#i want to uhhhhhhh. coughs. well. you know.

[piplupod]

if i have caught a flu bug on the roadtrip bc my family refuses to wear masks then i am going to start tearing this house apart piece by piece. it may just be exhaustion and hunger, but I am feeling so incredibly sick rn. brb going to go dig a deep pit and jump in it to never be seen again

[the-fiction-witch]

Breathless P3

Media The Artful Dodger

Character Jack Dawkins

Couple Jack X Reader

Rating Sweet + Kinda Sad

Requested:  thank you so much for that, the end nearly had me in tears tho. please a part 3 I need this Part 3 ?? Please Part 3 Please

Warnings: Asthma attacks, medical issues

I woke as I often did with a wheeze and a cough, I felt Jack's hand on me. He had rested his hand on my chest, not in a sexual way. But just resting there just under my breasts so he could feel my every breath. I don't imagine he slept much but I know he wouldn't want it any other way. I looked around the room seeing the various items littered about the place, the various trails and errors of trying to find anything that even soothed the damage that grew day by day. I slowly sat up and that woke Jack too. 

"Morning," 

"Morning-" He yawned sitting up and stretching his back, "How are you feeling?"

"The same," I sighed leaning on the headboard,

"Alright, not change at all?" He asked and I shook my head, he forced a smile and kissed my cheek, "Alright, I need to get to work. You're going to be alright by yourself?" 

"I'll be okay,"

"Good girl, I'll be back as soon as I can." 

"Okay, see you soon Jack."

"See you soon," he reassured kissing my lips gently and sweetly he caressed my cheek before he got himself out of bed adjusted his clothes a little better and blew me a kiss before he headed off to work. 

I milled around for a while trying not to do much but I wanted to wash up, I felt dirty and slimy so I got some water and began to give myself a basin bath slipping off my nightie to give my body a good clean. As I did I noticed how breathless just the mere action of washing myself was becoming but I pushed through not wanting to leave myself half-clean, but I had to stop and wheeze trying to get my breath in.

"Uhhhhhhh Hello y/n..." Jack spoke up behind me 

Well that certainly didn't help my breathlessness, I grabbed my sheet and wrapped it around me as tight as I could as I turned and tried to get my breath in "HI!"

"Hi. You uuhhh you warm?"

"I wanted a bath." I gasped

"Ohh why didn't you say I'd have got the nurses to draw a bath for you."

Ohh now he tells me! "I didn't want to be a bother."

"You okay?"

"Just a little... out of breath. from the shock."

"Sit down," he told me gently making me sit on the bed and checking me over helping me through our usual steps to try and steady my breathing getting the machine and checking my breathing "That is... very low. You were just having a bath?" he asked and for a moment I glared "You were stood naked I don't know what else you where doing." 

"Like what?"

"Anything that might have made you... breathless?" he winked,

"I was just bathing." I glared

"Alright, I only asked." he chuckled "Medicine time then."

"Noo Jack please-"

"No medicine no kisses."

I pouted but open my mouth

"That's a good girl" he cooed giving me horrifically tasting medicine, he smiled and kissed my lips once I took it, "Now are you okay? I can stay if you want me to?"

"No I'll be okay, I just have to take it a little slower. You go on back to work Jack."

"Alright, just be careful," he said getting up and kissing my head "You looked extraordinarily beautiful by the way" He smirked at the door 

"What in my sheet?"

"In the sheet, without the sheet, both are very beautiful. But I like one a little better" he winked,

"Go work Doctor Boy."

"I'm going, I'm going." he chuckled heading out back to work, 

I woke to a very strange sensation indeed, as I felt Jack's lips on mine, his body over mine, I was shocked but I kissed him back which made him pull away, so I slowly opened my eyes seeing him over me in the same state he came to bed, but his eyes red and teary, panic across his face. 

"What's wrong?"

"You- You stopped breathing- I - I thought" He gasped in panic and fear 

"And you thought to kiss a dead body?" I giggled "Weird of you, Prince Charming?"

"I was giving you mouth to mouth!" he argued, "and then when you were breathing.... yeah I got excited you were okay and started kissing you." 

"Any excuse" I smiled kissing him, "How long did I stop?"

"Not long. But longer than I was comfortable." He said, "You're getting worse... and I don't know how to fix it." he admits "I have no idea what to do, and every textbook, or case study I read... just tells me you're going to die."

"Then what do we do?"

"I am going to fight. I will do whatever it takes to keep you alive. Even if I have to breathe for you" he smiled giving me a kiss "I'm just afraid to leave you alone... I think I'm running out of time."

"Thank you, Jack, but... I don't want you to suffer because of me."

"Too late. Y/n I'm in love with you. I can't bear to see you like this. if anything happens to you I will suffer that much I know."

"Ohh jack... I love you too!" I smiled hugging his chest 

"I am so very thankful to hear that- I was worried I- I wouldn't tell you before it was too late."

"I was too, I just... I don't want to leave you a heartbroken mess like my mother left my father."

"We both know you can't stop that."

"Then please, when I am gone. Do not grieve for me forever Jack, Please. Allow yourself to love again and find a girl who you could spend forever with."

"Please do not ask this of me." he caressed my cheek

"Please Jack, it would pain me more to see you wither away in grief for me." 

"... I will move on. if it would hurt you more. but know you shall always be the light in my heart." 

"And you will always be mine." I smiled "Please, no more tests, no more trails, just hold me close and make me smile"

"You can't ask me to give up on you."

"Please, Jack."

"....Alright, if that's what you want" He nodded tears flooding down his cheeks he laid back down and pulled me close never wanting to let me go, 

"Can I, have one? Please?"

"One." He sighed "Go on, where have you been hiding them?" 

I giggled and pulled the box from under my bed

"Again?"

"You wouldn't check the same place twice." I giggled taking one and lighting it on the candle laying back to slowly inhale and exhale 

"That really makes you feel better?"

"It's calming." 

"Give it"

I sighed and handed it over and he tenderly tried it coughing up as he did 

"Fuck- hang on..." he said trying it again "they kinda have a bit of a relaxing function... opens up the chest Ironicly. You said these are specifically asthma cigarettes right?"

"Yeah, thorn apple leaves dried and rolled," I said taking it back 

"I mean the smoking is still bad, and I am mad at you for it you know."

"I'm still mad at you for not knocking and walking in on me naked."

"Awww don't be mad, I didn't see that much."

"Didn't you?"

"Maybe I did." He smirked "I couldn't help but look."

"Umm" I mumbled laying on his chest as I finished the cigarette

"One more test?"

"What for?"

"I wanna see if these do anything?"

"Alright" I sighed so he grabbed the device and I breathed as usual 

"....I mean, yeah you are a little bit better actually."

"I told you."

"Yeah yeah, the issue is the good of the leaves is being outweighed by the fact your smoking them..." He said, "You know what, I'm going to spend an hour downstairs running some tests I'll get the nurse to watch you as you sleep, if anything happens they'll let me know, that okay?"

"Okay Jack" I nodded giving him a kiss

"Good girl, I'll be back soon"  

I smiled laying in bed, doing my best to keep my breathing steady. And after a few hours, Jack returned.

"I am a bloody genius!"

"... I know you are,"

"Awwww thank you, sweetie." He cooed clearly not expecting me to say that, "But I may have solved it!"

"Really!"

"Maybe, so it appears thron apple leaves do work the issue is your smoking them which it dulling the effects that's why you feel calm and relaxed but it doesn't help your breathing all that much, and our medicine I've been making you take is doing something too but only small we have to give you in big does and even then it doesn't last long, but I think I know the answer." He explained as he revealed a ... pot. 

it was... well a vase. a white vase with painted flowers but there was a stopper in the top much like the breathing device and some kind of tube thing... 

"what is it?" I asked 

"It is... an inhaler."

"Inhaler?"

"Inside is a liquid form of the medicine so you're not taking it you're breathing in the vapours, and thorn apple leaves coating the inside, all you have to do is when you feel breathless you breathe in through the bottle, out your nose. It will need changing daily but it should work."

"Should?"

"...I tested it. Made me feel a lot better. Will you try? for me?"

I nodded and took it close to me I was nervous but he smiled so sweetly, so I gently breathed in feeling this feeling like my chest was pulled open like I could breathe in double what I did before, my chest soothing, and I let a breath out my nose, I took in another feeling so so much better, better then I thought I ever would feel.

"So?" he asks very worried 

"Thank you so much, Jack!" I smiled hugging his chest 

He held me close and listened carefully "You're not wheezing?"

"No, I feel so much better."

He quickly made me check with the machine and my breathing was double normal if not more "I love you so much Y/n! I can't believe it... you're gonna be okay." he hugged me closely his voice teary

"well we don't know for sure but, I feel better than I ever have before! Thank you so much I love you Jack" 

"Y/n... Will you marry me?"

"What!"

"Marry me? Please. weather this gives you a week, a year, or the rest of our lives I want to spend it with you" 

"Ohhh, Jack... Yes!" I smiled squeezing him tight but I felt a little breathless from the panic of it all so I grabbed the vase and breathed in feeling it fix my breathlessness "Better, I can't thank you enough Jack. And I'd be thrilled to marry you"

"I can't wait to marry you either" He smiled kissing my lips sweetly. 

[c0worker-bryce]

Hey, Bryce? I just wanted to come over and talk about what one of your kids told me (coughs @lopilofficial ) they said that you want them to move back and live with you and your husband- but, you two make weird probably unholy sounds-

Sooo- mind telling me why you two are doing- THAT? When your kids are awake??? I know it's none of my business but I love my grand kid so I have to ask. Adult to adult.

[ @theonlygaurdainangel ]

Uhm... Well it kind of escalated into that- uhhhhhhh

SO! It wasn't intentional, it just kinda happened!

[nihiltism]

hiiiiii here to explain my last patchnote for now!!! because Another trope thought i was having was my love hate relationship with the redemption equals death trope. see, it can be By Far the most bittersweet way to end a deeply flawed character's plot, and with the ones I do see I wouldn't change for the world. buuuut in some cases it kind of feels like its also because itd be Really Hard to give them an actual redemption arc from a writers perspective. yknow. like theyve done so Much atrocities that you dont know how to write a redemption for them that feels fulfilling and. maybe the character thinks the same. maybe the character also thinks theyre too far gone for any sort of redemption and anyway doesnt know where to start.

so. basically i want to kill sera but not for long because i love trope subversion for myself only. i want this to be an act of self sacrifice but also likely something she Caused in the first place and my first thought was like. in a full on panicked breakdown (i do not know what spurs it on, dont worry about it) sera weaves a Husk Of A Beast out of roots and thorns around herself, caging herself from harm so she can lash what harm's already Internally there on others. and my thought about that would be that shes snapped out of her mania there when her creation goes after trigger, since it and her panicky first thought process only knows her as someone who wants to hurt her also. and i guess thats not Wrong but seeing this giant Thing she's wrought hold the closest thing she's had to a companion under its finger, with trigger knowing Full Well it's drosera this time. it feels like inverse deja vu of exactly what she was running from to start with and she can't handle it and breaks out of her own cage to destroy what she's created, trading finishing blows to protect the hunter she doesnt dare define her feelings on but definitely doesnt want to see die.

okay well. issue here that makes me giggle a bit. uhhhhhhh. cough. sin of odio. i think this is Really funny of a realization to make but also? i think this is a good enough idea to uh. not fucking care. sorry odio. i think its really funny how similar these guys are. thats just a side note so none of you can call me on it.

anyway patch note .5 here is that after the dust clears and sera does die to save trigger in order to maybe even die the hero she once thought she was (or, at least try to). trigger kind of explodes in a confused anger and manages to command the earth like sera could Just This Once to rip the fucking ground open and dive into hell to grab her and bring her back herself.

see, drosera is an Incredibly avoidant character and also really. not great at the whole self preservation thing because of the whole I Dont Know How To Make Up For What Ive Done And Dont Think I Can. thing. so she doesnt actually have any qualms with dying here to save trigger, 1 because its a chance to finally do something good for once after all the problems shes caused. but also 2, way more internally, it's a Fantastic way to run away again! so when trigger comes back to save her sera can only fight and scream at her to get back Out, to not be stupid and throw away everything her sacrifice was for. to not ruin the escape into misery she so deserves- and trigger calls her a coward. does sera really think that dying here will fix anything? she won't leave this pit without her, and sera refuses to let her fall into the same fate she has for something as seemingly undeserving as her. so they have one last, desperate fight in the firey pits of hell and for the first time in their eternal cat-and-mouse chase. trigger Wins. trigger with a sort of contempt in her voice orders her to get up and help her get out of here. that's the final ping that makes sera give up and agree to go with her. trigger physically Can't actually leave alone.

and thats what sets up her semi redemption arc!! im really normal!! i assume once they scramble their way back to the surface sera just immediately flumps over, something something howl ratio, and trigger has to drag her to some sort of medic but like. i think that after all the Waves Are Settled from that the chase kind of. stops. not to say sera didnt Try but theyre both kind of. still not really in any condition to have the same rivalry they did, and its not like either of them really Wanted to continue that really. oh Noooo youll have to be forced to be vulnerable and suffer each others company as something more than just enemies. so after a bit they end up setting back out Together, as sera tries the best she can to Actually Earn a redemption while trigger holds her to it. and maybe theyll get there someday but its still a way better position than before. also they have matching burn scars!!

(lies down and dies) okay everyone meet drosera shes my best friend she's my little meow meow she has 97 mental illnesses and is not allowed in most public spaces. most of my ocs have accidental character inspirations and at least 2 of them for her are the ones I want to put under a microscope and then into a blender if that's any indication of what she's like. if u can guess them u get a cookie.

anyway her deal is that she's an exile from Whatever Place She Lived In because she decided to do an Itty Bitty vigilante justice murder and was shocked when her town took that badly. (note: she thinks this murder is justified. she is quite possibly fully incorrect and very out of line either way.) being exiled for doing The Right And Just Thing gives her abandonment issues for days and she abandons her whole past identity in an outburst of (I never needed you all if all you ever do is turn your backs on me) and is now plotting to get revenge on her town in order to be an object lesson on what happens when you betray someone you loved. effectively she's putting herself as an example or, failing that, a martyr, but really her worse and worse actions are only caused by denial and her own lost pride. but she does not see that at all because all she sees Herself as is a disgraced hero

[duckprintspress]

Dialogue Prompts: Creature Culture Clash!

Aliens, shifters, and monsters live among us. Perhaps they have since the dawn of time, or perhaps they’ve recently arrived from the stars or found themselves the owner of a shiny new fur coat during the last full moon. However long they’ve been around, and whatever their reason for being here, one thing’s for certain: when human and creature lives become entangled, shenanigans are bound to happen. Here are some fun prompts to inspire stories about the messy, sometimes hilarious, and always intriguing ways alien and creature lives can collide with our own.

“So, my grandpa has this story he tells at family gatherings without fail … it goes like this … … so now he’s convinced aliens/monsters really do exist.”

“Well, about that … funny story…”

-

“I thought you knew! I told you at the club on your birthday. I’ve been open about it ever since.”

“I thought you were joking!”

“For four months? All of these conversations and you thought it was a joke and went along with it for four months?!?!”

-

“When you said not to worry, you just had a few legal troubles to sort out, I didn’t expect to end up in a cell on a starship two-thousand light years from Earth.”

-

“All right, I’ve had enough. It’s time you show me what you do out there in the woods every month. No more secrets.”

-

“Why is that person looking at me like I’m a piece of meat. Like, literally, a piece of meat.”

*coughs* “Oh, well, you know, they’re a…”

-

“I’ve always been drawn to the stars.”

“Perhaps there’s a reason. There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you, but you might want to sit down first.”

-

“So… this is what you really look like in the morning? I…uh…think I can get used to it.”

-

“Wait, the penalty for doing that is what where you come from?"

"It's death, obviously!"

"But they hardly did anything wrong!"

"Uhhhhhhh."

-

“You are going to tell me right now why you stole my identity and…uh…my face.”

-

“Local cryptids need love too, so I made a dating app for them.”

-

"Wait, so humans can hide their extra eyelids too?“

“What do you mean, humans?!!?“

-

"Ugh I hate when I have these dreams where my [alien/monster feature] won't go away! Wait. This isn't a dream!"

-

*Growls* “I very carefully planted all those myths and legends to scare folks so they’d leave me alone.”

-

“You’re under arrest for breaking interstellar code 327.25 section B subsection 12. You have the right to…”

-

“That is the most ridiculous alien costume I’ve ever seen. Aliens don’t look anything like that!”

“How would you know?”

-

“Why [name] what big ears you have…”

“You know, that joke is getting old.”

*

There's so much potential in confusion between people of different species. These are just some ideas - we hope you loved them!

Now, go forth and write some things!!

Prompts by @owlishintergalactic, @alessariel, @unforth, and @ramblingandpie

[purplehoodiesimon]

Brain still doesn't want to write so I'm here to talk about my nonbinary Wille headcanons

First off, I say nonbinary loosely. I like that they're not labeling his sexuality in canon and I think it fits his character very well to be like, "fuck boxes, fuck labels, I just want to be a person". So I think they'd be the same about gender. They know they're not a girl or a boy, and I think they'd be okay using nonbinary to clarify things to people but for the most part, they just don't want to use any labels. Like if someone asks he'll say he's nonbinary, especially if he's explaining the concept to someone, but he never outright labels himself as nonbinary.

That being said, he makes it 100% absolutely clear to anyone he ever meets that he's not a boy. They have had e-fucking-nough of people speculating on their identity and Kristina hates it but pretty much the first words out of their mouth to anyone new are, "Hi I'm Prince Wilhelm, I'm not a girl or a boy, gender is fake and my pronouns are he/they. How are you?" (In Swedish, I think it would be han/hen? If Google is telling me the right information? If I'm incorrect please let me know). They lean more towards masculine and neutral language, but they also don't really care if someone uses she or princess or something.

(Unless it's from Simon, they absolutely ADORE him calling them princess. He hates being royalty, but almost no one actually calls him princess cause they're all more in the habit of using prince so it feels special coming from Simon.)

Madison gives him half her closet when he comes out because she knows she buys way too many dresses on shopping trips anyways and they've got similar body types. She's a bit shorter but they're both tall and thin so with a few modifications, it works. Most of their clothing is hand picked by a designer at the palace so they can really only wear stuff from her at Hillerska. However, they totally give the designer Madison's number and before long, a few more creative, feminine pieces start getting woven into their public wardrobe. Simon also paints his nails all the time in various colors, partially because Wille likes how it looks and partially to help him stop biting them.

Obviously I like to imagine things going a bit better (cough cough Erik's alive, August didn't videotape them, if that did happen then Wille didn't deny it, etc etc) but even in a timeline that follows canon, I still see him ending up a point where he just does not give a fuck what people think as long as they're not putting him in one box or another. That's kinda his predicted character arc in canon anyways and I think it would be the same, it just might take longer for him to come out without a decent support system (as canon has clearly shown with the sexuality thing ahem ahem).

Also in an AU where August is a decent person who didn't do highly illegal morally fucked up things I can totally see the two of them getting closer as time goes on and maybe Wille helps August out with those obvious body issues that may or may not be related to gender cause August just gives me such big they/them agender vibes and I hate it cause they suck but you can't stop the Vibes™ and holy shit they need help in canon like someone please address the fact that this kid is clearly depressed with body issues and addiction problems to high hell, they may have done shitty as fuck things but everyone deserves help and holy FUCK August needs it

Anyways uhhhhhhh basically he/they Wille rights and thank you for coming to my TEDtalk.

[lovemesomesurveys]

What was the last thing you had to eat and drink? Pizza earlier and just a bit ago some water.

Do you take any prescription medications? Yes.

Do you enjoy lore? Sure.

Are you afraid of what's in the ocean? YES. Just the thought of deep water is terrifying.

Do you think there are people who are capable of doing magic? No.

Do you ever like to take a drive late at night? Those can be really nice. If I could drive I probably would do that sometimes.

When was the last time you visited a museum, if ever? It's been a few years. I like museums. Historical museums, specifically.

Would you ever own a horse, or have you? No.

What is your favorite memory related to rain? Hmm, I don't know. I just love when it rains.

Does small talk bother you? I'm just so awkward and bad at it.

Do you ever experience sensory overload? Ohhh yes. It's definitely gotten worse in the past year or so, like it really doesn't take much. Brain fog is real.

Do you have a hard time admitting you're wrong? I'm usually pretty quick to blame myself for everything.

What do you think you'll be doing 5 years from now? What do you want to do? I'm not even going to try and go there, man. I have to take things day by day. Hell, hour by hour.

Have you ever written a love letter? The person never saw it, but yes.

Do you have a hard time making up your mind? Yes.

What's your favorite charity that you support? I used to donate to ASPCA often and St. Jude's Cancer Research.

What color are the shoes you wear the most? I always wear my black and white striped Adidas.

Do you consider violet to be purple or blue? Purple.

If anything was an Olympic sport, what could you win gold for? Survey taking?

Have you ever experienced bad karma? I don't believe In that.

Would you rather have whiskers or claws like a cat? Claws, I guess.

What's something you have a strong opinion on? My faith and abuse towards anyone, but giving a voice for animals and children is a big one.

Do you prefer driving, riding shotgun, or being in the backseat while on the road? Well, I can't drive so that's out. I generally sit in the front seat, but if it's a long drive I prefer the backseat.

If you ever played Mario kart, what character did you always choose to play as? I switched it up.

Do you believe that big foot is real? No.

Do you like to learn about different cultures? Sure.

Do you stay awake til 3am often? I stay up later than that every night. :/ I keep trying to work on it, but ugh I don't know why I insist on fighting it. My body actually fights to stay awake nowadays so I should just let myself get sleep, but instead I choose to just doze off and on while sitting up until eventually I lie down, which by that point the sun is coming up. It's so stupid, like close the laptop, turn off the light, and GO TO SLEEP. And I wonder why I feel so groggy and out of it all the time.

Do you know anyone or have you ever been bitten by a wild animal? No, fortunately.

What's the closest object to you that is blue? My pill crusher is blue.

When did you last feel full of life? Uhhhhhhh.

What do you normally daydream about? I find myself drifting off a lot to random thoughts.

Have you ever seen a tornado? Noo.

What was the last thing you apologized for? I don't remember.

Do you ever do anything specific for the full moon? No.

Do you know anyone or do you practice witchcraft? No.

When was the last time you were sick? Currently. The past few years? It's not the typical cold/flu sick, but in other ways. Although, I'm really thinking I may have recently, unknowingly, had COVID. That may have been the major trigger that triggered the brain fog. I've read that is a symptom many have experienced, one that has lingering effects. I've had this lingering cough I thought was allergy related, but now I'm wondering about that as well.

What was the last thing you purchased? Food.

Do you ever plant flowers for the bees? No.

What makes you feel powerful? Nothing.

What was your last coffee order? Yesterday, I got a, "Betty White Frappe", which was just a white chocolate mocha frappe with a couple pumps of hazelnut and a pump of vanilla with caramel crunch on top from Starbucks.

If you had to wear a crown, what would you want it to look like? I want the Scarlet Witch tiara/crown.

What was the last thing to scare you? Health related things.

Do you have to sleep with a blanket to sleep well? Not necessarily.

Watermelon or strawberries? Watermelon.

Do you own any clothing in the shade of navy blue? Yeah.

What was the last thing that caught your eye while shopping? I see a lot of things while browsing online.

What's your top 3 groceries you buy each time you grocery shop? Soda, snacks of some kind, sandwich stuff.

Do you ever listen to the radio while driving or bluetooth? We always have music on when in the car. My parents and brother have their own cars and they all just play their Spotify playlists.

Have you ever had a peach smoothie? I don't think so. I've always been a strawberry banana, banana, or chocolate banana smoothie kind of person.

What's the last song you sang out loud? *shrug*

[troublesometrollhunters]

Blinkyfindsoutaboutmistletoehangseveywhereindesperationforalittlekiss

As Blinky stares at his library he thinks perhaps, just perhaps he may have gone a little overboard.

"Uhhhhh Blinky when I told you about mistletoe I don't think I really explained it well. Your supposed to hang it over doorways not uhhhhhh... every way." Jim states looking up at all the dangling mistletoe branches. He pulls a branch down that had broken free from it's place so it wouldn't smack him in the face.

"Ahhhhh yes well Master Jim it appears in my excitement I ummmm..." Tapping his fingers together nervously he looks around the mess that he'd made in his library. "Got carried away?" He questions.

"Woah what happened here?" Toby asks as he follows Jim into the library. His nose crinkled confused at the dangling plant. Mistletoe? Why so much?

"I ummmm... I decorated for your human hoilday." Blinky states face turning a light blue. He had seen the plant in one of his books and Jim had explained an old Yule or Christmas tradition done with said plant. Ummmmm... one where if caught under it you'd kiss whoever was with you.

"Uhhhhh Blinky mistletoe is not the only hoilday decoration." Toby says chuckling as he looks up at the strings of mistletoe Blinky had hung from his ceiling.

"I know Tobias." He states rather sharply. He'd seen his error stop making fun of him!

"Mi... Mistle... Mistletoe?" Aarrrgh questions sniffing the air as he wonders in. Blinky nods very emabrassed and Aarrrgh nods chuffing. As he walks by Toby he lightly headbomps the boy before doing the same to Jim. "Why so much?" He asks headbomping Blinky as well. Blinky blushes deeper at the troll kiss before coughing into one of his hands to regain focus.

"Well you see I..." Looking away Blinky fidgets with his hands. He wanted to kiss (Y/N) but it seemed he only made a mess.

"Ohhhhhhhhhh." Toby states getting it. "You wanna smooch (Y/N) don't you? Yeah I've been trying to get Darci under the mistletoe too." He admits. "So far I've almost kissed a bunch of wrong people." He hums.

"Well I mean-" Blinky covers his face with his multiple hands and just nods unable to speak from being so emabrassed. He was acting like a love sick whelp! Aarrrgh nuzzles him and Blinky smiles at his life long companion.

"Just ask. No need plant to kiss." He advises and Blinky blinks. Aarrrgh was right! He was being a coward by not just asking them and expecting a plant to do all the work.

"Yeah Blinky were pretty sure they like you! I mean why else would they spend endless hours with you?" The redhead questions. Blinky glares and Tobias bites his lip.

"That came out wrong." He states. Blinky hums crossing his arms.

"Yeah that was a no brainer Toby." Messing up Tobies hair Jim turns towards Blinky. "What he means is (Y/N) spends a lot of time down here and they're always excited to talk to you. Come on you don't need all this mistletoe to get a kiss." Jim states.

"Yeah let's not come off as desperate Blinky. We can help you take some of it down." Toby advises as he pulls a strand off from a shelf. Looking around Blinky drags his hands down his face. They were right! He messed up.

"Ahhhhhh great gorgons! This is all wrong! Hurry! Hurry!" He states as he begins pulling down the mistletoe panicked.

Pulling down the strands frantically Blinky steps on a chair to pull a strand down while Aarrrgh and the boys go into the other room to get supplies to help them get to the higher places Blinky had hung them.

Blinkous was so busy yanking at strings and throwing the overwhelming amount of mistletoe into the fire that he didn't hear you come in until you were standing in front of him.

"AHHHHH (Y/N)! UMMMM MISTLETOE I MEAN HELLO!" He shouts hiding the plant behind his back.

Confused you look up at Blinky before smiling.

"Mistletoe?" You ask teasingly. Blinkys face tinges a dark blue and he notices your face is also a lot redder than usual. He also notices in the corner of his visions Aarrrgh and the kids are about to come back in but take their leave. No don't leave! However his focus goes back to you as he begins stuttering, trying to salvage that terrible greeting.

"Uhhhhhhh.... Yes!" He coughs and smiles getting off the chair so he's level with you. "Yes Viscum album a pretty flower is it not? I-I... I was doing some hoilday decorating." Blinky says quickly face going a darker blue as he watches you. Your cheeks were flushed presumably from the cold that resided outside TrollMarket but he liked to think maybe it was him. Smiling at you, you returned it. Your smile warmed his heart. You were so kind and so gentle and oh... oh dear he was staring and rambling and did he say any of that nonsense outloud? Blushing harder at his very intrusive thoughts he looks away from you before hearing your laugh.

Turning flustered, your all smiles as you laugh. Your laugh is nice. You're not laughing at him and that makes him feel better. His heart races as he watches you as you finally catch your breath. Oh dear and now his hands are shaking.

"Do... Do you know what standing under a mistletoe means in human culture?" You question curiously stepping a little closer. Blinky knows. Of course he does. This is exactly what he wanted. To kiss you under the mistetoe preferably by his fireplace to be more romantic or something. He can't think his brains a mess as he stares at you. Shaking his head no in a panic you laugh again.

"Let me show you." Nodding he pauses as your hands gently touch his chest. Oh. Oh! It was happening! Itwashappening!!!

Standing on your tiptoes he can't believe your about to kiss him. He bends down face inches from yours to help you reach him. Heart pounding in his ears he sees you pause.

Closing your eyes he watches dumbfounded as your lips gently met his. Blinking repeatedly he freezes in shock dropping the mistletoe he had been holding behind his back.

You you you you you kissed him!

Pulling away you begin laughing at his surprised face. But there's no malice. No ill intent. Your smiles warm and as you hold his hand that's warm too. Face heating up to an uncomfortable degree he ignores it and thinks of the kiss.

"Happy Hoildays Blinky." You hum and he nods. Indeed.

Happy Hoildays.

[fizzingwizard]

Episode 28~ Well, I heard this season’s supposedly got 60 episodes total (don’t quote me, that may be wrong) so we’re almost at the halfway point... I’m gonna wait till episode 30 to talk about that though.

This episode I actually rather liked, even though absolutely NOTHING happens other than the important things at the very beginning and the very end. That’s becoming a pattern this season - lots of nothing sandwiched in between hints of big dramatic things to come. Eh. But yeah, I liked it anyway :P for a few reasons that are probably not that objective. It’s not the kind of episode that’s gonna make you want to rewatch though.

Cap of the week!

Look we all know Jou is exactly the kind of 12 year old who folds his clothes neatly even when lost in a mysterious parallel world. Also he brought more textbooks (social studies and Japanese). Aka more ammo for Mimi

More below:

Last week we ended with Patamon evolving to Angemon in what was a pretty anticlimactic moment, despite a big villain being there and a cliffhanger ending. Seemed like a waste after all we went through just to get him.

However, I do think the beginning of episode 28 makes up for it somewhat. Angemon gets to show off how Very Very Cool he is, but it’s also made clear that he’s not up to full strength. Seeing him throw all his effort into the battle to save them even though it’s clear he won’t win was actually pretty great.

More typhoon winds throwing everyone back XD they must have so many bruises

Poor Takeru gets thrown back all by his lonesome

So last episode, I said I thought Darknightmon was gonna go for Hikari and was surprised and somewhat relieved when he stayed interested in Takeru/Angemon. Um... I guess that was a red herring x’D he’s after Hikari after all.

He literally says “I have no use for you” to Angemon LOL sick burn my dude

Hikari: “There is a new cutest child.”

Takeru: “Um, actually the phrase is ‘smallest child’.“

Hikari: “No. Cutest child. Do not interrupt my moment, impertinent one.”

Grogu: “Did someone say ‘cutest child’?”

Angemon’s peeved that Hikari stole the spotlight so he immediately jumps into the way and prevents Darknightmon from grabbing her.

Angemon: “No one treats ME like some washed up has-been!”

But as hard as he tries, Angemon just hasn’t recovered enough. It probably took all the energy Patamon had stored up just to evolve. His wings lengthen and release into millions of shining feathers, and both he and Darknightmon de-evolve.

I really did kind of enjoy this battle! Seeing Takeru be all strong and heroic, and the desperation with which Angemon tries to protect him... me likey.

Next it’s a nod to 99 series! D-D-Digimon!

Yamato screams like he’s at the dentist’s.

There’s lots of freaky black lightning that rains down seeming to give dark energy and empower random Digimon who get hit by it. Just to ensure our heroes don’t get to waste time on any more “breaks”

A single feather floats down where Taichi lands and dissolves. I am not sure what happened to it, if it did anything or if it was what protected them until this point...

Taichi and Hikari wake up and discover they are alone. So last week I thought they’d get swept off into pairs... I didn’t even consider that they’d each wind up alone. Mixed feelings! On the one hand, seeing each kid interact with their partner and their partner only was one of the good things about this episode (except it wasn’t always true, which I’ll get to in a minute). On the other hand, my fears last week were that whoever ended up with Taichi would be overshadowed by him. Turns out, if no one’s with him but Hikari, that means all the plot stuff is with them and the others have nothing in particular to do. -_-; At least not this week. My hope is that it’s coming (and there were a few promising hints this episode so), but next week’s trailer looks pretty Taichi-centric too..

Taichi: “Can I help it if I’m so charming cool awesome and dare I say it adorable”

The impact of everyone being “alone” is cut short by the fact that they can all still communicate via digivice. I would be fine with that, except for what I said earlier - they wind up spending too much time talking to each other instead of their partners. Particularly the ones who like to Plan Things. Eh.

Yamato tells Taichi to protect Hikari, doesn’t even mention that he’s sadly separated from Takeru at this point ;_; He knows Takeru’s okay though because Takeru is also communicating by digivice.

Sora: “Hello yes, it’s in my contract that I get to be awesome X number of times per episode, and I have doubts that you are making your quota.”

I love how Tentomon’s job is basically Koushirou’s secretary x’D “Put my calls on speakerphone Margaret” “Yes Mr Izumi”

The partners really are suited to each other... Koushirou gets a secretary, Jou gets a mom, Mimi gets a gal pal, Yamato gets a therapist, Sora gets a sister, Taichi gets a... preschool child who eats paste... -.-’

takeru and hikari don’t count because they’re Special and their main attribute is Cute

All the kids have ended up alone except for super-charged monsters who want to eat them. Palmon hoists Mimi up a very sheer rock trying to escape Golemon who is not great at climbing but doesn’t seem to know that

Meanwhile Jou... is like “Ohh yeah, you guys have it so rough, I’m trying my hardest too, keep fighting the good fight y’all”

He’s relaxing in the hot springs and freaking studying.

Gomamon’s unusually fine with it though. Because he gets to swim. He says “Let’s invite the others here.” They’re both like YEAH THIS IS WHAT I CALL A VACATION

It’s all fun and games until the hairy guy with the tattoos and veiny arms sharing your hot spring starts staring at your ding-a-ling. Uhhhhhhh.

he does make the “Nanimono?” joke so all is well lol

No matter what form he takes, Patamon is always an Angel 👼

Takeru is alone but he has Patamon... but Patamon is...

... ADORABLE... and conked out. Takeru’s so proud of him though, look at that smile *sniff*

Taichi remembers to ask Koushirou how conditions are back at home. This kid is too organized.

Koushirou: “News and variety shows continue as normal even though the world’s ending.”

I’m not going to get into everything he says but it’s pretty much more of the same regarding the power influx from the human world to the digital world and the way the Zurumon’s attacks are wreaking havoc with electronics...

Taichi almost says “You’re so sugoi!” Almost. He’s grateful anyway. *chews on those Taishiro breadcrumbs till they’re broken down to atoms*

Then... Hikari’s acting strange!

Agumon: “What are you looking at?”

Hikari: “I don’t know.”

Taichi: “You don’t know but you’re looking at it?”

Hikari: “It kind of looks like Steve Buscemi... it’s hard to tell”

Taichi’s not too wigged out by freaky Hikari because he’s lived with her all his life, and she’s always been a freak.

Baby Hikari: “Shteeve... bushemiii....”

Agumon: “Your sister’s weird.”

Taichi: “Yeah but she’s MY weird sister.”

Yamato is fighting, of course. He stops for a moment to be impressed by how well Takeru’s handling himself. Garurumon points it out. I suppose it’s simply time to accept that this season Yamato is just not the disaster boy he was in 99 x’D

Now have some gratuitous adorable Patabutt images.

Patabutt patabutt pata pata butt butt

Um... is it just me or is Patamon kinda... oversized all of a sudden lol...

Takeru: “Did you eat all of my candy stash again?”

Patamon: “I just can’t seem to quit”

Takeru: “That’s it we’re getting you into rehab”

Patamon tries to fly but just can’t ;____; poor baby is totally wiped out. Takeru takes a long time to catch on to that. I REALLY HOPE THIS GOES SOMEWHERE, like Takeru has to protect Patamon instead of the reverse etc... pleeeeease don’t just leave this where it is writers!! The potential for cute is endlessssss

On the matter of Things That Are Not Cute... -.-;

Jou: “Please stop looking at my junk”

Nanimon: “Stop looking at mine”

Jou: “YOU DONT HAVE ANY wait do you wAIT I DONT WANT TO LOOK”

Mimi is much more useful! She discovers a shiny rock!

Theory!

This rock... could be the raw material for their Crests!!! Squeee~!! I mean, it’s about time something about that came up, assuming it’s still a thing. (Since they already seem to have their Crests loaded in their Digivices and got to Perfect level without any talk of values and personal strengths, I don’t know how much of the old Crest legacy remains in this season.) I, uh, did the same thing in my fanfic so I guess I’m just biased... These could totally be Evil Rubies Of Darkness and Terror but I’d rather have Crests :p Of course I would have expected Mimi to find green stones in that case sooo... maybe not.

Anyway she and Palmon are suitably distracted from running from Golemon and go mining instead. I’m sure that will not cause any problems.

We swing back to Taichi and Hikari, who are being approached by a big scary monster...

Taichi: “Watch my Tarzan impression.”

Hikari: “Nooo! I don’t want to be Jane!”

Fortunately Agumon evolves just to catch them in midair x’D Now is not the time for impressions, Taichi, seriously.

They are attacked by Volcdramon, which is a dumbass name.

Voldramon: “I AM VOLCRADMON, THE VOLCANO DIGIMON”

Taichi: “Velcromon the Velcro Digimon?”

Voldramon: “what NO i am Volcdramon-”

Hikari: “Voltronmon? Voldemortmon?”

Voldramon: *sniveling* “why does this happen EVERY time i JUST want to be one of the cool guys youre all such BULLIES”

MetalGreymon and Volcdramon face off, but something’s not right! Much like... the Digimon in the last episode whose name I already forgot *cough*, Volcdramon seems able to absorb other Digimon’s power. This presents a problem because last time it took all of them shooting into its mouth together to overload it so they could win. MetalGreymon is having a hard time on his own as Volcdramon just absorbs all his attacks.

Hikari prays to Jesus to save them. Digimon is approved for Christian families 👼👼👼

ugggghhh I love them

Taichi promises Hikari everything will be okay. His back-and-forth with MetalGreymon here is kind of cool. Every time MetalGreymon takes a hit, Taichi’s encouragement and coaching?? I guess keeps frustration at bay.

Buuut eventually they’re both feeling pretty desperate :P It was hard for me to take this battle seriously since, after all we’ve seen MetalGreymon capable of, it seems weird that he should be struggling this much. But obviously they don’t just want to make him invincible. And this problem makes sense: the ability of Digimon to absorb attacks and turn them into energy is definitely a new problem.

The question is, how do we solve it?

Apparently it helps if you have a little sister who’s some kind of super battery.

Taichi: “Nothing shocks me anymore with Hikari. She could announce she’s been Beyonce this whole time and I would believe it”

WarGreymon appears (again) as his goldeny vision self, defeats Volcdramon, then promptly de-evolves back to Agumon.

So the question is, why is this happening... From earlier episodes we know Agumon & co are some group of legendary warriors who have had their memories tampered with (??) to some extent (because they do still know each other, or at least Agumon and Gabumon remember knowing each other). Omegamon’s a given for that of course so I suppose that’s why. Hikari seems to be the key to unlocking the legendary warriors, maybe with Takeru. That’s my guess. Of course, Tailmon’s probably already in the bad guys’ clutches, much like Patamon was. I hope she’s still working for them. I want more double agent fun times. Also ANGST

Hikari: “Thank you, Agumon-” *disappears*

Taichi: “GEEZ I can’t eat, can’t sleep, can’t even breathe without something bad happening anymore, like excuse me for BLINKING”

Yeah so... Skullknightmon appears and abducts Hikari like it’s nothing xD

Skullknightmon: “What’s under arm number two? Iiiiit’s your sister!”

Taichi: “Aw damn, I wanted the sports car”

Taichi quickly gives chase. I assume Agumon’s pretty exhausted after that and probably can’t evolve now. Bad timing. Oooor maybe this is all how Skullknightmon planned it...

Then... the unthinkable! Hikari looks at her brother rushing desperately to save her... and turns away!

Taichi is SHOCKED! Le GASP!

Taichi: “But but but I’m the MAIN CHARACTER”

Hikari: “Not anymore bitch it’s my show now”

Yeah okay jokes aside! This bit was AWESOME. Like, I’m sure it’s obvious that she can tell the voice that “called” her to the digital world is with Skullnightmon. Or at least, her heart’s telling her she has to go with him in order to meet that person (Tailmon, duh). I’ll be surprised if that’s not what’s going on. But... to so coldly just turn her back on her brother... I mean, maybe she also thinks she’s protecting him... but SHE JUST GOT HERE... holy crap...

To think we spent so long theorizing that Takeru would be the one abducted but no it’s Hikari... In retrospect should have been obvious. She’s 1) a girl and therefore a damsel, and 2) the one who was abducted in 99 xP

But I really like her semi-willingly going off with Skullnightmon. Much better than just screaming as she’s whisked away King Kong-style. In 99 she also got abducted voluntarily (I mean, it was coercion, so... that’s not voluntary, but you know what I mean). So they kept that in this season and I like it.

That’s it for this week’s episode! So the bits that I liked were the individual moments with the kids and their partners, of which we had more than usual but still not nearly enough. Nowhere near. In the end it was still a Taichi episode.

As a Taichi fan... it’s not like I’m ever sad that he gets more focus. But I love ALL the kids and they’re NOT getting development. We do keep getting hints about them but it’s so, so, so slow. To be fair, it’s not like we know THAT much about Taichi either. He gets so much focus because he’s always fighting. This season doesn’t seem concerned with personality and character bits like the 99 one, and I am gonna compare them for that. Because I think that was the heart of the 99 show. Without it, it’s missing something. I keep hoping it’ll come back, we keep getting those hints and special moments here and there, but the plot is such a distraction... if it was like a really good plot maybe I’d care less but...

Next week...  as far as I can see, it’s another Taichi episode xP But I do think they’ll do the same as this episode and intersperse Taichi’s battle with what’s going on with the others too. If that’s how they do it, I won’t mind. It might even be better. Fine, Taichi can fight, as long as the others are showing us more about themselves and getting other things done in the meantime. Mimi and Jou both look promising. Takeru too. Sora and Yamato, not sure..

Koushirou better not just sit at his computer the whole time -___-

Le owch.

Taichi: “Look being the main character’s not all it’s cracked up to be. I have three concussions and six broken bones. Also I can’t feel my toes anymore”

hang in there bud im cheering for ya

[bomberqueen17]

The bit in Little Fishie, where Geralt passes his super-cryptic message for Jaskier to the soldiers, made me laugh out loud in the midst of a pretty heavy angsty scene. I love the way you can insert those moments of absurdity that feel so real.

<3 Thank you! (I am still doing this askmeme guys, don’t judge me. I put it in the queue because it cheers me up so much all this time later.) And it’s funny because someone else commented on the whole extended reveal situation, but this part of it specifically is a part I enjoyed-- of course having Geralt laugh until he can’t breathe is entertaining but I really love this kind of shit, where there’s room for humor in a real dark scene. I have been a fan of this for ages, and it’s something you see in very old sources. I wrote a whole paper on it in college about the sudden whiplashes in tone in the Irish medieval epic the Tain bo Cuiliagne, where you’ll have the hero give a lengthy speech about the dignity of his foe and how little he wants to fight him, and then conclude it with “but if he dares to face me, I’ll still rip his head off” more or less verbatim-- of course I wrote this paper so long ago I don’t have any of the materials digitally, ha (O WordPerfect I hardly knew ye).

But I’ve always been a big fan of that sort of thing, and I love incorporating that into scenes. Geralt is a perfect protagonist for that, as well, since he’s got that inhuman ability to recover from very serious wounds, and the whole Witchers Don’t Feel Pain ridiculous stoicism that’s clearly fictional but equally clearly meaningful as an ethos, and so on-- really ripe for this kind of shit. I was delighted to get to pull it off.

Sometimes as an author you’re like hm perhaps this reveals too much of me but I’m sort of past that now, though it’s been humbling to go back thru my stuff for this askmeme and be like oh heh all these stories have the same underlying themes and in fact sometimes the thing someone’s mentioning occurs in more than one place. ha ha. But I’m not all that self-conscious about it. my id is pretty uhhhhhhh obvious. I definitely like pretty boys badly injured stoically cracking wise on death’s door, and that is not an uncommon literary theme, so. (from Little Fishie, chapter 5.)

“It might kill you,” Eirich said. “Do you have a family? Is there anyone we should send word?”

The Witcher closed his eyes for a moment. “Just-- give my medallion-- to the next-- Witcher you see,” he said. “They’ll know.”

Eirich nodded, and went to his bag, laying out supplies. “Anyone else we should send word to?”

“Your friend,” Benrick said. “Or-- weren’t you traveling with someone?”

The Witcher blinked, glanced at him, and closed his eyes again. “Yeah,” he said. “The kid. Jaskier. Bard.”

“I heard he was ill,” Benrick said. “I’m sorry.”

“Yeah,” the Witcher said again. “But if he lives-- I promised him-- answer to a riddle.”

“I’ll tell him,” Benrick said.

The Witcher opened his eyes. “Only if he lives,” he said.

“Nobody lives forever,” Benrick pointed out.

The Witcher laughed a little, and coughed, and blood came out of his mouth, shocking red on the white of his skin. “Fair,” he said. “Nngh. Tell him-- she eats them.”

“She eats them,” Benrick echoed, a little puzzled. It wasn’t a riddle he’d heard before.

“He’ll understand,” the Witcher said. “She. Eats. Them.”

“I’ll tell him,” Benrick said.

“Only if he-- lives,” the Witcher said again. He squeezed his eyes shut, clearly in pain.

[luciens-one-and-only-sea-otter]

Five Otome/Romance Game Men I Adore

Hai hai many thanks for thinking of me for this tag game @justine-the-guillotine !!

 I always feel pressure to do these things perfectly, even though it’s just talking about things I like :’) so please bear with me in my, probably, screaming appreciation. I’ve been thinking of a list a characters for a whole day and honestly I’m suddenly blanking,,, who do I adore? lol who knows,,, Well actually you are about to know cause I am going to tell you LOL. OkAY. Enough of this blabbering, onto the list of many mens.

Please know I am excluding Lucien (MLQC) because it is obvious that I adore him to a fucking fault. If you want to see me do a whole appreciation about those him just hmu in my asks or message me and I will go on for days bby

This list is in no way order of most to least adored, I physically could not make that kind of decision jkdfjksdfh. ALSO PLS KNOW I DO SWEAR LIKE A FUCKING SAILOR AND I TALK OF SMUSHING LOVELIES OFTEN. IT”S JUST MY PERSONALITY SO SHHHHH IF YOU DON”T LIKE IT DON”T READ IT BOO, THAT SIMPLE!

Takeda Shingen (Ikemen Sengoku) - Okay, I will be honest, I was very skeptical of sengoku period romance games because I had played some in the past,,, but holy shit, Shingen blew me away. He quickly rose up the ranks of otome men in my heart, and I think about him at least once a day now. I related so much with his MC because it was so hard not to lust and swoon over that man. I have no idea how or when I fell hard for him but it happened and I am not mad at all. I self insert so much with my games,,, and it’s easy for me to slip my real feelings into my fantasies. And honestly I really wish I could have Shingen IRL, ~~though I’m sure I would absolutely freak out and hide under a rock if he ever paid me any attention. He represents the perfect man, lover, and husband to me; he’s on a god level kind of man. Shingen is compassionate, knows boundaries and has never restricted MC from doing anything she loved (without good reason), he’s reliable and strong in a way that makes my heart melt. AND  LET’S NOT FORGET HOW FUCKING BRILLIANT THIS MAN IS, HE IS SO FUCKING SMART AND I WISH CYBIRD LET US SEE HIS EXTREME INTELLIGENCE MUCH MORE,,,, He’s just so damn perfect it is near infuriating how good of a man he is. He fits my normal type so well; me saying “Tall, Handsome, Flirtatious, Sexy as Fuck and Infuriating” might of as well have been about Mr Takeda “I’ll marry you and give you everything for one smile” Shingen. I also really like characters that are loyal to their loved ones (yes in contrast to my bastard villain type kink, I also love those who show loyalty and devotion to the people they love) Shingen does more than enough of all of and I really do look up to him as a person and model for character,,,,, oh gods, and the way I imagine he would make sweet baby making love to ---*cough cough* ALRIGHT LETS STOP HERE BEFORE THIS BECOMES A WHOLE ASS SHINGEN APPRECIATION POST!!!

Sirius Oswald (Ikemen Revolution) - I’m really tempted to just insert a daddy kink meme and leave it at that,,,, He is my absolute top otome man, or rather,,, one of my top “I wish you were real and we were married” men. As much as I whore around and claim to love a new man the most (besides Lucien because they’re on the same level now) every week,,, I will always come back to Mr. Flower Daddy. He holds such a precious spot in my heart, I can only try to explain the things that he makes me feel. Like a giddy school girl in love for the first time, but in this story they end up together. High school sweetheart kind of love that lasts till they’re old and wrinkled with time. Gods, thinking about Sirius makes me sob and my wallet sob harder . I must have a thing for men who keep denying their affections for MC (aka me self insert) because of things like responsibility, friendship, being labelled an old geezer,,etc. I have played his route about eight times over (probably) by now, it’s a little upsetting that his route wasn’t as spicy as his side content. Please Cybird, let Mr. Flower Daddy be the sexy and dramatic man he can be. I love the way he cares for others, how hard he works to achieve the bonds and peace he has now for not only everyone he loves, but for the country they all live in as well. His many layers intrigue me, seeing his reactions as well ughhhh I love this man so fucking much, how do people irl deal with love like this? I’m sitting here dreaming over Sirius Oswald,,, and his,,, big hands,,, Never have I held such large and terrifyingly real emotions and lust for an otome character. The man just screams let daddy take care of you baby but also let daddy wreck your pretty whore mouth, little lady or maybe that’s just me projecting my kinks onto this pure (lol) man. Not only is his body, heart, and morals absolutely stunning, HE IS ANOTHER INCREDIBLY INTELLIGENT BEING AND I CANNOT STRESSSSS HOW MUCH I FIND SMART PEOPLE INCREDIBLY SEXY AND THE WAY HE USES HIS TALENTS TO SUBTLY AID HIS LOVED ONES UGHHHHHH I LOVEEEEEEEEEEEE. GODS PLEASE LET ME BREAK INTO THE SIXTH DIMENSION AND MARRY THIS MAN!!!! 

Kent (Amnesia Memories) - OKAY LET ME JUST SAYYYY HE IS THE BIGGEST BABY AND BIGGEST MAN AT THE SAME TIME AND YOU CAN FIGHT ME ON THIS IDC BUT HIS OUTFIT IS THE SHIT!!! FUCK YOU BELT HATERS!!! His outfit and his love slaps like the wholesome man he is. Absolutely I would love to h*ld his h@nds and give him the best smooches I can give. Because that is what he deserves. I really loved this game, growing to love Kent was easy despite his big brain fucker throwing math questions at me from time to time. I’m not sure what makes me like Kent so damn much, but I do and that’s what matters skjdfdskjfh. He is so damn precious,,, you all know those  “you so fucking precious when you smile” song video thingies? That is exactly how I feel about Kent. He’s so damn precious I want him to be happy always. And I will fight anyone who bullies him hnnn. 

Myeong Hwi aka Theodore Wilson + Lee Gun Wook aka William Harris (Mystic Code) - Mystic Code used to be one of my favs, till they did the whole updating and redoing the story thing, with no full voiced lines etc (I really hope they bring that back). But two stood out to me the most was Captain Wilson and Lieutenant Harris. Both have very strong personalities and care for the greater good, and thick as fuck lets be real with that dom energy . I adore men with strong and noble (?? is this the right word??) personalities and also possess a compassionate heart. As Theo is with the MIU team members and Will is with MC. 

Theodorus Van Gogh (Ikemen Vampire) - whoallowedthismantobethisfuckingattractiveandlegal??????  *insert his magic mike CG* I have played Theo’s route in JP a few times, once to completion but knowing him in the EN version I am already absolutely in love with this man. How this came to be? Maybe it’s his bittersweet personality, the way he cares for MC in the same way Sirius does, but he’s a bit more brash about it than Sirius. I absolutely adored his character growth in his route and as you get to know him better he opens up more and more, ahh the tsundere is quite the cute trait XD. He is strong willed and passionate, he is caring of his loved ones, he is loyal to his family, blood or found, and he is an absolutely attentive loving person. Why ask for more when you can just love Theodorus Van Gogh? He is the absolute softy packed into a large brooding and brash package with a shiny 8-pack abs that I wish to slather maple syrup on and lap up for the love of----  for someone who loves pancakes so much. And I very much admire his drive to do what he wants and needs to do to the absolute best of his ability. His will to thrive for the best he can get has me swooning. He truly is a breath taking man,,, whether that be because he is being a complete sweetheart all of the sudden or he’s whipping you some nasty insult that is itching for a rebut.

Alright, that’s it! I cheated a little lololll but there aren’t any rules so >;3c I can do as I wish. 

I uhhhhhhh don’t interact with many other otome blogs T^T (but maybe you can change that hwehwe) so I won’t be tagging anyone. However, if you do see this and want to join in and tag your friends pls do!!! Share the love, pass it on, scream about more 2D mans.

[damienthepious]

*taps mic* hello y’all! for this week’s LKT, i proudly present to you... *checks notes* ... *coughs* ... uhh it’s just pwp!!

Awake With Wolf Teeth

[ao3]

[Rating: Explicit

Fandom: The Penumbra Podcast

Relationship: Lord Arum/Sir Damien/Rilla, Lord Arum/Sir Damien

Characters: Lord Arum, Sir Damien, Rilla

Additional Tags: Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot, Porn with Feelings, Smut, (i'm not a scalie but i'm also not a coward), Pining, Reunion Sex, (jesus fuck how do people tag things i'm such a disaster), Biting, Quiet Sex, Sneaky Sex, (adflkajds i hope y'all like this...... i mean... i do? but what the hell do I know??????)

Summary: Sir Damien has been gone for weeks now, and Lord Arum is incapable of waiting a single moment more before he can hold him again.

Notes: Look. I swear I'm writing smut that's NOT just these two. I have uhhhh three more in the works, two with all three of them and one that's Arum/Rilla. This one just. Took over my brain. uhhhhhhh have fun I hope????? *slinks away anxiously* Title taken from the song Heartbeats, by José González.]

~

What Arum is doing today ranks on the list of the riskiest things that he has ever done. It is dangerous, and foolish, and completely necessary because if Arum does not get to touch his knight again very soon he feels as if he is going to catch fire and burn up to a husk.

Damien has been gone for more than a month now. The Citadel has him and a cadre of less skilled knights on a pointless hunt for a creature they will almost certainly fail to catch (then again, with Damien’s considerable skill he can be sure of nothing), and Arum has, bit by bit, been losing his ability to function with each day of his absence.

It’s madness, really.

His entire life, it has been just himself and the Keep, but suddenly now that Amaryllis and Damien have insinuated themselves into his life and his heart and his bed, he has become terrifyingly reliant on them. He is furious with Amaryllis about it as well, because she seems to be handling the lack of their knight with substantially more grace than Arum is.

“Hey,” she says as she strokes his arm soothingly, as she kisses the scales beside his frill. “It’s alright, Arum. I’ve just had a lot more practice, worrying about Damien while he’s gone. Of course you want him back. Missing him is nothing to be ashamed of.”

He scoffs, of course. He’s not ashamed, not of this and not of anything. What Arum is, is irritated. He is irritated with Amaryllis, for being so earnest and understanding about the whole thing (he clings to her in bed when she stays the night, and he knows she is as acutely aware of the empty space in their bed as he is). He is irritated with himself for his new and unwelcome weaknesses (like a missing limb, Damien being gone, like his mind is a fuzzy and unwelcome place). He is irritated with Damien himself (a vague mental litany, oscillating between how dare you leave and please come back). He is irritated with the knights that are so ungratefully lucky to share their time with Damien in his absence. He is irritated, he finds, with everyone and everything involved in keeping Arum away from his poet.

“Saints above, just go to him then if you’re so torn up about it,” Amaryllis says a few days later, and behind the exasperation in her tone there is a worry that rankles. The idea of it, though, of seeing Damien early- the very idea sets his heart racing, and he can tell that Amaryllis sees it in his eyes. “According to his letters he’ll be passing pretty close to the western edge of the swamp over the next day or so,” she says. “Just- go and see him before you drive me crazy right along with you.”

“I-” he scoffs. Again. “I am perfectly fine, Amaryllis. I do not need to be coddled or- I do not need to see him.”

“I know,” Amaryllis says with a sigh, and then she lifts a hand to cup his cheek. “But I know that you want to. I get it, Arum, I really do. When we started seeing each other, the first time he left to go on a longer mission, I didn’t even know that I could miss a person like that. Just- promise me if you do go see him, you’ll be careful? Last thing we would need is for one of his little traveling buddies to spot you sneaking around their camp, you know?”

Arum doesn’t even know what part of that to be most offended by, which he later suspects is intentional misdirection on the part of the herbalist, but when she affectionately pats his cheek and departs through a portal back to her hut for her next appointment, Arum can’t stop thinking about the possibility.

Can’t stop thinking about seeing Damien, holding Damien. When he tries to do some work in the greenhouse he drops an entire tray of tools at the unbidden memory of Damien’s dexterous fingers, twirling an arrow before he notches it. He snarls at the Keep when it asks if he is feeling ill, then quickly, quietly apologizes. Obviously he is in no state to work, which has begun to feel more demoralizing than infuriating.

By the time Amaryllis returns to join him for dinner, he relents, defeated, and over their meal she helps him work out the most likely spot for him to potentially intercept their knight. Arum wants to bring her along as well (he does not simply wish to trade which of his lovers he is missing, he wants to have them both, they belong in his arms-), but she shakes her head.

“Maybe you can sneak into a camp of sleeping knights without any issues, Arum, but I don’t exactly have your stealth. You go,” she says, and kisses him on the cheek. “Tell him I miss him and he’d better hurry up. Have fun,” she says with a sly grin, “and be careful.”

And Arum grumbles, and clings even more tightly to her for a long, quiet stretch before the sun goes down, but as soon as it is properly dark he nuzzles a lingering goodbye into her hair and then portals to the westernmost reach of his land.

It doesn’t take more than a few hours to find evidence of them – humans are not adept at crossing the wilderness without leaving a rather obvious trail – and then perhaps an hour more to follow that trail to its conclusion.

The knights are all sleeping in small, individual tents arranged around a central campfire which has already burned down to the dimmest embers, which is rather convenient as far as Arum is concerned. There is a knight he does not know standing watch, but Arum slips past easily with a combination of subtle camouflage and cunning, and it only takes a moment of scenting the air to find the only tent he cares about.

(Arum feels a senseless pulse of fury with the watchman; a monster with half his skill and none of his affection could slip past in the night, endangering his honeysuckle, and that possibility is utterly unacceptable-)

It is too dark for human vision inside Damien’s tent, but Arum is beyond those sorts of limitations. He can see the sleeping form of his knight easily, and he looks smaller without his armor on, looks vulnerable curled alone in a thin bedroll on the uneven ground, and Arum has the hot urge to scoop him up and simply use his emergency packet of swamp dirt to ferry the both of them back home right this instant, to put Damien back exactly where he belongs, in Arum’s bed between himself and their herbalist.

He takes a breath, putting a stopper to his more unreasonable urges, and then he slinks closer.

Damien is a trained and skillful knight, of course, and Damien is also, in a word, vocal, so the first thing Arum does when he is close enough is to very, very gently place one of his palms over Damien’s mouth, running a second hand soothingly through his hair and hissing in a shushing way as Damien’s eyes flutter open in the dark, as his body jolts underneath Arum’s own.

“Only me, honeysuckle,” Arum says in his lowest whisper, close against Damien’s ear, and the knight relaxes so instantly that Arum fears for a moment that he has somehow fallen right back to sleep. Damien lifts his hands, though, pressing his palms against Arum’s chest as if he’s checking that the lizard is actually real. “I hope you will forgive me for waking you,” Arum hisses, uncovering Damien’s mouth now that he’s sure Damien is not going to shout.

“What are you doing here?” Damien whispers, words tumbling together in his haste. “How-”

“You have been gone entirely too long, honeysuckle. I wanted-” Arum starts, but almost every way that he could end that sentence is actually too embarrassing to stand. “I wanted- you,” he settles on eventually, and Arum is close enough that he can feel the way Damien’s breathing shifts deeper.

“I… this is like a dream, Lord Arum,” Damien whispers, joy and desire balancing perfectly on his tongue as his hands drift across Arum’s shoulders. “Each night out here, each night alone, each night has been spent wanting you, wanting Rilla, wanting the both of you together, dreaming of your touch and then waking alone, and to dream your touch and then to realize that it is no dream at all-”

Arum purrs low, Damien’s words working their usual obscene magic on his body, making his own heart race, and he has missed this, he has missed this foolish little creature so absurdly much. He flicks his tongue out to run up the delicious column of Damien’s throat, his hands in Damien’s hair, on his shoulders, pulling the bedroll down. “No dream, honeysuckle,” he breathes. “I… I thought that perhaps you could do with a reminder of what is waiting for you at home, when you complete your little errand out here.” He scrapes his teeth gently back down Damien’s neck, over his shoulder. “I thought I should give you a taste of what you have surely been missing, while I have this chance, while you were close enough to reach.”

“A taste,” Damien repeats breathlessly. “Oh Saints, oh Saints I have been dreaming of a taste nearly every night, my lily-”

“Then allow me to indulge you,” Arum says softly, his hands working quickly and efficiently to pull away the fabric of blankets, the fabric of clothing which separate their bodies, baring Damien's skin and his own scales in the safety of the dark. “Though, you must promise me that you will try to keep control of that tongue of yours as you take that taste. I believe this is what one might call a tryst, honeysuckle, and I do not think that either of us would appreciate interruption by any particularly sharp-eared cohorts of yours.”

Damien’s eyes widen, and Arum suspects that the knight is only now remembering his surroundings in earnest, as surprised as he is with this nighttime visit.

“O-of course,” he pants, and Arum grins in the dark before he slithers his body down.

“Good,” he hisses. “I think, however, that I will take my taste before I give you yours.”

Predictably, Damien makes a soft noise when one of Arum’s hands presses down on his hip and his tongue flicks a tickling line down his stomach, but Damien slaps a hand over his own mouth just in time to muffle the gasp he gives as another of Arum’s hands impatiently finds his hardening cock. He gives Damien a few slow, soft strokes to start, drinking in the way that he trembles and jerks his hips up towards Arum’s touch. This- this is how Damien should be, reveling in joy and touch, utterly spoiled by the caresses of his lovers, appreciated and adored.

Arum moves his hand faster, purring low and entirely out of his own control, and he watches Damien near-silently writhe beneath him.

Damien’s heartbeat- Damien’s heat-

He still and forever fills Arum with an urgent, desperate sort of hunger.

Arum loosens his grip, wrapping his thumb and two fingers around the base of Damien’s cock so that when he slips his tongue out he can twine it around the rest of his length. Damien muffles the noises he can’t help but make, the joyous-overwhelmed gasp that Arum is gleefully familiar with by now, and Arum chuckles, low enough not to be heard but just enough that he knows Damien will feel it.

As his tongue works, twisting and squeezing and flicking, his free hands are quietly busy as well, uncorking the small vial of oil he had the foresight to bring and slicking his fingers (on one of the hands he keeps with claws blunted and softened, just for this, just for giving pleasure to his fragile humans), before he slips them teasingly up the inside of Damien’s thighs.

“Arum,” Damien whispers through his fingers, and his other hand reaches clumsily down through the darkness until he can caress Arum’s face, until he can run his palm up over one of Arum’s horns and grip there, not pushing or pulling Arum where he wants him, but merely scrabbling for purchase as Arum plies and pleasures him. Arum growls low and careful, squeezing his tongue around Damien’s length in a rippling wave, and then he presses a slick finger slowly up and in.

Damien holds his breath rather than whine, and Arum pauses, waits for Damien to relax around him and catch his breath before he moves his hand again. He unwinds his tongue from around Damien’s cock, letting the hand around its base resume its previous determined stroke as he lifts himself to better watch Damien’s reactions as he slowly twists his finger, slowly pumps it in and out.

Careful, careful. Arum is… particularly careful, this night. Particularly attentive, particularly focused. It has been too long since he has been allowed this, and he wants to indulge himself- but more than that, Arum wants very dearly to indulge Damien. To give the poet as much satisfaction as possible, to pleasure him as thoroughly as he is able. He moves his fingers with care, taking his time, treating the poet to the kinds of touches Arum knows he will most enjoy and ensuring that he is more than ready, that he is nearly coming apart with desire before Arum allows a second finger to join the first.

Damien is painfully beautiful. Shatteringly beautiful, like this. Alight from the inside out with rapturous joy, with his strange soft hair falling over his forehead, with his strong, lean musculature tensing and his entire body near-glowing with heat. Arum feels lucky, feels greedy, feels like all his foolishness and yearning in the last few weeks were entirely justified for the sake of this gorgeous, loving creature coming apart beneath him now.

Arum has a hand in Damien’s hair, another carefully circling his nipple with a claw, a third working his cock and the fourth plying him open, every touch focused and just barely skirting the edge of teasing, and only when Damien can barely keep from letting his tiny, torturous noises grow beyond his control, only when he scrabbles his hands desperately on Arum’s sides, clutching and pulling and whispering please please please, only then does Arum oblige him with a third finger.

“If only you could see yourself, honeysuckle,” he murmurs against Damien’s ear, and Damien pants hard and presses his face into Arum’s neck, burying a quiet whine in Arum’s frill. “Oh, the poetry you could compose, if you could see the way you come undone-”

“If I c-could only see you,” Damien mutters in response, his hands clutching tight to Arum’s back as he tries to press himself down harder onto Arum’s fingers, and his voice wavers almost too high when he continues, “a thousand times curse the darkness for keeping your beauty from me tonight, for keeping me from drinking in every single detail of this impossible encounter, for hiding your eyes from me-”

“Shhhhhh,” Arum warns gently, then flicks his tongue quick over Damien’s lips. “I know, dearest creature. When you return home, you may take every single detail from me, you may take me in plain sunlight if you so desire, and you may tell me every single comparison to my eyes and scales and claws you plan to weave into your works, and I even promise not to complain because I will be too spoiled to have you safe and home in my arms again.” Arum pauses long enough to press his mouth against Damien’s, only an almost-kiss until Damien kisses back, until he gasps lightly and dances the tip of his tongue along the sharp edges of Arum’s teeth. “But for now we must be careful, honeysuckle, and quiet.”

Damien nods, panting against Arum’s mouth, and when he whispers, “Sorry,” it comes out nearly soundless.

“No apologies.” Arum nips at Damien’s lip, playful. “I would make you scream for me, honeysuckle, if I could. You know that I would.”

“I know,” Damien whispers, and Arum can feel the pleased heat in his cheeks so he nuzzles against them.

Arum’s hands slow during that exchange, but he still pleasures his poet as they speak their hushed words, and now he twists his fingers inside Damien, watches and feels him squirm underneath him. “So tempting…” he murmurs. “So delicious you look…”

“Please,” Damien hisses, writhing, trying to press the fingers deeper, trying to press his cock into Arum’s hand more effectively. “Please, my lily, I feel as if you are taking me apart- the most blissful torture but torture nonetheless, please, please-”

“You know as well, honeysuckle,” Arum growls, low and slow, “that I can never deny you anything, especially not when you ask so prettily.”

He keeps his grip on Damien’s cock as he slips his fingers away, as he properly slicks the lower of his own two cocks and then lifts Damien’s legs until the angle is just right, until he can line himself up and press forward.

Damien quietly keens as Arum slowly, slowly fills him, heat coiling low in his stomach at how easily the poet takes him, at how eagerly he presses his hips up to meet Arum’s first thrust. He pauses there for a moment, ensuring that Damien is ready, waiting for Damien to give a breathless eager whine before he starts to fuck him in earnest.

He wraps his hand around Damien’s throat. He does not squeeze- he only holds him like that, another layer to the way he is pinning Damien against the ground, feeling Damien’s heart thudding against his fingertips, feeling the vibration of all the tiny noises Damien is holding in as Arum fucks him slow and thorough. One hand tangling in the bedroll beneath him, one hand clutching Arum’s shoulder for purchase, Damien bites his lip hard and doesn’t even seem to notice that his helpless whines are growing lewder and louder with each thrust, and Arum’s heart feels hot with affection but clearly they cannot risk-

“Hush, shhhhh little honeysuckle,” Arum hisses low, pressing a hand over Damien’s mouth gently but firmly to muffle the noise, and Damien rolls his entire body up into Arum, shivering, and Arum blinks in surprise because- he is quite familiar with that reaction from his poet.

“Arum,” Damien gasps into his palm, and Arum feels the vibration of it more than he actually hears the word.

“You… you enjoy that, honeysuckle?” Arum whispers, both teasing and pleased all at once as he rocks fervently, steadily into Damien, holding Damien’s noises carefully back. “You enjoy that I must keep you quiet? You know that I adore every single skill of your tongue, of course, and it pains me that I cannot bask in your noises. I have missed them, missed pulling such sweet song from your lips.” His own lips he keeps close against Damien’s ear, and he flicks his tongue over the seashell curve of it as he pauses to hiss. “Of course, in my greed for you I never paused to consider- do you enjoy being denied, honeysuckle?”

Damien squeezes his eyes shut, panting hard, and nods so slightly that Arum would not have noticed it if he couldn’t feel it through his hand upon him.

“Ahh,” Arum hisses, slips a hand into Damien’s hair, cupping the back of his head and licking up his neck. “You delightful creature… I will indulge you in anything you desire, honeysuckle. I will indulge you even in denial, if it pleases you-”

Damien whispers against his palm, a near-silent litany that Arum takes a long moment to recognize as a repeated murmur, echoing love love love love into his scales, and then Arum has to focus beyond the unceasing rhythm of his hips on burying the helpless growl he wants to make in response.

Damien taps Arum’s side, a small signal but one that Arum quickly responds to, slowing his thrusts and lifting his hand away from his mouth immediately.

“Arum,” Damien breathes, and then bites his lip for a moment, humming low and clinging tighter. “I- I want…”

He trails off entirely and Arum slows further, more rocking them together than thrusting anymore. He scrapes his claws through Damien’s hair again, flicking his tongue out to tease Damien’s neck, then up by his ear. “Whatever you desire,” he says again, low and sure and hungry. Anything Damien wants he would give, anything to make his honeysuckle happy, to keep himself bright and beloved in the poet’s memory, Arum would do anything. “I will give you whatever you desire, if you only ask-”

“Mark me,” Damien chokes, half-swallowing the words, and even in this darkness Arum can see his face darken further, can feel even more heat rushing to fill his cheeks. “I want you to- to mark me.”

Arum blinks, his fingers still caught in the softness of the poet’s hair, his movements still slow and careful. “Honeysuckle?”

“I still feel within a dream, my lily,” Damien murmurs, his own hands caressing up and down Arum’s back. “I fear I will wake and I will be convinced that I imagined you in the depth of my homesickness, my heartsickness. I want- I want proof I can carry with me. I want your teeth upon me,” he says, and Arum’s breath catches sharp. “I want to feel you, I want to feel you still tomorrow. I want the echoes of your touch upon me when you are gone, I want to feel this,” he rocks his hips, meeting Arum’s movements, and Arum has to clench his teeth to keep from growling his overwhelmed pleasure, “I want to feel you for as long as I am able. If you- If you put your teeth to my shoulder, if you bite me there, only I will know-”

“Honeysuckle,” Arum repeats, a shiver running through his body from his horns to his tail.

“It will be hidden by my armor, but I will know,” Damien whispers, and presses his lips against Arum’s neck. “If you leave a mark. It will be proof to remind me, to remind me that you love me, that you gave this pleasure to me, that you wanted me enough to claim me-”

Arum can’t help the way his body responds to that, thrusting deeper into Damien’s heat with a low, controlled purr. “I want you always, Damien,” he murmurs, and then he drags his teeth lightly, so lightly over the skin of Damien’s shoulder. Damien gasps, clasps a hand over his own mouth again as Arum’s teeth tease at his collarbone, as the monster rolls his hips with more purpose. “I want you enough that it makes me foolish, makes me take ridiculous risks, makes me come for you like this, like a thief in the night-”

“A thief,” Damien hisses through his fingers, and then his voice takes on a familiar, lilting, sing-song cadence, though he keeps his volume careful-low. “O come you now to thieve my heart, you beast of fae-wild night?”

Unfair tactics, Arum thinks as his body shudders at Damien’s voice, and then he slips a hand down between their bodies so he can wrap it around Damien’s cock again, stroking in careful time to his thrusts, making Damien’s breath come as ragged as his own between his rhythmic words.

“All craft and guile undone, in vain, your questing overdue,” he gasps. “Within your garden blooms my heart, ‘neath silver stars alight, an off’ring free, my fruit and tree, my monstrous love, for you-”

Arum clenches his teeth, hisses through them, and then he buries his unoccupied hands in Damien’s hair, tilting his head to the side so he can better lick and nip at his throat, so he can drag his teeth with careful promise over the crook of Damien’s neck, over his bare, strong shoulder. “That- clever- tongue- of yours,” he grits out between helpless thrusts, “will be the death of me.” He lets his hands roam as he nuzzles Damien’s throat, as the poet throws his head back and bites his lip to keep the noises in.

“Please,” Damien whispers, reaching out in the darkness, and Arum has no choice but to reach back, tangling their fingers together as Damien rolls his hips, pushing Arum deeper. “My lily, my lily, please-”

Arum growls, burying his face in the crook of Damien’s neck and panting there as Damien provokes him to move faster. “Honeysuckle,” he purrs, “you know I can deny you nothing.”

“Your teeth, Lord Arum.” Damien clings, writhes, tries to press Arum’s snout towards his shoulder. “Please, please-”

“Shhhhh,” Arum soothes, pressing his hand over Damien’s mouth again, gently. He knows the poet too well to do anything else. “Patience, my honeysuckle,” he says, soft with his mouth against Damien’s collarbone. He adjusts his grip, lifting Damien’s hips so he can more easily speed his movements. Arum loosens the careful control he’s been keeping on his pace, reveling in the tiny choked-off noises Damien gasps into his hand as he fucks him harder, fucks him more urgently.

He can feel Damien’s lips moving against his palm, can hear the barest edge of his pleas and quiet cries, but he keeps his teeth light and teasing on Damien’s skin, delays that gratification to instead focus on drawing out every bit of pleasure he can with his thrusts, with his hand around Damien’s cock. Delays, until he can feel Damien trembling beneath and around him, until he can feel Damien start to come apart, overwhelmed tears pooling at the corners of his eyes as they press closed in the darkness.

Then, Arum bites down.

Careful, even in this- his teeth are less sharp than his claws but still he has no wish to draw blood, he only means to give the poet what he asks for, clamping his jaws down over his shoulder with just enough pressure to bruise. The hand he has pressed over Damien’s mouth only barely manages to muffle his cry of mingling pleasure and pain, and it is enough, it is just enough-

Damien comes with a gasp, and Arum holds him, holds him, slows and deepens his thrusts as Damien squeezes around him and spills hot over Arum’s hand and both of their stomachs, and that is just enough as well, the victory of bringing his honeysuckle to the heights of pleasure, and Arum pulls his teeth away from Damien’s delicate skin so that when he finds his own release he can clench them together without worry as he rolls his hips helplessly and comes inside his poet, comes onto his stomach with a muffled hiss.

After a long, panting moment Damien draws on some reserve of strength that baffles Arum and lifts his head, kissing along the line of Arum’s mouth with unselfconscious adoration, and Arum nuzzles back in kind, buffeting their foreheads together and purring his satisfaction as he pulls his hips back slowly, slipping from his lover before they grow uncomfortable.

Arum fishes out a cloth from his cast-aside cloak, cleaning the both of them off with gentle attention and then resettling the blankets around them, curling close and soft and satisfied around his poet.

“You do not know how viciously I wish to carry you off home with me right this instant, honeysuckle,” Arum sighs into Damien’s neck, clinging tight to his warm, pliant body as both of their heartbeats slow. “How terribly I want to spirit you away and keep you in my clutches, to bring you to where you belong, to kidnap you back to the Keep and drop you triumphantly into Amaryllis’ arms…”

“I imagine that you desire it precisely as desperately as I do, my love,” Damien whispers, nuzzling Arum’s cheek with his own, exhaling deeply. He lifts a hand, then, and brushes it over the vivid purpling arc on his shoulder with a distinct look of pleasure, of satisfaction.

Arum feels, just a little, as if his heart is trying to climb up his windpipe.

“Damien,” he whispers, and then he leans down to lick his tongue over the mark, feather-light and soothing. “Perhaps… perhaps I shouldn’t have-”

“Thank you,” Damien interrupts, and then he kisses the corner of Arum’s mouth and comes away smiling. “Not even my unsteady mind could ignore such bold, lingering proof of your affection.”

Arum swallows roughly, then flicks his tongue up Damien’s cheek with fond affection. “Hate having to miss you, honeysuckle,” he admits in a whisper, clinging as if he wishes to pull Damien into himself, as if they could possibly be any closer. “Love you too fiercely to be without you.”

Damien makes a small, pained noise, cupping Arum’s face in his hands and kissing him again, kissing him soft, sweet, like petals and rain. “Oh, my lovely lily,” he says, and Arum can hear the tears he his trying not to shed. “I love you so much. So much that it breaks my heart to be without you, without Rilla…”

“She asked that I pass along that she wishes for you to hasten your quest and hurry home,” Arum mutters, “as, of course, do I.”

Damien sighs. “I know. I intend to be home as soon as I am able, as soon as the Saints allow.”

Arum shifts, and Damien- Damien makes another small noise, clinging tightly, and Arum hears his heart stutter fast for a moment.

He blinks, and drapes himself back over the entirety of Damien’s body indulgently. “Not going anywhere just yet, honeysuckle.”

“I… I am perfectly aware that I cannot keep you here forever, my lily.”

Arum growls lightly. “Nnnno,” he admits, “not forever, not that, of course. But I can stay a little longer, yet.” He buffets his cheek against Damien’s, nuzzling closer, closer. “I can stay until you are asleep again, at least. Until you are dreaming, until I can leave you safe in slumber.”

Damien kisses him, kisses him, cups Arum’s face in his hands, kisses him. “Soon, soon I shall return to the both of you, with new tales and triumph. Soon shall we have our homecoming, earned and exultant, and then I will give to the both of you every single word I have had to carry with me during our separation, every kiss I have wished to press to your lips, every pleasure I have dreamed of spoiling you with… soon, my lily. Soon.”

Damien’s singsong cadence is almost too soothing, and Arum feels as if he could outright melt into Damien’s arms. He sighs, flicks his tongue out to tickle Damien’s jaw, drifts his claws softly up and down Damien’s arms. “It will not be soon enough, honeysuckle. I am an impatient creature. But for you…” his words falter, and he brushes some errant curls away from Damien’s brow. “For you, I will wait.” He pauses. “Impatiently, of course.”

“With an abundance of complaints,” Damien says with a soft laugh, and kisses Arum’s nose.

“Needless to say,” Arum growls, and then he gives a wry sort of smile. “But I have taken enough rest from you already, my poet. No more teasing, now. Return to sleep. I will hold you until you are safe in slumber, and when morning comes…” he drifts his claws careful over the purpling arc on Damien’s skin, “you can carry me with you, until you can return to us in fact and not just in dream and memory.”

Damien purses his lips, expression gone yearning and wild for a brief moment before he nods, lifting one of Arum’s hands to kiss his knuckles, pressing them against his cheek with a sigh. “I love you so dearly, my Arum,” he murmurs.

In this moment, quiet and dark, Arum even feels like he might deserve that.

“I love you, Damien,” he answers, voice rough. “Now sleep, little honeysuckle, and I will watch over you.”

After a few more kisses, (three or four, nine or ten, impossible to say because neither of them count), Damien drifts, his breaths evening out, his heart beating slow and gentle, and Arum holds him close and safe.

And with the poet asleep, no one has to know exactly how long it takes before Arum can bear to tear himself away.

[chubbyooo]

Blurred Lines Chapter 23 - Contacts

Hey big writing mood at the mo so here comes more chapters for y’all. After the revelation in the last chapter we’re gonna let that sit and catch up with our smuggler boi Gacen

Gacen and Ash meet their mysterious contact and Ash glares a lot

“Ok so you’re clear on the play right?” The light shined though the gap in the elevator as it slowly ticked up. Gacen didn’t answer for a couple seconds, he could feel the pit in his stomach getting more intense with every floor they passed

“yeah totally we play dumb and get as much information from them as we can, then we can consider their offer, if it helps us find Risha” when Gacen had called up the contact he was only given a location, It all felt very shady and he couldn’t tell if that was a good or bad sign. He didn’t really trust any of this but they had information on the Drayens and as far as Gacen was aware there was just Risha and him left. 

“and?” they had formed a plan which Gacen had tried his best to learn, he was better at making it up as he went along but this information was too important so Ash had been put in charge of keeping him in check

“and I won’t fly off the handle with some crazy scheme that will make our intentions clear” Gacen had never been one for subtly, that could be due to his usual mild intoxication but hell if he knew. “and you’re gonna try and read them? like see true intentions or something” 

Ash sighed “sort of, I’m going to try and apply my interrogation training to read subtle tells they may have. I have no idea if it will work though” Gacen didn’t even know what a tell was let alone how to detect one. Ash turned to Gacen with a concerned look on her face “hey Gacen” 

“yeah?” oh god that’s the pity voice he didn’t want to get real right now

“are you ok? we don’t have to do this if you don’t want to” oh that was actually alright. Gacen definitely felt very nervous about all of this but Ash was right it was better to try and fail than leave it as a what if

“yeah I’m alright, I... wanna do this it’s uh just a lot” god that sounded stupid “you know?”

Ash let out a half smile “yeah well I’m here to help regardless alright” Ash was sweet, she definitely had a rough exterior though, when Gacen first tried to shake her hand he ended up in a headlock but underneath all that she was pretty cool.

“thanks Ash and don’t worry I can always find my way out of trouble” he grinned hopefully that relieved tension. Ash had hid it pretty well but she also seemed nervous about this, guess it was a step up from smuggling and bar fights.

An awkward silence fell over the elevator as it continued to rise, what were they going to find? it couldn’t be Risha right that’d be crazy. What else though? old enemies? people from Dubrillion? Voidwolf people? no that was crazy right. He checked the elevator floor, 157, 158, 159, 160 god this was hell, every second he was in this elevator he wanted to just jump out but he couldn’t. He could totally run away go to the Nar Shaddaa undercity change his name, sell like droid parts he could be great at that, then work his way up until he was a factory manager maybe that’d be more fun than smuggling.

“GACEN” suddenly he snapped out of his weird worker daydream 

“huh wha-what is it” Ash was staring at him with her signature frown

Ash pointed to the doors “the elevators here dingus” sure enough the door was open and he could see a corridor made of sleek shiny marble walls leading to a door of equal ridiculousness.

“geez this place has more blinding white colours than hoth, do you think a wampa lives here” Gacen chuckled to himself as Ash strode forward without a word, she totally thought it was funny she was just being cool. Ash strode up to the door and began looking around next to it

Ash began feeling the wall at intervals “um Ash... watcha doin” 

Without turning around she said “I’m looking for a doorbell” Gacen frowned confused. He strode up to the door and knocked on it

“why not just knock?” Ash wasn’t the most well adjusted person due to her busy past but this, this was a whole new level of detached

“uhhhhhhh becaaause it’s...” Gacen raised his eyebrow at her “shut up ok” she stomped up next to him grumpily. They waited for a few more seconds before the doors slid open with an ODX droid standing there

“welcome Captain Gacen Zandar and... guest, my name is C2-J80 and may I ju-” protocol droids bored Gacen

“yeah ok jatey show me to your master if you please” Gacen tapped his foot impatiently

“well I never, very well my master is waiting through this way if you please” the droid led them into a lounge area where they saw a older gentleman mid to late 40s sitting on a big leather couch. He was wearing long red robes with rather flamboyant shoulder pads drinking some form of cocktail

Gacen leaned over to Ash “geez if I ever need a spare traffic cone I’ll call this guy” Ash glowered at Gacen and he promptly shut his mouth and jumped down onto a couch opposite the man

“welcome to my establishment Captain Gacen Zandar my name is Jadryl Waltar if you require anything of me please don’t hesitate to ask, my staff are at your disposal” he would regret that offer

“ooo well I am a bit hungry if your staff could whip up a Rancor steak with a few light deserts 8 bunches of grapes and a st-owwww” as Ash sat down next to him she pulled on his ear to stop him from speaking

Jadryl chuckled “I’m afraid we don’t have any stows.” This prick. “A joke I assume” Gacen was only half joking he was starving 

“you got me sir, what I’d really like to know is why I’m here” Ash let go of his ear seemingly satisfied with the response 

Jadryl sat up putting his drink down “yes well that is more than fair, I represent a part of the government of Dubrillion and this missi-” Gacen had to check this he had been told a lot different

“hold on government? I thought that was a tyrannical dictatorship” Jadryl frowned at him “not that I have a problem with that of course” Gacen looked to Ash for the all good, she was giving him an icy glare

“Your reputation certainly is accurate Captain” was that a good thing? hopefully “As I was saying this mission has been personally requested by King Actavarus III“ That fukin douche, he had tried to have Risha killed on multiple occasions, something told him that hadn’t stopped.

Gacen put his legs up on the table “and what is the mission pray tell” 

“we need you to find Risha Drayen” huh well that worked out “we’re aware of your prior relationship with her and think you would have an easier time finding her” oh shit was this a setup, if they knew that this was almost certainly a trap

“um so you know who I am then?” this was bad he looked to Ash who looked equally worried

“yes the rival of the pirate lord Skavak who was in direct affiliation with the woman in question” wait what? they thought she hadn’t switched sides? “we thought our goals aligned considering you could take out the last of Skavak’s criminal empire” WHAT!!! THAT WAS HIS EMPIRE not that dick hole Skavak’s

“um could I have a quick sidebar with my” he looked at Ash for a title then they answered simultaneously

“Bodyguard” 

“Advisor” 

Gacen had to salvage it “she advises me on the best bodyguards it’s a totally real profession”

Jadryl looked confused “um but of course” Gacen and Ash made their way to a corridor where there didn’t seem to be any surveillance

“ok what the fuck why does he think that Skavak had the empire, THAT WAS ME” Gacen was furious even from death that asshole was stealing from him

Ash quickly covered his mouth “keep your voice down they could have cameras and we need to play ou-” Ash removed her hand away from his mouth with a look of disgust on her face “stop licking my hand you Gizka’s ass” no one could keep Gacen quiet

“I just don’t understand alright what the hell changed” Gacen hadn’t seen Skavak in 7 years why the hell was he coming up

“well let’s see if Risha wanted to disappear which we have reason to believe,  she would want to protect the people close to her” Gacen was confused so Skavak and her were never close  

“so?”Ash sighed heavily, holding her face in her hand

“sooo she’d want to erase any affiliation that could lead to people coming after them” what was Ash on about? he continued to frown confused at where Ash was going with this “Gacen I love you man but it’s right in front of you. Risha potentially swapped you and Skavaks role round in records to protect you from these guys” the moment of realisation finally hit Gacen 

“oh” he stood there lightly shaking “I see”

“yeah” Ash noticed his shaking and held him steady “you know what this means” Ash smiled as she held his shaking form

“tha-that Risha is out there and wanted” he paused for a second “to keep me safe” Ash nodded and Gacen felt a strange sudden impulse came in for a hug 

“woah um Gacen wha-what are you doing” he squeezed her tightas he felt his eyes well up “wait are you hugging me so I can’t see you crying”

Gacen speech wavered as he spoke “NO”, Ash awkwardly hugged him back for a second before letting him go 

“alright let’s get back in there and get a lead” Ash stood there for a second letting him compose himself

Gacen coughed for a few seconds to ‘clear his throat’ “once we do can we totally wreck this assholes place” Ash smiled deviously and nodded “hey Jaity I’m gonna need a few Bad Motivators if you please” Gacen called out as they returned to their seat

“right away captain” the droid shuffled out of the room 

“sorry about that we were discussing” Gacen paused, gotta think of a lie “business arrangements” nailed it

“I see well are you willing to accept my offer?” Gacen could squeeze more out of this guy without having to agree to anything, what did he think this was his first shady negotiation

“well first of all I’d like to get all the details and maybe an advance cause if I remember correctly Risha can be quite dangerous” Ash gave him a disapproving look, hey he was just making a bit extra money Risha would totally approve

Jadryl picked up a holopad “very well how much are we talking” hehehehe too easy

“well we’re going to need at least 3000 credits for equipment and fuel expenses if this is more of a search and less of a go one place and find her, am I correct” Jadryl nodded looking less than pleased “and I’d like 2000 as insurance just in case things don’t pan out how much is the actual pay by the way” the drinks arrived as Gacen began to quickly drink his first

“10,000 credits this is an important bounty” damn it he works for a King of course he could pay more stupid Gacen. 

Gacen began his second drink “Ok let’s get some details so I know what I’m up against” Gacen put his hand in his pocket and primed a smoke grenade

“A few years ago Risha’s efforts to retake Dubrillion became worryingly organised so we sent the best bounty hunters we could find to try and bring her down but she outsmarted every one” that’s my girl Gacen thought as he began his third drink “we decided to get serious and sent the Champion of the Great Hunt but when she arrived at Risha’s last know location there was no sign of her it was like she’d vanished we figured we’d spooked her and thought that ws a win nonetheless” huh not like Rish to get spooked seemed a little odd, he armed a small sticky bomb in his pocket, he began hi fourth drink “but then we noticed in the underworld of Dubrillion there was people who seem to work for her or at least support her in a” he paused “mobilised fashion, we thought she must be still out there taking us down from the shadows so we sent out the bounty hunters again to find her but up until now nothing” Gacen cocked his pistol as he finished his fourth drink

“so you need me because I know her and how to anticipate her is that it” Gacen smiled fully aware of how drunk he was 

“well that was the initial thought but after we realised who you were with your little heart to heart out there we feel you may be more useful than we realised in finding her” SHIT there were cameras there time to go

https://open.spotify.com/track/0cGG2EouYCEEC3xfa0tDFV?si=E1xWppekRy2GjElyY1MbjA

Mecernary droids suddenly began filing into the room, Gacen swiftly threw his sticky bomb to the ceiling light and smoke to the floor, as he did he saw Ash vault over the sofa and punch one of the droids in the stomach ripping out the things wires. Jadryl quickly scurried into a room as the smoke went off and the lights went out in the room, Gacen meandered round the sofa stumbling on the edge as he did. There was a big window he’d spotted when he walked in it looked perfect for jumping out of, he couldn’t see shit though who put all this smoke in here.

“ASH??” he shouted “WHERE YOU AT” he made his way over to the wall and began shimming along it trying to find the window

“FIGHTING A DROID WHAT’S THE PLAN” he could hear the sounds of breaking machine and could only assume that she was massacring them

“COME TO ME I HAVE” he paused “A PLAN, I THINK” he shimmied further but bumped into something, it felt metal and human sized. Oh shit a droid he quickly ducked as a blaster shot singed the top of his mohawk, he quickly slid under the legs before drawing his blaster which he fumbled with and dropped on the floor. Damn it he searched on the floor until he felt it and promptly grabbed it, as he looked up he saw the droid ah shit what would he do, suddenly he saw a blue fist burst through the chest before swiftly shorting out. Ash held out her hand pulled him up off the floor 

“where is this plan of yours” Ash said as she coughed through the smoke

“come one there’s a window” he could now see the illuminating city of Nar Shaddaa through the smoke, target acquired 

“oh you have GOT to be kidding me” Gacen grinned as he shot the glass shattering it and began to run towards it 

“come on Ash we gotta hustle” he jumped out the window and began free falling, he wasn’t really sure what came next but he’d think of something. As he began to think he felt himself suddenly stop falling followed by a pain in his back, what? he looked to see he was sitting on the back of a taxi. A rodian was screaming curses at him from the cockpit about the dent he made. He scrambled to the front “I gotta borrow you’re taxi dude don’t worry I’ll pay for it all” as soon as he said that he calmed down and let him take the wheel “get ready bud this is gonna get bumpy” Gacen swerved the taxi around and could see that Ash had just jumped out after him, cmon dude you can do this. Gacen drove to where he thought Ash would be getting closer and closer as she fell further and further, he quickly swerved into position ready to catch Ash, easy, so cool. He suddenly saw a blue blur go past the taxi, shit he was off by like 5ft he hadn’t had enough alcohol. He quickly nosedived the taxi to catch up with Ash adjusting to the right position as they got closer towards the floor he pulled up and heard a resounding wumph as Ash landed next to him. “see Ash told you I had a plan” 

Ash sprawled down into the seat and responded with a quiet “what did I say about crazy schemes” her hair was everywhere as she glared at Gacen with an exasperated look. Doesn’t matter they had a lead, Champion of the Great Hunt...

[theimaginesyouneveraskedfor]

Not Him (1)

This was going to be a one shot but it’s unfolding a bit different than intended so I think two or three parts should do the trick.

Summary: The reader has a little crush on Bucky but it’s not as much a secret as she thinks. 

You had tried to fight it. Tried to resist the inevitable. So long spent in the presence of another either led to incurable yearning or unyielding detest. You couldn’t quite believe which had overtaken you. His blue eyes made you look away, his gaze made you blush, every word held you in awe. Why did he make you feel so...bubbly?

You tore your eyes away from Bucky before he could catch you in the act of staring. He would think you plotting his murder if he saw. You hadn’t actually been drooling, had you? You cleared your throat and sat back recalling the dozen other people in the room; the drone of Tony’s voice, the interjections of his audience, the incessant buzzing of an unseen phone.

No one seemed to have noticed your momentary lapse. You exhaled slowly, your breath catching halfway as you met an unexpected pair of green irises. Loki was watching you, his forehead wrinkled in thought. You couldn’t help the telling twitch of your eyebrows at being caught. You tried to play it off, catching the dawning of a smirk at the corner of his lips before you could turn away.

He didn’t know. He couldn’t. Even he knew of your deeply harboured feelings for the former Winter Soldier, what could he do? You had grown use to cutting quips. His nonchalance; every word, every step carried an air of superiority. Why he was a god merely trapped on Midgard until he found another planet worthy of his indulgence.

You rested your chin in your hand, trying to hide your face from the trickster. Surely his attention was long gone. You rolled your eyes and shrugged to yourself. You were imagining things. You were paranoid due to your stupid crush. It was nothing, you reminded yourself. It had become your mantra since you had first notice the breathtaking blue which coloured Bucky’s eyes. How could you not as you stood so close to him?

As of late, you had found yourself reconfiguring his arm far too often, but his missions had left him with decalibrated fingers and broken sensors. You had warned him to be more careful as you had other work to do in the lab. The only reason you were the one tending to his damage was because Stark refused to have more to do with him than was required and Banner used his usual excuses that he was much too busy himself.

It was awkward at first. You barely knew Bucky and he was the naturally silent and brooding type. From what you did know of him, it was expected. But then, as you were working on his hand, you had caused it to pinch you quite painfully. You had caught him chuckling at your whispered curses over your own mistake and you had found the grace to laugh too.

Then, conversation followed. He had found his voice and you yours. You would ask him about his last mission, or what he could disclose about it. And he would ask about your latest project or whatever menial task Stark had assigned you. Soon enough, he was staying beyond the time it took your to complete your repairs and the two of you were chatting about everything and anything. And then you had noticed. Your heart had skipped a beat as your mind remarked on the oceanic quality of his eyes. You had choked, covering it with a cough and turned away to neaten your work space.

It was nothing.

The memory caused a blush to warm your cheeks. You rubbed your jaw and tried not to think about it; tried not to glance across the table at Bucky. He wouldn’t know if you did, you highly doubted he thought so often of you. If you peeked, he wouldn’t even know it. Don’t, you warned yourself. Don’t give in. Don’t make this complicated.

Your eyes wouldn’t listen to you though and you leaned more heavily on your arm, turning subtly to look across the table. Bucky was half-asleep as he leaned against the back of his chair and the heat of another gaze quickly drew your own. Why was he staring at you again? You frowned and swiveled your attention back to the front, trying not to let Loki bother you. Him and his irksome smirk.

The rest of the meeting you spent desperately trying to ignoring your guilty thoughts and the constant shadow of Loki’s gaze looming over you. You were too embarrassed to peek and see if he was still looking. A third glance would be far too much. You furrowed your brow, trying to discern Stark’s words through the clutter of your own mind and finally, you were dismissed.

You stood slowly, pushing yourself to your feet with the table. You subconsciously looked across the table as Steve jabbed Bucky’s shoulder, waking him from the cat nap he had succumbed to. You smiled to yourself but it quickly died as a blur of green once more distracted you. Loki was still sitting, leaning back smugly with arms crossed as he observed you. This time, you openly scowled back at him and turned away. You stomped from the room before his grin could grow any bigger. You wanted no part in his mischief.

In the hallway, you waited for others to pass in the rush to get away from the stuffy conference room. You pressed yourself against the wall as Vision swept by with Wanda at his side. You were jolted as you felt a warmth against your arm. You looked over as Bucky leaned next to you, his blue eyes following the train of Avengers departing for their respective duties.

“You awake?” You kidded as you looked up at him.

“Not really,” He yawned into his metal hand. “You?”

“Barely,” You smiled, pushing yourself further into the wall as Loki appeared in the doorway, thankfully following his brother in the other direction.

“Guess I won’t be seeing you for a couple weeks,” He said, “You’ll be happy for that. Actually get some work done.”

“Why’s that?” You asked, trying to conceal your disappointment.

“I may have been sleeping but I was listening, Y/N,” He reproached, “Me, Steve, and Nat are off to a yet to be disclosed location for a while. Some warlord or another is stirring up trouble.”

“Right,” You knew you should have paid better attention. “Well, at least come back with that thing,” You pointed to his arm, “Intact.”

“No promises,” He kicked himself away from the wall and stood straight, “But, be it irreparable or otherwise, I’ll be coming to see you.”

“Oh?” Your brows drew together as you gaped like a fish.

“If that’s okay?” He said, suddenly doubtful, “Thought maybe, I don’t know, you’d want to get together outside the lab? Um,” He rubbed his neck and looked down the hallway shyly, “I’m bad at this. I used to be kinda smooth but yeah, are you...interested?”

“Uhhhhhhh,” You were half-dazed as you tried to decipher his offer. Was it a date? Or was it just a friendly hangout? You were just as bad as he was at this. “Sure, we can, uh, watch a movie or something?”

“Yeah, a movie,” He chimed, “Great idea.”

“So I guess that’s a...plan,” You clapped your hands together awkwardly, trying to contain yourself.

“Sure, we’ll figure out the details when I get back then,” He smiled, exhaling as if relieved, “So, uh, see you, um, then.”

He awkwardly clapped your shoulder before stutter stepping past you. You tilted your head as you watched him go. You couldn’t tell if the tension between you was the right kind. You shook your head at yourself as you went over the exchange once more. Could have been any more oblivious? It was almost painful to be you.

You cringed and forced yourself away from the wall. You were just going to crawl back to the lab and mull in the maelstrom of embarrassment and elation. You were going to watch a movie with Bucky and yet, you couldn’t imagine it going much better than your last interaction. You were suddenly and entirely under-prepared.

“Well, that was thoroughly entertaining,” Loki’s voice cemented your fears as he stepped out from behind the next corner.

You sighed and growled at him. You rolled your eyes and made to pass by him. As you did he chuckled, his green eyes a weight on your shoulders. “You Midgardians are so simple.”

“Would you fuck off,” You stopped and turned on him. “I didn’t ask your opinion and I surely didn’t ask you to eavesdrop. Why exactly would you be so interested anyhow?”

“This planet is rather boring so I must find ways to amuse myself,” He slithered, “In Asgard, we had fools at court none so delightful as you, dear.”

You stone-faced him, shaking your head as you swiveled back to your path. It wasn’t worth to argue with him. All Loki ever wanted to do was torture others. He revelled in the little ways he could make others squirm. Once Thor had grown ambivalent to his antics, he had been searching for a new mark. It seemed you were the latest to catch his eye. At least it might keep you distracted from Bucky’s upcoming absence, though you would have preferred a more enjoyable diversion.

It had been two and half weeks since Bucky had left. You hadn’t meant to count but life was a little emptier in the absence of not only him but Steve and Nat as well. Steve often visited the lab to speak with Stark and Nat bothered you every now and again for girl talk. She liked to complain about Wanda’s lovesickness and the overpopulation of males among her team. It was a welcome respite from long hours of work. But now, all you did was work.

It was late and both Banner and Stark had already left for the night. It was unusual for you to be the last in laboratory but you hadn’t been sleeping well as of late. You couldn’t place it but it was as if there was a presence in your room; something hiding in the dark. It was those old childhood ghosts come back to haunt you. That there was a monster unseen, lurking just beyond your vision.

Alas, it was nothing.

At least, when you turned on the lights, your room was vacant and all was as it should be. You tried not to think about it you rearranged the microscopic fuses beneath the lens, aligning them so that they could be fit into a simple locket. Stark only ever wanted his gadgets smaller and smaller. It was starting to give you a headache squinting day in and day out.

A sudden knock on the glass behind you caused your tweezers to clatter to the table and you swore as you pulled away from the microscope. Your heart was racing and you spun around in your chair, ready to sight the beast who had been hiding in your closet. It was only Bucky.

Wait, it was Bucky! You jumped up from your chair and waved at him, a smile blooming against your will. He smiled back and went to the door. You were still in disbelief as he entered; as unexpected as a storybook monster beneath your bed.

“You’re back?” You asked.

“I am,” He answered smugly, “Early. Or late, depending on how you look at it.” He glanced around the empty lab.

“Yeah, uh,” You followed his gaze, “Just trying to get caught up on some stuff.”

“Does that mean you’re too busy for that movie?” He wondered.

“Aren’t you tired?” You asked, “You’ve been on the road for almost three weeks--”

“You counting the days?” He interjected. His uncharacteristic hubris was off-putting.

“N-no,” You stammered, “I guess I could call it a day.”

“Great,” He was rather close to you.

You hadn’t noticed him inching so near to you. You turned to tidy up your work space before you could think too much of it. You tucked your toolkit away and shut down your computer as Bucky leaned against the table beside you, metal fingers tapping on the edge as he waited.

“Alright,” You fought back a yawn, “Do you know what you want to watch?”

“Not really. I don’t watch much these days,” He said as you led him to the door. He reached around you to hold the door for you. “Lady’s choice.”

“Okay,” You nodded, “Uh, where exactly were we watching this movie?”

“Hadn’t really thought about it. We could use the lounge or maybe...your room?”

“Well, I guess my room is closer,” You offered, “But the seating is limited.”

“That’s fine with me,” He smiled over at you, “All I desire is your company.”

“Alrighty,” You agreed, sounding like an idiot as all you could blurt out was the cartoonish remark.

You walked the rest of the way searching for something to say but your mind was blank. You kept peeking out the corner of your eye at Bucky and trying to stifle the thunder in your chest. You opened your door and waved him inside. You searched for your remote, hidden behind your television as you listened to his soft footsteps. He was rather stealthy for his size. You turned back to find him sat on one side of your bed, his arm across the headboard. “Lots of room,” He gestured to the empty space beside him.

You gave a half-smile and slowly crossed to him, your nerves flurrying like a blizzard as you settled in on the bed. You pressed the power button and instinctively searched out Netflix. Oh my god, were going to Netflix and Chill with Bucky Barnes or had you fallen asleep in the lab? This had to be a dream, right?

“Um, here’s a new movie,” You said, your voice shriller than usual. “Do you like comedies?”

“Sure, I’ll watch whatever,” His voice was low and you could sense him watching you. You hoped he couldn’t see you sweat because you were feeling the heat.

“Okay,” You clicked on the suggestion and set aside the remote.

The opening credits began and you tried to focus on the screen. Bucky’s arm slipped down onto your shoulder as the first scene began and even subtitles couldn’t have helped you keep track of the dialogue. You couldn’t help but relish the feeling of his arm around you and you leaned into him without thinking. It was barely twenty minutes in before you felt his breath rustle your hair and you looked up to find his eyes intent on you.

“I have no idea what this movie is about,” He rasped as he leaned closer.

“Me either,” You admitted as you watched him get closer, his lips brushing against yours before the gap was finally closed.

His kiss was firm and grew deeper as you returned it in kind. You couldn’t help but let the long-harboured yearning take over you. This felt all too real to be a dream. This was real and it felt exactly as you had imagined it. You finally forced yourself to part from his lips to take a breath but as you pulled away, you were shocked to find that Bucky’s blue eyes had turned emerald.

You sat up so sharply you found yourself falling off the edge of the bed. Loki was sat on your bed in place of Bucky. His dark hair was tousled from your embrace and a triumphant grin curled his lips. You were shaking as you stared up at him in shock and humiliation. This wasn’t real, it was all a cruel trick.

“Out,” You whispered, struggling to find your voice. “Get out,” You spoke louder as you got to your feet, your entire body trembling. “Loki, how could you?”

You raced to the en suite bathroom before your tears could fall, before the trickster could rise from the bed and stop you. You slammed the door and locked it, leaning against it as you hid your face in your hands. You were such an idiot. You had wanted Bucky to like you so much that you would have believed anything. You should have known it wasn’t him; he had been too nonchalant; too adamant.

“Y/N,” You heard Loki’s voice through the door; close enough that he was likely right on the other side. “I--”

“You achieved what you wanted,” You spat, “Okay? I’m thoroughly humiliated. You can go now.”

“No, I didn’t mean--Y/N, you misunderstand, this isn’t meant to be...that,” He was the most uncertain you had heard him. Almost vulnerable.

“What was it then? You pretend to be him,” You hissed. Your eyes were burning and your throat was tight.

Silence followed and you listened for Loki’s departure but no footsteps sounded. You could sense him still, just outside the door. You heard him sigh and felt the door shift as he leaned against it.

“I didn’t know how else to talk to you,” His voice was softer, repentant, “And I saw you talking to that super soldier and I thought...Well, you never look at me that way.”

“Why would I?” You snapped. “You’re...you. You do shit like this for kicks.”

“No, no, it’s not a trick. I just…wanted to be close to you.”

“I thought you were Bucky, Loki,” You balled your hand into a fist as you spoke through gritted teeth, “Otherwise, I would never be alone in the same room as you. You’re despicable!”

“I’m…” He paused and you felt the tears pricking. “...Sorry.”

“No, you’re not,” You said, struggling not to let your hurt show through in your voice, “Go away.”

His reply was another prolonged silence. This time, however, it was followed by his footsteps. As you heard your bedroom door open and close, you slid down to the floor and pulled your knees to your chest. You hung your head and let the salty drops trickle down your cheeks. It would be another sleepless night.

[beneathtreemomo]

Hmm-Atsuya, Nosaka and Haizaki! OwO

The others are under the cut! (Disclaimer: I still haven’t watched much of Ares or Orion so my knowledge of Nosaka and Haizaki is…. very limited)Fubuki Atsuya     How I feel about him: Ooooohhhhhh look at the big bad wolf and his fangy fangs he’s so cute and even though he can kill a fully grown bear I love him and will protect this gay (or bi, depending on universe)disaster until my last breath. He is so protective it’s adorable and the fact he falls a bit flat in his incarnations is so disappointing, but then again all of Orion feels pretty flat so it doesn’t really surprise me. STILL it would be nice to see more than loud impulsive crazy boy.     Romantic ships w/ him: *cough*yoru*cough**cough* seriously with canon characters though? probably Someoka if it’s OG and Nae if it’s Ares/Orion. He and Someoka/Nae bounce of each other in a similar way to Gouenji and Shirou, and it makes for cute relationships that either have Atsuya being kept in check but supported, or leave him so floundered and confused and in love that it’s adorable!!     Non-romantic ships w/ him: Atsuya & Shirou, Atsuya & Hakuren, Atsuya & Nae, Atsuya & Someoka, Atsuya & Life, Atsuya & Hiroto, Atsuya & Mitsuru, Atsuya & Hyouga, Atsuya & Gouenji     Unpopular Opinion of character: You know I’m sure there’s something more in depth to his character yet still slightly silly but I honestly can’t think of anything right now xD Right now all my brain can think of is that he can actually be super serious when needed and he’s just being wild/crazy because… well, idk he’s hotheaded and maybe that’s what used to be expected of him by their peers as a way to differentiate from Shirou.      One thing from canon: I would have loved to see more of him in OG! More specifically, the Atsuya that wasn’t trying to take over. See him slip out in small rings of gold around Shirou’s eyes when he did something particularly “atsuya”, see them try to figure out the whole… together thing. I get why they simplified it to spirits and “oh hey they’re together now no more struggle yay!” but. still. would’ve been nice. And idk much about Ares/Orion but I would have loved to see him being casual with Hakuren. Do they get along outside of matches? Or do the others try to stay away from Atsuya as often as possible because he’s just infuriating to them? These are things I would have loved to see!

Nosaka Yuuma     How I feel about him: An absolute dork. An emperor? More like an adorably awkward prince still trying to have fun after being trained to be something older than he is. I barely know him but I know I love what he brings to the table and he seems like an awesome yet slightly infuriating character.     Romantic ships: I ship him with Ichihoshi. Hands down, that’s the only romantic pairing I have for him. Whether it’s Hikaru and/or Mitsuru in canon format is still up for debate, but it’s mostly Hikaru right now because that’s what we’ve seen. To me, Nosaka and Ichihoshi have the potential to be Ares/Orion’s GouFubu. They just… have that chemistry there, even if it’s hard to see due to Orion’s stale writing.      Non-romantic ships: Nosaka & Nishikage, Nosaka & Anna. See, I can see Nishikage having a crush on Nosaka, but I just… idk I can’t see them together romantically? Nosaka has never seemed to see Nishikage like that and Nishikage’s crush seems to have taken turns into the “too far” lane and I just don’t think it’d be good/ healthy for them to be together romantically. But best friends? Heck yeah! They’d rule in that department. Nosaka and Anna are in a  similar boat, but more on the fact that them being pushed towards romance just felt kinda forced and like neither character really wanted it. So I love them way more as friends!     Unpopular Opinion: From what I’ve seen, everyone pictures Nosaka as this cold, kinda hard but slightly dorky, emperor persona. But to me? He’s not ready to be an emperor. Instead he’s been forced into the role and has to act like it, and that can lead to many wrong decisions in his attempts to be what people expect of him. He just feels… sad, to me. I just see him as more of a prince or something, instead of an emperor. IDK if this is necessarily an unpopular opinion or not, but those are my thoughts.     One thing in canon: If they’ve already done this my bad but I’d love to see Nosaka with his walls down. Maybe late at night, unable to sleep? Just… Nosaka off the field. Without having to be an emperor. That’d be lovely.Haizaki Ryouhei     How I feel: uhhhhhhh misunderstood “bad boy” with a soft heart but was hurt in the past so now he has walls higher than the football stadiums they play in. I looked at some of his wiki page and in the few episodes I saw him in I thought he was quiet the interesting character but it feels a lot like the other “bad boy” characters they show in the series. Full feelings are still TBD but right now I think he’s neat and I like him.     Romantic ships: N/A, I haven’t actually watched enough of the show (or paid enough attention to him) to determine how I feel about him and any specific characters.     Non-romantic ships: Haizaki & Inakuni Raimon, Haizaki & Inazuma Japan, Haizaki & Hiroto (Hiroto dropping him still makes me die of laughter, the essence of their relationship in one interaction right there)     Unpopular opinion: idk why but the limited posts i’ve seen with him have always given me this vibe of Haizaki being a bit of a villain. So I guess in that regard my unpopular opinion is that he’s not bad, he’s just… sad. and scared of his friends getting hurt in a similar way to Akane. So he acts out, tries to do things himself to avoid getting close, and… idk. I feel like once his walls got knocked down he should have been eased off the bad boy vibe. Sure, he’s a bit of a shark boy, but even sharks aren’t meaning to be bad– they were just given a bad representation.     One thing in canon: I have no clue xD again, haven’t seen enough to give a better/ more accurate answer. I guess give him a little more presence? I think I genuinely forgot he appeared in some of the episodes I watched, and, well, isn’t he supposed to be a main character?

[stressedasalways]

Not Like The Movies (8/8)

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader

Story Summary: Today was just a bad day.  The simple mission had gone south. What started as an easy data extraction ended with you clutching your side trying not to bleed out.  And who should come to your rescue but the reclusive Avenger himself.

Story Warning(s): swearing, mentions of blood. All the Fluff

Chapter Warning : Some angst but with fluff as a reward!

Words: 5.8K

A/N - OMG it’s over! :-( Thank you as always - full A/N at end of chapter.

AO3 Link  

Tumblr Links: Masterlist  Part 1 Part 2 Part 3  Part 4 Part 5  Part 6  Part 7

You stayed in the comfort of each other for hours until both of your stomachs made it very much known that subsistence was needed.

“We need food.” you whined.

“But I don’t want to move.” he sighed contently.

“You don’t have to move, you take a nap, I’ll get food.”

His eyes were already closing as he mumbled, “That sounds amazing.”

You gave him a quick peck on the lips as you detangled yourself from his body and got up, his body quickly getting more comfortable in the bed.

You were quick to throw on his hoodie that you had claimed as your own as you made your way to the main Avengers kitchen.

The common area and kitchen were ghostly quiet. Everyone was clearly exhausted after the mission. Since you had been spending so much time up here you knew where everything was and knew what was in stock. Homemade mac and cheese sounded like the perfect carb right now. It was simple, cheesy and if anyone did make their way to their kitchen there would be tons available.

Once it was in the oven cooking you were just finishing up cleaning up the small mess when you heard a fake cough come from behind you.

“Mr. Stark”, you tried your best to great him professionally.

“Agent L/N, and it’s Tony”

“Well Tony then its Y/N.”

He gave you a cocky smirk. He looked you up and down in your leggings and obviously Winter Soldier sized hoodie. “I see you have made yourself at home.” His tone felt like that of a father who knew a secret. You could sense you were not going to like this conversation.

“I’m making homemade mac and cheese. Should be ready within an hour, feel free to help yourself.”

“I was under the impression that you were incapable of cooking. Or at least that would be an educated guess from the amount of droned in food that was somehow paid for by yours truly.”

Dammit. This conversation had to be happening now when you had no one to help you out.

“Well at that time I was recovering, and your offer held no stipulations that I couldn't drone in food. So maybe you should take this as a learning experience Tony.” Your voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Ha! You are quite the little firecracker aren’t you. Honestly don’t worry about it.”

“I never said I was worried about it.” you retorted quickly.

Tony slapped the counter in exhilaration. “They said I would like you.”

“I seem to be quite the source of gossip among the superhero group.”

“I wouldn't sell yourself short there Y/N. I’ve seen your file, you’re one of the top techs we have here.”

“I am the top tech you have here.” you corrected with a smirk.

He raised his eyebrows obviously a fan of your confidence. “I’m assuming since you are still up here and now cooking Elsa is feeling more himself?”

Although the nickname was not appreciated you could tell there was some awe in his voice knowing your answer would be yes. “Yes, James is just sleeping, but I figured some food would be good. For everyone.”

He nodded, not surprised by your answer but still obviously shocked. He rubbed his hands together, “Should I make a salad then?”

As you continued to clean and Tony was chopping, Natasha and Clint soon emerged in the kitchen. You gave her a knowing look as she pretty much shot daggers at you.

“I hope you are making enough for the whole class.” Clint asked while spying on what was out.

“Well that all depends. Were you one of the ones betting on me for when I would discover the elevator gave me access?”

“Uhhhhhhh.” Clint looked around for backup but only found Tony laughing and Natasha looking away.

“Did she not tell you she won?” you tried not to laugh.

“‘Tasha?”

“Yeah ‘Tasha?” you mocked with her nickname she wouldn't let you use.

“Not a good idea to anger your training partner.”

“My gym buddy is back. So I don’t need you beating me up anymore.”

“He won’t spar with you. Too scared he’ll break you. I on the other hand know exactly how far to push to almost break you.” the threat very real in her voice.

You held up your hands in mock defeat. “Geez Na-tasha.” she rolled her eyes at you but gave a small smirk.

You weren’t sure how it happened. Maybe it was just the right time, or maybe the Avengers were just not used to real food being cooked. But one by one they all made their way to the kitchen ready to enjoy the meal.

Steve and James were the last to arrive and when you caught their eyes, Steve’s were beaming, practically screaming his thanks to you.

“If some of you want to set the table, it just needs to cool for maybe 10 minutes and we will be good to go.” you said to no one in particular. You then turned to Tony, “I know it's not exactly dinner time yet, but you must have some good red wine hidden away for such a meal?”

“Not just good, the best.” his tone mimicking the conversation you had earlier as he walked away to wherever it was hidden.

Different members of the team kept going past you, grabbing plates, utensils, wine glasses. Clint and Sam were pulling beers out of the fridge, so you were a little surprised when you felt arms come around your waist from behind. His head slouched to lean on your shoulder.

“I thought you went to get us some food, how did it turn into a family dinner?” he joked.

“I have no idea. It’s like none of you have seen a home cooked meal before.” you laughed.

“You’re amazing.”

“Don’t get all soft on me.”

“Fine, you’re ridiculous.” but he said it with even more emotion than ever before.

“I know.”

You momentarily forgot where you were as you leaned your head so he could give you a quick kiss.

“Hey now!” Sam interrupted from the table. “No smooching over the food. Some of us want to eat that without your germs all over it.”

You felt James let go and knew he was probably giving the table a dirty glare, but when you sheepishly glanced over at the group all you could see was them giving you ridiculously goofy looks.

“I’m the one feeding you. You take what you can get!” you screamed back as you went to grab a towel to help you move the dish to the group.

No sooner did you settle at the table when F.R.I.D.A.Y interrupted.

“Sorry to intrude but Agent L/N is needed urgently by Agent Peele.”

You immediately felt for your pockets and realized your phone was still in the bedroom. “Shit.” you whispered as you started to get up.

“I think we can tell Agent Peele it can wait -” Tony started.

F.R.I.D.A.Y cut him off ,“I’m sorry Mr. Stark but I must reiterate that Agent L/N is needed.”

You could see Tony was a bit shocked, but you gave him a look of thanks as you got up to run to the bedroom.

You could make out the beeping even from the living room. “Shit, shit, shit.”

You did a quick glance as you made your way quickly back to the common room. It appeared the Avengers mission had brought back a lot of possible intel. But it was behind very complicated security systems so the whole team was needed stat.

You barely glanced back at the group as you quickly replied to Agent Peele, letting him know you just needed to change clothes and you would be there soon.

James caught up to you as you just got close to the elevator.

“Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, of course. You guys did your superhero thing and now it's time for the nerds to shine.” you gave him a goofy smile.

“You’ve barely slept.” He was right, since your unwanted wake up call at 4am you had pretty much been awake, minus a few quick cat naps. Even though it was now closer to the end of the work day you both knew Shield had no real hours. If there was a job the team would be working non stop.

“No rest for the wicked.” He gave you a broken smile in return, probably feeling unneeded guilt. “I’d say save me some but I don’t think there will be any.” you gave a small laugh as you could hear the rest of the groups forks and knives hitting their plates., “Just make sure you eat my portion too. At least I will feel a bit better considering it was always for you anyway.”

He squeezed your hand as you turned closer to the elevator. It was clear there was so much more he wanted to say, neither of you had expected your time together to come to such an abrupt end.

As the elevator opened you gave him a quick peck on the cheek. “Rest up okay, I’ll probably be working all night so don’t wait up.”

You were quick to hurry to your own room and throw on some appropriate clothes. You chose some of your looser pants and a plain black sweater, ready for the inevitable all nighter.

When you got to your office area everyone was locked in on their screens. Some were working in small groups, others had headphones on and were clearly in their own personal zones.

Ugh, you should have grabbed the largest strongest coffee Starks drink machine could have made. You had to settle for office crap before you too plugged yourself in ready for a long night.

-------******************---------------

You looked at the clock and groaned. It was close to 3am and your eyes and mind were truly feeling almost being awake for a full 24 hours. Some of the team took naps at their desks, others on the floor, a few lucky ones grabbed the couches. Some would risk going back to their own rooms for a few solid hours, but most of you knew all too well how hard it was to leave your own bed.

The files were encrypted on top of encryption with red herrings and programs designed to delete data if they were accessed the wrong way. If you were lucky enough to break through you then had to go almost line by line breaking it down further. So far some dates and locations had come to light which was enough to keep everyone going a few hours longer than you should have. It had been a very long time since you had been given the opportunity to potentially get Hydra information and everyone was hoping they would be the ones to find something useful.

Just as you were about to go for another coffee or possibly collapse on the floor, something jumped out on your screen. Those looked like co-ordinates. You were quick to call over to one of the analysts that was awake.

Within twenty minutes the screens around the room were showing surveillance. It was small, but it was clear there was some military personnel at the small unassuming warehouse your coordinates had pulled up. This was the confirmation the whole team needed to prove there was real intel buried in here. You just all needed to find it.

A few times you had fallen asleep for quick cat naps on your desk but finally at 11am your mind decided it had had fucking enough. Your vision was starting to blur and bright surfaces were haloing in your vision. Here comes a migraine. Fuck.

It’s not as if it wasn’t a surprise. No sleep, shit tons of caffeine and chocolate bars do not make for a healthy human.

Agent Hamilton was the closest agent to you that was conscious. “I’m going to crash for a few hours, I’m starting to get a migraine.” He nodded with sympathy. “Override my notifications if anything big gets discovered.”

You quickly logged out placing a notice on your phone alerts that you were just needing to sleep off a headache. The downfall of living where you work. You may be able to take breaks when you need them, but especially with a project this big everyone was expected to push themselves to the limit.

You were quick to get back to your suite telling F.R.I.D.A.Y to enact your headache protocol. She immediately began to close all the blinds and turn off all unnecessary lights. You could already smell the lavender oil turning on with your diffuser. You took a deep breath hoping it could work a miracle. You kept your eyes partially closed as you found your Advil and quickly popped four. The stomachache would be worth it if it lessened the migraine.

You set your watch to vibrate in a few hours before getting a wash cloth damp with cool water to place over your eyes.

You didn’t even attempt to remove any of your clothes as you laid on top of your covers, hoping you managed to catch it before it got any worse.

---------------------************************----------------------------

You woke up with a start with only one thing taking over all your senses.

Your head was in excruciating pain. - and you were going to throw up.

You tried your best to keep you eyes closed as you stumbled your way into the bathroom. You managed to get there by feel alone as the remnants of your coffee and chocolate bars violently left your stomach. You were holding on to your head with both hands as it felt as if your brain was two seconds away from also leaving your body.

Just as you laid your head on the cool bathroom floor you heard him.

“Jesus doll, are you okay?”

You knew he was likely whispering, but as far as your head was concerned he was screaming. All you could manage was a quick shake of your head to tell him ‘no’, absolutely mortified. You couldn't imagine what you looked like right now, but the pain was quick to remind you that at this very moment, you really didn’t care.

Although time had no meaning he must have quietly left the bathroom and come back as you felt him gently peel your arm away from your eyes and replace it with a newly damp cloth. He was smart enough to know that flushing the toilet would be a bomb to you, so he very gently closed it. You felt him place a blanket on you, but you were honestly unsure if your shivering was due to the cold or just the blinding pain.

You felt him open your hand and put a water bottle in it, you mouthed ‘advil’ and immediately felt him place a pill in your other hand. He helped you sit up to take a few sips as well as the pill, then pulled your back into his chest so you were leaning into him. He put his right hand over your eyes holding the cloth, his hand large enough that his thumb and fingers were able to place slight pressure on your temples.

You focused on the warmth of his body, the relieving pressure his fingers were providing and the slight sway you rocked to as your body once again let you give in to sleep.

The next time you woke you were still in the same position, he was now the one doing the swaying though, so he immediately stopped when he felt you slightly tense. Although you knew you were still weak, and definitely still had a headache you needed to sleep off, you knew you had passed the worst of it as long as you took care of yourself.

You grabbed his hand over your eyes and cloth, giving a slight tug for him to move it away. As you slowly removed the cloth your skin and eyes were slightly overwhelmed with the feeling of air on them, but no nausea followed it. You kept your eyes closed, knowing it wasn’t smart to open them just yet.

“I’m a bit better.” your voice was low and horse.

“Let’s move you to the bed.”

With no effort at all he was standing up and helping you up. Easily picking you up and carrying you to the bedroom. Once you were settled and felt him pull the blankets up you, you finally slowly opened your eyes. It took awhile for the focus to come back and of course the room was still very dark.

He was tucked down on your side of the bed with his arms and face curled only a few inches from your own face. He gave you a tentative smile.

“I’m so sorry.” you started.

“What could you possibly be apologizing for?”

“You had a rough night this is the last thing -”

He immediately cut you off, his voice still a whisper but now a bit more stern. “We both had a rough night. The only difference being you helped me with mine already so now I’m helping you with yours. Plus I know I got a hell of a lot more sleep and food in me than you have.”

You smiled at him. Although you wanted nothing more than to keep looking into those gorgeous eyes, you closed your own not wanting to risk it. “Did I get any alerts on my phone?”

“That’s not important.”

“It is important, please let me know or I’m just going to check myself anyway.”

You heard him sigh in defeat while he went to grab your phone. “Ummm. It says headache protocol - no urgent alerts?”

“Good, that means no one found anything worthy of me needing to see it now.” Knowing you were still okay to sleep made you feel better immensely. “I’m going to sleep a bit more. You don’t have to stay.”

He answered you by walking over to the other side of your bed and crawling in. As you curled into each other you grabbed his hand pulling it under your chin.

“Or this is better?” he asked

“So much better.” you sighed in contentment and could swear you could feel his smile into your neck.

------------------************************------------------------

The next few days were spent working to the limit, trying your best to eat food semi healthy and taking full napping breaks - usually somewhere on the Avengers floor so James knew you were at the very least alive.

At this point the team had found you passed out on the kitchen counter, in the common room couch, and when you were feeling like you had a bit of extra time and not about to completely collapse you would make it to Steve and James’ living room.

You didn’t even acknowledge Steve as he sat on the couch reading something. You just laid down on the opposite side shifting your feet so they were against his leg, stealing his warmth.

“Not that I don’t appreciate the visits, but you do have a bed do you not?”

“Can’t go to a bed. Will sleep too deeply. Naps only.” You heard Steve click his tongue. Clearly upset. “Are you telling me you guys are well rested and fully functioning humans when your out on missions?”

“Well no.”

“Well this is my mission Steve. We may not leave the compound but we put in the work.”

“I guess, I just worry.”

“Thanks Cap.” you mocked pushing your face into the cushion.

“How long has she been out?” you caught James voice on the edge of your consciousness.

“Maybe an hour -” Steve started when you interrupted groggily.

“-not nearly long enough.” You kept your eyes closed, not yet fully willing to give up the idea that you could get some more sleep. You could hear both of boys chuckle as you felt James move a stray strand of hair off your face. You re-adjusted your feet against Steve and tried not to snicker as he gasped.

“How are your feet always so cold?”

You smiled in response. Just as you began the internal debate of pushing back into sleep, or waking up to talk to the boys your phone beeped loudly. You jumped up feeling your pockets trying to find it, blinking rapidly trying to wake yourself up instantaneously.

You read the message three times before allowing yourself to believe it. Agent Peele was calling off the twenty-four hour work days. Enough data was known that the analysts were working with what they had and the rest of the data would be split into proper projects.

You began to mockingly cry, “I’m free!”

You fell back on the couch sitting beside Steve, James was quick to sit on your other side as you tucked yourself into him.

“They are finally going to stop working you to the bone?”

“For now yes, they found enough to move forward.” And then the sense of relief was soon filled with dread. “Wait, does this mean you guys are going to be off on a mission?”

You looked to James who looked to Steve, so you turned your sad eyes to him as well.

“Umm, well, ugh.” Steve clearly had no idea how to answer. Being the Captain you were sure he was completely up to date in all the goings on of the compound. But you didn't have the clearance to know most of that information. Even downstairs as intel was brought forward everyone was shifted to new work as they discovered more information so you never really had a full story.

James sighed and answered for him, “At some point yes. But this one will be well planned out, and its not there yet.” You exhaled deeply, feeling like you could enjoy the feeling of your freetime again. “Should we get you to bed? Have a proper nap?”

You shook your head. “Let’s go for a walk.”

The fresh air felt amazing. You could feel it healing your tired body already. James had grabbed your hand once you were far enough away from the compound from prying eyes.

As if on cue the clouds moved and the last remainder of the late afternoon sun beamed down. You spread your arms open and closed your eyes, letting it soak right through you.

“I missed you sun.” you sighed contently.

You felt James tug on your hand, “And what about me?”

You turned to him allowing him to pull you close as your arms draped over his shoulders. “Well of course I missed you...it goes sleep, food, sun, sleep again…” you hummed in fake deep thought as his face squished up, “Stark’s drink machine and then you.”

“I’d pretend to be offended but we both always knew the drink machine came first.”

“The heart wants what the heart wants.” you smirked before his lips crashed on yours.

“My heart wants you.” He whispered between fevered kisses.

Once you made it back to his common room - thankfully Steve was training - the make out session turned a bit more serious.

“Do you believe in destiny?” he asked as you were curled into his side on the couch.

“As in fate and no free will?”

“Maybe? Or no matter what your choices somehow certain things would always happen?” His voice was low, and you could only imagine the thoughts he must have with his past.

“I dunno. I mean what work did the cosmos have to do to bring us together? That alone almost seems impossible.” you were unsure how to answer a question with so many hidden levels within it. James hummed and you knew you had to give him more. You wanted to give him more., “I think I’ve always leaned more to the multiple universe type thing. Where certain things even though they seem unlikely to happen, somehow find a way - again and again. Not always though, but it tries. Like somewhere there is some chubby cherub -”

“-some chubby cherub?”, he smiled and you felt better immediately.

“Yes. And his job is to make things happen. Just nudge things in the right direction. One day our file pops up on his desk, and he knows he has a challenge on his wings cause we are born a literal lifetime apart. But he keeps working the problem trying to figure it out. His methods aren’t always pretty, and we’d both be lying if we said we agreed with all his choices. But he does it, after who knows how many tries and paths, he gets us in the same year. Hell, he even gets us working for the same company and in the same building.”

“Except for well over a year we never speak a word to each other.” James laughs but you can sense his thinking about missed time and opportunities.

You roll your eyes at him, “So he’s so close this time, but we are both on separate paths. So then he just decided fuck it and has me get shot just to make it happen.”

He chuckles at your story. But you can see some sadness in his eyes. The past always just lurking.

So you continue, “Sometimes even though I’m not sure I believe it, I just like to think when something bad happens it's for a reason. Maybe not for me or now, or even this lifetime. But somewhere else me going through this thing is helping set the path for another version. I wish you never went through the path you had to go through James. I can’t even fully put into words how much I wish I could take it all away from you.”

“But all of that. That entire path. It led me here, to now, to you. I wish I didn’t have to go through it either, but I am really happy where the path has led me.”

“I love you James.” you immediately covered your mouth. Oh. My. God. You had not just said that out-loud. “Shit, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to say that-”

“So you don’t love me?”, your brain so mortified you didn’t sense his teasing.

“No, of course I do! Wait. But.” your mind was racing and your mouth was literally spitting out verbal diarrhea as you finally saw his smirk.

He grabbed your face in his hands, “I love you too.”

“You couldn’t have said that twenty seconds ago?” you laughed before the words fully hit you.

You found your body straddling his on the couch, “Is that's an official official I love you?” you laughed.

“Well I have no idea how to make it official official. Not sure how to add that to our list.” his eyes were beaming.

“Well it’s been on my list since pretty much the day you walked into the warehouse. Although it was that same fantasy list where I win the lottery too.”

“You loving me was on the same list as me seeing pigs fly.”

“Ha! You know I could probably get Stark to do that.” you laughed before kissing him.

In between kisses he broke out the words, “Well, for you he probably would.”

You loved James, and you loved the way your everything with him was. How something that could have been serious was instead filled with joy, laughter and mocking.

You ground your hips into his, eliciting a moan from both of you. James tried to break from your kiss, but you pulled him in closer gripping the hair closest to his neck.

“What are you doing?” he whispered breathlessly when you finally moved to kissing down his jawline.

“Making it official official.”

He groaned as he kissed down your neck, his hands roaming up and down your back. With each pass your hoodie and shirt would ride just slightly higher up giving him more access to skin on skin contact.

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.” No sooner was the fourth syllable out from your lips you felt your body rise as he stood up, your legs already locked around his waist. You giggled into his neck as you felt him begin to walk or rather speed walk to his bedroom.

As you crossed the threshold he turned to close the door but misjudged with your body on his and your shoulder lightly bumped the door frame. “Ow.” you laughed but soon found your lips back in his.

“Shit” - A kiss -“I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” you panted, “I have another one” You felt him smile against your lips.

You were a mess of tangled body parts as his legs hit the bed, although you both wished you were more graceful you automatically pushed forward causing him to lose his footing and fall back on the bed, taking you with him. His head hitting the TV remote that had been left.

You sat up on his thighs, “Oh my god are you okay.”

He rubbed the back of his head more in shock than any pain. He nodded ‘yes’ as he pulled you back down to his lips. The movement of leaning down must have caused your phone in your hoodie pocket to shift and you felt James jump as it dug into his stomach. He naturally pushed you off him slightly and rubbed his stomach while you felt in your pocket. “Shit.” you grabbed the phone and threw it off the bed. As you looked down to James he was trying to hold back his laughter.

“We’re a mess.”

“No, no, we are going to get this right.” You unzipped the large hoodie, balling it up and slamming it to the floor with unneeded flair. You quickly pulled off your shirt so were left in your bra and immediately moved your hands to the hem of his shirt and tugged up. He was only too eager to sit up enough to pull it off in one solid motion before laying back down and fully appreciating the sight before him.

“You’re beautiful.” he sighed, and as you looked into those gorgeous steel blue eyes all your insecurities melted away. You believed him with every cell of your body. His one hand was rubbing slowly over your scars from the bullet wound. Now just small raised pink lines. You unhooked your bra feeling brave with his words and gave him a wicked smile.

He returned it as his arms snaked behind your neck pulling you down to his ravenous lips. His skin against your chest felt like heaven and you had never felt more whole as you pushed yourself closer. His hands began to trail down your sides and you gave a slight giggle as it tickled, but the giggle was soon caught in your throat as he managed to grab your hips, flipping you both so he was now hovering over you.

He kissed down your body starting at your neck and slowly going down your breasts. His hands took turns massaging them as he slowly took the trail of his lips down to your naval. His lips quickly detoured to your left side, kissing the scars.

You bit your lip to hold back a moan as you felt him sit on his knees between your legs. His delicate fingers finding the waist of your pants and quickly undoing them. You did your best to assist him as he got your pants off, but then noticed he stilled.

As you moved your focus from his amazingly sculpted chest to his face you saw he was looking down at your underwear. You panicked for a split second wondering what he could be looking at when you looked down and saw you were wearing your pair that had a unicorn on them.

“What? You never see unicorn panties before?”

“You’re ridiculous.”

“I know.” you sighed as you pulled him back down needing to feel his body on yours again.

Your kisses became more desperate, no longer enough to satisfy. You locked your legs around his hips, feeling the rough material of his pants hitting your sensitive spots.

“Condom.” you managed to squeak out.

James pulled away and you could see his face go blank.

“No, no you must have one.” his face just dropped even more. “Okay, well then Steve must have some.”

“Umm I am not asking Steve.”

“James.” you whined, desperate for this to move further. “He’s not up here, just go look in his room”

“I will not, he likely doesn't have any, and if he does that's just more questions.” You pushed your head back into the pillow. You knew him asking anyone else was entirely out of the question.

You began to sit up and although he let you, you could see his lust blown eyes were desperate for this not to be the end. You pulled him into a quick kiss before sliding off the bed searching for your dropped phone.

He watched you intently as your crawled on your hands and knees in only your panties.

“If mister super soldier wants to help me find my phone that would be awesome.”

He immediately pointed to it a few feet from where you were. You sat up on your legs quickly typing the message out as well as quickly changing some permissions with F.R.I.D.A.Y.

It took only a minute before your phone beeped and you got the confirmation you needed.

“This will be another you owe me big time.”

James eyebrows raised not really sure what you meant as his head snapped to the door. Someone was walking towards it. Before he could decide how to react you were walking to the door still fully exposed just as something slid under it, and then another, and then another.

You picked up the three condoms Natasha had slipped under the door and held them up. Just as your phone beeped again alerting she had left their suite entirely and once again no longer had access.

“She’s going to make us pay for these dearly.” you smirked.

“I will gladly pay whatever price. Now get that gorgeous unicorn butt over here!”

You quickly jumped back into the bed. “Now, where were we?”

You both laid in each others arms fully sated and content, enjoying the afterglow. “You still not tired?” You could tell he was concerned.

But honestly you had never felt more awake in your entire life. “I’m just thinking.”

“About what?”

“How now would be a perfect time to finally do number two on our list.” you smirked as you looked up at him.

“Well you did get shot.”

“I did.”

“And I did promise.”

“You did.”

‘Well let’s get the jacuzzi going then.” he smiled as he kissed the top of your head before you sat up pulling him with you.

You were right. It had been the perfect size for two, and there was nothing better than taking advantage of Bucky Barnes and his jacuzzi.

A/N -So we made it to the end! Can you believe? I had so much fun writing this world and can not thank you all enough for your love and support.

I am working on the sequel but no ETA yet.

So my original plan was to do smut here. I've never done it and wanted to challenge myself. But OMG is it HARD (pun pun pun) But yeah, super duper kudos to those that write it, it's truly an art form. So instead I gave you the more realistic not romantic at all version - which kinda worked out better anyway lol 

Leave me your comments and kudos - it keeps me going (it really truly does)

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