#i mean I don’t care that much but it felt so refreshing to for once have a conversation about something that actually interested me then-

[lyrakanefanatic]

you told me that nobody cared about what i was talking about and to shut up when i was having a, for once, interesting discussion with my dad about a topic that i was actually curious about and then you wondered why im bitter

[graceshouldwrite]

The Most Powerful Hack to Make Your Readers Cry

You’ve seen it all: show, don’t tell, plant a visceral image in the reader’s brain of the environment/character, write a complex character arc with lots of growth and setbacks, establish deep relationships, high stakes, etc. 

All the advice for making readers cry I’ve seen so far is basically that list. But, while those things are absolutely important, I find that the thing that always does the trick, whether as a tipping point or in and of itself, is this: 

THE CALLBACK! 

Before we move on, this is an ANALYSIS heavy post, so all the book + show examples contain spoilers!!

So, what do I mean by a “callback?” Think of Chekhov’s gun, but, here, you use the gun to pierce your reader’s heart. As a refresher for anyone who needs it, Chekhov’s gun is just a rule in writing that anything you introduce in the book should play some role in the plot.

Specifically, the name comes from the example that if a reader introduces a gun in the first act, it MUST go off later, (maybe, say, in the third act). For example, in the TV show Breaking Bad, the protagonist Walter White prepares a vial of poison (ricin) that he wanted to use to eliminate an opponent early on in the series. After the assassination attempt falls through, the ricin makes an appearance again in the very last episode of the show, when Walt finally uses it to kill another opponent. 

Got that? Alright, onto the examples of successful, tearjerking callbacks: 

1. The Last Olympian (Rick Riordan); “Family, Luke, you promised.” 

Context: The character Annabeth says this line. Years ago, Annabeth had run away from home, and Luke had effectively adopted her into a found family with another kid named Thalia. Common reason for leaving home = parental trauma! Yay! He promised Annabeth that they would be each other’s “family” from now on. 

Now: Kronos, the antagonist titan, has possessed the demigod Luke and uses his body to strike Annabeth, injuring her. She’s also holding a dagger that Luke had given her when she joined his “family.”

Significance: her words + the dagger are a mental + physical reminder to Luke of his promise. They force him to recognize the sheer degree of his current betrayal by bringing him back to a different time. The fact that their found family only happened because of parental trauma bringing them together makes it worse—Luke felt abandoned by his Olympian father, Hermes. Now, he realizes that he basically did the equivalent to Annabeth by joining the titans. 

2. Les Miserables (Victor Hugo); Jean Valjean’s death 

Context:  At the beginning of the book, the bishop had caught Valjean trying to steal candlesticks to sell. Instead of handing him over to the police, the bishop told the police that he had given them to Valjean, saving him from arrest and showing him mercy. This changed his life forever, kickstarting his character redemption arc. 

Now: Jean Valjean dies surrounded by his loved ones, remembered as a benevolent man who bettered thousands of lives. He’s surrounded by light from candlesticks that once belonged to a bishop.

Context: Valjean had once taken in an impoverished woman named Fantine, showing her mercy and promising to take care of her daughter, Cosette, after Fantine died. Valjean then rescued Cosette from abusive quasi-foster parents (it’s a long story), raising her as his own daughter. This furthered his arc by allowing him to finally understand how unconditionally loving someone feels. 

Now: Valjean describes Fantine to Cosette, who never knew her mother. 

Significance: Both examples throw readers back to much earlier points in the story before the completion of Valjean’s character arc. In a way, this final scene feels like an external manifestation of his kindness paying off; both he and the reader feels a sense of accomplishment, relief, and just a general “OMG WE MADE IT.” Readers don’t feel cheated, because they were with Valjean every step of his 1,400 page arc. The weight of it all just crashes down on you...

3. Your Lie in April (anime); Kaori’s letter after she dies

Context: Kaori’s entire plot significance is that she helps Kousei, a piano prodigy who can’t play piano anymore due to traumatic parental memories associated with it, play again—but also, just to help him enjoy life again after a turbulent upbringing. She meets him a year before she dies of a medical condition, and her free spirit + confidence influences him to find beauty in life and music again. They basically do a crap ton of crazy funny stuff together lol

Now: Kaori has died, and she leaves a letter to him. Among other general confessions and thoughts, she references things they did and memories they shared: she says, “sorry we couldn’t eat all those canelés,” reminisces about  jumping with him off a small bridge into the stream below, “racing each other alongside the train,” singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star as they rode the bike together, etc.

Significance: Yes, the nature of the letter is just sad because she’s revealing that she loved him all along, apologizing for not being able to spend more time with him, lying that she didn’t like him (to spare his feelings b/c she knew she would die soon), etc. BUT, these small details highlight exactly how many experiences they shared, and the depth of their relationship. Thus, they emphasize the significance of her death and the emptiness it leaves behind. 

4. Arcane (show); “I thought, maybe you could love me like you used to, even though I’m different.” 

Context: Character Jinx says this in the last episode to her now estranged older sister, Vi. Without going into the crazy complex plot, basically, orphans Vi and Jinx used to care for each other before a bunch of crap went down that got them separated. They then grew up on opposite political sides; Jinx grows up on the side of the underbelly city rebellion, and Vi grows up working on the side of the richer city that essentially oppresses the undercity. Thus begins the development of their opposing viewpoints and work environments, to the point where they always meet on opposite sides of a political battle, never able to come together as a family or understand each other again. 

Now: After a super dramatic confrontation, Jinx reveals that although she wants Vi to love her like she did before their separation, she knows it’s not possible because “[Vi] changed too.” She finishes with, “so, here’s to the new us” before blowing up a political council meeting a few blocks down filled with people Vi sides with. Oops! This cleanly seals the fate of their relationship as something basically irreparable.  

Significance: This callback isn’t through literal flashbacks or items like in the previous examples. Jinx’ lines are enough to bring back images of their childhood to the audience’s mind. Now, the audience subconsciously places this image of: 1) two sisters so different, hurt, and torn apart, right next to 2) the image of two sisters as innocent children who loved each other and would care for each other no matter what. 

Why do callbacks work so well? 

If you’ve noticed something in common with all of them, you’re right: they remind audience of a time BEFORE the characters have come so far on their arcs, developed, and put on so much more emotional baggage. 

Callbacks force the audience to SUDDENLY and IMMEDIATELY feel the weight of everything that’s happened. The character’s anguish and overwhelming emotions become the audience’s in this moment. Callbacks are a vehicle for the juxtaposition of worlds, before and after significant development. 

This works because we, as mortals, fear IMPERMANENCE the most. We fear LOSS. For us, time gone is time we will never get back; callbacks make us face that exact fact through a fictional character. A lost moment, time period, or even part of oneself may hurt as much as losing a loved one, and nothing makes humans grieve more than the realization of a loss. A callback slaps the audience in the face with the fact that something was lost; loss hurts so much because almost 99% of the time, what’s gone is gone forever. 

Of course, a good callback requires good previous character development, stakes, imagery, and all that jazz, but I thought I’d highlight this specifically because of how under covered it is. 

∘₊✧────── ☾☼☽ ──────✧₊∘

instagram: @ grace_should_write

I’ve been binging general media lately: I finished Death Note, Your Lie in April, and Tokyo Ghoul all within like a month (FIRST ANIMES I”VE EVER WATCHED!!), reread lots of Les Miserables, analyzed a bunch of past shows like Breaking Bad, watched a bunch of My Little Pony, worked to fix up my old writing... and that’s not even all! The amount of times I’ve CRIED while enjoying the above media and so much more honestly just inspired this post. 

Like, no joke, my eyes were almost always swollen during this period whenever I hung out with my friends and it was so embarrassing help 

Personally, I just find that this method works super well for me, and I watched a bunch of reaction videos to these above scenes (and read book reviews on the book scenes I mentioned), and it seemed that just about everyone cried during these parts. That’s when I realizes that the callback might also just be a universal thing. 

Anyway, this post is long and dense enough as is. SORRY! As always, hope this was helpful, and let me know if you have any questions by commenting, re-blogging, or DMing me on IG. Any and all engagement is appreciated <3333

Happy writing, and have a great day,

- grace <3

[mythunderstorm]

We‘ll be okay | DR3

Daniel Ricciardo x reader

summary: It’s normal to argue. You know that. But that doesn’t mean it hurts any less, even tho you know you and Daniel will work it out in the end.

warnings: bit angsty, actually not sure what else to say. Soft ending tho

a/n: i‘m so sorry for not posting a lot atm. I have so many drafts but I can’t seem to finish them. Whenever I try to write it’s like my brain shuts off completely. Not even sure if this is any good but it’s the only thing I was able to complete, so enjoy ig haha

masterlist

Arguments. They‘re normal, every couple has to face them at one point. Some argue more, some less. But it’s normal. They happen, you talk it out, you make up. Normal.

You and Daniel argue. Normal. It doesn’t happen often, but it happens. Normal. What wasn’t normal, is that you had to leave the apartment. It wasn’t normal for him to yell at you like this, both of you throwing words at each other you didn’t actually mean. Not normal.

You had to get out, leave for a bit. Before anyone of you says something you can’t take back at the end.

You wander around, aimlessly. It‘s raining, hard. You didn’t bring an umbrella with you, but you didn’t care. The water droplets on your skin felt kind of refreshing.

Your phone beeped, your boyfriend worries about you being alone, out in this weather at night. He sent multiple messages, telling you to come home.

The feeling of relieve fills your chest, glad that he’s still caring about you, even after the fight. But you ignore his messages, at least for now, needing some space to clear your head a bit. He was really mean tonight, something that basically never happened, not like this. You understand that he’s frustrated, not being able to race this season, but that’s not your fault.

Just because you said that you’re glad to spend some more time with him now, happy to have him to yourself for a while, doesn’t mean you don’t support his dreams and career. You’re proud of him, always have been, always will. But being away from him so much is hard and you really really missed him over the last year.

After a while you stop at a little café that was open late. Exactly what you needed right now. You sat by the window, ordering a cup of tea while watching the rain pour.

Your phone beeps once again.

„I'm really worried about you, the weather forecast said that there will be thunder too, you should really come back home.“

Your thoughts and emotions whirle around your head as you stare out the window.

With a sign, you type back a quick message to let him know you’re safe and not outside in this horrible weather. You may be mad at him but you’re not so cruel to let him suffer and worry about your well-being for the rest of the night.

But a part of you still doesn’t want go back home.

You look around the café, noticing that it is completely empty except for you and the barista. It is quiet, calm, peaceful. No one would be yelling at you here. No one would be blaming you for everything.

At first you just needed a break, now... now you needed an escape.

You look out of the window again, watching the raindrops sliding down the glass. It’s like they’re racing against each other. Even something small like rain on a window reminds you of him. It keeps your mind occupied for a while, watching the water glide around the surface but you’re still thinking about him. You’re always thinking about him.

It’s like the weather mirrors your exact feelings at the moment, like it’s trying to tell you that you’re not alone.

You put your phone aside, not responding to the rest of Daniel‘s texts. His mind was always full with thoughts about racing, training and other things related to his profession. And you understand, he loves his job. And you don’t blame him for that.

But you have feelings too, you have feelings that you want him to acknowledge sometimes. You need him to realize that. To recognize how upset you are and how hurt you feel.

Your thoughts spiraled down deeper and deeper as you watch the rain outside. The water droplets, they look like tears.

You sign again, squeezing your eyes shut for a moment. You know you and Daniel will work it out, like you always do. You love him and you know he loves you. Arguments happen and you understand he’s frustrated, even though it’s not okay for him to put the blame on you. You both need some space, time to calm down before you can face each other to actually talk about it. But you‘ll be okay. Everything will be okay in the end.

The rain starts hitting the window harder than before, making it difficult to see the world outside.

Taking a sip of your tea, you look at the clock. It’s already 1 in the morning. You feel a bit guilty. It's late, really late.

You pick up your phone, hesitating as you look at Daniel's last message. He was panicking about the storm and kept telling you that he was worried. You know him, he's usually not the hysterical kind.

„I‘m inside a Café, don’t worry. I‘ll wait a bit until the storm calms before I come home.“

You think for a moment, not sure if you should send the next text. You want to but.. fuck it.

„I love you.“ you type and hit send quickly, before you can change your mind. But you mean it, because you do. You love him.

A notification appears instantly on your phone. It's a message from Daniel. It reads „I love you too."

Your heart skips a beat. Of course, your love still means the world to him.

You close your eyes and picture his face. When Daniel smiles at you, his eyes sparkle in a way that no one else's eyes could. He's so good at showing his emotions through his eyes…

Ding. Another message.

„Please come home honey, I can't take it another second."

You smile softly at the nickname. You look out of the window again, the storm seems to get only worse. You want to go home, right now. But you know it wouldn’t be the best idea, not in this weather. But you don’t care. You pay your tea, tipping the barista generously, before making an exit to finally get home. To the person you love most.

As soon as you enter your apartment you see Daniel standing there, waiting for you. You lock eyes for a moment, neither of you saying anything... It's quiet. The only sound you hear, is from the rain outside.

Daniel is smiling at you, and he starts walking towards you. He softly puts his arms around your drenched body, pulling you close and kissing your forehead gently. Your heart is pounding in your chest, your face is turning red.

„Sorry“ you whisper into his chest, hiding your face in his sweater. You’re tearing up again, breathing in his scent.

"I should be the one to say sorry." You hear Daniel's voice whispering into your hair as he holds you tight. "I was cruel, I should never speak to you like that. Never." His words are soothing to your ears.

Even though you were fighting badly only hours prior, you felt safe. It has been a long time since you felt this safe. Since you felt this protected.

Just then Daniel takes a step back to look at you, as if he was admiring your face. Then he leans in to kiss you, needing to feel that you’re real. That you’re here, that you came home. The kiss only last a few seconds but it’s soft, gentle and full of love.

Yes. You‘ll be okay.

Daniel's lips on your face feel like heaven and you close your eyes, not wanting to let the situation end just yet... but before you could do anything, his hands reach for your face, gently moving you away. For a second, you were scared to look at him but he's just fixing your wet hair.

"Let's get you warm," he smiles as he guides you into the kitchen, the warm light from the lit oven illuminating your face. You enjoy the warmth for a moment while Daniel was already boiling water for some tea.

„I- I‘ll go change into some dry clothes real quick“ you whisper into the quiet kitchen, watching him move around the room to prepare the tea.

Your boyfriend nods and smiles at you, putting his hand on your thigh and giving it a gentle squeeze. "Go ahead, let me make you some tea" he smiles as he pushes your hair away from your face again.

The kettle whistles, it's boiling. Daniel picks it up and pours the hot water into two cups, putting lemon in both of them. The scent of lemon fills the room, mixed with Daniel's cologne.

You disappear into your shared bedroom, quickly getting rid of your wet clothes, throwing them into the hamper. Grabbing one of Daniels Hoodies, you pull it over your head and instantly hold the collar up to your nose, taking in his scent. Wiping your tear stained face with the sleeves, you take a deep breath before returning back to the kitchen where Daniel‘s waiting for you.

He is leaning against the kitchen counter, watching you slowly while the tea waits for you on the table. Two hot cups of tea, steaming up the kitchen.

Looking at his face, you find him smiling at you when he notices you’re wearing his hoodie. He wraps his free arm around you, pulling you close.

He kisses your head softly and whispers in your ear. "Drink it, it will warm you up."

Daniel's arms encircle you, squeezing you like he never wants to let you go.

You didn’t want to ruin the mood but you had to ask. You and Daniel were always good at communicating in the past and you didn’t want to stop now by pushing this argument away, you had to talk about it for the problem to be completely solved.

„We still need to talk. Not now, but.. we need to talk.“ You whisper, leaning closer into Daniels arms, hiding your face in the crook of his neck.

„You're right, we will talk." His voice is soft. „Not now though. For now, let's enjoy this tea. And... let's just be together." Daniel said as he kisses you again on the cheek and your still damp hair brushes against his face.

He was right. You need some rest. It's late, after all. And what happened shouldn't be discussed when you're both tired. Let alone now, when you're so peaceful.

„We‘ll be okay“ you whisper, a short promise. To him and yourself, that your love is stronger than an argument like that. You‘ll work it out. And it‘ll be okay. Like always.

[swrkn]

Between the lines (part 2)

Highschool!hyuk x Highschool!reader

Genre ; sfw , fluff

Author note ; i said i was gonna do a part 2 to this story so here it is today ;)

Hyuk found himself walking to the library after school more often than he expected. At first, he told himself it was just about getting better at math. You were a great tutor, and his grades were actually starting to improve. But deep down, he knew the real reason he kept showing up was you.

Every session started the same way: you would wave him over to your usual spot by the window, where the afternoon light streamed in, illuminating notebooks and textbooks. You’d go through the problems, your patient voice guiding him through each step.

But over time, your conversations began to drift away from equations and formulas.

“So,” you said one afternoon, leaning back in your chair after you’d finished a particularly tough problem set, “how come you never talk much in class?”

Hyuk glanced at you, quit surprised. “Didn’t think anyone noticed.”

You smiled. “I notice. You’re always staring out the window, like you’re somewhere else.”

Hyuk shrugged, a little embarrassed. “Guess I just don’t like drawing attention to myself. People assume I don’t care about school, but it’s not that simple.”

You tilted your head, curious. “Then why don’t you show them what you’re capable of? You’re smarter than you let on, Hyuk.”

Your words caught him off guard. He’d never heard anyone say that before—not like they really believed it.

“Maybe,” he said, his voice softer. “I don’t know. It’s easier to just… stay in the background.”

You didn’t press further, but the way you looked at him made Hyuk feel like you saw right through his defenses.

“What about you?” he asked, changing the subject. “You’re always so focused. Don’t you ever get tired of being perfect all the time?”

You laughed, a sound that made Hyuk’s heart skip. “Perfect? Far from it. I just… I guess I feel like I have to prove myself. My parents expect a lot, and sometimes it feels like I’m always racing to keep up.”

Hyuk frowned. “That sounds tough.”

“It is,” you admitted, gaze dropping to your hands. “But that’s why I like these study sessions. It’s different. You’re different.”

Hyuk blinked. “Me?”

“Yeah,” you said, your smile returning. “You don’t pretend to be someone you’re not. It’s refreshing.”

Hyuk felt his face heat up, and for once, he was glad you weren’t looking directly at him.

As the weeks went on, your bond grew stronger. You’d laugh over dumb jokes, share stories about classmates, and sometimes, just sit in comfortable silence. Hyuk started to look forward to those quiet moments in the library, where it felt like the rest of the world didn’t matter.

One day, as y’all were packing up, you looked lire you were hesitating about something.

“Hey, Hyuk,” you said, with your voice a little nervous.

“Yeah?”

“There’s this school festival coming up next weekend. I was wondering if… you’d want to go with me? You know, as a break from all this studying.”

Hyuk stared at her, caught off guard. “Like… together?”

You nodded, looking embarrassed. “Yeah, I mean, if you want to.”

Hyuk’s heart raced. He’d been waiting for a moment like this, but now that it was here, he could hardly believe it.

“I’d like that,” he said, his voice steady despite the butterflies in his stomach. “Let’s go together.”

Your smile lit up the room. “Great. It’s a date, then.”

The festival was everything Hyuk had hoped for and more. The two of you wandered through the booths, playing games and sharing snacks. You laughed freely, your usual seriousness replaced by a playful energy that Hyuk couldn’t get enough of.

At one point, you found yourselves sitting under a tree, watching the sunset as the festival lights flickered on.

“This is nice,” you said, with a soft voice.

“Yeah,” Hyuk agreed, slightly glancing at you “It is.”

There was a brief silence, the kind that felt more like anticipation than awkwardness.

“Y/N,” Hyuk said, his voice a little hesitant.

You turned to him, with curious eyes. “Yeah?”

“I’ve been wanting to say something for a while now,” he admitted, his heart pounding. “I really like spending time with you. You make everything… better.”

Your eyes softened, and you reached out your hand, gently brushing against his. “I feel the same way, Hyuk.”

Hyuk’s breath caught. “Really?”

You nodded, your smile shy but sincere. “Yeah. I’ve liked you for a while now.”

Hyuk couldn’t help but grin. “Guess I’ve been pretty slow to catch up, huh?”

You laughed, squeezing his hand. “Maybe a little. But you’re here now, and that’s what matters.”

As the festival music played softly in the background, Hyuk leaned closer, his nerves fading. You met him halfway, your lips brushing in a gentle, tentative kiss.

When you pulled back, both of you were smiling, the weight of unspoken feelings finally lifted.

From that moment on, everything felt lighter, brighter. You weren’t just study partners or friends anymore. You were something more.

And for Hyuk, life suddenly felt a whole lot more meaningful.

✵

[sweetbutpsychobutsweet]

Care To Make A Wager?

Chapter 5

Thorin Oakenshield x AFAB!Reader

Summary: There's only one bathing pool and all of the pent up tension between you and Thorin finally starts to come to a head in the form of a bet

Warnings: smut, 18+, NSFW, Minors do not interact, angst, fingering, spanking, light choking, biting

author's note: Ahhhh! I'm so excited to finally share this chapter with you guys!!!!!! There will be plenty more spiciness to come between these two, and that is a promise, dear reader😉

Word count: 3686

To say you were in need of a bath would be a massive understatement. After spending so long on the road you felt as though you were covered in a permanent layer of dirt and dust. Your boots were caked with mud and your hair seemed to be harboring an entire forest of leaves and twigs. 

When Lord Elrond offered you rooms to wash up before dinner, you were all too happy to accept. You had spent so much time in Rivendell over the years that you knew exactly how to get to your regular guest suite. 

The wardrobe was still full of fine gowns and shoes in your exact size. The well-worn books you had failed to return to the great library still sat undisturbed in a pile next to the bed. It took a great amount of restraint to keep yourself from running your fingers along all of the familiar elven luxurious. Not until you had scrubbed all of the dirt and grime from your skin. 

There is a large bathing pool right outside your room that you are all too eager to step foot in. It is always filled with warm, flowing water, and the ceiling above remains open to reveal the sky overhead. You grab yourself a clean towel and practically skip through the adjoining door.

Only to stop short when you see someone else has already beaten you to it. 

“No!” you shout in frustration and Thorin turns to see you pouting angrily at him from the doorway. 

He chuckles at your frustration from where he already stands in the warm waters up to his chest. You take extra care to direct your glare right at his face, refusing to let your gaze wander down to all the exposed skin.

“Sorry lass, not fast enough this time,” 

“Thorin,” you growl, “do you have any idea how long I’ve been waiting to visit this pool again?” he just shrugs at you. “There's another one down the hall I’ve been told, if you hurry you might still be able to beat the others to it.”

“Don’t you think I know that?” you snap before letting out a sigh.

“I can’t use that one,” you mumble, “it’s too…deep.”

Thorin stares at you in confusion for only a moment before barking out a laugh.

“Are you saying,” he chuckles, “that after all these years you still haven’t learned how to swim?”

You growl at him before turning around to march back to your room. 

“Wait!” he calls after you, still laughing. “I’m sorry, lass. We can share if you’d like? There’s plenty of room.”

You turn back to look at him suspiciously. He’s right, it’s a very large pool you could easily fit several people at once. The problem is that sharing it would mean taking your clothes off in his presence. It’s one thing for him to be naked, while you stand there fully clothed. But the depth of the water prevents you from seeing anything below his chest and you have a lot more…parts, that require coverage. 

It’s not that you feel insecure about your body, especially with all of the low-coverage outfits you’ve worn while performing. It's just that the idea of Thorin seeing you in that capacity feels… different. 

“I won’t look,” Thorin promises, seeing your internal debate.

The water looks so refreshing and warm,  you can’t help but think it would be worth the risk.

“Fine,” you relent, tossing your towel nearby and toeing off your boots. “But if I catch you peeking you’re walking out of that pool with fewer parts than you had going in.” He turns around slowly to face the wall when you reach up to undo the laces of your trousers, shimmying them down your legs before letting them fall into a muddy pile with your blouse not far behind.

You cautiously dip one foot into the water, slowly lowering your body all the way in and  a contented sigh escapes past your lips before you can stop it. 

The water comes up to your shoulders, and you try to rearrange your hair as best as you can so it covers your breasts.

“Alright,” you tell him, and he cautiously turns to face you again. 

His gaze slowly trails down every inch of exposed skin, lingering just a moment longer on the ends of your carefully placed hair.

Thorin takes a cautious step closer towards you and your breath catches in your chest. He slowly moves closer and closer to you until he’s standing right before you. If you were to drop your gaze, it would be safe to assume that you could see all the way down his torso, perhaps even further… which is exactly why you keep your chin held high and your eyes locked on his. 

He lifts one hand up out of the water and lifts it up reaching towards your chest ever so slowly. Your eyes widen and you temporarily forget how to breathe in anticipation as his hand finally makes contact… with the bar of soap beside you.

He takes a few steps back with that self-righteous smirk on his face as he starts to run the soap between his hands.

“Is something the matter?” he asks you tauntingly, “one might say you look… disappointed.”

You let out a growl and angrily splash water in his direction but he just laughs at your irritation.

You turn around to dunk your head underwater, wetting your hair enough to start lathering in one of the fragrant shampoos sitting by the side of the pool. 

With the product now in your hair, all of the dirt and debris finally starts to untangle itself from your head. All except for one particularly stubborn twig that seems to have knotted itself around several strands of your hair in one of the most inconvenient and unreachable places on your head. You yank and pull at it blindly but no matter how hard you try it only seems to make it worse. You could try adding more products but it would be pointless.

“Could you help me please?” you ask with a frustrated sigh. Thorin hums in confirmation behind you and you feel the heat radiating off him as he wordlessly approaches you from behind. 

You let your arms fall back to your sides in the water as his strong hands come up behind you to take their place. He delicately starts untangling it one strand at a time. Moving gently to try and avoid causing you any pain. You can’t remember the last time someone’s played with your hair like this, and the sensation causes your eyelids to flutter closed and your shoulders to droop in relaxation as you sink slightly deeper into the water.

“I could teach you if you’d like,” he says quietly, “to swim I mean. It’s an important skill it just might save your life one day.”

“Sure it is,” you reply sarcastically, “you just want an excuse to grope me underwater,”

His fingers still for a moment, “It doesn’t have to be underwater, but if you’re offering…”

You tip your head back to look at him with your eyes narrowed, pretending to give it some thought.

“Hmm, I’m afraid I’ll have to decline your generous offer my king.” you reply formally, “I have very high standards for all my lovers, I only share my bed with those who can give pleasure just as well as they receive it.”

You’re only half joking to get under his skin, but Thorin doesn’t seem to take it that way. 

His grip on your hair gently tightens, and he leans down to bring his lips beside your ear.

“Are you implying that I’m incapable of bringing a woman to climax?” he whispers darkly.

Shivers run up your spine and a hot clenching sensation forms in your belly. You shrug your shoulders nonchalantly.

“Care to make a wager on that?” he challenges.

“Very funny,” you smirk nervously, trying to dig yourself out of the hole you’ve quickly gotten yourself in.

“I’m not laughing,” he replies darkly, one of his hands leaves your hair to trace a slow, agonizing path down the side of your neck, before landing on your shoulder.

“I bet I could make you come, right here, right now, using only my fingers.”

You gasp at the filthy images that start to fill your mind and you’re forced to squeeze your thighs together to help relieve some of the ache.

“How about we make a deal,” he drags his other hand along your spine causing your back to arch in ecstasy. “If I can make you come, you have to let me teach you how to swim.”

You laugh at his request, before thinking of a condition of your own.

“And when you can't, you have to let Lord Elrond look at the map.” his hand stills on your back and you half expect him to refuse.

But he doesn’t. Instead, he brings both hands down to your hips and roughly pulls your back up against his chest. “Deal,” he whispers before playfully nipping at your earlobe.

One arm snakes around your belly to anchor you closer to him, while the other reaches up to grab one of your breasts. You moan as his hand squeezes and massages the soft flesh. 

He growls into your ear and thrusts his hips deeper into your backside, making it all too clear to you just how his body is reacting to yours.

“Do you have any idea what you do to me?’ he asks, his hand on your breast starting to trace slow circles around your now hardened nipple. You bite your bottom lip trying your hardest to suppress the sounds of pleasure his ministrations threaten to pull from you. 

“Do you know how many times, I’ve had to find some excuse to slip away, just so I could touch myself to thoughts of you in those damn trousers? It’s all I can think about.”

A wicked grin crosses your face. It brings you great satisfaction to know just how much of an effect you have on him. 

“Tell me,” he whispers from behind you, his free arm moving down the curve of your ass to give it a rough squeeze. “When you touch yourself, what do you think of?”

His hand slides around your hip to slowly inch closer and closer down toward your core. You arch your back to encourage him to keep moving his hand closer, but he stops right above the spot where he knows you need him the most. 

You let out a whine as he stubbornly keeps his hand frozen in place.

“I asked you a question,” he reminds you, “who do you think of?”

You tip your head back to rest against his chest, your eyes meeting his. You smirk at the dark lust you see in his eyes, swimming with desire for you. You think about lying to him, giving an answer that you know will make him angry, unhinged. But you don’t want to risk him moving that hand any farther away from your core.

“You, Thorin,” you whisper to him, “always you.”

He roughly brings his lips down to yours in a fierce kiss, and at the same time, he slides his fingers down the rest of the way to trace large circles around your core.  His hand at your breast reaches up to wrap around your throat, applying gentle pressure to keep you in place as he gives his tongue the freedom to explore your mouth.

You let out a moan before you can stop yourself, and you can feel the smirk on his face without even having to open your eyes. His teeth scrape against your bottom lip as his fingers start to tease circles around your entrance, one finger tracing the outside before pulling further away again.

You whine at his teasing and thrust your hips up to try and bring the entrance closer to his fingers. 

He abruptly pulls his hand away when he realizes what you’re doing to roughly grab you by the hip, the hand around your throat tightening the smallest amount in warning.

“Uh, uh, uh,” he chides in your ear. “Behave yourself.”

He removes his hand from your throat and presses it between your shoulder blades, gently bending you over in front of him. He keeps a gentle hand on your hip and brushes all of your hair to one side of your neck, exposing your entire back to him. 

Your hands reach up to grip the edge of the pool with a gasp as he starts to kiss his way down your spine slowly. 

“Can you do that for me?” Thorin asks, “Can you be good?”

You nod eagerly as his lips hover over the curve of your backside that remains above the water.

You jolt in surprise as a hand comes down to your ass with a sharp smack. 

“Use your words,” he demands, gently rubbing the now tender skin of your cheeks.

“I’ll be good,” you whisper hoarsely, “I promise.”

Thorin hums in approval as one hand slides down your bottom to tease the entrance to your core once again. His other reaches up to grab a fistful of your hair. With a gentle tug, he is pulling your head back to look at him.

The hand at your core leaves you briefly empty and wanting. He keeps his eyes locked on yours as two of his thick fingers push into your mouth. You can already taste the sweetness of yourself on him as he presses them deeper into your mouth. Your tongue licking and sucking every drop of yourself from them. 

You let yourself put on a little show for him, imagining it wasn’t just his fingers in your mouth. Your eyes flutter closed at the idea of what it would taste like, what it would feel like to have that beast currently pressing against your thighs deep inside of you.

“Eyes open,” Thorin warns with a sharp tug of your hair.

He pulls his fingers out of your mouth, leaving you such a disoriented drooling mess that you don’t even notice where he’s relocated those fingers until they’re plunging deep inside you.

Thorin releases the hand in your hair to cover your mouth just barely fast enough to muffle the scream of pleasure you can no longer contain. 

You push your hips back onto his fingers, signaling for him to start moving and he is oh so happy to oblige. He does not start slow, his brutal pace has you arching your back and crying into his hand at how quickly you can already feel your climax approaching. 

That fire in your body is growing hotter and hotter and yet you still need more.

You desperately reach back behind you, blindly searching for his cock in an attempt to give yourself some kind of anchor in the storm of pleasure. As if sensing your intentions already he growls your name in a low warning, giving his fingers an extra deep thrust to catch you off guard. 

You gasp into his hand, your fingertips just barely grazing the tip.

“That wasn’t part of the deal,” Thorin reminds you.

Shit. you think to yourself. The deal.

You were so confident that all of his talk would not be able to translate to the bedroom, that the only reason his fingers were deep inside your throbbing pussy right now was as part of a childish bet.

A deal to finally find the answers hidden in that map, to help you enter Erebor, and most importantly to knock his ego down more than a few notches.

If you let yourself come on his fingers like this he wins. You’ll have lost the wager, and he’ll be able to lord this victory over you for years to come.

You can’t let him win, you just can’t.

You bite down hard on the rough hand covering your mouth to try and distract both of you from your current task but it still isn’t enough to slow his pace. His eyes narrow at you from above, a wicked grin spreading across his face, seeming to relish the pain.

You growl in frustration, desperate to think of some way, any way to put a stop to the rising flame in your core.

You try thinking of the most unsexy things imaginable: Orcs, rotten fruit, trolls, too-tight corsets, chamber pots. 

But no matter what you try the only thought you seem to be able to hold on to is Thorin.

Thorin who has his fingers inside you.

Thorin whose enormous cock is still pressed up against you.

Thorin whose beard keeps tickling your bare back.

Thorin whose blue eyes look like the hottest part of a burning flame.

Thorin whose deep voice sends shivers down your spine.

Thorin who left you.

Who abandoned you, lied to you, broke your heart.

A hot angry tear slides down your cheek and you bite harder into his palm, enough to feel droplets of blood start to roll down your chin and mix with the salt of your tears. 

You hate him. He betrayed you, broke your trust, and left you all alone. And he has the audacity to still make you feel things for him? After everything?

Perhaps after everything, he owes you this much. A mind-blowing orgasm, deal be damned. You’ll convince him to share the map some other way.

You’re feeling a pleasure so intense, so intoxicating, that when his fingers finally hit that one perfect spot inside you, you let yourself come undone on him. You’re too high on your own bliss to even care that you’ve lost the bet.

You wait for Thorin to start gloating, to rub it in your face that you were wrong. But he doesn’t.

He just slowly removes his fingers from your core and his bloody palm from your face and quietly disappears behind you in the water. Your head suddenly feels impossibly heavy and you let yourself slump over the edge of the pool, exhausted and trembling.

Thorin reappears behind you with a gentle hand on your back, while the other brings a warm cloth against your skin. 

He gently turns you to face him and you’re too tired to put up a fight. A strong arm wraps around your back to hold you upright against him. He brings the warm cloth to your face, gently wiping the mess off your chin and your lips, before trailing it farther and farther down washing every inch of exposed skin with an intense focus. 

It’s getting harder and harder to keep your eyes open. Sensing your fatigue he drops the cloth as soon as he’s done and starts to slowly lead you out of the pool. 

“Wait here,” he whispers as soon as you’re out of the warm water’s embrace, cold and shivering. You cross your arms over your chest to try and warm yourself before a soft towel is gently wrapped around your body. You attempt to take one, shaky step back towards your room and are immediately swept off of your fawn like legs into Thorin’s arms. 

He carries you back into your suite, the both of you undoubtedly dripping water across the marble floor as he gently places you on the bed.

You’re almost disappointed to see that he now has a towel covering his bare waist.

You expect him to leave you now if he has no interest in gloating, but instead, he crawls onto the bed with you. His body heat is such a welcome feeling that you don’t protest when he settles in right behind you wrapping a strong arm across your wet skin and pulling you in closer towards him by your waist. 

“You were trying to fight it weren’t you?” 

You shiver at the sensation of his breath tickling the back of your neck.

“How could you tell?” you ask him.

He chuckles against your ear before giving it a playful bite. 

“You always have this look on your face, whenever you’re trying to restrain yourself. I’ll admit it’s not a look I see often as you tend to say or do the first thing that pops into your head without thinking it through,” he grunts as your elbow reaches back to jab him in the ribs.

“What made you change your mind?” he asks in a serious tone. “You could have easily fought me off if you wanted to.”

“I know,” you reply with a sigh. “As much as I hated the idea of letting you win, I figured after everything you put me through, betraying and abandoning me, at the very least you owed me a mind-blowing orgasm.”

You can feel Thorin tense up behind you. You crane your neck to look back at him and he’s staring back at you with an intense look on his face that you can’t quite place.

“I would have thought you’d be flattered to hear me refer to it as ‘mind blowing’” you laugh nervously. He blinks at you and gives a weak smile before slowly untangling his arms from your waist so he can rise to a seat on the bed.

“The others are waiting,” he says, “we should head to dinner before someone comes looking for us.”

You nod silently, not having enough strength to call him out on the convenient change of subject.

“You go ahead,” you tell him, knowing you’ll need some time to process everything that’s just happened. “It might take me a while longer to finish getting ready,” you lie.

He rises from the bed, still clearly deep in thought as he crosses the room to head back to his own suite. He pauses for a moment with his hand on the doorknob, like he has something else he wants to say to you. But instead, he just disappears through the door without another word.

You let out a deep exhale and press the heels of your hands into your eyes.

“I can’t believe I just let Thorin Oakenshield finger fuck me,” you groan.

Next Chapter

Taglist:

@mrsdurin @thetaekwondofeline

[gay4abby]

hii can i request pls something like reader hears someone in the hallways saying that she is too clingy that jordan must hate it and then she try change her demeanor and jordan be like ?????? wtf ?????? come back to me ???????

this is really adorable, ask n u shall receive (sorry this was so late n if it’s bad) no warnings & not proofread! feedback appreciated but not obligated

Jordan and you were a force to be reckoned with at Godlkin University. Everyone and their momma knew about the two of you. There was never coming in between you two, as Jordan would say. They never liked it when someone made comments about their relationship because they will just be on the receiving end of their fists.

You were walking from class one sunny day, the campus bustling with lively students as it was the end of the week. Parties were going to be attended, drugs were most likely going to be consumed and you were all for it, minus the drugs. Probably. You didn’t know yet ‘cause you swore to yourself you were going to try anything once. Maybe twice if it was really good.

Jordan had texted you to meet them at their dorm since classes were pretty much over for the day. It was routine for the both of you to meet up on Friday’s. If you lot were attending a party, you would get ready at their dorm to save time and the trouble of meeting up with one another. You guys were always attached at the hip.

On the other end, though, if there was nothing going on or you both just wanted a night in after being bombarded with assignment after assignment, that was arranged too. Nevertheless, you guys were never not seen without each other and Cait even made a comment once that you both were literally intertwined by brain matter. Jordan was just your soulmate and you to them.

But you always had your fair share of disdain from those who wanted Jordan for themselves. You tried to ignore it because Jordan’s actions would always prove otherwise, but you couldn’t help that small voice at the back of your head telling you that it was all just a farce and that Jordan was waiting for the other shoe to drop to finally let you go.

The voice was mean.

The trek to Jordan’s dorm was a walk. Your last class on Friday’s usually had you thrown on the other side of campus so you were always grateful to reach Jordan’s room and they were ready to take care of you. Especially after walking so long, “My baby’s gotta relax somehow,” they’d say with a cheesy smile. On hot days, you worshipped the ground they walked on.

That’s why it was so hard to believe that Jordan did not feel any other way about you besides being absolutely enamoured with you. So there were days where you felt like you both were unbreakable, but there are times where it feels the opposite.

You had just crossed the middle area of the campus, halfway to Jordan’s bed when you were sucked into a conversation you preferred not to hear. It was a couple students just straggling by. They hadn’t noticed your presence, but that was common whenever you weren’t with Jordan and honestly? You preferred it that way. The attention was never a necessity to you. Not even the rankings; you didn’t judge others for caring too much, though. Jordan found that refreshing about you.

“I don’t even know what Jordan sees in them. It’s strange. Very low ranking and they’re always on their arm!” One of the girls said. Her voice was laced with such venom, it made you want to curl up into a ball and die.

“Pathetic. It seems controlling, clingy. Like if Jordan wasn’t in their line of vision someone’s going to whisk him away.” Another said; you peered over without turning your head to see the disdain on their features. It made your heart hurt to know that this is how they thought of you.

It was Jordan who always made sure you didn’t hear these types of things because they hear them. And it’s never pretty for the person who says it. You pulled out your phone as soon as you were out of earshot from them. You were so close to Jordan’s place, but decided to take a detour instead towards the library. You had an overdue assignment anyway.

Is that how Jordan feels?

Jordan has received your text of cancellation and was bewildered by the fact that you even had the nerve to cancel on her. She was actually offended by the nature of the text as well, the tone throwing her through a loop.

can’t make it today, stuff to do. rain check?

Rain check, my ass! Jordan thought as she pulled up your location to see that it was turned off. “What the fuck?” She was furious. Dialling and redialling your number, but it going straight to voicemail. How rude!Nothing came between Friday tradition. Absolutely nothing. You never cancelled. For God’s sake if you were sick you made sure to keep your distance, but never cancelled! So to think that you were quick to muster up that text when you were just minutes from their place was suspicious to Jordan.

They knew you all too well.

Instead of moping about it, Jordan decided to track you down. Your location was always on for her, so it kind of alarmed her that you turned that off after texting her. It’s Friday so that meant it was going to be pretty busy this weekend on campus. You would want to avoid all that. Crowds weren’t your forte, Jordan denounced so the options were: the campus café, your dorm or the library. They were going to check all three.

Since your dorm was closer, that was the first stop. Your floor wasn’t all that busy since, again, it’s Friday so no one was going to really be hanging out in isolation. The number five ranking student racked her fists against your door in a rhythm only you would know, but there was no answer. She pressed her ear to the door, hearing absolutely nothing but the wind that was coming through your open window. Dorm, check but you’re not there. Campus café it is.

Okay, you weren’t there either, but that’s fine! Jordan will find you and when he does he’s most definitely going to dig your ear in for cancelling. Like that’s just not okay!

The library was across campus so it was going to be a trek. Why the fuck is this campus so ginormous? Whatever! The mission is you! And to get to the bottom of what’s bothering you. So on the Supe went.

Jordan never frequented the library because he didn’t need to. He was smart as a bottlenose dolphin, studying was for chumps. But not you, no, you’re not a chump he would tell you whenever you asked if he was going to study and he would reply with that. Your dynamic with the Supe was so different, it’s why you were so drawn to each other.

The building was right ahead as he quickened his pace. Jordan’s heart was beating out of his chest, so much so he didn’t realise he shifted to his female form. The only focus they had was to find you and ask why’d you cancel. It couldn’t be that bad, right?

“Babe!”

“Shhh!!!” The librarian tossed at the bob haired girl. Jordan waved her off as she spotted the head of hair peeking from behind the couches. You were so engrossed in your reading that you hadn’t realised the Supe had sat next to you, stern expression shooting daggers at you. She moved the book from your vision finally gaining your attention.

You were shocked to see her that’s for sure. “What are you doing here? You never come into the library?”

“That’s besides the point. Why’d you cancel on our Friday hangout?” The pout that adorned the upperclassmen’s face was sure to melt an entire freezer full of ice cream. It was the one weakness you had against Jordan and you never appreciated it when they used it (almost never, anyway). “Not here, Jordan.”

“Jordan?! My government name, baby? Something’s wrong. Did I do something wrong?” Her beady, brown eyes flickered between yours as she tried to gouge out exactly what was going on in that pretty head of yours. You couldn’t stand seeing them so distraught, but you couldn’t help but remember that you didn’t want to come off as clingy. ��Cause that’s definitely something that bothers Jordan…right?

Taking too long to answer, Jordan gathered your study tools, shoving them into your bag despite your protests. The two of you were making too much noise to even stay in the library. Defeated, you followed your lover out with sunken shoulders. Why were they so hell bent on finding out what’s wrong? You were a nuisance! Jordan wasn’t in the wrong, it was you! Right?

“Now I can talk as loudly as I want. What the fuck is going on, babe? You never cancel our plans. That’s like the one rule is that we don’t cancel.”

You didn’t really know what to say. Didn’t know how to address what was bothering you. Honesty was something that you both valued in your relationship, but you couldn’t help but feel like a burden sometimes because of your status. You were nothing compared to Jordan. The star pupil of the school. The most valued member of the upcoming Supe society. It was hard not to compare yourself to them.

Jordan will never know that, though. At least not until today. “Don’t go quiet on me, please. I hate that something’s bothering you. I just wanna fix it.” Slinging your backpack on to their shoulder, she pulled you towards a bench that was on the walkway of the library. Her touch brought you some ease, it almost made you forget how you were feeling. Almost.

“So help me, I will get Cait if you don’t speak.”

“Okay! Okay. Just, don’t get upset okay?” You made her promise she wouldn’t. And to ease your anxiousness, she agreed.

“You didn’t do anything. I…I was on my way to you. And then I heard a couple of girls talking about us and I kinda got insecure.”

Jordan tried to hold back whatever outburst that was threatening to peak out. They absolutely hated it when people spoke about their relationship, but she hated it even more when you managed to hear it. She tried her best to shield you from those remarks and she was successful for a bit, but when you’re not together it was hard to avoid that.

Jordan sighed, calming down a bit as she heard what you had to say. Her anger was simmering, waiting to be ignited by the very person who said those cruel things. She wanted nothing more than to rid of them of this Earth because they made you feel insecure. About your own relationship! A relationship they knew nothing about.

“C’mere…” she said softly, reaching out to you. She didn’t care if you guys were in public, she wanted the whole world to know that you and her are not to be messed with.

“Don’t listen to those assholes. I love it when you’re clingy. It makes me feel wanted and needed. You don’t know how much it does to me, babe.”

You let her words sink in, any thought of those girls’ words completely erased from your mind and in replacement was Jordan. Just thoughts of Jordan. Her arms being around you and your head tucked cutely into her neck, all she wanted to do was teleport you both back to her dorm. “I don’t want you to ever believe a word that comes out of someone’s mouth about us okay? If it’s not from me, it’s not true.

“You hear me?”

“Yeah…Jordy, I hear you.” Jordan couldn’t hold back the smile that graced her lips, cheeks plumped and red. “There’s my baby. You calling me by my government name is…it feels like the start of an apocalypse.”

“Okay, miss dramatic.”

“It’s true!”

[rosepeta1z]

A slice of sweets

A/N: this is a very very late happy birthday fic to Wanderer/Scaramouche. Fluff, you call him Scaramouche, small tiny tiny mention of throwing up and gagging. I think that’s it.

Word count: 853 words

Scaramouche hates sweets, but for you, he’s willing to suffer and try.

Today was Scaramouche birthday.

It was just another normal day for him. To him, there was no reason to celebrate his birthday. It was no big deal, especially to him. It was just a waste of his time. He had other things to do. If anything, he just wanted peace and quiet for the whole day.

That would be his birthday wish.

So, why were the students in the akademiya bothering him and trying to give him sweets and cake?

He almost gagged when a poor student went up to him when he was just hiding out in the wild and gave him a small sweet. Anyone could tell it was so sickeningly sweet. He simply gave the sweet a grimaced look and shook his head, giving her the small sweet back.

“I don’t do sweets. Take it for yourself, I don’t need or want it.”

The girl that was trying to be nice gave him a sad look, simply nodding her head and walking away seemingly embarrassed.

Maybe he was a bit too straightforward, but he just couldn’t stand sweets! There was nothing in the world that could make him eat them.

Hours passed by, and the same thing would happen over and over again. People from the akademiya would somehow find him and offer him the same thing over and over again.

Sweets, cake, sweet, cake. He felt like throwing up just by how many times he had to smell and look at the sugar filled stuff they gave him. That, and the fact it was starting to really annoy him now.

—-

After all of that, he finally found a place he could sit and just relax. It was a big tree that gave a nice shadow that cooled him down a bit. It was refreshing and relaxing. This, was his birthday wish.

….

Or was it really? He laid his hat on the side and stared at the sky in deep thoughts.

Were birthday wishes even true? I mean, sure, peace and quiet seem nice. But that’s not his actual wish.

His actual wish was to spend more time with you. You were one of the students in the akademiya, and he was quite fond of you. Unlike the others. You talked a lot, but you didn’t talk a lot where to the point you would blow his ear off from how much you’d talk. You talked the perfect amount, your choice of words fascinated him, the way you talk, the way you look when you talk. Everything about you was perfect to him.

He chuckled at his own thoughts. When did he start thinking about stuff like this? He wasn’t used to it.

Right when he was deep in thought, he heard a branch crack near him. He glanced around him before his eyes laid on a figure. It was you? How’d you find him? Before he could collect himself you walked up to him with a sweet smile on your face. The smile that he secretly loved to see everyday.

“Hey, Scaramouche! Happy birthday, I heard from the other students that you were around here so I thought I’d stop by to give you my own little gift for you!”

You presented him a small case of a slice of cake. It seemed sweet. Too sweet.

But how could he give up a cake you gave him? There’s no possible way that he could.

He stared at the cake, then at you, then at the cake once again. He cleared his throat and managed to crack a small smile before raising his hands to take the cake from you.

“Oh, cake? …Thanks. I’ll be sure to eat it. Though, you really didn’t need to do this much for my simple ‘birth’. It’s not necessary one bit.” He muttered, he bit back what he wanted to say about sweets and how much he hated them. But for you, he’ll accept it. But, don’t expect him to actually eat it. Nope.

“Nonsense, I did it because you’re my friend and I care about you! So much so that I made a cake for you. How about you try it? I wanna know what you think about it.” You happily said as you took a seat down right next to him. You seemed more happier than him for his birthday.

“Eat? This cake?” He so desperately wanted to say ‘absolutely not’, but…for you.. he guesses he could make an acceptation just to see you happy. Even though he hated sweets with a burning passion.

He didn’t want to waste any more time stalling, so he quickly took a bite of the cake and swallowed it as quickly as he could so he couldn’t get that taste of awfully sweet sugar. He almost gagged but put on a straight face for you.

Your eyes sparkled when you saw him try it and give a thumbs up. He knew it would be worth it.

At the end of the day, he did managed to spend more time with you and form a stronger bond. It turns out, birthday wishes do come true.

[the-daiz]

Flashy flash, falling inlove?

Genre; fluff, hcs

Pairing; Flashy flash x reader

side note; My brain does not shut up save me please save me from my suffering. Also I should make this a series, no?

long

not proofread cuz its 2:40 am

I can only think of 2 types of people he’d fall for: someone who is strong, close to his strength or even stronger, or a normal civilian who completely gives 0 shits about him.

Because the other scenario is funnier, I’m gonna do that one. But if you want the first scenario too, just lmk 😋

Your first encounter with this guy was when you were heading home late, after an exhausting, long shift. You had a taser on you, if you live in a world full of Monsters and chaos you’ll have to learn to protect yourself, no?

also, you just so happened to always attract monsters where ever you go.

Unfortunately for you, however, the monster that you encountered that day was immune to the electrical voltage of your stun gun.

When you had jammed your taser into its body, and it gave no reaction, you attempted to run but the feind yanked you by your arm, and started taunting you.

but before anything else could happen, a small gust of wind wizzed past you, and the monster was left in clean-cut pieces on the ground. It took you a moment to process what just happened before flashy flash suddenly appeared, standing over the orge’s dismantled being.

first thing you did when your mind gears started shifting again was glance down at your body, and make sure all your limbs and belongings were intact. All while flashy flash stood, rather awkwardly, before you. Probably waiting for some kind of reaction.

When you finally felt his intense gaze, you offered him a flat ‘thank you’.

then started walking away.

he was taken aback by your reaction.

He stopped you from leaving, and started almost lecturing you about walking alone at such a late hour. You just stared at him, trying to hide your annoyance. You just wanted to get home.

When you still gave him a monotoned response he said. “I’m flashy flash...”

You stared at him with unamusement.

”…the S-class hero.”

”oh, that’s nice…?” -You

”you do know who I am, no??” -flash

”ahaha,, oh yeah! Definitely!” You, obviously lying.

His ego was wounded.

How could you have not heard of him before? Him! The fastest hero alive!

there was definitely something wrong with you, no normal person would react the way you did. So he decided he needed to get to the bottom of this.

He starts following you around. And takes note of everything you do.

there isn’t much to you, though.

He concludes that: You’re just average, and overworked. And you look quite nice too, your outfit choices are perfect. They really compliment you. Also the way you handle yourself is rather refreshing, not to mention your resilience and…

But also, you attract trouble a lot. And since he’s always following you, he ends up taking care of a few himself, but he does like to watch you take down the monsters yourself too, he enjoys seeing how you catch them off guard with your taser, and how you rarely ever look the slightest bit shaken before them, no matter how grotesque they look.

After 5 times of him saving you from yet another problem, you start to grow suspicious and confront him… he plays it off well, and starts to pursue a small conversation with you….

then finds out you don’t even remember his name.

”what are you talking about, I definitely know your name… uh, flashy dash, right?” -you.

Yeah, he needed to stop being around you for the sake of his own mental health.

To help himself cope with your nonchalant attitude and the fact you didn’t even bother looking him up once after the countless times he saved you. He just stops stalking you.

I mean, why would he? He already crossed out any suspicions he had of you.

When he stopped, though, he started missing you??

he didn’t even understand what he was feeling. I mean, yeah, sure, your face was nice, and I guess you were a little cool. You’re strong in a way he didn’t even know someone could be. And I guess you’re a pleasant person. And he likes your hobbies, and what you do, and watching you do it. Maybe. But so what??

He starts growing irritable. You’re always consuming his mind.

It must be because he was around you for so long, his brain is simply not used to the switch of routine. Yes! That’s definitely it!

A month passes. With him going out of his way to avoid even the mere sight of you.

AND HIS EMOTIONS ARE GETTING WORSE!

worse as in stronger, more roudy, and more overbearing.

He starts to resent you in a way, and he feels frustrated with himself.

How could he be so allured by someone so incredibly normal, someone who doesn’t even remember his name, while he knows every single detail about them!?

When the feelings get too intense, to the point they’re interfering with his hero work. He decides to go and confront you.

Maybe if he speaks with you, he could find something to hate about you. Something he doesn’t like about your personality, or about your face, just anything that could trick his mind into being revolted by you.

”oh, hey flashy flash.” -You

His heart leaps. His breathing stops for a moment and his mind goes blank.

you remembered his name, you greeted him first!

He sucked in a deep breath and masked the ghostly joy on his features.

He was going to insult you, or make a backhanded comment, just anything to tick you off and make you feel the slightest bit frustrated, like he’s been frustrated for the past month.

But when his lips parted to spew out the harsh sentences he had been practicing in his head on the way here… nothing would come out.

He couldn’t do it. Not with the way your gorgeous hues were peering at him with genuine curiosity.

He just asked about your day instead. His voice was low and a bit awkward, but his face was firm with his usual stern expression.

He tried to ignore the racing beat of his heart when you smiled at him, or when you asked about his day, or cracked a light-hearted joke every now and then

He tried to calm his breathing through his nose, but he didn’t think he could keep his composure for long.

He quickly wraps up the discussion, and felt his heart ache slightly when you didn’t seem the slightest bit bothered by his urgency to leave.

Either way. He couldn’t stop thinking about that interaction. His mind kept wondering back to the way you looked at him, to the gravitating way your lips moved, to your words, to your voice-

He definitely couldn’t avoid you after this. Maybe he’ll just enjoy having these feelings for you, for a little bit…

He starts going up to you more often. A lot of the times when your heading back from work, and there aren’t much people on the streets.

You question his intentions, and he simply states that you attract too many monsters, and it’s his job to take care of them. You didn’t really buy it but didn’t bother probing much.

He was wrong about something. You weren’t normal. You didn’t care about what other people thought. You carried yourself so definitely from everyone else. You knew what to prioritize.

You didn’t treat him like a hero. You treated him more like a good friend. He didn’t know how good that felt until you had entered his life. (actually he’s the one that entered your life but anyhow)

and you were simply enchanting.

Still, he didn’t like that you barely knew anything about his very flashy, and amazing, career and talent.

How he confesses… One day, on your usual walk with flashy flash after work, you ask him about his hero work. He gets slightly excited at that and straightens his back a little.

He tries to keep everything he says low-key, like “Yeah, I do this and that. I mostly work alone. i neutralize the enemy quickly. I’m very busy mhm.”

You just nod attentively and continue to ask more questions, and to say that he was elated would be an understatement.

It was when you ask. “What rank are you in again? B, right? Or A?” (you forgot S class even existed) that everything goes south.

He stops walking and tries to hide the disheveled look on his face.

He hated the constriction in his chest.

He was an S-class hero, one of the strongest, the fastest. Defeated the most viscous monsters to walk this earth

And, yet he was still another hero name, still another rank you could barely remember.

How weak does he seem to you?

”S-class.” He muttered, his voice cooler than it had been before.

”oh? What does that stand for, special-class?” You let out an awkward chuckle, trying to lighten the mood.

“I have to go.”

You’re about to protest and ask him what’s wrong, but he’s already gone in a blink.

He couldn’t stand it anymore. You, a weak civilian, looking down on him?? You didn’t deserve him. (or at least that’s what he was telling himself)

Even though he couldn’t deny the yearning in his heart, he started avoiding you like the plague. Going out of his way to patrol areas that he knew you had no way of being in.

a few days after the incident, when flashy flash is no where to be found, you knew you had done something to hurt him, and that he was avoiding you.

So you start looking for him,

it takes you weeks to finally catch him.

you’re at a minor incident site and wait patiently behind a wall, hiding away from the monsters, for flashy flash to hopefully appear.

And appear he does.

your face lights up at the sight of him, and after he takes care of the few weak monsters, you rush iut of your hiding spot and yell out for him, grasping his arm so he couldn’t leave.

He doesn’t look at you and stays quiet, trying to contain the turmoil in his mind.

You start apologizing for everything wrong you think you could’ve done. And admit that you missed him.

He’s a bit taken aback by this, his eyes visibly widening at the confession.

He explains how he was hurt by the fact that you didn’t acknowledge his strength or rank. He didn’t mean for his thought to spill like that.

You two have a bit of an awkward back and forth, and when silence settles between you two, that’s when he confesses.

His words are elegant and romantic, even if his voice is a bit strained, and his features are slightly distressed, it still doesn’t fail to leave you awe-stricken. (Shhwhahhawgwahahah)

He’s not surprised when you reciprocate his feelings. (cuz his ego is still high asf)

How he is in a relationship,,,

He’s a very busy man, so he doesn’t spend much time with you, but when he does, he makes sure to shower you with compliments and love. He’s very skilled when it comes to verbal affection and doesn’t shy away from showing off his talent.

Speaking of showing off, he always tries to show off to you. If youre watching him fight, he’ll use unnecessary, extra-flashy moves, and glances at you every once in awhile to make sure you’re watching.

When you’re on a date, he makes sure there are zero distractions for him, and rarely ever has to excuse himself because of his hero duties. He wants everything he does for you to be perfect.

his love language is gift giving and quality time.

he SHOWERS you with expensive gifts, and anything you want. If your eye lingers on something, he’s already at the checkout with every colour option of that thing.

He has the money, so of course he’ll spoil you rotten.

Your outings too are also very lavish.

Even though he does spend a lot of time fighting monsters and saving the city, he values the time he spends with you more than anything. He doesn’t care what you are doing as long as you’re beside him.

Honestly, I don’t see him being big on physical touch, he loves it from you though. Adores it when you lovingly caress his face, embrace him or nuzzle closer to him.

PDA is a no-no, BUT, if he gets jealous of someone who is getting a little too close to you. His hands are magnets and you’re the metal. He’s pulling you close by your hips, pressing you close to his chest as he makes passive-aggressive remarks or simply glares at the individual he’s jealous of. (How cliche)

When he’s having a bad day, he’ll collapse into your arms and asks you to massage his scalp while he complains about it, his arms wrapped around your waist.

His kisses are very passionate and lingering. He’ll often have his hands softly holding the side of your face while the other cradles the back of your head. He loves planting kisses all over you.

[ureunyung]

Kokomi crying to Kusuo about how much she wants to feel loved and truly known and Kusuo doesn’t know how to comfort her. He monologues about how it’s awkward for him and how hard this is to deal with. But he snaps out of his thoughts when he feels her grip onto his arm and thank him.

This is odd, truly. Kusuo hasn’t done anything worth thanking. Honestly, he originally tagged along with her because she had offered him a sweet treat from a newly opened cafe. She’d been able to rent it out for just the two of them and he found himself feeling guilty once she’d opened up about herself.

It wasn’t that Kokomi felt insecure. It was no doubt that people loved her, that even if someone hated her they would come to love her in due time. No, her anxieties didn’t revolve around that. Kokomi had known practically everything about everyone. Her classmates birthdays and favorite foods, their biggest fears and what they’d been up to over the weekend.

And at first, sure, it was a fun way for her to keep up on the world around her, a way for her to always say and do the right thing without having to scramble for an answer. But at some point. . .

“I hate it, Kusuo. I’m supposed to be the perfect pretty girl, but how far do I have to go to maintain that image?” Kusuo pauses his eating, a spoon left dangling from his lips. “I mean, people will love me regardless, but the endless things I know about everyone? What’s the point if people rarely know anything about me? I’m not unhappy, I just wish..”

She drifts off as her head bangs down on the table, a light groan of frustration muffled by the mahogany she’d squashed her face against.

“This is stupid, right?” she awaits a response that Kusuo doesn’t have.

Again, he feels guilty even being here. They were supposed to be friends, according to her, but it was more one-sided than he’d thought. Maybe Kusuo didn’t know too much about Kokomi because he didn’t care to. Getting too close to anyone in this city was a risk he didn’t want to take. Though seeing Kokomi let her walls down, even if there was not usual dramatic display, for the first time was.. refreshing in the least-twisted way possible. It wasn’t that Kokomi was terrible to be around when she hid behind her persona, but she was just a lot and so little at the same time.

“Then stop.”

Kokomi lifts her head, shocked at the words. It had been the first thing Saiki had said to her since they’d arrived.

“If dealing with all of this— putting up this persona is too much, then stop it. You already know everyone will love you regardless. You’re not being conceited or lying when you say you’re the perfect pretty girl, you just are.”

Kokomi’s teary eyes widen at the statement, alarms going off in her head and thoughts racing around her brain that Kusuo wishes he could shut off manually.

“Of course I think you’re pretty. Every one does— look. Kokomi, stop caring so much for everyone or don’t. It wouldn’t effect me either way, but if you’re complaining this much over it maybe it’s time to let it go. If your fans love you that much, they’ll understand.”

She smiles.

“Or whatever,” he adds in a bit flustered.

She truly was the prettiest girl in the world. Prettier than anyone he’d ever seen, really (not that he’d admit it out loud).

“Thank you, Saiki.” Her hand reached across the table and gently grabs onto his arm. Kusuo can feel his heart skip a beat or two. Maybe more, but his expression remains the same, a small "oh" threatening its way past his tongue. He nods and looks to the blinds covering the window.

“You’re welcome.”

[galaxygirl-katie27]

Mizael Redesign

Tap for better quality

More notes under he cut!

-Okay so first of, he/she/they Mizael. Mizael is above something as human as gender. They just represent as whatever they‘re feeling right now. Wasn’t different in his past life, he was raised by a dragon. I think Jinlon told her to be whatever felt right for them.

-I also headcanon Mizael as Androsexual, so only attracted to men. Specifically to Kaito

-And it was already canon that she was Chinese, so I just kept that.

-Now, if you didn’t know, Mizael was actually first designed to have black hair, so I did that for their past life. But then I thought, how did it suddenly change to blonde? Well, it didn’t! He just decides to dye it blonde, hence the black roots. His Barian form still has blonde hair, but Vector‘s hair also changes from orange to grey, so I don’t think this’s too much of a stretch. The curls are also not natural, he uses a hair curler. This is also not his default hair, she always wears different hair styles, I just really like curly haired Mizael. They also braid their hair for the night, so sometimes the curls stick in the morning.

-Mizael is already a tall bitch, only the second tallest Barian, because Girag is such a hunk. But they always wear heels anyways, because they like to tower other people. It makes him feel superior. And yes, she can run in them.

-They are the fashionista of the Barian household. You will never see Mizael going out of the house looking anything other that gorgeous.

-I made his Barian necklace smaller, because I did not realise that it was a necklace in the first place. Now it actually looks like it.

-She has painted nails, because the Barians (Rio) invented a self care day and everyone joins in, because they all actually feel better after it . Very refreshed and mentally in a better place. He and Rio always paint each others nails.

_Also Mizael is a good cook and baker. He wasn’t at the beginning though. She always has to make his own food, because they need 3 warm meals per day and the other Barians just don’t need that, so he learned to cook for herself and with time he got really good after multiple cook books and courses The baking part is where Kaito comes in, because in this house we ship MizaKai. Since I think Kaito and Haruto both have a sweet tooth, Kaito more so than Haruto, Mizael would learn to bake for both of them, but he only gave them her first perfect result. The Barian household had to act as her taste testers and it took a while for them to not be scared that someone is going to the ER because of Mizael‘s baking.

-Mizael was just born to serve cunt, but the directors were cowards to give us actual cunty Mizael. Fine, I‘ll do it myself

-OK. PAST LIFE.

-I know Mizael canonically used a sword, BUT THAT‘S BORING. Almost every other Barian also uses a sword. I can accept Nasch, Merag and Durbe, but those are IT. I actually thought about giving him a lance at first, but then I realised: How tragic could I make this? Bow and arrow. Imagine, that Mizael was a really skilled archer and I mean REALLY skilled. She is such a natural at archery, never once in their life has he missed a target. But then Mizael and Jinlon were killed by arrows. And now Mizael can’t even bring himself to even lay their eyes on a bow, because the feeling of being pierced by hundreds of arrows always comes back to him and she’s just so traumatised by it. If there was another season, I would write a character arc for him, where they could learn to overcome their trauma and use his skill again (In a very dangerous situation where a loved one is in danger probably and she has no choice, BUT THAT‘S FOR ANOTHER TIME)

-Mizael’s hair was also long af in their past life. I‘m taking down to her knees at least. I’m thinking if maybe his hair was forcefully cut off, before his execution, to explain why he has shorter hair again as a Barian and human, but I think I‘ll leave that up to imagination for now.

-I also added the golden dragon to the clothing in honour of Jinlon.

[wc-confessions]

Longtail is my favorite character. I love his character arc, how he acts as a narrative foil to Firestar, and how he starts out as a jerkass but grows to have a backbone, shows himself to be a loyal warrior with a heart of gold where it counts, rejects Tigerstar when lines in the sand have been crossed despite how much he once looked up to him, and eventually grows to be very loyal to Firestar. I wish people talked more about the scene where he saves Fire when Tiger tries to drown him even though they’re not at all on friendly terms yet. Also his mentor-apprentice relationship with Swiftpaw tears me apart but I live for all the fan content that shows their bond and how much regret he has to live with after Swiftpaw’s death.

To this day I have so many gripes with what happened to my boy post-TPB.

If there is a non-death equivalent of TV Tropes’ “Too Cool To Live,” Longtail is basically that. He had to be written out because if he weren’t forcibly removed from the action, then he would be the obvious choice to become deputy during Greystripe’s absence in TNP (and arguably should have been chosen over Greystripe in the first place; I do like Grey but he was not particularly loyal nor responsible in his youth). Longtail was still relatively young, healthy and fit, loyal, experienced, passionate. You cannot convince me that he wasn’t dealt a career-ending injury solely because the plot demanded Brambeclaw become deputy by the end of TNP.

I don’t think Longstar would have ever been realistic to expect because he’s not a central enough character and not related to Fire/Tiger, and because he would have been fairly old for a clan cat by the time of Firestar’s death, but maybe he could have held out as deputy till the end of TNP or even early PO3 and been given a cooler and more memorable death than what he got. But more on that later.

We all know how badly this series shafts its disabled characters. Maybe this is trivial to some, but I really hate the retcon about his blindness. When his vision started failing of natural causes, it was still frustrating for the reasons above but it at least seemed like he made a voluntary choice to retire early. He maintained a degree of agency, and he made his own decision under the circumstances rather than having it taken from him by the narrative. Having him get blinded by a rabbit of all things just feels like a cheap shot to move the plot along. If he were going to have a freak accident, at least make it less stupid than an experienced warrior getting his eyes scratched out by a prey animal.

Not that any of them are handled *well* by any means, but we have roughly this same character arc with so many other characters who are given more depth in coming to terms with a permanent disability or disfigurement and having it alter the course of their lives (Cinderpelt, Brightheart, later on Briarlight…) that we didn’t need this one to happen to prove any kind of point or to say something too much different than any of those other instances.

The silver lining of Longtail’s injury is that it allows us to see more of his friendship with Mousefur than we would have gotten if either of them had died younger, and/or if they had faded to being background characters in the ever-growing ThunderClan roster. I really adore their dynamic. I headcanon them as aroace besties (iirc though this is basically canon for at least Mousefur). I find it so lovely and refreshing that a m/f pair of characters, and ones who are mostly very likable at that, can have a platonic relationship with so much care for each other without it eventually going down the marriage-and-children path that most m/f relationships eventually do in this series.

However.

Longtail’s death, and Mousefur’s role in it, are possibly even more frustrating and narratively awful than even the accident that caused his blindness.

Having him go out in such a cheap and easily preventable way felt like such a fucking slap in the face to these beloved characters who have been around from the very beginning of the series. Longtail had his whole life redefined and turned upside down by one random, frustrating freak accident involving prey and he ultimately lost his life to another one. Mousefur’s character was mishandled so grossly here, and a cat who is usually pretty sensible and grounded lost her best friend because she couldn’t let one (1) mouse go in a moment of what I have to assume is senility.

I am at least glad the two got a proper send-off in the Great Battle, with them getting to reunite on-screen and his spirit guiding her to Starclan after she fell in battle. It doesn’t quite make up for everything else given that Longtail had so much unused potential while alive, but it all would have been so, so much more upsetting if they weren’t given at least that much to close their chapters.

Thank you for coming to my TED Talk about Longtail. He is so dear to my heart and deserved so much better than most of what he got.

.

[tomorrowsdrama]

I just finished Re-reading The Dreamer in the Spring Boudoir and omg it’s just amazing the second time around. Technically, this would be my first time reading it completely. The first time I read it, I got distracted at around the 90% mark and didn’t finish.

But omg I love this web novel so much. The characters are so flawed and complex and human! Trash Man aka Ning Yuxuan probably had the best character arc out of all the characters. I loved hating him in the beginning when he truly was a trash man. And then I gleefully laughed when Ji Man threw him for a loop and didn’t make life easy for him. Then I relished in his suffering as he had to grovel and work his ass off to try to win Ji Man’s heart only to fail. After that, I felt bad for him as he desperately tried to get Ji Man to open up her heart a bit. Then that turned to rooting for him to get the girl and also wanting to shake some sense into Ji Man. And finally, I swooned and awwed seeing the lengths he went to to protect Ji Man and give her a peaceful life. If you’re going to get swept up in a fight for the throne and dangerous political intrigue, Trash Man is definitely the person you want to be with!

The level of scheming and many layers of planning this man did was truly frightening albeit highly effective.

This line especially stuck out to me:

““Right now, was this considered a meeting of villains that were colluding together?”

Because viewed from a different perspective, Trash Man and Ji Man could definitely be the antagonists in another story bahahaha. I loved that Trash Man had once considered taking the throne for himself but only turned down the idea because of some weird clan rule that said his clan’s descendants could never ascend to the throne. He certainly could have usurped the throne several times easily.

And Ji Man! What a great main character. Just like Trash Man, she is frighteningly competent and not someone you want to mess with. I like that she doesn’t go after people unless they harmed her first. Oh boy does she hold a grudge and will do anything to get her revenge. What’s great about her is that she’s not omnipotent and gets into trouble/makes mistakes/misreads situations. She has a bit of an advantage since she knows some of the story’s plot and has her knowledge from modern times, but that isn’t always enough to keep her safe or out of trouble. That’s so refreshing to see in a transmigrator story!

And the side characters! I don’t know how this author did it but they got me to care about the side characters. I even teared up while reading the death scene of the second prince and his wife Pengyue. This author really has a way with words because I could totally imagine how the second prince looked and sounded as he dragged his body over to his wife’s bed, not realizing that she’s already dead. And the whole time he’s “berating” her for seemingly betraying him, he’s also making excuses for her and already talking about how she’ll have to make it to him. We didn’t get too many details about their relationship, but the author easily conveyed how much he loved Pengyue in just that one scene. I would totally read a story or watch a drama just about those two.

I was invested throughout the entire novel even though it’s super long at over 500 chapters. It’s THAT good. That’s why it pains me to think about that abomination of an adaptation. I haven’t seen it, but just by the trailers alone, I could tell it would not do the story justice. There are too many plot lines in this story that would not pass censorship. I mean, Ning Yuxuan was responsible for raising up and then dethroning three different emperors one after the other. No way would the censors have allowed that. But even if we were to put that aside, there’s just too much stuff to fit into 38 episodes.

Anyway, read it, loved it, would absolutely recommend it you’re into transmigrator stories. Now I’m off to read the bonus chapters.

[minorisato]

i don't have a title for this one tbh

transformers / ratchlock / wc: 967 / warnings: NSFT / notes: N/A

Ratchet is tired.

He is, honest! He’s tired and he’s trying to recharge. He gets exactly 8 hours of off-time, not one second more, and he’s attempting to use every single one of those hours to sleep. After a long day of patching wounds and almost getting shot, he deserves it.

But he can’t. The fact he can’t makes him angry at himself, which in turn makes him more awake, but really, there’s a very simple reason he can’t sleep.

That was him.

That’s the thought, running back and forth in Ratchet’s processor as he stares up at the ceiling of his hab. That was him. He was there. He saw me, I saw him, we saw each other. That was him. He didn’t try and shoot me. That last part felt important, for some reason. Maybe it was just that he– Drift, Deadlock– couldn’t get a good shot from where he was, but Ratchet really had a feeling that if the ‘con wanted to shoot him, he would’ve.

But they saw each other. They locked optics. For one moment, one planet-shattering moment, Ratchet was back in the clinic, fresh out of university, staring at the most handsome mech he’d ever met– who apparently went on to make the worst decision of his life. They saw each other, they locked optics, and there was no mistaking that recognition on both ends. Deadlock recognized Ratchet as much as Ratchet recognized him.

In an absolutely awful move, a small part of Ratchet’s processor grabs onto that fact. He recognized me, with an air of flattery surrounding that knowledge. Staring up at the ceiling, Ratchet felt his faceplates heating up, and then got even angrier with himself for this line of thinking. You spoke once, and now he’s a ‘con, and he’s probably gonna try to kill you pretty soon to get rid of his “emotional attachments” or something– if he even has an attachment. He’s chastising himself in hopes that the thoughts will leave his processor and just let him recharge.

Alas, leave his processor they do not. Instead, that small part becomes so much more insistent. He could’ve shot you, and he didn’t, which must mean something, right? It says, and then all hell breaks loose. That single thought is all it takes for the rest of Ratchet’s processor to start generating other things; the ‘con coming to him, them talking in a battlefield. Deadlock being happy to see him, Deadlock becoming an Autobot (as if). Deadlock taking a hold of Ratchet’s servos, and looking at him in the eye, locking optics once more.

Leaning down, and– and–

Ratchet physically smacks himself. Don’t think about it. Sleep.

His processor continues. Deadlock’s servos around his waist. Deadlock pulling him closer, flush against his larger frame. Deadlock’s servos trailing down, further, further–

Stop! Stop it, stop thinking about it!

Ratchet feels his paneling shift, and his valve is exposed before he’s aware his interfacing programs ever came online. He groans, turning over, burying his helm into the berth. He attempts to offline those programs and close his valve, but finds that he can’t.

Frustrated, he hesitantly trails a hand down, running a finger over his slit. He startles feeling just how wet he actually is– seriously, this worked up? Just from a few mental images?

Biting his lip, and realizing that he’s probably not going to be able to sleep until he takes care of himself, he dips a finger inside, gasping at the feeling. It’s been a good few-hundred-thousand years since he’s done anything like this; turns out, being a war medic kills all your free time and your sex drive. The sensation is familiar, but blessedly refreshing, and soon he’s rocking his hips into it, slowly pushing in a second next to the first, using his other hand to rub his node.

His processor continues to work. He imagines his digits being a bit sharper, and imagines himself pressed against the large body of the ‘con. Drift did have a nice voice, Ratchet remembered, and his processor attempted to warp what he remembered of that handsome, low voice into encouragement for the medic. No doubt, he would sound a bit different now, but Ratchet could overlook that.

Such a good mech, imaginary-Deadlock said to him, taking my fingers so well for me. You love being stretched out like this, don’t you?

“Yes,” Ratchet gasped, offlining his optics, allowing himself to fall full-on into the fantasy.

You like being treated like this? By a ‘con? Like that I’m the one doing this to you?

“Yes!” Ratchet repeats, a bit louder this time, and he’s suddenly so glad his hab is soundproofed.

Could take you with me, back to the ‘cons, the voice says, and in the recesses of Ratchet’s mind he knows he’s really saying it to himself (which is probably worrying), but he’s too far gone to care. Could keep you in my hab, could treat you like the slut you are. You want that, Ratch?

“Deadlock,” Ratchet lets out, panting, fucking himself on his two fingers in earnest, picking up his speed. “Deadlock, yes, I– I want–”

You wanna overload?

“I want, I want to overload–”

Do it for me, Ratch. Overload while getting fingered by a ‘con.

A moment later, Ratchet’s joints lock up, and he falls forward, moaning into the berth. His valve clenches and unclenches around his fingers, transfluid dripping between them, down his servo.

Finally, his processor begins to calm, and he groans, removing his servo from himself. He should seriously go wash up, but as he thinks that, all of his exhaustion catches up with him, and he finds he cannot actually move.

Sighing, he figures, I’ll just do it before my next shift, and allows recharge to finally, finally claim him.

[foxys-fantasy-tales]

OC Kiss Week Day Two - Rain

I'm going to do eight days instead of seven because I want one kiss for EVERY ship in Arigale! This is going to be tough lol. Also, these are canon events and will likely be slotted into the books to come in various places whether that be as flashbacks or present day events, so you have been warned. So excited to take part in @ockissweek again! Word Count: 2.4k Characters: Skye and Aldric TW: Some mentions to kidnapping and torture but no shown scenes.

Skye stumbled back from the unexpected shove. He yelped as he fell onto his tail and drew it out from under him with his hand. From the creaky inn flooring all he could see was the ignited, disgusted weight in Rahat’s countenance staring back down.  “Him? Of all people, you knew he was watching us from afar and you chose to keep quiet? In case your mind has faltered, that man nearly ruined my legs. He tortured you and Ri after kidnapping. He serves Yani!” 

“You think I don’t know all that? I was the one there,” Skye argued. He pushed himself back to his feet and leaned on the door with his hand on the knob. The two stared at one another, one boiling and clenching his fists, as Skye’s tail swished to let out his bit of agitation. “And I’ve explained, ever since we came back, that Aldric did what he felt he could for us. We might have starved without him sneaking us food he made. He tried to help Rita’s anxiety when he did as he was ordered. Most wouldn’t. Fuck, her old healers hardly cared for that. He saved my life by making a convenient excuse when Yani wanted me gone. They didn’t need me. He made a reason.” “He made Yani stronger is what he did. You saw him with us that day. What? Some down in the dumps old corpse shows up and your caring instincts go wild?” Rahat asked. “All I’m saying is we’ve already seen worse people make comebacks. There’s a clear intent, but he’s hesitant, and for a good reason with what happened to him. Like how you’re hesitant with Toshi.” 

“Don’t get me started. I’m not happy having him about, considering how he inadvertently made me what I am now, but this is different even from that. He’s alive because of Yani. He’s connected. Letting him close could get us all killed!” “Look, I didn’t mean for him to-” Skye began, but Rahat growled and slammed a fist over his head. Crackling wood made Skye’s ears pin as he froze. 

“Get. Out.” 

“Rahat, I’m sorry if I worried you, but trust me on this. Please.” 

Skye’s big brown eyes did nothing to assuage the fury on display. He found he couldn’t blame his friend, so tail tucked, Skye twisted the knob and slammed the door behind him. While racing down the halls toward fresh air outside, he paused and looked at his and Mille’s room. Rita was in there. He wished she’d have stuck up for him, but she’d been so dazed in their captivity that he doubted she could say much, even if she were willing to stand up to her lover on the matter of her torturer. Good gods. He did sound like he lost it. Skye grit his teeth and pushed on out the wide double doors and into the pouring rain. Not ideal weather, but the cold and wet felt deserved after upsetting his closest friends. The others were all concerned as well about the correspondence, yet Rita and Rahat were closest to the matter. She once trusted him to look after Blue way back when. It felt like a lifetime, not a matter of years. The distance in her eyes as Rahat told her what he found was a sharper strike than the former’s hit. 

“You’ll catch your death.” 

“Aldric?” Skye turned toward the source of the voice. The reflection of his blazing red eyes was magnified by the thick spectacles he wore, so the man wasn’t hard to find in the dark. The tree he was under had thick enough branches, even if leaves were few, to hinder the rain a little. Skye rushed over and started to squeeze at his long braid and tail as he shivered. 

“Just a refreshing jaunt. What are you still doing out here? I thought you fled.” 

“I needed to make sure my informant was well first. What matters is you all think I fled.” 

“Don’t call me that,” Skye urged. His eyes narrowed as he craned his head up from his stooped pose to meet the man’s eyes. He crossed his arms to hold in some of his warmth, though the chill and air were helping to clear up some of his hurt, at least the ones on the inside.

“Very well. What would you have me call our arrangement then?” Aldric asked. 

That gave Skye pause. He’d like to say friends, but Aldric had laughed that off before, or what passed as laughter. The stern downturn of his scarred lips made Skye press his own together in a firm line and straighten his back. Thunder and lightning cracked overhead and ruffled his damp fur. 

“Acquaintance? I don’t know. That seems a bit too little for what all happened. Plus, Rita and I saw you daily for months. Hardly an acquaintance then, but maybe you’d reconsider friend?” Shit. He said it anyway. Skye smoothed back the short, cropped layers of hair surrounding his face. The drips of cold rain carried down his cheeks and chin, with more falling through the gaps in the tree above than he liked. The sound reminded him of the awful state of the cell he’d shared for so long. The steady drip of leaking was constant, so much so he’d begun to time his songs to it to kill time. It was only when he began to hum one of the tunes that he realized Aldric had been silent and cocked an ear toward him as he leaned it up to his lips to listen. 

“How about mutual aid?” Aldric asked.

“What?” Skye laughed and held his ribs in place. “Quite a title, and may I ask what aid you’ve offered recently? I’ve supplied you with lots of reasons to try and save this plane, or at least not continue seeking its end with that pompous prick of a boss you have.” “Which could also cost my life.” Skye wilted. He didn’t need that reminder. His throat ran dry, but thankfully all he had to do was tip his head back to drink some of the rainwater. He made a show of it, tongue out to catch as much as he could and leaning to where the drops fell thickest. Aldric just shook his head as Skye swallowed a big gulp. The cheeky grin Skye added in only deepened Aldric’s scowl. “You’re truly trying to reach an untimely death. These trees are often diseased. Parasites and who knows what they water could drag along.” “Good thing I know an amazing healer then, one who owes me mutual aid.”

“Why do you insist on still using that title?” Aldric asked. 

“Why do you refuse to use the simple word ‘friend’?” Aldric scoffed and declined to answer. Skye looked back to the inn, the only one around for miles, and heaved a sigh. The shutters were all down. No light shined but from a couple of windows, one of which just blew out a flickering candle. 

“Looks like I’m a homeless cat myself for the night. Funny turn of events, huh? You have a spot you’re staying.” 

“Not welcome.” 

Being shot down so thoroughly stung, but Skye was nothing if not stubborn as the rest of the people Judith had brought together here. “Then can you spare a bit of coin for me to get my own room?” “Ah, so this walk you mentioned was under more duress than you let on. Hardly surprising.” 

“Well, you were hanging about to check on me! You couldn’t go inside, so what, wait until the morning when we go?” He shuddered and blew a wet piece of hair, but it remained firmly stuck over his cheek. 

“Yes.” 

“What? Why? My information is hardly anything special you know, and my whole defense of friendship and love looks a bit flat right now.” 

“I wasn’t going to tread there unless you did. Since we are on the same path, why?” Aldric asked. He removed his glasses. A silver cloth was drawn from his pants pocket to wipe the lenses, but the chill and worsening rain made them rather useless regardless. With a groan of discontent, he placed them in a case and into his coat pocket. 

Skye felt his throat tighten as he watched. His eyes should have been a terror, but all he saw was sympathy buried within the blood red tones. His face went slack a moment. Perhaps the others had a point. For some reason, he felt a bit too close to all this, to Aldric in particular. He rubbed at his neck and smacked his lips. He cleared his throat. He pulled a number of stalling measures while fussing with his tail and clothes.

“You didn’t answer my question,” Aldric said. 

Skye groaned and sucked on his teeth. His tail flipped about behind him the second he let it go and rain drenched it all over again. No helping it. He closed his eyes to the eerie, entrancing light of Aldric’s and leaned on the tree trunk with his legs crossed and hands clenched in his pockets. “I understand you,” Skye whispered. His voice was nearly drowned out by the rain, but Aldric leaned in and nodded. 

“Really? I have some trouble believing that.” “It’s true. You can stand out here worried in the rain about someone you hurt, someone you really hardly know, all because of something you want. Information, right? No, Aldric. You want hope. I’m good at giving it. It’s why I ran the shelter. It’s why I sing. It’s why I agreed to your deal. I see the same in you I saw in all those who made bad choices and ended up in my care. Rahat’s right that I can’t help but get involved with those in need, even the worse ones, even someone who nearly killed my friends.” He scoffed and lifted his eyes to look at Aldric’s again. Nose to nose, Skye found his ears flipping about in time with his stomach. 

Aldric didn’t seem to change a bit. He was steel. His hair fell flat and damp, sticking to him far worse than Skye’s short hair. The man’s face was running rivulets down off his chin from the storm. Something about it all made him look more normal. Aldric was always so put together and professional, scarily so. He followed orders and worked himself to the bone. He couldn’t feel pain much at all and it showed in how he fought with grotesque brutality. 

Yet he had been a healer before it all went up in flames. He was an expert in damaging his opponents right where it would hurt, but he’d not killed anyone yet to Skye’s knowledge. Quite a feat for the position he found himself in. Aldric waited patiently for more, though Skye was finding it difficult to dislodge the words as his heart began to feel like it filled his chest and throat. “I still harmed them terribly. Mentally, Rita may not make a full recovery from that trauma. Physically, Rahat is lucky to still have most of the use of his legs. There was a high chance it wouldn’t end that way, but I seem to underestimate you Indimal’s healing prowess. Your bodies are stronger than those I once treated,” Aldric prompted. “You could have easily finished the job with the shape you had him in. Showing mercy is more than most victors do at times like this. I still think you’re more healer than violent lackey. You just want something to believe in. Your people killed you mercilessly for saving someone in a way they didn’t approve of. I can’t imagine I’d be different from you if I’d been done like that for running my shelter. We both want to end the pain. Once upon a time I lost someone and I… I considered your way then. Burn it all. Let them beg and close my eyes as it all went to black around me, yet I didn’t. We both picked a different road, but you could turn back. Others have. Chit and Toshi both escaped Yani.”

“They had lives they could still salvage. Chit was unmarked. Toshi was still in possession of a beating heart once those two finished with him. I don’t possess that luxury.”

“Really?” Skye pressed his hand on Aldric’s chest and the stiff clothing gave way to the large indent and scarred ridges he’d seen once before. His breath caught and halted in his chest. Eyes remained focused on keeping contact with Aldric’s, though the latter began to pull away with a look of discomfort.

“I should leave. You should find a dry spot even if the rooms are currently out of reach. Perhaps the stable.”

“Hey, wait,” Skye pleaded.

He couldn’t be sure what overcame him. Maybe the disapproval of his friends had him in a tough spot too. Maybe Aldric was oddly cold and he wanted to share a bit of warmth, though he knew he wouldn’t get sick. Probably wouldn’t feel a bit of discomfort with Yani’s power flowing through him, yet Skye hoped he felt this.

His eyes closed the moment their lips touched. Aldric inhaled sharply, but static ran down Skye’s tail, so he pressed in a little more. The uneven texture from Aldric’s scar cut across both lips, and Skye found it incredibly personal suddenly. His hands reached for the buttons on Aldric’s top. One popped and he smiled through the kiss. Maybe he could show the same affection for his other scars. The second button popped and Aldric withdrew from the kiss with a similar sound. He was out of breath with the rain pouring into his gaping mouth as he shoved his long silver hair back from his face and turned to the sky.

Skye grabbed him by the jacket and the deep maroon leather crinkled under his tight grip. He noticed how hard he was breathing by the fog in front of his face at the same time those red lights of Aldric’s eyes turned back to him.

“I-I wanted to uh, to…” What had he wanted? His ears fell flat as he struggled to comprehend what he just did. “We’re both um… You shouldn’t have to feel alone making your choice. I’d have made a much worse one if I hadn’t had others for perspective. I’ll keep providing that for you, but no more intimate details. No lies to my friends, if they’ll have me back.”

Aldric’s face was more lined and strained than Skye had ever expected to see it. The steel was warping, if only slightly. He snapped back to straight posture and nodded, but Skye could see him biting his lips as he turned away and walked into the vast emptiness of the landscape. Tagging: @jezifster, @fracturedfable, and @wynters-writings If you would like to be added please fill this out: FORM LINK

[princessconsuela120]

Chapter Nine: The Best Day —✧

Series masterlist

Chapter Warnings: cursing, pregnancy, the usual

Authors Note: a little glimpse into Juno’s relationships with others. I love her dynamics so much. Enjoy guys, don’t forget to like comment and repost!!

Chapter art by @silvell & @clownfacepancakes120

—✧

I HAD DECIDED AFTER A LONG A GRUELING DAY OF BEING PREGNANT, that I needed to spend some time with Tweek. Of all of my friends, besides maybe Butters, Tweek was the only one who was the most refreshing to hang out with. Oddly enough considering he was scared of everything, but he was the most girl like when there were no girls around to see. But of course with Tweek came Craig, because if Craig wasn’t there that would mean that Tweek was cheating on him, and being the wonderful boyfriend he is Craig begged Tweek to bring him along.

“This pretzel tastes like a frigging doughnut.” I said happily, stuffing my mouth full of the giant pretzel in my hands as the boys and I walked through the mall. We stopped at a few stores, Tweek helping me pick out new clothes for once my stomach got even bigger and my stubborn to wearing my current clothes.

“Share the love, Sweet cheeks.” Craig held out his hand, hoping I would hand him my pretzel but I pulled it away from him, flipping him off.

“No, you can't have any.”

“She's assaulting me! She's denying me fresh-baked goods. Tweek!” He shouted, flipping me off back and turning to look at Tweek with an angry look.

“Go buy your own doughnut!” I shouted at him, and Tweek sighed that he had to deal with our crap again.

“Craig, just get your own.” He argued, making Craig whine in response.

“But! But that’s not fair!” He shouted, and I laughed at him.

“I’m eating for two, this pretzel is only made for one. I can’t be risking my baby of the nutrients it deserves.” I explained, holding my stomach in defense.

“It’s not even gonna be your kid.” Craig argued back, and Tweek groaned finally tired of our bullshit.

“It doesn’t matter, she needs it more than you.” He lectured, and Craig sighed, hiding his face into Tweek’s shoulder. Tweek rolled his eyes, running his hands through Craig’s hair to comfort him as he rambled angrily, his hat now in his hands.

“So rude, I can’t even believe you right now, we’re family. I’m blood related to that baby, we share blood…”

Craig continued to whine about his damn pretzel, causing me to roll my eyes as I walked up to the edge looking down at the mall. As my eyes scanned the room, I noticed someone familiar.

“Oh, my God.” I whispered, Tweek being the only one who seemed to care.

“What?” He asked, moving closer to me which knocked Craig off his shoulder, causing the brunette to groan angrily.

“Yeah exactly, oh my god Craig, I’m sorry sorry, here eat my doughnut pretzel.” Craig mocked me, earning a light shove from Tweek.

“That's her. That's Vanessa Loring.” I said, pointing on the glass as best I could to the girl downstairs. She looked lovely, she looked like a mom. I assumed she came with her friends, because there was a girl beside her with their baby who she wouldn’t let go of. She looked just like a mom.

“Of the PennySaver Lorings?” Craig asked.

“The adoptive mom?” Tweek asked right after, and Craig shamelessly bent down, pressing his face against the glass to get a better look.

“Dude, she's, really pretty.” He said, as Tweek pulled him back up by the hair, giving him a dirty look at the fact he would smoosh his face against a dirty glass.

“You sound, like, totally shocked or something.”

“She's totally gonna steal that little kid for her collection.” Craig teased, making me nod in response.

“Right? Seriously.”

“Really?!” Tweek asked nervously, starting to shake slightly as he felt himself filled with nerves. Craig grabbed his hand, squeezing it lightly as we continued our walk downstairs.

“It was a joke honey, don’t stress yourself.” He reassured him, kissing his cheek. I have to admit, Craig and Tweek may just be the one thing that makes me believe love exists. They have been together since 4th grade and besides maybe a few mishaps here and there, they still had never broken up.

“I could so go for, like, a huge cookie right now… With, like, a lamb kebab simultaneously.” I explained, my mouth seeming to water at the thought.

“God, Spermy. Must you always feed? It's, like, never-ending for you.” Craig complained. I was about to argue with him some more, before Vanessa appeared in front of me, smiling widely at my arrival.

“Juno.” She greeted me, surprised yet happy to see me.

“Hi, Vanessa.” I said back. “What brings you to the mall today?”

“I was just shopping with my girlfriends and…”

“You're gay?” Craig asked, interrupting Vanessa. She looked back at him with a confused look.

“Oh, just ignore him.” I said to her, about to start talking before Craig interrupted again.

“Cause I am.” He said, making me roll my eyes and pinch the bridge of my nose angrily.

“We know Craig.” I grumbled back in response.

“No, no I’m not.”

“Darn.” He whispered, shaking his head slightly as I rolled my eyes.

“Well, how are you feeling?”

“Great. Everything's stupendous, you know? Oh, God.” I said, stopping to hold my stomach as my face scrunched up in pain. As if he knew, Craig grabbing onto my arm, letting my hold myself up on him slightly as he rubbed soothing patterns on my arm. I smiled up at him, and he smiled back softly, helping hold me up. He took a few deep breaths while looking at me, trying to get me to mimick him. I did, and soon enough took a last deep breath before steadying myself.

“What?” Vanessa asked.

“Kicking. Kicking away.” I said with a light chuckle. This had been happening a lot recently, and everytime it was like my little body couldn’t handle it. They must have Kyle’s strength because I swear they could have broken my rib by now. The first time it happened was with Butters. It scared the absolute shit out of him, he had no idea what to do and panicked and just hugged me. On all honesty it actually helped a lot, I was able to steady myself to his heart beat, and since that day Butters had talked to the rest of the boys about being “prepared” with me. It was honestly really sweet.

“Does it hurt!?” Tweek asked nervously, coming up to me on my other side, Craig still holding my arm just in case. He’d never say it out loud but he may be just as protective over me as Stan is.

“Not entirely, I mean I get used to it.” I explained, making Tweek sigh.

“Don’t worry Mrs Loring, your child is in very good hands under the care of my anxiety ridden boyfriend.” Craig explained, making Tweek slap the back of his head.

“Shut up! You’re embarrassing me!” Tweek shouted at him, about to continue yelling at Craig before Vanessa interrupted.

“Could I feel it?” She asked softly. She acted as if she was nervous. I just smiled, taking her hand and placing it on my bump.

“Are you kidding? Come on. At school everyone's just grabbing my belly all the time. It's crazy. But I'm a legend.”

“They call her the Cautionary Whale.” Craig added, having me as we both chuckled at the name.

“I can't feel anything. It's not moving for me.” She said sadly. I just frowned at her.

“You should try talking to it, supposedly they can hear you. Even though it's like 10,000 Leagues Under the Sea.”

“Hi, baby. It's me. It's Vanessa. I can't wait to meet you. Can you hear me, baby? Sweet angel?” Her face lit up with joy, and her eyes never once moved from her hand over my stomach. “I felt it. Oh, God. That was magical. Thank you. Thank you.”

—✧

“Oh, a little trip down Mexico way. And Greece and China, apparently. How many months has it been? You're getting huge.” Kenny asked, raising an eyebrow at me as I sat down beside him at lunch. After my glorious mall trip I met Kenny for lunch, at the buffet, to fuel my vicious appetite.

“Well, it's honing in on 6. You should see how weird I look naked.” I said shaking my head, making Kenny raise his eyebrows at me.

“I’m really okay, tempting offer though. I wish my fun bags would get bigger.” He whined, sighing as he began eating.

“You’re a man.” I said to him, but he just shrugged.

“So? I’m a man not a boy, which means I should totally have some fun bags.” He explained, making me shove him.

“God, trust me, you don't. I have to wear a fricking bra now… And rub all this nasty cocoa-butter stuff on myself so, like… I don't know, my skin won't explode.” I explained making Kenny nod along.

“Hot.”

“Why is everyone always staring at me?” I scoffed, glaring at the couple who walked by, glaring daggers into my shirt.

“Well, you are kind of convex, you know.” Kenny explained, surprising me he even knew that word existed.

“Who's been doing their geometry homework for once?”

“I have no choice. Beth has been grading me, like, so hard lately.” My face scrunched up in disgust.

“Do not call Mrs. Conner Beth.”

“Why?”

“Because my barf reflex is really heightened these days.”

“But Beth’s hot.”

“And you’re a horny man whore Ken, I don’t see your point.” I teased, causing Kenny to roll his eyes.

“Did you hear that Kyle is going to prom with Rebecca Cotswolds?”

I swear I could’ve chocked on my food.

“Rebecca? No way. He doesn't like Rebecca. Must be, like, a pity date or something.” I explained, remembering that Kyle did in fact not like Rebecca. Or atleast he told me he didn’t. Maybe it was just me who hated Rebecca because he asked Kyle to prom. Or maybe cause she smells like soup and I hate her stupid curly brown hair.

“I heard he asked her. And that they're going to Casa Bonita…And then prom and then Cartman’s cousins cabin. I know cause they asked me to go to. I said no, obviously, my baby’s gonna be born around then I need to prepare.” Kenny wiggled his eyebrows, leaning back in his chair, but I chose to ignore the last bit he said.

“He told me that Rebecca’s house smells like soup.” I said, making Kenny burst into laughter.

“Oh, my God, it totally does. I think their family is one of those families that buys thousands of cans of Campbell’s soups to donate the poor every year. They always give my family these cans in the mail that are half empty and all goey and old. He house is like Lipton landing. But, you know, boys have endured way worse things for nookie.” Kenny laughed at himself, and I scoffed and rolled my eyes.

“Oh, please. There is no way that they're having sex. They wouldn't even be holding hands.” I shook my head, and Kenny shrugged.

“Wouldn't be so sure. He did it with you.”

“Yeah, because Kyle trusts me, you know? And we're best friends.”

“Are you jealous? I thought you said you didn't care what he did.”

I wasn’t jealous, really I wasn’t. I just hated the idea of Kyle and Rebecca together. I wasn’t jealous, I don’t get jealous, especially not with Kyle. He hates her, he does. God why did my chest hurt.

“Not jealous. Don't care. It's just I know Kyle doesn't like Rebecca. He shouldn't toy with her emotions because she seems pretty nice.” I took a long swig of my drink, before continuing to down it, causing Kenny to look at me with widened eyes.

“I'm really convinced.”

“Prom is for wenises anyway.” I said, slamming my empty glass back on the table. “As soon as you're old enough to go, it's so not cool anymore.”

—✧

[khr-guilded-cage]

Sawada Nana's Breakdown

The Vongola didn’t hesitate to use Nana’s fragile state as a tool to manipulate Yuka into forming a bond with her cousin by marriage. Sawada Nana, a shell of her former self, was caught in a whirlwind of grief and delusions, clinging to the idea of family as her lifeline. They believed that if Yuka connected with Nana, she might feel obligated to stay, to shoulder the burden of keeping the family together and protect and take care of the delusional frail civilian woman. And use Nana (and her clueness and naiveness) against Yuka.

Yuka didn’t pitied her much, the naive trusting woman put strangers in her house, called Tsuna useless, watched and giggled at her son's abuse. And still loving the husband that got Tsuna killed. Said man never visited after Tsuna's death.

Iemitsu haven't visit Nana since Tsuna went 'missing' and just told her to not file missing people reports because he was probally killed.

Nana, for her part, leaned heavily into the role she was given, though whether it was by her own volition or the result of her fragile mental state was unclear. She tried to mother Yuka in the same air-headed, overbearing way that she had clung to the illusion of a perfect family. “You shouldn’t be so disrespectful to darling Iemitsu,” she scolded once, her voice trembling with a mixture of frustration and desperation. “He’s done so much for this family. For you. He loves us.”

Yuka, ever defiant, crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. “Respect is earned, not demanded, Sawada” she shot back, her words cutting through Nana’s delusion like a blade.

Nana’s face crumpled, her breathing quickened, and her hands shook as she gripped the back of a chair. Her voice rose, nearing hysteria. “You don’t understand! Darling Iemitsu has sacrificed so much! You can’t talk about him like that! We are family!”

The room fell silent as Yuka stood her ground, her lips pressed into a thin line. For a moment, she felt a pang of guilt, not for her words but for how easily Nana seemed to shatter. Still, Yuka refused to be pulled into this web of manipulation disguised as concern. She knew the Vongola’s game and wasn’t about to play along, even if Nana was caught in the crossfire.

Nana...keep showing up in her room, with her annoying apathetic cheerfulness and bringing them food and refreshments and attempt to mother Yuka, sometimes seeking physical contact, seeking comfort and wanting to stay and spend time with her 'niece' and talk about cooking together like women, get to know her....its always refused and firmly told to leave. No matter how much the woman sobbed or pounted or cried or looked sadly at Yuka, Touka showed her the door, Akari called her a crazy bitch to her face and Yuka insinted on begin called 'Uchiha-san'.

"Please call me Mama, Yu-chan," Nana would say sweetly, her tone insistent. "We need to be close, like mother and daughter."

Yuka, irritated, would snap back, "I’m not your daughter, Sawada. I don’t need you to be my mother."

Nana treated Yuka as if she were a little girl, calling her 'Yu-chan' even talking about pink dresses and make up as if Yuka’s own style wasn't a pratical black and blue and red clothes more suited for combat.

Yuka refused to eat Nana’s food, and the brown-haired woman keep looking sadly at her, she clearly had some happy delusions.

Her expectations were high, yet completely out of touch with Yuka’s own desires and the world in general. The crazy woman had some delusional vision a happy family and how women should act in said family that made the brown-haired woman cling on her and chase her around any time she saw the girl.

“We should cook together, Yu-chan." Nana would say, cheerful. “It’s important to take care of the boys, you know. They need someone who can cook them a proper meal, just like I do for my darling Iemitsu. Like a family."

They got into daily arguments about Iemitsu, often ending with Nana crying her eyes out about Yuka begin a 'mean child' to her perfect husband just like her useless son. Even if Yuka just tried to leave in spite of Iemitsu's gushing about 'family time', Nana would just pout cutely and tell Yuka she needed to obey her darling husband or just start sobbing at Yuka for not pretending hers is not a broken family.

Given how Sawada Iemitsu acted, he clearly expected she would 'play nice' in the naive woman's presence and entretain her fixations, a 'social trap' of sort to make the pale girl be polite to Iemitsu and even allow him to manipulate her easily. The housewife's naive and airheadness made her snap at her multiple times and often tell her to fuck the hell off and even Akari just started to openly refer her as 'that Sawada bitch'.

Nana looked nearly damn desperate when Iemitsu visited her at the mansion. She clung to every interaction, acting the part of a perfect, doting wife to her missing husband, as though trying to keep her rose-tinted world intact. When he suggested she should “get to know her beloved uncle,” Nana seized on the idea with fervor, turning to her with conviction.

She was determined in making Yuka 'bond' with Iemitsu.

The woman ambushed her one evening with Iemitsu snoring and drunk on the couch and Nana trying to coerce Yuka to serve drinks and cooking her 'uncle' food as 'training' for her future husband.

Iemitsu stationed his men at the dinner room's doors, their presence a silent but unmistakable barrier. The CEDEF boss keep trying to stop Yuka from leaving Namimori, ordering her 'home' and calling her 'little Yu-chan' as if they were family.

Hoshi was not happy. Iemitsu keep changelling the man - violently - and Yuka was five minutes from openning the blond's throat with her sword.

But the requests soon turned into demands. Nana hovered constantly, watching Yuka’s every move as if afraid she would disappear at any moment. If Yuka was out of sight for too long, Nana would spiral into a panic, wandering the house and calling her name with an edge of hysteria. When she found Yuka—whether in the garden, her room, or sneaking off to plan her next adventure—Nana would cling to her like a lifeline, insisting they spend more time together.

“Why my baby won't stay with me?,” Nana would plead, placing her hand on her cheek, holding Yuka’s hand as though letting go would shatter her. “I get so lonely, I want you to take care of me.”

Nana’s anorexia, insonia and stress made her constantly ill, Touka informed she was having terrible nightmares too since Tsuna went 'missing'. And demaded care, Yuka’s care, maybe because she was a girl? And girls are caretakers? Why Nana wasn't after her husband? The woman keep dropping hints about always wanting a daughter and how she missed her useless lazy Tsu-kun.

Yuka tried to set boundaries, but Nana would brush them aside. If Yuka retreated to her room, Nana would quietly enter late at night to check if she was still there, standing over her as she slept. Once Yuka locked the door and Nana keep trying to break in to watch her sleep every night, going into a hysterical panic attack when the door didn't open.

The situation worsened as Nana’s physical health declined. She became frailer, thinner and often didn't sleep, her once-bright demeanor dimming under the weight of her own grief and delusions. Yet, she refused to acknowledge her limits, insisting on cooking for Iemitsu or cleaning despite trembling hands and labored breaths.

One evening, when Yuka announced she would be leaving for a few days, Nana’s composure crumbled. “You can’t leave, I...!” she looked ready to faint again. “I need you here. Your home is here with me! You are not leaving my sight,” Nana said, trying to sound like a protective mother. Her panic spiraled into a near-physical collapse, clutching her chest and nearly stopped breathing as Yuka stood frozen, caught between guilt and exasperation.

Yuka tried to calm her, but it was clear Nana’s state was far beyond what anyone in the house could handle. Her insistence on mothering, on forcing a bond that wasn’t there, had taken a toll on them both. It was only a matter of time before everything came crashing down.

When Yuka did went to Namimori to solve a few things with her official Guardians, Nana 'surprised' her with the fact she made a room in the Sawada Household for her, all baby pink and princess-like and delicate decorated for a five-years old little girl, Nana cheerful told her that this is her home now and she will never let her leave.

The kunoichi stayed in a hotel nearby, left the town within five days. This resulted in Nana screaming and chasing after Yuka, trying to grab her while sobbing and begging her to stay. She has to be hospitalizated by Touka after her mental breadown.

Another time, where Nana had been confined to bed with IVs in her arms due barely managing to walk to the bedroom without assistence, Yuka visited her briefly, but attempted to leave shortly after.

"Okay, Yu-chan, but if you don’t come back, I am ripping off the IV and going after you." Nana said, trying to sound like lioness protecting her cub.

Yuka paused and raised a eyebrown. "Do it, then." She said flatly. Nana blinked, stunned. "You are not worth saving."

Nana herself put the idea on her head that 'Iemitsu's motherless niece' would be coming to Namimori to take care of her, and for her to care for the girl without a mother.

The crazy woman needed a good slap to the face, Iemitsu did told her its for the best they just went along and keep Nana in the dark and with her delusions...while taking care of her. Yuka though otherwise.

....

Nana’s fragile mental state had been deteriorating for years, but it finally reached a breaking point. Grief, delusions, and her obsession with recreating a picture-perfect family had consumed her entirely. She would wander the household aimlessly, mumbling to herself about happy family dinners and how everything would go back to normal when Iemutsu came home. Looking at Yuka hopefully and obssessed while trying to make her stay in Namimori. Her scoldings and clingness of Yuka grew sharper and more frantic, often veering into incoherent rants about cooking, family, and how perfect Iemitsu had done so much for them all.

One evening, after Yuka once again refused to sit through one of Nana’s forced “family meals,” Nana erupted. Her face flushed, her hands trembled violently, and her voice cracked as she screamed, “Don't talk about Iemitsu like that! Why you are such a difficult child?" She cried.

When Yuka turned to leave, refusing to be dragged into yet another emotional tirade, Nana’s composure completely shattered. She collapsed onto the floor, clutching her head and sobbing uncontrollably, rocking back and forth as her cries echoed through the house.

Sawada Nana was admited to the mental hospital two days later and diagnosticated with depression, anorexia, insonia and delusional insanity.

She didn’t hate Nana—how could she?—but she couldn’t live under the crushing weight of the woman’s delusions any longer. It wasn’t healthy for either of them.

She was one of Tsuna's main shackles, to keep the boy from leaving Namimori and forcing him to play nice to his sperm donor, the emotional abuse and neglect also keep him more broken and tamed.

The frail woman had a mental breakdown and keep screaming and crying about her perfect family and darling Iemitsu all the time, wont stop demanding everyone to give her Tsu-chan back to her