#i really said ‘the storys not fleshed out yet’ then did this. whoops! | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

lezbianz · 5 years ago

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do you have any more in-depth posts about your ocs? they sound so interesting

hehe thank you!! ^-^ i made a uquiz a while back that delved into some of their personalities but i’ve never made like, a post explaining the whole story? it’s a mix of embarrassment (some of it can sound really silly lol) and just like…me not having fully fleshed out their story. the BASIC rundown though is:

there are two (main) universes, one which is “normal” (our universe), and one that’s like, a high fantasy universe. these are parallel universes !!

the “normal” universe (i’ll just call it “n”) has eight main characters: valen, caleb, gloss, kiara, fiona, micah, laika, and aster. they’re all 16 because. i’m 16 lol.

the “fantasy” universe (i’ll call it “f”) ALSO has eight main characters: the thief, the vagabond, illusionist, prophet, doctor (damsel), (sir) savior, her majesty the queen, and his majesty the king.

(f has a pretty clearly defined caste system. you tell which caste people are in based on their title. “the” means lower/middle, “sir/doctor/mister” etc (basically any title other than “the” lol) means upper, and “her/his/their majesty” means royalty. there is another caste though, of priests & priestesses. they don’t get titles or names, if you’re in this caste you’re only ever called “priest” or “priestess.”)

(f also is like, populated by people with animal features. so like, the thief has cat features (cat ears, a tail, claws, cat eyes), and the vagabond has deer features (antlers, a tail, deer eyes). the only exception to this rule are the priests & priestesses, who are completely humanoid.)

(the reason priests & priestesses are completely humanoid is because being completely devoid of any animal features is thought to be a sign from the gods. no one really knows why, but the people of universe f developed a tradition where, if a baby was born without any animal features, they’d be given up to become a priest/priestess.)

(speaking of gods! there are eight main gods that rule universe f: control, freedom, lies, truth, life, death, darkness, and light. so like just a bunch of concepts that have been personified as gods! lol. everyone is blessed by one god with some power having to do with the concept that god is associated with. so like, someone blessed by lies might be able to always be able to tell when someone is lying, or they might be able to lie so well that only someone blessed by a god can tell. it really varies! but each god has a balancing counterpart, which is essentially what keeps the world from spiraling into chaos all the time. lol)

WORLDBUILDING OUT OF THE WAY WOO

each character from universe n has a universe f counterpart (because, you know. parallel universes.)

it goes valen -> the thief, caleb -> the vagabond, gloss -> illusionist, kiara -> prophet, fiona -> doctor damsel, micah -> sir savior, laika -> her majesty the queen, and aster -> his majesty the king.

all of their counterparts are NOT the same age as them, don’t worry. there are NOT two 16 year old monarchs. i don’t have specific ages for the universe f people, but i’d place them all around like, their 30s? maybe? they’re adults.

they’re also all ruled by different gods! what a surprise! and they all have different animal features and are in different castes! who would’ve thought.

it goes like this:

the thief: ruled by control. cat features. light blue color scheme. at first he thinks his powers given to him by control apply to simple thieving; he can “control” the location of objects, which he. often uses to his advantage lol. later he finds out he can sort of mind control people. oops!

the vagabond: ruled by freedom. deer features. orange color scheme. at first he thinks the powers given to him by freedom apply only to himself; he can “free” himself from any location, meaning he can teleport, which is pretty handy! later he finds out that he has the power to “free” people from their memories. uh oh!

illusionist: ruled by lies. wolf features (she wears a huge wool coat. literally a wolf in sheep’s clothing). pink color scheme. she was originally a priestess but had to run away when she woke up one day with wolf ears. the powers given to her by lies allow her to create illusions in other people’s minds, ala that marvel spiderman movie with jake gyllenhaal (the ONLY reason i mention this is because i saw that movie and couldn’t stop thinking of illusionist during it HDJSHFJD).

prophet: ruled by truth. ??? features. red color scheme. she was also originally a priestess but ran away because she wanted to know way more than she already did, after having heard a legend of two inifinitely-sided dice that allow whoever puts them in their eyes to see all the possible outcomes of a situation. how do you put them in your eyes? well. you have to gouge them out first. which she does. because frankly prophet is fucking awesome and i love her

doctor damsel: ruled by death. (vampire) bat features. purple color scheme. her name sounds SO silly and i love it. the contrasting of her title of “doctor” and her name “damsel” is on purpose, because of how her powers contrast with the god that blessed her ! although she’s ruled by death, her powers actually allow her to bring things BACK from death, which at first she’s super not into, but then she starts using her powers to conduct some frankly unethical experiments, and so she’s cool with them. queen of being a mad scientist!

sir savior: ruled by life. eagle features. gold color scheme. his name ALSO sounds so silly!! and i also love it. his powers, like doctor damsel’s (just doctor for short), contrast with the god that blessed him, because, instead of bringing things back to life, he can literally kill with just his touch. unfortunately for savior (that’s what everyone calls him for short), he has sort of a hero/noble complex, and he HATES the fact that he can kill so easily. *slaps savior* you could fit so much angst into this bad boy!

her majesty the queen: ruled by darkness. bee features. dark blue, nearly black, color scheme. literally everything about her is SO sexy. when she uses her powers at a sort of “low” level, she can just make things physically dark. at a “high” level, though, she can remove people from the universe. like. completely tear them away from their reality. she’s VERY terrifying and you absolutely do NOT want to get on her bad side.

his majesty the king: ruled by light. butterfly features. bright yellow, nearly white, color scheme. i wouldn’t necessarily call him sexy but that’s literally only because i’m a lesbian. he’s definitely sexy. anyway, like her majesty, when he uses his powers at a “low” level, he can make things physically light. at a “high” level, though, he can bring people into the universe. perhaps tear them back into their own reality, after they’ve been banished. (but, in a multiverse, doesn’t bringing someone back into one universe essentially equate to removing them from another? i’m winking right now.)

so those are the f characters! the n characters are…uh…well. not as cool lol.

valen: the thief’s universe n counterpart. also has a light blue color scheme. he’s very shy! however, once you get to know him, it’s really easy to like him. he’s just a comforting presence to have around! a lot of people tell him their secrets and traumas and the like, and he has a knack for giving them pretty sound advice! unfortunately, he can also be very manipulative at times. even more unfortunately, he absolutely HATES that he can be very manipulative at times, and actively tries to curb it. this ends up in him getting wayyy into his own head and freaking absolutely everyone out.

caleb: the vagabond’s universe n counterpart. also has an orange color scheme. he doesn’t seem it, but he can actually be really mean at times. the thing about caleb is that he’s very stubborn, and he has a lot of ideas about what’s best for everyone, and he just, like, doesn’t appreciate it when people go against those ideas. that said, he can also be pretty gentle if he wants to! but that’s usually reserved for. uh. certain people. (“certain people” means valen and fiona. lol. though for very different reasons!) caleb i think has the most accurate, like, animal representation out of the entire cast. he’s got the personality of a deer: reserved and stubborn, but really nice if he trusts you.

gloss: illusionist’s universe n counterpart. also has a pink color scheme. ah gloss…where do i begin. she’s easily the most problematic, and yes, i do love her for it. she’s emotionally stunted as HELL, and she absolutely won’t let you forget it!!! she seems really, really serious when you first meet her, and...honestly, even after you’ve known her for a while, but she also does love her fair share of chaos. (this is WAY more apparent with illusionist than it is for gloss!) her solution to seeing a bridge she can’t cross is to burn it and stand there with a bucket of water in her hands, watching the flames, basically. she’s also like, 6’2 and REALLY intimidating. lol

kiara: prophet’s universe n counterpart. also has a red color scheme. KIARA...MY GIRL. she’s like, unquestionably the most plot-important character in this whole thing, lol. like gloss, she’s REALLY serious, except that’s more due to her like, genuine personality instead of emotional problems (well, to an extent. she has her fair share of emotional problems). kiara is also SUPER curious, oftentimes to a fault. actually, no, scratch that; she’s super GOAL-ORIENTED, and a lot of times her goals require her to gather as much information as possible, so she just SEEMS really curious. there we go. i wouldn’t necessarily call her “stubborn,” like caleb, but i would absolutely call her determined. like, very fucking determined.

fiona: doctor damsel’s universe n counterpart. also has a purple color scheme. listen. if my ocs were in an already-developed piece of media, and there was a fandom for it, i would stan fiona. i already DO stan fiona. literally the entire reason she has a purple color scheme is because it’s my favorite color and i love her that much. ANYWAY. fiona is the REAL curious one of the group, and all of her friends jokingly call her a mad scientist. in reality, she’s just really into biochemistry and genetic engineering, and likes to do as many experiments as she can as a 16 year old! she’s like. verifiably a genius, lol. however, even though she legit never shows it to anyone but herself, she’s incredibly lonely. like, VERY lonely. lol :’)

micah: sir savior’s universe n counterpart. also has a gold color scheme. okay, full disclosure, i used to like, really dislike micah. now i would die for him though so <3. micah…wears his heart on his sleeve. he’s like, genuinely a really good person. unfortunately, he doesn’t always understand that not everyone else is. this leads to him getting hurt way too easily, way too often, and he always hurts way too much. but he’s firmly committed to always seeing the best in people, and he’ll always come back to you, no matter how many times you’ve hurt him. neither he nor savior have ever done anything wrong in their lives, ever, basically. if there were a fandom for my ocs, he would absolutely be the favorite, and i honestly wouldn’t blame anyone.

laika: her majesty the queen’s universe n counterpart. also has a dark blue/black color scheme. okay, if i’m being honest here? completely and totally candid with you? the best way i can describe laika is “she would kin heather from total drama island, if she didn’t mercilessly bully kinnies.” (jk, she’s totally a kinnie, just ashamed.) but for real, laika is like, genuinely so mean to anyone who isn’t one of her friends, and even THEN you’re on perpetually thin ice with her (except if you’re aster in which case she would never even dream of being mean to you). laika’s also fiercely protective of everyone and everything she loves, which is kind of why she’s so mean. it’s a defense mechanism! she also puts...WAY too much responsibility on herself. she holds herself to such high standards, it’s not even remotely healthy. she also doesn’t hide her emotions as well as she thinks she does, but she can’t really get help or support because she drives away anyone who tries to give it to her. :’(

aster: his majesty the king’s counterpart. also has a bright yellow, almost white color scheme. aster is SO tired, all the time. he’s just, like, absolutely done with absolutely everyone. that being said, he really can find a positive spin to anything - so long as you’re being negative about it. if you’re being too positive about things...well, he can also find a negative spin to anything. lol. he’s really the most in-touch with reality out of everybody, that is, the least in his own head, and it truly exhausts him. the worst thing is, he knows it, too, but there’s really no escape from it. like, he can either keep doing what he’s doing - keeping his friends in a constant state of reality, basically - or he can stop trying so much and watch everyone around him get crushed under the weight of their own self-delusions. it’s a choice he really, really doesn’t want to ever make.

okay so NOW we get to the actual story part LOL

the story starts out with the goings-ons of universe n - it’s pretty basic high school antics lol.

so, the thing about this story is, if i were to write it at a meta level, i would introduce it as a play, with each of the universe n characters “playing” their universe f counterparts. i wouldn’t want this meta to come out of nowhere, though, sooooo…

they’re theater kids.

in my mind it’s like, some of them are stage crew, and some of them are actors. this is mainly because i’m a stage crew kid so we should be represented <3 LOL

the actors are caleb, gloss, micah, and laika.

the stage crew are valen, kiara, fiona, and aster.

that’s not really important i just feel like you should all know that lmao

anyway, they’re all chilling. they’re not exactly all friends, but they, like, sit at the lunch table together and tolerate each other. everyone in the group is genuine friends with at least one other person in the group, though.

(gloss and laika hate each other. kiara and laika also hate each other. gloss and kiara are sort of rocky with each other. laika is SUPER close with aster, though, and kiara is also close with aster, and aster is friends with valen, who’s really close with gloss. caleb, fiona, and micah are ACTUALLY just chilling.)

something something a lot of people are going missing something something weird things are happening around town something something

kiara hears that weird things are happening and she’s like Oh I Simply Must Find This Out.

fiona also hears that weird things are happening and has the exact same reaction but is just slightly too excited about it (she’s not doing anything wrong she just gets excited easily)

micah hears that weird things are happening and is like hm. i genuinely do not care about this. perhaps now is a good time to ask gloss out ;)

gloss and micah have been flirting for a while so gloss is like “oh. i have a boyfriend now. very cool” and that’s about how invested she is in their relationship

(can you guess why? can you guess why gloss isn’t all that invested in the relationship? you get three guesses. look at my url. two more guesses.)

valen and caleb hear that weird things are happening and decide to accompany fiona to try and figure things out but she’s. considerably smarter than them <3

aster hears that weird things are happening and Tries to figure out what’s going on with kiara but kiara very much wants to do things on her own and laika very much does not want to be around kiara

(laika and aster are nigh inseparable. lol)

laika is super not interested in the weird things happening. she thinks it’ll all blow over eventually, basically

okay so basically here’s where everyone is:

valen, caleb, and fiona: trying to figure out what’s going on using “science” (aka fiona trying her best and valen & caleb cheering her on)

gloss and micah: dating, not really interested in what’s going on, or at least, not making too much of an effort to figure it out. their relationship is going way less well than expected. oof

laika and aster: laika’s not really interested in what’s going on. aster is, but he’s not really doing anything about it.

kiara: wandering around trying to figure things out in absolutely whatever way she can think of (essentially fiona but she doesn’t pretend it’s scientific)

one night, kiara is wandering around and she finds some strange spot where the horizon just doesn’t look…right. like something’s trying to clip through it.

well. something IS! and it’s prophet :)

this post is WAY too long so i’m leaving you on that cliffhanger hehe. anyway thank you for giving me an excuse to write about my ocs for literally an hour, maybe more. muah. stay sexy

#ocs #ask #anonymous #i really said ‘the storys not fleshed out yet’ then did this. whoops!

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been-taking-muay-thai-classes · 2 years ago

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I Can't Heal What's Broken (All I Need Is A Change)

This was supposed to come out like a week ago but then I kept having ideas for things that could happen during Rollo’s first day at nrc and then I kept second guessing if the guys were in character and long story short it’s 12k words again, whoops.

We don’t really have too much to go off of given how little time Rollo has had so far (yes I totally expect him to come back I am booboo the fool 🤡) and then there’s the language barrier, but hopefully the guys feel accurate enough.

Also, I allude to the Prefect being a somewhat good painter because I noticed there’s a canvas on the room in-game and I thought ‘hey if I or anyone painted regularly for a few months we’d probably get good at it, right?’ Also because I thought it made for some nice interaction with Rollo.

Trigger Warning: descriptions of anxiety attacks.

The Prefect was trembling slightly, whether from cold or nerves they weren’t sure. Probably a combination of both.

In just a few minutes Rollo would arrive and change everything about how Ramshackle operated. They felt excited yet anxious, what if they didn’t get along? It’d be miserable to share a living space with just one other person and not get along. But worse it’d be if Rollo couldn’t adapt to life in NRC.

‘Quit shaking henchman! You’re making me dizzy!’ Grim complained from his spot in the Prefect’s arms. They let out a quiet apology and let him down as they saw Crowley approach with someone in tow, Rollo.

The Prefect gulped down their nerves. There was no more time to overthink this, the decision was made. Time to show Rollo the determination and friendliness they were known for here at NRC.

‘Grim, please behave today, we don’t want to make Rollo’s first night here anymore difficult than it already is’ By the way Grim opened his mouth and furrowed his brow, he wanted to retort something but soon chose to shut up and scamper off back to the dorm muttering something about counting how many snacks he had before anyone tried to steal from him.

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Rollo was perplexed. Two months after the symposium, when he admitted in front of the student council what he had done during the symposium- no, why he had suggested the symposium in the first place, he expected looks of disgust and betrayal, words of anger and demands of punishment, to be kicked out of the school and thrown in jail. Sure, the other students had looked betrayed, and they had also risen in anger to demand answers but ultimately they didn’t punish him as harshly as he had expected, as he had hoped.

‘Presid- Rollo, please…please tell us this is a joke’ The desperation in Yeshua’s voice was palpable, they all knew Rollo was not one to joke around ‘There has to be an explanation, a reason why you did that? Please just tell us’ Tristan was noticeably quiet, staring at the floor in deep thought.

Rollo didn’t feel like explaining, not after the way those Night Rave students reacted, like their anger had been tempered by sympathy. Rollo didn’t need sympathy, he needed to atone so that this guilt would finally go away.

So he remained quiet, just looking at Yeshua with a blank stare.

‘The gargoyles said that you were troubled’ Ah, so they talked to other people besides himself ‘That maybe we would manage to reach out to you since we are made of flesh and blood, but it seems you’re not ready yet Rollo’ Tristan’s hand felt warm on his shoulder, reassuring almost.

His eyes told him he was hurt, utterly heartbroken but also ashamed, as if the depth of his fear and sorrow was something they should have been able to know.

Rollo’s stomach twisted and turned, he felt his lungs battle to get the air in, his head spun and suddenly the room was too tiny. He had to get out, now.

He rushed outside, breathing madly in and out, saliva coating the corners of his mouth as he tried to calm himself. The world kept spinning so he closed his eyes, took a deep breath in and tried to remind himself that he was fine, he just had to get this over with so the guilt would disappear. Soon he’d be in jail and all thought of his plans, of his time in this school and of his talks with the people of the city would be erased by time.

He turned around when he heard the click of the door and saw his classmates standing there with troubled looks. Clearly still processing what he said. Rollo hoped they would decide something already.

Instead, Yeshua and Tristan brought the situation to the Headmage who quickly tried to make sense of everything. Naturally he couldn’t just tell the authorities about the Crimson Flowers, it could damage the school’s reputation and in turn the other student’s prospects for the future. There was also the fact that Rollo was a model student, dutiful, serious and responsible and Headmage Tirmont had to also admit that being able to bring a flower back from extinction was a most impressive feat, even if the flower itself was dangerous. Truly Rollo could do great things in the future! But for that he had to have a future.

He was stuck between a rock and a hard place. What to do? In the following weeks he consulted with the rest of the student council, to see the perspective of the students who would be most affected by this going public.

While heartbroken, they agreed that Rollo had done much too good for their school to just be labeled a criminal for the rest of his life, and they also hoped that he could be reformed since nobody had been permanently hurt in the chaos the flowers wrought. Surely if he had confessed it was because he knew in his heart that he did wrong and wanted to make amends.

The Headmage then sent letters to a few other schools, hoping to find one that would give him advice on this peculiar situation. It was then that Rollo pointed out that the students from Night Raven College were aware of his actions and chose to not turn him in at the time so they could enjoy the ball. He asked the Headmage to send a letter to their Headmage so they would convince Tirmont that he deserved to be imprisoned.

Yeshua and Tristan once again argued, saying that he didn’t deserve such a severe punishment but he was certain they only said that because they admired him for years, until he let them down.

When all the letters had been sent, Headmage Tirmont admitted that he considered expelling Rollo, much to the chagrin of his classmates. He almost smiled but then the Headmage explained ‘There have been many overblots in Night Raven College this year, and yet all the students who’ve overblotted have reintegrated classes just fine. I think that whatever the reason, Crowley has the key to ensure mister Flamme can atone without ruining his future’ At this, Yeshua smiled brightly and Tristan yelled in elation.

Rollo was…touched, even if his face showed displeasure. Yet, a part of him still wished for proper punishment. He hated being eaten by guilt every time he cleaned the Bell of Salvation or whenever a student complimented him for his dedication to the school or when the people from the city smiled brightly at him for his help after the disaster. He had done so much in the days after the symposium hoping to quell the guilt growing in his heart, hoping that he would not have to face justice… but he was a Noble Bell student, the student council president in fact, and one does not study here without wanting to emulate the Fair Judge at least in some aspect.

No, Rollo could not live with himself unless he admitted his crime and faced proper punishment for it, it was only fair.

This was not fair.

Getting expelled from Noble Bell College extra-officially only to be sent to Night Raven College so he could finish his studies seemed like a slap on the wrist to him. The Headmage assured him that it’d be punishment enough but Rollo kept arguing for more. Deep down he didn’t want to have to face the Night Raven College students again, after the way they stopped his plan and made him face his own demons, it left him feeling worse than guilty, it made him feel vulnerable.

‘Rollo, you are a great student, ask anyone at Noble Bell College and they will say so. You have done so much since your enrollment, and twice as much since the symposium I assume because you wanted to repent somehow. And even if you weren’t such a reliable student, there was no permanent damage, nobody lost their magic and nobody got seriously injured, so to punish you the way you wish to would be disproportionate, it’d be unfair’

The Headmage’s words were pushing through his carefully placed barriers. Rollo couldn’t voice it but he did want a second chance, the opportunity to regain his classmates' trust and hold his head high when visiting the city. Maybe he should listen to what the Headmage wanted to propose.

‘See my boy, I contacted some other Headmages in hopes of sending you to finish your studies in a different school, because I firmly believe that you must graduate and use your talents for good, but I also think you can’t stay here’ Rollo was no fool, he understood perfectly why that would be best for him but it still hurt ‘Between how the students would feel having you here everyday and how much you love our city, I believe this must be part of your punishment: once you leave for your new school you may not return until we believe you have atoned properly. To that end, the city council and I will grant you an audience on this day five years from now to see how far along you have come. Until then, you are banned from entering the City of Flowers’ Rollo tried to suppress his emotions but…well he wasn’t made of stone, unlike the noisy gargoyles. His face showed the shock and hurt coursing through his heart. He grit his teeth and tried to swallow the knot forming in his throat, for as much as he hated to say it this was what he had wanted when he confessed his crime, a fair punishment.

So why? Why did he feel like this? Why did he feel like hiding under his bed to cry?

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The day had finally come. Rollo’s bags were packed and he stood solemnly in the front gates of Noble Bell College, wearing casual clothing instead of his uniform. The Headmage had given him a few indications to reach Night Raven College safely as well as his tickets to Sage’s Island. He warned him that the trip would be long so he should try to use it to prepare mentally for his new life.

Throughout his whole explanation, Rollo’s eyes were empty. As much as he knew this was a much better outcome than what he deserved, he still felt awful. To leave his beloved City of Flowers for so long…maybe forever if his guilt remained as strong as it was now. And he didn’t even want to think of what would await him in Night Raven College.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of heels clicking on the cobblestone. The rest of the student council. They looked conflicted to be here, still grappling with someone they respected so much doing something so awful and yet wanting the best for him. Rollo was surprised to see them seeing how early it was, and half expected them to start crying waterfalls amidst their goodbyes. Once again they surprised him. ‘Ex president Rollo…we have come to bid you goodbye’ Yeshua stepped forward with a solemn expression and soon the rest followed ‘We hope that in Night Raven College you may find redemption, not just from others but from yourself. We all agreed to give you this second chance because we believe there is still good in you and we want to see you become that dependable man again, so please do your best’ They all gave a small reverence and Rollo felt guilty all over again. As foolish as they were for being so kind, he still saw in them some of the best students Noble Bell had to offer…and he almost ruined their futures…

‘I will return when I am worthy’ Rollo was never good at goodbyes, or at greetings or at conversations. He wasn’t the most social person but he could make do when it was required of him. Still, the boys in front of him knew him better than most and knew he meant every word. If he didn’t feel worthy of the city, of the Bell’s forgiveness, even if the council deemed him fit he would not return. With that, he entered the carriage and looked one last time at the city that saw him and his brother grow… he saw the stores selling their goods, he smelled the freshly baked croissants and he heard the goats bleating happily and a single tear trailed down his cheek.

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Arriving at Night Raven College had proven to be quite the long trip. Once at the airport he had to take a train, then transfer to a bus, board a ferry, transfer to ANOTHER ferry and once he finally was at Sage’s Island he took another bus to finally reach the imposing gates of the prestigious College. During the long journey, Rollo made use of the Headmage’s advice and thought of what might await him.

To say he was nervous was an understatement. Rollo fully expected to be received by a group of students still mad at what he had done, ready to lynch him. Instead it was only one man standing imposingly at the front gate. His semblance was grim, with unblinking eyes hidden behind a pointed mask, the feathers on his coat swayed with the wind and for a moment he swore he felt that same breeze run a nail across his cheek. Rollo shook his head to clear his mind and stood as straight as he could. ‘Headmage Crowley, thank you for accepting me amongst your students despite my conduct, I will not waste the opportunity you have given me’

Crowley remained unblinking but the movement of his eyes told him he was being studied thoroughly. Naturally Rollo tried to stand taller, to appear more confident and ordered than he was. Finally, the man spoke ‘Why yes! Of course I am happy to give such a bright student a second chance, for I am ever so kind! I’m sure you will fit right in with the students of Night Raven College, mister Flamme. Do follow me now to your new dorm’ With an arrogant smile that hid his previously threatening aura, the man turned around and opened the gate.

The creaking of the metal made a chill run down his spine. For some reason, Rollo felt as if crossing that threshold were an end, to what though? His life? In a way, yes. Once he walked into the campus he would officially be a student of Night Raven College, and while the thought itself wasn’t fastidious, it didn’t feel right. So he took a deep breath and steeled his nerves. This was his punishment, so he had to take it in stride if he ever wanted to return home.

Rollo followed Crowley silently, his steps barely making a sound. Just a few meters away from the gate, the man spoke again ‘Headmage Tirmont tells me you are banned from returning to the City of Flowers until further notice, so I can’t allow you to use the Dark Mirror to visit but if you find yourself wanting to visit some other locations, I’ll be so kind as to open a pathway for you’ He acknowledged his words with a simple thank you and a nod.

Reaching a crossing, the Headmage turned right and proceeded to explain what some of the buildings were. ‘Opposite of where we’re going is the Coliseum, where the Spelldrive matches are played. Over here is Mister S’ Mystery Shop, where you can restock on almost anything really, Sam always has a good selection of anything you may need’ Rollo glanced in the direction of the shop and noted it’s location in case he ever needed something, but other than that didn’t pay much attention to the details. He would do that come morning.

‘Over there is the Hall of Mirrors, it is the only way to reach the other dormitories as they exist in pocket dimensions. In theory students can come and go as they please but some dorms are more welcoming of visitors than others, so I advise that you use it with discretion’ A small nod was his only answer until he realized they were not going towards the hall but rather around it. Wasn’t he going to live in one of the famed seven dorms? Come to think of it, he didn’t undergo the Mirror Ceremony he has heard about, so where are they going? ‘Headmage, may I ask where will I be staying?’

‘Oh don’t worry about it, we’re almost there. Anyways over here we have the Alchemy Workshop and over there is the Botanical Garden’ The Headmage just kept talking in his chipper tone as if Rollo had never made a question, which irritated the boy a little ‘You are free to visit them on your own time, plenty of students like to maintain a variety of plants both innocuous and dangerous in the Botanical Garden, although I must warn you that everything there is communal so as much as you can make use of plants grown by someone else, they may make use of the plants you grow’ There was a certain glint in his eyes that made Rollo embarrassed. He was teasing him for what he had done with the Crimson Flowers. No matter, spreading the flowers here would be a monumental task and he would rather focus on his studies.

As they kept walking in silence, they approached what seemed to be some abandoned woods in the back of the school. Then, he noticed the building in the distance. Ah, that must be the Ramshackle dorm the Prefect had spoken so fondly about, although it didn’t seem nearly as dilapidated as they had described it. All their effort fixing it up must be paying off, it looked beautiful. Rollo couldn’t help but smile, while they hadn’t talked as much as he wished during their visit, he appreciated how hardworking the Prefect was. The fact that they had to do everything without magic simply added to his admiration.

‘Well, here we are, your new residence: Ramshackle dorm’ Crowley made a grand gesture towards the gate while the Prefect walked down the staircase smiling all the way.

Rollo hadn’t forgotten how they looked, but his memory certainly didn’t do them justice.

‘Hi Rollo, welcome to Ramshackle, I hope we can be friends’ Their smile was warm and inviting and Rollo desperately wanted to smile at them too, but he held back, giving instead a polite nod and a handshake that lingered for just a second more than was strictly necessary.

‘Are you certain that you are okay with me staying here? I would understand it if you would rather I stay somewhere else’ Rollo had to make sure, he didn’t want to impose on them after what he put them through. ‘It’s fine, I’m actually looking forward to sharing the dorm with someone’ He couldn’t tell if they were being sincere or just nice, but whatever the case he had to accept the answer. He wanted to believe they were being sincere.

‘Well then, mister Flamme, I leave you in the very capable hands of the Prefect. If you need anything please don’t be afraid to ask them. Behave’ The threat went unheard by the Prefect but not by its intended target. The swing between the chipper, arrogant Headmage and the powerful, threatening sorcerer was baffling to Rollo…and a little bit intimidating.

It occurred to him that maybe living so far away from the rest of the buildings on campus meant he could easily be disposed of if he angered the wrong people.

The Prefect seemed to sense his worry for they spoke in a calming manner ‘Ignore him, Crowley tends to not be a very attentive Headmage. In fact, most of the time I’m the one doing his job for him. Anyways, your bags are already inside, I can show you around so you can pick a room to settle for the night’ They led the way to the dorm, making amicable talk on the way. Mostly the Prefect asked about his trip, how he shouldn’t be afraid if he heard odd sounds since it was probably just the dorm’s ghosts playing some prank and how they would help him if he needed anything.

Rollo felt awkward, while he appreciated the Prefect’s kindness, he couldn’t help but feel much like he did back home: filthy and undeserving of their warmth, guilty.

It wasn’t fair.

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Rollo’s first night in Ramshackle was…….interesting, to put it mildly. First there was the loud familiar who kept demanding he bow to him “as the boss of the dorm” and whom the Prefect seemed to entertain. He considered bowing a little but quickly discarded the idea with a noticeable blush. He would feel ridiculous bowing to a familiar like that but he still chose to entertain the little creature to maintain some peace among them and also because the Prefect seemed fond of him.

So, Rollo crouched a little, looked Grim in the eyes intensely for a few seconds and then patted his head tenderly. The monster-cat didn’t wait a second to make his displeasure known, yelling ‘Ngyaaa! What’re you doing?! I am the Great Grim, you must treat me with respect! Not like some common cat!’ Rollo ignored him and kept petting him, hearing the purring underneath all the yelling and sensing the familiar moving his head closer to his hand. The Prefect stifled their giggling at the sight and rolled their eyes, probably used to this behavior by now.

For the first time in what felt like forever, Rollo smiled earnestly, basking in the warmth that spread in his heart.

If only the night had continued like that, maybe he would have been able to sleep. Instead, the Prefect showed him around, explaining that while most of the first floor and some of the second floor bedrooms were clean and ready to use, the dorm still needed quite some fixing.

‘The plumbing’s working though, so don’t worry about the water running cold. Heh I used to have to rush when I first got here because the hot water would come and go at random’ The Prefect shuddered for dramatic effect in an attempt to make him laugh and Rollo only felt pity. Stranded in this strange new and dangerous world, and the Headmage hadn’t seen fit to at least give them decent living accommodations? Dreadful. At least while he stays here, Rollo should try and help with the cleaning and repairing of the dorm, it’s the least he could do to reciprocate the Prefect’s kindness.

This thought remained in his mind until he finished showering and prepared to go to bed. Sitting on top of the comforter and staring at his hands, there was not a sound to be heard in the whole dorm, not even the creaking of the floors.

Rollo had avoided thinking too much about…well anything really, since his travel began. Yes he had grown used to the idea of studying in Night Raven but that didn’t really strain him much. No, what he had avoided thinking about was everything else.

His brother, playing with his magic and showing him all the tricks he had learned recently. ‘Look! I can make the light change colors!’ ‘Don’t worry, I can get the fruit from the top of the tree with a breeze! Watch out!’ ‘Please Rollo, tell me that story again. I love the way you tell it’

Yeshua running behind him, talking with Tristan and asking for his opinion of everything, be it student council related or not. ‘Should we remind the students that they need to talk with the teachers themselves if they will leave on vacations early?’ ‘Do you think the blue compliments my eyes? Or maybe I should go with the cerulean?’ ‘We were searching for a place to go eat with the rest of the student council, would you join us?’

The people of the city, welcoming him with big smiles and relying on him like a trusted friend. ‘Ah, Rollo! I saved you some croissants, I know they’re your favorite’ ‘There you are Rollo, I just received this package for Laurent, can you give it to him? He said he can’t visit the city until he’s done with his homework’ ‘Dear, would you lend me a hand? My feet are killing me and these bags are much too heavy for these weary old hands’

His breathing quickened with every memory, he felt as if his chest was constricted, heavy. It was impossible to get air into his lungs. He stood up and walked to the bathroom, still trying to control his breathing. He splashed water on his face and when that wasn’t enough he did it again and again and again.

He stared at his reflection in the mirror, a mess of tears and ragged breathing desperate for respite. He filled the sink with water and, taking one last look at himself, dunk his head in.

He remained there for as long as he could. Around ten seconds later he rose up and dove back in, this time remaining for a good twenty five seconds. He repeated the process until he was sure his breathing was back to normal.

He sat down on the cold tile floor and grabbed his head. These bouts of fear were becoming increasingly common and he didn’t know how to fix it, could barely contain them when they happened. Maybe he should stop thinking about the past. Seven know he won’t be getting anything good from reliving his failures.

After drying his face, he sat back on his bed and closed his eyes, trying to catch some sleep, or at least allow his eyes to rest some.

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Rollo’s first day of class was full of…how to put it? Exciting happenings.

First thing in the morning he was met with the Ramshackle ghosts the Prefect had mentioned the night prior.

They haunted some of his things to make noise and wake him with a jump but since he was warned of their little pranks, he sort of expected it. It didn’t help their attempt to prank him that he was already awake when they began haunting his furniture and bags.

As he stood there, toothbrush in his mouth, staring at them unimpressed, the ghosts semi-stopped their shenanigans and introduced themselves.

Rollo could tell by the tone of their voice that they were disappointed they couldn’t scare him and he felt slightly bad for them. Sure they were ghosts, and from what the Prefect had told him they were also prone to these sorts of tricks, but they had also said the ghosts cared for them a lot since they had given them so much support during their most uncertain times living here. So he relented a little and pretended to faint to make it seem like he had been processing the sight of actual ghosts.

They yelled in happiness, praising each other for their welcoming prank on the boy and then asked him about himself.

They reminded him of the gargoyles back in the belltower, annoyingly nosy and sentimental… he smiled as they told him to come to them if he ever needed someone to talk to. So similar…

The Bell was shining beautifully today, after Rollo’s careful cleaning. Just below, he could hear the gargoyles moving around, probably trying to predict when he’d come down so they could hound him with their incessant questions about his day, attempts to prank him and offers of games and idle chat.

Rollo had no time to entertain their childish conversation, he had to prepare study guides for the freshmen, discuss the schedules of the physical exams with the teachers for the students who had to leave early on holidays and he had to talk with the club leaders to see if there was anything they may need for the upcoming semester that may be harder to get into the budget.

‘Rollo! We were just thinking about how great it’d be if you joined us for a game!’ The gargoyles hopped around him, trying to show him the board game they had acquired -he had gotten it for them at their insistence- and which was their recent obsession seeing how little they had to do around the belltower.

‘I am afraid I have much to do right now, perhaps next time I can join you’ It was a blatant excuse, and one the gargoyles had heard a few times by now so they responded differently this once ‘But Rollo, you always say you’re busy and then you come back at night just to sit and stare pensive at the horizon. Why not play with us instead? Then maybe you won’t feel so overwhelmed at night’ … Since when were the gargoyles this perceptive?

Rollo sighed as he allowed the gargoyles to lead him to his seat. He already knew the game, it was the classic Life but with locations specific to the Shaftlands. Still, he said nothing as the gargoyles explained the rules and set the board.

They were so excited for a simple game they kind of reminded him of someone dear to him……… Sighing, Rollo threw the dice and moved his piece. He picked a card and again moved his piece.

The game continued like this, with the gargoyles trying to make him open up and him avoiding it with simple comments about his school life.

He could sense his defenses weakening, at some point once the board was all purchased and only three players remained, Rollo caught himself almost confessing to having trouble sleeping due to the guilt. Luckily he managed to shut up before the gargoyles could hear him, who knows what kind of sentimental talk they would give him if they knew he was feeling troubled.

Once the game was over he dusted his clothes, gave a small bow and thanked them for the game. Serious as ever, he made to leave when the gargoyle spoke ‘Rollo, I know you don’t think we can be of much help because we are made of stone and live here on the belltower, but sometimes all you need is someone to listen and we excel at listening, so please don’t forget we are here for you. And if you really don’t want us to listen, at least remember that there’s always someone who cares’

Rollo stood there for a few seconds and for a moment the gargoyles thought he would stay and share his burden with them, but soon that fantasy was shattered by his steps growing farther. Rollo would never admit it to the gargoyles directly but their words had given him something to think about.

When he heard the ghost’s laughter disappear down the stairs as they told the Prefect how much they liked this new student and the Prefect responded happy that they were getting along, he knew he made the right decision. Even if it cost him dirtying his clean shirt.

Going downstairs to meet with the Prefect and Grim, he noticed them staring at him while Grim eyed the uncooked food. Ah right, back during the symposium he was wearing the Noble Bell uniform, today he wore only the school pants and a white shirt since he hadn’t found the school jacket provided by the Headmage. Even so, Rollo felt a little self conscious, was his appearance that different without his robe? The Prefect kept glancing down to his torso and back to his face as if to make sure it was really him and he started to feel like covering up. He steeled his nerves and tried to match the Prefect’s stare. Soon their eyes were locked in a sort of unblinking game.

When their game lasted for a few seconds too long and Grim heard them giggle slightly, he yelled ‘Hey, henchman! You’re supposed to give him the jacked! Stop playing around! Hyeee!’ The monster-cat grabbed the jacket from their hands, startling them with the volume of the yell, and Rollo saw a little flush on their face. He didn’t have time to notice anything else as Grim handed him the jacked and demanded praise for being such a thoughtful boss.

Rollo looked at the cat, then at the Prefect who simply shrugged, and then back at Grim. With a little embarrassment, Rollo scratched Grim’s ears while muttering a small ‘Thank you, Grim sir’ that made the cat purr, although he pretended to be indignant at being treated like a cat. The Prefect once again commented how happy they were to see them all get along so well and Rollo felt proud at exceeding their expectations.

After sharing a nice breakfast with the Prefect and Grim, consisting of an egg omelet, accompanied by some toast, fruit and coffee, they were on their way to class.

On the way to the main building, the Prefect made good on their word of showing him around the campus so he could actually recognize the buildings he’d have to use for the rest of the year.

Rollo was impressed with the size of the campus now that he could appreciate it in its entirety.

He could understand why Night Raven College was considered such a prestigious school, seeing the quality of its infrastructure and knowing firsthand the proficiency of its students.

‘Anyways… uh… we have different classes since I’m a freshman and you’re a third year but if you need help getting to your next class, come find me. I have potionology with professor Crewel’ The Prefect gave him the directions to their classroom since Rollo didn’t have a phone to contact them in case they wanted to meet up. He repeated the instructions perfectly and headed to his classroom before the bell rang, bidding them a good day.

The class itself was easy enough, history of magic was a subject he didn’t struggle with (not that there was any subject he struggled with) and thankfully there were no group assignments for the time being. Still, he couldn’t help but feel…observed. While the teacher turned around to write on the board, Rollo made a quick survey of the room to try and figure out who was staring at him. Sure enough, he found him sitting just a few rows back.

Rook Hunt, one of the guests for the symposium. Rollo remembered him well enough, what with his extravagant speeches, cheerful disposition and that awful nickname he gave him. He wasn’t sure what to make of him underneath all of that, but he got the feeling he was more dangerous than he seemed, especially with the way his gleaming eyes didn't match his smile.

Rollo gulped, worrying that he would get in trouble so soon. He could endure the rejection and even hatred he may get from the students here, after all he didn’t really have any attachments to them, but he would rather not make more enemies if that would cause trouble for the Prefect as well.

When class ended, Rollo grabbed his things and left to find the Prefect immediately, not wanting to risk a conversation with the blonde.

He found the Prefect laughing at a heated argument between two boys about who’s fault it was that their potion took so long to work.

‘I’m telling ya it was all Juice’s fault! He kept stirring way too slow!’ The redhead boy signaled to a blue-haired one who seemed to take issue with his statement.

‘I was stirring at the right speed! You just told me to stir in the wrong direction because you never read the instructions Ace!’ Rollo realized then that these must be the Prefect’s friends, Ace and… Juice? He couldn’t quite remember what his name was but he felt somewhat certain that it wasn’t Juice, maybe it was a nickname? The people of Night Rave College seem to be rather fond of those.

‘Boy ‘m I glad that I don’ have to partner up with either of them’ The Felmier boy said crossing his arms behind his head. The Prefect nodded in agreement and then noticed him standing there, awkwardly.

‘Rollo! Do you need help getting to your next class?’ The Prefect’s voice cut the chatter and at once all eyes were on him. The air grew tense once the boys realized he was here.

Ace and Deuce exchanged looks while Epel took a step in front of the Prefect. They all looked ready to fight, he better diffuse the situation before something bad happens to them ‘I didn’t mean to interrupt but I do not know where the classroom for my’ He checked his schedule ‘“Ancient Curses” class is located’

‘Oh, Leona and Rook have the same schedule I think, come on I know where it is’ They tried to tell their friends to go ahead to class without them but the trio refused, claiming that they wanted to keep talking. Rollo knew they were keeping an eye on him.

Good, at least they cared for their friend.

Once the second class was over, the bell rang and Rollo made his way to the cafeteria as per the Prefect’s instructions. He should thank them, their instructions were very clear and succinct so he could remember them easily.

As he entered the cafeteria, he started looking around for the Prefect, not wanting to share a table with some unknown person or worse, a known person.

After scanning the place for a couple of minutes, he saw them enter the cafeteria with several friends from the other side and took long strides to reach them before they picked a table. With any luck, they could sit by a window in a far away corner.

‘Rollo! Good to see you didn’t get lost, I was a bit worried my instructions were confusing’ The Prefect scratched the back of their head and their friend, Ace, imitated them in a mocking manner. A big muscular boy rolled his eyes at his antics and the other boy, Zigvolt, ignored them both in favor of staring at him.

‘Not at all, in fact your instructions were clear enough that I got here earlier than my classmates’ He motioned for them to sit on a nearby table, away from the others and the group of freshmen complied without fuss though still with some tension in the air.

As Rollo sat beside the Prefect, the other boys picked their places around the table. Spade, Felmier and Zigvolt sat together across from him while the wolfman and Ace sat on the other side of the Prefect. Grim took the Prefect’s lap as expected.

‘We better get some food, yo Prefect, come with me Juice is too prone to mess up the orders with his indecision’ Ace grabbed the Prefect by the arm and forced them to go along before they could even answer.

Sitting in front of him, Juice? Spade muttered ‘That happened once’ in an annoyed voice.

Rollo had known these kids for all of ten minutes combined and already he could gather what their group dynamic was.

‘So…how’re you liking your classes? I hear you had professor Trein for first period’ Spade made the first move and Rollo was thankful he chose such a neutral subject.

‘It was quite enriching. Professor Trein has vast knowledge and a commanding presence so paying attention to him was no problem’ Both Spade and Felmier looked at him like he had grown two heads, well that couldn’t be good ‘Did I say something wrong?’

The question seemed to awaken them as Felmier spoke up ‘Ah no it’s just- normally people complain that Trein’s classes are boring but they can’t sleep through them because he likes calling out misbehaving students. I suppose we shouldn't be too surprised though, you seem like the studious type’ While Rollo took it as a compliment, he felt slightly offended by the arrogant smile the boy was giving him.

‘Really it’s just them, most people go to class hoping to learn but these two and Ace like to cause trouble, so take whatever they say about the professors with a grain of salt’ The wolfman spoke so suddenly Rollo had almost forgotten he was there since unlike Zigvolt he wasn’t staring at him like he wanted to murder him.

‘Wha- Jack, that’s not true! We pay attention to class, it’s just hard because Trein speaks very slowly and Lucius makes so much noise too it makes it hard to pay attention’ Spade clearly didn’t like being called unattentive by his friend, meanwhile Felmier added in ‘And we aren’t as troublesome as Ace! If anything, you’re talking about Grim! Those two are the real troublemakers of this group’ He seemed to fully stand by his words with how he puffed out his chest.

He deflated as soon as he noticed Ace had returned with the trays of food and was threatening to not give him his unless he apologized for blaming him for their shenanigans.

‘I don’t cause trouble! It’s you two and Grim who can’t keep up with me and my awesome ideas! If you did, then all my plans would work just fine and nobody’d get in trouble’

Naturally the boys began arguing on whether he was right or wrong, with Felmier and Spade mostly defending that he was the major contributor to the chaos amongst them ‘And what do you mean we can’t keep up?! We got our Unique Magic before you, if anything it’s you who can’t keep up at all!’ They kept arguing for a little longer until the Prefect finally spoke ‘GUYS!’ They all looked baffled at them ‘Please quiet down, we’re gonna get in trouble and I really want to make Rollo’s first day here better than mine’ They gave Spade and Ace a look which made them blush brightly as they stuttered shut.

Once Felmier and Spade relented, Ace plopped down next to the Prefect and gave him a curious look ‘Say, I heard from Juice and the others that you were a big deal back in your old school, so how come you didn’t enroll here to begin with?’ His bluntness was surprisingly refreshing after all the strange looks and veiled intentions he had gotten so far.

‘I chose Noble Bell College because of its history. While you all may be proud to be students here, I was proud to be there. The City of Flowers is- was my home, and I was honored to be accepted there. I can only guess it was that disposition that made me ineligible for Night Raven College since the election process is a mystery to all but the Headmage’ Rollo started slicing the steak the Prefect had gotten for him and noticed the rest of the table’s attention was still on him so he tried to say something else so they would go back to their conversations ‘Also I wasn’t a big deal, anyone can become the student council president with enough dedication since the position is for those willing to be responsible and dutiful to the school and its students’ To his dismay, his words had the opposite effect.

‘That’s right! You were the student council president! So that means you probably were an honors student, right? Can you tell me about that? I want to be an honors student myself’ Spade raised his fist in determination and Rollo didn’t know how to answer. He just wanted to eat his steak in silence and pretend he was back at the belltower.

He looked at Spade, trying to figure if he was being polite in asking more things or if he was honest in his goals. Feeling the rest of the boys awaiting for his answer, he spoke ‘Um…well…uh…studying is the hard part I suppose, but if you can pay attention during class then reviewing your notes becomes much easier’ Both Spade and Felmier scooted a bit closer to hear him better in the growing noise of the cafeteria.

‘Some people will tell you to highlight the important information but that’s futile if you think everything is important. Instead you should rewrite your notes in a way you understand and then make a brief summary of the things you struggle to understand so you can ask your classmates or teachers about it’ The way he launched into his helpful senior student self was like a switch had been flipped, so used he was to aiding his own classmates with their studies and questions.

By the time the cafeteria was clearing out a bit, Epel, Deuce and even Sebek were happily telling him about some of their own tips for studying their favorite subjects. Ace looked at the Prefect confused while they simply shrugged and kept cutting pieces of their meal before Grim swallowed their unattended tray.

As it was, lunch would have been perfect if those were the only noteworthy events of the evening, but of course the animated table was interrupted by someone joining out of nowhere.

‘Roi du Mouchoir! I am so glad to finally find you! And with Monsieur Pommette of all people!’ Rook Hunt was standing right behind the Prefect, looking at him with a big smile and an unsaid threat in his eyes. At once Rollo felt his temperature drop but remained impassive as the Prefect welcomed the blonde to join them on the table.

‘Why were you looking for Rollo, Rook?’ Epel asked in between bites of his steak. Hunt sat beside him and praised his poise while eating, much to the boy’s dismay or was it embarrassment?

‘Oh I simply wanted to talk, see I noticed him during our history of magic class and tried to approach him when it ended but he left so fast I couldn’t catch up’ He gave a small pout that fooled absolutely no one here, they all knew if he wanted to catch someone like Rollo he was perfectly capable of doing so even if he disappeared from his sight.

‘I needed the Prefect to help me with something. At any rate, whatever you wanted to talk about, I hope you don’t mind the Prefect and their friends listening now’ Rollo wasn’t sure what to expect from this boy. On the one hand he was clearly well trained and powerful enough to be a vice housewarden, on the other hand he seemed to be friendly back when they first met and now too the Prefect wasn’t giving any indication that they worried about this interaction. Maybe he was just assessing him?

‘Oh! Just wanted to see how you are adapting to the school, I know when I transferred from Savanaclaw to Pomefiore I experienced such a noticeable change in atmosphere and that was within the same school, I can only imagine how different things are here compared to Noble Bell College’ Rollo was right, he was assessing him. Hunt kept looking at him with a friendly face but he could feel the faintest aura of danger emanating from the eccentric boy.

‘So far everything is good, professor Trein gave a wonderful class and I think I learned quite a bit in Ancient Curses. The students haven’t given me any trouble either…yet, and I hope it remains that way. I have no desire to make enemies nor cause any problems for the Prefect with my issues’ The Prefect tried to say that it was no problem but everybody at the table silenced them by saying some form of ‘You already have enough on your plate’. Heh, it was cute how they all cared so aggressively for each other.

Rollo and Hunt maintained eye contact, unblinking. But unlike with the Prefect that morning, this wasn’t lighthearted, oh no, this was a test. Rollo couldn’t look away or Hunt would think him suspicious or insincere. They kept staring without saying a word until the freshmen realized what was going on.

‘Rook…I think you should leave this to us’ Felmier spoke softly to his dormmate ‘We actually have been talking to Rollo and…um I think he’s alright. Even Sebek has been giving him a chance and we’ve learned some neat things from him. So please don’t be so hard on him, let’s give him a chance to show us how he’s changed’ His words made Hunt look at him in surprise.

‘Oh Monsieur Pommette! Your words are so full of kindness and wisdom! I am so proud of you and I’m sure fair Vil will be as well!’ His laughter made the boy blush with a queasy smile, probably happy to make his senior proud ‘Very well, I will leave you alone for now, but Roi du Mouchoir’ Rollo was getting dizzy from all these sudden mood changes, so he just looked at Hunt with a raised brow ‘Please, do talk to me in class, I will be more than glad to partner up with you in any group projects’ Once again Rollo felt a vague threat emanating from the blonde’s high yet dry tone. Was everybody at this school so weird?

The last period confirmed that indeed, everyone at this school was very weird.

They were to have lab class with the students from class E, which on paper seemed alright, more students meant he was less likely to be paired with Hunt. But then he was actually paired with Trey Clover and all his hopes of having any semblance of a quiet, normal school year went out the window.

At first he introduced himself politely, shaking his hand and welcoming him to Night Raven College, and Rollo felt nothing wrong with this. His attention at first had been grabbed by the intense staring he felt from somewhere in the room.

He turned around to find Hunt working happily with some student from…Octavinelle? So he kept searching but the presence disappeared. Strange.

‘Are you alright? If you need to see the nurse I can take you’ Clover seemed reliable enough so Rollo apologized and got to work on the potion as per the chalkboard’s instructions.

While they worked, Trey made polite conversation to get to know him better. It felt utterly fake, like he would rather be partnered with anyone else but him, but Rollo understood the feeling so he didn’t hold it against him.

Then he felt it again. That stare. He turned around and saw nothing out of the ordinary, but he could still feel the hairs on the back of his neck standing. Who was staring at him so intently?

He must have said it out loud because Clover actually answered ‘Sometimes Lilia likes staring at people, I swear he can be even sneakier than Rook’ Lilia? As in Lilia Vanrouge, the vice housewarden of Malleus Draconia? Well, that would explain two things.

‘I see, he must not be happy having me here after what happened’ Rollo still wasn’t sure how much people knew about his actions but he would rather play it safe, no use in exposing himself like that on his first day.

‘Don’t be silly, I am very happy I can meet the boy who helped my boys grow a stronger bond’ When did he get here?! Rollo jumped back with the spoon on his hands, completely startled by the short boy standing upside down beside him.

‘Lilia please don’t do that, he could’ve ruined our potion and this mixture is very volatile’ Clover’s chiding tone was very gentle, like a parent explaining to a toddler why they can’t bite something dangerous. How could someone so normal handle such bizarre situations so easily? Was this just a side effect of studying here, developing mechanisms to deal with the strange?

‘Kee hee, sorry Trey. I just wanted to see the new student Malleus spoke so passionately about. He had a lot of opinions about you transferring here you know’ Of that Rollo had no doubt, but so far he had managed to avoid Draconia and he hoped he would keep it that way for the next few days or weeks if he could ‘But don’t worry, the Prefect made him promise he’d be nice so long as you’re nice’ The boy disappeared and reappeared beside him, standing on the ground this time.

He was handing him his hand to shake, Rollo took it tentatively. ‘Oh ho, don’t be so shy now. I feel like we know each other so well already! Me with all these stories I hear about your doings during the symposium and you with all the hits you took from my boys~ Oh and the singing! I hope you liked the song. I showed it to Malleus so they could sing it as a present’ His smile was childish but his voice and demeanor betrayed his experience. Rollo wasn’t sure where Night Raven got all these walking contradictions but he supposed the Headmage must have a knack for selecting students similar to himself in that regard.

Rollo was half tempted to retort something smart back to the odd little man but just as quickly as he had come, he went back to his station. Sigh he better focus on the potion before it explodes. He really doesn’t want to get detention on his first day here, the day has been exhausting as is.

He followed Clover’s advice for a while until he noticed the potion changed color, it shouldn’t do that yet. He checked the ingredients they had added and sure enough, they had added a couple in the wrong order. Nothing too terrible for this potion but precision was important in alchemy for a reason: plenty of potions did change drastically if the ingredients weren't added in a certain order.

He was about to signal to Clover to come over so they would start stirring slower to account for this change when he saw the ghost of a smug smile on his face. Was this another test? Why was he smiling like that? Did he do something wrong or right? Rollo felt a headache incoming from all the overthinking he had done today. Class couldn’t be over soon enough.

‘Ah, Clover we are ready to start stirring, although we seem to have added some ingredients in the wrong order, so we should start slowly to account for that lest the potion explodes’ Clover’s eyes crinkled happily and Rollo knew then that indeed, this was a test. Great. Even the normal students had something suspicious about them. Now he almost feels offended at the Headmage saying he’d fit right in.

They finished the potion without fuss and the professor acknowledged their clean work, allowing them to leave early so long as they cleaned their space. With the practiced hand he acquired from helping maintain the school grounds and the belltower in Noble Bell, Rollo was done in a few moments. Clover didn’t have time to be impressed as just a second later, Rollo left for Ramshackle.

He needed a quick bite, a shower and to sleep for a thousand nights.

Once again night came and with it Rollo’s ugly thoughts came chasing him in his dreams. He couldn’t run fast enough, he couldn’t leap far enough. No matter what he did, there was no way of reaching his brother.

The flames engulfed everything, from the floor to the ceiling. Rollo tried to crawl through them, he knew he could he just had to use his Unique Magic. ‘Crimson flower, scorch my soul-’ It was futile, he couldn't feel the well of magic within. He was empty, completely devoid of magic.

There was no way to save him. But he had to try. Rollo kept crawling closer, the flames growing hotter every second. Soon he would feel the same pain his brother felt, at least this time he wouldn't abandon him.

‘ROLLO!’ He was jerked awake by the warm hand of the Prefect. Rollo looked at them perplexed, it was a dream? He scrubbed the sleep from his eyes and with it the tears that had fallen in his sleep. Oh. He must have made the Prefect worry if they could tell he was having a nightmare.

‘I’m sorry for waking you, Prefect. Please don’t worry about me, you should go back to sleep’ He tried to sound convincing but his voice had that tremor it did whenever he was about to panic. The Prefect sat by the end of his bed hesitatingly, afraid they may be imposing.

‘When I told you I was here for you, I meant it, not just for the academic stuff’ Their voice was soft and quiet but carried so much weight in the silent space between them he felt compelled to scoot closer. ‘If there’s anything you need to talk about, chances are I can help you…I’ve been through my fair share of bad times myself…’ They left him a choice. He could run like he had done for these past few months- no, for the better part of his life since his brother died. Or he could confide in the Prefect

‘There's always someone who cares’ The gargoyle’s resigned voice rang behind his head.

‘Maybe we would manage to reach out to you... it seems you’re not ready yet Rollo’ Yeshua and Tristan whispered at each side of him, eyes pleading for an opening.

‘It’s not your brother or the world you want to save...it’s just yourself’ Idia Shroud’s voice echoed loudest, dispassionate yet truthful, heavy with the sentence of someone who understands far better than anyone should be able to.

‘I just- I don’t know what’s happening to me’ For the first time in forever, Rollo allowed himself to be vulnerable without putting up a fight. All these years he had built his carefully placed walls, hoping to keep the pain outside. Instead all he had done was lock himself in with all of it and no way to ask for help. It was time to stop.

The Prefect cradled him on their chest carefully, rubbing his back in soothing circles and whispering reassurances that he could speak whenever he felt ready. He was crying uncontrollably and he hadn’t even noticed until he felt the dampened shirt of his dormmate.

They stayed like that for what felt like hours until Rollo could not cry anymore. He felt lighter if a bit embarrassed. Sniffing, he pulled back and looked at them with a thankful nod. He needed a second to recollect himself.

‘.........I feel guilty that I couldn’t save my brother. I was the older brother and it was my duty to protect him……if only I had gotten my magic sooner-’ ‘Don’t do that’ The interruption took him by surprise ‘Blaming yourself like that, that’s a sure way of driving yourself crazy’ They grabbed his hand and made him stand up.

Near the window, Rollo saw the dim light of the moon ‘We can’t change what’s in the past, but we can choose how those events affect us into the future…how we remember the people we lost’ Their hand squeezed his reassuringly when it trembled ‘You have to decide: do you want to remember him as he was on his last moments? Scared and in pain? Or as he was the rest of the time? As the person you loved so dearly?’ Their words sounded so much like Shroud’s, not just in what they meant but in how their voice had this faint tremor, some barely contained emotion. The Prefect knew what he was feeling, they had lost someone too. Slowly he turned his head to look at them and sure enough they were crying too now.

What a sight they must be, two newly dormmates crying in a dark room in the earliest hours of a saturday morning. Instinctively he draped his arms around their shoulders and pulled them against his chest like they had done earlier, tucking their head under his chin. ‘Thank you’ His breathing was calm, the calmest it had been since the symposium. Equally the Prefect’s breathing slowed down until it evened out completely. Rollo looked down to see them dozing off.

He held his chuckle and brought them to his bed. He tucked them in and sat next to them on top of the covers, waiting for sleep to claim him.

Come morning he would wake up to the Prefect hugging him like a stuffed bear and Grim complaining about him stealing his minion, but for now he enjoyed a good night’s sleep before the chaos of another day at Night Raven College.

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

It was nearing the end of Rollo’s first week on Ramshackle and things admittedly seemed far better than he expected at first. In just these few days he had ‘squirmed his way in’ into the Prefect’s friend group (according to Ace) by inadvertently joining them on their shenanigans, he got to assist the Prefect in cooking during the weekend and enjoyed exploring the grounds along with the freshmen. He even got to work with Hunt for a class project which gave them great results. All in all, his week had been full of excitement.

Yes, some students had been naturally suspicious of him upon meeting him (the housewardens in particular had been prone to interrupting his time with the Prefect for the most random reasons), but he supposed those feelings came from the retellings of what happened during the symposium. And even if they didn’t know, he couldn’t exactly blame them, what with how unapproachable he seemed (or so the Prefect told him on a few occasions) and the strangeness of his transfer.

There was the difficulty of how different the schools were, for sure. Noble Bell was full of tradition, with the students following it dutifully and gladly, while Night Raven College was more…innovative. There was tradition as well, certainly but in general the students seemed eager to break the mold and stand out in their uniqueness. Rollo wasn’t used to that.

But in all, his assessment of the school was positive. Maybe Headmage Tirmont had been right in sending him here.

These thoughts occupied his mind as he tossed and turned around on his bed. The clock of his room indicated the hour to be 2 AM. He turned around on his bed again and tried to close his eyes, to force himself to sleep but no matter how long he kept them shut, it didn’t work. For some reason tonight he couldn’t drift into unconsciousness. He blamed the heat wave and the dorm’s poor insulation.

Deciding to not waste his time getting annoyed at his lack of sleep, and fearing another bout of anxiety if he remained stirring in his thoughts, he got up and wandered out to go grab a glass of water. Maybe that would cool him enough to get some restless sleep at least.

Walking on the hallway to the first floor, he noticed a faint light coming from one of the unused rooms. Odd.

Curiosity piqued, he grabbed the knob and silently opened the door. While he expected the ghosts to be doing something here, he was instead met by the Prefect, shrimp-pajamas covered by a white coat, painting on a big canvas. Far bigger than the one in their room.

They hadn’t noticed him yet, so he debated for a second whether to let them be or approach and inquire about the unknown flower in the canvas. He took a look at the Prefect’s hands stained in purplish-blue and white paint, their clothes equally colorful and a second later he caught the sound of humming. A song.

As it was more and more common for him, Rollo felt like in a trance as he walked closer until the Prefect noticed his presence.

‘Oh! I’m sorry, did I wake you?’ Ever caring, they were more worried about his comfort than their own. How cute.

Rollo didn’t reply, instead bringing a thumb to their cheek and smearing some of the purplish-blue paint on it as he tried to clean them. Their eyes widened while his intense stare remained on their face and from this close he could notice so much more about his dormmate than he had in the days prior. The way their breath caught making the smallest gasping sound, the way their mouth opened just a little bit as if unsure of what to say, the way their face heated up to the tip of their ears.

Wait what

‘Prefect, you’re warm. Are you alright?’ That seemed to raise their temperature even more, to the point where he placed his hand on their forehead to make sure they didn’t have a fever. The Prefect squealed and quickly turned around. ‘I’m fine! I’m fine! Just forgot to open the windows!’ Rollo looked around the room and noticed that indeed the windows were closed and with how hot it was tonight, that just wouldn’t do.

He gave them some space while he went to open the two windows in the room before returning his attention to the Prefect.

‘What is the name of the song you were humming? If I may ask. It didn’t sound familiar’ Rollo had learned in these past few days that while the Prefect could make people open up surprisingly easily, they themselves didn’t share much about their own life. Probably to avoid growing nostalgic for their home, so he didn’t know exactly what the boundaries were for asking personal questions yet. He still felt as if the moment they shared the other night had been a dream, knowing something about them that no one else knew made him feel special.

‘Uh, it's a song from a movie I used to watch, the song is called “my favorite things”, it was very popular to sing it for kids on certain holidays’ They eyed their supplies searching for something or maybe deciding how to proceed with the painting. Rollo didn’t know too much about painting, but he knew this one was coming out beautiful.

Once they picked a smaller brush and dipped it in paint, Rollo walked closer trying to see if he could recognize the flowers from this distance. He couldn’t.

‘Are those flowers from your world too?’ His voice came out soft and subdued, barely hearable but they answered anyways ‘Oh yeah, they’re called jacarandas. I haven’t seen any of them here, even in the books from the library, so I figured maybe they don’t exist here? So I chose to paint them before I forget what they looked like. What do you think?’ Their voice was happy on the surface but Rollo detected something under that, a tinge of sadness that stroke his heart.

‘I think they are beautiful’ His eyes traced every line, every petal and trunk and came to the conclusion that, if the Prefect’s painting was a fraction of accurate to the real thing then the flowers must be a sight to behold.

‘I think so too, there are some in pink and white that also are very pretty but I prefer these purple ones’ Their smile grew just the littlest bit and Rollo could tell that the sadness was subsiding. Good, Rollo wasn’t opposed to consoling the Prefect but he much rather preferred to make sure they don’t cry to begin with.

‘Anyways, I’m sorry I woke you up Rollo, I didn’t think my humming and painting would make that much noise. I guess since Grim is such a heavy sleeper and the ghosts have never mentioned this, I assumed I was in the clear’ Rollo saw them clean the brushes as if to finish painting for the night. He didn’t know why but he wanted to keep watching, to keep talking about their world and bask in this quiet moment of intimacy and trust just between the two of them.

‘Please don’t stop on my behalf. I couldn’t sleep on account of my room being so hot so I wandered here for a glass of water. In fact, I am sorry for intruding on you like this’ The Prefect stopped their movements and looked at him, a little taken aback by his apology. They let out a snort that confused Rollo. Usually that reaction was directed at Grim or the freshmen.

‘Oh don’t worry about it, if I wanted to keep my painting private I would’ve locked the door. But it’s good to know I didn’t wake you’ They smiled again, their hand hovering over the brushes hesitantly. Rollo wondered if he could make them smile again. ‘Do you mind if I keep painting then? You don’t have to stay-’

‘I would love to’ Soon as he realized how fast he spoke, his face grew red with embarrassment while the Prefect tried, and failed, to suppress their laughter. Well, it's good to know that his embarrassment can make them smile at least, not that he hadn’t realized that by now with how thoroughly Ace and Epel liked to tease him.

‘Would you consider teaching me how to paint, Prefect?’ Rollo’s question clearly took them by surprise seeing how they almost dropped their brush and did a double take. ‘I have seen some of the paintings in your room, sceneries and people I don’t recognize, I presume they are from your world’ They nodded their head, still looking at him shocked ‘I would like to try that…to paint my home so that I may keep it with me’

The Prefect gave him a look of understanding, they both looked to the floor in thought. They both missed home, and while Rollo knew that he could go back one day, the reality was that neither knew what tomorrow would bring. Crowley may never find a way back home for the Prefect, Rollo may die before he sets foot on the City of Flowers again…

Before any dark thoughts took over their minds, the Prefect spoke again ‘I myself am not the greatest artist out there, but if that’s alright with you then I’d love to teach you what I know’

Rollo smiled genuinely at them and they returned it twice as bright.

The Prefect kept painting and making idle chat for a few more minutes until they came to a relaxing silence. It was nice, having a moment of quiet not be interrupted by talking cats, loud freshmen or paranoid housewardens. Rollo allowed himself to enjoy the moment like he had began to enjoy his stay at Night Raven, remembering how even in Noble Bell he often felt something else under the happiness or relaxation, always some underlying anger at the magic around him, some hatred for his classmates’ carefree use of magic, guilt at himself for depending on it just the littlest bit, always something to rot those memories.

Now, standing here with the Prefect, all he could feel was calm and happy. Sure he missed his home, he missed his family and he missed his classmates, but the Prefect had made such an effort to make him feel welcome here, and even their noisy friends were doing their best to include him in their shenanigans, much to his despair.

In the quiet of the night, accompanied only by the sound of the brush against the canvas and each other’s breathing, Rollo realized that they could choose to make home here. The Prefect had made a family with Grim, the ghosts and the freshmen, always making each other laugh, studying together, causing problems for each other and then trying to solve them as a team… Rollo felt like maybe, just maybe, he could also join that little family. He wanted to have a family again.

He opened his mouth to say as much when the ghosts decided now was the perfect time to annoy them ‘Ohhhh look at this~ Rollo and the Prefect are having a little night date~’ ‘Oh ho ho Rollo~ and here I thought you were a gentleman, how scandalous!’ ‘You better treat them right, Rollo. Or we will haunt you every night until you graduate hehehe’ The Prefect and Rollo looked at each other, faces flushed from their teasing, and upon realizing how close they were they jumped apart several meters.

‘Awww look at how red they are! We were just trying to tease you but maybe we’re right, hmm? Do you have something to tell us Rollo? Hee hee hee’ As the ghosts flew around them, making more teasing comments, Rollo covered his face with his hand and the Prefect grabbed his other hand to drag him back to the dorms. Once there, they let go and gave him one last look, still flushed, and wished him a good night with a peck on the cheek.

Rollo, stunned from the affection, remained there completely unmoving even as the ghosts came back to tease him some more and made joking threats of telling about this to the freshmen, who would no doubt tease him about it too.

Needless to say, he was in no way getting any sleep soon, but at least now he knew. Transferring to Night Raven College, to Ramshackle Dorm, was the best decision Headmage Tirmont could have made for him.

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brattata · 3 years ago

Text

Windows

Crossposted from my AO3 account, if it seems familiar. Mature content below, so minors please DNI!

Joseph's been putting a lot of work into your real estate business, and it's really starting to pay off. You wanted to congratulate him by christening his fancy new desk in his fancy new office, but things don't go according to your plan.

Joseph Joestar x AFAB reader (no female pronouns used, but reader wears feminine clothing)

CW: Semi-public sex, exhibitionism/voyeurism, creampie, Joseph says “cunt” one (1) time

“It’s impressive,” you admit, leaning in for an almost-kiss.

Instead of closing the distance, Joseph grabs your hands and pulls you up from the couch excitedly, leading you over to the far wall. “You haven’t seen the best part yet,” he teases. “Watch this.”

He reaches up to press a subtly disguised switch, and it becomes apparent that the “wall” is actually a massive floor-to-ceiling window, slowly revealed from behind the dark wood paneling.

“Wow,” you whisper, pressing your hand to the cool glass. Beyond it is the Manhattan skyline, breathtaking from 15 stories up. The brightness of the city obscures most of the stars, but the thousands of twinkling lights and glowing windows are beautiful in their own way. There are people behind some of those windows, you think – working late, or maybe enjoying time with their families. Maybe taking in the view with the person they love most, the way you are now.

Joseph hums a kiss into your hair, wrapping his arms around you from behind. His comforting weight against your back and impish smile reflected in the glass make you feel so warm inside, your heart could burst.

Until one of his hands slips beneath your skirt.

“JoJo!” you gasp, grabbing his wrist. “What are you doing?”

“Oh come on, don’t be coy!” he laughs. “The champagne, the perfume…that skirt, with no nylons underneath.” His smirk is undeniably sexy, but that only makes you more annoyed. “You didn’t come here for a tour of the new office.”

“No, I wanted to celebrate with you!” You pause. “In your new chair, or maybe on top of your new desk. But not in front of a window, Joseph!”

“Why not?” he asks, almost sounding genuinely perplexed.

“Someone could see!”

“Who?” he laughs again. “It’s late. No one’s watching. Even if they were, they would be too far away to see our faces.” Now he’s trailing kisses down the back of your neck, shameless as ever in exploiting your weaknesses. “And besides, I think you like an audience.”

“I-JoJo, what-,” you splutter, scandalized and yet burning at his accusation.

“I noticed last summer at Grandma Erina’s,” he replies, letting his lips brush against your nape. “When Smokey walked in on us. You remember, right?”

How could you forget? Even now, the memory has your insides twisting with a complicated emotion you can’t quite place. Like embarrassment but sharper, hotter. Exciting.

“I’d never seen you make that face before. Not to mention the way you held onto me…and well, held onto me.” Joseph pauses from tormenting your neck to flash you a dirty little grin. “I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since.”

“O-oh, Joseph, I’m. I don’t know,” you trail off. Immediately his chin comes to rest on top of your head, one arm draped around your shoulders and the other curling soothingly around your waist.

“I’ll do whatever you want me to, baby,” he murmurs. “I only want to make you feel good.”

You take a moment, studying your feelings and Joseph’s gentle (but hopeful) expression. Then you unfasten your skirt.

Immediately Joseph lets go of you with a little whoop and a fist pump before tearing into his shirt and tie.

“God, you’re lucky you’re handsome,” you scold him good-naturedly, giggling a bit at his childishness. You kick the skirt away, opting to leave your kitten heels on. Next comes your blouse, which you unbutton slowly for Joseph’s benefit. His shirt is gone, along with his belt. He palms himself lazily over unbuttoned pants, watching your fingers work.

“Don’t forget heroic, a genius, and—“ his bragging is cut short by a low whistle as your bra is revealed, a delicate little number formed of translucent lace. Once you let the blouse fall he can fully appreciate the matching panties, cupping your ass nicely but leaving very little to the imagination. “Baby, you did come dressed to celebrate.”

When you reach back to undo the bra clasp Joseph stops you, lips back on your neck and hands rubbing your shoulders. Instead you tug the cups down until your breasts spill out, earning you a hissed “Niiice” before his hands quickly replace the lace. The contrast is delicious – warm, calloused flesh on one side, smooth and cool metal on the other. Both options have your nipples pebbling almost instantly, Joseph kneading your tits with reverence as if this is a rare treat rather than something he gets to do almost every day.

It is kind of a special occasion.

Before long his right hand drifts down your stomach, slipping deftly into your underwear. You’re so slick he can barely keep a finger on your clit, forcing a whine from you and a low groan from him. “Holy shit, you’re wet! The thought of putting on a show for some strangers gets you this worked up?”

“N-no, I’m excited for you, JoJo,” you coo, hips undulating along with his fingers. “It feels so good when you touch me.”

“Hmm, seems like I barely need to touch you at all,” he replies, back to his smug grin. With little warning he slips one finger inside you, then two, then three. There’s the tiniest sting, but you take them all easily. “See? You’re already ready for me.” It’s hard to argue when his strong, thick fingers are knuckle deep inside you and your pussy is still aching for more. “Since you want it so badly, guess it’s time to stop playing around and have some real fun.” The fingers are gone. “Bend over, baby.”

With a shaky sigh you do as you’re told, bracing your hands against the window and sliding your legs apart. You can’t resist wiggling your hips a little, asking for a playful swat from Joseph’s right hand. His left hand is suddenly gripping your ass, thumb spreading your lower lips open even wider and sweeping the gusset of your panties aside. You hear a zipper and rustling fabric, but instead of his cock, it’s a puff of warm air that caresses your pussy, followed by a firm stroke of his tongue.

“Oh, fuck!” you wail, leaning your forehead against the glass.

“Not until you beg for it, my love,” Joseph chuckles. “I can eat this sweet pussy all night! Make you come until you’re crying for my cock!”

“JoJo!” you moan, desperately. You want to ask what’s gotten into him, but he’s sucking hard on your clit and you can barely hold a thought. He’s always been vocal during sex, but his babbling is usually sweet, not this demanding or…filthy. You love your adorably enthusiastic Joseph, but this version is also thrilling, and it makes you wonder if you’re not the only one excited by imagining eyes on the other side of the window. He’s slurping your pussy so loudly you know it’s deliberate, groaning like you’re the most delicious thing he’s ever tasted.

And for another reason, you realize, when you look at your reflections and see him vigorously stroking his cock. It’s the sight that carries you over the edge: Joseph kneeling with his face buried between your legs, so turned on that he can’t help but touch himself. You come with a strangled squeal, and Joseph gives your clit an affectionate peck as if to say “good job.” He’s gripping the base of his cock so hard it looks painful.

“Fuck me, JoJo,” you gasp. “Please, please fuck me.”

“Whatever you want, baby.”

You rest for a bit against the window while Joseph stands and adjusts his grip on your hips. Now there are two thumbs spreading you open completely, which you might protest as embarrassing if you weren’t turned on beyond all pretense. You suck in a breath when the head of his cock finally kisses your opening, only for him to stop before taking the plunge.

“Look at that. It’s show time after all.” Blearily, you lift your head to see a silhouette in one of the windows in the office building across from you. Whoever it is has dimmed their lights so you can’t see much other than a vague shape, but it’s easy to imagine a strange pair of eyes staring into yours as Joseph sinks deep with one thrust.

The sudden stretch and the arousal have you coming again, softly this time, an aftershock of the pleasure you got from Joseph’s tongue. He leans his weight against your ass and holds still, luxuriating in the way you ripple around him, like you want him even deeper. “Fuck, this is good! We should’ve done this sooner!”

“Yeah,” you agree dreamily, grinding back against Joseph while you wait for him to move. He pulls back and thrusts hard, making your palms squeak against the glass.

“Maybe-“ he grunts, “maybe we should try it again on Monday morning. I’ll brace you against the doorway of my office, just like this, and we can show everyone that sexy face you’re making. Show them how hard I make you come.”

“But I don’t want them to see,” you murmur back. “Those things, I only want to show them to you, JoJo.”

“S-shit,” he gasps. “Fuck, you’re so hot. So beautiful!” He has a hand around your breast again, lips, tongue, and teeth trailing across your neck and shoulders just the way you like. He presses his face next to yours and gently tilts your chin up, making you look out the window again. “It looks like our new friend agrees.”

Across from you, the silhouette’s arm is moving back and forth. You can’t really see what’s happening, but you know.

“You’re so sexy, you’ve got him jerking off in the middle of his office,” Joseph laughs breathily. He slips two fingers between your parted lips, stroking your tongue in time with his thrusts. “Who could blame him? Watching those gorgeous tits bouncing above that pretty lace. Imagining his cock is the one pounding out your hot little cunt.”

You stiffen up a bit at the vulgarity and Joseph kisses your temple, asking with his eyes if what he said was okay. “Yes, yes, fuck,” you moan around his fingers, bracing against the glass to shove yourself into his cock, demanding deeper, harder, more. Joseph tilts his head to kiss you hungrily. His wet fingers go straight to your clit where they rub and pinch until you’re whimpering into his mouth, near tears.

“He can’t even hear how wet you are,” Joseph continues. “So wet you’re dripping all over the nice new carpet.”

You laugh a little at that. “As if you’re not desperate to make an even bigger mess, JoJo,” you tease back, lips touching as you pant into each other’s mouths. “Will you clean me up, baby? After you make a mess of me?”

“Fuck yes,” Joseph groans. “I’ll do anything, anything!”

“Come for me. Come inside me. I need it so badly, JoJo.” Whether it’s a plea or a command, Joseph can’t help but obey. He presses his face between your shoulder blades and one lightly Hamon-charged fingertip to your clit, and you’re thrown off the cliff of a breathless, whiteout orgasm. It feels like every muscle in your body is clenching for Joseph’s cock. He’s scorching hot and huge inside you as he fills you up, and you wring him for every last drop. He slowly pulls out and helps you right yourself, turning your back to the window as he leans down for a kiss.

“That was amazing. I love you.” Before you can return the words he’s already sinking to his knees, nudging your legs apart so he can fit between them.

“Joseph, I’m tired,” you demur, stroking his sweaty bangs away from his forehead.

“But I still need to clean up,” he insists. When he grins at you like that, you can’t say no. “I’ll go slow, baby, I promise.”

He starts with your inner thighs, looking very pleased with himself when he gets a few giggles out of you from the ticklish sensation. When his mouth finally reaches your center it is slow and soothing. He’s not trying to force another orgasm from you – just enjoying you, caring for you, showing his love. You don’t come by the time he’s finished, but you don’t need to. You just want him to hold you, so he does.

When you reach the couch he plops down on it, keeping you cradled in his lap. He takes off both of your shoes and stretches out on his back (as much as he can), draping you across his front. He’s warm, and you can feel his heartbeat beneath your cheek, and even though you know you’re going to be ungodly sore tomorrow, right now everything feels perfect.

“Thank you,” you murmur, pressing a kiss to the center of his chest.

“Anytime, baby,” he chuckles warmly. He smiles up at you, looking happy but not as content as you feel.

“Is everything okay?” you ask, a little worried. “It was good for you, wasn't it? Not…weird?”

“Of course, it was great for me! Don’t look at me like that!” He reaches for your cheek, rubbing at the corner of your frown. “I was just, ah,” he clears his throat, adjusting your position so that you’re more beside him than on top of him. On the way down, your leg brushes what is unmistakably a semi-erection already straining against his briefs. “I was just thinking about what you said earlier, about ‘celebrating’ on my desk.”

“Absolutely not,” you groan, nuzzling against his shoulder, eyes already closed.

“Your next line is: ‘Maybe tomorrow, JoJo!’”

“Nice try.”

#ao3 crosspost #jjba x reader #jjba x reader smut #joseph joestar x reader #joseph joestar x reader smut #these tags are kinda dry but idk what else to say :/#my writing tag

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percywinchester27 · 4 years ago

Text

La Petite Mort

Word count: 2.1K

Pairing: Dean X Reader AU

Warnings: None, just fluff, humour and implied sex ;)

Series Summary: The reader has just shifted to a new flat and boy, someone on the floor has a really banging sex life! The passionate moans have been keeping her up for several nights in row and enough is enough! Reader has her suspicions, but is it really the green-eyed hottie from room no. 307?

A/N: It’s a neighbours!AU. I’m finally writing one. So excited to share it with you guys. Hope y’all like it! <3

Beta: The best babe, @deanssweetheart23

Everything was fine till the banging started. Pun very much intended.

The shift had been smooth, the job was going great and life was finally on track. You had slid under the covers with the most satisfied smile in years only to be woken up to a lady very, very, very happy with her life.

Oh yeah… oh yeah… ahhh right there… oh fuck yeah…

You sat up right in your bed, eyes wide, face hot.

Third night in a row. Third fucking night. Literally.

What in the good heavens? The landlady might have mentioned this while renting out the flat!

Shoving the pillow over your ears, you fell back onto the mattress, closing your eyes shut very tightly. Eventually sleep overtook you and you lapsed into lousy dreams of trying to catch the taxi which kept evading you. Not a metaphor for your sex life at all. Nope.

The disturbed sleep didn’t help your mood the following day. Everyone at the office thought of you as a happy-go lucky person. Lately, they were seeing this whole new dark side of you. Sleep was essential to your functioning.

In the evening, on your way back, you stopped by the coffee shop downstairs to pick up a brownie. It was a little place; busy yet quaint. The barista, Charlie, made two hearts in your coffee instead of one. That put the biggest smile on your face.

At least, the day was ending on a high note.

Your newly rented flat was on the third floor of a very complicated building. One staircase did not directly lead into another. An entire hallway had to be crossed to get to it. The design probably broke a hundred different by laws and someone was definitely paid off in the city civil office to get a construction permit. You did not want to imagine how the people would fare in case of a fire emergency. Learning the escape plan was like memorising the map of a treasure hunt. You escape, you win. You lose… whoops! Better luck in next life. But the rent was cheap and you were already living all the clichés of a struggling writer- one incomplete book, a job at a publishing house and addiction to coffee. So, yes, you would brave fire when it came to being able to afford a living.

Struggling with the brownie package and the coffee in your hand you jammed the key into the door. It didn’t go in.

What the hell?

You tried again, and once more the key got jammed. On a closer look, you realised that the lock didn’t resemble yours at all. Stepping back, you peered at the door. 307. Not 306- which was yours.

The floor design was insane and instead of the flats being lined up next to each other, they were all fronting one another in a haphazard fashion. Shaking your head, you took a step back and jammed the key into the lock of your own flat.

Jesus! You’re losing it, Y/N.

Shirking off the mild irritation, you cooked yourself a hot cup of instant noodles, put on your favourite TV show and slinked into your couch. Tonight’s episode was going to reveal who the murderer was and you had been dying for the suspense to finally end.

Just when the protagonist was about to point a gun at the killer in the shadows…

Oh my God... you’re incredible… aahhhh… ahhhh… ahhh…

You completely abandoned the TV and jumped up from the sofa. The fire hazard might still be worth it, but the thin walls so weren’t.

On tiptoes, you made your way to the east side wall, putting your ear against it. The noise wasn’t coming from upstairs. That was the only sure thing. But it was impossible to pinpoint the direction. The moans were reverberating through the walls. So loudly that there was no escaping it. Not in the bedroom, the kitchen or the living room sofa.

Of all of them, the east wall seemed like the culprit.

Right there… yeah…

307. Whoever it was in that room needed to calm the FUCK down. You grabbed your blanket and dragged it to the end of the living room, fuming. What ticked you off was how much this was ticking you off.

It’s sleep you told yourself. The lack of sleep was the only thing making you mad. The sex noises couldn’t be it. Because there were other noises- a dog barked somewhere occasionally, one of the rooms had a very loud stereo and someone was too much into baking- the beater was ceaseless. No, it had to be the timing and your wrecked sleep schedule.

Just like the nights before, you covered your ears and started reciting the story of the manuscript you had been reading at work. Eventually, sleep overtook you again.

The next morning you woke up in a crappier mood. If that was even possible.

Breathing down on anything and everything, you locked the door on your way out for work. Turning into the corridor, you ran into a wall of solid flesh.

In your groggy, sleep deprived state, the first thing you noticed was the way he smelled- leather and whiskey and something headier than that. It was divine. Next, you looked up into those eyes- stunning green, like sparkling water running over jade.

“Easy there, sweetheart!” The guy smirked.

You straightened yourself and took a step back. In front of you stood the most handsome guy you had ever seen. He was tall, with dirty blond hair, almost brown, and those stunning eyes.

“I’m so sorry,” you muttered, trying to collect your scattered thoughts. You had one of those dumb faces that gave away every damn thought crossing through your brain, so obviously you tried your best not to meet his gaze. Which was a shame really. That face demanded to be ogled at. Let alone the body that followed.

“No, no… I didn’t mind at all.”

You saw him reach out to the door of 307.

“You’re the one who lives there?” You asked through gritted teeth.

He raised an eyebrow. “Sure. You want a tour?”

Uhgg the best looking guy and he has to be such a douche!

Slipping past him, you stomped off towards the stairs. This too-good-looking-for-the-world asshat had been ruining your nights and in turn your life.

You knew it was wrong to be mad at him without, at least, talking about the issue first. A polite conversation explaining your situation wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world now, would it? But how does one start a conversation pertaining to that? After all, he wasn’t exactly the one making the noise. What would you say?

So, hey would you mind pleasuring your girlfriend a little less?

Or better. Ever heard of a ball gag?

Mere thought of it made you shudder.

The work day was spent trying to shove your neighbour's stupidly handsome face out of your mind. It didn’t help that your mother kept calling, repeatedly. You knew what she had to say. How you should have taken that bigger job at Royal’s publishing. How the writing career might never take off. How you really should get a boyfriend now, or you’ll be the only unmarried cousin in the family.

Usually you could entertain your mother with well-timed hmms and ahhs. Today wasn’t that day.

Bone-tired and absentminded, you jammed the key in the keyhole in the evening, only for it to get stuck again. You looked up at the door. 307.

Well, shit!

Putting both your hands into it, you yanked the key with all your might, just as the door opened. There he stood, with his crooked smirk, dimples digging in, wearing nothing but a thin cotton t-shirt and sweatpants that hung all too low on those hips.

“You don’t need to break into my house. I already offered a tour.” Of course, god gave him an irresistible voice. Cause at this point, why not?

“Sorry,” you muttered, looking anywhere but at him. “I keep getting the wrong door. This one’s mine.”

“Oh, so you’re the one in 306!” You could feel his smirk more than see it. “Looks like you’re having a good ol’ time in there.”

“Excuse me?”

The guy raised scratched the back of his neck, face apologetic. “You might… ya know… just keep the voice down in there?”

The audacity of this guy!

“Rich of you to ask anyone to keep it down!” You hissed. “Why don’t you tell your girlfriend to keep it low?”

With that, you shut your door in his surprised face. The worst part was, after bumping into him in the morning, your mind was producing distinct images of him in the bed, doing things to a woman. You had tried your best not to let them make a home in your head. But like a stickly tenant, they refused to evacuate. No wonder it was hard to look him in those brilliant, brilliant green eyes. The guy was hot! There was no denying that. You weren’t even willing to accept to yourself just how much time you had put into imagining him naked.

If anything, the denial mixed with your pre-existing irritation and sleep deprivation had you ready tonight.

So the moment the enamoured voice started begging, you hopped out of your chair. You had every intention of yelling yourself hoarse at the delectable resident next door, but the moment you stepped into the corridor, you came face to face with the very man.

He was- thankfully, completely clothed- looking a bit harassed, himself.

aahhhh… ahhhh… ahhh… right there...

Your head whipped up to the suspected direction of the voice, and back at him. “Wait, you aren’t… it’s not...?”

His face mirrored your expression of surprise and then he burst out laughing. “Looks like we’ve both been played.”

“Not intentionally,” you said, peering at the adjacent doors, mostly to not look at him. “Where do you think it’s coming from?”

He shot a glance at the door opposite to his. “If it’s not you, my best guess is that guy over there. I mean, if you ask me, Nick over there doesn’t look the type to make a woman that happy… but what do I know?”

“You shouldn’t make assumptions about people,” you said, taking a tentative step towards the said door.

Mr. hot guy smartpants laughed. “Oh, trust me. He’s the douchiest douche you’ll ever meet. Guy like that? Definitely selfish in bed.”

You frowned at him.

“He asks women in the street to smile more,” hot guy explained.

“Uhhgg… yeah you’re right. It’s definitely not him.”

Hot guy pointed his fingers at the rest of the doors. “That one’s rented by three guys. I don’t think it’s them. Mrs. Hendrickson over there works night shifts. I have no clue who lives in there,” he pointed to the last door, directly in front of you.

Goodness you’re amazing...

“Yes, lady, we already know!” He called out.

You couldn’t help the giggle that burst through your lips.

His eyes softened. “Dean Winchester,” he said, offering his hand.

“Y/N. Y/N Y/L/N,” you said, taking his. He had a firm grip. A very funny sensation gripped your stomach. Like a flutter. Nervousness?

“It’s great to meet you, Y/N.” He smirked. “I sure wish the circumstances were better.”

You bit your lip. “Listen, I’m sorry for the comment about your girlfriend. I was just mad about, you know... “

“Don’t worry about it. My non-existent girlfriend is very cool. She took no offense.”

You snorted.

“I was dead serious about the house tour,” He winked. “I can promise great coffee.”

“Sure, sometime soon.”

He shot a look at the door with the unknown occupants again. “I hate to leave this here, but I think we should get whatever kind of shuteye we can while they’re quiet over there, huh?”

“Oh, yeah!” You hurried back to your flat. “Night, Dean.”

He gave you his crooked grin again, just a hint of mischief. “Night, Y/N.”

You knew it wasn’t him now, and he was right about making the most of the quiet and fucking off to sleep, and yet, each time you closed your eyes, your mind decided to replay your imaginations for you. With a start, you sat up in your bed, a thought occurring to you like a hit on the head- If you had been thinking about him that way? Had he been imagining you as well?

Blood rushed to your face at the very idea. Though a tiny part of you begged for the answer- would it be such a bad thing if he had?

*********************

A/N 2: So? So? SO??? What do you think?

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let-the-dream-begin · 4 years ago

Text

A Family of Our Own

After nearly nine years of being a widow, Claire has Jamie back in her arms and in her life. After a lifetime of stories, Brianna’s father is a real, living man. The family at Lallybroch must prepare to welcome visits from the English to check in with the former prisoner. They cannot afford any slip-ups; if Mister Malcolm is revealed to be Red Jamie, Claire’s widowhood will be restored. Permanently this time.

Claire cannot survive another pregnancy, and she and Jamie do feel that absence, a loss of sorts. Yet their little family grows in a way none of them expect.

Brianna’s illness remains an ever-present fear for Claire, and now Jamie, as he learns how to grapple with it. Can they keep a lid on it for the rest of her life? A story of second chances, of found family, and hope in the face of fear and uncertainty.

Chapter 1

Read on AO3

“It’s like flying!” she cried over the pounding of hooves and rushing of wind. “Aye, Da?”

“Aye, lass!” he called back, his stomach flipping with joy. “Indeed i’tis!”

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Fergus and Claire occasionally blur into his field of view, but he could hardly see anything but the fiery tendrils dancing in front of his eyes, could hardly process anything over the whooping laughter of his daughter.

His heart physically ached with how deeply he loved her.

Her joy was putting a light inside of him that he did not think existed, was bringing to life something that he had thought long gone. He’d expressed to Claire that he did not think he could connect with children anymore, that his spirit had been too broken beyond repair.

But Brianna was putting his spirit back together, and she wasn’t even trying. All she had to do was squint up at him with that gap-toothed smile, or shake her head so that her curls bounced, or cry out with joy on her horse.

She was making him whole again.

My beautiful, sweet, cheeky, perfect lass. My flesh and blood. My daughter.

——

That night, Jamie led Claire out of the girls’ bedroom after having tucked Brianna in. She was out like a light after the first few minutes of Jamie’s story. They’d ridden hard and long today, and it was one of the happiest days of Jamie’s life.

He could not wrap his mind around the fact that this was his. This child, this wife, this life, was all his. He had the rest of his days to ride horses with his daughter, to tuck her in at night, to watch her fight sleep in a desperate attempt to hear her father’s voice for just a little bit longer.

His voice. She cherished his voice.

He had the rest of his days to take his wife by the hand and lead her down the hall into their bedroom.

And now that the mugwort had been delivered to them from Edinburgh, he had the rest of his life to lay her down and bed her properly.

She’d made herself a cup of tea with it after supper, finishing it on the edge of Brianna’s bed, her head on his shoulder, sipping intermittently. She’d take a cup every day with breakfast and after supper, and she’d be protected from any harm another child might bring.

Another child…

No, he would not let that thought in.

There was absolutely no question; Claire’s life mattered more than having more bairns. And having his life back was a miracle enough in itself.

He would not allow himself to think on how sad it would be to take her to his bed and then watch her drink away any life he might have planted in her. There was no point in following that trail of thought, so follow it he would not.

Or at least he’d try not to.

The trail was abruptly caught off, anyway, when Claire shut their bedroom door behind them and threw herself at him, kissing him mercilessly.

“I want you inside me all bloody night,” she muttered breathlessly against his mouth. He groaned in response, pressing his pelvis into hers involuntarily. They undressed each other clumsily, frantically. They’d had weeks to revel in the act, to appreciate each piece of skin as it was revealed to them anew, so tonight was not for reveling. Not until he’d pressed inside her at last.

He’d used her mouth in all sorts of positions, used the cheeks of her arse, even her breasts, Claire holding them tight around him. He’d made note of all these things, not wanting to abandon them completely once they were no longer the only option.

But tonight, he would have her.

Once they were finally, finally completely naked, Jamie picked her up and carried her to bed with her legs wrapped around his waist, kissing her sloppily with every step. She’d barely even landed on the mattress before she was clawing at his arse.

“Do it now.”

He needn’t be told twice. He lined himself up and thrust hard and deep. Claire screamed, digging her nails into him, throwing her head back, shutting her eyes. Christ, it was almost too much. He had to stay still or he’d lose it immediately.

And he’d promised to make it last all night. Dammit, he’d do so.

She dug her heels into him, begging him to move, but to keep hold on himself, he roughly kneaded her breasts, bit her neck, tweaked the bud between her legs. She squeaked and moaned, but she fiercely grabbed his face in her hands.

“I’m going to die if you don’t start fucking me, Jamie.”

He groaned with a shudder, nearly losing it again.

“God, Claire…” He pulled out the slightest bit, and upon reentering, she cried out hoarsely. “It’s too much...It’s been too long...I canna…”

“I don’t care!” she cried. “I don’t care if you spill in three seconds...I need...I need you…”

With another shuddering groan, Jamie let all of his restraint go, and he pummeled into her, over and over. He lasted longer than he’d thought he would, though it was really not long at all.

“Take me with you…” Claire moaned, clawing down his biceps.

Evidently, she was as overwrought as he was if she was ready to follow so soon.

He touched their foreheads together, looking into her eyes as he redoubled his speed and brought his hand between them to touch her where he knew she needed most.

“Oh, Claire…” he muttered against her lips. Her keening reached its peak in volume and pitch, and then she stiffened with a harsh cry, clenching around him. God, it had been nearly nine years since he’d felt the bliss of her tightening and pulling him deeper into her…

He spilled into her immediately, moaning loudly into her wide, open mouth. He saw stars for a long while, the only feeling her walls around his softening cock, the only sound her continued mewling in his ear. He came back to himself in pieces, feeling first her heels, still dug into his arse, then her hands, caressing his face with all the tender gentleness in the world.

He opened his eyes to see her staring at him, tears leaking out of the corners of her eyes. He kissed her temples, brushing the tears away with his lips, and with a cry, she threaded her arms around his neck, pulling him ever closer, weeping into the crook of his neck.

“I’m here,” he said gently. He held himself up on his elbows, not willing to abandon the warmth of her just yet to hold her properly. He couldn’t even if he wanted to; all her limbs clung to him with a fierceness that he did not want to fight.

“I’m here.” His voice became hoarse, suddenly overcome as she was.

When his arms began losing feeling from holding himself up, he took hold of her waist and flipped them so that he was on his back, pulling her onto his chest. He slid out of her in the process, but her arms remained around his neck, as did her legs around his waist, now straddling him.

“It was so real…” Claire finally spoke, her voice muffled with her tears. “So many nights I dreamed...and it never felt like that…”

He pressed a tender kiss to her neck, running his hands up and down her back.

“Aye. My own hands dinna compare to the feel of ye, Sassenach.”

She wept harder at that, clinging tighter. “I never even...all those years...I couldn’t...I tried, I really did...but the one time I...got myself there...I just...broke down and cried with my hand still between my legs.” She shook her head against him. “It felt so pathetic...it hurt more than it was worth.”

“Hush now, mo ghraidh,” he soothed. “That’s over now.”

He showered her head with kisses, and when she finally picked her head up, he captured her lips in a way that seared her to her core. God, she wished men were more like women; she wanted to sink down onto him and ride him into oblivion already. But his body was not ready for that yet.

She knew what she could ride into oblivion, however.

After swirling her tongue with his for a maddening amount of time, feeling Jamie’s and her own wetness trailing down her thighs, she dragged herself up Jamie’s body and straddled his face.

“Oh, lass…” He reverently caressed her arse, and she braced herself on the headboard. He peppered her inner thighs with kisses until she was trembling, and then he feasted.

Claire cried herself hoarse, white knuckled the headboard, and ground herself into his face until she fell apart, pulled to pieces by the expertness of his tongue and lips. It was a powerful, euphoric orgasm, but it did the opposite of leave her satisfied. All it did was leave her aching for Jamie’s cock to be the next thing to pull her apart.

After her hips slowed and she caught her breath as much as she would allow herself, she slid back down and reached.

“Ah,” she said, grasping him firmly, already half hard. “There you are.”

She stroked him fully back to life, and before he could even breathe, she sank down onto him with a low groan. She rode him slowly, deliberately, deliciously. She bent down, hovering over his lips with hers, and she pushed all her hair to one side.

“Still feel like you’ll spill in three seconds?” she purred.

He chuckled darkly. “Well, I intend to be inside ye all bloody night,” he said. “So I dinna think I will.”

He wasn’t inside her all night, but he was for at least another two hours. He let her ride him until he couldn’t stand it anymore, and then he threw her off him, got her on all fours, and took her forcefully from behind until he was seconds away from climax. He took her with her bottom half lifted off the mattress, her ankles crossed behind his neck, he took her sitting up, facing one another, kissing gratuitously, then on all fours again. But he only let himself finish when they were once again facing each other, eyes locked, foreheads touching. Claire lost count after her sixth orgasm, but needless to say, she’d been well taken care of.

It also went without saying that she would not be able to walk tomorrow.

They fell asleep with little ceremony after Jamie’s second climax and Claire’s...however many she’d had. Claire felt like she was made entirely of jell-o, and she didn’t open her eyes again after squeezing them shut for her final orgasm. Jamie, however, was not too tired to tuck her limp form into his side like a ragdoll and kiss her sweaty head.

It was almost as if he couldn’t sleep without holding her so tightly.

“I love you, Claire.”

And though every ounce of breath was knocked out of her, and she’d screamed herself hoarse, Claire’s heart answered back, beating wildly, swelling, entwining with his.

And for the first time in nearly nine years, Claire fell into a deep, peaceful, dreamless sleep with a smile on her face.

——

Claire could see a gradual change in Jamie the longer he was home. As April settled over the grounds, so too did an easiness in Jamie’s disposition, tension slowly rolling off his shoulders. He’d been slow at retaining the names of all of Jenny’s bairns; wee Jamie and Maggie were easy enough, since he’d known them, and Michael was similarly easy, him being the only other lad, but he was always calling Janet Kitty, and Kitty Janet, much to both girls’ chagrin. Lately, he was getting it right more often than not, and Claire could see both her nieces glowing with pride that their uncle, becoming beloved rather instantaneously, remembered them.

Brianna, too, was more than completely enamored with Jamie. She often refused to do chores with the women and girls, preferring to trail behind Jamie in the fields and the stables. Jenny was none too pleased about this; the woman was set in her ways what was man’s work and what was woman’s work, but Claire could not see any harm in letting the girl spend time with her father.

She’d been without that time for eight years, and Claire could not bring herself to take it away from her again.

Either way, Jamie claimed she was quite helpful in the fields. According to his reports, she was always coming up with ways to make work easier, little tools that he and the other lads never would have thought of. Recently, she’d been marching downstairs for supper with a sketch in her hands.

“D’ye think you could make this one, Da?” she’d say, thrusting the sketch up to him.

“I’ll try my best, lass. But only if ye’re by my side while I do.”

“Of course, Da. I have to make sure ye’re doing it right.”

She was awfully brilliant for eight years old, if Claire did say so herself, and the sketches were quite good and elaborate. She’d be a great talent someday. She used to fret that she’d never catch up to Maggie in skill and ability, but she really was getting there, closer and closer with each passing day.

She’d gotten particularly fond of sketching wee Ian for some reason. Brianna had never been particularly drawn to any of the babies; not like Maggie had. But she was becoming a little obsessed, and Claire would be lying if she said she didn’t find it absolutely adorable.

Watching Jamie become more and more comfortable in his own home, on his own land, around his own family, was bittersweet. On the one hand, Claire basked in it, rejoicing in his rejoining of all that he had missed, but on the other hand, it was terribly sad that he had to relearn everything to begin with. This land was once his, theirs. No longer was he Laird; now he was Mister Malcolm, a farmhand. Of course the tenants knew better, but they could not speak openly about this. He could not even claim Brianna as his. The redcoats thought she belonged to Jenny and Ian. And though this fact hardly affected how they lived their daily lives, Claire could see him deflate every time it was mentioned.

But, this Lord Grey who’d secured Jamie’s freedom had been true to his word. They’d been entirely free of redcoat harassment since Jamie’s return, so they had little to worry about in that regard either way. Claire was eager to meet the man, to thank him for all his many kindnesses. The thought of Brianna never again living through the fear of a home search, the thought of Ian never even remembering one ever having happened…it made her heart light.

Life was truly starting anew…for everyone.

Jenny and Claire were in the kitchen with Mary MacNab, putting the finishing touches on supper, when a cacophony of noise startled the three women. Claire wiped her hands on her apron and pushed open the kitchen door to the outside, and her eyes welled up with tears at the simple sight before her.

Brianna was sat atop Jamie’s shoulders like a little queen, Jamie holding securely onto her small thighs. Fergus strode right beside them, young Michael on his shoulders, likely jealous of Jamie’s special attention to Brianna. Jehu trotted along dutifully at Jamie’s feet, ever mindful of his young mistress. Young Jamie trailed a bit behind, swiping at long grass and heather with a stick, and Ian trailed a bit further behind, taking his time. Janet and Kitty had been running around front with the dogs, and they clambered toward them, and Maggie trailed behind with the sketchpad Jamie had made her, holding her drawings close to her chest as Jehu yipped and nipped at their heels.

Janet clung to Ian’s good leg, and to spare his brother from bearing the weight, Jamie scooped the girl up onto his hip, switching his grip on Brianna to one hand. Janet kissed her father, then her uncle, and Kitty took Ian’s hand, patiently keeping pace with him

“Look, Uncle!” Maggie cried, turning the page up to face him. “Look, I drew the dogs. D’ye see?”

“Och, that’s fine work, lass,” Jamie said proudly. “Ye’ll have to let me look closer over supper, aye?”

“Aye!” she beamed, pressing the book to her chest again.

“Ye’re a braw wee thing,” Jamie continued. “Take right after yer mother.”

Maggie nodded proudly, her smile brightening.

Claire wiped her eyes and sniffled, and she was suddenly aware of a presence beside her.

“Such a simple thing,” Jenny said, her voice tight with her own emotion. “But it means everything.”

Claire nodded. “Everything.”

Jenny rubbed her back. “Go on to them,” she said gently. “We’re almost done anyway.”

Claire untied her apron and handed it off to Jenny, a beaming smile finding its way across her face. She gathered her skirts in her hands and began running toward the throng, propelled further by Brianna’s joyous, “Mummy!”

Jamie let Janet slide down to the ground and picked up his pace, leaving the Murrays and Fergus behind to meet Claire halfway.

“Hello, darlings,” Claire said breathlessly, kissing Jamie deeply until Brianna tugged impatiently on her curls. She laughed as she craned her neck to look at her. “How’s the crop looking today?”

“Just fine,” Brianna said. “My tool is working great.”

“That’s excellent.” Claire stood on tiptoe to pinch Brianna’s cheek, and then Jamie wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her into his side as they continued their way to the house.

“Ye smell like dinner, Sassenach,” he breathed in her hair, then kissed her temple.

“You smell like manure and body odor.” She wrinkled her nose, but snuggled in closer to him anyway. “I don’t even want to know what you smell like, young lady.”

“I smell just fine, thank you very much!”

Claire rolled her eyes; Brianna was using that posh voice of hers to mock her mother’s tone and concern.

“No you do not!” A voice sounded behind them, and then Fergus was beside them, Michael still on his shoulders. “You smell like a dirty man, ma petit.” Brianna blew a raspberry at him, and Michael giggled incessantly. “And so do you, little man.”

“Either way,” Claire cut in, “you’ll be getting a bath tonight. And you should too, young man.” Fergus deflated only slightly in that way that teenagers who feel they are being mothered too intensely do.

Brianna groaned, slumping forward over Jamie’s head. “I don’t want a bath.”

“But don’t you like it when I brush your beautiful hair?” Claire looked up at her. “Doesn’t it feel so nice when it’s fresh and clean and damp?”

This gave Brianna pause, and she picked up her head slightly. “I suppose.”

Jamie snorted at Brianna’s chosen phrase.

“Alright. How about a quick bath and then a long hair brushing.”

She sighed in defeat. “Alright, Mummy.”

Jamie bounced her a bit, and she giggled, sitting up again. “That’s a good lass.”

Claire sighed in contentment, kissed Jamie’s jaw, his stubble a shadow over half his face, and they crossed the threshold for supper with their family.

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abarbaricyalp · 4 years ago

Note

Idk if you are still taking prompts, but you know the vine two dudes chilling in a hot tub 5 feet apart cause they're not gay, and a girl quoting it in a park about two girls in the distance and one of them hearing and going "Actually I am gay" Like that scenario, only involving them fixing the boat? Maybe Sarah quoting it to give Sam shit when she thinks Bucky cant hear and Bucky goes "Wait, no I'm gay" or something, or just the general gist of that. Sorry if this us too specific, I've never sent anyone a prompt before :P

Hello Friend! Thank you so much for sending anything in at all! I know the vine you're talking about, but I couldn't find it on Youtube. (I did find a two day rabbit hole of old compilations though) This was also my first foray into writing Sarah as a fully fleshed character! I was excited to get the practice 'cause I had an idea bouncing around in my head about her and Bucky talking after he wakes up in the Wilson house. I kept her a little more like she had been in my other fics pre-show here. I so wish we got a little more of her!

Feel free, anyone, to send me Sambucky prompts!

The North American Superhero in a Domestic Situation

Sarah Wilson loved her brother deeply. The kind of soul crushing love that could only be formed through family, loss, and approximately four thousand brawls around the living room throughout their life. She looked up to her brother more than she could ever imagine looking up to anyone. Even when they were fighting or picking on each other, she couldn’t help but feel a swell in her chest when he came into her line of sight.

That didn’t mean she understood him. In fact, from the age of eight, watching her brother interact with the world had become her go-to pastime. Why did he have to roll every pea around the plate individually before eating them? Why did he and his friends spend seven years socking each other in the arm to prove friendship? Why did he talk to himself in the mirror, even when he knew Sarah or someone else was standing in the doorway?

Sam Wilson was just deeply weird. She had no idea how he had tricked the Avengers, a plethora of bad guys, and half of the media world into thinking he was remotely cool. She saw a news story once that had King T’Challa standing on a platform with Sam and the newscasters talked about how impressive Sam’s suit was. It was unnatural, the effect he had on people.

And in all her years, she never thought she’d see anyone weirder than Sam. But then James Barnes had showed up. It was like a complete reversal of Sam. Sarah was taken in for approximately three hours by his charm and face before she realized he too was deeply, deeply weird.

She justified sitting on the edge of the Paul and Darlene, watching her brother and James Barnes spar off about some dumb trivia fact, by deciding it was an anthropological expedition. The North American Superhero in a Domestic Situation. She watched Sam watch Barnes take a long pull off his beer. She watched Barnes kick his feet up near Sam’s legs and then draw them back quickly when a current jolted the boat. She watched Barnes’ fingers tap-tap-tap against the edge of the boat, inching closer to Sam’s shoulder before he chickened out and brought his hand back to his own lap. She watched Sam suggest Bucky take his jacket off, ‘unless you plan on sun blinding me with the robocop arm.’ She watched Sam look away when Barnes did shrug his jacket off.

When she was seventeen and Sam was fifteen, she had found Sam crying in his room, pillow pressed to his face to muffle the noise. They were at the age where going into each other’s rooms uninvited started international conflicts, but Sarah, who watched her brother intently, felt like she knew what was going on. So she let herself in through their Jack-and-Jill bathroom and shut the door behind her.

Sam didn’t stop crying, not even to yell at her to get out, so she sat on the end of his bed and rolled a baseball under her foot for a while. Finally, she’d said, “You don’t have to tell Mom and Dad, y’know.”

Sam had just about wailed and bit the corner of his pillow to stop himself.

“That’s gross, stop it,” Sarah ordered and pushed Sam’s shoulder back enough to yank his pillow free and then reached over to wipe the tears from his cheeks. “I should make you do the laundry this week so I know I’m not touching your snot germs,” she teased softly.

“How did you know?” Sam hiccuped out. Tears were still brimming at his eyes, but they didn’t fall.

“I’m your older sister. I made you. Like a doll. You think there’s something about you that I don’t know?” she joked. And when the tears did spill over his long lashes, she sighed and pulled him closer to her side. “I just know the way you interact with that boy from the basketball team ain’t just friendly.”

“Jesus, do you think he can tell?” Sam asked and she could hear the mortification in his voice.

“Sam, he’s a freshman in high school. The only thing he knows is that he’s scared of everything too. No one’s paying that much attention to you.”

“Screw you,” Sam muttered.

“What’re all these tears for you if you didn’t make a move and get shot down?”

“God, Sarah, can you not say things like that?”

“Watch your mouth,” Sarah warned with no heat in her voice. “Come on, tell me what’s wrong. I’m not leaving until you do.”

“I just…” Sam sat up and worked his jaw for a while. His chin dimpled and his eyes watered but he managed to control himself. “I’m scared, Sarah. I’m scared of never being in love. Of having to leave if I am. I’m scared to say something and I’m scared not to say something. I’m so scared of...losing any of it.”

“Sam,” Sarah sighed and pulled Sam into another hug. “You’re fifteen. You’re not supposed to be in love yet. You don’t have to think about any of that. You just have to focus on passing Geometry, alright? Mom’ll whoop your ass more for failing than anything else.”

“I have a B+, that’s not failing!” Sam snapped. He kept his face against her shoulder for a second long before he sat up and wiped his tears away. “Please don’t tell anyone.”

“Who am I gonna tell? I told you, my friends don’t like you as much as you think they do.”

“Your friends like me more than they like you,” Sam shot back and he almost sounded normal.

Sarah smiled softly and patted Sam’s cheek. “I won’t tell Mom or Dad. Of course not. That’s for you to do. But--”

“I’m always going to tell them when you sneak out the window.”

“No! Sam! You can’t! You owe me now!”

“Going to field parties is not the same thing!” Sam said in a shriek as Sarah leaned over to pinch his sides. They grappled for a second before Sam managed to push Sarah off the bed.

“You owe me,” she reminded him as she walked back to the bathroom.

Sam wiped his eyes again and nodded. “Sure, Sarah. I do.”

Sam almost had the same look on his face now. Like there was something he wanted to reach for that he thought was too impossible to hold. The Older Sister Instinct to Antagonize into a Solution kicked in.

“Two bros, chilling on a boat, five feet apart ‘cause they’re not gay,” she sing-songed. Sam looked mortified again but masked his face into something more irritated with a roll of his eyes when Barnes looked over at him.

“Ignore her. It’s this old video--” Sam started.

But Bucky interrupted to say, “Actually I am gay,” as he looked back over at Sarah. “Sorry if I got your hopes up,” he added with a grin that really did get the hopes up.

“What?” Sam asked and Sarah, ever watchful, could see the beer bottle shaking in his hand.

“What?” Bucky repeated innocently.

“He said he’s gay,” Sarah clarified.

“Thank you, Sarah,” Sam ground out. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

Bucky snorted. “When would I have said anything? ‘Sorry for ripping your wings off and kicking you off of a hellicarrier, by the way I’m gay.’?”

“You did what?” Sarah asked.

“‘Sorry for claiming I didn’t bomb the UN only to be reverted back to the assassin who would have done that and then fighting you again. By the way I’m gay.’ ‘Thanks for saving my life. Sorry about the giant undersea prison. By the way I’m gay.’ ‘There’s an imminent battle with weird ass space dogs that want to eat our faces. By the way I’m gay.’ ‘Sorry about Tony Stark, whose life I kind of ruined. Lovely funeral. By the way I’m gay.’ ‘I’m in the middle of being pissed at you about the Shield. By the way I’m gay.’ ‘Maybe don’t take me rolling through a field of flowers. It does things to me ‘cause I’m gay.’ ‘John Walker’s fucking insane. I’m gay, but definitely not for this bullshit.’ I mean, come on, Sam.”

“Flowers?” Sarah asked.

“Besides, why would you care? I don’t make it a habit of telling straight guys I’m into guys.”

“You don’t seem to make a habit of telling many people that,” Sarah pointed out. “I googled you. Nothing suggesting that came up.”

Bucky shrugged. “I’m a guy from the 30s. It was trained out of me.”

“Wait, wait, wait,” Sarah said quickly. “Back up away from that because we’re not gonna try to Oppression Olympics our way through our histories. Did you just say Sam was straight?”

“Sarah!” Sam hissed.

“Sure. I mean, I saw him with Romanov. Hill. He has Tinder on his phone.”

“Samuel Thomas, you better not,” Sarah warned lightly. “You’re better than that.”

“He’s a lady-killer.”

Sarah snorted and had to bring her hand up to her face. “He definitely is not. There has been no lady-killing on his end for a long time.”

“Sarah!” Sam tried again.

“You explain it to him then. Mr. 30s is gonna need the long way round explanation.”

Sam sighed and dragged his hand over his face. “Dammit. Fine. I’m not straight either, alright? I’m...bi, or something. It’s been a while since I’ve had to think about it.”

“What?” Bucky asked, not unlike Sam had.

“He said he’s bisexual. Interested in both parties. Swings either way. Hit a homerun and then hasn’t really swung since.”

“Sarah, Jesus Christ,” Sam groaned.

“What?” Bucky asked again.

“I was engaged. To a man,” Sam said.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Bucky asked, clearly missing the irony.

“Oh, it was inconvenient for you but I had plenty of opportunities, huh?” Sam asked. “Ms. Tell-It-All over there wasn’t joking. I haven’t swung any direction in a while. Not since before I met Steve. My fiance died. And then it never came up.”

Bucky blinked at Sam. He kept bringing the bottle halfway up his body and then setting it back on his leg without ever taking a drink. “Fuck, Sam, I’m sorry,” Bucky said, which was not what Sarah was expecting and it clearly wasn’t what Sam was expecting because Sam finally moved closer to Bucky on the bench.

“What for? You didn’t do anything. This time.”

“Yeah, but if I’d known you were into me too, I woulda kissed you in Germany.”

“Oh, I am so not into you,” Sam denied. “And I wouldn’t have our first kiss ruined by immediately running into the government’s roving show monkey.”

“That’s the worst,” Bucky agreed and also finally moved over on the bench until they were pressed thigh to thigh. “Tell me how much you don’t like me again,” he challenged.

“I can’t stand you,” Sam answered and brought his hand up to Bucky’s jaw.

Sarah couldn’t fight down the grin that came to her face and turned to prop her feet on the pier, back to Sam and Bucky. Just this once, she didn’t need to watch her brother to understand him.

Read on AO3 here!

#anonymous #prompts #sambucky #writing #fanfiction #i answer things #sarah wilson #sam wilson #bucky barnes

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yourdeepestfathoms · 4 years ago

Text

one day, a horn grew from my head (part one)

Beetlejuice, but BJ is more visibly demonic, there’s world building for the Netherworld, and he has a partner helping him...

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

- the whole being dead thing! -

A blue truck rattled up the gravel path, racing to beat the storm beginning to brew up in the sky. Rain was already starting to come down, drizzling over the clouds of dust kicked up by the tires. The headlights shone on the wall of an old house in the distance. From the darkness of the surrounding greenery, sharp teeth spread in a wide grin.

“It’s almost time,” said the demon. “Took ‘em long enough. I thought he’d never get back.”

There was stirring at his side. He lightly whacked the figure next to him. His suit was sopped with rainwater, making the sleeves dangly and heavy as they hung around his wrists. It was odd to be in such merciless weather after having to deal with the acid rain back down in the Netherworld. Sometimes he couldn’t help but turn his head up to the downpour and let it run over his face in refreshing waves of coolness without it feeling like his flesh was melting off of his skull.

When his partner didn’t get up, he lightly poked her in the ribs with a claw. She squealed.

“Come on,” he said. “It’s time to wake up.”

The mud-slathered, blood-stained young demon sat up straight from her curled position against his side. She blinked, and the moonlight caught on her bright hazel eyes, making them glow.

“He’s here,” the larger demon pointed a black-clawed finger at the parked truck and the figure walking to the front door.

The smaller demon flicked her comically large pointy ears at the vehicle, then looked back up at him, eyes shining. A moth landed on one of her horn nubs.

The larger of the two smirked again, alligator teeth flashing. “It’s showtime, kid. Let’s put this plan into action.”

“So, crazy story,” Adam began, taking off his rain-spattered coat. “I got all the way to Howard’s store, and Howard tells me they’re all out of stock.”

“Oh no,” Barbara vocalized her dismay.

“But I asked Howard Junior to check the back for me--”

“Smart.”

“--so he sends little Howard the Third and long story short, I got the last bottle of Manchurian tung oil!”

“That’s great!” Barbara beamed. “Now you can finally finish the crib?”

“Yup!” Adam said, ripping off the cloth of a shiny, wood-carved crib. It was his pride and joy in a strange sort of woodworking way. “It should be ready before the O'Brien’s baby gets here!”

“She had it yesterday.”

Adam blinked. “Oh. Well--” He fumbled for just a moment. “Doesn’t matter! They’ll get it soon! They can put the baby in the…sink…in the meantime!”

Barbara laughed. It was a sweet, high sound that made Adam’s heart flutter.

“That’s definitely a place to put a newborn,” Barbara said.

“It’s round!” Adam said. “It can hold an infant. Plus, it doubles as a bathtub, so you can kill two birds with one stone!”

Barbara chuckled. She was shining one of her newest pottery jugs- her latest hobby. Last week it was painting. The week before that it was embroidery. And the week before that it was composting. He wondered how long this interest would last.

As Adam was shining one of the bars of the crib, rubbing his thumb over the pristine wood, he said, “Maybe we can keep it for ourselves.”

Barbara dropped her jug and it shattered into a thousand orange shards. Adam jumped, nearly ripping the bar right off of the crib. He stood up quickly.

“Are you alright?” he sputtered.

“Yeah, yeah,” Barbara said, haphazardly rushing for the broom. She began sweeping up the broken pieces of clay, then peered over at Adam. “What would we use a crib for?”

“You know…” Adam gestured vaguely.

“A baby,” Barbara smiled softly.

Adam smiled, too. “Yeah.”

“I mean…we do have this whole house,” Barbara said.

“It is a big house,” Adam nodded.

“And we already have a minivan.”

“A minivan is a family car.”

They smiled dreamily, imagining what it would be like to have a baby in their household, babbling adorably, snoozing in their arms, calling them “mama” and “dada”, having toys everywhere, getting in danger as they crawled around, crying, hating them when they grew up…

Adam swallowed thickly. He shifted, and the floorboards creaked below him. “Oh!” He pointed to the ground. “But-- but the floor! Listen to this creaking!” He stepped, and it creaked again, perfectly on time. “We can’t have a family with floors like this! It can be a safety hazard!”

Barbara nodded energetically. She put the broom away and began walking over. “You are absolutely right! Someone could get hurt!”

“Yeah! And we don’t want that to happen!”

“Not at all!”

“We have to do something about it before we have our own baby.”

“Among other things. We have to baby proof this whole house!”

“Yes! Great idea! We should get on that as soon as possible!”

“You’re so right! As soon as possible! So we can get on that baby right away afterw--”

There was then an awful shriek, and Adam realized it came from below as the wood seemed to fold inwards, dropping he and his wife into the darkness below the house. The last thing he remembered was Barbara’s horrific screaming, and then something cold and hard smacking into the back of his skull…

…and far above, in the light of the house, two heads peered into the hole, one with spiky lime green hair and the other wearing a red and black helmet.

“Damn,” Beetlejuice said. “I knew they were going to die, but that was quite the fall.” He stood up straight. “Eh. Still a better death than others I’ve seen. At least their bodies will still be intact. Them being cut in half would make things WAY harder.”

The Jockey nodded at his side. She was leaning treacherously into the hole, so Beetlejuice grabbed her by the back of the helmet to keep her from falling in. He tugged her backwards.

“They’ll get up soon,” Beetlejuice said. “So we gotta get ready. Prepare. Where’s the book?”

The Jockey looked around mutely. Beetlejuice learned rather quickly that she wasn’t much of a talker. He had never actually heard her voice before so he didn’t know if she even could talk, though she did nod when he asked if she could. Whether that was the truth or a lie to save face, he didn’t know, but he didn’t really care because they communicated together rather fine. It was quite a bit easier than he was expecting once he had all of her mannerisms down.

“It’ll show up eventually,” Beetlejuice said, checking the watch he didn’t have. His sleeves were still dripping with rainwater. “In the meantime,” he gazed around the house. “Pretty big place they got here. And for only two people?”

The Jockey pointed to the crib.

“Right. They had been discussing starting their own family,” Beetlejuice nodded. He glanced back into the hole for a moment. The two bodies at the bottom were still in the same position as they had been a minute ago, but the pool of blood gathering around their heads had grown slightly larger. Their lights were definitely knocked out cold. “Hopefully the woman hadn’t actually been pregnant. Nobody likes ghost fetuses. They’re so weird. All crawly and goopy and malformed…” He shuddered.

The Jockey laughed. She was capable of making noises, just didn’t like talking for reasons Beetlejuice still didn’t know.

“What about you? Did you have a house like this? Big? Small? Rich? Poor?”

She looked over at him, flicking one of her ears. She was quiet, as usual.

“I only ask because my housing unit back in the Netherworld was terrible,” Beetlejuice said. “I was once chained in this abyss for, like, a hundred years. It was the worst. Really makes you miss normal houses, doesn’t it?”

The Jockey nodded faintly, her lips pursed, eyebrows knitted together as she stared at him.

There was suddenly a thump as a thick book appeared out of seemingly nowhere, crashing to the ground on a rather ugly green and brown carpet. Beetlejuice picked it up.

“The rulebook,” he presented it to his partner. “Let’s see…” He flipped open to the first few pages and began reading, “The Handbook For The Recently Deceased. Chapter One: The Netherworld. All ghosts should proceed directly to the Netherworld.” He closed it abruptly. “But that isn’t gonna happen! These lovebirds need to stay here with us and haunt their house!”

He thrusted out a hand and the fireplace roared to life, crackling with bright orange flames. The Jockey leapt around to it, the glow making her eyes shine. She followed him over to the mantle as he carelessly threw the handbook into the inferno.

“Whoops!” Beetlejuice exclaimed. “Damn. There goes the book. Now they’ll never get to the Netherworld.”

The Jockey tittered softly. At the same time, there was the sound of shifting from within the hole.

“Barbara…? Are you alright?”

“Oh crap!” Beetlejuice grabbed the Jockey by the arm and yanked her behind the couch with him to hide. They both crouched low, listening as the couple crawled their way out of their tomb.

“Holy smokes! That was some fall!”

“I guess the floor gave out…?”

“I didn’t think it was that weak. Are you alright, huh?”

“I think so…”

“Oh my god--”

“You are like ice!”

“You’re freezing!”

They must have discovered their body’s drop in temperature.

“I’ll make a… I don’t remember making a fire…”

The Jockey’s gaze shot over to Beetlejuice. He shrugged.

“Had to destroy the book somehow, kid,” he whispered.

“That’s so weird. It’s not hot…”

“I think we should consider ourselves lucky. A fall like that could have been bad. I mean, my whole life flashed before my eyes like it does in the movies. I started asking myself the big questions, like… Why are our bodies still in the basement?”

“What did you say?”

The Jockey grimaced behind the couch.

The couple then began screaming, though Beetlejuice didn’t exactly know why. He couldn’t risk blowing his cover just yet to check.

“Adam! I don’t think we survived that fall!”

“…What? You mean… Oh god.”

“Here we go, kid,” Beetlejuice whispered to the Jockey. “It’s our time to shine.”

“I know… I know. There’s still so much I wanted to do.”

“I know, me too, but-- Hey, hey. We’re still together, right? We’re still in our house, all of our stuff is here! So what if we are…dead… That’s bad, obviously, but hey! Maybe nothing has to change!”

Just then, Beetlejuice and the Jockey popped up from behind the couch.

“Hi.”

The Jockey waved.

Barbara and Adam whirled around to them. They all stared at each other in a beat of silence. Beetlejuice held up his hands.

“Do not be afraid,” he said. His sharp black claws didn’t help the statement very much. “You are dead. I am also dead.” He pointed to the Jockey. “So is she. Maybe we can help each other out. What’s up?”

The Maitlands screamed and scrambled away as he advanced over to them with his hand outstretched. He backpedaled in reaction, pointy ears shooting up. He had not been expecting them to act like that. Good thing he had a child with him.

“Work your magic, kid,” he said to the Jockey.

The Jockey did as she was told, slowly walking over to the Maitlands with her hands up, palms out, claws visible, as if she were approaching a pair of spooked horses. The Maitlands seemed to relax slightly in the midst of the young girl, but then got weirdly defensive looks on their face. They bustled around her, forming a barrier of sorts between her and Beetlejuice. She blinked over their guard.

“Hey!” Beetlejuice yelped. “That’s my jockey!”

“Who the hell are you?!” Adam yelled.

“Help! I am help!” Beetlejuice said. “I’m here to help you both! And so is she! So can I have her back now? Pretty sure we have a whole codependent, separation anxiety thing going on here.”

Barbara peered at the small form of the Jockey, then at Beetlejuice protectively, not budging. “Are you her father?”

“What? No!”

Adam’s eyes somehow got even wider than they already were. “Did you kidnap her?!”

“How did you even come to that conclusion?”

But Adam and Barbara were already wrapped up in the theory, becoming even more fierce and protective around the Jockey. Not that they were very intimidating. They had about the menace of a pair of pomeranians, and even that was being generous.

“You’re not laying another finger on her!” Adam yelled.

“I didn’t kidnap her!” Beetlejuice yelled back, exasperated. Hints of orange-red were beginning to flicker around the crown of his head like the first sparks of a fire. If these two newly-deads weren’t so damn attractive he probably would have clawed their faces off by now and found a new couple to get a living human to say his name.

Barbara turned to the Jockey, crouching slightly to meet her eyes beneath the rim of her helmet. “Sweetie, did this mean man take you from your parents?”

“I didn’t take her from anyone!”

“That sounds like something a kidnapper would say,” Adam said, narrowing his eyes at him in suspicion.

“I’m not a kidnapper!!”

The Jockey quickly held up her hands again, shaking her head. She weaved around the protective forms of Adam and Barbara and darted over to Beetlejuice. Beetlejuice grabbed her by the arm and pulled her into his side possessively. He glared at the Maitlands for a moment before cooling off, easing his stare. The red and orange fire beginning to light through his hair went down.

“I did not kidnap her,” he reiterated. “She is my partner.”

Adam opened his mouth.

“NOT LIKE THAT!” Beetlejuice cut him off before he even got the chance to say something. “Partner in business. My business partner. We work together.”

“You work with…a child?” Barbara asked.

“She’s more useful than half of the adults I know.”

The Jockey stood up a little straighter at that.

Adam looked Beetlejuice up and down. “You said you were here to help us…”

“Right!” Beetlejuice perked up. “Yes! We are!”

“Help us with what?” Barbara asked.

“To learn how to scare!”

“Scare? Scare who?”

“The people who bought your house!”

At that moment, two men dressed in delivery outfits came in and began grabbing everything they saw. Barbara and Adam tried to stop them, but their yelling and waving did little to help. Beetlejuice and the Jockey watched on in amusement.

“They can’t see us!” Adam finally exclaimed.

“Keen observation, Adam,” Beetlejuice said. He took the crop from the Jockey’s holster and began waving it around as if he were giving a presentation. “The living ignore the dead. We are invisible to them. And they’re so wrapped up in their stupid little lives that they usually just ignore the strange and unusual unless you make them, which is why we’re here.”

“This is all so much to take in,” Barbara said, running her fingers through her hair.

“Hey, I get it,” Beetlejuice said. “It’s a lot, but it’s okay! You two are special! You died together! That NEVER happens! Unless it’s a murder-suicide, which makes for a VERY awkward eternity.”

“How did you die?” Adam asked warily.

Beetlejuice laughed. “Oh, that’s cute. I was born-dead. Never got to experience human stupidity.”

“And her?” Adam nodded at the Jockey.

“Horse racing accident,” Beetlejuice said. He thought it had been obvious from her muddy and bloody silks and the hoofprints branding her body. He tapped a claw on her helmet. “She doesn’t talk very much, so don’t expect an answer from her.”

“Wait-- how can you be born dead?” Barbara blinked.

“I’m a demon, Babs, try to keep up.”

Both Barbara and Adam’s eyes widened. Thankfully, they didn’t freak out like they did the last time.

“You’re a WHAT?!” Adam yelped.

“So is she!” Beetlejuice pointed to the Jockey.

“You don’t…look like demons…” Barbara said hesitantly.

“Well, that’s just rude,” Beetlejuice looked down at the Jockey. “I swear, Breathers read the Bible once and think all demons are the same.”

The Jockey nodded with a tiny giggle.

“Demons aren’t exactly what you’re used to,” Beetlejuice said to the confused faces of the Maitlands. “If you weren’t already ghosts, my true form could strike you dead simply by being in your midst. I can kill a Breather with a single stare! But I appear in this form,” he gestured vaguely, “to seem less intimidating. Don’t want to scare off any potential clients.”

“You need to work on that,” Adam said.

“I can go more demonic whenever I want, though,” Beetlejuice went on, ignoring him.

He then snapped his fingers and a pair of black-and-white striped horns burst out from the crown of his head. A long, arrowhead black tail slithered out from his waist as his legs painlessly bent backwards into a more hock-jointed position, large talons pressing out from his ratty shoes. The Maitlands stared in shock. The Jockey looked enraptured, her ears fluttering.

“Like so,” He presented himself to them. “And this isn’t even what I REALLY look like.”

The Jockey clapped energetically. Beetlejuice grinned at her toothily.

“I was born a demon,” Beetlejuice said, looking back at the Maitlands. “Therefore, I was born-dead. She,” he drummed on the Jockey’s helmet, “became a demon. That happens if a ghost becomes too consumed with bitterness, grief, or anger and can’t get over their deaths.”

Barbara and Adam both shot worried looks at the Jockey from the implication behind Beetlejuice’s words. Beetlejuice didn’t blame them for that one. It was uncommon for ghosts to become demons; only if their deaths were REALLY bad. And for a child to turn, no less…

“Anyway,” Beetlejuice continued. “There’s a lot of feuds between the two types of demons because born-demons perceive turned-demons as “falsies” or “dirty half breeds” since they used to be humans and weren’t born with their horns and whatnot.” He tapped one of the Jockey’s little horn nubs for emphasis. “It’s just this whole thing. We get along just fine, though!”

As if to prove it, he and the Jockey smiled innocently, showing their sharp teeth. The Maitlands blinked back at them. Adam glanced over Beetlejuice’s shoulders as the movers continued to haul out furniture.

“So you can really help us get our house back?” he asked.

“You bet your sweet dilf ass I can!” Beetlejuice replied animatedly.

Adam’s cheeks flamed to an adorable shade of pink. Barbara looked slightly startled before barking, “There’s a child here!”

The Jockey waved a dismissive hand and mouthed, “I’ve heard worse.” She then tugged on her filthy silks for emphasis of sorts.

“Please say yes!” Beetlejuice said, trying not to beg. “Nobody else can help you! We’re all you got!”

Adam and Barbara cast one more dismayed look at their departing furniture, then said, “You’re hired.”

Electric green shot through Beetlejuice’s hair like the lightning bolts during an acid storm down in the Netherworld. His tail had to be wagging at the speed of light. He shook the Jockey’s arm eagerly.

“They said yes!!” He yipped, and the Jockey grinned up at him gleefully. He looked at the Maitlands. “You won’t regret it!”

The Maitlands looked slightly worried.

“I sure hope so,” Adam muttered.

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

Jaws dripping with gore, the many-limbed, razor-clawed amalgamation towers over the smaller creature on the street, holding a heart between its teeth. The smaller creature raises its blunted, chipped, and ripped off claws in a sign of weakness, spiked tail tucked between its legs. The abomination devours its heart, then hisses in its ear, “D o n ‘ t e v e r t o u c h h e r a g a i n.”

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

Beetlejuice’s eyes popped open. He stared into the darkness all around him, thick and tall like walls of onyx. Rain was still falling outside. Normal rain.

There was shifting at his side. The Jockey curled up tighter against his side, finding him warm despite the Dead being deathly cold. Finding his presence comforting despite him being awful.

She didn’t need to sleep, and yet she did. Perhaps to retain a shred of normalcy in her unlife. The Maitlands seemed to be the same way from the soft snoring coming from the other corner of the attic. It was too dark to see them, but they were there.

People were there.

His tail was still out, so he draped it over the Jockey’s ankle, testing her reaction to the touch. Even in sleep, she stirred, ears flicking slightly. She slumped over completely into his lap, her head cushioned by one of her arms, pointed tongue caught between her sharp teeth. Beetlejuice snorted. He poked her helmet.

“I don’t know how you sleep in this,” he said.

There was no answer. Even if she weren’t asleep, she wouldn’t give him one. That was okay. He didn’t mind her silence.

#beetlejuice #beetlejuice the musical #beetlejuice the broadway musical #beetlejuice au #beetlejuice fanfiction #beetlejuice fanfic #beetlejuice fic #beetlelands #demon!jockey #lawrence beetlejuice shoggoth #adam maitland #barbara maitland #the jockey #blumjuice #one day a horn grew from my head

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the-black-birb · 5 years ago

Note

Hi! New follower here but I love your writing, for the prompt list I would love your take on 29/30 with Kuroo! 💕💕 ty !

A/N: Thank you for requesting! I got a little carried away with this and it got really drawn out, hope you enjoy!! I could see myself writing this as a fully-fleshed out story, tell me if you’re interested :)

also for @thenerdyrebel i said I'd make it up to you with Kuroo fluff huhuhuhu

Pairing: Kuroo Tetsurou x Reader

Genre: Fluff

Summary: Kuroo needs a girlfriend for a week. You’re set on making him regret asking you for a favor.

Your relationship with Kuroo was anything but serious. That was a given, considering the two of you were only dating because Yaku dared Kuroo. It was simple, really.

“I bet you can’t get a girlfriend for a full week,” he prompted, knowing Kuroo’s busy schedule between volleyball and college exams. That mixed with his awful personality and he was lucky if a girl stuck around for a conversation.

Still, Kuroo couldn’t say no to a bet, and he had just the person in mind.

“[Y/N],” he approached you one day during lunch, expression screaming mischief. You looked at him doubtfully.

“What are you planning on involving me in today, Tetsurou?” you weren’t unfamiliar with his scheming nature. Three years in the same class made the two of you more than just acquaintances, and you’d been known to do each other favors in times of need.

“Remember that time you stayed up late watching anime so I wrote your essay for you so you could sleep the next day?” he smirked at you. You nodded. “And remember how you said you owed me big time?”

You sighed. “What?”

“Yaku said I couldn’t have a girlfriend for a week,” he says bluntly. You look at him confused.

“You want me to find some poor girl that wants to date you? Hun, that’s impossible,” you dismissed, ignoring the pounding in your chest.

“No, no. That’s too risky. I want you to date me,” he grinned, looking at you like this was a fantastic idea. You fought down the heat rising to your cheeks. Date me? You thought to yourself. Date me? He wants to date me?

“Well, fake date.” Oh. The disappointment sunk in. That makes more sense.

You shook your head. It was no surprise Kuroo didn’t want to date you, but you could still get something out of this. “Buy me noodles every weekend for a lunch,” you replied, gaze unwavering.

Kuroo sighed. That was a lot. “Two weeks?”

You shook your head. “Three.”

“You’re on.”

The two of you shook on it, and you were officially “dating.”

Kuroo wasn’t getting off the hook that easily, though. If you were going to be his girlfriend, you were going to be the most obnoxious girlfriend he’d ever had. You were going to make everyone question why he would ever want to date you.

At first, you were very subtle about it. You did everything you thought a good girlfriend should do, like make him lunch and wear his team jacket. To confirm the whole thing, you made sure Yaku was watching you.

Unfortunately, you were a horrible cook and a bit of a slob.

“This is inedible,” Kuroo groaned as soon as Yaku left the room. You smiled at him deviously.

“You don’t want to eat your girlfriend’s homemade cooking,” you faked a pout. He smacked the back of your head.

“We both know you can’t cook [F/N],” he reminded you, taking out the lunch that he prepared from home. Unlike you, Kuroo had some skills in the kitchen. You were about to leave to buy lunch (because obviously you weren’t going to make yours) when he placed a second container in front of you.

Oh.

“You think I’m letting my girlfriend eat some shitty school lunch when I know she can’t cook?” Was he blushing?

You wanted to laugh at him, really, but he was being too sweet. Instead, you sat down with him and prepared to eat. Still, you couldn’t resist…

“Aww, did your mommy make it for you?” He kicked you under the table. You just laughed.

You continued to be a “good” girlfriend, shouting at him in the hallways and clinging to his arm to make it difficult for him to walk. You tried to keep your antics to a minimum; after all you couldn’t let him catch on too early.

Good girlfriends even visited their boyfriend’s volleyball practice, you determined. So you thought you should surprise them! And as your surprise you accidentally opened the clubroom while the boys were changing… you tried to help set up equipment and somehow balls were all rolling out of the gym… truly you were a disaster. Finally, Kuroo approached you.

“Don’t help with clean up,” he set stubbornly. You looked up at him with big, round eyes feigning innocence.

“Why not? You guys don’t have a manager to handle things so it’s the least I can do,” you smiled at him. He hugged through his nose.

“Nope. Don’t want my girlfriend staying up late for me. Go home and get some rest,” he demanded, walking away from you.

“You won’t even walk me home,” you whined, hoping you could get a few more hours out of fun with him. Kuroo turned to you, eyes stern.

“No.”

You didn’t argue with that.

Still, your antics continued for the next few days. You showed up to school late, you’d wear your uniform wrong, you’d talk loudly during class, whatever you could do to be obnoxious. People would be absolutely appalled that the captain of Nekoma’s renowned volleyball team was dating you.

As usual, you went to Nekoma’s practice. Today, you were holding tightly to Kuroo’s hand (“Yaku has some doubts,” he told you that morning. “We’ve got to amp it up.”). You walked into the gym and sat on the sideline, already banned from touching equipment. Truly, you didn’t mind this. The team greeted you as they entered, and you pulled out a notebook to get started on your homework.

Occasionally, you’d grab water for the team but you were so tired from being a nuisance during the day, you really didn’t have energy to interrupt practice. And, although you’d never say this if anyone asked, you got to wear Kuroo’s team jacket and watch him play. He looked so into it, he was having so much fun. You wondered how it felt.

Although previous practices you’d either been removed by Kuroo or chosen to leave when the sunset, tonight you had lost track of time. Before you knew it, the moon was high and the boys were starting to clean up.

“Hey.” Kuroo walked up to you. “You’re still here?”

You pretended you didn’t feel the heat rising to your cheeks when he noticed. You looked to your notes, as if the answer to this situation would be there. “Whoops!” you stuttered with a nervous laugh. “I guess I got distracted watching…I’ll just…go… now…” You hastily stood with your bag, getting ready to leave. The quicker you got home, the less risk there was of someone lurking in the dark.

“Wait a few minutes,” Kuroo said absentmindedly, putting away volleyballs. “I’ll walk you home.”

You wondered if he knew what his words did to your poor heart.

Patiently, you waited by the door watching as he and his team cleaned up the gym. Finally, he grabbed his bag and ushered you out the door with him.

Out of habit, his hand reached to grab yours as the two of you walked. You thought about teasing him, wondering if he needed a thumb to suck, too. But the quiet hum of crickets and the calm sky told you this wasn’t the right time.

Your hand stayed firmly in his the whole walk home.

The next day, you were back to your usual antics. Today you had a magnificent plan. You had eaten an omelet for breakfast this morning, but asked your mother to put extra onion and garlic in it. When you got to school, you made sure everyone knew.

“Hhhhhello darling,” you smiled at Kuroo. He looked like he was about to vomit.

“Did you eat a dumpster? Your breath stinks,” he wafted a hand over his face, trying to dismiss the smell. You smiled sweetly.

“Aww don’t be like that. I just hhhad some garlic. You hhhave got to try omelets with garlic, they are just delicious. Especially hhhomemade,” you trailed on, making sure to drag out all of your h’s so Kuroo got the full effect.

“Wow, look at that. Class is starting,” he turned forward in his seat, discreetly shoving a few mints your way.

To make matters worse, Lev had finally caught wind of your relationship. “You’re dating the captain?” he asked you during lunch (you stopped by to tutor occasionally). You grinned up at the first-year, ready to put your plan in place.

“Yes, he’s really dreamy.” Lev made a face that said he disagreed and it took all your willpower not to laugh. “But he hasn’t kissed me yet. I wonder if I did something wrong…”

As if on cue, Kuroo walked into the first-year classroom, lunchbox in hand. “Oh [F/N], there you are. You wanna eat?” he held up his second meal, looking at you expectantly. You turned to Lev bidding goodbye, but he had other plans.

“Captain, how can you not kiss your girlfriend?” he asked, confused look on his face. “You’re so lucky to have such a pretty girl and you won’t even treat her right…”

Kuroo glared at you, handing you the lunchbox swiftly.

“If you’re not careful, someone might steal her,” Lev teased, but the look on his face was mischievous. You wanted to laugh. He’ll only care if they steal me in the next few days, you thought.

Kuroo opened his mouth to retort but was cut off by the bell. Instead, he smirked in a way that sent chills up your smile. “See you at practice, Lev,” he threatened.

His grip on your hand as you walked back to class was tighter than usual. He looked down at you curiously, trying to figure out what you were planning. “You think I’d kiss someone whose mouth smells like cat shit?” he quips as you walk in class.

Seeing there’s no Yaku around you give your honest reply. “Don’t worry, Tetsurou, I know you wouldn’t kiss me if my mouth smelled like flowers and fairy shit,” you retorted, getting out your schoolwork. “I just want to have a little fun,” you winked.

Too busy getting ready for class, you didn’t hear his quiet protest to your statement.

Class continued as usual. You sat quietly through the day, head occasionally falling. Kuroo stifled a laugh, you looked bored to death. He wondered how much you slept last night.

Partway through English, a note slipped onto his desk. In messy handwriting is said "how much money would you give me to flip this table right here, right now, in the middle of class?" It took willpower not to start laughing right there. He scribbled back quickly "I'll add one more weekend of noodles " and passed the note back to you. He saw you smirk when you read it, and write a hurried reply.

Before the note got back to him, you were on the floor, gripping your thigh in pain, and your desk was on the ground.

Kuroo tried to ignore the fact that from this position everyone could see your striped underwear. Instead he was worried about the incredible look of pain on your face and the curse words stringing from your mouth.

After a moment, you sat up, arm still rubbing your thigh but in a far less incriminating position.

"Sorry," you said sheepishly. "Leg cramp."

The teacher opened their mouth, clearly about to give you a scolding, but Kuroo was one step ahead. He slipped the note, which he still had yet to read, into his bag, and stood up to help clean up the mess you made. He pulled you up to stand, hand gripping your arm to support you.

"I'll bring her to the nurse," he assured the teacher, rushing out of the room.

As soon as you go to the hallway, the two of you burst into laughter. "You're crazy," he assure you. "Absolutely insane."

You smiled at him brightly. "You're just jealous you didn't have the balls to do it yourself," you retorted, tripping over yourself with laughter. "You hate English, anyways."

Kuroo shook his head. "Sure but I wouldn't flash the whole class to get out of it," he said through a fit of giggles. "You're wild [F/N]."

You shrugged. "So where do you want to go now?" You inquired, wandering the halls. Kuroo looked perplexed.

"Well we're not going to the nurse's office and I doubt he's expecting us to go back to class," you smiled at Kuroo. "We've got an hour until practice. Where would you like to go?"

Kuroo felt his heart skip a beat. He didn't know what to say.

You smiled at him, and he wanted to be the only person who got to see you look like that. "I know, come with me." You grabbed his hand and started walking.

He wasn't sure how long the two of you walked for. Five minutes? Ten? Usually, silence with you was deafening. You were always trying to crack a joke or make noise. But this was comfortable. He was comfortable. Finally, the two of you arrived at a park close to Nekoma. It wasn't anything special, really, but it felt private. Like the whole world was put on pause for the two of you.

You sat on the swing, mindlessly rocking back and forth. You were staring at the ground.

"So when all of this is over," you still weren't looking at him. "Do we fake a huge breakup? I mean, the whole school knows at this point." You grinned at him. "Wouldn't want them to think you're stuck with me much longer, would you?"

Kuroo smirked. Whatever you could dish out, he could serve back. "What?" He teased. "Afraid if you stick around much longer you'll fall for me for real?"

Your laughter was music to his ears. He leaned against the swingset, watching you move back and forth slowly. "I would never," you teased back. "I'm far too sophisticated for the likes of you," you assured him, swinging back and forth.

"Right," he nodded. "Polka dot panties scream sophistication. Were they pink, too?"

Your ears turned bright red. “They were striped and blue and I didn’t expect you to look!” you retorted (although the last part was a lie, you were fairly certain everyone in the class was looking)

“Hmm,” Kuroo purred. “They were? I think I’ll have to check…” he walked towards you on the swing, hands out in front of him. You were quick to jump off and run from him, but he chased after you nonetheless.

The two of you ran around the park playfully, going up ladders and down slides and Kuroo pretended to grab at you (if he truly wanted to, you were sure he’d be able to catch up to you). Although you had always been the clumsy one out of the two of you, Kuroo had his moments as well. Soon, he was tripping over his own two feet and bring you down with him.

Somehow, you ended on the ground laughing, Kuroo’s form hovering over yours. It was close, closest you’ve been with someone since you were a little kid on a playground. But the way his arms wrapped around your waist, keeping you from truly falling, and the warmth radiating from his body and his huge grin… it was worth it.

Eventually, the two of you calmed down and Kuroo stood, offering you a hand. You accepted quietly. “Back to school?” you suggested. He still had practice. Nodding in agreement, the two of you walked hand in hand back to Nekoma.

When you got to school, there was something noticeably different about the air between the two of you. Although you continued your banter, something had eased the tension. No one on Nekoma’s team was sure what exactly it was, but their captain seemed far more relaxed than he had for months.

During break, Lev walked up to you. “[L/N], has he still not kissed you?” he whispered like it was your little secret. You froze, discreetly reaching for your mints. You hoped Yaku didn’t hear him.

You thought back to the park. He hadn’t kissed you, but somehow it felt more personal than a kiss. “Don’t worry about it, Lev,” you assured him with a friendly smile. “Besides, I think you have bigger things to worry about…” Yaku was walking your way, surely to retrieve the tall first-year.

Kuroo watched the two of you talk and walked over to you. “Is he making you uncomfortable?” he asked defensively. You realized how close he was standing to you and suddenly were awfully glad you grabbed that mint.

“Nope!” you assured. ��Why? Jealous?” you grinned, expecting nothing to come of it. Kuroo had to get back to practice anyways.

Instead, he swept down and planted a firm kiss on your cheek. “Just a bit,” he whispered in your ear, before turning around and heading back to practice. The warmth of his breath on your ear and his lips against your cheek lingered. For a moment, you wished this week would never end.

But practice had to end, and Kuroo walked you home like normal. It wasn’t until he was back at his own home, finishing homework, that he remembered the note placed on his desk. He went into his bag to find it and uncrumpled it to see your note, his, and then below it in familiar handwriting…

Are you asking me on a date? I accept

He groaned, throwing the note across the room and covering his face with his hands. Warmth pooled in his chest as he remembered the feeling of his hand in yours and the way you laughed running across the playground… he never wanted it to end.

Although he tossed and turned in bed kept up with thoughts of you and of tomorrow being the last day you’d be ‘fake-dating,’ he eventually fell into a dreamless slumber. After all, the only dreams he had were when he was together with you.

The next morning, you were late for school. Not late like you were later than usual, or you barely got to class, but that you walked in, interrupting the whole class. You were visibly disheveled, and dishing out apology after apology. The teacher took you into the hallway.

It was hard to make out what they were saying, but it was clear you were getting a stern talking-to. Eventually, you made it back into the classroom, awkwardly sitting in your seat and trying to avoid the noisy eyes of your classmates.

You weren’t exactly a class clown, but you were definitely someone who caught everyone’s attention. After spending the whole week drawing eyes to yourself, he wondered why now you decided to hide from it. You had nothing to hide from, he thought.

At lunchtime, he approached you like normal, with an extra lunch in hand. “So, detention?” he asked. You nodded solemnly. “Again?” It had been a while, but for a bit, you were a serial-detention-attendee. It was never really your fault, you were just late and busy and school never really clicked with you. Three years of having class together and Kuroo noticed it, too.

But you’d worked hard to improve your record, and it had been months since your last detention. Still, the slip weighed down on your desk like a metal anchor, dragging you down. You sighed defeatedly.

“Stupid me. I just had to walk my siblings to school… make sure they had lunch money… next time I just won’t show up,” you muttered to yourself. Kuroo furrowed his eyebrows. You weren’t usually one to get down, even when you had rough patches.

“C’mon it’s just some time after school. You’ll be fine,” he guaranteed you, brushing off your concerns. You nodded, smiling weakly.

“Yeah. You’re right,” you mumbled, eating your food dejectedly.

You weren’t very talkative for the rest of lunch.

Kuroo racked his mind, trying to figure out what he could do to make you feel better. He thought about offering you some noodles, but he did enough of that. A card? No, too cheesy…

Before he knew it, it was the end of the day and you were cleaning up the classroom before heading off to your dreaded detention. Kuroo stayed back to help, figuring it was the least he could do.

You’d been strangely quiet all day and Kuroo hadn’t been sure what to do. Finally, when the two of you finished up, he thought it easiest to dismiss himself. The silence between you was deafening.

“I’ll just… see you Monday then…” he trailed off, heading to leave the classroom. It was only the two of you in there.

“Wait,” you called after him. He stopped immediately, turning to face you. Your head was to your chest, staring at your shoes, and your hand awkwardly scratched the back of your head. You spoke quietly, but he listened closely to make out your words. “Could you… I know you don’t have volleyball today but could you maybe… could you wait for me?” You breathed in deeply.

“I can’t let my mom find out I got detention, she’s been so happy lately and if she finds out she’ll… she’ll…” Tears threatened to pour from your eyes. Kuroo didn’t say much, but he could see the stress weighing down on your shoulders.

“C’ mere,” he motioned. You moved towards him slightly, and when you were within arms reach, he tugged at your wrists to pull you into a warm embrace. “It’s okay,” he whispered to you. One arm circled around your waist to secure yourself to him, while the other drew circles soothingly into your back. “You’re going to be okay,” he promised. When he spoke, you actually started to believe it.

You wrapped your arms around him and nuzzled your head into his neck, sobbing quietly. “It’ll be alright,” he promised, kissing your forehead. For a while, the world stopped and you just relished in the comfort of being completely honest and safe in his arms.

Eventually, Kuroo pulled away but kept his forehead pressed to yours. “Hey,” he whispered.

“I got your shirt all wet,” you apologize through tears. His hand moved to wipe at your cheek and he smiled.

“No worries, I looked better without it anyway,” he teased. You laughed tiredly. “I’ll wait for you, and then we can walk home together. We’ll tell your mother we went out on a date, okay?” He owed you at least four.

You nodded, too tired to argue, and wiped away the tears on your cheeks. “Right. I’ll see you at the gate?” Kuroo smiled at you.

“I’ll be waiting.”

True to his word, he was there when you got out of attention. You were started to look more like yourself again, with color in your cheeks and light in your eyes. Still, there was something sad about your demeanor.

You didn’t greet him, and he didn’t greet you, but the two of you fell into step with one another without question. You were simply meant to be side by side at that moment.

“So… the week is up,” you reminded him with a sad smile. Kuroo felt a weight rest on your shoulders. You were right… a week had passed and there was really no reason for the two of you to “date” any longer. But…

“What do you want to do?” he asked you. You were the one who was in a tough spot, and he didn’t want to take advantage of your vulnerability. He just wanted to see you happy.

You breathed in sharply. You seemed nervous for some reason, and Kuroo prayed silently that he hadn’t been putting pressure on you. “I’ve been thinking actually. About that day at the park.” You turned to face him. He stopped, giving you time to speak.

“I have a confession. Don’t laugh at me?” you asked anxiously. Kuroo grinned at you.

“I’ll always laugh at you,” he promised and you punched his arm playfully. “All right, all right! No laughter from me, not a peep.” He hoped his face didn’t look too hopeful.

“I know I said I wouldn’t, but I think I fell for you for real. Like, really, totally badly,” you admitted, eyes tracing the ground. “And I get that you did this as a joke, and I’m sure you asked me because I’m the one person who you’d never end up dating but I wanted to be honest with you.” Kuroo felt the weight of the world lift off his shoulders. You looked cute rambling. “And you don’t even have to respond! Or walk me home! We can stage a breakup, or just tell everyone it didn’t work out or-”

There was something warm against your lips.

Kuroo’s lips were against your lips. He pulled away, stupid grin still clear on his soft, cherry-flavored lips.

“Why would I break up with someone I’m head over heels for?”

#kuroo tetsurō #kuroo tetsurou #kuroo tetsuro x reader #kuroo x reader #kuroo fluff #kuroo imagine #haikyuu!!#haikyuu #hq kuroo #haikyuu kuroo #haikyuu kuroo tetsurou #haikyuu fanfic #haikyuu imagine #haikyuu fluff

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proxylynn · 4 years ago

Text

Underfell: File Name not Edgy Enough #26

Chapter 26: Misery

WARNING: I WANT NO RESPONSIBILITY OVER SPOILING THINGS FOR OTHERS. THAT BEING SAID, THIS IS HOW FILE NAME NOT FOUND WOULD FUNCTION IN THE AU OF UNDERFELL. BEFORE YOU READ THIS, UNLIKE THE NICE TIME OF UNDERTALE, THIS WORLD IS KILL OR BE KILLED. THIS STORY WILL BE GRAPHIC, GORY, USE SWEARS LIKE NOBODY'S BUSINESS, AND DEAL WITH SENSITIVE SUBJECT MATTERS. FOR EXAMPLE, THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE READ THE FILE NAME RELOCATED SPOOF WILL KNOW HOW I PICTURE THIS VERSION OF LYNSIE COMING TO THE UNDERGROUND. IT IS NOT AN ACCIDENT. IT IS NOT BECAUSE OF SOMETHING DUMB. IT IS BECAUSE SHE CHOOSES TO END HER LIFE. SO TAKE THIS WITH A GRAIN OF SALT. I MADE IT BECAUSE I NEEDED TO LET SOME OF THIS EDGINESS OUT OF MYSELF. WHICH I GUESS MAKES UNDERFELL LYNSIE EVEN MORE TRUE TO WHO I REALLY AM. ANYWAY, ENJOY. ^_^

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[HOTLAND: LEVEL 2 MOMENTS BEFORE GOING LIVE]

Mettaton zooms through the air, the speed makes it hard to try to look for anything I can lock-on as a potential landmark. The worst part, I can't tell if Flowey is able to follow or can reach this far safely. Who am I kidding? Flowey has the best odds of making it around here without a scratch. Unlike my dumbass.

"THIS WILL DO."

He lands faster than expected. The shock shacks my insides uncomfortably. I gag trying to keep my stomach from flying out.

"SORRY, DARLING. I'LL ATTEMPT TO BE GENTLER IN THE FUTURE."

He puts me down, my legs buckle like a baby calf's but I manage to stand.

"N-No worries. Just...Just give me a moment."

He chuckles and gets ready to blast off again.

"SO CUTE. NOW LISTEN UP...HOTLAND IS LEVELED OUT IN THREE PARTS. WE WERE ON LEVEL ONE. THIS IS LEVEL TWO. FROM THIS ROOM, MAKE A RIGHT AND CONTINUE ONWARD. YOU'LL NEED TO REACH THE ELEVATOR TO PROCEED. THINK YOU CAN DO THAT?"

I wave at him.

"Go right. Got it. *heavy sigh* Um...Are there more vents?"

He doesn't say anything.

"Metta?"

"TOODLES!"

He blasts off and I roar our swears. Oh well. No point fussing on that. If I'm lucky Flowey will have heard my shouting and come to help me. But this room...The path leading out is glass. The land isn't connected. Flowey would have to dive deeper to find a joining point, most likely it would be too deep and the heat harmful. I need to leave and not look down. I take a step but fumble, grabbing a random signpost to stop the fall.

"Damn it...Is this what jet-lag is?"

The sign's writing makes me curious.

[Art Club: Meet here! Next meeting: October 10th, 8PM]

Huh? Wait...What is the date and time? Argh! I have no sense for time anymore. Toriel has an out-of-date calendar that she refuses to change which doesn't help and the cellphone had the closest thing to a clock yet there's no telling if it was on time.

"Ahhhh!!! I'm late!!! I'm late!!! I'm so sorry!!!"

From seemingly out of nowhere, a doughy butterscotch colored monster in a black fedora and vest comes rushing towards this spot with papers fluttering away from him. He's in such a damn hurry that he trips and ends up crashing, skidding to a stop inches from my feet.

"*grumble* Son of a..."

He picks himself up and quickly grabs what papers he can. He looks odd. I'm getting weird neck-bread vibes off him. It's probably the fedora. Maybe if he took it off and let his brown hair free...What the fuck, am I thinking like a girl? Ewww! Stupid girl thoughts! That's my once per month. No more.

"So stupid! Why am I so clumsy? I hate being such a klutz!"

Poor guy.

"Need some help?"

He flinches. Did...Did he just realize I was here?

"W-Who are you? This is my spot! Get out!"

"Whoa! Chill. No need to be so harsh, kangaroo-boy."

His eyes widen.

"Kangaroo..."

Ah...shit. I know that look by now. My blue soul comes out.

"I'M A BUTTERDRAGON!!"

[WRONG ENEMY !? begins to play in the background.]

...Fuck my life. Wait...What the fuck is a butterdragon?

[You're blocked in angrily!]

"I come here to find something to draw. And what do I find? Some ignorant bitch that wouldn't know a masterpiece if it smacked her in the face!"

Is he referring to himself?

"It's time someone taught you a lesson! Consider it a gift. Let me look in my vest!"

He spins around and swings at me with his tail. It's coated in light blue magic. Fine. I don't move. It turns orange. I jump over it. It turns blue for two more swipes before turns around.

[HP ██████████████████████████████████████████ 40/40]

"Oh! Whoops! That had to hurt! So sorry, I must have..."

He freezes seeing nothing happened to me.

"You...You're fine?"

I shrug. No point opening my mouth. He talks enough for the both of us.

[The enemy looks nervous.]

"Ummm, I...I couldn't find anything I want to give away. *softer* Not that I wanted to give you anything. *normal* Wait, wait! *laugh* I've got my notebook! I can draw you a picture in it! I'm quite the artist, you know. I'll draw you a GREAT picture!!!"

"It's not your turn."

He flinches.

"Oh...Right."

I look at my options.

[FIGHT]

[ACT]

[̴͝SP͜͞E͡L̵͜L͟͠͏]͘͢

[ITEM]

[MERCY]

What even is that button? Eh...I don't need it. Not with this guy.

[ACT selected.]

[New options available.]

[CHECK]

[SOMETHING]

What's with all the weird shit? Just be simple damn it.

[CHECK selected.]

[SO SORRY (REAL NAME, SAMAEL "SAM" D. BUTTERDRAGON) – HP: 1100 ATK: 9 DEF: -6 – This creature is definitely in the wrong time and space!]

Time and space...How the hell does he have negative defense?! That's a thing?!

"My turn!"

My thoughts are broken. He turns around to draw in his notebook, attacking once more with his tail. Blue swish. Orange swish. Blue swish. Blue swish. Orange swish. Orange swish.

[HP ██████████████████████████████████████████ 40/40]

Again he doesn't understand how I got away with no damage. Dude, I can't help that you're attack is obviously telegraphed.

[The enemy looks anxious.]

"S...sorry...The drawing didn't come out very well. Wait! I know the problem! I just have to find a better piece of paper for it!"

"I'm not sure that's how drawing works. But you do you."

[MERCY selected.]

[SPARE selected.]

"I don't want your pity."

Was worth a shot considering the way this fight's going.

"I'll settle on a draw-ing if that's better."

I emphasize the pun with a teasing wink. He gets a little frazzled.

"Uh...Don't do that again. Like...ever."

Screw it. I want to have some fun.

"Why? Are you gonna pun-ish me?"

His right eye twitches.

"Stop it."

"I have an ink-ling this is getting to you. But trust me...You paint seen nothing yet."

Getting frustrated he yanks at his hair before turning around and chucking crumpled balls of paper at me from over his shoulders. Finally, something I need to dodge that will take effort. Each toss has three balls and he does this ten times. The dude's wasting perfectly fine paper. Shameful.

[HP ██████████████████████████████████████████ 40/40]

I'm starting to think he's getting bothered by his inability to hurt me.

[The enemy looks perturbed.]

Called it.

"N-None of my papers are good enough to use..."

[SPARE selected.]

"It's not the tools. They don't create. They are but aids. It's the artist. Their skill and heart. That is key. Anyone can draw. It's as easy as breathing. But if you stress out and push too hard, if you forget to enjoy yourself...Then even what you'd call your masterpiece will never be good enough."

He looks at me funny.

"My advice, Mr. Butterdragon...Don't try to make something as others expect it to be made. Create something as you want it to be. Only then will you be happy with it. I would know. I'm a dabbler at doodling and there's something so...interesting...in being able to take a pencil and transfer an image that you only saw in your head to paper. Though I can never seem to get hands just right."

I look at my hands.

"Weird flesh sticks. Why are you so hard to draw?!"

He thinks for a moment. But then...

"THAT'S IT!!! I know what I can do!! I'll use my magic pencil! It has to be under some of these papers somewhere!!!!"

I take it he's still bent on attacking to prove he can draw. He goes back to tossing paper and by this point, I found a spot to just stand in where nothing falls near, so I wait till he's done.

"Here! I got it! My magic pencil is amazing! Everything I draw with it looks..."

[HP ██████████████████████████████████████████ 40/40]

This fight is so boring. I mean, I'm grateful to not have my ass kicked or beaten within moments of death's door, but...Is he really trying? Froggits try harder than this.

"Why aren't you hurt?!"

I cover my mouth in a yawn.

"Dude, can you let me spare you already? I need to get to level three before Mettaton has a fit."

[SPARE selected.]

He didn't like hearing this.

[The enemy taps his fingers together like jackhammers.]

"I'll show you. I'LL SHOW YOU ALL!! I AM A REAL ARTIST!!"

With pencil in hand, he scribbles into the air and much to my understanding of reality he adds two horned demons doodles to fight on his side.

[DOODLEBOG – HP: 100 ATK: 8 DEF: 999 – Art lets your wildest fantasies come to life!]

"Like I was saying...Anything I draw with this pencil becomes COMPLETELY REAL! But in your case, a little too real!"

I can't help the odd smirk that crawls across my lips.

"Finally..."

I stretch and pop some joints.

"I was starting to fall asleep. Show me what you've been holding back. Let the creativity flow!"

Both Doodlebogs launch eight doodle orbs in circle formations at me. The good news, there's room to move and enough spacing to do some fun maneuvering. The bad news...It's still freaking easy! They shoot this move twice before their turn ends. And still...

[HP ██████████████████████████████████████████ 40/40]

I'm disappointed. And so is he.

"What...How...?!"

[The enemy is confused.]

I shake my head. Seems that's all he's got. Though, to his credit, those drawings need to go. But how do I do that? Hmmm...Maybe...

[ACT selected.]

[New options available.]

[CHECK]

[DRAW]

[SOMETHING]

What's this? Oh...Oh hell yeah.

[DRAW selected.]

"W-Wait...You can't..."

I grab my soul, not sure what else I'm to use, and trace out a large cat that glows like my soul.

"Sketch-kitty, pounce the Doodlebog on the left!"

The cat does as commanded, pouncing at the Doodlebog and they tussle off the side to the heat death below. He panics.

"How dare you use art against me! Don't just stand there, kill her!"

The remaining Doodlebog fires the same attack as before but done three times in rapid secession. I harder move yes, but one that still leaves spots open wiggle on through.

[HP ██████████████████████████████████████████ 40/40]

[The enemy is desperate.]

"H-Hey now...There's no need to do anything crazy. I-I shouldn't have attacked you. That was dumb. W-We good?"

Huh...I don't know if he's being truthful. I try to use MERCY but the button doesn't push in. Something is locking it. I wonder if it's because of the doodle? Is it affecting the battle conditions? To be safe, I'll return things to how they were.

[DRAW selected.]

"You're cheating! You have to be! No one can be this good!"

I roll my eyes while tracing out a massive snake.

"Sketch-snake, put the squeeze to the Doodlebog."

It strikes with the speed of a viper and coils the doodle like a constrictor. The doodle fights back, clawing at the sketch. The sketch knows what its mission is. It throws itself and the doodle over the edge, so now it's only the two of us. He is at a loss what to do.

[The enemy uses a hypnotizing 3D-tush-wiggle attack. Smells... furry.]

I think he's freaked out and out of options. His strongest move, an insane trump card, and I not only countered it but bested it.

[The enemy is apologizing to its visions of the Reaper.]

...What?

"I've messed up. I've really messed up. Oh no. I'm so dead! No...No. I won't let you kill me."

"Dude, I'm clearly not trying to kill you."

"I won't let art die!"

"And you're not listening."

"I'll use this regular pencil! I'll use 100% of best! There is no way you'd kill the maker of such a fine piece!"

He turns around and scribbles furiously. His tail swipes quickly and paper balls fly like crazy. This creates difficulty because trying to dodge the balls is made harder when trying to either stand still for light-blue attacks or move for the orange ones. Orange tail, orange tail, blue tail, blue tail, orange tail, and blue tail. This is how he should've been going at me from the start. It's a good attack.

[HP ███████████████████████████ 27/40]

"Are you ready!? I just finished! Here's your picture!"

He's so proud of it that he doesn't even notice that he finally did damage to me. The picture is a heart.

"What do you think!? It's a representation of your deepest essence... It's great, right!?"

I don't say a word. What did he mean by that? How is a heart my deepest essence? Is it a picture of my soul and souls are the essence of life? How the fuck did he being about so much thought with a heart?! My silence has him become uncomfortable.

"... (They think my art is terrible.) Well! I'll leave you with that thought! Goodbye! See you later! Sayonara! Nice knowing ya! Hasta la vista. ... I should leave."

He attempts to leave but he freezes when I quickly grab his tail.

"Um..."

"That image...You poured your heart into and it shows. It made me think. Art does that. It makes you think and feel. You did that to me. ...10 out of 10."

His eyes widen.

"R-Really?"

I nod and let his tail go...only to get a sappy hug from the butterball.

"Thank you!"

I made his day. He was trying to kill me and is now hugging me over a compliment. I think this is over.

[MERCY selected.]

[SPARE selected.]

[YOU WON!]

[You earned 0 XP and 318 gold.]

Holy shit! I'm rich!

The battle music fades out as he lets me go. My soul returns to me.

"Did you...Did you really like it?"

I nod.

"You gave it your all. That makes it special. Keep that spirit and don't be afraid to try other styles. You'll be amazed at what you can do if you try."

"Like your animals?"

"Animals have always been easy for me. It's people that are my weak-link. Um...Can I see that pencil for a sec?"

He hands me his notebook and normal pencil, to which I make two different drawings. One, a traditional European dragon spouting flame. This is my specialty, I can make these almost with my eyes closed. But the second one is my try at an anime version of myself. I use the eraser a lot on the face, hands, and chest. It never looks right to me once I'm okay with another part of the body. Yet I know I can't spend ages on this so I hand it over when I believe it looks okay.

"See what I mean now?"

"What are you talking about? These are great."

"Exactly..."

He's confused.

"Even when it's good, I still think I suck. But it's that negativity that spurs me to try harder. One day, I shall get those parts down and be happy with it without erasing whole bits out of frustration or doubt in ability. So...yeah...Keep those. Let them help you. Inspire you to be better in spite of others and yourself. Refuse to give up. And never surrender."

He gives me a funny look and I rub the back of my head with a nervous laugh.

"Heh...I have no idea where I was going with that. I tend to ramble when trying to be positive."

A small smile comes to him as he takes a few steps past me.

"I think I get what you're saying. If it's all the same to you...I think I want to be alone with my thoughts for a bit. Might see what ideas come."

I smirk.

"Take care, buddy. May the Muses inspire you to greatness."

I leave the butterdragon to his thoughts and not look down at the glass path that must be crossed. Yet it's doing so that alarms my brain. The land is not solid rock. The land is being supported by thick metal pipes and trussed beams that don't look like they're meant to be used here. I'm conflicted, I feel safe and unease at the same time. It also doesn't help I don't have Flowey with me. I need him. I don't like proceeding without my bro. So...

"Flowey! Bro, I'm up over here! Hurry up!"

Not expecting a response, least of all right away, I aim to head out slowly in hopes that he'll catch up to me before I really need him. But the path actually branches like a 4-way intersection and I get confused. Left is probably back to level one but what's the forward path? I shrug and check it out. Not like I have a killer robot to appease because I'm on TV. Thankfully, it's an empty spot of land. Scratch that. An empty spot of land with some trash on it.

[There's an apron lying on the ground.]

Really? That scrap's an apron?

I inspect the ragged thing and find it's in better shape than it looks.

[Will you take it or leave it?]

This option leads me to believe it's a human item. Probably pairs with this frying pan. Yes, I want it.

[You got the Splattered Apron.]

...Do I wanna equip it? Ugh...I tie the apron around my waist but backwards so it covers my ass.

[You equipped the Splattered Apron.]

[You gain 11 Defense.]

[Are the splotches from food, an enemy, or the former wearer? You don't want to know. Heals 1 HP every other turn.]

Wait...Did it say...?!

[HP: 40 ATK: 45 DEF: 38]

Holy shit! Score!

"So...Does that only work in fights?"

[HP ████████████████████████████ 28/40]

Huh. Guess not. Yet it said every other turn so who knows what that counts as.

I leave to continue all while paying half-attention to my HP. 1 point healing is better than nothing, though it's gonna be a while before I'm healed completely.

It's warm on this level. Still hot but not as bad as level one. Digital cords pulsate with energy from deep down to high above me. And in the distance...a massive mechanical structure. It sits in the lava like a slumbering leviathan. Imposing, mysterious, and giving off the vibes of "STAY THE FUCK AWAY". I better not have to go there.

After a short stroll, I come upon an obstacle or, as monsters put it, a puzzle. There are two conveyor belts, one going forward and the other back towards me. The forward one has three of those thick metal pipes near it and each pipe has a switch. At the end, there's what looks to be a Tesla Coil set up to prevent safe passing. Putting the bits together is easy. I step on the belt and keep walking, flipping the switches as I go. The third flip turns the current off and I can progress.

I regret this.

Literally forty feet away I'm met by those fucking vents. However...beside the vents is a large conveyor belt made of three merged ones. That's moving at the same speed as the one I was just on. Idea time. I dash jump across the belts. Leaping just in case someone somewhere decides to mess with the speed. Lucky me, no dick moves were made and I avoided doing my scarier backup plan of climbing on the support trusses. At least the path is clear now, which is good.

The heat begins to climb as I approach pumping stacks of hot gas. It makes the air thick and hard to breathe. The sooner I get past these things the better. Part of me questions why I don't hoof it on a crawl and then I have to remind that part that the land is inclining upward so it's bloody pointless. My throat is drying out, my lungs burn, and my eyes sting even with the tears trying to soothe the pain. Even the sounds of gears grinding in the background is starting to irritate my senses. But all this just makes me strive forward more to get back to some form of normalcy. Augh...What's my HP at now?

[HP ████████████████████████████████ 32/40]

Not bad. Not bad at all.

"Keep moving, slowpoke."

My blurry eyes spy a white speck among all the orange-brown.

"Bro?"

Something wraps around my wrist and pulls me slowly, leading me like a child helps an elder cross the road. Soon the air is clear and wiping my eyes lets me see Flowey. A very welcoming sight indeed.

"Bro!"

"Good to see you too."

"How did you get up here? The land is broken."

"Not all of it. I pretty much climbed up one high point, crossed over to another, and repeat till I got here. Did you forget how nimble I can be?"

I smack my forehead making him snicker.

"Sometimes it scares me to think how you've managed to not die."

He gets a chuckle out of me.

"Same."

We move on...only to be blocked by two heavily armored guards. One is a rabbit or hare and the other is more of a dragon than butterball was. Adorning fierce, brutal, and intimidating black armor bearing the blood-red Deltarune insignia. On their helms, shoulders, and wrists are jagged threatening spikes. But the real danger that has my attention are the very large swords.

"Are you shitting me?"

"They...aren't supposed to be here."

I look at Flowey funny and he flinches.

"I mean...They don't usually..."

"*mumble* Timeline bullshit. *normal* Fuck it...Yo! Can you two move? We need to reach level three...please?"

I'm sure that saved it from all my attitude.

"Human..."

Nothing good has ever happened to me when someone says "human".

"You're late."

Oh. Well, that's different.

"For...?"

They point their swords at me.

"Your funeral."

"Really? Was that the best you could come up with?"

The rabbit shrugs.

"I thought it was pretty tough."

The dragon punches his arm.

"I told you it was weak."

"It's not like we had a lot of time to come up with something better."

"Right. All the direction Mettaton gave us was 'stall her' while he does stupid crap."

"Let's just get this over with before the Captain finds out."

They rush towards me...then stop. But not a normal stop. They're frozen in place. I look at Flowey, he's stuck in mid-sink into the ground. The hell is going on? It's as if...as if time stopped?

"Sans? Sans, is this you? Where are you?"

White noise, like static on a TV. It pierces my ears as if it were stabbing my very brain. Covering my ears does nothing to stop it. I drop to my knees.

"Sa҉ns͏..̕."

A voice barely solidifies in the sounds assaulting my hearing.

"H͞è's n̢ot he̡r͠e,͟ l͡i̡ttl͡e ͜on̴ę.̨ He ͞can'͏t ̸in̵tęr͜f̛ere҉ w̧i̧th o͝úr̨ f́u͟ņ."

I muster the strength to turn my head and am confronted by a grayed-out monster with a blacked-out face holding a smaller face in its hand. The face looks at me with a small creepy smile. My eyes widen. The face spoke. And it speaks in rhyme. What the fuck?!

"What the hell are you?"

"M̛e? I̕'҉m͠ ͡a ̨f̡o͢l͜l͘ow̵er ̡of̶ ͘the g͠rea͝t Royal͏ ͟Sc͞ien͘t͝i͝st͟,̢ D͜ơc̢tor̕ ̵W̛.D. ̵Gast̀e͞r̀.͘ On̵e day͞,̨ h́e ͝va͝n͞i͡sh̀e͜d͘ w̷itḩou̕t̡ a҉ t́r̶ąc̛e.͝ T̛hey͞ ͠s̡a̢y҉ ̷he ҉s̡hat̕te̶r̷ed ͝ac̛ross̡ ti҉m͠e̴ an͘d̢ ҉s̨pac͘e. Ha H̷a͞.͝..̡ho͠w ̧c̸án I͞ s͠ay̢ s̸o͏ wit͟ho̴u͘t ͘f̶e͟a̸r͘?͝ ̸I'm h̸o͜l͘ding͞ a ̴p̵ie͘ce҉ ͜of̡ h͡im ̶r̶iģht͢ ͢her͞e."

This...This shit right here triggers something primal in me...I get genuinely freaked out. Fleeing like a puppy that just met the big noisy vacuum for the first time. And yeah, this was an overreaction. I've dealt with some insane shit at this point, you'd think I'd be hardened like a soulless speck of dirt. But no. That made me too unsettled and any tough wall I had crumbled. I zoom past the few other frozen in time monsters along the way till I reach the elevator. I spam hit the button, praying it will ignore the fact time is dead and let me in something that I can pretend is safer than out here.

*BING*

A sound other than static? There is a god!

The doors shift open and a grayed-out bird monster with terrible posture along with a grayed-out small humanoid monster stop me in my tracks.

There is no god!

"D͏r.̡ G̴as͝t̶e͠ŕ..͝.͡H̛i͞s brìllia͢n͝cé w͡a҉s̸ ͞irr̷e̶p͞l͞ac͢eabl̨e̶.̷"

"҉W͢hat͏ a̡n ̢áct to ̴foll̕o҉w͟! T́h͘e̷y ̨s͠ay̨ ͏h̶ę c͢r̨eat̛e̴ḑ t͜h͜e͜ ͞C̕O͜R̷E̶."

"Hoẁe͘v͢e̕r, h͜i͏s ͞life҉..͝.̸was ͠c͡u͡t s͘hort."

They say ominously together.

"O͡ne̕ ͟d́a͢y̕,͝ h̵i͟ś ҉ex̵pęri͜m̨e̵ntś w̧ent̡ ̸wr̢on͜g̢, ͡an̡ḑ..̀."

"He̴ fe̸l̢l̡ ̕i͞n̴t͜o ̀hi̵s͡ cr̷eat̀i͢ón̢."

"Węll,̴ ͝w̡e҉ needn̨'͡t͠ gos̕s̕i҉p.̧ A̷f͢t͠e͟r al̵l͏,̷ ҉i̸t'ş ̧rude to ̀tal͡k̨ ab͏o̢u͠t̛ s҉o̵me̢o͘n҉è w̛h͢o̕'s l̷i̕s͢te̡n͢ing.̸"

They grab me and pull me in before my body chooses to run.

"*snarls* Let go you creeps!"

"D̵o̵n't ̕st͠r̴ưg̷gle̵,̧ l͡i͞t̕t̛l҉e o͟n͡e.́"

"̸Yo̷u ͝d͞o͠n͏'t̴ w͡an̸t ̴harm to co͢me̛ to̷ ̡t̀h̢e̵ flo͜wer͞.̡"

Oh fuck...I left Flowey with the creepy face-hand thing. I cease my fighting.

"G҉o͡od͞ ̷ģir̡l."

The doors shut with a quickness.

[SNOWDIN: Skeleton House in present time]

They watch as the human and flower are confronted by the two Royal Guards. And of course, they do as they've been trained. Attack the human. But something weird happens. The guards begin to attack and the screen of the TV glitches into static before the picture returns. Only now the guards have stopped their action and the flower, which was retreating from danger, pops back out in confusion along with everyone else. The human is gone. It happened within the blink of an eye. One second she was there and the next she's not. And now the screen cuts to a "We Are Experiencing Technical Difficulties" image. What is going on?

[HOTLAND: LAB]

Undyne and Alphys are equally as perplexed as everyone else that's tuned in.

"Alphys, where did the human go?"

Undyne irritatedly asks through her teeth. On her end, Alphys is switching through camera feeds like crazy.

"I'm looking! I'm looking!"

The screen swaps from camera to camera and multiple different angles. But there's nothing. Sure, there are monsters. Some just going about their lives. Some slacking around. Even an embarrassing shot of a Pyrope shoving a sandwich into the top of a Vulkin. But no sign of the human on level two.

"Where are you, damn it?!"

"Stop!"

Undyne's shout makes Alphys jump.

"Go back five clicks."

And so she does. The feed is an odd far shot from the gas stacks. It can just barely view the guards let alone the flower who suddenly ducks away. The guards seem even more confused.

"What are we looking for?"

Undyne points at the screen and Alphys sighs.

"If I can't see it on my end, you pointing from a distance does nothing for me!"

Undyne growls.

"Look up, genius!"

Alphys leers at the fish-woman before leering at the view she has on her monitor. Due to the far away placement of the camera, it can see up to the platform of level three. And there, dangling over the side, is a pale white arm that stands out over the red platform and gold LED lights scheme.

"The hell...?"

She switches to the level three cameras.

"Ha! I knew I saw something."

With the better view, they now see the human face-down just a few feet from the elevator.

"How the hell did she get up there?"

Alphys gets out her phone and sends a quick text. When there's no reply she presses a button and a moment later is sent a reply. A few messages are sent as Mettaton zooms on screen.

"What? Why's the tin can there now?"

Undyne is out of the loop as usual.

"Who else do you know can zip over there as fast?"

Mettaton pulls the human to the center of the path, away from a stupid falling to death, and checks over her seemingly lifeless body. Her eyes are open and empty as if someone replaced her peepers with billiards cue balls that glow. Marks on her arms look like bruising but weren't there before nor gained in her earlier fight. Then...Alphys gets a text.

"Hmmm..."

"What's up?"

"Vital signs are still going but her breathing has stopped."

She texts back to Mettaton.

"So...She's dead?"

"No. Not yet at least. According to Mettaton, her HP is full and not depleting. However, if she doesn't start breathing, her HP should drain and she will die."

"Then wha...?"

"Look at the TV, dear."

Undyne looks back at the screen to see Mettaton performing chest compressions in patterns.

"With her heart still pumping it means all other functions are still working. It's likely something happened in whatever event that caused her to get up there to give her trauma. The trauma probably made her brain fail to send the right signals to her lungs and thus, she's in respiratory arrest. So I've instructed Mettaton to force her body to restart her breathing manually with basic CPR."

They watch the robot press into her chest for a good couple of minutes before the human suddenly bolts up violently. Mettaton restrains the hysterical woman as the life returns to her eyes, sight restored settles her down some but she appears terribly shaken.

"Ask him if he can get her to tell him what happened."

"Already sent and awaiting reply."

Mettaton appears to speak with her but she either says very little or nothing at all. She merely holds her self in an attempt to cease her trembling and looks out at what bit of the CORE is still visible from that point.

"Huh...He says she isn't telling. At most, she said it's nothing and it just happens sometimes."

"Super vague and avoiding the subject? That kind of shit ain't normal."

Alphys agrees but it's not like they have the human in custody to interrogate for answers. She sends the text.

"The hell?"

Mettaton offers some concern and encouragement before blasting off, leaving the human alone.

"Why's he leaving her?!"

"He did what was needed. Now the show can continue as planned."

Undyne glares.

"That's twice now. You could've let her die."

"I still need more data. Something odd happened and I need to figure it out."

Undyne huffs softly.

"Fine. You know...You can only string someone along for so long before that string breaks, Alphys."

The lizard-woman chuckles.

"Worried about the human? That's cute."

"I wasn't talking about the human."

Undyne guzzles her remaining ramen and Alphys isn't sure how to respond.

"For your sake, the human better be worth all this effort."

She lifts her bowl.

"More."

[HOTLAND: LEVEL 3 BEFORE GOING LIVE]

Static. Everything is static. Static is all I see and hear. I can't feel anything. Am I dead? Is this what death is? If it is...It's incredibly boring. At least Hell would have a wicked soundtrack to drone out to while being tortured. Suddenly, I feel something. And it hurts. Like something is bouncing on my chest and pauses a bit before doing it again for longer.

Please...Leave me alone...Let me be...I don't want to go back...Don't make me go back...Please...

"*gasps and coughs*"

My lungs burn in this reawakening but my sight is still static. Purgatory. Pain before Heaven. The sins must be suffered away. This must be what's happening. Hands. I feel hands and panic, stress levels at critical. I take a swing at where I think they are.

"D̕͡oņ͟'̕͝t ̨̀͝to͝͏uch̷́͝ ͘me͘͜!̴̵͝"

There's hesitation before more force is used and I'm pinned to what I assume is a floor. I thrash harshly.

"L̸̀e͢a̡͜v̴͟͢e ͘m̵e͞ ͝al҉̀o̷̴n̴̨e̶̢!̡͞ ̡͡Ḑ͞o͝n̶͝'̨̕t ̢͏̡I ͜s̸̛u͜͜f̵͝f̷͠͝er̛ ̧e͏͜n̢o̵u҉͢͢g̶͡͡ḩ?!͏"

"CALM...I...LYNSIE."

A voice? A normal voice?

"DON'T...ME...RELAX."

The struggling I was doing ends. And as I settle down the static that had blinded me subsides. My location is unknown. But I know the one holding me down.

"M-Metta?"

Seeing I'm normal, Mettaton helps me get back on my feet yet I'm unsettled by...things.

"ARE YOU ALRIGHT, DARLING? WHAT HAPPENED?"

Flashes of memory flicker in my head. Those...things...Followers of Gaster...The things they did...

I hold myself and fight the tears trying to come to my eyes. I don't say a thing.

"LYNSIE...HOW DID YOU GET UP HERE? WHY DID I FIND YOU NOT BREATHING?"

I rub my eyes.

"I need my phone. *shaky inhale* I gotta talk to my mom."

"YOU KNOW I DON'T HAVE IT. AND IF I DID, I'M STILL UNSURE YOU WOULDN'T CALL OUT TO YOUR FRIENDS."

He's not wrong. I wasn't going to call Toriel. I was going to give Sans nightmares with the shit done to me.

"NOW COME ON. YOU CAN TELL ME WHAT'S WRONG."

"...N-Nothing's wrong. This...This just happens sometimes."

He's not buying it. I'm doing a piss poor attempt to play off that I'm fine.

"DARLING, YOU'RE OBVIOUSLY NOT FINE AND ABOUT TO CRY. JUST TALK TO ME. WHAT HAPPENED? YOU VANISHED FROM SIGHT AND ENDED UP HERE AT THE START OF LEVEL THREE COMPLETELY UNCONSCIOUS."

I don't say a word.

"DID SOMEONE USE MAGIC ON YOU? IS YOUR SOUL OKAY?"

I flinch at the mentioning of my soul and refuse any further interaction.

"LYNSIE...?"

I refuse to look at him. He sighs.

"IF IT MEANS ANYTHING, DUE TO TIME CRUNCHING, THE THIRD ACT WAS CANCELED. BETWEEN YOUR STALLING FROM HEIGHTS, ALL THESE RANDOM FIGHT ENCOUNTERS, AND EVENTS OF THE FIRST AND SECOND ACT...CHANGES IN THE PROGRAM HAVE BEEN MADE. HEH...ORIGINALLY, THE THIRD ACT WAS GOING TO HAVE YOU DEFUSE A SERIES OF BOMBS PLACED AROUND THE AREA WITHIN A TIME LIMIT. YET EVEN I THOUGHT THAT WAS UNFAIR. THAT AND THE SCRIPT FOR IT WAS JUST AWFUL. NO WAY AM I DISGRACING MYSELF WITH SUCH A POORLY DIRECTED SHOW."

I guess that is some good news. It's probably why he had those guards posted there to stall me.

"BUT...I DO HAVE SOME BAD NEWS."

This gets me to look at him.

"FROM HERE, IN THE NEXT ROOM YOU WILL FIND A SEEMINGLY CHARMING SPIDER NAMED MUFFET. SHE'S A CUNT."

Well, that escalated quickly.

"SHE'S THE LEADER OF THE SPIDERS IN THE UNDERGROUND AND RUNS A SUPPOSED BAKERY. IT'S A FRONT. SHE'S AN EXTORSHINISH. SHE'LL SAY AND DO ANYTHING IF IT MEANS SHE'LL GET GOLD. CLAIMS THE MONEY IS NEEDED TO SAVE THE SPIDERS IN THE RUINS OR SOMETHING STUPID LIKE THAT."

"It sounds like you don't like her very much."

"NO, NOT REALLY. I COULD CARE LESS WHAT SHE DOES. THE THING THAT PISSES ME OFF IS THAT SHE PREYS ON MY WORKERS, KILLS THE ONES THAT CAN'T PAY HER OUTRAGEOUS FEES, AND, WORST OF ALL, SHE REFUSED TO DEAL WITH ME!"

I tilt my head.

"I HAVE TRIED TIME AND TIME AGAIN TO GET HER TO SELL FOOD UNDER MY BRAND. BUT SHE SAYS MY NAME WOULD ACTUALLY MAKE HER LOSE GOLD. SERIOUSLY? THE AUDACITY OF THAT BITCH. I PRACTICALLY OWN HOTLAND AND SHE HAS THE NERVE TO UTTER SUCH SHIT!"

His screen flashes for a moment before he calms down.

"YET DESPITE THAT...KNOWING YOU AND HOW YOU HANDLE DIFFICULT MONSTERS, I'M CONFIDENT YOU CAN GET BY HER WITH LITTLE ISSUE."

"...You have that much faith in me?"

He spins on his wheel.

"WOULD YOU TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED IF I SAY I DO?"

My dower expression answers him for me.

"WELL, IT WAS WORTH A TRY."

His wheel retracts to fly.

"WE WILL MEET AGAIN FOR THE FOURTH ACT...PROVIDED YOU SURVIVE THE SPIDERS. YOU'RE NOT AFRAID OF SPIDERS, ARE YOU?"

"I was when I was a kid. I got over it."

"GOOD. YOU SHOULD BE FINE THEN."

He comes over and, to my surprise, gives me a small embrace.

"I BELIEVE IN YOU, LYNSIE."

My throat tightens, I couldn't speak even if I wanted to. He takes off and I wait for when he's out of sight to breakdown.

[SNOWDIN: Skeleton House in present time]

The "We Are Experiencing Technical Difficulties" screen cuts away. The human has been located. She appears to be on a different level and is a wreck. Down on her hands and knees, sobbing intangible pleas. Something has happened and it wasn't good.

Toriel gasps softly.

"tori? what's wrong?"

She covers her mouth and points. Sans sees it now. Papyrus even spies it before Grillby. The hands. The harsh imprints darkening the snow colored skin.

"Those marks...They would sometimes appear in her sleep. Why are they there now?"

Grillby shoots a look at Sans and he decides to get his buddy off his back.

"she had those marks while with us too. but if you look closely, these marks are different. there's no hole in the palm. plus...there are two sets."

"HMMM...AN AMBUSH PERHAPS? BUT WHAT KIND OF MAGIC CAN ALLOW FOR SUCH A SNEAK ATTACK AND THEN VANISH ELSEWHERE?"

Grillby continues to leer at Sans.

"what?"

"Sounds like teleporting to me. Anyone you know can do that?"

Sans glares.

"no. only i can teleport."

"Are you sure?"

"yeah. i'm sure. knock it off."

Papyrus cocks his brow. This might require his attention if things escalate.

"I'll knock it off when you come clean."

"i ain't hiding shit."

"Bullshit. You've been holding back so much that even your brother doesn't know just how much you do. If you don't know, then you don't know, but if one thing we've figured about you tonight...It's that you hide what you know all the damn time. So you've got to give us something better if you want us to believe you."

Sans balls his fist.

"us? or you? don't start connecting dots to points that don't exist because you want answers that no one can give to make yourself feel better."

"Then tell me who it was that hurt her before. Maybe they know who did it this time."

That line. That line got heads to turn.

"Sans? You know who has been harming my child?"

It's times like these Sans wished he was able to RESET.

"no, i don't."

"That's not what you told me."

"i only said what i did to get you off my back. ya were all upset about the marks and..."

"Of course I was upset about the marks! What guy wouldn't?!"

Papyrus snarkily lifts a finger, admitting his lack of concern but not wanting to get involved in this.

"maybe instead of pointing fingers, you should question why she didn't tell ya about'em herself. because if she doesn't even tell her mom about shit like this, what makes ya think she tells me?"

Grillby had to pause at that.

"Is it that one of them hurt you?"

"What?"

"You're ignoring them, but that doesn't make them invisible to anyone else. Did they do this? Papyrus I can believe, but I have doubts on Sans. But if they did this to you..."

"They didn't. This is a whole different issue."

"Don't defend your abuser."

"I'm not defending shit. It's my problem, I can deal with it. Don't make this a big deal."

"It is a big deal!"

"*wince* You're hurting me."

"..."

"Like I said...That's a different issue that I will deal with. Not you. Are we clear?"

"Y-Yes."

Maybe Sans had a point. Knowing how others would react keeps one from talking about such things, especially when it's not a reaction that is easily dealt with. Toriel and Grillby have proven to overreact when it comes to the human. She probably thought it best to keep such pain to herself to avoid added damage. But still...Something didn't sit right with Grillby. Sans knew something. What it was he knew not.

"IF YOU'RE DONE WITH YOUR POINTLESS BICKERING, THE HUMAN IS ON THE MOVE NOW."

Attention once more fell back to the television.

[HOTLAND: LEVEL 3]

My body aches. The crying did little to ease me. Sure I vented, that's always good. But I don't feel any better for doing so. My arms stings. My soul throbs in agony. My every nerve demands relief that will never seem to come. I look at the bruises. I can still feel their hold. I don't know how long it happened for or how long after till I was found, yet I can still feel their filthy hands. It's too much. Make it stop!

I take my gloves off and dig my nails across the full stretch of my arms. I don't care about bleeding. I just want to stop feeling their hands. The strange energy begins to crackle around me as it did once before.

[HP ��███████████████████ 20/40]

It...It finally went away. That's good. Now if only the memory could be removed. Can't claw my brain unfortunately. Oh well. Perhaps I'll find something to bash my head against. Won't that be fun?

I take my leave. Flesh under my now gloved nails and blood trickling down my arms, making a trail behind me.

A few short steps have me in a more inhabited spot. The monsters here give me strange looks. Maybe it's because of the self-mutilation. Or maybe it was spine chilling wailing. Or both. Or random other shit. Either way, I keep to myself and press onward.

"Oh, yoohoo, human~..."

Ah, fuck my life with a thirty-nine and a half foot pole!

"You look like you can use some healing items. Come, I don't bite...well...maybe ONE little nibble~."

...Why do I attract the kinky weirdos?!

This is the spider-lady Mettaton was talking about. She has periwinkle or lavender skin, five eyes, six arms, and two legs. She wears red rompers with yellow buttons in the front, a red ribbon across her chest, as well as large wild twin pigtails in her black hair tied by red bows. She is also holding two teacups with her top pair of hands and two teapots with her middle pair, her bottom pair of hands hide under her little table.

"Welcome to our parlor, dearie~. Interested in some spider pastries? All proceeds go to real spiders~. Check out the webs to make a purchase~."

I'm so not in the mood for this.

"Ms. Spider..."

"No need for formalities, dearie~. Call me Muffet."

"Muffet...I'm gonna be nice yet blunt. So I apologize in advance if I tick you off at any point because that's not my intent. *shaky inhale* I have been battered, beaten, abducted, blasted, and brought near death more than usual today. And normally, I'd roll with it and let you do this 'thing' it is you're gonna do...But not now."

She opens her mouth to speak and I slam my hands on the tabletop.

"I have just spent an ungodly amount of time trapped in that elevator over there having my soul violated by people that don't even exist anymore on this plane of reality. I have clawed my skin off to stop feeling their hands on me. So, please...Not now."

I can feel that energy get stronger. The odd display bugs her yet she continues.

"My, how dreadful. That's a terrible tale you tell, human. And such a silly one to explain your disappearing act."

My eye twitches. Does she...Does she think I made that up?

"That Mettaton is certainly putting more effort into his effects for this show. It's about time too. That metal moron can't act to save his batteries."

I want to hit her.

"Anyway...Can I interest you in some of my 100% all-natural treats? Food made by spiders, for spiders, of spiders!"

...Wait a second?

"Of spiders? So...You're killing your own kind...for pastries?"

She simply smiles innocently.

"...Are they at least dead or dying ones?"

Her giggle is not reassuring.

"Go on, dearie~. Have a nice donut and wash it down with some cider. You'll heal faster than ever before. And all for the low low price of 9999G...each."

My nerves are shot. Were they always called donuts and not doughnuts? What the fuck?!

"Lady, that is the biggest crock of shit I have ever had the misfortune to step in."

All of her eyes glare at me.

"Beg your pardon?"

"This same 'bake sale' is being done by the spiders in the Ruins. Do you wanna know what the prices are there? Donuts are 7G and Ciders are 18G. Where the hell do you get off charging that much for food that works on cannibalism?"

I point at her in judgment.

"You're sick, lady! This is fucked up."

She hisses at me.

"Seems humans are awfully stingy with money. Don't know a good deal when it's in their face."

I look at her cockeyed.

"Stingy with money? Bitch, did you not hear the words coming out of my mouth?!"

She laughs in my face.

"Ahuhuhuhu...You think your taste is too refined for our pastries, don't you, deary?"

"...Sure. Whatever. You're not listening anyway."

"Ahuhuhu...I disagree with that notion. I think your taste...Is exactly what this next batch needs!"

She stares at me creepily and licks her lips.

"Oh hell nah!"

I flip the table on her and run. She's not happy.

"Get back here!"

"Fuck you!"

I look back to see if she's following and crash into a guy.

"Hey, watch where you're going."

"Sorry. I was just..."

My blood runs cold seeing the monster I've bumped. This guy...This guy is a dead ringer for the creepy gray dude with the face in his hand. The only difference being he's in color.

"*scoff* Weirdo."

He walks to where Muffet is but I can't move. My heart begins pounding. Flashes of memory play before my eyes. I can't breathe fast enough. Gaster, for all the shit he does, isn't as bad as the Followers.

MAKE IT STOP! M̴A͝KÉ IT͜ S͢T͡O͜P!!͘ MA̡̛͜K̶͢E͝ ̢I̡͝T̡҉̧ ́͠S̷͡T͝OP̵!!̛͏! M̢̡A̸̧̛͞͝K̢̨҉É̶̡̢͏ ͜͝͡I̸̧̨̕T̴ ̶̕͞S͜͢T̵͡Ǫ͝҉҉҉P̨̛͞!̶!̕͘͟!̷̨͟͝͡!̕͟

[WARNING]

[SOUL destabilization detected]

[HEARTBREAK immanent]

W͏ai̕t̸.̀.̢.̸Wha̧t doe̴s̛ t̨ha͝t ̨meàn̶?͡

[HEARTBREAK is the condition in which the SOUL will damage itself due to instability or loss of HOPE]

[There are three levels of the HEARTBREAK condition]

[Level ONE: the SOUL forms a crack, it starts small which can be healed easily]

[Level TWO: the crack on the SOUL spreads, damage taken is increased and needs intensive care to be repaired]

[Level THREE: the SOUL shatters and death accrues]

...Serious?

[Current status: PENDING HEARTBREAK]

[PENDING HEARTBREAK: the SOUL weakens and its color dulls]

[Most MONSTERS in the UNDERGROUND have this state due to a loss of HOPE which is the main trait in MONSTER SOULS]

So...I can die from my soul hurting itself because of my inability to cope with the shit that happened?

[Correct]

...Fuck. Well...I should make a last will. Because I'm gonna die.

*STATIC* DARLING? ARE YOU OKAY? YOU NEED TO KEEP MOVING.

Mettaton's voice in my ear causes the shackles of trauma to release me...for now.

I slap myself. Gotta focus. Do this and get to go home. Concentrate. Don't fuck up! The energy around me slowly dissipates.

"Human!"

Looking back I see Muffet coming at me.

"Someone's stealing from the register!"

Her concern for money outweighs her need to kill me and I use this to escape. Much to my annoyance, this part of the path ends with more of those damn vents and they of course split off into three ways, one being a big as hell closed door.

"...I fucking hate Hotland."

I sigh. Taking in the vent platforms and noting that the gap between them is the smallest size ever. No need to run, jump, or use them. I merely walk onto the next platform and can do so for all of them. I choose to take the right side first. Why not? Not like it makes a difference. It leads me to a conveyor belt that has three blue lasers. I ride it to the end without harm. I guess Metta's budget for puzzles is running low if this is what I have to deal with. This leads me to a familiar room with, what a surprise, the same shooting puzzle from the last time I had to unlock a big fucking door.

"Now this is just lazy."

I look for the instructions.

(Shoot the opposing ship!)

(You have just one shot.)

Well...Maybe that's something.

This puzzle has the blocks in a four by five state. Eleven blocks are solid and four can be moved around. The four moving blocks move all at once like they're connected. The open spaces are pretty fair if I have to give it some credit. I move to the right, up, right, down twice, right twice, down, left, down, and finally end it by firing through the clear path.

(CONGRATULATIONS!)

"Don't tell me it's the same on the other side."

I head out and take the other conveyor belt back to the vents, passing a random cactus in the process. I swear if this shit keeps up I'm going to lose my mind. No! No...I need to calm down and relax. I don't need the stress. My soul is in rough shape as is. Now it's at risk of damage without my conscious input. I wish I had my music. That would really help. Maybe a little Green Day or Linkin Park. Oh! My Chemical Romance!

*BONK*

It would seem I didn't pay attention and walked into the puzzle room, kicking the machine by accident.

(Shoot the opposing ship!)

(You have just one shot.)

"God dingle damn it bull honkery."

I hate copy & paste design. The board is larger, five by five. Ten solid blocks and six movable ones, everything else is empty space. Right, up, right, down twice, right, right/up, up/right, up twice, right, up, and fire.

(CONGRATULATIONS!)

"...I'm so sick of this crap it ain't even funny."

I shove my hands in my pockets and leave...only to see two diamond-headed monsters just hanging out, one light-purple and the other a super light-green. Did I really walk by them?

"I've been thinking about getting a sick skateboard."

"Really? That's cool I guess. ...So...What's your fave Mettaton Moment(TM)?"

"My fave Mettaton Moment(TM)? Right when everything looks the baddest, he poses dramatically. Like when he's on a cooking show and the eggs don't turn out right. But! Then he says...Even if you suck at cooking, you can always buy an MTT-brand Glamburger! Then he eats one! Everyone loves it!"

"...How does he eat it without a mouth?"

"Uhhh...well...Watch the show!"

"Well, my fave Mettaton Moment(TM) is when he beats up the heel-turning villains! Even if it's during what's supposed to be a quiz show. Oh! And I like when he tries on all kinds of different fashionable outfits! Even if it's during what's supposed to be a newscast."

I wonder if I can get a chuckle out of these two.

"Sounds like you two really know your stuff about Mettaton."

They turn to look at me, they look like teenagers based on their clothes.

"Totally."

"No one's a bigger fan than us."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah! He's currently broadcasting live. And with a Human! We can finally get to the surface!"

"On the surface, we'll be able to watch all kinds of TV...But, I bet none of those shows are as good as Mettaton's!"

"You don't say. Then...Could you describe this human? I don't want to miss seeing it."

The green one goes for his phone.

"Let me see if it's back on and we'll show you. Some crazy stuff happened and the feed cut off a bit ago."

I smile and wait for it. I can't read their faces, but it's very clear when the green one goes to his buddy and shows him the screen. Looks are shot at me. I merely give a friendly wave.

"Dude..."

"We're on TV!"

At least someone's happy about it.

"Wait...Then that means..."

"You're the human?"

I shrug.

"What...What happened to you?"

"You're like all messed up and junk."

I shrug again.

"You know...Messed up crud. Being human ain't all that and or fun. But don't worry about it. Just enjoy the show. Metta's doing his best to make it epic as hell."

I walk past them.

"Oh! Before I go...Don't copy any of the stuff aired at home. You'd probably get in trouble if you blast people for getting trivia wrong or use chainsaws while cooking."

I give a thumbs-up as I go. Vaguely hoping to look badass. With the door open it shouldn't be long till all this nonsense is over and I can go home. I wonder though...Can Flowey get up here? The floor is artificial, so I don't know if he can traverse it. I hope he's okay. Poor fella's probably losing his mind wondering where I went. Then again, he's a clever cookie and knows his way around the Underground better than anyone.

[The smell of cobwebs fills the air...]

Huh?

*sniff*

"What smells like freshly baked tarantulas?"

...Oh shit.

The room past the door is littered with webbing and spiders are dangling from the ceiling.

"...Fuck my life."

Smelling a trap I attempt to get through this room as fast as I can. But the webbing on the floor accumulates on my shoes and eventually, I'm unable to take a step. Struggling only made things worse.

"Ahuhuhuhu..."

Damn it! Damn it all to hell!!

"Did you hear what they just said? They said a human in tacky clothes will come through."

"Well, fuck you too."

"I heard that they hate spiders."

"What?!"

"I heard that they love to stomp on them."

"That is a bald-faced lie!"

"I heard that they like to tear their legs off."

"Slander! The levels of bullshit in here are off the charts!"

"I heard..."

Muffet comes down like a Charlotte's Web reject onto a large web. Smaller spiders dangle beside her and block the path ahead as well as behind me.

"...that they're incredibly stingy with their money. Ahuhuhuhu."

My fucks are all gone.

"You're mom was a hoe and ate your dad."

Her face blanks before burning with rage.

"You're fucking dead meat!"

[SPIDER DANCE begins to play in the background.]

My dull yellow soul comes out.

[Muffet traps you!]

"Oh, like this is fair. I can't move and you bring out a freaking gang. I mean, what are the damn rule anymore?!"

"Oh don't look so blue, my deary~."

She spins silk to entangle my soul then bites the end of a strand, her magic venom flows down the strand and coats the heart. Forcibly changing the trait and color.

"...I think purple is a better look on you! Ahuhuhu~."

This feels so wrong.

"Why is everyone messing with my soul today?!"

Her spider underlings draw webbing in strings in horizontal lines. These lines are also infused with the purple magic and attract my soul.

[You're trapped in a strange purple web!]

"Here's the deal, dearie~...A spider will appear to the right between each turn, holding a sign that presents the density and type of attack that will come after your turn. Now while you can't move, your pretty little soul can, and you'll have to move it along or switch between the three strings to avoid attacks. There will only be three strings. No more, no less. How's that for fair~?"

I mull it over.

"...Not bad actually. Who goes first?"

"You. I want to see what you can do."

She's a smart one, I'll give her that. Let's see my options.

[FIGHT]

[ACT]

[̴͝SP͜͞E͡L̵͜L͟͠͏]͘͢

[ITEM]

[MERCY]

That button is giving me weird vibes the more I see it.

[ACT selected.]

[New options available.]

[CHECK]

[STRUGGLE]

[PAY 10G]

Pay? Fuck that! I earned this gold. Mine!

[CHECK selected.]

[MUFFET – HP: 1250 ATK: 38.8 DEF: 18.8 – If she invites you to her parlor, excuse yourself.]

And she's better in the stat department than the butterdragon.

A spider drops down and holds a sign...It's a picture of a spider. The hell does that mean?

"Why so pale? You should be proud~."

"With the amount of blood I've lost today it would make me look like a corpse. But be proud of what?"

"Why...Proud that you're going to make a delicious cake~! Ahuhuhu~!"

Spiders begin crawling across the threads. It's like a weird form of Frogger minus hopping to safety. It's a simple move and I come out of it fine.

[HP ██████████████████████████████████████████ 40/40]

Sweet, my HP is full. I love this nasty apron!

[All the spiders clap along to the music.]

It is a catchy tune, no lie. But I need to get out of this. It's not like all of me is unable to move.

[ACT selected.]

[STRUGGLE selected.]

[You struggle to escape the web. Muffet covers her mouth and giggles at you.]

...Bitch.

A spider drops down and holds a sign...It's a picture of a spider. Okay, I know what that means now.

"Look at you. Trying to break free. It's so cute~."

"Would it help if I asked nicely? Please let me go?"

"Let you go? Don't be silly~. Your SOUL is going to make every spider very happy~~!"

Spiders cross the lines and it oddly seems like there was less this time. Making it easier.

[HP ██████████████████████████████████████████ 40/40]

[Muffet does a synchronized dance with the other spiders.]

"You know...Someone warned us about you...Offered us a LOT of money for your SOUL."

This gets my attention.

"What?"

"Oh yes~. They had such a sweet smile~ and...Ahuhuhu~. It's strange, but I swore I saw them in the shadows...Changing shape...?"

The hell? Wait...She can't mean one of the Followers...Can she? Stop it! Don't think about them! Don't!

"Oh well. It's not like it matters anyway. Your move, dearie~."

[STRUGGLE selected.]

[You struggle to escape the web. Muffet laughs and claps her hands.]

"Still trying, huh? Still thing. Don't you know spider silk is five times stronger than steel?"

I can not get a break today.

A spider drops down and holds a sign...It's a picture of two spiders. What?

Double the spiders come on the strings at the same time. It's somehow a new move yet works too similar to the normal attack to be tricky. I dodge it fairly well.

[HP ██████████████████████████████████████████ 40/40]

[Muffet pours herself a cup of spiders.]

...I didn't need to see that. No one needs to see a large spider drink smaller spiders like they were tea.

"*sip* With the money from you SOUL, the spider clans can finally be reunited~."

I tilt my head.

"What do you mean?"

"You haven't heard? Spiders have been trapped in the RUINS for generations!"

Obvious thing is obvious.

"Can't they, you know, squeeze out through the door?"

"*scoff* Even if they go under the door, Snowdin's fatal cold is impassable alone."

It is pretty cold there. Then they'd have to travel through two zones to get here. Damn, that sucks.

"But with the money from your SOUL, we'll be able to rent them a heated limo~. And with all of the leftovers...? We could have a nice vacation~! Or even build a spider baseball field~!"

What little sympathy I was gaining dies at that.

"Now you're just spending to show off."

"But enough of that...It's time for dinner, isn't it? Ahuhuhu~."

*Growls*

I look around and see nothing. I don't like this.

[STRUGGLE selected.]

[You struggle to escape the web. Nothing happened.]

"Don't struggle too much. You'll make yourself all sweaty. No one wants a sweaty donut."

A spider drops down and holds a sign...It's a picture of a spider and a donut?

The spiders come crawling faster than before even if their numbers aren't as much, then they are followed by random donuts being thrown by the spiders blocking the pathways. This almost had me. Came close, but no cigar.

[HP ██████████████████████████████████████████ 40/40]

I'm proud of my dodging skills. I've come a long way.

[Muffet tidies up the web around you.]

If you don't like crumbs, don't throw food. It's very simple.

*Growls*

There's that sound again. I really don't like it. Muffet does though.

"You look concerned."

"Are you saying you don't hear the growling?"

She giggles.

"Oh, how rude of me! I almost forgot to introduce you to my pet~."

I'm puzzled. What kind of pet does a spider have?

"Oh, my pet~...Looks like it's time for dessert~."

I can hear rapid heavy skittering. Not good! Not good!

[STRUGGLE selected.]

[You struggle to escape the web. Muffet is so amused by your antics that she gives you a discount!]

"Tell you what...If you survive my pet, I just might consider sparing you."

"R-Really? That might actually be the f...Holy fucking shit!!"

*Roar*

An abomination appears. A hideous cupcake spider thing emerges from the webs.

"What the fuck is that thing?!"

"This is my pet. Have fun, you two~."

A spider drops down and holds a sign...It's a picture of a cupcake. I don't like this at all!

So many spiders speed by in an unchanging pattern of fear and with good reason. The freaky food beast climbs down and begins eating the strings, pulling my soul towards its hungry maw. This causes spiders that were already on their way to fall prey to this creature as I desperately do my best to not get hit or be dragged to what I assume is instant death. But I'm too panicked to be perfect in my dodging.

[HP ████ 4/40]

Six...I took six hits. I'm gonna die.

[Your soul can't take much more of this.]

No? Really?! Like I couldn't fucking tell!

"You're still alive? Ahuhuhu~...That's impressive~."

She calls her pet to her side.

"Got way too worked up...*gag* I think...*gag* I think I'm gonna puke. *hic*"

"...Please don't. Do you know how hard vomit is to clean out of webbing?"

I take a moment to settle down.

"*sigh* Don't lie...Spiders eat their webbing when it gets messed up."

She cringes.

"Yeah...I don't know everything about spiders. But I do know random gross stuff like that."

I shake off the impending dizziness.

"So...Are you going to spare me?"

She thinks for a moment.

"I will..."

Maybe there is a god?

"For the small fee of 500G~."

Nope. God's dead.

"Are you kidding me?! I'm fucking broke! "

I ain't telling her I have money.

"Then I guess we're going to be spending more quality time together, dearie~ I do hope you're feeling comfortable trapped in that web. Ahuhuhuhu~! Because I don't mind keeping you here for as long as it takes~!"

Damn it. I don't have time for this crap. Wait a second...Time? Heh...This gives me an idea.

"Say, Muffet...Who's watching your bake sale stand while you're here?"

She folds her upper arms.

"A loyal family member. Why do you ask?"

I chuckle softly.

"Oh, no reason. Just checking."

Her eyes cock.

"Checking?"

"Well, we've been here a long time. At least, you have because you got here before me. And we're far from your stand too. It would be a real shame if someone took your 'donations' while this fight was happening."

She sneers.

"Dearie, you're not going to fool me again with that trick. No one would dare steal from me."

I smirk.

"That's the thing...It's not YOU they'd stealing from now is it? It's some other weaker spider."

Her expression gains some worry.

"Even if that spider is loyal, can you honestly say it can defend the money if, let's say, a group stormed the table?"

Concern crosses her face and her pet nudges her as it picks up the vibes.

"Then...Then I'll kill you quickly and return before some fool even tries!"

I shake my head at her.

"Yeah, that would be a thing you could do. But...You can't."

"Wha...What do you mean I can't? You have four HP left! One more hit and your SOUL is mine!"

I put my hands in my pockets and rock on my heels.

"True. So very true. Yet...It's not your turn."

Her eyes widen, finally picking up on my little plan.

"Here's the thing...I've been in enough fights to understand how they work. It all functions on a turn-based system. It's a very fair means of doing combat. No one can attack at random, only when it's their turn. Heh...But the kicker is, and I think you know where I'm going with this...There's no time limit on turns. So if I want to...as long as I don't do anything...my turn will never end. And we'll be stuck here, locked like this...forever!"

Now it's her turn to feel panic.

"You're bluffing."

I grin.

"How much are you willing to bet on that? Because I wager your clan won't take losing all their hard-earned gold due to your negligence very well. They may think a new leader is needed if that happens."

I yawn and stretch to get cozy, showing I'm more than willing to stay put. She twitches with nervousness.

"So tell us, Muffet...What's it gonna be?"

Based on my understanding of Muffet, she's a greedy, stingy, intimidating, malicious, and somehow hypocritical monster, although having a courteous and sweet way of speaking. She won't stay. The odds don't favor her.

Her pet looks at her, the spiders turn to her, the pressure is almost visible as it smothers her. She balls her six fists and stomps her foot in a fit.

"Fine! I'll SPARE you!"

"For free?"

She grinds her teeth.

"Yes, for free! Just quit stalling and confirm it!"

[Muffet is sparing you and refuses your money.]

I can be super evil when I have the chance.

[MERCY selected.]

[SPARE selected.]

[YOU WON!]

[You earned 0 XP and 0 gold.]

The webbing around my soul dissolves. As does the stuff around my feet. My soul turns a dull orange and returns to my body.

"There, you're free. Now get lost!"

"I'm glad we could have such a fun time together, dear."

She snarls and hops onto her pet.

"Next time, you won't get away so easily."

"And maybe next time you'll be paying me for my amazing entertainment skills."

I think channeled Mettaton for a moment. She bites back some harsh unladylike remarks and rides off. I look at the spiders that block my way out.

"Move...please."

They're hesitant but do so.

"Thank you."

I take a few steps but stop near them, pulling out a small handful of gold.

"I don't know if what she said was true, but...here."

I put the gold on the ground and take my leave, pulling a bottle of cider from my inventory to heal.

"Consider it an addition to the amount I've already paid in the Ruins."

The spiders are confused but I hear them take the gold. I can be evil, yes. But it's not true to my nature. I drink the whole bottle as I enter a new, hopefully lacking in spiders, area.

[HP ████████████████████████████ 28/40]

Not bad. I'll fully heal up soon. This new area appears to have the same material as the Ruins. I'm getting homesick. I miss Toriel. I miss Flowey. I miss my bed. I want to go home.

My melancholy blinds me to my current surroundings. I only come out of it once a spotlight hits me.

"The hell...?"

Things look funny. No doubt it's a setup by Mettaton. But I'm unsure what this act is. I mean, it looks like a receptionist's waiting room. A desk and some random chairs.

"GOOD EVENING, LADIES AND GENTS...!"

Mettaton zips in wearing a red suit and shoves me in a chair as he takes center stage.

"FIRST AND FOREMOST, WE HERE AT MTTTV WOULD LIKE TO APOLOGIZE FOR THE LACK OF ME OVER THE COURSE OF THE PROGRAM. DUE TO THE LACK PREP WORK WITH MY COSTAR HERE, WE SADLY HAD TO FORGO A THRILLING ACT BACK IN LEVEL TWO INVOLVING HUNDREDS OF EXPLOSIVES!!"

I so freaking called it. I should let him have his moment...Nah!

"I thought you said that act was shit anyway?"

He extends an arm to cover my mouth.

"FORGIVE HER. SHE'S LOST A LOT OF BLOOD AND NOT ALL THERE MENTALLY."

I leer at him flatly.

"BUT...DARLING HERE IS GOING TO MAKE AMENDS WITH US ALL RIGHT NOW. IT'S TIME TO ANSWER SOME BURNING QUESTIONS."

I'm so confused as he lets go and leaps onto the desk, posing dramatically.

"IT'S TIME FOR..."

A large neon sign shaped like him drops from the ceiling.

"BURNING THE MIDNIGHT OIL WITH A KILLER ROBOT! THE LATE NIGHT TALK SHOW HOSTED BY YOURS TRULY."

Huh. Not a bad title.

"I thought you were working on a courtroom trial program?"

He scoots to now sit behind the desk.

"UNFORTUNATELY, WHILE I DO HAVE THE FUNDS, I DON'T HAVE AVAILABLE WORKERS TO MAKE SUCH A SET. SO...WE'RE DOING THIS INSTEAD."

"Heh...Must be hard to meet your expectations."

"DARLING, YOU HAVE NO IDEA."

A tense dramatic score plays.

"SO, DARLING...ARE YOU READY TO TELL ME EVERYTHING?"

Ah. I see now. Fine, Metta, have it your way. Just be careful what you wish for. You may not like it. Now don't get me wrong. I know my limits. I'm not about to tell him EVERYTHING. I'm not that stupid. But if he wants truth, he's going to get a version that's missing some characters and other junk.

"As you wish. You wanna know the truth? You want to scar the entire Underground? Sure. Why not. What else do I have to lose at this point since you exposed me? So congratulations! I hope you like the prize you've been longing to get. Because I sure as hell don't."

Let the show commence.

#undertale #underfell #Lynsie #Anomaly #sans #papyrus #gaster #grillby #grandpa semi #mettaton #napstablook #toriel #Asriel #flowey #asgore #chara #frisk #undyne #alphys

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magnolia-penn · 5 years ago

Text

Future Vision Chapter 2

DIO? God?

Oop- sorry this took so long. It took me forever to write and I had no motivation to type it all from my notebook.

Also, brownie points to whoever finds the Avatar: The Last Airbender reference.

Warnings: Swearing (so much swearing), Spoilers (sorta), mention of death (no one important) lemme know if I missed anything

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"31 years!" Polnareff shouted in disbelief.

"Apparently." You shrugged, already over it.

The men were flabbergasted about your current predicament. Stands were a fairly new concept and to think that there was a Stand strong enough to pull you from the future, breaking all sorts of time and space laws? You'd have to be crazy!

Yet… There you were, completely adapted to the strange situation. You were thrown almost double the amount of years you existed and all it took was a quick scream session behind a sand dune for you to calm down?

"You seem so startled. Stands have crazy abilities. My friend, Magnolia, works alongside a mafia boss with the ability to create infinite life and make it so you can never truly reach death!" You pumped your fist in the air in excitement. "Time travel doesn't seem that far out. My Stand isn't too terribly special, especially compared to some of the other Stands I've seen, but it's pretty cool."

The group's confusion settled deeper as you went on a tangent about future Stands that your friend has described from her time working at the Speedwagon Foundation. You used words that didn't make sense, phrases they didn't understand, but your growing excitement caused them to nod along with you.

"OH! And Stands can be upgraded! Although we do-" You cut yourself off suddenly, eyes zoned out.

You didn't say anything, just stared into the endless expanse of sand and heat. It was Kakyoin who spoke up first.

"Y/n? Are you alright?"

You snapped out of your trance with a start. "I FORGOT TO FEED MY FISH SHIT SEND ME BACK!"

Your sudden outburst sent Polnareff jumping back into Mr. Joestar, your attention dragged to him as his face dropped from confusion to somber defeat.

You picked up on the nervous weight shifts and glances away. You tried to look back at the man who brought you here, only for Mr. Joestar to clear his throat, bringing the attention back to him. He fumbled with his words a bit, trying to justify the shift in attention, but he ultimately failed.

"Oh ho no, I see what's going on," You said after Mr. Joestar gave up on trying to explain. "This fuck-" a pointed finger towards the corpse behind you, "was my only ticket back to the future?"

"Well no. Technic-" You cut the older man off.

"'Uh well no'," you mocked. "Lemme guess, he would've been the easiest way?"

"Now, Miss Y/n, there is no need to be so aggressive. I'm sure we can figure everything out. Our enemy, DIO, has a lackey-"

You cut Avdol off as well.

"DIO? God? In Italian? What kind of narcissist names their kid 'God' in Italian?"

You gave a snort before falling into a fit of mocking laughter. Your humor was short lived, though, as Jotaro finally spoke up. Or shouted I guess.

"Can you shut up? Good grief, all you do is yap! God, all you women are the same."

You stopped your laughter to stare at the teen clad in black, sizing him up. It was a tense couple of minutes, an unstoppable force and an unmovable object locked in a stubborn standoff.

After a bit, you let out a chuckle and let your head fall back to face the sky. You watched the clouds for a second before sighing.

"You know, Joots," You catch him visibly tense from the nickname. "I see why you become a marine biologist in the future. The ocean is powerful and terrifying. It's been like that from the beginning. My friend often describes me like the ocean, although, unlike the tides, who have decided to kill you millions of years ago," You bring your hand up near your face before clenching it into a fist, shimmering from the effects of your Stand. "I still haven't made up my mind."

Jotaro's face turns sour in fear for a split second before returning to the default steely glare. You watched in amusement as his Stand began to manifest, but the hesitation you saw in the purple being's eyes told you all you needed to know.

Jotaro was, at the very least, cautious of you.

But also curious.

You managed to make full contact with Hierophant Green, something no one can do unless a Stand is initiating the contact. Kakyoin also couldn't see you, so how could it've climbed up you? Stand don't act on their own violations.

You also mentioned the future Jotaro. He becomes a marine biologist? And one famous enough to be known by teenagers? Jotaro can't even name a famous marine biologist.

He figured killing you know would be disastrous, there was still much to learn from you. Maybe you held knowledge that once came with hindsight.

"Nice to see we're in agreement." Jotaro gruffed out, allowing Star Platinum to fully dissipate.

A small smile graced your features as you extended the same hand you threatened him with.

"Well then, a truce. Until we decide to kill each other."

Jotaro nodded and took your hand, allowing a handshake to secure your mortalities.

For now.

"MON DIEU! I THOUGHT SHE WAS DEAD!" Polnareff wailed suddenly, startling the group.

Tension rolled off all of you as Avdol let out a sigh of relief. "I am quite surprised you are alive as well. Not many people can insult Jotaro and walk away intact, Y/n."

You chuckled and waved off the man's concern. "I may only have six brain cells, but I'm not stupid. He wouldn't do shit. Not without knowing what I can do."

"Is that so?" Jotaro let a small smirk slip out. It's hard not to grin when you were acting stupid.

You nodded and hummed in agreement. "I like to think I'm good at reading people."

Jotaro only scoffed and rolled his eyes, although there was an inset glimmer of amusement deep with those cerulean orbs.

"So what exactly does your Stand do?" Mr. Joestar asked the elephant in the room.

"Hmm? Oh, my Stand. Okay, so, here's the thing. My Stand is actually really weak." You confessed.

"My Stand, Chemical Romance, is only really good for getting info from people. I'm often called in to the Speedwagon Foundation to help with interrogations. My Stand allows me to talk to and understand other Stands. All those unintelligible noises your Stand makes are actually your soul trying to communicate, and Chem translates them for me. Even silent Stands or Stands with no humanoid form." You glanced at Mr. Joestar. "I can also touch and interact with them, like I did for Hierophant Green. Also, and we think this might just be a radius effect, but Stands become more sentient around me. They think for themselves."

And….. just like that you lost them. It's hard to understand such complex Stands when all they know is Many Punch, Tasteful Nudes, French Sword, Fire Bird, and Shiny Rock.

"So… You can't actually follow through with your previous threats?" Kakyoin asked cautiously.

"Excuse you! Just who in the hell do you think you are? I am a whole ass person shaped can of whoop ass and no weak ass Stand or Death Parade wannabe looking ass is going to beat me!" You pumped your fist in the air again.

"Whew- That's the sort of can-do attitude our team needs." Mr. Joestar chuckled. "Wait, that wouldn't be a bad idea!"

"Oh ho? Does the great Joseph Joestar have an idea? Careful, Old Man, thinking can hurt ya." You joked.

"No no no no no hear me out. You need to get back to the future, we need to stop DIO from murdering everybody and taking over the world." Mr. Joestar explained. "We both have to get to Cairo for DIO! Join us! You and your Stand are really useful!"

Surprise crossed your face before slipping back to its usual cool façade.

"Nah, I was kind of digging the idea of shriveling up dead in the desert. Although~" you drawled. "I guess, if you're so desperate for my help. It would be immoral for me not to help you, you're so old, even thinking about fighting DIO is going to trigger a heart attack."

You snorted out a laugh and Mr. Joestar did chuckle a bit before you realized something.

"Sooo. Who exactly DIO? Other than some bitch who wants to take over the world."

As quickly as a light flicking out of existence, the once humorous and airy atmosphere of the group became tense and tragic. The utter rage, disgust, and hatred for this mysterious man was palpable. Even the fun and boisterous Jean-Pierre Polnareff extruded murderous intent.

"DIO is a very bad man." Avdol broke the silence, but found himself unable to say more.

"Thanks for the life lesson, Dad," you spit sarcastically. "No. Who is he and what might he have done to sound so familiar."

"DIO is a monster that was created by greed and a lust for power. He is a vampire who ruthlessly slaughtered those who took him in when he was orphaned at the age of twelve." Mr. Joestar explained grimly. "He rejected his humanity to become something monstrous and immortal, but even now, that wasn't enough for him."

"He's notorious throughout the Speedwagon Foundation, whose founder fought him a hundred years ago. I wouldn't doubt it if his story still circulated in your years, Y/n." Avdol completed.

"All of us are here now because of DIO. Polnareff and I were under his control because of a flesh bud, Advol was almost conned into the same situation, and Jotaro's mother, Joseph's daughter, is under attack by her own Stand because it was forcibly awoken by him." Kakyoin said, then shot you a soft smile. "And I guess you as well."

"Oh yeah! Eli did mention they were looking for a girl who could strengthen DIO's Stand, so I guess he is why you're here!" Polnareff's smile returned to his face at the prospect of making a new friend who was in the same boat as them.

"Y'know, think back on it, I do vaguely remember my friend mentioning your mom, Joots." That damned nickname again. "Stand Sickness is what we call it now. That might be where I know DIO from." You shrugged like it wasn't a big deal. "Anywho, now that that's settled, can we get out of the desert? I'm roasting to death."

"Oh! Of course! We have to get to the next town before nightfall anyways. To the car!" Mr. Joestar cheered.

You all piled into the three rowed vehicle. Jotaro and Polnareff sat in the way back, you and Kakyoin sat in the middle, with Mr. Joestar and Avdol occupying the front.

The road to the next town was filled with fill ins. They explained how they came together and how they defeated their foes that found them at every turn. You spoke of how the world has changed and advanced. You showed them your music and all the apps on your phone. You found that you were still connected to your home wifi at full strength, but you couldn't comment or post anything. All true contact to those in the future was cut off, but you could still consume media.

As the dust and corpse was left behind, you could feel the newly forged bonds between you and the men around you strengthen and grow, becoming more entangled and intertwined. And you felt happy about it.

#Future Vision #chapter 2 bitches!#its finally here #the exposition #my english teacher would be appalled #jojo kakyoin #kakyoin x reader #kakyoin #noriaki kakyoin #tenmei kakyoin

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age-of-shadows · 5 years ago

Text

yet another Avantasia theory by yours truly on how all the albums are connected

*ahem* OKAY, fellow avantasian brothers, sisters, siblings... We’re all reunited here in this post because I had a big brain moment about a couple of hours ago and somehow managed to connect all of the Avantasia albums as well as uncover what the actual Avantasia world is apart from Tobi’s definition of it.

This post is probably going to be really long and I already would like to apologise if there’s anything you don’t understand because I didn’t phrase it right (english ain’t my first language so... there might be a lot of mistakes), plus, I’m not Tobias so I can be completely wrong about this but HEY, THEORIES. I don’t even know if anyone’s even thought about this but I’ve literlaly never read about it and trust me, I’ve done a lot of Avantasia research in this year. And I’m aware it’s very, VERY hard to get the album plots right (man... I’ve spent months trying to figure out The Wicked Trilogy and Mystery of Time/Ghostlights, and even if I now think I have a clearer idea of what they’re about, whenever I listen to them I discover new things about them); but I do know reading other theories help people understand the lore and I hope this helps in some way.

Here we go: what is Avantasia? Apart from it obviously being the name of the project, Tobias describes it as a “world beyond human imagination”. At first, this definition is actually very clear and direct, isn’t it? Specially in The Metal Opera since all the story is well written down, and besides, the lyrics are clearer. Anyway, I have just finished reading the story from the booklets (I have to look up the one from part one because I only own part two for now... whoops) and I can do a summary of it:

"Many ways lead to Rome. Seven times one way for all that leads to a world beyond our inagination."

This is said in one of the seven books that is part of the seven books and seven seals. What are these seals and books even? Well, if you’re only able to listen to the music and don’t have access to the booklets like I did just now, you for sure have noticed the seals do have a big part in the plot. These seven seals were made to be able to enter the spiritual world in flesh and blood. And yes, you guessed it: the spiritual world is Avantasia. They were made by three magicians of the universe thousands of years ago because they knew mankind would be born and they would need this spiritual world for themselves to find peace, and they should also take care of it.

Now: the famous Avantasia Tower, what even is it? Well, some higher entity that can be concieved as a God, maybe not much of a good one, though, is sealed in this Tower. If the seven seals were brought to the Tower, Avantasia would be locked and this God would break free, bringing chaos to mankind. And what would happen if Avantasia is locked? Humans would lose this spiritual world, and when things get tough, they wouldn’t be able to turn anywhere to save themselves, and who knows if that would lead to their destruction.

So, Avantasia has to be kept alive and passed on to the newer generations.

Also, one is also able to reach Avantasia with their spirit only (this is what Gabriel does), but it’s dangerous since it’s as if their soul trascends and so their body is left in our flesh and blood world. Could this also mean that, if a soul dies in Avantasia, it will never return to its material body? Who knows? Definitely not me, but anyway! Let’s keep going!

Now that we know what Avantasia is, how is it connected to the other three stories if it’s never really mentioned at all? How could we know? Again, this is just a theory and I’m probably wrong.

Let’s go into The Wicked Trilogy then, which is probably the most abstract album and also the hardest to understand, maybe. I already talked about my headcanons about Scarecrow in a post, but I definitely think he’s got some sort of mental illness and that’s why he does the things he does. Anyway... the setting is kind of confusing, but to get a clear starting point: Roy Khan’s character is named Psychiatrist, and he’s the first one that appears in the album along with Scarecrow. There’s a theory going around that this story happens in a hospital, or maybe a psychiatric, so we can guess Scarecrow is hospitalised because of this illness. However... does the rest of the story happen in the hospital physically? This is when Avantasia comes in:

I don’t believe Scarecrow’s journey takes place in the hospital... but in Avantasia. Taking into account almost all of the characters are his own feelings or just parts of him (aka, Bob Catley being Conscience, Jorn Lande being Mephistopheles as a form of temptation...) except for Amanda Somerville’s character, who definitely exists in real life as Scarecrow’s real love interest; it makes a lot of sense. But, oh, how can that world be Avantasia if none of the elements described in The Metal Opera aren’t there? Well, I won’t write the conclusion just yet, but the Avantasia world in The Wicked Trilogy really looks like how we can perceive Scarecrow himself: empty, cold, fucked up... Can you see where this is going?

And now, getting into The Mystery of Time and Ghostlights, there is a very, VERY clear reference to the Avantasia world we see in The Metal Opera, in Savior in the Clockwork. Our protagonist Aaron Blackwell is working non stop in a mantlepiece clock whose hands don’t move for some reason, he overworks himself to the point he loses conscience... or as he says in the booklet notes, he loses the conscience “he had been used to”; in anyway, he passes out on the table. This is kind of similar to how Gabriel gets into Avantasia, isn’t it? Plus, the lyrics of this song are very, very interesting...

“Now am I half asleep or half unconscious, Half 'adream'? I can't move as I am stuck in bright lucidity I can feel and hear and see But I won't comprehend I see fire that I won't decipher I see giant evil tower to a blackened sky I feel blessed with evidence of what I can't define Swinging blade of the lowering perpendicular I see clarity I won't remember Do I dream Is it only fantasy and matter just a thought I see And time is all they need to seal away eternity”

“Giant evil tower”, “seal away eternity”... Yes, that is definitely Avantasia, a version that’s more close to the The Metal Opera’s Avantasia than the one in The Wicked Trilogy. Aaron accidentally gets into Avantasia... the real Avantasia... and this, my friends, is why the Scientists and Magician go to Aaron and ask him for help: they somehow know he has seen the real thing.

This mystery of time... it has something to do with Avantasia, this is why they’re keeping it as a secret, just like the three clerics in The Metal Opera.

Now... Ghostlights, which is more symbolic than this previous album... and I think you can now guess why: it mainly takes part in Avantasia, during Let The Storm Descend Upon you is when it happens, precisely. I have no idea if the Mystery of a Blood Red Rose video can serve as a clue, but Aaron falls unconscious in the end so... perhaps he entered the Avantasia world in the spiritual form, however... that’s not the same Avantasia world he had been to previously, this is more like Scarecrow’s Avantasia in a way.

In this Avantasia world, it’s where Aaron finds these Ghostlights, as well as some of his Scientists mates, did they get in all together? Perhaps it was the Magician who let them into this sort of spiritual world. This whole album really does seem to happen in another dimension, I already talked about the final tracks in my Aaron-Entity theory post, but they make it seem as if Aaron trascends to another plane completely. And the voices calling Aaron? Very much similar to Gabriel’s inner voices in The Metal Opera.

Last but not least, my favorite: Moonglow. We’ve got this Misplaced Entity, who’s thrown into a world they have no place in. They seek shelter in the night, the only place they’re comfortable in, until, when we reach the time the album is set in, they run to never come back to that one place, hiding from the dawn.

Now... How does Entity enter Avantasia? Easy: They enter in Ghost in the Moon, pretty quickly I must say. Let’s say... the glow of the moon is they gateway to Avantasia. Realized how they start talking about turning into a different being? That happens when you enter the spiritual world through your actual spirit, just like what happened to Gabriel (his appearance changes to fit the world). All the night, mysterious, eerie world in Moonglow is Avantasia.

I think all of this is enough to reach a conclusion:

There’s not only one Avantasia... there’s thousands, millions, even. Though, there is one real Avantasia, which is the core: that’s the Avantasia that appears in The Metal Opera, and the one Aaron sees when he passes out. Then, what are the other Avantasias? Easy: the connection each human has to the core, which means each human has a unique way of experiencing that connection; that is how the core of Avantasia is kept alive, even without letting every human into this core (let’s remember, it could be dangerous if the core of Avantasia was locked by humans).

This way, we can deduce how each of the protagonists experiences Avantasia: Gabriel goes to the core; Scarecrow and Entity experience Avantasia as a gateaway from their real, tormented lives and try to find happiness there instead of in the flesh and blood world; Aaron gets into the core by accident but, later on in Ghostlights, he explores his own connection, related to his thirst for knowledge... Remember?

"Many ways lead to Rome. Seven times one way for all that leads to a world beyond our inagination."

I think this is it for now... It is now 1am and trust me, I’ve tried my best to explain myself, so I hope you can understand this!

#avantasia #god this is LONG #anyway i'm off to sleep now #was fun to spend like... 3 hours writing this down

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izzyhunterscar · 5 years ago

Text

Juuzou Suzuya X Ghoul!Reader

You stood in front of the CCG, eyes full of mischief.

Walking right in you eyed the "Ghoul Detectors". You inwardly scoffed. Please, any ghoul could get through that if they know how to hide their genes, you wanted to make a scene to emphasize your entrance though.

Turning to one of the worker you simply smiled and stood in your place.

"Ma'am, please walk though. If you want to get in you have to go through here." His voice sounded bored.

"Sorry but no. Could you possibly get Juuzou out here? I believe he is looking for me." You calmly denied his request and asked your own.

"Ma'am, please walk though the gate."

"I can't do that." You stated with a closed eye smile.

"Why?" The worker asked exaspeatedly.

"Cause I would set it off." You smile widened, showing all your white teeth.

The worked seemed stunned before activating lockdown mode by pressing a button near him. He swung out his quinque, alarms blaring and audible clicks of the building securing itself.

Amon, Juuzou, and other members burst out of doors to the front to meet you. Weapons were at the ready as they stood surrounding the gates with you a distance away.

"State your business ghoul. It was not wise for you to come here alone." Amon called out it you.

"Who said I cam here alone?" You replied opening your eyes, wide smile still present.

The investigators became alert, eyes darting for an ambush.

You giggled, raising your hand to attempt to hide it. "I'm kidding silly! I just really wanted to say that! Didn't I sound so cool? I really am alone!" You then spotted the white haired male, clutching his scythe and smiling at you. "NO! OMG! This can't be real! JUUZOU! You came out here for me?!" You batted your eyelashes in a flirty manner and overdramatizized your gestures and words.

Amon's eyes narrowed at you. "Ghoul, do not fool around. We have you surrounded and outnumbered, you are out of your league here."

You gasped. "How dare you assume my species! I hate to break it to you but how would you know if I'm a ghoul? You really wouldn't know."

"What do you mean?" Amon was getting tired of your games and simply played along to speed up the process.

"Ahha! Now we are getting somewhere! You see Mr. Trigger finger over there got a little too excited and pressed the oh no ghoul button when I never walked through the detector thingy."

"What." Everyone murmured and glared at the worke ryou pointed out.

"She said she would set it off!" He attempted to defend himself.

"I did say that, didn't I? Learn what a joke it!" You giggled again, worrying the few who were paying attention to your psych.

"Prove it!" The worker challenged, attempting to redeem himself.

"If I go through the gate thingy, I get to see Juuzou, right?"

Everyone looked at Juuzou, who excitedly swung his scythe and nodded maniaclly as well. "I'm ready for either outcome!"

"They're both crazy..." The investigators thought to themselves.

"I guess, just walk through the gate please."

You sighed dramatically and made a big scene of hesitating. "You sure it's safe?" You smirked as you acted guilty.

"Stop stalling, woman."

"Oooh name change! Whatever though, you take the fun out of everything." You straightened your back and walked through the gate while looking at your nails boredly.

The light turned green idicating human, causing some officers to sigh in reliege and to glare at the worker who panicked. "Don't waste time like that." They scolded him.

You heard him getting reprimanded but you were running into the arms of Juuzou. He swung his scythe at you out of instinct, the swing was quick and swirled dust around. Gasps were heard from the workers and a worried Amon called out to him. Amon didn't know what to do if they had a dead civilian on their hands because of an officer.

You were not worried as you dodged around the swing and wrapped your arms around his neck, snuggling into his arms.

Juuzou supported your weight when you clung onto him, your legs wrapping around him. "How did you dodge that!?" He excitedly whispered into your ear.

"That's what years of boxing does for you." You murmured into his neck, breath tickling his throat.

Unsure of what to do now, the stitched up man simply skipped back to the offices with you clung onto him like a koala.

After the office disengaged from lockdown, everything seemed normal again at the office. Granted you were still there, refusing to let go of Juuzou.

"So...what did you say your name was again?" A woman officer asked, standing next to Amon.

"I didn't." You yawned and if it was possible you snuggled more into Juuzou, who assumed a sitting position in a spinny chair.

"How do you know Juuzou?" The same woman pried again.

"Stories."

"Oh, so do you like him?"

Your head shot up from Juuzou's shoulder at the question. "Like him? Are you insane?"

Unbeknonwst to everyone, Juuzou was slightly disappointed as you were the only person to show interest in him.

"Sorry I didn't real-" The woman attempted to apologize.

You cut her off. "I LOVE HIM! He is my everything! If I so much as hear a ghoul going after my love, I kill them! I made sure everyone knows that he is mine and HANDS OFF.." You continued to rambled about this was your territory and no one will every hurt Juuzou on your watch.

The officers were once again alert at the tell tale signs that you were a ghoul. Juuzou was now sitting up with you still on his laps but his hands found their way to your ass, supporting you as you waved your arms around and rambled.

"And how exactly do you kill these ghouls without a quinque?" Amon questioned, silver briefcase in his hand, his eyes narrowing at you once again.

"Whoops, said too much!" You innocently curled your lips up to a small smile.

"No! I would like to know too!" The white haired male pulled you close as an act of persuasion.

You let out a squeak of surprise at his forwardness and stuttered out. "I-I can't tell you! You'll hate me! You'll kill me! It's not my fault! I love you, Juuzou! Please don't hate me!" You sobbed out before abruptedly grabbing Juuzou's cheeks. You pulled him in, lips molding together. Juuzou worked over his shock and drifted his hands upwards tangling in your hair kissing back. You put years of longing and wanting in the kiss, your tongues battling.

The officers were uncomfortable, to say the least, and some looked away with red stained cheeks.

You finally broke apart, a string of saliva still connecting you two together. You pulled back and got off his lap, ready to make a run for it.

At that moment, (He knew, he fucked up. XD jk) familar sirens ran throughout the office once again. The sound of an intercom came on, a voice following after. "This is not a drill! The Blackdogs have entered the building! Backup needed at the lobby entrance!" Investigators scrambled for their quinques and rushed out to aid their comrades, somehow still looking professional all the while. You saw the battle first hand, sneaking after them through the commotion. The CCG was losing, which surprised you. You saw Amon and Juuzou and that woman doing very well, but the others...not so much. Turns out a lot of the higher ranks were gone on long term missions or this was their day off.

The ghouls were still low level, there just were a ton of them. You racked your brain as you swear you've heard the name Blackdogs before. Oh. It was those losers.

One of the Blackdogs member had entered your grounds and had come after Juuzou right away. Juuzou had already finished him off, but you noticed the numbers that followed that small ghoul. You were quick to take care of it and beat some information out of one ghoul, while sending another ghoul with your message to leave your territory.

This pissed you off as you specifically told them to leave or you would rip them to shreds only to watch their limbs grow back and repeat. You growled and yelled out.

"STOP YOU FILTHY DOGS! WHO GAVE YOU PERMISSION TO STEP INTO MY TERRITORY? TO TRY AND HURT MY JUUZOU!" Your eyes turned black and your irises shrunk to red. Your kagune crawled out of your back, eight spider like appendages swung around from your back. Your hair grew longer and string like and dyed a pure white. You disappeared for a second, before reappearing in front of one small group of ghouls, your kagune each found a target and stabbed into their hearts. After your kagunes went through, the ends encompassed them completely and squished them into a flesh ball.

Looks of realization came from both sides. The SSS+ rated ghoul Spider Queen, sports a eight eyed mask and long white silky string like hair. With eight leg like kagunes that act as offense, defense, and arms and legs as well. They were long with a black base color, a glowing white highlight in each.

You hissed out. "Who is your leader? Or was the leader such a coward to fall behind the group~" You saw a ghoul close to on of the entrances they blew in, he was creeping back, kagune not out but eyes a black red. "Found you~" Your crawled over there in a spider like manner with your Kagune. You were quick and took up a large amount of space when you rose yourself up with your kagune. You picked him up with one of your spider like appendages and brought him to eye level, since you were raised up by some of your "legs".

You patted his orange flat hair and spat in his face. "You chose the wrong territory to invade. Did I not warn you the first time you came after my love and dirtied my city with your face? You are dead meat." You then did what you had done to the other ghouls unlucky enough to stand in your way and compressed him into a flesh ball. Your left hand reached for the flesh ball that had fallen to the floor and your took a large bite out of it, before swallowing the rest whole.

The other ghouls had begin to retreat and you snatched a few more snacks on your way to the escape hole yourself. "Tell everyone of what transpired today, little ghouls, that is if I haven't eaten you yet!" The words slipped out before you realized what you implied. Any educated CCG investigator would know that ghoul cannibalizing other ghouls gave a rare chance that they could gain a special kagune, kakuja. They could make an educated guess that you had one since you never seemed to have any visible scratches from rubble or an attack, not that anyone could get close enough to attack you.

You glanced at Juuzou with a sad smile, watching him process that he kissed a ghoul. "Bye, love.." You whispered to yourself before speeding off.

The investigators were knocked out of their trance when you left, still processing that THE Spider Queen had infiltrated headquarters with no problem and then HELPED the CCG.

Juuzou was shook. (Jungshook xD)

He was intrigued by you, but at the same time wanted to be the one who killed you. You were a ghoul after all.

You sat on the very top of a construction crane, feet dangling and eyes still black and red. You didn't stay long enough to find out what happened after the invasion.You saved your love and left.

This one sided love. How long will it last?

A/N

This has been sitting for a while on paper. I had written about 2/3 of it on paper and decided to finish it. I want to write a story about Juuzou X Reader, but never had the motivation so it's just a one shot or maybe twoshot if I decide to continue it and the readers like it.

I’ve always loved Juuzou so I wanted to do something dedicated to him. I know he would most likely kill MC since she is a ghoul, but I like to dream ;-;

Your fellow warrior,

Izzy

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stefciastark · 4 years ago

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Scars ~ Webpril Day 6

A/N: Here is the final part to the "The Mines" mini story arc :) I hope you enjoy this little chapter of IronDad fluff. It's definitely a topic I want to expand more on with IronDad, and I definitely didn't address it enough in this fic (it's nearing 2a.m so I had to wrap it up somewhere) BUT if it's something you'd like to see, just let me know and it may just become its own fic :)Thank you to everyone who's been leaving comments and kudos as well. It's my first proper return to the world of fanfiction and your support and feedback means the world, so thank you!! xx

~Read it on AO3

~Read it on FFN

This was the second time in…too soon, that Peter had to make a return to the realm of the ‘awake’. He wasn’t quite sure he wanted to. There was an intense throbbing behind his eyes that pounded to the percussive beat of Pomp & Circumstance; it was a tune that he had been forced to sit through every year since he was a freshman as they gathered in assembly to wave the upperclassmen goodbye as they left for the real world. He decided that if he survived until his own graduation, he would petition for a drastic change of the ceremony music. ‘I Lived’ by OneRepublic seemed kind of appropriate.

He couldn’t hold back the groan that escaped his lips as the throbbing in his head shifted from the right to the left as he turned his head to the side. He felt smooth satin beneath his cheeks, a pleasant contrast to the rough gravel and dust that greeted him last time.

Sleep tugged at his consciousness, beckoning him away from a world that had so far greeted him with pain and uncertainty. Just his luck though that a pair of fingers began to snap repeatedly in front of his closed eyes.

“No, none of that ‘going back to sleep’ stuff, kid. Time to get up.”

Peter waved his hand in front of his face, trying to shoo away whomever dared invade his personal bubble. “G’way…”

“Ouch…Is that how you thank me for saving your life?”

Peter’s eyes finally cracked open, ready to give his speaker the biggest verbal whooping he could muster – which Peter faced it, he wasn’t going to sound particularly convincing either way. It was then that his mind finally caught up with what his eyes were seeing; Tony was sitting on the occasional chair to the right of the bed, leaning forward, elbows on his knees and hands locked together. His knuckles were white, and that tension bled into the expression on his face. Dark circles that looked like bruises shaded the underneath of his eyes, frown lines gently creasing his forehead.

Now that he had a moment to register the rest of his surroundings, he noted with relief that he wasn’t laying in a hospital bed, and there was no accompanying beep of the monitors that usually accompanied infirmary-esque surroundings. In the end, it was Peter’s view of the half-open sliding closet door that told him his answer; he was in his personal bedroom at the Avengers facility. A T-shirt Ned bought him for his last birthday that he’d been looking for for weeks hung at the front. It was the one with a pun that first made him cringe, but eventually grew on him until it inexplicably and unironically became one of his favourites. It had a large picture of a Spiderman mask, surrounded by text that said: “What does Spiderman do for a living? He’s a web designer!”

Thinking of Ned, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he was forgetting something…

Tony saw the second Peter’s eyes widened in panic, and he quickly leaped off the chair to press Peter back down onto the bed as he tried weakly to get up. The pain in Peter’s right ankle that had gone unnoticed until that moment flared up, eliciting a small cry that was a mixture of pain and surprise.

“W-where’s Ned, is he okay? He was with me in the – in the mine and he wasn’t waking up and -” Peter’s chest rose and fell rapidly, panic flooding his senses, the weight of Tony’s hand on his shoulder doing nothing to ground him, only making him feel claustrophobic as the memories of being stuck under rubble bubbled to the surface.

Tony immediately retracted his hand from Peter’s shoulder. He knew when Peter needed to be left to himself. As much as he wished he could hug the kid’s troubles away, the aftermath of Vulture left Peter with psychological scars. No amount of comfort, exciting new tech projects or keeping busy would undo what had happened, and it was something that Peter needed to confront on his own time and in his own way. Of course, Tony would be there. He would always be there.

“Ned’s okay, just a moderate concussion, some bruises and understandably a little freaked out.” Peter visibly relaxed at the update, glad to at least hear that his best friend wasn’t lying in a hospital bed somewhere, fighting for life. “You know, you’re lucky you’re the same type of super-freak like Rogers.”

“What do you mean? Isn’t he like,” Peter imitated a needle going into his arm and finished with a ‘fshhhhh’ as the imaginary needle plunger was suppressed.

“No, no, I mean he’s an entirely -” Tony stopped himself, dragging his hand across his face, not quite sure how to go on without trailing Cap in the mud. He didn’t particularly want to open that can of worms. Contrary to public opinion, he was trying to play nice. “Look, I’m tired, and that’s not what I meant,” he sighed. “I just mean you got very lucky, kid. Being strong and being able to heal like that is what saved your ass.”

“I’m pretty sure you saved my ass.” Peter’s breathing had slowed down, and he had sunk back into the mattress, eyes no longer looking like he was a deer stuck in the headlights. Tony mentally sighed with relief - crisis averted.

“First of all, I know, I was just being polite. Secondly hey, watch your language. I’m the adult, I get to use those words.” He raised a mocking eyebrow in response to Peter’s expression of light-hearted indignation. “Don’t look at me like that, I’m not the one who makes the rules. I don’t want your aunt coming after me after you go home sounding like ‘The Dude’ Lebowski.”

They both entered an unspoken staring contest that was soon lost by both parties as Peter couldn’t refrain from sniggering after no more than five seconds, and Tony broke into a smile not long after.

Peter’s expression turned serious once more. “Wait, how long have I been here? Does May know? Crap, I should text her, she probably thinks I’m dead, she’s going to freak.”

“F.R.I.D.A.Y took care of that when you got here,” Tony looked down to check his watch, “nine hours ago.”

A pregnant silence fell on the room. Peter’s eyes were cast down, staring studiously at the various scrapes and cuts along his arms; his souvenirs from Sterling Hill. Tony could see the gears turning in Peter’s head, and he wasn’t surprised in the least when Peter posed him a question.

“I know I can’t scar because of...y’know,” he swallowed, fingers clenching and unclenching the sheets as he refused to look at Tony. His voice was small when he asked, “But what do you do about the scars you can’t see?”

Tony paused for a moment before responding. He’d known this question was coming for some time, yet he didn’t really have a response. “I still have nightmares about New York.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. Point is, at the end of the day, I try not to let things I can’t control get to me. You did all you could, kid, don’t kick yourself for it.”

Tony wanted to say more than his little anecdote but couldn’t quite find the words. Years of ‘tough love’ at the hands of his father didn’t exactly give him an ideal arsenal to deal with the sensitive nature of the topic, and the last thing he wanted to do was give Peter the same ‘Stark men are made of iron” ‘golden’ advice he got from Howard as a boy. He felt like an elephant in a porcelain shop, and he was afraid that one day Peter would break.

As Tony rummaged through the manila folders in his brain for the right thing to say, Peter yawned. “Thanks Mr Stark,” his body and mind still in recovery mode after the previous day’s events.

“Get some rest, Spiderman. We’ll talk about it tomorrow.” He ruffled Peter’s hair and turned to leave, the kid already snoring quietly seconds after his head hit the pillow.

Tony returned to his lab; he had some important unfinished business to take care of. Hours later, he had fallen asleep, head resting on his arms over his glass-top desk. The monitor above him glowed faintly in the darkness, thirteen separate tabs open ranging from ‘Supporting Your Teen’s Mental Health’, to the one that was currently displayed: ‘How to Be a Good Father’.

A/N: Ah Tony, paranoid about wanting to be the perfect father figure to Peter and not wanting to repeat his own father's mistakes. Either way, the (alluded to) topic of this concluding piece is something I want to maybe dedicate a longer fic to. I didn't really feel as if I could give it the attention and in-depth discussion that I wanted to. Unfortunately, juggling university, life, and writing these daily as they come because of the nature of the challenge (and I'm super scared of falling behind with the prompts) means that a lot of these aren't as fleshed out as I'd like them to be, and I'd love to give some of these some more love once the challenge is over. ANYWAYS, long rant aside, hope you enjoyed the small concluding piece to 'The Mines', and thank you for your continued support :) xx

#webpril day 6 #webpril 2021 #irondad fanfiction #marvel #mcu fanfiction #peter parker fanfiction #tony stark fanfiction #angst #h/c #h/c fanfiction #emotional h/c #fanfiction #writing prompt #writing challenge #fluff

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skekheck · 5 years ago

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30 Days of the Dark Crystal Challenge

Decided to do poultry-blocks Dark Crystal challenge because it looks like a lot of fun to do. However I’m cheating and I wrote all of this within a couple of days. Warning: fairly large post with pictures and fan ramblings.

EDIT: I FORGOT TO INCLUDE DAY 16 WHOOP. It’s in there now.

Day 1. Your favorite skeksis

Idiot, feral, wildman who stole my heart. How? Why? Who knows. *chef kisses* Beautiful stinky bastard.

Day 2: Your favorite gelfling

Bless her and her skeksis cosplay. What a queen.

Day 3: A character that you love that everyone seems to hate.

The tides are changing for her it seems. I think people are appreciating her more, but she still faces her fair share of controversies. Not that I don’t think it warrants discussion nor am I excusing her actions. But she’s way more complex than what a lot of people are making her out to be.

Day 4: A character that you hate that everyone seems to love.

Hate is a strong word as I don’t hate him, but I don’t really care for Amri. He feels like a bootleg Deet mixed with a little bit of Kylan and Gurjin. Wasted potential and honestly shouldn’t have been the POV for Tides of the Dark Crystal. Seems I’m alone in this opinion, though. Maybe the book warrants rereading?

Day 5: Movie or TV Show? Why?

TV Show by miles! I think the series accomplishes way more than the movie does, like establishing lore, better written characters, and a more engaging story. I actually cared about the gelfling and it really fleshed out the skeksis in an interesting way outside of “oh they do evil things because they’re evil!”. Doesn’t mean it does everything right, but I’ll get into that later.

Day 6: Something you wish that happened in the series but didn’t.

Just a few things. I miss the gelfling intermingling with the mystics, particularly urVa. I love everything that happens with urGoh and skekGra, but some of the bonding moments Naia had with urVa are precious and I wish we had more of that. I also wished the gelfling got the message out to the other clans like they did in the book where Kylan dreametched their message onto the Santuary Tree’s blossoms and scattered them all throughout Thra. I also wished Tavra and Onica were an established couple, but maybe it’s not too late for that.

Day 7: Favorite gelfling clan

The Sifa! It was the Dousan at first, but the more I learned about the Sifa the more I grew to love the clan. If I were a gelfling I would probably be a sifa myself LOL.

Day 8: You opinion on Aughra

She’s a fun and fascinating character! Aughra puts a unique spin on the whole beautiful, wise earth goddess trope by making her ugly, old, and cranky. She’s also a character with her own flaws, even having a mini arc about neglecting to take care of her planet and doing whatever she can to make amends. Not to mention she’s wildly entertaining. Much love for Aughra!

Day 9: Skeksis or Gelfling?

Both!

Day 10: Your opinion on podlings?

They’re just funky little potato people who just want to have fun, dance, and drink all day and I respect them for that. They’re great. Also Hup exists and he’s just an amazing character so there’s that.

Day 11: Your The Dark Crystal unpopular opinion

I think it’s okay to sympathize with the skeksis as long as one is not excusing their actions. I see a lot of people say you shouldn’t because they’re evil and they commit atrocities. Which, yes, it’s true, but I think both can co-exist. I mean, skekTek’s whole cycle of abuse is written very sympathetically yet the show doesn’t coddle him. It shows the ugliness of his character and what happens when someone isn’t capable of cutting off from said cycle. Also the writers consider the skeksis as tragic characters due to their broken nature so I don’t think it’s wrong to be a little sympathetic. But once again with great emphasis, sympathy is fine as long as their actions are judged. They are awful bastards and no amount of sympathy will change that.

Day 12: Something you dislike about the series

I think the stuff I don’t like about the show is a result of its pacing and cluttered cast. There are so many stories going on and while I liked how they handled it for the most part, you can also see how the show rushes to get through all of them. A lot of important moments where a character should reflect or something that should simmer more is pushed aside for the next thing. Maybe if the show was given more episodes and time to breath it would have been better off.

Day 13: Most disappointing thing about the series

SkekMal and urVa didn’t have enough screen time and we were honestly ROBBED.

Day 14: Your OTP

Speaking of which... . Its a crack ship, but I’m all about that allegory for self love (and I just want these two to be alive). Day 15: Favorite quote

Listed plenty of my favorite quotes before, but I’ll pick this one:

“ Life is my paint. Death is my canvas”

Day 16: Rate the skeksis from least favorite to favorite OR rate the gelfling from lest favorite to favorite [or both!]

And if you want my gelfling hot takes, here’s this list (just backwards in context to this post)

Day 17: Opinion on Raunip?

Raunip is a fantastic character. I loved him in Creation Myths and I can’t wait to see what role he’d play in the resistance. And I absolutely love the parallels between him and the urskeks it’s great.

Day 18: A character that is most similar to you.

I too am a dark-dwelling gremlin who constantly forgets where I put things and crack a few dark jokes at my expense.

Day 19: Which character do you strongly dislike, why?

This is entirely based on the books, but I find Mera to be awful. I think it’s because she’s so fake and condescending? When Naia arrived in Sami Thicket, she was acting nice and polite but when the Drenchen asked her why the skeksis never visited Sog Mera responded “It’s only worth counting what’s valuable”. She continuously disrespects her by calling her pet names even when Naia became maudra. It doesn’t come off as cute, it’s gross. I don’t recall Mera ever apologizing for any of the shit she did to Naia... or Kylan for that matter. She was a pretty neglectful step-mother to him. She doesn’t have an excuse being busy with Maudra stuff because Laesid was a kickass mom to her kids. So in conclusion, fuck this bitch.

Day 20: What do you like so much about the Dark Crystal?

The better question what’s not to love about the Dark Crystal? It has amazing creature design, an expansive world that feels real and alien from our own, having complex and interesting characters as well as villains, the fact that it relies heavily on practical effects a.k.a puppetry... . There’s nothing like it and that’s what makes it so wonderful and unique. It needs to be appreciated more.

Day 21: Favorite music piece from the soundtrack?

Can’t beat that opening theme.

Day 22: Your opinion on the sequel comics [Power/Beneath the Dark Crystal]

They have cool concepts and ideas, but they’re not written well. Power is just the movie if it was put into a blender and shredded and ignoring a large portion of established lore for the sake of plot. And Beneath is just a generic fantasy story with the Dark Crystal logo slapped on it.

Day 23: Which character from the YA novels/comics do you wish we would see more of?

There are plenty of characters that are a given to appear in the series at some point (skekSa, skekLi, urSan, etc). And of course I want to see them, but I really hope Periss shows up (and his brother too). He is one of my favorite characters from the book series and we could use some more Dousan rep!

Day 24: Your opinion on the Age of Resistance comic?

I have yet to read the comics. I’m waiting on them to be part of a collection so I don’t have to buy all of the volumes at once (I prefer owning physical copies). I’ve heard good things about them, especially the story with Hup and the current Mayrin arc. I’m excited to get my hands on them.

Day 25: The best moment/scene in the series?

There are a lot of great moments, but Rian and Ordon’s fight with skekMal is still my favorite in the entire series. The "Speak For the Dead” scene is a close second.

Day 26: The death of a character that hurt you the most?

He did not deserve this. Fuck you, skekMal.

Day 27: Your favorite episode from the series?

It’s got to be 4. Not just because a number of my favorite characters debut in this episode, but it’s an important one for the plot. Stakes are being raised, we’re seeing set ups to major story elements and character arcs, and events that impact the rest of the series. It also has a handful of my favorite character moments and interactions.

Day 28: Your favorite non-skeksis and non-gelfling character? Why?

I’ve come to realize the reasons why I love urVa are the same as why I love skekMal (incredibly appropriate I might say). There’s enough information about him that we get a good understanding on who he is as a character, but still mysterious enough that there’s interest in wanting to know more. Much like his skeksis, he’s unique from the other mystics and thus giving him unique experiences that are fun to speculate. However, the YA novels are responsible for my current fondness of him.

Day 29: Do you like the urru and skeksis apart or like them as urSkeks together?

A main theme of the Dark Crystal is unity and balance. The main conflict of the franchise are the skeksis, the broken fragments of their urskek self who, according to the writers, “...[have] a dire need for the qualities they lack”. Their only salvation is to become urskeks again and unfortunately many of the pairs never achieve this. They’re basically a giant allegory for the self and self-love. While we don’t really know what they were like when they were an urskek (aside from SilSol perhaps), we can get some understanding when we look at their pairs and see what traits they share. Speculation is also fun! So as much as I love the skeksis and mystics as individuals, I prefer them to be whole again.

Day 30: What are your wishes for a possible season 2?

A whole bunch of things. I want to see them explore more about the mystics and their lifestyle, having Raunip play a big part in the plot, seeing more of skekSa’s fall from grace from her perspective, the beginning of the Garthim Wars, and more.

#the dark crystal #my posts #long post

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roseprincesskristina · 4 years ago

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My Crimson Valentine ((POV))

((Hey people. 😊 Today, since Valentine's Day is just around the corner a little later, I had to write a special fanfic about everyone's favorite crimson hunter getting busy with a certain girl who is new in Abel City to visit him. Plus, it's a POV version for the ladies out there. Anyway, hope you guys enjoy this story and Happy Early Valentine's Day 💘💘💘💝💝💝 😊✌))

The crimson hunter, lastly created by the late Dr. Albert Wily, previously known of the uncontrollable maverick who lusts for blood, carnage, even destruction increases his strength along with everything he possesses. Founded by the former leader of Hunter HQ before being escorted to be tested after the ferocious duel against him, until later on when the impossible virus had traveled it way within the strong balded crusader's armored anatomy away from the blonde irregular's helmet to successfully control the new host. Forming from evil to good has allowed him to join the organization which meaning by hunting down crazed evildoers that caused havoc upon peace. Hardly addresses himself as the hero, however to battle against difficult odds such as maverick while for those around that he believes in at heart, for his own will also. Throwing away the corrupted memories of his past which blinded his focus of a better future awaiting ahead as well as to embrace off multiple sadness from his body.

Now, as the irregular destroying commander of the 0th unit, lacking any clemency towards opponents and acts with a "too cool for school" attitude to lower his emotions instead of showing them to anyone expect his indigo comrade in arms. Ranked into an upperclass position, bearing with the energy beam sword for slashing down anything blocking his path. Aiding with his colleagues, brawling baddies, passed onto with additional power ups, the rest during numerous journeys. He is ultimately quite difficult to become defeated when it comes to danger calling him out, but not with assistance to accomplish any tasks at hand. This fearless swordsman in red is named Zero.

At last, slightly exhausted of every beatings along with rescuing the innocent like any super hero would always do, fully relaxed while the daylight is young, the golden locked hunter had peered his eyes towards you into a seductive persona. Lying onto his bed sideways with his hand planted on the manly thigh to await your appearance inside his dorm. Smirking with a satisfying preparation in mind for a guest of honor such as yourself.

"Mmmmm he he he he~... Well well~... Hello to you, my sweet young treat~ What brings you here to MY lair of awesomeness~? Just by looking at your expression, I suppose you're here to visit me or to earn my autograph, right~? Either way, it wouldn't even matter much anyway since I'm bored with nothing to do~ But what really does now is to amuse a cute little lady like you with my irresistible charms to hypnotize my fans~" The upperclassmen spoke deeply with a sexual tone, walking over and takes you by your hand into his room as a welcoming manner by stroking his hand under your chin. Placing you upon his bed. "So, why don't ya come inside and make yourself comfortable until I freshen up for a special surprise in store just for you~ BRB~" He winked at you, rising right out of his bed capsule to change into a different armor.

While waiting for the blush colored host, you would began to take out something from your backpack like a notebook to draw characters, anime or shapes in order to keep yourself occupied. Even to write a journal about your life. It was your time here in Abel City, never have seen or been here before to meet the legendary Maverick Hunter in the flesh. Or perhaps reploid, of course. You hummed while enjoying usual hobbies like in your house, loving nature even to make friends, pondering about such wonderful memories within your thoughts just to keep you happy and lively for the rest of your life through tough times. It truly warms your innocent heart all the way along with emotions, until a surprise sudden has called your attention....

"Hey there, gorgeous~ Thanks for the long wait for me to straighten myself up, didn't wanna get too.... messy around ya~.... " Outside the bathroom despite of his "freshening up" methods, hearing his voice aiming across the roam has made you look away from the notebook that you're drawing and directly at him, who is wearing nothing underneath his armor like the inner black suit, but into a sexy belly dancing attire to suit him quite better out of his under clothing. Revealing not only the body, yet secondly his most flawless treasure known to man: his diamond shaped navel of his abs, placed with an initialed Z shaped jewel inside, similar on his left shoulder. The appearing shade of redness shown itself in your cheeks during your first witness of your host's harden bods of steel completely in front of you.

"Awww~ Did I made ya blush, little girl~? I kinda love it when you look real nervous when you're around me~ Cause it really, REALLY turns me on~" Slurped the bright red sword wielder, approaching his irresistible self towards you, folding his arms behind the brighten locks of his tied up hair. Blinking his sparkling sapphire pupils slowly to create something even more consensual than before or after your arrival to surround you along with everything in his dorm. You began to feel speechless for a fast second, beholding his fairly gifted body before you now when he chuckled.

"Mmmm~ Giving the silent treatment, too, aren't we~? I like that in a human woman~" Anything about you has impressed the saber enhanced mentor even more than busting against his enemies in the hunting days when duty calls. Could be a waste of time, but not as long as you're here to make his life interesting. "So, beautiful~ Whaddya think~? Like what ya see~? Did my abs impress you~? No need to answer cause I'm already aware of that~ Let's put away the notebook and enjoy ourselves, shall we~" He said again, helping to throw away the book off your hands. Snapping his fingers automatically to initiate the sensual music before the beginning of his dance. Once again, you blinked while watching him jiggle his hips to the rhythm, back and forwards non stop. Several visions of him showering the pleasurable has blinded you away from the focuses about your life, being slowly imprisoned filled of little resistance left in your body to fight it off.

"Mmmm~ Damn, you look so delicious when I take a closer look at you~" Licked his clean filled of the starving metaphorical act, circling around you while slowly drawing his finger on your shoulder. "Even though you're a human, but it ain't gonna change the fact or my mind since you're here~ Lemme taste you for a bit to see if you're good enough to eat~ Meow~" He does that right away by licking your cheek, making you fluster into a shade of pink appearing in your face. "Hot damn~ Did my tastes buds lie~? Or is it telling the truth~? You truly ARE my sweetest dessert, babycakes~ Meaning that I'm gonna save YOU for later after my overwhelming performance~"

Dancing very closer to you, caressing all over his glistening armor as well as his body to approach once more. Seducing you by shaking more of his delectable manly hips with his might, polishing the crotch if necessary. Commencing to arouse your being becoming trapped in his grasps to never release or allow you to flee from his inescapable sights, pinning down your body of his hypnotic dance. Then, feeding on your thoughts with his sultry speech.

"It's no use trying to resist my urges, baby~ My body will consume you whole whether you admire it or not so try not to fight against it~" He compelled, positioning his finger into a "come over here" action to brainwash you. "Come on~ Let my poisonous effects absorb you~ Look into my eyes and rid yourself of those tragedies holding you down from your senses~ Submit to me, my innocent slave~ Obey my body forever~ Smoothingly erasing your worries from your mind and replacing them with images of the sunshine haired expert's erotic movements clearing off those irritating dirt of lies entirely out of your peeps, helping you to see perfectly even by looking at your maverick hunting host shaking his money maker for you. Complying his demands with the lack of free will to shield yourself away of something elegant, you had no other option but to surrender by gazing straightly at him into the middle of his dance.

"So~ What do you think of my stunning bods, little lady~? You like it, even when I punish myself for being a bad boy~? Hmm~? He he he he~ Then I'll take that as a yes~" He moaned while speaking to you sexually. "Well, how about I give you.....this to change your pretty little thinking~? Continually to please you the hardest, he would slowly remove the pierced jewel from his stomach. Placing it on the desk table. You would be able to watch carefully of his special present only for you to see instead of others, but your mind says to resist it for this "nightmare" will haunt you in your sleep forever. Once the gem has been confiscated out of the body, he "accidentally" insert one of fingers deeply inside his ravishing navel.

"Whoops~ He he he he~ My bad, darling~ Didn't mean to cause an accident to you like that~ Or did I~?" Grinned the A Class sword fighter, planning his act on you in the first place by circling deeper into his belly button. Extending out his tongue to rock it like in the concert to party all night, siding with shaking his thighs of continuation towards the dance.

"Unh~ Unh~ M...Mmm god, it feels so nice~" He spits out his longing yet magnificent moan all the way from his mouth trying to dash for freedom, drilling his finger into the dark cavern of the stomach more further. Pleasing you to death with every inch of his power but quietly. Over and over he punishes his stomach hole without trying to stop himself. "Ahhhh~ I love massaging my navel during off duties at peace~ It really takes my mind off of killing enemies~ But, I couldn't hide it from somebody so tranquil and quiet like you~" He refers to you, winking to arouse his guest by "cleaning" his deepen abyss of a stomach hole further. You slightly blushed from his unseen hobby, attempting to look for an escapable exit. However, nothing could ever work because of the frozen spell of his seduction pinned you down on the seat.

"Oh yeah~ Yeah~ Mmmmm, face it, pumpkin~ I know you wanna see me ground my deep, luscious, tasty, warm navel of mine for being very naughty~ Don't try to deny it~ You CAN and WILL love it when I play with it~ Or better yet, to let you taste it~" He spoke toward at you, placing a torturing spell which is impossible to break. More shades of red pinkish flustering substance had yet again made its appearance in your face, eyes stretched of shocking discovery, heart pumping in a repetitive beat. It's as if you have seen a boy band member saying your name to climb up onstage or earning a first gift. But this, right up front, is even more breathtaking than both all combined at once.

Forwardly into your ear, his calm voice enters within your mind. Purring seductively due to his obsession with his new plaything like you to have fun with.

"Purrrrrrr~" No matter how much you try or do that could drive the spell from your consciousness, that too, is unstoppable to leap out of. "It's already too late to back out from me, doll~ Cause there ain't gonna be an exit to save you now that you're all mine~" He said, tilting your head directly to him by his hand grappling your cheeks. "You know, before I met an adorable birdie like you, all I ever do was fight off maverick trash all freaking day without getting a single break, which is completely boring for my taste~ But now here you are, making my life a living heaven than hell like in my usual days as a hunter~" You nodded while listening. "I really like you that much, despite of being a human, but still~ " He comes at you, proceeding towards your face. "As a matter of fact, you mean the world to me, Valentine, and that's why.... I wanna taste and suck your irresistible at the same cause I'm so famished~ So, let's kill off the idle chat, shall we~? And lemme give you something to make you.... remember me in your dreams~ Let me kiss you~ So~ Badly~....." With everything pushed out of the way, the stern yet handsome reploid in red inserted his lips into yours deeply. Drinking the life out of you with a craved thirst before resuming his belly dancing routine. His perfect smooch has gave you a further blush.

"Mmmmmmmm~" So forever long, he softly yoinked himself from the perfect smooch given to you and licked. "God, you taste even better than the rest~ So delicious~" Swallowed the smirked hunter, enjoying your clear lips until he continue his undodgable dance of lust to please you rapidly. Secondly, the glorious cave of a navel to pleasure or play with as well.

That trick, especially the breath stealing kiss, had forced you to have a nosebleed right away from his unavoidable surprise than earlier before. Without holding any grudge against the blonde host's perfect symbol of desires that shuts down all worries from their minds, the only chance you have is to submit towards his beauty and enjoy it, refusing to turn back. Zero smiled gladly at you, wanting more of his fascinating dances to ease your boredom aside in the garbage where it belongs.

"So~ Finally enjoying my gift, huh~? Good girl~" He smiled rapidly, resuming his lustful dance for your enjoyment. "I'm so proud of you for cherishing a pleasant gift I rained on you, sweet treat~ For that, here's another one from me~...." For following his directions of the pleasurable belly dance, the handsome rose themed ex maverick lays his hands onto your soft cheeks while you are a little prepared for something much more....appealing? However, you have to allow him by accepting the second present until finally, he mashed his lips gently into yours. Tongue and teeth.

"Mmmmmm~....."

Your eyes started to open widely because of the seeping smooch warming up your whole heart upwards to 100%, blushing darker than earlier. While you slowly responded back, he continues to sink his kiss into your lips all day long, never to get enough of your existence for one minute just to stomp on his doomed past like an insect. Non stop after separating himself from lip locking with you, he continues his beautiful entertainment by dancing, especially navel pleasuring, to please you more than the first act while you're gazing towards him with both hands placed under your chin. Directly in front of you, he blow a kiss at you for further mood at peace.

"Mmmmmwah~..... Mmmm, thanks again for keeping company to shut up my boredom today, cutie~ You're just the one who never gets tired of my unbeatable charms~" Winked the high ranked blade user, impressed by your company to sleep away his exhaustion from dealing with endless hordes of irregular rabble rousers all the time. You replied with a nod, watching permanently of your die hard android in light burgundy with all your heart no matter what. Enjoying both his company, even the erotic dance as well.

He may become of the lone wolf type reploid who refuses to gain anyone's assistance during heart throbbing missions, roughing up tough mavericks without problems whatsoever. However, fighting alongside friends to be stronger foes than him or enemies combined has made the yellow headed mentor even too powerful other than his base state. Because companionship can make any dream succeed so long as everyone remains by his side always, even the true Maverick Hunter should realize this. Furthermore, no crime lovers including the inhumaniods baddies could ever escape from the beam sword bearer of Abel City when it comes to disasters knocking on the town's door without regret. But for now, he is finally relaxing during his off duty with the only person in store to interest his company instead of all else: You.

"Happy Valentine's Day, ladies~ Feel free to visit yours truly anytime~ Mmmwah~💖"

#megaman #mmx #zero #pov #valentine's day #fanfic #earlyvalentinesday2021

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