to respond but the women in question cut you off.

“N-nev-!” Casey belched wetly. “-er… yes…”

“Don’t worry… Even warriors throw up sometimes…” You passed Casey the towel.

“Thank you…” Casey showed a moment of vulnerability and leaned into you.

You helped her up and back over to where Donnie was still sat.

“Lunch is next…” Raph spoke nervously and his stomach growled.

“How!?” Donnie threw out a limp wrist.

Raph chuckled sheepishly.

“Food can help… Something light?” You asked Casey.

She only groaned and moved to walk herself towards the larger food court.

“How are you fine?” Donnie asked Mikey.

“Hmm…” Mikey wondered aloud. “Y/N has been pumping me full of dry food and water so I guess I’m hydrated and the food ate up my stomach acid kinda thing?”

Donnie thought it over before stopping at the next closest cart to get a water.

Mikey watched him sip on it and the group eventually gathered at an outdoor dining room flagging a congregation of food stalls. Mikey took orders and Raph offered to carry the trays while everyone else rested. You darted away for napkins and condiments and there was soon a spread on a large wooden table. April joined back up just as food was served and when asked who Leo was with she would only grumble out that she didn’t want to talk about it. No one pushed and she left to momentarily get her own food.

Eating slowly recuperated everyone and there was talk of how to proceed. The tram ride was technically next and Raph was full and eager to ride the train around the park. You urged the others that this was a good thing and there was a stuffed trudge over to the platform. It was an agonizing staircase up, but once inside, the AC pumped through the cabin. Each person laid out on their own bench and slipped into a dreamy daze as the tram made routine pit stops.

For several cycles, the transport was yours. Mikey sat across the alley from you and watched you stare at the way the sunbeams sparkled through the rides. They seemed to be the only light penetrating the calm and darkened car. It added to the mood and it was only when another person finally got on that you all moved to disembark.

You were on the far side of the park and there was a divide on what to do next. A certain coaster was here that could apparently fit Raph and he seemed eager to try it. Meanwhile, April and Casey had their eyes set on a log ride on the other side of the park. Raph looked on expectantly at the rest of you and Donnie agreed to go. You and Mikey said you’d wait in line, but not ride and everyone separated. The queue was shorter here for the distance from the other rides and the line curled through the trees. It offered a delightful flush of shade and conversation was pleasant.

Raph was allowed on after some adjustments to his seat and Donnie bid you and Mikey adieu.

You showed Mikey the tea cup pictures you had taken and Mikey couldn’t stop laughing at all the ugly wind blown faces. You regaled him on how you asked the ride attendant to keep spinning and how the man thought it was a hilarious contest. He apparently had a speed gun and caught a top speed of 89 miles per hour which seemed absurd, but you had evidence of that too. You then readied yourself and snapped a photo as the coaster shot by with Donnie and Raph. You shared that shot with Mikey too and it painted Raph the picture of terror and Donnie something a little more lighthearted than neutral.

You were both laughing and turning the images into memes when the other two brothers joined you.

Donnie appeared in good health, but walked a small distance from the group to slouch against a bench instead of sitting on it.

Raph got his phone out, laughed at the first meme in the group chat, and then was obvious about getting the itinerary up. “Oh, there’s a break in the schedule here. We can either rest, go to a show, or shop!”

“What kind of show?” Mikey perked up.

“Uh…” Raph fiddled with the drop down and his large fingers. “Dance show!”

Mikey debated openly.

You were looking at Donnie.

Donnie didn’t seem to notice.

Donnie looked like he was sulking. 

You turned to Mikey with a sort of expectant look.

Mikey tilted his head and wondered if he should prod his brother.

You instead moved closer to him and gestured for him to lower his head.

He brought it down to listen. “Mind shopping with me? I don’t think he’s had enough protein…”

“Sure!” Mikey bobbed. “Raph, you going to the show? We’re hitting the vendors!”

“Think I’ll be good alone…?” Raph weighed his options with a swing of his head.

“I think you’ll run into Leo and his mystery date.” Mikey wagged his brow ridge. “What’s more romantic than dancing?” 

Raph lit up. “Dance show it is!”

You waved Raph and his stuffed animal goodbye and went to flank Donnie with Mikey.

He moved listlessly with you and Mikey thought you were spot on in your guess.

He hadn’t seen Donnie eat anything other than a plain baked potato at the concession so it was highly likely that his brother hadn’t had anything with protein in it since his morning omelet. With all the walking and excitement, that meant he had little more than carbs to work off of and it was the likely culprit for his dip in mood.

You rounded in and out of several open air shops where Mikey clocked a keychain for Casey to get you later.

He covertly snapped a pic and sent it off along with a location and received back a flurry of emojis.

Mikey rolled his eyes affectionately and followed you into a shop with jerky.

Donnie turned his nose up at the stuff, but the employee there was a proud one. They went on and on about how tender it was which Donnie openly scoffed at. Samples were passed out to prove him otherwise, but he refused to partake. You and Mikey clinked paper cups before downing yours and Mikey drilled the employee on how they’d done it all while his mouth was still full. It was far too tender for what it was and the employee laughed haughtily and only agreed.

Donnie tentatively took a corner shred as a bite as if there was a chance it was poisoned and was struck by how easily the meat tore away from the piece. He then ate his fill and picked up several bags which he snacked on while you and Mikey debated flavors. The employee threw in a discount and you exited with several bags and a much happier Donnie.

A piece of jerky stuck out of the corner of his brother’s mouth and you pulled the group aside to look at the park map. There was clear conversation of where to head next and Mikey’s attention wandered. He was no longer wearing his cape which meant he had lost it at some point. Instead of wondering where, Mikey accepted the disappearance and fiddled with the zipper of his fanny pack. You and Donnie were still talking and he was about to interject in case you had gotten off topic when a man walked by. 

Mikey stared after him for a long moment and placed him as the man from the freefall ride. 

A small spark of resentment flicked in Mikey’s chest and he decided this walk by had occurred for a reason. 

“I’m… I’m gonna be right back! Do whatever… yeah, whatever…!” Mikey ran in the direction the employee went.

You shouted out questions behind him, but didn’t pursue.

It took a bit of winding as Mikey lost track, but around a curve of fence, there was an obvious park worker entrance that said ‘KEEP OUT.’ It was also very obviously wide open and Mikey popped his head in to check. There was a long hallway of built up fence that disappeared around a bend. He walked cautiously down the path until a sliver of an open area became visible. Stopping there and hunkering down in learned scouting, Mikey saw the park employee walk into frame with another following him and yanking his hat off.

The offensive man slapped his coworker and the other man complained that he almost dropped his headwear.

Mikey chewed his lip at the first bubbles of anger.

The mean man laughed. “Aw, did I scare you?! Careful now, don’t wanna shit yourself!”

“Get lost, Zach.” The second man waved him away.

“Don’t be like that, Nevan. Whatcha doing?”

“Taking five, beat it.”

“Aw, come on! We’re both hiding out” The jerk who was now dubbed Zach leaned on the wall beside the other man.

“No, dude. I just need a second and I’m not getting written up for you again.” The nicer guy who was apparently named Nevan sneered. 

“Jerry’s a jackass! He hands out write up slips like parking tickets!”

“No, you’re always breaking code.” Nevan waved Zach off to leave.

“Come on! You’re already here! I just wanna tell you about this nutcase on the free fall!”

Nevan put his fingers in his ears and sang.

Zach tackled him and bumped a nearby trash can that buzzed with the jostling. 

Mikey caught his fingers in a wood plank to keep from interfering. 

Zach soon had Nevan in a headlock. 

“What the fuck is your problem!? Get off!!” Nevan struggled. 

“Listen and I’ll let go!” Zach cooed. 

“Screw you!”

Zach squeezed.

Mikey seethed, ready to step in.

“Fine! You know what?! Fine! Just let go!!”

Zach threw his hands up.

The other man rubbed his collar. “You fucking suck. I hate you so much…”

“Nah, you love me!”

“Just say your stupid shit so I can go, man!”

“Stupid…?” Zach burst out ugly laughing.

Nevan used the cover to inch toward his escape.

“This morning, you shoulda seen it!”

Nevan knew to pause when Zach looked.

“There was this grade A scaredy cat with these inhuman freaks. I’m telling you, we need to round them all up so we don’t gotta look at ‘em!”

Mikey slid his foot forward.

“Dude!” Nevan shoved Zach. “No! Fuck you! I’m not listening to that! My sister is dating a Labrador dude and he’s the best! That’s it. I’m out! I’m reporting you!”

“No! Come on!” Zach tried to pursue.

In a flick of his hand, Mikey manifested a chain in front of Zach’s foot.

Zach tripped, but Mikey pulled hard on the mystic energy.

It snapped tight and momentum pulled the man in the other direction.

He stumbled the other way with flailing arms and Mikey was careful in manifesting individual links under his feet so he wouldn’t be able to catch a grip on the ground.

Zach slammed into the trash can and it fell over alongside him.

There was a dull thrum before bees burst from their hive inside.

Nevan scrambled away as Zach was immediately attacked by the swarm.

Zach screeched and Nevan puffed with one shock of worry before he straightened. “You know what?! Serves you right!!”

Nevan turned and Mikey bolted back down the path and out into the park proper. He made a few sharp strides to make it look like he was walking by and he glimpsed Nevan emerge. The employee slammed the ‘KEEP OUT’ door behind him and the distant sounds of Zach’s attack melded in with screams from coasters. 

Nevan disappeared and Mikey was left relatively alone to cheer. He pumped a few happy fists before skipping back to where he’d left you and Donnie. The pair of you weren’t there and Mikey knew he could check his phone to find your location, but instead chose to wander. Misters had been turned on for the heat and he slowed by the spray to let it douse him. When his shirt was thoroughly soaked, he continued to meander.

It took him past happy families that were making memories, couples who tittered cutely to one another, and friends who snapped photo after photo. He felt honored to be privy to all these people’s special moments. This all came about because of you. You and your determination brought him here and he couldn’t be happier. You would have each other for the rest of your lives and it was with that vision of you old and grey that Mikey heard your laughter.

Donnie’s voice predictably followed and Mikey moved forward at a leisurely pace. He came upon a small unused pavilion behind some trees that he bet was great for kid’s shows. Now, it was currently empty and on the closest row to the top, Donnie was seated and you were hovering over him. Your hands were placed on either side of his head and you leaned forward to dot the tip of his beak with your nose.

Donnie reached up and steadied himself by grabbing your arm. “Y/N…”

You hummed curious in response and pulled away to run your thumbs soothingly over his cheeks.

 “Y/N, my beloved Nova. My darling . My luminous explosion of which all other ceases to be in light of you…” Donnie spoke again, sounding a little dopey.

“What is it?” You giggled and curled your fingers under his chin. 

“I need you.” He turned inward to nose and kiss one of your palms.

“You have me.” You kissed his forehead. 

“That’s not near enough. Do you know how long it’s been?” Donnie grouched lightly. 

You shushed him and shuffled until you were between his knees. “You’re having fun today.”

“I suppose that’s true...” He tested light brushes of his fingers against your waist. 

“You’d do it again, I bet.” You nodded to him and, in a happy trill, he pulled you flush to him. 

“Yes, well…!” His head dove into your shoulder as you settled in his arms. “How can you use my equally adored logic against so callously?”

“Callous, huh?” You still had his head and thumbed one of his cheeks.

“Yes.” He puffed them out so you had more to press.

“When you didn’t have to ask…?” You led him.

He peered at you curiously. “Ask what?”

“For my attention.”

He thought for only a moment before his expression went especially gooey.

“I could tell. You missed me. I missed you… It’d been a little too long, but I’m here now.”

“And you’ll… stay…?” He appeared anxious and quickly tried to mop it up with haughtiness. “I’ve yet to have my fill and my Y/N battery can be quite large so who knows how long it will take the receptacle to refill when-!”

You nuzzled down into his cheek.

His lips stalled out at the affection and gave up to lounge against you.

“Of course, I’ll stay. Maybe I’m not as exciting as those coasters, but we’ll have just as much fun together. We always do.”

“True, you aren’t enjoyable as a thrill ride…”

You were unmoved.

“You’re a far greater excitement.” He nudged for your full attention. “I can’t wait to see what you’ll do next.”

You gave it with a flush of your lids. 

He somehow turned up his affections. “I love you.” 

“I love you.” You responded immediately and moved your head to meet his lips. 

Mikey stood quietly for the exchange before he lowered his gaze. It didn’t exactly feel like a revelation that you and Donnie were indeed some form of hopeless romantics, but it had been interesting to see it play out. You were a specific type of bold for your boyfriend and Mikey reached up to press a fist to his plastron. He wasn’t sure when, but at some point the cat in his chest had leapt away. It left warmth in its place and Mikey found that no matter how much time had passed, that heat lingered. There was perspective there and Mikey was glad he had stumbled upon this display. It was a signal that all was right in the world and, after giving you love birds a few more moments, he moved to make his presence known.

You squeaked out apologies for modesty, but didn’t flee from your partner.

Mikey waved you off and called himself a creeper before he tacked on that he could make that twofold.  

The specification caught Donnie’s attention where he loosened his grip on you to press what Mikey meant.

Mikey openly regaled the pair about the nefarious employee Zach.  

Donnie rose gravely and paused to break his character to ask you something with his eyes. 

You were still clearly processing Mikey’s story and only blinked at him blankly. 

Donnie’s lids dripped with adoration and he pecked your cheek before stepping free of the bench. 

It took two steps for him to shift into rage and announce that he was heading to an information desk. 

A formal complaint was about to be logged whether either of you liked it or not.

You and Mikey barely kept up with Donnie who tore a path towards his destination.

You shared a hopeless look with Mikey about how your boyfriend couldn’t be stopped.

Mikey responded in kind as he knew his brother.

You both laughed and highly contrasted the darkened aura of his sibling.  

It was a joyous light. 

It was one he shared with you that you had made all your own.

💛 THE END 💛

My greatest gratitude to my betas @tmntxthings and @thepinkpanther83 for joining me in the completion of another work.

[bloomeng]

Shout out to the person who noticed Steph was the only one in heels and said Dick would totally wear heels. You didn’t know it but you were ahead of your time (it was always my plan to put discowing in heels).

Steph originally wasn’t going to get heels but then I got the idea to add the wings and I fell in love but I think the in universe reason is she wanted them for the drama and she was extrapolating design elements from Batgirl’s og outfit and Batwoman. I was going for like a gothic princess sort of vibe which turned out a bit more Fischl from gi than I intended, but I think that actually suits the vibe pretty well.

Another shoe detail: Jason’s shoes are meant to be slight platforms to match his desire to be tall and imposing.

This is a side tangent but I want to talk about it. For this au I’ve been trying to strike a balance between feminine and “would this character actually wear this?” Now the answer is mostly no. The outfits by nature are impractical as hell bc that’s how magical girl media is, so the question I’ve been asking is more “would this character feel comfortable in this outfit?” I want each look to be equally feminine which means I’m hyper conscious of not making the women more feminine than the men. Magical girl designs are hyper fem by default so my goal is to basically make everyone relatively the same amount of fem.

However, I’m also trying to take into account personality. This is where I might lose some people but hell it’s my au. So why are Jason and Cass the only ones so far with real skirts? This is totally my headcanon but I think they’re the only ones who would benefit from skirts:

Dick would be fine with wearing a skirt but I think he’s ultimately neutral about it. He would totally do it though if someone asked and would be fully aware of how nice he looked.

I don’t know if I’d say Tim would like wearing skirts so much as he doesn’t care. He’s more concerned with practicality.

Steph doesn’t have any issues with skirts but I think as a part of her uniform she would feel stifled. As as I said previously I think part of her look is based on Bats she would’ve looked up to but also partly it was secret wish fulfillment for that little girl who would’ve loved to look like a kickass mary sue demon princess from a y/a novel.

Duke in my opinion wouldn’t see the appeal. I think he’d be similar to Dick but just a little more shy about wearing one. I gave him a little ruffle though bc I thought it was cute.

Babs is fine with skirts but tends to prefer pants.

Cass is a bit different because I think wearing something frivolous is so novel to her. I wanted her outfit to be a blend of her canon design and her appreciation for dance. I tried to contrast her more practical elements (like her pants and armor) with the soft things I think she would enjoy (like a flowy skirt.) I still have ambition to go back and design a Black Bat outfit for her but I haven’t quite figured out the direction I want to take with it.

Jason on the other hand— this also very much in hc territory— I think didn’t know how much he would enjoy a skirt until he got to wear one. Stepping away from the universe for a sec; Jason is the most masculine design fundamentally which means that in order to match the vibe I would have to make him the furthest from his canon design. I’m really not trying to make a statement or subvert things by putting men in skirts bc it’s supposed to a silly au with aesthetically pleasing designs. I like feminine things and it shows in my work however I don’t see clothing as naturally gendered. That’s my little context psa back to my point. I think Jason is the most likely to wear a skirt and actually feel empowered by it. At first I think he was embarrassed by it but the outfits choose you so he just went with it out of necessity. And through that he found he really thrived in the juxtaposition between his intentional imposing figure and this unashamed femininity. He’s a drama kid at heart and fr what’s more dramatic than an ill-advised fit that serves. The skirt to him feels like a costume that helps give him the confidence to be Red Hood or ig… Red Bow. (Which is sorta how I think of the red helmet in canon but I also do believe that Jason and Cass would have the most fun wearing a skirt.)

I haven’t decided if Bruce will get a skirt or not but if he does just know that my reasoning is that his artifact was humbling him. Like you take yourself too seriously calm down with the brooding. He would use the skirt as a way to conceal more weapons.

(I think Kon would love wearing skirts but in this au because he built his own outfit I think he was trying to seem impressive and edgy and distinguish himself from Clark. I also think, despite enjoying skirts, he would have to work up the courage to wear them in public and never as Superboy because he would be too conscious of his image.)

Anyway I don’t claim to always succeed with my intentions coming through in my work but this is what is running through my head.

[drxmxss]

do yall remember a week or two ago when taeyong liked that cute video of that couple staying up with their baby on reels…and everyone was like aww he wants to be a dad so bad how sweet…(or also that he wants to be pregnant but that’s neither here nor there)

edit: heres the link btw!

https://x.com/taeyongpictures/status/1739896348520980920?s=46

well! imagine you and him have been married over a year now and you start to notice he’s been having a bad case of baby fever.. always tagging you and sending you videos of cute little funny baby videos on tiktok and mommy vlogs saying “wouldn’t you look cute doing this?” and dragging you around the store to look at baby clothes bc how are hats that small!! just gushing and cooing at the itty bitty pink socks with bows and you swear you see a tear in his eye.

obviously you aren’t oblivious to this. you knew having a family was one of his goals, and it was yours too!! but both of you worked and even though he made enough to support the both of you and more, you’d assumed he would wait a while after marrying you, but after he had literally squealed in the middle of the store over a tiny pair of overalls you decided it was time to have the conversation with him again.

“honey…do you want to have a baby?” you ask softly one evening in bed, your arms are wrapped around his waist as you both start to fall asleep. taeyong almost breaks your arms flipping over so fast to look at you with bright wide eyes.

“why? do you? what brought this up? are you thinking about it?” he asks you quickly, hands on your shoulders. you smile softly at him, thinking how cute he looks when he’s so excited about this.

“well anyone would be stupid not to see how badly you do..you almost burst into tears looking at baby clothes and my entire fyp is just babies babies babies from everything you send me. you obviously do.” you say. taeyong frowns now, looking a little guilty “well yeah but..i don’t wanna pressure you if you aren’t ready..”

“Of course I’m ready my love..I just wanted to make sure you were.” you reply, hugging him close.

hearing that made taeyong snap almost instantly. that night he’d made it his mission to cum in you at least 3 times, saying “I don’t care if your birth control doesn’t wear off yet this is practice baby we gotta get ready for the real thing.” right after he makes a calendar marking the days of when you would be ovulating next.

“the real thing” turned into a big event for the two of you. you thought his baby fever would settle a but after telling him you were ready to start a family, but if anything it made it crazier. everyday he made sure to bend you over anywhere and everywhere to take him raw, at the blink of an eye he was ready and it always made you feel so special that he was that excited to breed you :(( he’d love how compliant you are and loves to just fill you up all day everyday. the thought of you round with his babies just sets something feral off in him.

and now instead of just looking at the baby clothes he was buying them by the rack not even bothering to care about the gender. “maybe we’ll get lucky and you’ll have twins.” he’d tell you. everyday a package came with a new pair of booties. “im not even pregnant yet taeyong!” you say, opening another box to reveal another pair of footie pajamas the perfect size for a newborn.

“i know but isn’t it the cutest thing baby?” taeyong coos, folding the pajamas neatly and storing them in the already too full closet in your shared bedroom.

one night, while he’s scrubbing your skin softly in the bath after yet another attempt he whispers “i think this time worked darling..i feel it..”and the thought alone makes you beam, his fever starting to rub off on you more and more. “i think so too my love..” you mumble back, admiring the way the water and his arms feel around you.

a few weeks later, you start to feel a bit ill and decide to take taeyong with you to the doctors office, a positive pregnancy result makes the both of you giddy, all smiles and kisses in the little observation room.

“by the way” the doctor says, flipping a few pages on the chart, “it looks like it’s twins!congratulations!”

you have to catch taeyong before he falls to the floor, but the excitement doesn’t falter still.

[brayneworms]

cold as ice, baby | hinata hajime

kinktober day one: fingering

word count. 2.9k

content. MINORS/AGELESS BLOGS DNI, trans!hinata, gender neutral reader, fingering, established but new relationship, kissing, no real power dynamics but hinata likes being in control, biting, reader doesn't get touched but it's implied at the end

♪ freak - lana del rey.

kinktober mlist | regular mlist

Some days, Hajime's self-loathing is no joke.

It feels like the heat in Jabberwock intensifies it sometimes. Sort of... bastes it. Like it's cooking in its own filthy greasy residue and making him feel all oily and gross and hot. So, so hot. Under that stupid sun he cooks, and he sweats, and he feels like they can all smell it on him.

Probably not though. He showers every day, and nobody gets close enough to try.

It makes him feel a little sick, is all. How much he wants you sometimes. He feels gross, barely a step above Hanamura or maybe worse. He feels like he should go to jail sometimes for the way he ogles you. It's a hot island, so sometimes you have so much skin out, shoulders and legs, gleaming from sunblock lotion, slightly tacky from the whitish paste. Or the sea salt in your hair, or the chapstick you'd loaned from Saionji on your lips, apple and cinnamon. Or the swimsuits. Hajime's mouth goes dry.

He does not want to think about you in swimwear. Because then he's not going to stop thinking about you in swimwear, and it'll lead somewhere bad, which is the whole fucking issue, really.

You're so new, the both of you. He's liked you for ages, but you've only been official for a month or so. He can't just pounce on you like a starving lion. Even though he wants to. Even though he really, really wants to.

He watches you sit cross-legged with Tanaka to feed his hamsters, or get a piggyback from Owari with her strong hands on your thighs, or sit down and braid Ibuki's hair into loving little plaits, your fingers skating over the pale skin of her neck and scalp.

And it does something to him. He imagines your hands, smoothing down the tawny skin of his arms, his waist, encircling his ankles, gripping his throat, buried in his hair. He looks at your fingers and imagines them balling up the stupid standard-issue bedsheets underneath you. He sees you stretch out your legs and sees them bent in half, over his shoulders, around his waist like a vice, your pretty eyes clenched shut, your pretty mouth hung open.

Heat pools in the pit of his stomach.

Avoiding you and taking a lot of cold—unforgivingly cold—showers makes for a good temporary solution, but oh look, hasn't he just shot himself in the foot and scored a home goal with it? Because it just means you come knocking on his cabin door looking for answers.

At night.

When everyone's asleep, and you're alone, and he's only wearing his boxers because of this stupid perpetual heat.

"Have I done something wrong?" you ask, your voice all small and hurt, and Hajime wishes the ground would open up and swallow him whole.

"No! Nonono," he blurts out in a panic, and he steps aside to let you in like a moron, like the idiot he so clearly is. It's not the first time you've been in his cabin, obviously, but it's night and you look all soft and vulnerable and he thinks you're freshly showered because he can smell the coconut bodywash you like to use.

But then reality breaks through because you look—honestly hurt, crossing your arms and shifting your weight from foot to foot, avoiding his eye, and then Hajime mostly just feels like a huge piece of shit.

"I'm sorry," he sighs, and pushes the heels of his hands into his eyes in a gesture of weariness. "It's—it really isn't anything you, uh, did. It's me. I'm just... weird."

"Weird about what?" you press, stepping forward. "C'mon, you can tell me. Whatever it is, we can just... talk it out."

You're so sweet. "It's—uh, honestly, it's just kinda really embarrassing. And stupid. And... weird. And I really don't wanna weird you out, or like, make you think I'm... something I'm not, 'cause I'm not, like, the thing that you're gonna think I am but I just—"

"Hajime." Your hands on his shoulders, clamping down. The warm soft skin dimples between your fingers. Hajime's voice dies in his throat. He stares on, cheeks cherry-red, entirely too hot, sweat collecting unpleasantly on the nape of his neck. "I can guarantee nothing you tell me is going to freak me out, or whatever it is you're scared of. And I can see it's clearly... weighing down on you."

You're so nice. Weighing down on you is such a nice choice of words. In reality he probably looks constipated from stress.

"It's just—" His tongue flicks out nervously to wet his lips, and your eyes absently flit down to track the movement, oh fuck, "It's just..." Bad idea bad idea bad idea. "I kind of... I don't want to come on too strong and... scare you off."

Your brow knits; he thinks he sees some sort of understanding fall into place behind your eyes, but it's kind of distant. "Come on too strong how?"

His blush spreads from his cheeks to the tip of his ears, down his neck. "I... ahaha..." The nervous breathless stupid laugh he gives makes him want to strangle himself. "Y-you know. When I'm around you, I..." He swallows hard. "It—I can't help but think about... stuff I shouldn't."

He sees the moment it clicks into place for you; the slight widening of your eyes, the parting of your lips. "A-ah."

Mortification floods him like a tsunami. "Sorry! Fuck, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I never should've—" He's burning alive, he's actually baking like one of Hanamaru's luxury strips of meat that he slowcooks in the oven for hours on end so the whole hotel building ends up stinking of fucking, chicken and stock and rosemary all day—

"Hajime, hey." Your hands squeeze on his shoulders. "Just—breathe for a sec, please, you're freaking me out but not for the reasons you think you are."

Hajime gulps, eyes you nervously, and takes in a few desperate pulls of air. He feels small, like he's actively shrinking.

"First of all. It's not... like, weird, you know, to f-feel that kind of stuff in general," you say, incredibly haltingly like it's very awkward for you. "But it's even less weird when you're actually, you know, in a relationship, and I—I don't want you to feel weird about this, that's all, or about telling me when you're—you know. Because I'd be down. I mean, to help. Assuming that's what you want, I mean."

Hajime stares at you. His brain abruptly throws up its hands, bluescreens, and goes for a smoke break.

"Wha—wha?" he says intelligently. You smile fondly, the kind of smile that reminds Hajime why he fell in love with you in the first place.

"Do you want me to help you out?" you repeat, very clearly, and Hajime buries his face in his hands. Heat shoots through him like liquid lightning, illuminating every pore of his body. He can feel it gather between his legs.

"You don't have to," he mutters, heart thumping against his ribcage.

"Hajime," you say pleasantly. "D'you think you're the only one who's had to hold themselves back?"

It's pure, unadulterated shock that makes him lift his face out his hands to gawp at you, but the moment he does you cup his face with both of your hands and kiss him. He wonders if you can feel the heat of his burning skin on your palms, whether you care, and then your tongue is in his mouth and he stops wondering anything at all. He groans softly against your lips, and finally his useless hands move and he's grabbing, curling a fistful of your shirt in one hand and cupping the back of your neck with the other. He feels like he's been depriving himself of you for so long, and for fucking what? You feel incredible.

He walks you backwards until your knees his the frame of his bed and you're unseated with an undignified yelp. You bounce on the mattress, peering up at him. Hajime swallows hard. "Is this... okay? We don't have to—anything you want, God, anything—"

You put two hands on his waist, just above the waistline of his boxers, and Hajime stammers to a halt. He gazes at you, wide-eyed, brilliantly red. You press your lips to the skin just under his navel and his stomach sort of convulses at the sensitivity, and you keep going, down the trail of hair that disappears behind the waistband of his underwear, kissing over the fabric until you get to—

Hajime jolts and swears. His hands clench reflexively into fists at his side. "Lay down," he bursts out, and then flushes deeper. "Uh... please. If you want to. I—"

You giggle and pry your hands off him, leaving him feeling colder than ever. Hajime watches, mouth dry as you drape yourself lazily over his bed. Your sleep short ride up your thighs, the collar of your shirt dips down, and all the skin is making his head dizzy. He clambers over you a little clumsily, hitting your knee with his with a thud that makes you wince.

"Sorry!" he panicks, hands fluttering nervously over your leg. "Sorry, did that—that was an accident, I—"

"It's okay, it's okay," you laugh, the back of your hand covering your mouth. "Jeez, Hajime. Relax a little maybe."

His flush must be crawling down his chest at this point. "Yeah. Maybe." He glances around. "Kind of hard."

"Is it?" you ask with a pointed glance at his boxers. He groans, but the levity is extremely welcome, makes him feel less anxious. Reminds him it's just you, and you would never seriously laugh at him. Reminds him that he's safe.

"Is it okay if I'm—I mean." He wipes his clammy palms surreptitiously over his thighs. "I feel better when I'm more... in control. Y'know?"

You smile up at him. "That's fine with me. Are you going to boss me around now?"

Hajime laughs feebly, glancing away. He thinks it's a reasonable pretense that the idea doesn't make him ten times wetter.

He kneels between your legs and kisses you. You're so soft, skin warm and pliant and fresh from the shower. He can't hold back a moan when your tongue slips against his, and when your hand slides over his waist again, the pinky finger of your hand grazing the band of his underwear, he finally plucks up the courage to grab your wrist and drag it.

He lets out a choked sound into your mouth as your pliant hand slides between his legs. Pulling back from the kiss, panting hotly against your mouth. "Okay?" he asks hoarsely. "Please, oh my god, I need... only if you want, only if you want to..."

Your hand twitches to life inside the tight grip of his fist, and you skim your fingers over the wet spot of the fabric of his underwear.

Hajime shudders, dropping his head into the crook of your shoulder. "Ah... oh, fuck..." His shaking hand drops your wrist, reprimanding himself fiercely for maybe grabbing you too hard, but you didn't say anything, but he shouldn't just grab you and lead you like you're cattle, he opens his mouth to apologise when you cup his cunt through his boxers and he loses the ability to do anything at all. Anything other than moan into your skin, starting to get salty from the heat and the proximity, and he goes delirious with the idea that he's ruining you a little. Like you've just showered, you'd scrubbed your body all over with lovely scented soap and he's going to undo it methodically, deliberately, and you're going to let him, when it's all over you're going to smell like sweat and him and you'll have to clean all over again.

It's an intoxicating thought, the idea that someone as soft as you would let someone like him mess you up.

Your hand slips under the waistband of his underwear, follows the trail of hair down and finding him soft and hot and dripping wet. Hajime curses as your fingers skate almost curiously over his clit, his folds.

"Oh shit," you curse, mumbling almost more to yourself. "Y-you're so wet."

He makes a high, embarrassed noise in the back of his throat, eyes clenched shut, and his hips rock up into your hand in a gesture that feels inherently needy.

Despite his grossly obvious urgency, you take the time to bring your fingers back to your mouth and press them inside. Hajime watches, slack-jawed, pupils blown. When you take your fingers out, they're gleaming wet, and you grin at him. "You taste amazing."

Hajime is assaulted with all new images; your head between his legs, his hand on the top of your hair or tangled in your hair. Your tongue, soft and skilled against him, dripping spit and cum onto the carpet, and he has to stuff his knuckles in his mouth to stop himself moaning out loud. Sweat drips off his forehead and lands on your chest.

"Y/n," he croaks. "I'm gonna lose my mind."

You smile almost shyly, as if you didn't just have your fingers in your mouth right in front of him. "O-okay. Okay. Just, um... okay, I got it."

Hajime swallows hard. "Y-you're still sure?"

"I'm so sure," you tell him earnestly. And with that your hand glides down, over his collarbones, the twin scars arching beneath his breastbone, down his tense stomach and under his boxers again. This time, your fingers move with purpose. They roll over his clit and down the centre of his folds, parting them, dipping inside just slightly before coming back up. He feels a shivering mix of pain and pleasure as two of your fingers circle his clit, an indication that he's almost too sensitive; he feels like he's on fire, like forks of lightning are emanating from the vertice between his legs, and he lets out choked, high noises against your throat.

Mindlessly, it seems, his hips roll against your head, seeking something more. You take the initiative to prod with one finger, dipping lower from the other before teasing at his entrance. His thighs shake and part slightly for you, and you slip inside without another word.

The breach feels like breathing for the first time; he's so wet and so sensitive that you slide inside with barely a hint of pain, easing in up to the first knuckle.

"Ohhh god," he groans, feeling mindless, feeling weightless. "Ohgodohgodohgod..."

"What should I—"

"More," he nearly begs. "I want you inside."

The word should be embarrassing, but they just aren't. Not in front of you. You get your finger in slowly, inch by inch until your knuckles press up against him and he's clenching the sheets with his free hands.

He almost convulses when your finger curls up like it's searching for something; it presses against a spongey spot inside him and he whines from somewhere deep in his chest, and he hears you swear to yourself as you start moving in and out.

"Nngh, oh—hah..."

Oh he's gonna die. Your fingers are inside him. He's gonna fuckin' die—

One turns to two turns to three, your thumb rolling constant circles over his clit, sometimes catching so sensitively that he has to bite back whimpers. There's the stretch and the burn but even that is okay, feels good after a few moments. He feels distantly really bad that he's not touching you, but he will after, fucking hell he will after, whatever you want him to, he'd kiss the fuckin' ground you walk on for making him feel so good right now. All too soon he feels the familiar tightening in his stomach like a band.

"H-hey," he gasps out. "I think I—I'm c-close, so..."

"O-oh," you say, sounding equally breathless. "It's okay."

Your fingers push up into him, curling almost viciously into that spot inside him just as your other hand taps his jaw and guides his face to yours for a kiss. It's barely more than panting against each other's lips as your thumb presses down hard on his clit.

"Fuck, fuck," he cries. "Fuck, you're so fuckin'—so perfect—'m cumming, shit—"

He sobs out as he cums, alight from the inside out, shaking like he's just been hit by lightning. The pressure is so much that he needs an outlet, his finges pressing bruising marks into your hip and thigh, and he turns his head and bites down almost feverishly on your collarbone.

You tap his arm with a yelp, fingers jerking inside him as he starts to come down. He can feel his release dripping down his inner thighs and he lifts his head groggily.

"Shit," he mumbles eloquently, staring at the teeth mark on your skin. He didn't break skin, thank fuck, but he still feels mortified. "Sorry. Oh my god, sorry. That was—that was a total accident, I..."

"Ah, it—it's okay." You swallow hard. "Was that..."

Hajime shakes his head dazedly. "Amazing," he croaks. "Y-you're amazing." He gets the werewithal to roll off you with his shaking limbs so his weight isn't pushing into you anymore.

You let out a long, slow breath. "Was pretty amazing for me too."

Hajime glances at you with a trickle of amusememt. "Not yet it wasn't."

Your brow scrunches in confusion—but realisation dawns when you feel his hand slide up your thigh. In his eyes is a question, one that you nod hastily to. Hajime grins weakly.

"Good," he breathes. "As soon as I get my breath back, it's your turn." And it sounds like the sweetest thing ever when he adds, a moment later with a twist of that characteristic cockiness that leaps out at the most inopportune of moments: "I can't wait to see how pretty you're gonna look when I make you cum."

[yanderes-galore]

Oh yay! Undertale! Can you write a yan concept for Nightmare Sans? ^^

Poor you... He's going to be horrible....

Yandere! Nightmare Sans Concept

Pairing: Romantic/Platonic

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Obsession, Manipulation, Stalking, Sadism, Poor mental health/Talk of mental issues (Implied depression), Toxic behavior, Violence, Blood, Murder, Social and physical isolation, Kidnapping, Dark themes, Slight gore/Grotesque descriptions, Forced companionship/relationship (It's vague).

Nightmare would be difficult to deal with and get away from.

To you, he's the equivalent of an eldritch deity.

You can't kill him and your hate would only fuel him.

I mean, think about it.

Nightmare can traverse universes/timelines when he senses negative thoughts.

Cutting him doesn't kill him.

In fact, not much can hurt him.

The scariest example is probably an obsession who has little knowledge of the timelines and AUs.

That way you have no idea what Nightmare is... who he is... or what he wants from you.

You can get a similar result if you were aware of the multiverse, yet you might be more equipped.

Either way, Nightmare is drawn towards negative emotions.

As his obsession, perhaps you were going through a rough patch?

The good news about Nightmare is there's a low chance to get him as a yandere.

This is because in order to gain his attention, you have to have some pretty negative stuff brewing in you.

Nightmare would be the type of yandere to prey on weakness.

Nightmare would be more drawn to an obsession having poor mental health due to their environment.

The moment he's drawn to you?

Things only seem to get worse, unfortunately.

He'd be one of the more toxic yanderes.

Granted, they all are... but he's a special kind of evil.

When he senses weakness in his obsession, he pounces.

At first, he watches you.

He scouts you out, watching how you act, feeding off your negativity...

Then soon he starts meeting you, usually late at night where he blends in best.

I hope none of you were expecting him to be very... caring.

Nightmare would mess with your head, farming your negativity as though he's starving for it.

He acts as a manifestation of your poor mental health.

He isolates you socially by whispering bad thoughts.

He makes you think your friends hate you, that no one else cares.

All of it is lies, but those in a bad mental state are easy to manipulate for him.

His goal is to keep you to himself.

His "affection" is just a way to use you.

Considering what you have to go through to meet him, you're like a food source to him.

Nightmare is a monster in every sense of the word.

He watches you from afar, glowing blue eyes watching you with a certain hunger.

He loves your suffering... he feeds into it and off it.

Nightmare is good at manipulation, feigning care and compassion to lure you in closer.

As I said before, Nightmare would grow your negative thoughts.

Do you think everyone hates you? Well... he makes those thoughts louder.

They do, they always have... not one soul in your little world liked you or loved you....

But then he turns it around.

No one likes you but him.

Nightmare, as scary as he is, is your only friend and companion.

He plays the part, all a ploy to lure you in like an anglerfish.

He finds it cute when you believe every word he says.

You're in such a bad state you'd believe anything.

Who knows, you probably think he's some hallucination.

In reality, he's very real.

Nightmare would convince you to cut off all your friends and family.

He feeds you false promises of love, even sealing the deal with soft touches.

They aren't genuine, no, Nightmare views you possessively.

His feelings are more akin to a monster feasting on prey, or ownership.

His obsession isn't entirely out of pure love, if any love at all.

Every touch is calculated, every word planned.

You're going to be led into a sticky web of lies with him.

Nightmare plans to pull you deeper into the black inky thoughts you have.

If you think about it, he really is like a physical form of your current mental state.

He only ever seems to make things worse, too.

Nightmare would prevent any attempt to get better.

Therapy? Why even bother going?

You have him, don't you?

Please... he doesn't need you attracting his brother...

He's already taken claim to you, Dream would only ruin things.

Nightmare would keep isolating you and breaking you down until you're all alone.

Your negativity tastes wonderful to him.

By the time he feels you're all his... you can barely leave your bed.

You don't trust anyone, you don't know if you'll ever get better...

The only entity accompanying your thoughts is Nightmare, the ink black monster who never leaves you be.

Nightmare isolating you is important to him.

That way, even if you knew what he was doing, you can't leave.

Where else is there to go if all your bridges have been burned?

Exactly, nowhere.

Nowhere but back to him.

By the time you're ready to give up... he wraps you up in his arms, tentacle-like appendages dragging you tighter against him.

He promises to be merciful... to take you away from this place.

His words are more carefully placed lies.

This is the same monster who has definitely killed for you.

Any friends or family members who pry too much or get too close...?

Nightmare silently hunts them down, an appendage from his inky body impaling them in a bloody mess.

It brings him glee to know this will only make things worse for you.

The blood is quickly cleaned from himself whenever he "intervenes".

These acts have managed to give you the illusion of your friends and family really abandoning you.

Nightmare is a twisted individual, which is expected of his character.

His twisted behavior doesn't end when he lies to your face, saying he'll protect you if you just follow him.

He comments about you being unhappy in your life.

Don't you wish for something else?

Don't you want to leave?

Nightmare fakes the role of some guardian for you.

When you eventually agree, since you have nowhere to go, his grin turns sinister.

By the time you realize the true nature of Nightmare, he's already got you in his grip.

You can't tear yourself out of his grasp.

His grip is too sticky, forcing you to remain still as he teleports out of your world in a puddle.

Imagine if this was your first multiverse experience.

It's such a complex thing... and you only stumble upon it because Nightmare whisked you away.

No one's going to help you, you both know that.

His grip is unrelenting as he rambles about how much he supposedly "cares" about you.

He promises that you will have a new life... one different than your old one...

You'll live a new life by his side, forever...

But he never said your new life would be better than your old one.

[most-datable-datable-bracket]

ROUND 3 MATCH 22

Claude propaganda:

"To say Claude has trust issues is an understatement—you have to spend half the game earning his. (Claude isn't even his real name!) Once you have it, though, he's absolutely ride or die for you until the stars go out. He is so full of heart and ambition: He wants both sides of his heritage to get along, he wants to open borders and eliminate xenophobia and promote equality between commonfolk, and deep down, I think he craves a partner to stand with him at that new dawn, or an equal who sees his vision for the future and will fight for it just as hard. Nobody believed in him when he was a kid, but if you put your faith in him, he'll return it tenfold. Some people don't like that he's calculating, or has to leave the player character at the end of the game to go back to his homeland, but both are necessary elements for his goals to change things. He will always come back, and everyone who bets against him and his love for his companions is wrong with a big fat W. #KhalidForMostDatablePrez"

"Claude is a fun little onion of facades. He calls himself the embodiment of distrust, he acts like he's carefree and without worries, an unscrupulous schemer--and so many in universe buy into that hook line and sinker. He's used to others viewing him with suspicion and uses it as armor to obscure his not-so-dark truth: that he cares immensely, that he values minimizing the loss of life, and that above all he has so much hope that people will fundamentally choose to do better given the choice.

His front guards a center that his conflict filled world would be happy to tear apart. As the child of people from two nations in constant conflict--one of which is explicitly isolationist and dehumanizes those outside its church's reach--he hasn't really had a place where he can be without his facade. As a child he thought he could run, but when confronted with the fact that this hatred existed no matter where he ran, he chose to instead try to create a more just and kind world.

His inability to let others in beyond his facade at first may lead to a sense of distance, but isn't it then all the more satisfying when you're allowed in? All he wants is a little trust, a little faith, and--like what he wants to give everyone--a chance to be better.

And like that you got a charming young lad with a fun personality that your grandma would be thrilled to have stay forever."

Hades propaganda:

“Fields of Asphodel is a work in progress (but nearly finished!) text-based IF game where the MC plays the part of Persephone (you can rename your character tho) who get married to Hades at the behest of Zeus (being a giant douchebag per usual) and move to the Underworld. Hades is kind and respectful and cares deeply for his realm. He feels guilty that the MC was forced into this arranged marriage and does whatever he can to make the MC more comfortable. Even if the MC wants to leave, he puts the MC's feelings first. He drinks that respect women (gender neutral) juice everyday. Listen, this marriage is arranged by Olympus King Dick Zeus, so Hades has absolute zero problems if the MC dates someone else from his realm. Choose someone else's route (if you can!) He has the cutest kid, Makaria and of course everyone's favorite puppy Kerberos. Hades is a slow burn, he dodges and swerves the MC's flirting, pretending to be oblivious. He's not oblivious at all to the growing feelings between the two and that's what makes it sooo good.”

[writerblue275]

hi i love ur work so much and ive been racking up the courage to try and make a request so here we go. uhm. can you do maybe an irritated/upset!reader and how the heartsteel boys would comfort them? or vice versa with them being upset and the best way to comfort them/reader trying to comfort them.. idk loll. (ily again btw ur works giv me life)

Hello sweet Anon!! I’m so happy you enjoy my work! Thank you for the lovely words, they mean a lot to me. And thank you for requesting!! I totally get it. I’m a very anxious person so I definitely have to work up the courage to request or comment on stuff. But I promise I don’t bite (like 99.999999% of the time)!💙

How Heartsteel would comfort an upset/frustrated reader

Inspiration: So I know I said I’d work on requests generally in the order they’re sent, but I was literally in the process of doing basically this as a non-requested WiP. Because lately life has been TRYING. ME. 🙃 (I will neither confirm nor deny having multiple stress cries in my car the past week.) So even though this is my newest request, since I was already working on something like this, I might as well combine the two. I think I’ll just keep this to them comforting the reader, but I like the idea of doing a separate one where reader comforts the Heartsteel members. Also listen, I absolutely love me a good comfort moment. I melt.

Genre: Headcanon (with some fake texts??? Trying something a little new here.)

Type: A bit angsty just because you’re upset, but fluff because comfort.

Gender: Gender Neutral Reader!

TW: General hurt/comfort. Mentions of a no good very bad day/week for reader. Swearing.

Aphelios

I think Aphelios would actually do comfort pretty damn well. He’s also used to being stressed and tired and upset about things (because let’s be real he works so hard. Too hard sometimes) so he’d be great to turn to.

One thing I think Phel would do, if you do visit him in his studio, is play music to distract your mind a bit from whatever has you so upset. Now this might be through a file he’s already recorded on his computer and sent to Yone to be mixed. However, he also just has a shit ton of different instruments in his work space.

So pick one for him to play and he’s happy to do so. You get like a mini concert from an instrumental prodigy! Or even better, pick one that you want to try! He’s happy to teach you some basics on how to play it.

And it doesn’t matter how badly you might sound as you attempt to play an instrument for the first time, Phel’s nodding and clapping as if you just finished giving an incredible performance. Every time. Because he supports you. (Though he will use some very very light teasing occasionally, but he’s joking.)

And he’d definitely order some food in and cuddle or nap with you on his studio couch (which is so mind-blowingly comfortable for some reason). And once you are eating and settled together and in a better mood, then he’d ask if you want to talk about things.

And you don’t have to. He’s happy to continue to keep your mind on happier things. Phel also has a couple gaming consoles hooked up to a tv that you can play with him/watch him play. But he’s also happy to just let you talk and get everything off your chest. (He’s just so supportive oh my god.)

Ezreal

(I enjoyed getting to break out a little millennial/Gen-Z slang here lmao.)

If Ezreal has one goal in your relationship, it’s to try and make you smile as much as possible. He hates seeing you upset or frustrated about something. And he will do anything to help get the smile he adores back on your face.

So when you do come to him upset about something, his internal alarm is just going bonkers. DEFCON 1 level shit. 🚨🚨🚨

If you want comfort? Ezreal’s going to give it to you. He already loves cuddling you so you can have all the therapeutic cuddles your heart desires with him (god bless his love language of physical touch). And he’s more than happy to play with your hair or do whatever actions help you relax the most.

You wouldn’t even have to ask him, he’d already have your favorite comfort food ordered and he’d go pick it up (or have it delivered). He fully know your order by heart.

Builds the BEST pillow forts to unwind in. Truly an expert. Ezreal even decorates it a little bit with some of your favorite comfort things. And as his texts said, pick anything you want to watch. Whether that is a movie, show, gaming streamer, him gaming, it DOES. NOT. MATTER. It’s all up to you. Also if you want him to sing to you he absolutely will, no question. (Can you imagine? HEAVEN!)

He’d let you take the lead on whether or not you want to tell him what has you so upset. He knows stewing in your emotions isn’t always productive, but sometimes talking about things when they’re so fresh in your mind can make the feelings more intense. And while he’s not the go-to guy for advice, he’s an excellent listener. As long as he can play with your hands or hair or something, he’s fully tuned in, letting you get everything off your chest.

He’s such a great example of golden retriever boyfriend, and if golden retrievers are good at anything, it’s comfort and making people happy. So don’t you worry, Ez will have you smiling again in no time.

Kayn

So when it comes to Kayn, comfort is very interesting to think about. Definitely feel like he approaches comfort differently from, say, Ezreal, but he has his own special ways of supporting you and helping you reach a better mindset.

If he can tell you’re frustrated or angry or the type of upset that requires a little bit of rage release, he’s fully on board to go to a rage room with you so you can get out everything you’re feeling in a controlled and safe environment.

And you absolutely know Kayn’s cheering you on the entire time. “FUCK yeah baby! Show that wine bottle who’s boss!” Or “That’s it, Sexy. Work has been driving you nuts right? Take it out on this shitty copier. Fuck it up!” Or *softball pitches a vase to you while you’re standing at-bat*

He’s fully supportive. And if expressing your feelings requires more of an artistic approach, that works for him too. He has a small room that has been turned into an art studio where he goes to practice his graffiti (in a way that’s legal) and he would gladly let you use it. Or he’ll let you play with his guitars if you want. (You’re one of the VERY FEW who can. You, Phel, and Yone.)

And if you just need to talk out your feelings, Kayn’s going to be there to listen, only interjecting if he has questions or if he’s commenting something supportive. “Of course you’re upset, baby. That’s bullshit and would piss me off too!”

And his love language (giving) is physical touch. So if you just want him to hold you while you cry, he can do that. And physical touch doesn’t just mean holding you. Like his hands would just be gently wandering. Nothing suggestive necessarily, but just reassuring. Like rubbing your back or your arms. Playing with your hair. Stuff like that.

It absolutely breaks Kayn’s heart to see you cry. He will do anything to keep you from crying/make you feel better when you are upset. (Again 🤫🤫🤫🤫 don’t tell anyone but he’s a huge softie for you!)

K’Sante

As mentioned in previous headcanons K’Sante gives off the vibes of someone who is just amazing to talk to. And that absolutely applies when it comes to helping you feel better when you’re upset.

Just an absolutely incredible listener. Vent as much as you want to him. He’ll listen to every single word you say. And when I say listen, I mean fully tuned in. You have his undivided attention. (How could he give his partner any less??? He couldn’t, is the answer.)

And if you ask K’Sante for advice? He’s offering you sincere and thought out advice. He truly wants to help you, always.

Now beyond talking, he can also make a mean meal in the kitchen (even if Sett is the official best cook). So you’re going to enjoy some really excellent food. Either your favorite or one of his favorite comfort foods. And that’s never a bad thing.

You’re also receiving some prime cuddles. Have you seen K’Sante??? He loves holding you. And leaning against that broad chest while his arms wrap around you seems like a great way to feel better.

Oh and even better? He will absolutely sing for you if you ask. (Which bestie…how could you not??) His voice is so lovely too. And he will sing any song you want him to. (Though he definitely already knows your favorites that he can pull out if you don’t feel like picking anything/making decisions.)

K’Sante is just someone who would be amazing at comforting you. He’ll go the extra mile in helping you feel better and making sure you know he’s always got your back.

Sett

Sett would be phenomenal at comforting you when you’re upset. He loves to see you smile and will do anything to help bring a smile back to your beautiful face. (Remember his love language is acts of service).

He’d make your favorite comfort food. And hell even that would go a long way in helping you. He cooks with so much love.

And the CUDDLES. Oh my god cuddles with Sett would be 😩👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻. He’s so soft with the people he loves. And he loves YOU.

He’d pull you into his lap, wrap those lovely arms around you, and let you get comfy. And only when he can hear your breathing level out and feel you relax in his arms would he ask about what has you so upset.

And as you’re talking Sett would give you the gentlest little forehead/to-of-the-head kisses and rub your back and stuff. And he’d be such an excellent listener. He’d let you unburden yourself first before talking. He’d also ask if you just want comfort or if you want his advice. He realizes sometimes we all just need someone to listen while we vent and we don’t necessarily need people to give advice. And he respects what you want.

And if you’re ever angry/frustrated-upset, he’d offer to grab his boxing training pads and let you safely hit out your anger. He knows how cathartic that can be. And if you take him up on that, he’s cheering you on the whole way. (Such a hype man.)

And after dinner, he’d give you a couple options. Bath? Massage? More cuddles? Whatever you want, you get. Sett will take care of everything.

Yone

(A/N: The amount of time I spent trying to come up with a better contact name for him…but he’s just so 🥰.)

Yone would be EXCELLENT to turn to when you’re upset. There’s no one who understands work stress more than him (if that’s the problem), and he has all the tools to help you feel better, whatever the issue is.

One of the things Yone is best at is calming you down. Something about his vibe is just very grounding, which is super important when your emotions are running high.

He is absolutely someone who meditates regularly/uses incense and such. (He would have killed his band members by now if he didn’t.) So when you either come to him or call him and he can tell you’re upset/frustrated, I think he’d first do some breathing exercises with you to help settle you down and help you get your emotions back to a more manageable place.

If you’re with him in person, he’d light some of your favorite incense that he always has stocked for you and pull you down to sit in his lap so he can hold you. Because he knows you feel better when he does.

Once Yone can tell you’re in a much calmer state of mind, only then would he ask if you want to talk about things. And he’s truly leaving that up to you.

And once you’ve cuddled for a little bit, and finished talking if you do end up telling him, then he’ll definitely just keep you on his lap and work with you there. He knows you love watching him work on music. He’ll pass you your own set of headphones that he has plugged into a splitter, so you can hear what he’s doing. He’ll even ask for your input. (Nothing too technical unless you have a musical background, but more so “Which of these sounds better, my love?” Or “What do you think, baby? Instrumentals too busy?”) He also gives you the occasional forehead kiss while he works, and those are the BEST.

Yone just gives off such a peaceful vibe (when he’s not stressed by his band members), and that sort of energy is perfect to be around when you’re upset and you need comfort.

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed. This really helped me feel better I must say. Thank you Anon for requesting this too, and I hope I did your request justice! 💙

[alifeasvivid]

I really like the idea of England thinking of himself as someone who is very nurturing and caring. Taking gender out of the equation, he basically wants to be everyone's mom and he thinks that he's good at it. He's a gardener, a tender of tender things. But the truth is that his presence as a caregiver is much like a desert: mostly absent of any real life-giving quality and when the rains do come, they are too much and wash away anything substantial that had been built in the absence. Perhaps a bloom comes after, but it dies just as quickly.

He is doting rather than nourishing. It's partly born out of the anxiety of wanting so badly to be liked and not lonely. The more difficult work of giving someone what they need or even what they actually asked for can often, though not always, be overshadowed by the gratification he feels in the overt delight they display when given pleasure (of any variety).

Having learned much over his long life, I think he comes to find a shape he fits better: something like a mentor and provider, perhaps a more father-like figure instead of the mum he secretly sort of wishes he was. He's an exceptionally pragmatic person who is willing to self-reflect and adapt in order to achieve his goals, though he most certainly will also do a bunch of mental gymnastics as to why his shortcomings are the fault of circumstances or other people and not his own.

I also think there's a version of Arthur that is more self-centered and selfish than even Alfred is. It's the natural progression of his "Everything I want is mine, even if I have to take it" disposition that if something doesn't currently hold much interest for him, it doesn't really need his care. Even having lived so long, he still sometimes struggles to put the needs of others ahead of his own wants, though he has gotten better with time.

Sometimes, I just want to look England in the eye when he says he is satisfied with needlepoint and gardening and knitting and baking and keeping a good home and caring for his loved ones and say, "Sure, Captain. You keep telling yourself that."

[onyour-right]

First things first, I'm gonna need Gen V to never fucking do that again. How dare they release such a good episode and only have it be 34 minutes??? Is it a fucking sitcom??? They do that again and we WILL have problems.

Now, Cate. I done told y'all she was the mole and now look. I mean do I still love her? Absolutely. Do I think she is a victim of Dean Shetty's manipulations? 100%. Do I believe she thought she was protecting her friends? Yup. But do I also think Andre was right somewhat in what he said? Yeah, kinda do. Listen, with all the good intentions in the world the fact that she repeatedly made Luke forget about his baby brother when she knew the type of turmoil it was causing in him is twisted. The same way she was going to confess to Andre before the text came is the same way she should have confessed to Luke. Granted I think the reason she was even going to confess to Andre was because of how wrong things were going. But still, she ain't right for that..

So, I see three possible avenues they might take with her: first, kill her off at the end of the season in order to redeem herself to her friends; second, she could become an antagonist to the group (tho this is less likely); or third, she may act as a double agent and spy back on shetty so they can find out what's really going on..

Jordan Li. My beloved. My baby boy/baby girl. I can understand why they thought Marie couldn't accept both sides of them and I'm so glad they explored a bit more into their character's history. But baby, Marie wants to love on you no matter what your gender so just let her!!! At least they got to a point where they realised they were being unfair to Marie over the whole situation though, so hopefully episode 6 will have them talking about it properly. Alsooooo, Jordan getting pissed when Marie's brain was tampered with again? Good fucking food. Jordan moving closer to Marie at Cate's reveal? I was eating that shit upppp. Jordan this whole episode was kinda unhinged and you know what? I wanna see more, please and thank you!!!

Alsoooo, can we talk real quick about Jordan's conversation with Andre and Cate because I cannot have been the only one who was straight dyingggg through it. "is it a black thing?" "...oh my God!!!". The way Jordan didnt even dismiss the fact that him and Marie made a good couple too. Likeeeee. C'monnnnn.

Marie, my sweet girl. Once she finds out the true extent of her powers its over for everyoneeeee; she's gonna fuck everyone up and I personally will be cheering her on at the sidelines!! Slightly worried though because 1) who is her benefactor?? and 2) what if they are able to capture her somehow??? She is yet to go unhinged and I would like to see it, especially if it's in relation to something happening to Jordan.

Emma and Sam. I mean you know its real when one half of the pairing's mind has been wiped and still there is an undeniable connection between them.The fact that Sam went out of his way to find Emma after all the shit that went down??? Ooof, I'm living for itttt. The fact that even though Emma hadn't gotten back her memories she still believed him? Don't make me cryyyyy. I loved how Emma realised how wrong her mother was about her "getting big" & how she's beginning to carve out who she wants to be for herself. Also, her and Marie's friendship is honestly just goals.

Also, lowkey everyone should have just let Sam kill that Dr Cardosa because he's gonna bring big problemssss I fear, and on that note they should have him kill Dean Shetty too because ole girl needs to skedaddle her way out (although the person who takes her place could be even worse, so idk about that yet)

Also, someone please give Andre a hug that boy needs it. Seeing him unhinged tho?? Ooofffffff 10/10.

[tigerf00d]

Words Inside a Shell

Chapter 2: And Telling Me Your Memories

Pairing: Spike x Reader

Other Characters: Buffy and Willow, Xander

(mentioned), minor original characters.

Tags: NSFW later in the series! No use of y/n.

Afab but gender neutral.

Word Count: 1.3k

Summary: While trying to get over a crush on

a certain crispy-haired vampire, you end up

falling right back into his arms

Or, the one where a night out with the girls

goes wrong

<- Prev Next ->

Series masterlist

A/N: chapter 2 yippee! As a reminder this comes out a week early on ao3! That link should take you directly to the work! Next update has smut I promise. It was originally supposed to be in this chapter, to be completely honest, but I like to keep chapters around 1.5k just for pacing/so I don't post ginormous ones and super short ones in the same work.

The Bronze, as always, was loud. Both through the other patrons speaking, and the live performers, music echoing through the street outside. As usual, a delicate concoction of booze, sweat, smoke (fake) and smoke (real) filled the air, creating the familiar slightly dank aroma of the club. Sunnydale didn't offer many other avenues of nightlife, if that wasn't already obvious. Though with the Hellmouth happily causing havoc this was probably for the best. 

Naturally, your interest in the Bronze shifted in and out of focus, and your visit today felt almost nostalgic, especially with your goal and the girls. 

Now, under the admittedly dim lighting of the entryway, you could better see Buffy and Willow’s respective outfits. 

Buffy wore her hair loosely styled, somehow smooth despite recently dealing with the undead, a pale blue scoop-necked halter top, dark (black maybe, it was hard to tell in this lighting) mini skirt, and the boots you’d come to think of as part of her signature. 

Willow’s red hair had been straightened. Willow’s top had long, slightly flared, sleeves and a neckline that came to a slight v, highlighting her thin choker beautifully; as well as a longer skirt that swayed when she moved. 

Willow suddenly froze and groaned, “We forgot to show Spike the necklace.” 

“I’m sure it’s fine, Will.” You reassured, “Besides, he always manages to turn up eventually.”

“That’s true…” 

“Especially now that we have his favourite toy.” Buffy winked at you,

“I’m not Spike’s toy. He never plays with me. Not the way I want him to, anyway.”

“Ugh, too much information.” Willow wrinkled her nose.

“Hey, I’m not the one that brought him up after we agreed on no vampire talk.” You pointed it out. 

“So, dancing or fuel first?” Buffy chirped.

"..."

“So, what can I get for you folks?” The bartender leaned in, a wide friendly smile on her face. The name tag (Hello Christine) hanging loosely off of her shirt glinted, drawing your eyes. Buffy leaned in in return, half-yelling over the music to order for the three of you. 

“Two Shirley Temples and a virgin mojito, please.” The slayer passed the cash over the counter. 

Christine nodded, “Coming right up,” 

Shortly after, the drinks were sliding across the bar to the three of you, which you accepted with an easy grateful smile and looked to find a table, seeing your former usual spot unclaimed. 

“Ok, temples for the two lovely ladies, and the mojito for me.” You placed each drink in their respective places. 

“No Shirley for you, too?” Willow prompted.

“Yeah, I want the freshness tonight. Might come in handy later.” You laughed.

Buffy took a sip of her drink, then asked, “Is that our goal tonight? Be your most excellent Wing-women?” 

“It's not that serious.” Waving a hand through the air to dismiss the thought, the other resting on the table, you continued, “I just… want a distraction. Being here with you two is enough.” 

Buffy touched your hand, both girls smiling. 

“Besides. We both know it's not that easy. What do you say we finish these up and then go dance? The music isn't half bad tonight.” 

“I'm pretty sure the band has played here at least once before.” Willow mentioned happily. 

“So have most bands that end up on that stage, it's the Bronze.” You laughed. 

The three of you finished your drinks relatively quickly after that, ready to descend on the dance floor as a trio right as the music was beginning to get more upbeat. 

Your bodies moved in time, a sea of undulating patrons. You raised your arms seductively, finding purchase in your hair before drawing them back down your body, and repeating the process. As you did this, you scanned the room for a stranger who held potential. 

Buffy regained your attention with a nudge, nodding in the direction of a broad blond man. His hair was natural, longer than some of the other men in the club as you saw hairs curl slightly around his ears and flip out at the back of the neck, or at least it looked that way as you observed him while he was moving. A faded dark blue short-sleeve shirt was tight against his body, along with the black jeans. His outfit was simple but effective. 

You smiled, pleased, ignoring the similarities between him and a certain vampire, and cast an appreciative glance towards Buffy and then started your efforts to gain the focus of the man. 

You moved your position on the dance floor to be in his eye line, further away from the stage, but at least the music wasn’t so loud that you couldn’t think anymore. Finally, the man’s head turned towards you, and you caught his eye. 

He tilted his head, eyeing you with a close-mouthed grin. You bit your lip playfully and crooked a finger towards him, enticing him to come closer to you, and he obeyed. When he reached you, you smiled openly as he leaned into your space. 

“Hi.” You spoke into his ear, voice playful. 

 “Hey,” He responded, matching your tone. “Name’s Luke. And you?” 

You offered your name, and he smiled easily. 

“Come here often?” 

You laughed, “Does that ever work?” you ask him, still dancing. 

“Haven’t had the chance to find out,” Luke answered honestly, his bashful shrug breaking the nonchalant persona he had just been displaying. 

“I used to, not so much anymore.” 

His “How come?” was lost as the band on stage played a particularly loud transition between songs. 

Unbeknownst to you, a familiar vampire circled you, hiding amongst the throng of bodies as you lost yourself to the music while you faced your new dance partner. 

“Pardon?” 

“I said, why’s that?” 

“Oh, you know, work stuff. Not the most interesting.” 

“Ah, I get it. I work out of town, near the college actually. So I don’t really get to go out often either.” 

“Oh, where do you work?” You moved further away from the stage to better hear him, but closer to the centre of the dance floor so that Buffy and Willow could still keep eyes on you. Luke followed, hands hovering around your hips when the pair of you found a new spot. 

He made a non-commital noise, “I don’t know if I can explain it.” 

Your brows furrowed at that response, but not one to dry up the conversation immediately, you persevered. 

“Try me.” 

“No, really. I don’t think you’d even believe me.” He scrutinised your face before brushing the weirdness off, “What about you?” 

“You know the magic shop in town?”

Luke’s lips thinned slightly, his smile becoming strained. You ignored it but noted the reaction in the back of your mind. 

“Yeah, you work… there?”

You frowned openly now. “I do. What’s wrong with that?” 

“Nothing, nothing.” Luke acquiesced, raising his hands. “You must be entertained all day.”

You pulled away from him. “I guess.”

“All those freaks coming in–”

You cut him off quickly. “Sorry, did you forget the part where I work there? This is Sunnydale, Luke.”

“I’ve noticed.” He replied, a smile on his face but voice somewhat frustrated. 

Your dancing slowed as you turned to walk away, but before you could make any distance, he grabbed your wrist. 

Wrenching your wrist out of his control, you face him again. “Excuse me?”

“I wasn’t done talking to you.”

“Yeah, well, I was.” You say curtly. 

“No, you came to me. I’m not done talking to you.” 

From just beside you, a familiar voice interjected. 

“They said they’re done talking to you, mate.” 

“Spike.” You greeted, not needing to look back to identify the vamp.

“Hey, precious. This guy bothering you?” 

“You didn’t tell me you had a boyfriend, you bitch!” Luke shouted. 

“He’s not my boyfriend.” “I’m not their boyfriend.” 

The pair of you answered simultaneously. 

“And besides, you should’ve left me alone when I asked regardless.” You added to the other man’s retreating back. 

[nintendont2502]

cant find the original post but a while ago i impulsively decided to add all 32 sburb players (betas, alphas, alternians *and* beforans) to a random name generator and then randomly mix them up - characters kept their original first name and class, and took on the last name and aspect of whatever character they took the role of. this was just meant to be a funny 1am experiment so i could laugh at the cursed results

...yeah it has lore now. i cant stop thinking about it. help.

Beta Kids:

Gamz Egbert (Gamzee) - Bard of Breath. One of the most chill guys ever. Constantly zoned the hell out. Loves clowns :0) him and his dad bond over it. Hangs out with Kari a lot over vc, where it's basically just Kari talking at him uninterrupted (the kid needs it sometimes)

Kari Strider (Kankri) - Seer of Time. Gifted kid and he won't let you forget it. Permanently lives in a sweater vest even though he literally lives in Texas. Constantly annoyed by how childish and immature his older brother is. Lectures him a lot. Lectures his friends a lot. Has 'visions of his past lives' (aka occasional memories from his post-scratch/alternate timeline counterparts). Lectures his friends about how theyre real and valid whenever they make give him shit for it (which happens a lot). Dedicated pacifist - for now, anyway.

John Lalonde - Heir of Light. Golden child. Has an over-bearing mother that constantly pushes him into learning instruments/lanugages/skills, participating in competitions and events, winning award after award. Sure, he's... kinda sick of doing things all day every day, and he doesn't really want to do any of this, but... shouldn't he do it anyway? Even if just for his Mom? Hell, he can't really complain about it, right? He has such a good life! He goes horseback riding every sunday! Sure, it sucks that he doesn't have any free time that isn't controlled by his mother, but he can deal with it. It's fine.

(Things get even worse during the three year trip when Wuh Oh! Gender crisis time! Except he can’t be a girl because he was always meant to be his mom’s perfect son, and he’s already let her down once by letting her die, right? He can just… live with this. Its fine. It's not that bad. It's for her, after all.)

Roxy Harley - Rogue of Space. Grew up living on a small island somewhere in the Pacific that her grandfather 'won in a poker game' (aka probably scammed someone out of, knowing him) - or so he says, anyway. He also used to say he got Roxy the same way every time she asked where she came from! Haha very funny Roxy definitely loved hearing that and not a real response every time she asked where she came from and why she didn’t have any parents. That was great. Her grandfather died when she was fairly young, leaving her alone on the island with nothing left of him but the small inventions he left around the place to make life easier for her. She grows up learning how to maintain them, and although she tries becoming a great inventor like her grandfather, she just... doesn't have the skill. Hacking, on the other hand - shes great at that shit! She finally cracks her final goal - cracking into her grandfathers servers - just before her friend Gamz's 13th birthday, finding mostly boring shit - expenses, customer complaints, legal threats, budgets, etc. What's mildly more interesting to her, however, is the insane amount of money (if they lived on the mainland, they'd be fucking LOADED), and a .exe file for a really cool looking game, with a note from her grandfather congratulating her on finally getting in. And hey, would you look at that? Its multiplayer! And all her friends are free - even John, who through sheer coincidence found himself with a free weekend after his tutors came down with various mysterious illnesses and injuries. It's like the universe wants them to play the game or some shit! Haha wild

Alpha Kids:

Raph Crocker (Rufioh) - Rogue of Life. The living embodiment of all those business major memes. Dude is *dedicated* to the Crockercorp brand - he's determined that one day, he'll climb the ranks and become head of the company, and hopefully lead it just as well as his great-grandfather did. He unironically wears a suit everywhere, and seems committed to sounding like a 50 year old boardroom exec trapped in the body of a 16 year old - although it isn't hard to get him to crack. As much as he pretends he has no patience for his online friends and their constant stories of 'living on a remote island' or 'living in the post-apocalyptic future' (seriously guys, he isn't that gullible), he does genuinely care about them. Besides, when you're stuck in the house all day, there isn't much else to do.

Tuna Strider (Mituna) - Heir of Heart. Trans king. Exudes pure 'disney channel older brother' energy. Shithead (affectionate). Looks up to his Bro, a famous pacifist who resisted the Batterwitch's rule with a global peaceful protest... only to be killed the moment he became too much of a threat. Yyeah. Tuna has... some thoughts about how that should have gone down - most of them involving swords. Or guns. Or both. Maybe if his Bro had a sweet katana, the world wouldn't have been flooded! Although it's too late for his Bro, Tuna has decided to take up the fight in his stead by creating his own 'sick as fuck gun-sword' with whatever scrap metal he can find in the apartment (his Bro, for some reason, didn't think to leave him any useable weapons. cringe). He's got the sword part down great, but the gun... not so much.

Vris Lalonde (Vriska) - Thief of Void. The second half of the 't4t post apocalypse chaos squad', as Tuna calls them. Girl doxxes people for fun - what are they gonna do? Doxx her back? lmao good luck with that losers - closest youre gonna get is still 400 years off. Constantly daring her friends to do stupid shit and quote, 'stop being so fucking boringggg'. it usually works on tuna. sometimes on dave. she still hasnt gotten raph yet, but *one day*...

Dave English - Knight of Hope. smooth talking mile a minute inventor who *loves* trying to 'pitch' his latest invention to his friends. its become almost a game to them, where theyll take turns bidding increasingly ridiculous amounts for an umbrella that shoots seeds ('for easy planting in the rain yknow') or a beat-boxing robot ('i dont even need to explain this one just look at it man. cool as shit'). hell, even raph gets involved sometimes, usually turning it into a shark tank style negotiation. dave swears hes keeping a tally of how much everyone 'owes' him, and claims that one day hes settling that bill. his inventions are genuinely pretty impressive, especially considering his limited resources - being stuck alone on a remote island makes sourcing parts pretty hard. he probably wouldnt even need to jokingly scam his friends in order to jokingly sell his inventions - they jokingly sell themselves. he just thinks scamming people is fun.

Alternia Rapid Fire Round lets goo

Cronus Megido - Bard of Time. relentlessly flirts with anyone of a higher caste than him in the hopes that, if he can get into a quadrant with them, he'll have more protection than he would as just a solo rustblood. this strategy ultimately fails when he flirts with a particular Serket one too many times and gets killed for it. damn. oh well.

Sollux Nitram - so so tired of everyones shit. the only person that actually vaguely got along with Cronus (because he was the only person that Cronus didn't flirt with). just wants to play his pokemon in peace man stop dragging him into drama

Damara Captor - Witch of Doom. 'curses' people. seems weirdly unsurprised when those curses actually work. after cronus' death, a rumour went around that she was the one who caused it, and she absolutely wasnt denying that shit - now no one wants to fuck with her, and those that do? well, she still has her psiionics.

Meulin Vantas - Mage of Blood. Basically the only fucking thing holding this friendship group together. Despite all the complicated as shit relationships - the friendships, the exes, the mortal enemies, the attempted (and successful) murders - Meulin somehow manages to navigate the web of relationships and keep everyone relatively stable

Jaydee Leijon (Jade) - Witch of Heart. catgirl :33. Wishes she lived closer to everyone so she could see them 33: especially her moirail!! at least she still has her lusus to playfight with

Karkat Maryam - Knight of Space. basically a tboy vampire. Used to live in the caverns, but after he realised he was a dude, he began to feel uncomfortable with how oppressive and 'feminine' the caverns were. ran away. struggles with his identity - the contrast between the typical female jadeblood standards of being caring and nurturing, and the typical alternian female standards of being violent and aggressive, leave him stuck in the middle, unsure of what to do or who hes 'allowed' to be. swings wildly between being aggressive and letting himself care about his friends. he eventually figures out that gender stereotypes are bullshit and he can care abt his friends and still be a dude. hes still an asshole though <3

Eridan Pyrope - Prince of Mind. Incredibly committed to a strict moral code - which... no one can figure out. it seems to vary wildly depending on what suits him best at the specific moment. Used to roam Alternia looking for 'criminals' to 'improve' or, if that failed, 'bring to justice' with one Serket, but after an incident involving the loss of three eyes and one arm... they arent exactly on speaking terms.

Dyrrhk Serket (Dirk) - Prince of Light. i dont know how else to say it this mfer makes saw traps. he claims its to 'improve' people - by putting them through some specific trap, it... fixes a percieved issue? even if its an issue only he can see. and if they die in the trap? well, they should have just tried harder right. they probably deserved it. he isnt even doing this out of a desire to hurt people hes *genuinely* convinced that what hes doing is helping, and thinks that this is the best way to go about it. puts eridan through one one day, resulting in the loss of his vision, and after he (finally) figured out that 'huh maybe that wasnt a good idea', he... apologises. lmao just kidding that would be too reasonable - instead he mind controls one of his friends into putting *dyrrhk* into a trap of his own design, resulting in the loss of an eye and an arm. he seems genuinely convinced that this should make them even. everythings fine now, right? he scares me just on a conceptual level

Tavros Zahhak - Page of Void. hes basically a himbo im ngl. hes tall hes ripped hes clumsy and he cant help but draw attention to himself wherever he goes - attention he *hates*. moirails with jaydee. theyre cute <>

Latula Makara - Knight of Rage. clown... despite the usual purpleblood stereotypes, she doesnt really get angry all that often - most of the time, shes just vibing. but when she *does* get angry? its always for a reason. theres always a specific goal shes fulfilling through that anger (even if its just intimidating someone into doing something). i have the least thoughts about her but shes interesting

Jaiikk Ampora (Jake) - Page of Hope. Just a funny lil guy that likes playing pirates :) all the lowbloods he roleplays with definitely want to be there and don't feel coerced by being 'asked' by a literal violetblood :)) if people die during his 'games' well that sucks but he cant exacly stop playing because of a few small accidents right? ..yyeah. hes incredibly ignorant of his position in society and how that effects other people, even if (especially if) those consequences are deadly for others. after a certain point its just easier to not know whats going on than to face all the damage youve caused right. claims he loves the ocean and dreams of living in the depths. never goes into the ocean. hes a weird guy

Equius Peixes - Heir of Life. Future heir to the Alternian throne. Determined to lead Alternia into a new era of strength, no matter the methods to get there. moirails with Jaiikk (which absolutely doesnt help the whole 'Jaiikk accidentally pressuring lowbloods into doing things for him' thing. bro has scary dog privileges with the future emperor looming behind him at all times)

Even faster Beforus speed round because you cant legally make me think about them for more than five seconds

Porrim Megido - Maid of Time

Feferi Nitram - Witch of Breath

Rose Captor - Seer of Doom

Nepeta Vantas - Rogue of Blood

Kurloz Leijon - Prince of Heart

Aradia Maryam - Mage of Space

Aranea Pyrope - Sylph of Mind

Kanaya Serket - Sylph of Light

Jane Zahhak - Maid of Void

Meenah Makara - Thief of Rage

Terezi Ampora - Seer of Hope

Horuss Peixes - Page of Life