#i think its going down that path by now hehe

[a-whispering-echo]

Hello hello!

I am back to bother you :3

I have one question that is haunting my thoughts.

How did Nightmare decide on the guys as his breakout buddies in Death-Row AU?

I am very curious :3

( hi hi! i wsnt ignoring this, i just got really into laying CotL for a bit, ans whoops-)

Nightmare picked the boys based of a mix of how useful he thought they'd be, along with how easy they would be to manipulate.

Horrors very physically strong, as well as a foreboding presence, he'd be useful for a lot of the actual breakout, good for breaking stuff and beating up the cops, the downside is he can TELL Nightmare's manipulating him, that hes playing with his emotions and trust to use him.

The very easy way to gaining Horrors trust, though? Dust.

Dust, in his more sane moments, can see that Nightmare doesn't have.. the best intention at first, some little things that stick in his mind as odd, but mostly, he brushed them off, assuming its his own flawed mind being paranoid, but also, Nightmare is so NICE to him! He tells him hes smart, he tells him hes useful, that he as a purpose, a place within their group, that hes not... dead air, dust walking, that what he did was okay, he doesn't deserve all this <3 And besides, under all that... mess in his head, he can tell Dust is a smart monster, hes good at fighting, even when restrained, and the amount of magic suppressants on him clues Nightmare into his abnormally deep mana pool quite easily, yes, he thinks, a good one.

and, Dust begins to trust him, and,seeing Dust trust Nightmare, Horror begrudgingly beings to trust him too. besides, he wants out too.

Killer was the easiest to manipulate out of them all, he seems entirely unaware of the manipulation (Killer is aware, hes just so used to being taken advantage of at this point that hes just like whatever) hes so willing to do thing for him for even the smallest drop of praise and affection, that it was so easy to win him over. Besides, Nightmare doesn't doubt Killers usefulness; hes fast, sly and sneaky. Hes a great thief, and can very easily slip thins from the right people pockets, or. slip something *into* their pockets for destruction. Hes good with words, which makes him an excellent distraction for them. Hes perfect. (To note, yes, Killer has trust issues, but its formed not in the way where you distance yourself from others to protect you, but the way where you form unhealthily quick attachments to people you shouldn't. have a conversation a single time with him? he now considers you a FRIEND, no just, 'possible acquaintance' like most people would)

Cross was a little more tricky. Like Horror, hes slow to warm up and trust, and also like Horror, can see the manipulation a mile away, and yet... Nightmare offered him freedom. he offered him a life outside these walls, a life he could freely live again, where he could pretend that what he did never happened, and he was pure again. So, hesitantly still keeping Nightmare at arms length.], he does as he says. Nightmare wanted Cross the second he said he used to be a soldier. A soldier, you say? Those are USEFUL skills, already honed. He likely has survival skills, he likely sleeps lightly, ready to wake or move at a moments notice, hes probably very observant, very physically fit, stays calm in danger, can listen to instructions and execute them perfectly, and, very importantly, works well in a group. Oh, and he can shoot a gun. That's useful too.

So, Killer was an easy member, as was Dust. Horror and Cross were much more difficult, but, when weighing up their usefulness against their resistance, he had to have them. they were vital to his plans, in the end, and he finds himself growing so much more fond of them overtime, and likewise, them to him. Yes, he doesn't regret picking his idiots, he picked well.

[gatorbites-imagines]

Hello!

I've been getting very into DC again, from all the comics I had in my attic.

So i would like to request a "meeting the batfam" like think.

Being Bruce's new boyfriend and meeting the kids and how would they react.

Have a nice day! (You're the only think keeping me from commiting a crime/jk)

Bruce Wayne x male reader

Headcanons

Ive been on a kick lately of making half-god characters, so reader is the son of a god, hehe ^^

You were the son of Ares, a half god, and the son of a god most feared, and that the Justice league had fought many times.

So, by relation, many people didn’t trust you when they learned about your parentage. Had you been any crueler of a person, that might have driven you down a path where you followed in your fathers’ footsteps, but you weren’t.

You ended up inheriting many of his powers, even gaining his clairvoyance and precognition in dreams. Said dreams had been your first sign that you were more than just your average person, as you foresaw many of the larger disasters around the world.

There ends up being a sense of duty in your heart as your dreams keep warning you about an invasion of earth, becoming more and more detailed every night. It reaches a point where you think you are going mad.

As a last-ditch effort, you end up in Gotham, where you spend days trying to find any of the bats, just trying to find somebody to believe you. In the end, you stumble across Bruce, who probably thinks you are on something because of the less than put together state you are in.

That is until you spill everything you have been dreaming about, and how its all happened, and how this dream keeps haunting you every night.

Bruce of course listens to everything you have to say, and takes you as seriously as anything else he would. He keeps your warning in mind and gets prepared, and when your precognition comes to pass, he is ready.

From then in, Bruce passes by your place every now and then, as you end up moving to Gotham as Batman is the only hero you feel takes you seriously.

Hes the one to help you figure out your true parentage, and gets you in contact with some people who can help you deal with your new developing powers. You two end up bonding a lot, and over time, fall in love.

You both make each other feel like a full person and like you are understood. The relationship is kept quiet on Bruces end, not because he doesn’t trust his family or anything, but because he just wants to keep it to himself for a bit.

It does get a bit hard to hide the hand shaped bruises on his hips or torso when your godly strength slips out, but Bruce has lived with worse aches and bruises in his life, so its not something people notice.

You never went out of your way to become a hero, even with your godly powers. You are happy living your life and being together with Bruce, much of your stress gone since you know Bruce will believe you when it comes to your dreams.

When the day finally comes where you go to meet his family, you can’t help but feel a little nervous. Sure, you’ve met them in passing as their vigilante alter egos, when they’ve followed Bruce during his meetings with you, but this will be as Bruces lover.

Bruce is endeared by how hard you want to make a good impression, how you fuss with your hair and your clothes to be most presentable. When you ask him if you need to bring a gift or something, he just laughs a little and kisses your forehead, telling you to stop worrying as he’s sure they’ll love you.

The family all know Bruce is bringing his lover that night for family dinner, but they all don’t know who it is, even Alfred is in the dark.

They are all a bit on edge, as Bruce doesn’t have the best track record when it comes to partners. And since he didn’t tell them a name, they assume its not the people he’s normally been with, like Selina or Talia.

Imagine their surprise when Bruce arrives with you on his arm, from your civilian clothes to your sheepish smile, to you looking downright nervous to meet them as you clearly want to make a good first impression.

It might take a bit for any of them to recognize you, as only a few of them might have met you in passing, but you probably end up telling them during dinner when they ask how you and Bruce met.

I can’t see them being against you more than they would any other partner, especially when you go out of your way to use your dreams and abilities to help as many people as possible.

Cass is most likely the one to warm up to you first, as she can easily read that you are a good person who loves Bruce very much, and Cass’s approval makes the others become less tense and more open to the idea of you.

Alfred is also happy that Bruce has found someone who isn’t a criminal or assassin for once, even though they all know you could punch a guy to smithereens if you wanted too, thanks to your godly strength.

But your personality makes it clear that’s not something you want to do, so that gives you extra points in their books. They most likely use their knowledge from Diana and her parentage when it comes to you, incase you end up doing something a little too godly without realizing.

They’ve all been around many different kinds of people and beings, so I don’t think anything you do put them off. They’ll all just need time to warm up to you, and see with their own eyes that you truly do love Bruce, and that Bruce loves you back just as much.

It would take a while, as they were all trained by Bruce and are all suspicious of anybody and take forever to trust. It starts to make you think they’ll never like you, even when Bruce tells you they will, they just need time.

You know you’ve gained their trust when they start showing up in your apartment, be it after patrol, during the day, or any other time, they’re likely to just appear. This also means you end up learning a lot more first aid than you thought you’d ever need.

The last to trust you is Damian, but you can tell you scored a win when he demands you learn self-defense, as your form is horrible, and he drags you down to the cave to walk you through the basics.

Bruce feels like his heart could burst with love when he sees his family accepting you, and he couldn’t be any happier. The batfam is pretty damn happy too, as Bruce starts taking care of himself because of you.

Can’t have a date if he hasn’t slept in days, or if he’s covered in bruises or has broken bones. You probably end up spending a lot of time at the manor too, since Bruce can’t just go into town to spend time in your apartment during the day, or else the paparazzi would find out about the relationship almost immediately.

So, all in all, his kids would like you quite a lot after they got enough time to learn what kinda person you were, and what your morals were. They might even start seeing you as a safe person to go too when they need someone to talk too or just need some company.

[jinkicake]

I just went nuts reading all your arranged marriage tropes, they're so fucking good!! Would you ever write one for Xiao?

Forced / Arranged Marriage Trope

Xiao x Reader

A/N: OMGG Thank you!!!!! I'm glad you like them hehe,, YES I WOULD!!! I did write one for Xiao and here it is as a 'happy birthday xiao' post!!! He's my special triple-crowned ray of sunshine!!!!

WC - 1,313

~~~

“I’m going to the harbor today-” With half of your body out the front door, it completely shocks you to see the yaksha teleport from his place at the table to stand in front of you outside. 

“No.” The firm rebuttal is all Xiao settles for and he can tell that it doesn’t satisfy you in the least. 

“No?” You push back, purposely closing the front door behind you as you step outside with your husband. Now, you’re almost entirely pressed up against his chest and pinned back against the wooden door. Deep down, you wish this had some effect on him but you know it does not. 

In the handful of months you have been married to the immortal, you’ve discovered just how reserved he is. Xiao never lets his guard down around you, never lets himself falter in any sense of the way. He always appears to be looking past you instead of at you.

“I’m busy today,” His voice is soft, almost too quiet as it barely reaches your ears. 

“I can find my own way there. I’ve done it before,” Your attempt at offering him a reassuring smile is pathetic, your lips quiver into a frown. “I will be back before sunset.” 

“Sunset,” Xiao repeats and you watch as he glances up at the sun rising into the sky. By your own guess, you still have over half a day until the sun descends once again. He looks confused with the idea and internally thinks about it as his brows furrow together. 

Patiently you wait until he steps to the side, moving out of your way. 

You nearly cheer at the victory and skip all the way to the harbor. 

“Wait.” Xiao tightly grabs your wrist, underneath the fabric of your loose top. The feeling of his gloved hand against your bare skin is hot, it practically burns you. Your husband hands you your basket with a remorseful look toward the ground. 

You’re used to Xiao always looking like that, pitiful. 

Regardless, you brave him one more reassuring smile (one he does not look at) before walking in the direction of the harbor. A path that you follow every month and safely execute every single time. 

It’s a shame that today of all days, a group of hilichurls decided to camp on that path. 

You meant to go around them and walk a different way home but, you were spotted before you could think. All you can remember is the handful of monsters running towards you, knocking you to the ground as your basket fell with a thump. All of its contents now spilled. The way that you landed was wrong and your ability to stay calm is nowhere to be seen. It’s embarrassing how quickly you give in to your husband’s demands of reaching out to him. 

You can’t stop the way your heart yearns for him. 

“Xiao,” Your call for the yaksha leaves your lips as a whisper, barely louder than the breeze rustling through the leaves. Still, it’s loud enough for the adeptus to hear and he appears before you within a second. You barely have time to blink but, there he is. 

Xiao quickly looks around at the hilichurls surrounding you, his eyes zone in on the way you’re clutching your ankle. Anything after that fades into darkness as the edges of his vision turn white. 

You watch, speechless, as his spear appears out of thin air and a heavy mask covers his face. Plunge after plunge, spears spurt out of the ground and knock the various monsters off of their feet. Horror starts to wash over you as you notice them falling limp to the ground but even then they’re still not safe from your husband’s wrath. Back and forth, he darts between their bodies and pierces them through his jade spear. Only when his anger is satiated, he finally stops. 

Xiao’s chest rises and falls quickly, sucking in short breaths as he surveys the rest of the area around the two of you. He grimaces at the scene. 

Your husband takes a step toward you, every fiber of his being begs to be near you but he doesn’t give in to that desire. Xiao spins on his heels and turns away from you, arms tightly crossed over his chest as he begins to walk further away. He can’t be around you like this, with the weight of his sins dragging him lower to the ground with each step that he takes. 

You watch him pace quietly, you watch in silence. Never did you imagine that the adeptus cared for you so strongly, for him to lose control of himself in a fight like that. Calling what you saw a 'fight’ is an understatement. It was entirely one-sided, the hilichurls who made the grave mistake of passing you never stood a chance. 

“Xiao,” You call out to him again and this time, your voice is louder than before. His pacing comes to an abrupt stop and he’s in front of you before you can even process it. The spear falls to the ground beside you as his hands go to grab your face. Unlike his earlier movements, his touch is now gentle. Xiao is entirely soft with you as he runs his hands down to your shoulders, cupping your bicep, before landing on your swollen ankle. 

The grimace on his face only grows harder, eyebrows furrowed in worry as his lips press into a hard line. Before he gets the chance to apologize, you stop him.

“It’s okay, please don’t worry,” You’re wrong to ask this of him. How can he not worry about you? If only his friends could see him now.

The conqueror of demons bewitched by a mere mortal, a simple human. What would they think?

Xiao doesn’t care, he never would as he gently knocks his forehead against your own, his focus entirely on you. 

It seems you don't understand him at all as you stare at him now. His breathing is still quick, chest rising up and down with each inhale.

"It's alright," You softly hover your hands over his wrists before wrapping your fingers around the limb. "I'm sorry for worrying you." Xiao looks as if he winces at your words, nose slightly twitching before his expression falls flat again. You're used to this emotionless look.

But, his eyes now seem softer. His eyes hold emotion that you didn't even know was possible. Genuine care, worry, it's all there. Who knew all you had to do was stare at him to understand his feelings?

"Be more careful next time," He tries to come off as harsh, words slightly nipping at your cheeks but you fight it off with a small smile. The tight hold he still has on you and the feeling of his close proximity make it hard to take his lecturing seriously. "I want you to stay safe."

If you could kiss him you would, you could easily do it right now. All it would take to complete the action would be a slight tilt of your head but, you refuse to take advantage of the situation. With Xiao still winded, you don't want to catch him off guard. But, that doesn't stop you from brushing your lips against his cheek. It's an innocent gesture that immediately makes his cheeks turn bright red as a blush dusts over his skin.

Xiao's eyebrows furrow together as he stares at you and he almost looks as if he is trying to shrink in on himself while he tries to fight off the blush. He heavily contemplates his next words before shyly looking at you, except, there is nothing that resembles timidness in his eyes.

It's entirely hunger and with a soft voice, he calls out to you (pleads with you).

"Do that again."

[partycatty]

i’m cranking these out like it’s a full time job

can we get some fluff w johnny where we steal his shirt and he just finds it’s the cutest thing how we practically drown in it

love youuu 💙💙

hehe i wuv him sm

johnny cage > rain

notes: i may not be a skinny queen but swimming in one of his shirts would actually cure me of all ailments forever,.,.., WHY ISNT HE REAL!!!!!!!!! @spacepl4ant

[ masterlist ]

• you and johnny had grown attached since meeting at wu shi academy. sure, you knew about his existence because he's a celebrity, but you had gotten to know johnny as a person as well as his screen persona... not that there was much of a difference.

• regardless, tuesdays were "train til you drop" days, oftentimes fighting or practicing routines for literal hours until you couldn't feel your limbs. everyone dreaded it but knew deep down it was necessary. this particular tuesday just so happened to be raining like crazy.

• you and the boys sparred and swung attacks at each other until the sun set, everyone drenched in sweat and rainwater. you all sat underneath a dense tree. kung lao shook the water from his hair, raiden was wringing out his shirt, kenshi didn't seem to mind too much and johnny was... well, using the rainwater as some kind of strange gel as he slicked his hair back.

• "talk about training your ass off," he groans, stretching his arms. "i can't feel a single part of me." you jab his side, making him whine and swat at you.

• "you complain too much," you wring your hair out onto the grass. "that being said, i'm cold and hungry and tired and i wanna go back to the dorms so i can change."

• "i like your thinking," johnny waves off the group and the two of you skip down the gravel path to the students' sleeping quarters, where your separated but loosely divided rooms held what little items you were allowed to bring with you. it was a common practice to walk around campus together, sometimes even arm in arm as you playfully waltzed down the paths. the other boys gave you a lot of trouble for it, whining about the married couple you pretend to be. neither of you stood up to defend yourselves. if anything, johnny found it a nice idea.

• in truth, you drove him wild. he just split from his ex-wife, someone that wanted to place roots down and slow down in life. but you, you were spontaneous, fun loving, and an absolute firecracker. you set his heart going, and he couldn't help but harbor a little crush on you. he couldn't tell you that, not now anyway, with the tournament coming up he knew better than to put an extra weight on you.

• "earth to superstar—" you groan, waving your hand in his face and shaking him of his thoughts. he hadn't even noticed the two of you were already at your sleeping place, and how you're now half dressed in your undershirt and shorts. "just checked my stuff. i don't have anything clean or decent. guess i'll just be soggy for dinner."

• johnny can't seem to focus when you're in a damp tank top. "bummer."

• you frown. "this is when you offer one of yours."

• his eyes are distant. "my what?"

• "jesus, cage, what's gotten into you?" you playfully punch at his chest, which does little to affect his stance, and slide the door open to his own bed arrangement. bending over and shuffling through his obnoxiously nice luggage bags, you find one of his dress shirts. it's a fiery red with small flame patterns.

• "i didn't say you could go through my stuff," he warns you in a teasing tone, head hovering over your shoulder. "you might find something you won't like in there."

• "please," you puff as you flick the shirt of its wrinkles. "i've seen a few rose toys in my day." he chuckled, turning away for a moment.

• he gives you the decency to change by staring into the corner, shamefully dreaming of what you may look like without anything on. he shakes the thought violently as you let out a sigh of contention with the shirt.

• "i get that you're a big guy, but lord," you mutter, tugging and shifting the shirt on your body. "you're bigger than i thought."

• "that's what sh—" johnny turns around with a smirk that quickly drops to the floor. you were wiggling about trying to make the shirt look like your own, but johnny was just so pleased with how it sat on you as it was. his shoulders were broader, leaving the shirt to swim around your own and expose a good deal of your collarbone. his waist was small, giving you some grace by hugging your hips almost as if it was your own top. in that split moment, johnny ponders if the "you're so hot i got a nosebleed" trope was real, wiping the bottom of his nose.

• "suits you," he pulls himself together abruptly with his award-winning grin, patting your shoulder and careful to avoid making contact with your skin, as badly as he wanted to feel your warmth. "after all this, come by my place and i'll get your own wardrobe after my style, how's that?"

• you scoff with your hands on your hips, shifting your weight to one leg. johnny fights the physical stutter at your chest creeping out of the top. "mister playboy here giving out charities to us poor folk. you don't have to do that, really."

• his voice is deadly serious. "i want to."

• "you're an odd one," you point a finger, sitting onto his bed with crossed legs. you fall silent observing his thousand yard stare, how glassy his gaze seems to be when it falls on you. "why do you look at me like that?"

• "like what?" his mouth is dry, eyes fixated on yours.

• "like you wanna kiss me all the damn time," your answer is teasing, not entirely serious but you don't miss the twitch in his lip at your statement.

• "and if i do?" he's testing the waters, something about you in his clothes is making him more bold than he swore to be.

• his answer makes your heart flutter, not expecting a direct comment like that. it changed the air of the room, and you suddenly feel a little more suffocated and insecure under his analytical stare. "why don't you?"

• "because i'm worried i'll want more. you look great in my clothes, by the way."

[neteyamslovrr]

Hii, just wanna say luv your stories. I hope u can do a series if ever. I wanna suggest like aonung x fem reader. Like she is so super kind and pure like the opposite of the typical strong and gangster vibe. Its like she melt aonung heart with her kind words and pure actions, like innocent vibe. Any way, hope u can consider this hehe

Melt For You

summary: you were a pure soul, a kind heart that brought happiness to all of the metkayina, including the tough son ao'nung

1k words, fem!metkayina reader

──── ⑅*❀*⑅ ────

The entire village knew you as kind. A pure hearted girl whose joy filtrated through the entire village. Your smile made others smile. You sparked happiness within everyone’s heart.

Your heart-warming presence had its effect on everyone. Even the harsh son of the chief Tonowari. Ao’nung couldn’t deny that his lips slightly curved seeing your bright smile. Or the way his chest would flutter seeing you walk by and wave.

It made him melt, you made him melt. Like ice cream on a hot day dripping onto the pavement melt. If you and the stars were next to each other you’d be shining brighter. If there was a shooting star in the sky he’d still rather stare into the galaxies in your eyes.

He was laying on a hammock just outside where his family rested. The light breeze rocked him side to side lulling him to sleep. The warm sun shining on him filled his body with warmth. It was a time he felt truly calm.

You came up beside him, slightly bouncing on the tightly pulled fabric that formed a path over the sand. Resting a soft hand on his shoulder to not scare him too much.

“Ao’nung.” Your voice was gentle in his ear, like a perfect song he’d listen to for eternity.

His eyes immediately went to your crouched figure next to him. Your skin shimmered in the sun, and your hair softly blew in the wind. You were like a portrait, framed in the museum of his mind, each stroke of a brush created your beauty.

“Hi Y/N.” His voice was croaky, a tired morning voice, not yet ready to be spoken to the world.

“Would you like to come make some baskets with me?” His heart fluttered when you offered. The thought of you thinking of him made him feel like his heart grew wings and was ready to fly away.

“Of course, I would.” Getting off the comfort of the soft hammock he followed your enthusiastic figure down to near the shore.

You had laid out multiple piles of leaves to be handwoven into intricate baskets to hold anything from tiny trinkets to the produce of a successful hunt. He watched you take a seat on the warm sand and followed suit.

He’d follow you to the ends of the earth if you told him to. Your smile was intoxicating to him, your being was like an addictive substance he would never let go of.

He watched your fingers intricately weave with the leaves with such ease. You made everything just look so graceful, so perfect.

“Ao’nung you’ve barely started, do you need help?” The tenderness of your voice rung in his ears. It would’ve made him shudder, but he had at least a little presence of self-control.

“I don’t weave, I am a hunter Y/N. So yes… I would like some help.” His voice grew small at the end making you chuckle.

“You’re cute when you’re embarrassed.”

If he were a man before this statement no one would have ever known. Because he now felt like a puddle of mush on the sand to be washed away by the high tide.

He stammered a couple times before being able to get a retort back. “I’d hoped to be handsome.” Batting his eyelids in a joking way to cover the fact that his heart sounded like a drum.

“Fine, you can be handsome then.”

Ao’nung’s brain might have malfunctioned. The cogs of his brain stopped working and his hands froze looking up to you giggling figure. How could you think he was handsome when you were beauty itself.

“I need help with the basket Y/N.” Stern wasn’t exactly what his voice sounded like, but it was what he was going for.

“Oh yes. That’s right.” Grabbing his fingers softly you started to guide his hands in the detailed pattern. You watched him get continuously flustered as he gulped harshly whenever your hands would reposition themselves on his.

He was a mess in your touch. If he were to be a candle you’d be his flame. Flickering in the breeze slowly heating him up and melting him with your warmth.

“Y/N.” His voice was gruff, like he had been holding back his voice for a millennium.

“Are you understanding this pattern? You don’t seem to be listening.” A smile grew on your face as Ao’nung’s eyes tried to avoid anywhere but yours. He couldn’t meet them just yet. Not while his thoughts brewed in his mind that was filled of you.

“Y/N… I can’t focus on the basket. I can’t focus on anything right now.” Desperation echoed through his voice as looked up into your curious eyes. Your head tilted slightly waiting for him to continue explaining.

“I can only focus on you.”

Eyes wide you smiled at him. You weren’t oblivious to his feelings, and you hoped he wasn’t oblivious to yours. I mean who wouldn’t fall in love with the man. He was handsome, strong, funny and only a little daft.

“Then focus on me.” You tilted your head forward to get closer to his face. The proximity making the air between the two thick and filled with tension. Loving tension, tension that had been held back for years.

Ao’nung under his tough exterior and harsh nature was still a soft boy at heart. And you had cracked his shell.

The tension was sharp enough to cut with a knife, but no knife was needed as he softly put his lips to yours. Slowly kissing you, his eyes shut tight as his hands travelled to hold your cheeks.

This was ecstasy to him. Pure bliss. He was in a state of euphoria feeling you touch on him so delicately.

The way your lips melded together perfectly made your heart flutter as you hung your hands around his neck. You heart pounded in your chest and you kissed deeper to try and silence it.

Breaking away his lips were slightly swollen, licking the bottom lip in disbelief that he had kissed you. You had enchanted him completely and he was ready to be bewitched by you till the very end.

──── ⑅*❀*⑅ ────

authors note: hope you enjoyed this! and thankq sm for all the love every like reblog and comment i'm so grateful!

(i love your comments i'm kicking my feet reading them)

[sweetieviktor]

"salvation", feat. viktor.

summary: you come to his temple and ask the herald to heal you.

word count: 540.

content warning: season 2, arc 2 spoilers!!! please, don't read if you haven't seen the series yet! some descriptions might sound even a bit sexual but this is a sfw work! i just got a bit carried away while writing sensations lol. also, viktor may be a little ooc since im still getting used to him on the new season.

author notes: i rushed this one hehe but its finally complete! i really wanted to write something based on season 2 and the insane amount of people saying things as such "i would join his church wtvr" or "i may believe in god now" made me think why not write this kind of thing happening? so here it is :))))

you heard the rumors spreading through the lanes, there was someone, a “savior”, helping the ones in need – the shimmer addicts, the sick and the dying. and you thought that maybe the herald, as they called him, could save you.

so you walked down the busy streets, passing by empty shops and crowded brothels, finally descending in the dark alleys until light reached your eyes again, revealing a bright environment, made with metal, all with different colors and textures, molded into organic shapes, like it was meant to be like this all along. contorted yet so beautiful. outside the arch separating the commune and the commoners, there were people just like you, asking for help and hoping for his salvation.

a man walked towards you, the white clothing draped around him accentuating the swirly metallic patterns engraved on his body. “if you have something that could possibly harm someone, i must ask you to leave those here. this is a place of peace”, you discarded everything you could think of, emptying all pockets you had and he looked at you with empathy on his eyes, while you left behind everything that you used during your worst times, letting go of a part of your story, letting go of your past self. “now, you shall come. he is expecting you.”

the man walked in front of you, guiding your path between tents full of people, healthy people, all dressed in white. some adults were working while the kids were playing and you were in pure awe, it all seemed so... perfect. a miracle that happened on the underground.

“the herald is waiting, you must go”, he gestured towards a round temple-like structure, tilting his head and leaving you alone shortly after, moving to the arch again.

you followed his words, walking till you reached where the herald was, in fact, waiting for you. flowing hair and royal blue fabric covering his glowing purple skin, all adorned with golden accents. he looked ethereal, almost inhuman, a god-like figure, a saint. the kind of saint that could fix the broken. fix you.

you came closer and he extended his hand in your direction without saying a word – it was not needed, actually –, you could sense his intentions, it was kind of a vibration, radiating off his fingers. he wanted to save you. so, when he touched your forehead, the whole world seemed to fade with a burst of light and all you could do was to feel. feel his cold fingers pressing further in your skin, feel the jolts it sended through your body, the way it ignited something deep inside of you, how you couldn't breathe, the way your veins burned and your heart rate increased, but it didn't hurt at all, instead, you felt alive. the metal fusing with your body, the magic circling both of you, how you could feel him inside of you, changing, morphing and purifying your flesh. it felt like you ascended to heaven and came back different, new, evolved. gloriously evolved.

he pulled back his arm, allowing your body to fall to its knees, and he knelt too, leaning on his staff, looking at you with his emotionless iridescent eyes, “now, you need not suffer anymore.”

[giddyfatherchris]

📱skz texts — how they react/comfort you (when you’re going through a rough patch with a friend)

| including. felix, han, hyunjin

warnings. none!

a/n. who am i 😮 posting two days in a row??😮 hehe sorry it took so long for the second batch to come! bang chan and lee know will be next<3 hope you enjoy babies xx tagging my sweet bubs @httpdwaekki as promised hope they measure up to your expectations 🙈

a/n. also i know these are ‘out of order’ but… whatever:)

changbin, seungmin & i.n

bang chan & lee know

Felix

He was just about to get into the car when he got your text.

He hefted up the last bags in before he smiled, knowing only from your words that you would be so happy with the surprise he had prepared for you. As he drove to your school, he reminisced on the last few weeks. 

His knuckles turned white from gripping the steering wheel as he remembered the first night you had arrived at the studio, crying. Your cheeks were red, and you looked so disoriented. You explained in between sobs that you fought with one of your best friends. School was easy for you, you had to put in your fair amount of work, but it did come to you easier than for other people, aka them. They let that jealousy grow and grow and had it become a nasty tumor hogging everything in its path. Until that one night when they held your success up against you, and it all exploded, leaving nothing in its wake. 

He tried calming you down, but it was one of those moments in his life when he felt the most unhelpful, helpless, and worried. You seemed to be reassured by his touch, but your breathing was still labored, a constant stream of tears flowing down your cheeks. He held you closer, thanking the universe he had been alone practicing, but he knew even if the whole group had been there, he would have let everything down to be there for you. 

Releasing his grip, he breathed through the memories and hung to the truth that it was now over. Yes, you still had to see that person from time to time in school, and they were still being incredibly pissy, but you no longer were hurt by their behavior and attempts at screwing you. Thanks to many, many nights spent with Felix, you talked everything through, and he helped you process the situation. He was so proud of the way you handled things, and since it had been a while since you two had the opportunity to have a special date he impulsively decided to organize this getaway. He smiled as he pulled to the curb, noticing your confused smile.

"Hey you, isn't tonight a recording night?"

"Not for me. We're going away," he answered with an enigmatic smile. He nodded for you to get in, "It's a surprise. Yes, everything is arranged. Yes, your bags are packed, and yes, I'm totally free to go."

You narrowed your eyes as he answered all your questions without you having to ask them. "And, where are we going?"

"I'm afraid I can't reveal that information yet."

You rolled your eyes, secretly delighted. "Okay then, can I ask why?"

At that, he settled and grabbed your hand. "Because I'm proud of you. I know it hasn’t been easy for you lately, but you've handled everything so well and managed to get out of it stronger. There was not much I could do to help, but I can do this. I think you deserve this little getaway for all the hard work you've been putting in."

"Lix..." your gaze softened with his kind words.

"No complaints will be accepted at this moment. You just have to sit back, relax, and let me handle it, sounds good?" He brought your hand to his lips, softly kissing it while his eyes scanned your reaction. 

"Sounds very good." You smiled back.

He kissed your joined hands once more before putting the car in drive. 

You let a beat of silence pass before you tried again with a pleading tone. "You really won't tell me where we're going?" 

He laughed at your impatience. "No baby." 

A smile wouldn't leave his face as he imagined your reaction when you would pull up in the entryway of the little cottage he had booked near the sea. He could already picture your eyes growing in size and your excited screams when you would see the blue waves and sandy beach. Felix felt his heart strain under all the love he felt for you, as he promised himself to keep doing these little things for you forever.

Han

He already knew everything about the situation happening with one of your friends. Honestly, he had a hard time understanding why they were suddenly turning against you. But then again, he always had a bad feeling about them and never thought they treated you half as well as you deserved. 

Still, he hated seeing you so affected by it. He understood why, but he hated feeling so unhelpful. He listened when you needed to vent and tried supporting you as much as he could, but he always felt like it would never be enough. So, when you texted him before heading home from work, hinting at how hard today had been, guilt started gnawing at him.

You got home about 20 minutes later. He was already waiting for you at the door. As soon as he saw the tired look on your face, the dark circles slowly settling under your eyes, his heart ached, but before you could notice his sad puppy eyes, he masked them with his warmest smile.  

"Hey pretty, how are you?" Immediately he took your bag from your hands and helped you take off your coat before wrapping you in a hug.  

"Could be worse, but could be better too," you sighed. "They were extra petty today, I'm not sure how to deal with this anymore."

He pulled back to grab your face, staring at you lovingly as he did. You looked back at him, the sight of his plush cheeks and chestnut eyes already easing the pain in your chest. "But, I'll be okay. I just want to think of something else. If you're still up for it, a movie night would be amazing." 

His face lit up with a sweet smile as he kissed the tip of your nose. "You can head up for a quick shower. I already started the heater and laid down some clothes for you. I'm taking care of everything."

As soon as you disappeared in the corridor he started creating the perfect setup. He made sure to bring all your favorite blankets, pillows, and plushies on the couch. When he heard the shower start he was already preparing hot beverages for the both of you, along with a few of your favorite snacks. He proudly looked at the final result, dimming the lights to create the perfect cozy ambiance. Han would have done anything you would have asked of him tonight. Still, as he looked at his work, a proud smile illuminated his features. As outgoing as he was, he always liked when you said you would rather stay in with him than go out. 

Your soft steps on the floor snatched his attention away from his thoughts. Your hair was still wet from your shower, your face bare, and as planned, you wore the matching pajamas he had laid out for you. You were now both rocking an adorable fuzzy set. His heart tightened at the sight of you, looking so relaxed and cozy. 

"Since you said you didn't know what to watch, I made a little selection."

You snuggled up next to him, listening to his suggestions before adding one of your own. "While I was in the shower I was thinking we could watch one of our comfort movies. If you want to, of course."

"Sure, what were you thinking of?" he asked as he handed you the remote and placed his arm around your shoulders to pull your body closer to his. 

You quickly typed in the movie title, and he felt a smile tug at his lips as he read it. "Are you sure you want to watch Howl's Moving Castle again? I made you watch it just last week."

You nodded confidently, "It's the first movie we've ever watched together and it gives me the best comfy vibes. So if you're down for it...?"

He only pressed play in answer, made sure you were snug in your fort of blankets, kissed the side of your head as you settled against him and the familiar soundtrack started playing.

"I wish I could do more to help you with this whole thing. I hope this still lessens your burden, at least a little. I'm sorry I can't do more." He whispered a few seconds into the movie.

You turned back to look at him, his hair falling in soft curls. The worried expression on his face made you want to hug him as tight as you could. Maybe then you would be able to squeeze it out of his body.

"It's perfect. I couldn't ask for a better partner to go through all this. You do not have to apologize. It's all more than enough." you kissed his plump lips tenderly, "You will always be more than enough." You added before focusing on the movie again, not seeing the beautiful smile now visible on the young man’s face.

Hyunjin

He stared at you in disbelief as you dropped to the floor from extenuation and frustration. You had barely closed the door that you laid your head on the wall and closed your eyes. Your handbag hung limply from your hands, and your coast rustled and creased from the awkward position you were in. He knew what this was about as it wasn't the first night you had assumed that position. The first time you did, a few days ago, he had panicked, thinking you had lost consciousness or were sick. Even if it was nothing of the sort, his worry was still called for when silent tears streamed down your face. That's when you first explained what you were going through, that you had made new friends at your workplace only to discover they were associating with you to steal your ideas. Hyunjin remembers your smile and shining eyes when you first came from work telling him you had made new friends. When you discovered they stole your ideas and presented them to your boss first, that dream had cruelly shattered. You had fought back and proven the ideas were yours, but still, the situation at work was horrible as they had decided to make it hell for you as revenge. Hence the exhausted slide down the door every night.

He crouched next to you, a silent support. "I'm sorry, give me two more minutes, and then I promise to get up and get in my pajamas." You sighed heavily.

"Can I ask you a question?" he softly spoke. You looked up before nodding silently. "If the situation has been solved, if you still have your job, and if your boss is happy you spoke up about it. Why do you still feel like this? I'm not trying to judge or anything I promise. I'm only trying to understand." 

You thought about his question, analyzing his features, so soft and open. "It's just so- conflicting? In a way? I mean, I feel angry at them for doing this to me, but I also feel guilty for ratting them out, even if they deserved it. And I'm angry at myself for not seeing through their schemes. It's just a lot of contradictory feelings. Plus, it hurts... I really thought they liked me at first. It hurts to know they never did, it doesn't help all the little voices telling me I'm worth dirt. I don't know, I've just been stuck in this stupid loop for a week now... I'm not sure what to do to get out of it." 

Even if he wasn't touching you, Hyunjin's attentive stare felt just as intimate. You loved that about him, how present he always was. You knew his silence was no indicator of his level of care. He stared a second more before suggesting, "You know what, I don't think you should get changed. I think we should do something different tonight. What would you say to go out?"

"What are you thinking?" you cautiously asked.

"I'm thinking you need a change of scenery. I think we should go out, have a drink, go for a little exploring, or we could even go to the amusement park! I think changing it up could help you get out of this loop you say you feel stuck in."

You stared at him in silence, weighing in the pros and the cons, still a spark lit your gaze. He dropped his chin on his knees and stared at you with his attentive eyes. You knew if you said you didn't want to go he would support you, but you also knew Hyunjin had that innate sense sometimes where he knew exactly what you needed before you even did. 

"What do you say angel?" he finally asked, slowly reaching out to wrap his slender fingers around yours. 

You simply nodded a slow smile spreading on your lips. For the first time this week, you felt the familiar pang of excitement.

You settled on going to the amusement park as it had been the thing that sparked the most interest in you. Your skin prickled as you neared the gate, it felt so refreshing, so new. You were about to head in when you heard a few familiar voices calling your name. 

You turned around to see Bang Chan, Lee Know, Changbin, Han, Felix, Seungmin, and I.N approaching you, broad smiles on their faces. You weakly waved at them as you looked at your boyfriend, a proud smile already on his face.

"I thought you needed to be reminded just how appreciated and liked you are. I'm truly sorry it turned that way with those assholes, but please do not let it make you doubt your worth. You are surrounded by people who love you and think you are the most amazing human being. Me on top of that list." He leaned in to kiss your temple while he pulled you in for a quick hug and you felt your heart overflow with joy at the gesture he had pulled and the seven excited boys joining you.

You truly were blessed with the most amazing people.

[lazyjellyfish300]

oceans of eternity that await

CW: minors dni, non graphic smut. gender of reader unspecified except for mention of wearing a dress.ungodly amounts of fluff and borderline cheesy romance. Words: 2k

A/N: Happy 27th Birthday to me hehe. 🎂 I hope you enjoy this most sickly romantic blurb. @melpomenes-garden ty my love for the breakfast nook idea 😭

Kento Nanami proposed to you in a wine vineyard on a late afternoon as the sunset began to dip below the horizon.  The sprawling orchards of effervescent green were overshadowed by fiery bursts of marigold, scarlet, and saffron at the heart of fall in the blooming dawn of October. The air was crisp, rejuvenated by the thick harvest and greenery painting the wine valley's floor of Yamanashi. 

The tawny wool of the blanket he wrapped around your shoulders began to quell the rising goosebumps on your arm, tucking you into him as you scoured the little vineyard, all five senses engaged as you took in the sights the fruitful garden setting gifted you. Something electric that was stirring in the calm, chilly autumn air of tonight, reminiscent of a similar autumn day a year ago when you first met, told you that he would be asking you last. 

He leads you down an offset stone laden path, intermittent pockets of unshielded pewter sky from the overarching gangly mauve branches of Japanese Maple trees allow baby showers of raindrops to leak through. Your lover brings himself closer to you while you let out incessant giggles. 

Like two kids in love, you steal away to a hidden juniper garden, marked by a serene pond of koi that are peacefully swimming, seeminglly unphased by the budding rain showers that began to relentlessly pelt against the glassy surface of the waters. 

"I loved today. I wish all days could be just like it." Fingers ghosting over the scars of his own before you gently lean into him and he uses a pillar behind him to balance you both. 

He looks at you fondly, his fingers mapping the outline of your chin before they softly tuck away a piece of hair by your ear. "We'll have many more, darling, I promise you that."

"Is what I think is about to happen, happening tonight?" 

An unmistakable sign of mischief glimmers just momentarily on his face, despite his left eye being concealed away by the black line of cloth. 

"And just what do you think is happening, my dear?" 

"You brought me away from our expensive wine tour. We're alone in this secret garden like something out of a romantic period piece..." You smirk, brought on by the tiniest buzz thanks to the wine. "I'd say you were going to ask me something." 

"Haha, well, you would be right. There is something I was going to ask you." 

"Well, let's hear it." 

"Well, I can't right now." 

"Why not?"

"I was enjoying the buildup. Kind of takes the magic out of it when you put me on the spot. The spontaneity makes it more special." Kento tsks. 

"You and spontaneity? Well now I definitely know its happening tonight." 

He huffs playfully and pulls you closer against his chest, the steady thrums of his heart muted by the nighttime crickets as you stare silently for a moment. 

"What are you thinking about?" He murmurs. 

"I'm thinking about how we met." 

He smiles. "Why that memory in particular, darling?" 

"Mmm, not sure. But if everything I think is happening tonight is happening, it just seemed like a good one to look back on. Kinda puts things into perspective, you know? Crazy how time flies." 

"I would agree with that, darling." 

"It makes me miss the farmhouse." You state, sounding far away in your thoughts. 

"You do?" 

"Yeah... I was thinking we should go back. Even though we're there every few weeks." 

"Hmm." He pauses. "I think that's a good idea." 

"I know we've talked about it a bit, but I'm really liking the idea more and more of living there full time." 

"Are you?" 

"Yeah, I really am, Ken. What do you think?" 

"What do I think?" His gaze became pensive as it fluttered back to the pond of koi for a moment, but not an ounce of tenderness was lost before he brought it back to you. 

"Well, I don't think it's where we live so much as how we both feel about it. We have everything we need to make it happen. Now it's just a matter of doing." 

"You're right. It won't be easy at first. There's still a few things we'll need to fix up. But that's why we got each other, right?" A gentle nudge against his hip. 

"Right, darling." A playful nudge he answers back. 

"I have a lot of little things I wanna add too. Like the breakfast nook." 

"Haha, I had a feeling that one was on the list." 

"Well, can we?" 

"I won't say yes right away. But I'm not going to say no. You forget that I'm not an architect, darling..." He leans down to pepper your jaw in kisses, pausing at the corner of your mouth. 

"But give me some time, and maybe we can make it happen." 

"Thanks, honey. I love you." You shift just slightly to capture his lips dead on in a chaste peck. 

"I love you too."

"No, I don't think you get it." 

Kento raises his eyebrows. "Hmm, what do you mean, darling?" 

"It's kinda silly." 

"I'm sure it is. But I want to hear it anyway."

"Well, moments like these with you, sometimes I feel like I love you so much it actually hurts. Or is that too dramatic?" 

"Mmm, I suppose it is slightly dramatic. But I do know what you mean, darling..."

He holds you close, his gentle words exiting carefully all while his hand rose and fell steadily with the calming motion of playing with your hair. "In times like these my love for you does sometimes reach the point it feels like it's aching. Only because losing you is something that I do fear. But, at the same time, the things that I've gone through where I did lose a lot have made it so I don't live in constant worry of what's on the other side." 

"What do you mean, baby?" 

He purses his lips slightly in meaningful reflection as he speaks. 

"I mean this certainty, the strength and surety of what we have make it so I'm not scared of it. I do feel fear, but I treat it like a visitor passing through. The here and now right now with you, that's what makes it special." 

"Hmm that's interesting, darling." 

"Yeah? How so?" 

"I mean in most romances they always talk about infinity and forever. You think there's beauty that we have finite time? Even if we could be in love in multiple universes?"

"I certainly think so. But it's not all too far fetched to not believe we're the only timeline out there that exists." He hums. "But it will be the only one you and I will know of in the time we exist here together. And so what we do with it right now, that's what really matters." 

The love you feel in your heart feels like it could overtake you all at once with every enriched thought that fell from his mouth. 

"But I feel like I was meant to love you such a long time ago..." You whisper your undying love, gently shaking under the gravity of your emotions. "Even when we were kids. I wish I could have spent all that time with you." 

Adoration wells in his heart like a breaking dam as he gazes into your eyes and grips you a little more tightly. 

"It wouldn't have been enough, darling. But we're meant to love each other right now." He whispers. "I'll reclaim all the time I lost by loving you slowly every single day. Like the pages of my books." 

His loving gaze is unyielding and constant as the beginnings of the stars that now hang above you, even as he gets down on bended knee, his mother's ring in a tiny velvet box he brings out of his pocket. 

"Marry me, darling. Let's get married and live this life we've got together. What do you say?" 

And at that moment you swear a pair of stars among the sky of eternity became burned for you and him.  

"How can I say anything but yes, Ken?" 

And with that, the first promise of many was signed with the precious contract of a tender kiss only the quiet life of the garden bore witness to. 

The rain laden breeze, and now fully descended air of the nighttime hung around you as you cling to one another.

"Well, what now?" You whisper. 

"Well, I'm usually a fan of savoring these things, darling. But when it comes to you..." He brushes his nose playfully against yours. "I already know those gears are turning in your head. What are you planning, my love?" 

"Well there's the wedding. I still want to get married in that chapel by the sea." 

He chuckles. 

"What?" 

"Ah, two non particularly religious people getting married in a chapel. It's ironic. But, I am a fan of honoring certain traditions. It feels right to me. And if it feels right to you, then let's do it." 

"Let's do it." You affirm with a beam of your smile. "But then there's the issue of the reception."

"Oh, you don't want it to be just us?" 

"Well, I was thinking about Yuji, Megumi, and Nobara. I'd want to have something where they can celebrate with us too, don't you? They mean so much to you, it wouldn't feel right if we didn't celebrate with them too, you know?" 

He hums, all of his affection focused in a scarred hand that cups your cheek. "That's very thoughtful of you, darling... I think a nice celebration with our close friends and family would definitely be appropriate..." He leans in and kisses the top of your ear. "And I do love seeing you in white." 

"Haha, making excuses to see me in a white dress?" 

"You read my mind, darling." 

----

You married Kento Nanami on a chilly spring morning in March that glistened with the lingering petrichor from two days old rain in a little chapel by the sea, only an hour's drive from your house in the countryside you would eventually call home. 

And love was just a noun until you met him.  

As you looked at him across the altar, even after vowing I do, you swear you could not be any more close. 

Even so as you could pick the stars that built up the tiny galaxies in the universe of the flecks of gold intermingled with the burning brown in his eyes.

Even though you pledged until death do you part, eternity was being forged in a grander scheme with every step you sauntered forward together. 

And as your head gently hit the pillows of your bed that night almost a lifetime away in Kuantan, you became one with another that the separate maps of your hearts were indiscernible. Your breathy sighs and pleas and his low murmurings as he buried the the most intimate part of him conjured by his love to new depths inside of you. 

Depths so deep that you couldn't tell where you ended and he began, so that the very fabric of the foundation that traced the inner linings of your souls became etched in each other.  You were inevitably branded onto his heart and in his skin that the most relentless storms couldn't wash away.

Only immortality could come close to portraying the unconditional tie that fused you together. 

You were consumed in the sea of your love over, and over again as you gave yourself to him, the seconds melted into hours. It reeled you like the aftershocks of heaven. 

Forever would shrivel in comparison. 

And so, you stood together on that beach, wrapped up tightly in each other, and in the joyful beginnings of newlywed bliss that barely delved underneath the inviting surface of the heavenly blue oceans of eternity that awaited you.

Foamy waves of the South China Sea barely cascading over your feet, angels observing as you scored yet another sacred promise to undying memory with a kiss.  

----

@actuallysaiyan

[lightlycareless]

i just read ur reader piercing naoya's ear fic and i was wondering can u write smth about naoya finding out reader got their belly button pierced? xx

Hello!!!

Did someone say smut? because that's what we got. I think hehe. I'm still somewhat uncomfortable writing it but you know what they say!! practice makes perfect 🙈🙈🙈 Anyways, thank you so much for your patience and for sending this ask!!!!! 🥺 it took me a while to get an idea of what I wanted to write, but here we are :> I hope its to your liking!

Also, I believe this is the fic anon is referring to :> If not then gee I've written more about piercings that I've ever expected lol.

warnings: smut. MINORS DNI. you get a piercing and decide to... act weird about it. naoya does not like it :)

Happy reading!

How you managed to hide your piercing from his ever-wandering hands is a commendable feat, even after all went down, you still don’t know how you did it.

Though all this could’ve been easily avoided in the first place if you hadn’t convinced yourself to do it after seeing a particular photoshoot and thinking “I can look just as good.”

As well as believing this would further spice up your life with Naoya. Like it wasn’t spiced enough!

But only after you surpass both your embarrassment and heal; unfortunately, the former only growing stronger and stronger upon realizing this was far more than what you bargained for.

You initially try to play it off as being sick whenever he gets too close. Not in the mood, even. “I’m dizzy.” “My head hurts.” “I’m on my period.” Are just a few of the excuses you deployed.

And your loving husband, always the (surprisingly) patient one, takes it, because he supposes that for his ever-willing wife he could allow these exceptions. Thus, right after you reject him, he cuddles up to you and falls asleep.

However, his tolerance quickly ends when understanding this wasn’t to be a 1-week occurrence. But rather, a monthly endeavor that soon turned his everyday into utter punishment.

Naoya frantically attempted to make sense of it all. Think that perhaps the reason behind your distance was because of some unknown issue that troubled your mind; you always tended to keep things to yourself, even if he’s countlessly assured you he could fix all of your problems—he just needs to know them first.

…

But even then… Naoya could not understand how easily you were able to detach from him. Because to him… to do so meant death itself.

The problem wasn’t him. It couldn’t be. Naoya had more than enough means to keep you satisfied however you needed it, and he made sure of that too.

Thus, at the lack of answers, he begins to feel threatened. Intimidated. Replaceable.

And we all know how Naoya gets when feeling such way.

“Princess, you will explain yourself—now.” Naoya demands, his abrupt, towering presence forcing you deeper into the bedroom, nowhere to escape.

“I don’t—I don’t know what you’re talking about!” You gasp, a blatant lie that only served to bury you deeper into your mistakes.

“Oh, no. I think you know exactly what I’m talking about, mochi.”

If you hadn’t transgressed Naoya, you would’ve found his approach very, very inciting.

Unfortunately, even if you wished to go down that path, your dear husband was far too infuriated by your ridiculous behavior to consider anything else that wasn’t confronting you.

“Why are you avoiding me? And don’t even try to get out of this one, I’ve been patient enough.”

You knew this moment was fast approaching; only a matter of time before you ran out of excuses… or patience to abuse.

There’s only so much he’s willing to tolerate before he… well, you don’t want to think about it.

“I’m just… I just— I don’t know how to tell you…” you breathe.

“How to tell me what?”

“Do you promise to not get angry at me?”

“I’m not sure if I can promise that.” He frowns. You swallow.

“…at least not too much?”

Naoya squints his eyes, as if considering it. You knew he wouldn’t, you were in the wrongdoing after all.

“Just don’t judge me, please.” You eventually profess, and after taking one last breath, you reach for your obi and untie it, careful to not reveal too much but just enough to show the bare skin of your abdomen—

And the shiny addition to your navel.

Naoya couldn’t hold back his laughter.

“Is that all, princess?” He chuckles loudly, like you just told him the funniest joke he’s ever heard. You do not find it amusing. “Is that the reason why you’ve been avoiding me??”

“Y—yeah I—I guess!” You frown, cheeks burning hot. “Don’t make fun of me, I was really hesitant whether to tell you or not!”

“Really? For this silly little thing?”

“It wasn’t silly to me, Naoya!” you cry.

“Alright, alright—I didn’t mean to upset you.” He says, curiously attempting to reach for your piercing before you smack him away. “Hey!”

You glance away, placing your obi back in place.

“Come on now, you don’t have to hide it from me.” Naoya smirks, stepping closer. “Hey, princess—”

“It’s still healing.” You quietly explain; a partial reasoning behind your dismissal.

“Ah, so you’re telling me you wouldn’t like me to help you?” He enticed, you retreated further into the wall; if possible. “I have more than enough experience with piercings, there’s no one in the estate more qualified than me.”

“Don’t misinterpret my words, you know I didn’t mean... that.” You caution, though he spoke nothing but the truth.

“Is that a yes?” Naoya continues, placing his fingers under your chin and pulling your gaze back to his.

“…only if you don’t make fun of me.” You eventually agree, and he seals the deal with a chaste kiss on your lips, followed by a tight hug that has you whining in pain. “Na—Naoya!”

“Oh, princess, I’m sorry.” Naoya says, quickly releasing you. “You poor thing… is this how it’s been since?”

You nod.

“Well, you’re in good hands now; and luckily for you, I know just the right thing that will ease your pain.”

Had you known Naoya would completely dedicate his time to make sure you weren’t passing any discomfort, then maybe you would’ve told him of your small endeavor from the very beginning.

It just… to see him so enthralled by your impulsive decision, you couldn’t help but wonder how different everything would’ve been if you had decided otherwise.

As well as how much you exaggerated your worries; hadn’t your husband consistently proven how far he’s willing to go just to make you happy?

From whatever craving you desired (but nothing that would hinder your healing process) to the endless kisses he’d place on your navel—as if he weren’t sufficiently hypnotized by your body, your piercing heightened that desire—Naoya was all yours. Completely allured.

But mostly by the rush he got at being the only person to know of the debauchery that hid beneath the pristine, meek and obedient look you carried around the estate; fitting to the wife of the future leader of the Zen’in— the same woman many admire by her gentleness, how you’re his living contrast, his better half; never daring to be as outrageous at he is!

If only they knew the truth.

No. It was better if they didn’t. He’d fervently keep all this enjoyment for himself.

“St—stop, Naoya!” you cry, squirming beneath his touch that roamed across your body, caressing the places where he’d like to taint next, such as your now sensitive nipples, which he’d squeeze and pinch incessantly for you to suffer in the following days.

Or your twitching clit, grazing it with no particular desire outside of tormenting you with pleasure. Remind you who really was in charge of your mere existence.

Yet, nothing compared to the way his cock plunged into your warm, tight walls—choking him so painfully exquisite, Naoya can’t help but moan whenever you do. Keeping your hips steady as he gives you all that he could not these past few months—blinding your sight with stars when bruising that one spot that always has you coming undone, which you desperately grasp whenever possible, wanting to steady that agonizing sensation.

Because as cruelly as your husband teased you, you equally desired to pour out all the desire you bottled up by a silly fear, let him enjoy the gift that was always meant for him. Your role in this marriage.

“It—it hurts—Naoya—!” you whimper, a profession Naoya was quick to interject as a lie given the way your cunt refused to stop milking him.

“Hmmm, it does, doesn’t it?” He breathes against your skin, placing ardent kisses across your cheek down to your neck as his hands reached for one of your nipples once more, giving it a particularly tight pinch that made you squeal.

“N—Naoya—!”

“Would it hurt here too, if you got a piercing?” he ponders curiously, another wave of excitement travelling all the way down to his member, which you felt grow even harder, bigger at the thought. Hips unwavering as if he were attempting to drill the proposition deeper and deeper into you.

Naoya was pretty much depraved when it came to your breasts, his hands or mouth always on them whenever possible; So, with this, you fear your chest will never know peace again.

But it doesn’t frighten you. In fact, you are willing to entertain such an idea. Endure the pain that follows this decision—for him to completely succumb to you.

“Would you do that for me, princess?” Naoya gasps, plummeting faster, stronger into you in that familiar sloppy way that signaled to you he was dangerously close.

You instinctively, as if second nature, wrap your legs around him, keeping him close, right there, followed by the agonizing tightness of you walls that soon make his voice tremble—stopping any silly consideration he might’ve had of spilling his seed anywhere else except where you deserved… though Naoya never entertained otherwise.

“Show how much you truly love me, by—by doing this?” he gasps, firmly shutting his eyes to not urge his release at the sight of your bouncing breasts.

“N—Naoya—!” you gasp, pulling him closer to you and captivating his lips in a heated kiss. Moaning into his mouth as your tongues intertwined with one another. “Ah—Naoya~! I—”

“Ple—Please, Y/N!” He suddenly begins to beg, now delirious with pleasure. “Please—Please do it for me, princess, you don’t know how happy this would make me—how much I wanted this!”

The combination of your devotion, your sweet whines, the tightness of your core, and the eagerness in the markings in his back is his ultimate downfall, just a few more thrusts and the first spurts of his burning seed spill deep within you—ropes of white covering your walls which you welcome almost jealously, as if wasting the smallest drop was the highest sacrilege.

And to a longing mother, it just might—but beneath your desires of a family, you wished to welcome back the husband your actions had unwillingly estranged: his intoxicating scent, the strength he’s amassed throughout years thanks to his strict routine, his burning touch tracing your skin with invisible lines…

But most importantly, his love, which you tightly held onto as he came down from his high, resting on your chest as he lets out a deep sigh, still plugged into you, just as he’d done the past few times in hopes his seed will finally take root. Naoya wishes to be a father too, and the thought always makes your heart flutter.

It’s the look of a man well satisfied. A man that has wholeheartedly committed to you, body and soul…

A husband that deserves to be rewarded, consoled. Urging you to speak coherently for the first time that night and let him know he no longer stands alone.

“I’ll do it.” You say, Naoya snuggles closer to you.

“Hm?”

“The piercing thing. I’ll do it, if that’s what you want.”

“The… oh.” Naoya blinks, moments of his passion suddenly flash back to his mind. Wouldn’t be the first time he’s spoken at the heat of the moment, nor the last.

“Do you really… want me to do that?” you murmur hesitantly. “Get another piercing?”

And for a few seconds, the two remain in complete silence, whether enjoying the intimacy he’s been cruelly deprived from, or considering your words… it didn’t matter. Neither wanted this moment to stop.

It was simply… perfect. Just the two, with each other’s heartbeat to fill the quietness in the room—and the doubts in your mind.

“No.” Naoya eventually confesses, placing a kiss on your skin. “I do not.”

Because as much as the idea enthralled him, he didn’t want to force anything on you. Certainly not for a piece of metal.

“You’re perfect to me like this. With or without piercings.”

Your heart tightens at his words.

“You don’t mind the one I already have, then?” you ask, he laughs. As if it hadn’t just shown you.

“No. Not at all; I didn’t think you could be any hotter, and yet, here you are… proving me wrong, my adorable lava cake.”

You frown at the gross nickname, playfully smacking him on the shoulder.

“Hey! What’s with the aggression?” He jests, but you simply hug him tighter, closer to you. “Is that how you treat the husband that had so lovingly filled you with his seed—"

“Shut up, don’t be crude!” You say, resting your head on his. After a few moments of silence, calming down, you declare: “…I love you.”

Naoya lets out a breathy chuckle, succumbing to your affection moments before his slumber.

“I love you more, my little mochi.”

Oh, how could you ever doubt his affection?

I always suspected Y/N to be more of a tattoo kind of person; idk why, but I think it would complement each other nicely too. Naoya is with the piercings, and you with the tattoo's. We all known which one he'd like.

Also, I will never tire myself of writing Naoya as completely gross with you. Like, the mere thought of you hiding such a simple piercing from him is OOF he loves it. I mean, without the constant pushing him away lol But yeah, watching you walk around in one of those traditional yukatas with your hair all pulled up in the most appropriate way ever, looking to appease the Zen'in only for him to be like:

"Yeah, you see her? No one would suspect my wife has her nipples pierced." IS SUCH a HUGE turn on to him. Maybe you do get them later on, who knows? 😏

Anyways, I hope you liked this small thing I wrote 🫣 I shall continue to strive improving my smut skills, sometimes I get so inspired, sometimes... I don't even know what I'm doing :'(

Well, still; I wish y'all enjoy it. Take care and hope to see you soon ❤️❤️❤️

[unreliable-narrator-2845]

massive info dump abt an au im working on below ( +art)

some doodles from an au im working on w/ some friends... it's kind of a riff off of both the portal swap au and mr bill pines au... essentially, the brothers are swapped from the beginning - stanley is seen as the smart, successful one, and ford a bit of an outcast black sheep of the family, seen as bad luck because of his extra fingers. stanley is the good, normal one, the one with all the people skills, and ford is the 'brute' slacker, and seen as far more stupid than he really is. stanley is the one who invented the perpetual motion machine - and ford destroys it on purpose out of frustration and jealousy, and is the one that gets kicked out.

ford goes down the path of crime, like stan did, but he's a little more, uh... intense about it. he can't go off of people skills, he's gotta bring actual stuff to the table, so he travels to weirdness pockets (smaller than gravity falls) and basically turns the whole criminal underground on its head by his uncanny ability to harness this stuff. people do not like him, but he's VERY useful, so he gets to live in constant fear of whether people doing deals with him are going to leave him alone after or kill him after, since he can't tell which is which.

unlike stanley, who i think would absolutely hesitate to actually do severe physical violence (past beating people up) even while during his homeless years, i think ford wouldn't hesitate as much. ford has absolutely killed people. he will kill again.

how i see it going down is that bill, doing his usual dealings and such, has one of his hosts killed by ford while he's in it after ford witnesses a crime. he goes "haha! oh shit! a witness!" and then gets his neck fucking snapped the moment he advances on him. bill is Not Particularly Pleased, until he actually gets into ford's dreams, and is... impressed.

i am a simp for bill being a simp - in this au bill doesn't bother manipulating him, he wants this rugged badass to be his husband NOW. when they make a deal, ford writes a paper contract that they regularly update. bill and ford have a very mutual deal, to say the least, and they get married - and ford is the one to take his last name, since he cut contact with the family who kicked him out, so he's mr. stanford cipher (which i think is a good au name?). stanley is the one w/ the middle name filbrick in this au btw.

behind the eye scar: ford got into some shit with the cartel. this happens after his and bill's marriage, but what bill can do is limited w/o being physically present, so he has to watch in horror as they torture ford as he tries to find a way to get his husband out. this is the inciting incident that makes him particularly antsy about getting a portal up and going.

meanwhile stanley in gravity falls comes across an interesting cave...

trivia:

bill could minorly heal the eye, but only so much. the eye is now permanently bill's, or at least in his coloration. ford keeps it closed, but it opens fully when bill is fully possessing him. their contract details that bill can come and go only with ford's explicit permission. they often have a half-possession going, where bill can enhance ford and take only mild control, if any at all.

ford has 4 depictions of bill across his body, all tats. he has lots of vague triangle tattoos also, and the portal shape on his back. bill is fond of possessing the depiction on his throat, which he can move around as he pleases

bill's priorities during the initial writing of the contract were extremely funny. ford was trying to figure out the exact details of mind access, body access, etc, and bill was just gushing about "WE NEED RINGS!!!" and "i get to take you on 4 dates before i propose hehe"

stanley went to BMU and was dormmates w/ fiddleford. they are covertly (not legally) married (because 1980s) and went to gravity falls together. stanley and ford both have an interest in cryptozoology in this. ford avoids gravity falls like the plague because he knows stanley would probably be there

^^ addition to the above: stanley's full name is Stanley Filbrick Pines-McGucket, though he is only Pines-McGucket informally

stanley also still has his mullet. sue me. also he has glasses because he needs them and he's a nerdy science guy in this one

i really enjoy the pre-portal 1980s part of the timeline. can you tell. there's so much potential here. i am frothing at the mouth.

anyways............................................. more content soon. repurposed an old empty sideblog to maybe dedicate to this au/gf content. we shall see.

[redrandomposts]

ooo clarifications for the alnst x orv crossover

- i wasnt calling till "secretive plotter" as his constellation name owo it was more like "florist!character" where the word before the exclamation mark describes what the character is like in the au hehe

- constellations dont need to sponsor incarnations to watch their channels! they can simply come and go as they please. hades is also very likely to still watch ivan regardless of sponsorship since ivan is connected to dokja and hades is like a doting, concerned father for dokja LMAOOO

suitor vs grandfather lowkey fighting to sponsor ivan 😭 ivan gets an unholy amnt of coins sponsored to him by both sides and hes like lmao better get some use out of these ...

two paths for this au : ivan gets sponsored by hades, or ivan gets sponsored by till

- ivan being sponsored by hades also means he's getting sponsored by persephone in extension and gets skills and stigmas that stave off death like theyre cheat codes but aren't technically cheat codes 🤔 puts a stop to all his dying but it also means he's now more reckless w himself bc "undying stigma lol ✨"

- ivan being sponsored by till gets him spammed with [Constellation <insert name here> is looking at you.] at the most random times. his skills and stigmas would be related to ivan's themes/imagery in alien stage (the planet saturn, meteors, stars etc). they would also definitely get a shared fable called <Constants Till The End> or something because they ARE each other's constants am i right haha

as for till's constellation name... i was thinking something like <Unbound Songwriter of Bygone Times> or simply <Unbound Musician>

(i also have constellation names for ivan and sua since i have this OTHER alnst x orv crossover where ivan and sua are the outer gods disguised as constellations this time, just throwing it out there LMAO)

— 🌦️

hi again 🌦️!!

i seee... but also, i'm pretty sure constellations have to pay more to send "messages" for unsponsored streamers.... maybe i'm tripping, but also i'm clearly refusing to reread orv, so.

sometimes grandparents love their grandchildren more... like mine. if my father and grandparents didn't have conflicting political views, it'd be different, but alas. i'm more loved. thus, ivan's more loved, because im pretty sure the grandparents are convinced kdj did some fucked up shit to pass down his self-sacrifice. which, fair, shattering your soul is pretty fucked up.

why do i love unbound musician?? unbound is a really nice term for till...

a shared fable... forever attracted forever doomed... haha jk actor au exists and they're together (copium??) so.

some skill ideas from till:

-meteorite escape: a recreation of the night till and ivan escaped, except till stays. this gets rid of negative effects, but their mentality becomes childlike.

-muse: an investigative skill that can tell you about something in the form of song.

-another us: watch a potential outcome of an action in third person.

-obsession: mark a person or thing to track them until they die or something lol

-shallow emotion: force another person to be obsessed with you, even wanting to die for you.

my god i'm tired and its showing it's time to pass out

[hannamoon143]

California Dreamin'- The beach boys

Seo Changbin with California Dreamin from the Beach boys for the fall series

Genre: Angst, hurt/no comfort

Warnings: none really, reader is just a shitty person

Wordcount: 808w

a/n: this req, by @lina-linny as it seems we are getting lot more angst than fluff in the fall series lol. I'm working on it alrrr. I have some fluff in mind too, (hehe spoiler its with lix) So now as always, take ur blanket, a hot cocoa (or a coffee, man i'm craving coffee rn (no i didn't drink two cups just an hour ago)) And have a cozy falll <333

Chills went through Changbins body as he walked on the little side path, the wind seeping into his bones. When he was looking around he saw all the trees, leaves being brown, seemingly lifeless. Just like he felt. And the weather wasn’t the best for a walk either. The sky was grey. Heavy, dark clouds hovering above changbins head. With some luck he could make it home before it would start to rain. He wrapped his jacket around himself a bit tighter, watching his breath come out in little white clouds.

People were passing by, leaves were falling down, and everyone seemed to be distracted from the coldness. But changbin could never ignore it. The heavy, cold air, and his frozen hands were only a sharp reminder to you, and California. Yes, while he was here, freezing in the streets of seoul, you were in the oh so beautiful california.  When he only was thinking of the sunshine and the warm breeze there it was shaking him already. But not only the warmth of sunshine was missing for him. It was your warm hand in his. Your sunny, comforting presence next to him, that made every single day seem less cold. But what could he do? He couldn’t just fly over to california, all his responsibilites were laying on him heavily, and with the comeback album and the upcoming tour he could never leave the boys alone. And even if he’d come, would it change something between you?

But he also couldn’t convince you to come back. Not right now. You hated the cold. And probably him too right now. He didn’t even want to think of your last words before you flew off to your beloved hometown L.A.. It didn’t matter now anyway. What mattered was that you left him, here alone on seouls street in the sharp cold. Without you there to warm him, and giggle about how he would blow warm air into his hands he slowly began to despise the cold just as much as you did.

But all he could do about it was to wait. To wait and hope you would come back. Maybe in spring, when it was getting warmer again. Maybe in summer, or maybe just anytime soon. He never entirely understood why you left. When you announced you would, he was apologizing a thousand times, not even knowing what for. He was making even more time for you, if that was somehow possible, since all his free time was already yours. Could he have done more? He didn’t know. And maybe he never would. All you said was that you „needed space“, right after you complained to him about how he was not giving you enough attention. After that, he knew that all that were just excuses for you to leave, altough never entirely admitting it to himself. He didn’t know if space was for you to stay away for a few days or weeks, or just your way of breaking up with him.

The cold was getting suffocating, and it felt as if it only added to his heavy, anxious thoughts. There was a little church by the sidewalk. He didn’t think much into it and just went in, hoping the cold would be less intese in there.

He got down to his knees pretending to pray. It just didn’t feel right to use the church only to clear his thoughts or make the cold go away. Especially when a preacher was standing in the front oft he church, a few people listening.

But now, without the walking it only got colder. Until now, Changbin still tried to talk your actions and words good, to somehow romanticize everything, but now, as the  cold seeped not only into his bones, also into his mind, he started to see clear. Your words were an excuse to leave. And nothing more. An excuse to maybe come back, or maybe not. It was all in your own hands, and options were open for you, since you could do your job from everywhere too, and your family would surely like if you’d stay in california. But deep inside he probably knew you weren’t gonna come back. And somewhere in him, he promised himself to let you go, to not wait for you forever, with no idea if you’d come back or not.

But in this moment, he could feel the cold stone under his knees, hear the wind howl around the walls of the little church, and smell the cold autumn. In this moment, all he could do was dream of california, of you. If he was there with you right now, he would be way warmer for sure. But this wasn’t going to happen. And sooner or later he had to accept that. He had to stop with the california dreamin someday…

[olichat-reads]

Imagine | ProHero!Bakugou x Villain!Reader

a/n: i'm on the brink of a panic attack at 7am on a monday morning sO-

🌟

imagine prohero!bakugou x villain!reader BUT they're childhood bestfriends. and and they're STILL bestfriends despite everything. sure, nothing personal on the job and sure they go head to head sometimes but at the end of the day they're each other's safeplace and comfort.

its weird but it works.

its not everyday, but sometimes your paths cross while you're both on the job and bakugou, that bastard, NEVER holds back on you. and to be fair, neither do you. given that the two of you grew up and trained together, you were pretty evenly matched. both knowing each others' moves and strengths and weaknesses.

which essentially, you two took advantage of in attempts to murder each other on the job :D

-

"you used that move i suggested you try 🥺"

"hell yeah it fucking worked!"

"i know, katsu. my shoulder is dislocated."

":)"

"you're buying me ice cream, you ass."

-

the press has a field day whenever you go against each other- deeming you ✨️a r c h r i v a l s✨️. it sure was an ego boost when your bestfriend was the number one prohero. also you got to terrorize him with the media. win fucking win.

-

*dynamight slams you into a wall*

"ohh~ harder daddy~"

"STOP GIVING THEM IDEAS YOU FREAK"

"BUT I WANNA READ ALL THE ENEMIES TO LOVERS FANFICS LET ME HAVE THIS"

-

and the thing is. it didn't scare you, either of you, to let loose when you come face to face in a fight. you knew katsuki was strong as much as he knew how hard you worked to keep up to him. no one could come close to hurting either of you, besides each other and even then, you each could hold your own.

that didn't mean you don't get injured though. one of you stumbling into the others' apartment beat up was way too common of an occurence with the nature of your professions.

-

"red riot hit me so hardddddd"

"tsk. thats on you. could've gone against me but you had to test your luck with red."

"BITCH STFU WE BOTH KNOW YOU'D FUCK ME UP WORSE THAN ANYONE ON THE FIELD-"

"of course i would. gotta try to knock some fucking sense into lil miss villain somehow. now come here let me see your ribs, they're probably bruised."

"AND WHOSE FAULT IS THAT"

"yours."

"YOU- OW FUCK. KATSU GENTLE-"

"calm down you baby. you got stabbed last week and you're whining about some bruised ribs."

"I HAVE A LOW PAIN TOLERANCE YOU ASS BE NICE TO ME"

-

as much fun as it is smack each other in the vicinity of a public audience, you enjoy the occasional mission where you were both on the same team. perks of being a morally gray villain- you're flexible like that.

it should be noted though- you two're somehow even WORSE than when you fight each other. the amount of unhinged chaos should be a public and health hazard.

-

"we have a problem..."

"let me guess. you caused it."

"you have no faith in me. i'm offended."

"answer the question. did you?"

"...i did."

"and you ask me why i don't believe in you. fucking die, tinkerbell."

">:O"

-

"whats our escape plan?"

"our what :D"

"omg we're going to die."

-

"HOHO WE LIVED BITCH!"

"YOU COULD'VE WARNED ME BEFORE YOU YEETED ME OUT THE FUCKING PLANE YOU PSYCHOPATH"

"WHERE'S THE FUN IN THAT D:"

-

the two of you don't actively try to hide the nature of your jobs and relationship with each other outside work- you don't bother pretending. he's a hero, you're a villain and both of you were bestfriends. as simple as that.

it makes life way more fun, you think.

🌟

a/n: this is fun i might add more to this hehe

[pixxyofice]

(KICKS DOWN YOUR DOOR) hi pix I’m here to ask one million questions about your euphrasie looping au bc I think your writing is cool and I love euphrasie. Anyway how long do you think Euphrasie and Mirabelle are in the timeloops for? Is there anyone to help guide them two, or are they basically on their own? How does either of them feel about the change god, having been stuck in a time loop? ( I imagine keeping faith might feel difficult given the circumstances but whose to say) Also what is Mirabelle and Euphrasie’s Dynamic like in a post game scenario in comparison to when the loops were happening?

OHOHOHOHOHO okay okay i can answer this. euphrasie looping au. ough euphrasie looping au.

it's a duo looping au. there's nobody else its just them. nobody to help them, just a girl and her beloved mentor. i'm sure nothing can go wrong here. They're in there... a while, i think. No outside help but each other. I'm not sure about period of time. It's not quite loop level (quietly tags this as isat spoilers) but it's probably about... past act 4 length of time. maybe.

As for faith... it IS a struggle! But I think both of them try to keep to it. In the end, Mirabelle on her last legs goes to ask her statue for help, and the change god... actually loves it. and is like change starts with you- you came to me for a reason right? so you're right to think what you want to. do your thing.

Euphrasie might struggle more. imagine subconciously mixing religious stuff together because you've made a change and now you're on this path and the universe must want this change for you- wait a second.

In the end, I think they still enjoy their religion. It's still good. but... it's definitely Changed a lot, hehe. Their dynamic post-game is maybe a bit awkward because of The Horrors, but they still wouldn't have gotten that far if it weren't for each other! Hi mentor of mine i still adore you but you still hurt me and i'm mad about it. but it'll be fine in the end. kinda thing.

post-canon mirabelle is dragging euphrasie around. we are going to relearn the passage of time together.

[slotmachines-fearofgod]

i am a servant of the people and the people wanted more cody and ahsoka (YIPPIE) so here's the WIP i alluded to in my post order 66 AU brainstorm post hehe:

She found him a few months after he abandoned his post. 

She was older than he remembered. He hadn’t seen her since she was sixteen, almost two years ago. Her leaving the Jedi temple had been the last time he’d ever seen her, her small form outlined by the sun as she walked away from the only path she’d ever known. 

He and Rex had been waiting at the bottom of the stairs for their cue to go up and celebrate her return. He didn’t think he’d ever forget the look of shock and misery on Rex’s face when his vod’ika marched right past them, barely able to look them in the eyes. 

She had the same look in her eyes now that she did then. Tired but not quite defeated. On the verge of something that could take her beyond the stars or crush her beneath its foot. 

“Are you here to kill me?”

He’d hidden on Endor. It was far from his last known location and he had so many contacts courtesy of his time in the military that it had been easy to hire a ship to drop him off here. He’d had to switch vessels a few times, scrambling the codes just in case. 

“No.” 

Her sabers told a different story. They were white, not green like he remembered. Once upon a time he knew what that meant. 

Regardless of the ghosts of the past, they were drawn, held in a defensive stance. He’d seen her fight countless times, knew how fast she could move, knew that once upon a time he could’ve stood a chance, but not now. He was too old, too achey, too strained from a lifetime of giving and receiving pain. 

Ahsoka looked at him, the deep blue and stark white of her montrals standing out against the darkness that threatened to consume them both, “I wanted to see if it was true.”

“That I survived?”

“That you killed Obi-Wan Kenobi.”

Cody froze, the words like a punch to the gut. He’d heard the words repeated over and over. He’d been given a medal for his quick thinking and decisive action against the traitors of the Empire. He knew he did it. He knew.

Still, he couldn’t help but think of a smaller version of the girl in front of him, stepping off a transport fresh from Coruscant. His Jedi had been the first to welcome her, so desperately wanting another padawan, a chance to redeem himself from his failure the first time around. Cody didn’t know how many photos he himself had taken of Ahsoka flinging herself into a hug or the three of them huddled together around a battle station. 

Cody raised his head high, his blaster still safely tucked away in its holder. If death came by her hand, it would be a merciful fate. 

“I did.”

Wooley pulled the trigger. He fired the shot that sent Cody’s one and only hope tumbling down to his doom. But Cody gave the order. He knew well enough by now, after years of fighting, the responsibility lay with him. 

Besides, Wooley was long gone by now. He’d left them ten hours later in a locked room with a blaster to his head. 

“Then he’s really gone?” Ahsoka asked, a slight tilt to her head. He remembered that habit from a different lifetime. 

“Yes,” Cody said, forcing himself to remain steady. He’d delivered news of grief before, it being full of his own should make no difference this time. 

To his surprise, the glow of the sabers receded. For a moment it was just Cody and Ahsoka, both entangled in the darkness of the night on Endor, where even the stars could not pierce the thick foliage above their heads. Strange noises beckoned to them both, calls of relief from a life neither of them could believe had become their reality. 

“I thought he left me.”

Cody couldn’t see her, but he could hear the choked agony behind her words. 

“It was my fault,” he assured her.

The blue glow of a communications device appeared between them, held aloft in Ahsoka’s hand. On it stood the crisp clear vision of Obi-Wan Kenobi. 

It was almost enough to bring Cody to his knees.

“This is Master Obi-Wan Kenobi. I regret to report that both our Jedi Order and the Republic have fallen, with the dark shadow of the Empire rising to take their place. This message is a warning and a reminder for any surviving Jedi: trust in the Force. Do not return to the Temple. That time has passed, and our future is uncertain. Avoid Coruscant. Avoid detection. Be secret... but be strong. We will each be challenged: our trust, our faith, our friendships. But we must persevere and, in time, I believe a new hope will emerge. May the Force be with you, always.”

Cody felt a tear slip down his face. He knew. Somehow he’d known. He’d warned the rest, helped them get out and escape. 

“I’m sorry,” Cody croaked, his voice full of ruin, “I’m so sorry.”

Ahsoka watched him, her eyes hard and unrelenting in the blue light. She had no sympathy for him. 

“How did he get this message out if you killed him?”

Cody shook his head, his hands starting to shake, “I don’t know.”

“Where is his body?”

“We - we never found it,” air was coming to him with more and more difficulty. A hand came up to his chest, clutching at the phantom pain threatening to pulverize his heart. “The Emperor told us he had confirmation. He told us he was dead.”

“Why?” Ahsoka pressed, “Why assure you of something you could’ve found yourselves?”

Cody shook his head again, “I don’t know.”

Something was wrong with him. It had become more and more like this now that the war was done and it was just him alone with his mind. He’d hear the snap of a twig and lock down his hideout, thinking battle droids had discovered his location. He’d see his reflection in the mirror late at night on accident and jump, thinking the rest of his brothers had finally found him, that they were going to drag him back there and make him like them. 

Make him blank. Make him devoid of himself. Make him into a tool. 

“Aayla Secura,” Ahsoka began in a cold voice, her wrath turning its focus to him, “Luminara Unduli, Shaak Ti, Ki Adi Mundi, Stass Allie, Plo Koon. All dead because of your brothers.”

Bly…gods above Bly. Cody prayed he wasn’t the one. He prayed he wasn’t the one that took the shot. And Wolffe - Cody couldn’t imagine what Wolffe would’ve done. Did do upon waking. Upon experiencing that horrible moment of vertigo that the 212th had felt all together. Experiencing a single moment of tethered grief, hours delayed though it might have been. 

A noise of raw pain escaped Cody’s lips. It was wordless, not a cry or proclamation, but a tiny noise that any passersby would’ve assumed to be a wounded or hurt animal.

“My family,” Ahsoka’s voice was shaking, “I have to keep them alive. So I need to know - is Obi-Wan Kenobi’s name one I should add to my list?”

Cody squeezed his eyes shut and nodded. He knew. He knew it in his heart. If Obi-Wan Kenobi had survived, the Emperor would not have told him in person of his death. Those cold hands, unnaturally pale and scarred, would not have pressed a smooth medal of honor onto his uniform. He wouldn’t have had to hold back stuttering breaths as a coldness choked him, the knowledge that his light, his love, his one hope in this galaxy, was forever out of his reach threatening to take him under. 

And it was his fault. 

“You’re supposed to be dead,” Cody croaked, finally opening his eyes to look at Ahsoka, “An entire venator went down to make sure of it.”

Ahsoka’s face darkened, some twisted grief taking hold of her, “I know.”

Cody knew what that meant. She’d been aboard. She’d seen it go down. She’d watched them all die. All of her friends, her soldiers, the men that she ate with everyday for two and half years, the men she served with and grew alongside of. They were as much her family as the Jedi were. 

He didn’t want to ask about Rex. He didn’t want to see what it would do to either of them. 

“So what now?” Cody asked, scrambling to regain some sense of the commander in him. The version of him that could do this without a permanent tremor in his left hand, without attacks of panic and confusion, without the fog that hung over him as his now constant companion. 

Ahsoka squared her shoulders and gods she really was young, wasn't she? Just eighteen years old and here she was, throwing herself into the maw of something Cody didn’t think he’d ever fully understand. 

“Do you have somewhere we can talk?” The request threw him off guard, but he nodded and turned around. 

He was surprised when she fell into lockstep beside him. 

They were almost the same height now. 

Cody moved through the thick underbelly of the forest. He’d long since learned the pathways different prey animals took, knowing that was the safest way without cutting clear paths for his enemies to follow. Ahsoka followed him easily, her natural traits helping her move silently through the brush in a way he never could. 

They didn’t speak on their way to his shelter. Both were thrumming with questions, fears, anxieties that were best not spoken aloud where the trees could hear. They had been trained too well and for too long to do something so stupid as that. 

Cody had managed to make a small adobe style domicile. They’d taught all sorts of shelter making on Kamino and it had served him well, allowing him to dig out a small space and form a dome over top out of mud and clay that he’d already excavated. It was small, only one room, but the two of them sat comfortably. Cody got to work on the fire, waiting for Ahsoka to speak. 

“Have you ever had a brain scan done?”

Cody thought for a moment, trying to remember. 

“Probably at some point.”

“What level?”

Cody looked at her curiously, not understanding the point of this, “I’ve never had an injury that constituted anything above level 2, if that’s what you’re asking.”

Ahsoka blew out a breath, for the first time looking nervous. 

A spark caught, quickly taking to the dried grass and sticks Cody used as kindling. 

“You remember Fives.”

It wasn’t a question. They both knew Cody would never forget any of the Domino squad, not for as long as he lived.

“He was right.”

Cody looked up at Ahsoka. Her expression was serious, not that he’d expected it to be anything else.

“About what?”

Ahsoka’s hand went up to one of her lekku, before twitching and falling back to her lap. Cody knew what she’d been searching for anyway. 

“There are chips inside of your heads,” Ahsoka said slowly, “Not the behavioral ones. Another. It was meant to be activated when - when the time was right.”

Cody’s stomach dropped. 

“The Jedi didn’t betray the Republic,” Ahsoka said, “And you didn’t betray them. The Emperor took control of your heads. Order 66 was an activation code, one you couldn’t have stopped even if you wanted to.”

Cody felt like the floor had fallen out from beneath him. Judging by the look on Ahsoka’s face, he looked like it too. 

“Cody…it wasn’t your fault.”

Tears stung his eyes, threatening to fall. He knew if that happened, it wouldn’t stop, and he’d never appeared weak in front of Ahsoka before. She was a child and had already been through too much. 

His shoulders slumped, like Cody had been strung tight on a wire that was just now being cut. His whole body shook, his breaths coming in stuttering stop-starts and his eyes flicking to every dark corner that the fire couldn’t quite reach. 

He couldn’t have stopped it if he wanted to. 

It was always going to be like this.

There was never a future where he and Obi-Wan were going to be happy. 

“I’m sorry,” Ahsoka said, her voice small and defeated, “Your family are victims just as much as mine.”

The whole venator went down with her. The whole venator went down and she was trapped aboard with an army of mindless killers. The whole venator went down and his baby brother was on it, trapped inside the walls of his own head, holding a blaster to the girl he’d once told Cody he’d never let any harm come to. 

“Oh gods,” Cody choked out, “Oh gods.”

The pain threatened to take him. His chest was almost painful in its hollowness, his stomach roiling with nausea and hurt. His people, his brothers. Slaves to the great conductor of a broken symphony. Mindless, used against their will. Nothing more than weapons to be aimed and fired at whoever dared oppose the Empire.

They were nothing. 

They had always been nothing. 

“Cody,” a hand settled on his knee, and from it warmth escaped. For the first time in months, Cody felt something other than cold. “They’re waking up. Your brothers are waking up. There’s a movement -”

“Stop it,” Cody snapped, though the effect was lost as his tears finally began to spill, “I don’t - just stop.”

Ahsoka withdrew her hand and it took everything in Cody not to keen at the loss of heat. 

He didn’t want to fight anymore. He was tired, too tired to ever take up command again. 

How many had he seen die? Did none of it matter? They were just pawns, just pieces of a game to be moved around in order to undermine the Jedi. His entire existence was there to hurt the Jedi. The Jedi - the only ones who ever gave a semblance of a shit about them. And the whole point of the clones’ existence was to murder them in cold blood. 

“Rex wants to see you.”

Cody’s entire being froze. 

“He doesn’t know I found you. He’s been looking for you since Crosshair defected and told us you left.”

Crosshair defected.

“Wolffe too. He and Rex joined up a while back. Pretty sure one of your old commanders is with them.”

Boil? No, Boil was still with the Empire working as a scout.

It didn’t matter, he reminded himself, he put himself here for a reason. Whatever life he lived from here on out, he deserved. 

“Cody,” Ahsoka called his attention again and this time when Cody looked at her, she looked scared. It took him a moment to work out that she was scared for him. “Rex is alive. I took him off the ship with me. His chip is gone, he’s okay.”

Cody stood abruptly, stumbling outside and making it a mere three steps from the doorway before throwing up. He shook, his hands on his knees, as he gagged and spit, his mind and body revolting against him in a horrible display of unity. 

A hand rubbed over his back, the way Ponds used to do oh so long ago. Back when module scores and breaking curfew were their tallest troubles. Did they have the chips even then? Were they doomed from the start? How cruel, to never even let them begin before deciding how they would end. 

“Can I tell him you’re here?” Ahsoka’s voice was soft and concerned. She sounded kind. It made him want to slam his fist into something. “He’s worried. They both are.”

Cody shook his head no. He didn’t deserve to get to have that, not when so many of his brothers were alone and drifting. Not when Obi-Wan, his general, his Jedi, his sweetheart, lay broken and defeated at the hands of a force neither of them could escape. 

No, his fate would be the same as the rest of the galaxy’s. He would not allow himself the tenderness of brotherhood, not after all he’d done in the name of nothing. 

“Go,” Cody croaked, his voice hoarse from bile and tears, “They’ll find you if you stay.”

Ahsoka’s hand didn’t pull away, “He misses you. He misses his big brother.”

That was playing fucking dirty and she knew it. 

“Go,” Cody said more forcefully, “Get out of here.”

“And where will you go?” Ahsoka asked gently, “When they come knocking, where will you run to?”

“I won’t,” Cody panted, “I’ll accept it.”

There was a deep sigh from behind him. Cody didn’t take back his words. He didn’t want to lie to her, not after all she’d been through at their hands.

“I’m going to keep looking for Obi-Wan,” some of the strength returned to Ahsoka’s voice, “I don’t think he’s dead, so there must be a reason he’s still hidden. If you joined me, he might -”

“No,” Cody said quickly, spitting one last time and standing back to his full height, “I’m not doing that to myself.”

“Cody -”

“Ahsoka,” Cody turned to face her, his hands coming to rest on her shoulders. He was once again struck by how warm she was, “He’s gone. By my hand or the Emperor’s. I can’t - I can’t let myself think otherwise. I can’t pin my hope on a lie.”

Ahsoka stepped closer to him, a furrow appearing between her eyebrows. It reminded him of Skywalker. “It’s not a lie. He escaped long enough to get a message out. If he’d known before he would’ve said something to someone, would’ve at least had you de-chipped. If his body had been at the temple we would’ve found it, it would’ve been reported. But all that remained of him was this message.”

Cody shook his head. He couldn’t do this to himself. He couldn’t let himself think these things. 

“Come with me. Just for a little bit. If we find something, stay longer, if not I’ll drop you right back here.”

Cody scrubbed a hand over his face, wincing at the dirt and sweat rough underneath his palm. 

“I won’t even tell Rex.”

Cody sighed and looked at her. She looked earnest, at least. Not as defensive and angry as earlier.

“Please,” he suddenly realized Ahsoka was begging, “come with me.”

Cody looked down at her, considering. “How long have you been on your own?”

It seemed he hit the nail on the head. Ahsoka’s face fell, just for a moment, before she recovered her composure. It reminded him of Obi-Wan. 

“Rex and I split up after the venator,” she admitted, “I tried civilian life for a while, but everywhere I went people died. It’s been a while.”

Since she left the temple the first time, Cody translated for himself. 

Cody looked down at her, weighing his options. He didn’t believe Obi-Wan was alive. Even his general could not escape death in its entirety. But Ahsoka was on a crash course. She was smart, dedicated, and clever enough to find him and keep tabs on Rex’s operation. She was also angry and alone, left behind by people she’d once turned her back on. Her guilt likely matched or exceeded his. 

Cody breathed out slowly, “Two months.”

Ahsoka’s eyes widened.

“That’s all I can promise.”

Ahsoka nodded, “That’s fine. I’ll take it.”

And then he was being forcefully dragged into a hug. 

She was finally tall enough that Cody could rest his chin in the space between her montrals. He wondered distantly if she’d outgrow him one day, before remembering how Shaak Ti towered over them all and decided that was very likely. He couldn’t tell which one of them was shaking harder, but decided to ignore it. This was the first time in months he’d allowed himself to touch anyone beyond a handshake here or there. 

“You’re warm,” Ahsoka murmured into his chest, a soft sigh escaping her, “I don’t remember the last time I was warm.”

Cody’s eyes widened, but he said nothing. Just ran a hand over her lekku in the best display of comfort he could give. 

“Two months,” Cody whispered, “I can only promise that.”

“It’ll be enough,” Ahsoka’s hands clenched in the back of Cody’s clothes. He understood what she wasn’t saying.

It’ll have to be enough.

[rafyki]

Goth! Nico/ Surfer! Percy AU Part 7!

Finally some proper progress for our disaster boys!!

Oh I loved writing this chapter SO MUCH!! And in fact I managed to basically write all 2.7k words today lol I really was in the zone today - this is what percico does to me xD

(@neo-kid-funk, there's something I hope you'll notice here, hehe 👀)

Enjoy~

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6

You can also read it on AO3!!

~~~~

It was late when Percy got to the beach, late enough that the sun was already down, the red and orange from the sunset already gone from the sky. Late enough that Percy knew it was stupid going there in the hope of meeting a certain pretty goth boy that had been haunting his dreams for the past months.

If he remembered correctly (and he did, he didn’t spend so much time thinking and looking at Nico to not know perfectly well this sort of thing), his shift should have been over almost two hours ago. There was no way he was still at the kiosk.

And yet.

And yet Percy couldn’t help himself - he had arrived home, he had thrown his luggage on the floor, and then he was out of the door again, following the all too familiar path that led him to the beach.

He could feel himself vibrating out of his own skin, knew he probably had the most foolish smile painted on his lips; he was perfectly aware he had probably been smiling like that nonstop for the past three days.

And he really didn’t care one bit. Because Nico had asked about him.

When Annabeth had called him, she had sounded so excited that Percy had known right away it was important - she wasn’t the type to get excited for nothing, but to be perfectly honest, Percy had expected something like her favorite architect was going to finally give a lecture in her university or something; he had not be prepared for what she was about to tell him to make his world shift around its axis (dramatic, yes, but, again, Percy didn’t care).

“Oh my god, Seaweed brain, you might actually have a chance!”, is what she told him, and Percy had been too confused to do more than make a questioning sound in response.

“He asked about you!”, she continued. Percy could almost see her smile through the phone.

His heart leapt in his chest, but he willed it to calm down. Jumping to conclusion just to be disappointed after wouldn’t feel good. It didn’t work, his heart was already too far ahead, running.

“What are you talking about, Annabeth?”

“Your dream boy, Percy! The goth boy from the kiosk! Your Nico!”

And it was really all Percy could do to not let himself fall on the ground and let out a scream like a schoolgirl at her first crush.

“What do mean he asked about me? Annabeth, please, you’re gonna give me a stroke here”.

She laughed at him, but then finally did explain. 

Percy hadn’t stopped smiling since that conversation. Part of him had wanted to get on a plane and go back right then and there just to see Nico. It was so stupid, but what did it matter when it felt so good? Percy felt like he deserved to be stupidly happy about this when he had spent the past few months pining and hoping and dreaming about a boy he sort of wanted to gift the moon to. 

And so, here he was now, feeling like he was walking on a cloud instead of sand. It didn’t matter that Nico most probably wasn’t there, it still felt ridiculously good, because Percy would see him tomorrow anyway, and he couldn’t wait.

Nico had been worried about him, had asked about him. He cared about Percy enough to ask someone he didn’t even know if he was alright.

There was really no possible way to keep the happy smile off Percy’s lips.

The seaside air filled his lungs, and it only made his smile grow bigger. He still threw a glance at the kiosk - it was still open, but as Percy had expected, Nico wasn’t there.

Still smiling, he stopped to take off his shoes and started walking aimlessly around the shore. It always felt good, just walking on the beach, feeling the sand all around him.

He kept walking for a while, his mind inevitably pulled towards the same direction.

And so, when he saw the very object of his daydreams right before his eyes, his first thought was that his imagination was getting a little out of hand. He stopped, looked, blinked, and looked again, thinking his pipe dream would have disappeared. 

But no, it was still there. Still a little further away from where Percy was, but Percy would recognize him everywhere.

Nico was sitting on the shore, just a few feet away from the ocean, knees up and arms around them as he looked toward the horizon.

Percy’s heart lost a beat, stopped completely, then started running and running like it wanted to reach Nico as soon as possible.

He looked so incredibly ethereal in the low light of the dusk, Percy felt his breath get stuck in his throat. 

His feet started moving before he could realize it, and he started walking closer.

Nico had his hair down, and oh, Percy had never seen him with his hair down, he always had it tied up in a ponytail when he was working; it hit him, all at once, that this was the first time he saw him not behind a counter, the first time he could talk to him as just two people (friends? perhaps?) instead of a customer and a retail worker.

It felt important. A huge turning point, somehow.

Nico looked up when Percy was just a few feet away from him, before he could find the voice to greet him.

Their eyes met, and woah, yes, that definitely felt like a turning point.

Nico was looking at him like he was the last person he expected to see, eyes wide and lips parted in surprise. Percy forced himself not to stare, but it was difficult when really the one thing he wanted the most was to just stare and stare and bask in how pretty Nico was. 

“Ehi”, he said, finding his voice again before it started to get awkward. “Hi, Nico”.

A beat, when it seemed it was Nico’s turn to try and get his voice back.

“Percy- hi”.

Percy got closer, sat beside him - a proper, socially acceptable distance, even without a counter in between them. His heart was dancing like crazy in his chest.

“You’re back”, Nico said, then seemed to realize what he said and turned to look away, back at the ocean. “I mean- I didn’t expect to see you”.

He was so cute. Percy wanted to reach out and take his hand, to caress his cheek and feel if it was warm from the blush. Oh he wanted to kiss him so bad he was about to go crazy.

“Me neither”, Percy said. “I got back just a few hours ago, and then came here”. He licked his lips, debating on what to say. ”I missed the beach”.

I missed you, he wanted to say, but the words died on his lips. Now that would definitely be too much.

Nico looked back at him. Percy decided he could allow himself to be just a little daring.

“I’m happy I found you here though”, he said, and each one of his words was accompanied by a somersault done by his heart. He wondered if Nico could see what the smile on his lips meant.

Nico didn’t reply right away, but Percy could see the small smile that came up on his lips, and that helped just a little to calm down his frantic heart.

“Me too”, he said in the end, so low that his words threatened to be taken away by the sea breeze. Percy caught them though, and held them close.

This felt way too heavy to call it a simple crush.

Silence fell between them, and it wasn’t weird exactly, but it wasn’t comfortable either - it was the kind of silence where it’s clear both you and the other person are desperately trying to find something to say; something, possibly, that won’t make you want to bury yourself under the sand out of embarrassment after wording it out loud.

“What are you doing here, by the way?”, Percy ended up saying. “Hasn’t your shift ended like two hours ago?”

Nico looked at him, head tilted to the side in question. “You remember my shift hours?”

Oh, damn.

“Huh, well- I spend a lot of time here?”, Percy said, and it sounded way more like a question than a statement.

Nico laughed, shy and soft, and Percy thought that dying of embarrassment was worth it after all, if it got him that.

“So you know Jason’s shift hours too?”

“Who’s Jason?”

A moment of silence passed when Nico kept looking at Percy. Percy would have given everything to know what he was thinking.

He was ready to go and hide in the ocean when another soft laugh left Nico’s lips.

“Fine, I only remember yours”, Percy said in the end. Oh how he had missed flirting with Nico, how he had missed that pretty smile. 

He looked so good with his hair down, flowing lightly in the soft breeze, Percy wanted to bury his hand in it, wanted to find out what it felt like.

There was just something about Nico, something that made it impossible for Percy to look away, like he was caught in his gravitational field and he couldn’t escape even if he wanted, and he just kept being dragged closer and closer. He was caught in Nico’s orbit, a satellite to his planet.

Nico looked almost regal in the low light, sitting with his back straight as he went back to look at the ocean, a small smile still on his lips. Percy wouldn’t be too surprised to find out he had been a prince in another life.

“I like to just sit here on the beach for a while after I finish at work”, Nico said, cutting Percy’s wandering mind off. “It’s peaceful”.

“I thought you didn’t like the ocean”.

“I never said I don’t like it”, Nico replied, rolling his eyes at him. “I said I don’t like getting into the water. But I like looking at it”.

Percy hummed, thinking about it. “It’s so big - the ocean, I mean”, he said. “Sometimes, I feel like I wanna get lost in it”.

It was probably a weird thing to say; Percy wasn’t sure where the confession was coming from. Somehow, it came natural with Nico.

“Doesn’t it scare you?”

“Sometimes”, Percy replied. “But it’s a good kind of scared, I don’t know how to explain it”.

Once again, silence fell between them. This time though, it was different, a little lighter, a little more comfortable.

Percy let himself get lost in the feeling of being on the beach, of the sea air and salty scent filling his nose and lungs, mixed with the feeling of being so close to Nico, of the warmth he could almost feel coming from him, of his own heart pounding in his chest.

Before he could think about it too much, he got up, stretched a hand out to Nico.

“Come on”, he said.

Nico was looking at him confused, clear questions in his eyes. Maybe he was thinking that Percy was crazy. And, truth be told, Percy did feel just a little crazy at that moment.

“What?”

“Let’s go in the water”, Percy said. “Not much, just our legs- come on”.

Nico blinked up at him. Percy’s hand was still outstretched towards him.

“Our clothes will get wet”.

“Doesn’t matter, they’ll dry off”.

“It’s a stupid idea”.

“Yeah, but it’ll be nice, I promise”.

A beat, then Nico took his hand. They fit well together, Nico’s hand in Percy’s bigger one. Percy felt the urge to interlace their fingers. He managed to hold himself back, but even once Nico was up, he still didn’t let go.

Nico didn’t either, though, and the realization made Percy’s heart go even crazier than it already had.

He started walking backward, using their joined hands to pull Nico with him, closer and closer towards the water.

“Don’t worry, I’ll protect you”, he said. He was probably back to smiling like a fool, but what did it matter when Nico was looking at him like that, smiling softly back with a clear blush tinting his cheeks pink? Percy wouldn’t have been able to stop smiling even if he had wanted to.

“Idiot”, Nico murmured, and it sounded so fond, Percy felt his heart melt, merging with the water beneath their feet.

Nico hissed when the water touched his feet and Percy couldn’t help but laugh at him. The way he looked back at him with a frown on his face made him laugh a little more and think that he really, really wanted to kiss it away.

Still, Nico kept going willingly as Percy kept pulling him along, step after step, until the water reached almost up to their knees.

They still hadn’t let go of each other’s hand. Percy didn’t want to be the first one to let go; he hoped Nico was thinking the same thing.

“See, it feels nice, doesn’t it?”

Nico seemed to think about it a little. “It’s cold”.

“That’s not an answer, Nico”.

Again, Nico rolled his eyes at him. “I guess… it’s not that bad”.

“I’ll take that as a win”, Percy said, and laughed.

It really did feel so good, but it probably had more to do with the hand still held inside his than with the ocean itself. Percy could barely bring himself to focus on the water, all of his senses couldn’t feel anything but Nico, his skin against his, the soft look in his eyes and the pretty smile still in place on his lips.

“I will get to teach you how to surf, at some point”.

When Nico laughed, Percy could swear he could feel the sound in his soul. “Don’t get too ahead of yourself now”.

They stayed in the water for another few minutes, then went back to the shore. It was like a silent agreement when they let go of each other's hands, went to get their shoes, and started walking along the shore side by side.

Percy missed the contact already.

They were walking close, close enough that Percy could have easily reached out and took Nico’s hand again. 

“So”, he said, breaking the silence. “Annabeth told me you asked about me”.

Percy loved it when Nico blushed, he liked that it happened so easily. 

“Huh, Annabeth is your friend?”, Nico asked, and Percy nodded. “Yeah, huh. You usually come here pretty often, so when you didn’t come for a whole week, I… got worried, I guess”.

Percy could feel his heart swelling into his chest. 

“That’s nice of you”.

Nico just shrugged, like it was no big deal, like the thought of it hadn’t left Percy laying awake at night for three days straight.

Maybe, just maybe, he could be a little braver tonight.

“Mh, maybe-”, he started, then cleared his throat. “Maybe we could exchange numbers? You know, so you wouldn’t get worried again, you could just ask me. And I could do the same, if you didn’t come to work for some reason”.

Percy could feel each one of his heart’s beats in his ears, so loud he couldn’t hear the sound of the waves anymore.

Until Nico nodded. “Yeah, uhm, that’s a good idea- I’d like that”, he murmured, and took his phone out to hand it to Percy. Percy accepted it and gave him his own, like in a dream.

It felt like a hallucination, putting his number into Nico’s phone.

Now, his mind was all white noises and silent screaming, as they went back to walk, side by side. Percy held onto his phone like a newfound treasure.

When they reached the end of the beach, Percy wanted nothing more than to turn around and just do it all over again. Maybe he could will the time to slow down if he tried hard enough.

“This was nice”, he just said instead.

Nico nodded. “Yeah”, he said, with the prettiest smile on his lips. “See you tomorrow?”

“See you tomorrow”, Percy said back, even though he was sure he would also see him tonight in his dreams.

He waved Nico goodbye, and stayed there looking at him as he walked away.

Oh, this definitely felt way bigger than a crush.