#i was frothing at the mouth last night thinking of what i wanted to say | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

phan3145 · 4 months ago

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Title: Slippery Slope. Fandom: Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. Rating: T. ( Intensity, implications) Pairing: Eventual Noa x Human!Reader.

***NOTES: Finally a chapter with a decent length. Thank you to everyone who has stuck with me along this story’s journey. I would love to hear more from you guys, what you think of the chapter, or any predictions for what might happen! Tagging @imaginarydreams

Chapter 7: At Odds

You

It wasn’t long after Noa left that you found sleep again. It wasn’t completely restful though, odd dreams and quick flashes of memory plagued you until you woke up once more. You sighed, eyes cracking open to steal a glance towards the opening by your fire, noting it was barely dawn, the cool blue tone of morning still reflecting along the sides of the rock. You closed your eyes again, wanting just a little bit more time, hoping that if you went back to sleep now it would be dreamless.

You blamed the visions on your conversation with Noa, reawakening thoughts and feelings you buried a long time ago. You knew whatever peace you found last night wouldn’t last, but even you had to admit this was a little too soon. You heard a faint scratching of rock next to you, and you groaned internally. Bringing your hands up to rub at you eyes, you wondered if a bird had gotten in.

You turned your head, suddenly coming face to face with brown eyes, auburn fur, and white teeth. Your own eyes widened, frozen in place as you stared at the predator in front of you. It’s body was lithe, crouched in a position that suggested it was ready to either leap or dash away. Your eyes focused then on its mouth, open but not snarling or frothing. No rabies then, but not necessarily a non-threat. It was studying you just as you studied it, each of you waiting for the other to move.

You slowly placed a hand on the edge of your bed, the red tail fox sniffing and inching closer as you did. This surprised you, having come across foxes before and never experiencing this level of naïve curiosity in them before. In the past, they had let out a horrendous screeching noise before dashing away into the woods. Your mom had loved the creatures, saying they reminded her of domesticated cats that used to roam free when she was a child. She never explained what happened to them, only that they no longer existed. She had modeled your shelter after the foxes’ homes apparently, which also explained why she called it a burrow. The engineering was smart though, having two different ways of getting in and out, one obvious, the other hidden in case of a predator cornering you.

The fox paused as you tentatively pushed yourself into a sitting position, its eyes lingering before darting to the left. You looked then to the ledge a foot away from you. The half eaten salmon that Noa gave you, still wrapped in the leaf, sat there cold and untouched. The fox was hungry…and desperately so if it was willing to get so close to you. You leaned over hesitantly, not wanting to spook it, and grabbed the fish.

It whined then, almost sounding like a laugh as it swayed left then back right. That’s when you noticed the protruding ribs. Foxes were meant to be thin, but not that thin. Its mouth opened in another whine, tongue lolling out slightly as it raised its paw only to put it back down exactly where it had been. You chuckled, looking at the fish in your hand, then to the fox. It was waiting patiently. You leaned forward, ready to spring back if it decided to lunge at you instead of the volunteered meat. It sniffed at the offering in your hand, head inching closer before snatching the fish from you. It paused a moment, as if surprised how easy that had been, then spinning around and scurrying towards your entrance. It stopped again, looking back at you once more, before squirming it’s way through the crack between the rock and cave wall, dashing away into the woods.

You let out a breath in surprise, wondering if that had actually happened. You didn’t need to pinch your arm, the ache in your shoulder reminding you that you were in fact awake. Then you wondered if its burrow was somewhere nearby, surprisingly not concerned for yourself, but for the creature. It seemed so hungry, and you were aware there was not a lot of small game in the area. The sickening thought that you might be over hunting the woods of what little game there was, made your stomach drop.

You looked to your makeshift kitchen…no more meat. There were only two baskets of fruit remaining, and normally today you would go out and hunt for rabbit or squirrel before meeting the apes. You breathed in deeply, shaking your head as you pushed yourself up from your bed. You would need to wash your sheets tomorrow during bathing day...and also remember to wash the blood from your forehead. Until then, you grabbed an apple, your spear, and fishing line, deciding to get your day started.

The salmon had been good last night, at least until your stomach tried to reject it during your emotional trip down memory lane. You usually didn’t eat it, knowing the apes frequently visited the creek and fish was part of their food supply. Now that you had built a relationship, if you could call it that, with three of them, you decided now was the best time to include more fish in your diet. It wouldn’t kill you to eat fish and fruit for awhile, instead of squirrel and rabbit.

Something fluttered in your heart then as a passing thought rocketed through your mind. If you happened to have an extra fish, and the fox came back, it would be such a shame not to feed it. Waste not, want not and all that. The apes had their eagles after all, so inter-species companionship wasn’t inherently a human trait. If you could befriend an ape, why not a fox? At least, you wanted to try.

Your time with the apes, while new and strange, recently reminded you of just how alone you were. You relied on their persistent presence now, dreading days you knew you wouldn’t see them. You enjoyed living alone, but not necessarily being alone…to be the only living thing in a space was unnerving sometimes. Solitude was a blessing and a curse in that regard. You could never domesticate an Eagle like the apes…but a fox? Maybe. As you squeezed yourself through your entrance, huffing slightly from the effort, you made your way towards the creek. Might as well get there early and work on dinner before the apes came to learn.

You were reminded then of the books, knowing you hadn’t seen them in your burrow last night or this morning. You recalled Noa placing them into his satchel before the boar attacked, hopefully they were still with him. It was Noa after all, he seemed to think of everything. You groaned then, vividly reminded oh how the two of you had parted last night. You had been flustered and slightly awkward, which caused you to flush from embarrassment all over again. What exactly had you even been thinking at the time?

Noa was a friend, an ally if nothing else. His touch last night was nothing more than an attempt to soothe you after an emotional moment, but something about it had left a lingering impact on your senses. You recalled every second of that exchange in vivid detail, to the point you could almost still feel the warmth of his hand on your body now. You shook the thought from your head, reminding yourself about the truth behind his touch. It was to comfort, and to serve his own goals. He told you as much, wanting to make you more comfortable around apes in the future. You couldn’t deny that, he even said he wanted to build off the fact his touch didn’t bother you.

At the time, your mind had been too muddled to really think about his words, but now? His frequent touch may shock you, surprise you even if you’re unprepared, but you agreed it didn’t bother you. You had to admit, if only to yourself, all the times you’ve flinched from it, it’s never been in disgust or a desire to get away from him. It hadn’t been, not since that first day. He wasn’t Gol, and you were very aware of that. The day you two met he had been gentle with you, reassured you, and though it had scared you at the time, he had protected you. He didn’t know you, but he had been willing to throw his body over yours so you wouldn’t get hurt. Noa’s touch was protective and gentle, and that’s why you flinched from it.

Now, because you responded after he showed you that same gentleness and kindness, you were worried about facing him. All you really did was hold his hand! How ridiculous was that? Maybe Noa was right, maybe you were jumbled. At the very least, you were hungry. You took a bite of your apple then, the juice dribbling down your chin. You wiped it away, noting that you were already off to a fantastic start as a teacher. You forgot about your books and you were scared to face your students. Then there was the glaring issue, that you had never had to teach anyone anything before. You had always been the student, and swapping roles made you nervous. You wanted to be a good teacher, hoping to be patient and well spoken as you explained how the English language worked. The apes were quick learners and highly intelligent, so that would certainly help you. And, in all fairness, how hard could teaching adults really be?

…

Surprisingly, it was easier than you thought. Teaching the trio words using the alphabet as association had been simple enough, even if they never heard of the animals in the book. Explaining a lion to the apes took longer than you would have liked to admit, same went for a tiger. You had to promise to get a book on zoology the next time you went to the library before they agreed to focus back on the lesson.

It wasn’t until the third lesson a week later that you realized your mistake. They were learning words, but the individual letters? Not so much. Forming individual syllables seemed to be hard for the apes, Anaya more so than Noa or Soona. At least, that’s what you thought up until right now.

“Wait,” you stopped Noa’s reading mid phrase. You leaned over his shoulder, pointing to a specific line in the middle of the page, “Read this line right here.”

Noa was uncharacteristically shy now. You saw his eyes scanning the words at the top, mouth twitching in phantom movement. You groaned, slightly impressed by his ability to trick you as you accused, “You memorized the book the last time I read it with you, didn’t you?”

Noa’s mouth pulled into a thin line, sniffing once, “Too simple, easy to remember.”

You sighed, “That’s not the point Noa. That’s not reading, that’s memorization. I can’t go around reading everything to you first. And neither can Soona.”

Soona was the star pupil between the apes, putting in the hard work to understand the individual letters. She had already finished her first book, and was starting on her second. She was saving Stellaluna to read to you on her first go, wanting instead to start on Anaya’s books after she finished this one for more practice. You thought that was odd, but if that was her goal you weren’t going to tell her she couldn’t do it. It was rare she asked for your help, choosing to use the Learning Your ABC’s book as a comparison as she sounded out words. You had to admit, her technique was far superior to anything you came up with when learning to read as a child.

She hooted her amusement at your scolding, “Would not help Noa…if he asked anyway….same teacher…same books…can learn himself.”

Noa huffed, flipping the book closed before turning away, “Choose another book…know this one.”

You raised a brow, picking up the book and opening it to a random page, “Are you telling me you can’t read this because you’ve memorized it that quickly? What if I point at individual words?”

Noa hesitated, “Still will remember…you reading it…not on purpose.”

You ran your hand through your hair then, placing the book on the rock a few feet from you. This time last week you thought keeping yourself focused on teaching around Noa would be your biggest struggle. That, or keeping him focused. When he was determined there was little you could do to distract his mind, and you feared he might want to work on building up your tolerance to ape touch instead of learning to read. Thankfully, that had not been the case. Unfortunately however, he had been so determined that he remembered everything you read or showed him. It wasn’t necessarily a bad problem to have, he had certain words memorized, but it did produce the challenge that he could not replicate Soona’s success. He tried to fill in the blanks instead of actually breaking down the words and sounding them out.

You took a deep breath, turning to glance at Anaya now. He was struggling with the first page of his book still. He could understand vowels, but had a hard time grasping the sound of consonants. Much like Noa, he could memorize a word once he heard someone speak it while reading, but had a hard time hearing the sounds on his own. Maybe putting them together would lead to better results?

“Anaya,” you called softly. When he looked up, you motioned him over to where you and Noa sat, “We’re going to do some group work, can you come over here and sit next to Noa? Bring your book too, please.”

He looked absolutely miserable, half walking half dragging himself over before plopping down next to his Sunset Brother. Noa noticed his defeated look, hand coming up to clasp his shoulder, but Anaya shrugged him off. He curled into himself more, crossing his arms and letting his head rest on top of them before sighing. You truly felt bad for him, giving a small thumbs up as you asked, “Are you okay?”

Anaya looked to you, eyes darting towards your hand before returning to your face. He shook his head then, looking away as he signed, Anaya stupid.

“Hey!” You said a little more sternly than you probably should have. Both apes in front of you stared with surprised eyes, silent as you continued, “You are not stupid. Don’t call yourself that again. You’re learning, and yes, it’s going to take time and it’s going to be frustrating, but I know you. You can do this, Anaya.”

Anaya, apparently still not up for words, signed, Soona not frustrated. Soona learn fast.

You gave Anaya a half smile, “Don’t compare yourself to Soona. Everyone is different, everyone has different strengths and weaknesses. Look at me, I can’t jump or climb like any of you can. I can read, because I learned at a young age, but I can’t fish half as well as you Anaya. Soona can braid and weave baskets, because she learned at a young age, but she can’t leap as far as you or Noa. And of course Noa, he uh…”

As your gaze turned to said ape, you lost your train of thought. He was looking at you again, the same way he had that night in your burrow. Those intensely green irises reflected warmth and sincerity that froze the very breath in your lungs. Thankfully, Anaya picked up where you left off, admitting, “Noa…is…good leader…cares for Eagle Clan…but thinks too much.”

Anaya hooted as Noa’s head jerked sideways to glare at him, letting out an offended huff. You chuckled, grateful for the distraction so you could catch your breath. “See? Strengths and weaknesses. No one started out good at any of those things though, they had to learn and grow into it. Just don’t give up so soon, okay?”

Anaya gave you a half smile and a thumbs up, mumbling, “Okay, Echo.”

Soona had remained silent during this exchange, seated under the tree behind you, but grunted now to get your attention. You turned then, seeing her arm outstretched with the Learning Your ABCs book. You leaned over, taking it and signing Thank you before returning your attention to the male apes in front of you. To say you were at a loss for what to do was an understatement. You imagined Noa memorized the alphabet the same way he did his other book, so you weren’t sure how this would be much help. You ran a hand through your hair once more in frustration, kneeling on the ground in front of the apes and beginning to draw in the dirt with your finger. You had one idea that might break through some barriers.

They watched your scribbling with curiosity. You held your breath as you studied the upside down letters to make sure they were right for the apes. You pointed to Anaya then, handing him the book, “Anaya, I want you to use this like Soona does. Try to read what I’ve written, and if you can’t remember a sound, find the letter in the book and use the example.”

Anaya nodded as you pivoted over to Noa, doing the same thing for him. His word was relatively easier to write upside down, and you hoped making it personal for the two apes would bring out their desire to learn again. You wiped your hands on your pants once you were done, “Noa, this one is yours. Same thing, try to figure it out.”

You scooted over to Anaya then, who was staring at his word in confusion. You leaned into him, gently nudging his shoulder, “Sound it out. One letter at a time.”

Anaya pointed, “ A. A. A…sounds like aaaaaape.”

You giggled, “Okay, that’s a start. What about the other two letters?”

Anaya huffed, frantically turning pages in the book, “N…nest and…Y…yarn.”

“Very good,” you smiled. “Now, put all the letters together. Try to sound them out. If they don’t sound right, remember that vowels have a big sound and a little sound.”

Anaya had a few false starts before pushing out, “A…NA…Y..A …that does not sound…like a word.”

You pointed at the first A then, “Okay, so let’s try changing the sounds. Instead of ape, what else can this sound like?”

“Apple,” Anaya immediately supplied.

“Yes!” You encouraged, “Now, try it again until it sounds right.”

You saw the wheels in his head turning, mouth moving over the syllables until you saw the dots connect. Anaya looked up at you then, pants of air followed by hoots as he stood from the ground. You smiled as he pointed to himself, swaying back and forth, “Anaya…is Anaya…my name…is my name!”

“That’s right!” You cheered.

Anaya seemed in brighter spirits at least, pacing back over to Noa and his word. You hoped that Anaya hadn’t given away Noa’s own word by cheering for his success. You watched as Noa seemed puzzled by the letters in front of him. You crouched down to his level then, “What are you struggling with?”

“Thought…it was my name…but now…not sure.” He grunted.

“You thought?” You asked, confused. It was his name, what was he not understanding?

Noa pointed at each letter then, making the big sound for each one, “N…O…A…H…NoAHa….does not make sense.”

“Oh,” you said, understanding his confusion. “So, same thing with Anaya. A does not always mean A. Remember big sounds and little sounds?”

He tried it once more, but still curled his lip at the end. He kept putting a small A at the end of the H. You tried to breathe out an example of what an H sounds like, but when he tried to copy you it still came out as Ha. You reached for his hand then, bringing it closer to your mouth as you explained, “No, you’re going too hard on the H. It’s not a war cry. You’re going, Ha, like there’s an A on it. I need you to say it softer, breathe with it. Like this.”

You breathed out several quick H sounds onto his hand. You locked eyes with him, but he looked even more confused as he stared at you. Sitting up straighter, you angled his hand, turning your head slightly so you were sure he could see your mouth. You held his gaze, pointing to yourself with your free hand as you said, “Watch my lips, feel my breath at the end. NoaH… NoaH… NoaH.”

You breathed and put emphasis on each of the H’s, watching Noa tense on the second pronunciation of his name. On the third, you noticed him lean away from you, the hairs along his neck and shoulders raising. When you were done, silence engulfed the four of you. Noa looked more than confused now, while you could only guess Soona’s expression since she was still at your back, and Anaya’s head swiveled between Noa and you with a slack jaw. For a moment, you worried you had done or said something weird in their language from the way they were reacting.

You let go of Noa’s hand then, which remained suspended in the air a second or two longer, before it dropped into his lap like dead weight. You looked between the trio then, finally having the guts to ask, “What? Did I do something wrong?”

Everything seemed to happen at once then. Soona screeched in laughter, startling you as you jerked around to look at her. She was holding her stomach, as if it physically hurt her to laugh, which in all fairness was a rare occurrence for her. You heard a Thud then, turning away from Soona to see Anaya on the ground, rolling around as he hooted and pointed at you. Or, at least you thought he was pointing at you.

A low rumble came from Noa’s chest, and while it should probably have concerned you, you had a feeling it wasn’t directed at you. In fact, Noa wasn’t even looking at you now. Anaya shot up then, hobbling on all fours to be next to Noa, signing so rapidly you couldn’t keep up. Soona’s hooting, which started to die down, seemed to come back with a vengeance at whatever Anaya was saying. Noa attempted to look away from Anaya, but the chimp leaned his body around his shoulder to continue whatever he was saying.

Finally, Noa tried to swat away Anaya’s hands, who did not stop his signing, skillfully dodging Noa’s attempts. Noa leaned over, trying to cover his hands now with his own, but once again, Anaya was too quick. He rolled sideways, shuffling over by you, hooting in amusement as he slowed his signs, allowing you to catch a handful of words.

Noa…upset…Echo…private…learn…happy…

You opened your mouth to ask what you were missing when Noa, in a tone you had never heard him use, something between a growl and a yell, boomed, “No!”

All three of you had the same reaction, freezing as muscles grew tense and silence struck you like an arrow. You couldn’t see Soona’s reaction, but you saw Anaya crouch low and duck his head in submission. You felt your breath come in harsher as your heart rate spiked, eyes wide as you stared at Noa in confusion and unease. You must have done something wrong after all. He was taking deep breaths through his nose, something he only did when he was irritated, and after that yell…you decided it was best if you apologized.

You found the courage to open your mouth again, snapping it shut when Noa raised his hand to halt you. His eyes locked on to yours then, nostrils flaring now as he continued to breathe deeply. Anaya’s left arm was placed in front of you then, his body leaning forward and pushing himself out of his submissive stance, closer now to Noa than he had been. He signed with his right hand, phrases you couldn’t see as his shoulder blocked your line of sight. You twitched in surprise when Soona’s hand landed on your left shoulder. You looked up, seeing a determined look in her eye that matched Anaya’s while standing behind you. It didn’t seem like they were challenging Noa…but there was a warning there you couldn’t decipher the cause of.

Everything felt too tense, and you couldn’t understand what you could have possibly said in their language to garner such a reaction, but you filed it away to never do again. Noa’s eyes darted between Soona and Anaya, looking uncomfortable, using his mouth to release quick gusts of air, before you heard his breathing start to return to its normal rhythm. He looked away from the three of you then, staring down at his name in the dirt. You brushed Anaya’s arm aside as you said, “I’m sorry Noa, if what I did ‘upset’ you. It was not my intention. I won’t do it again.”

You copied the sign that Anaya made for ‘upset’ as you apologized, pulling Noa’s attention back to you in that moment. He flinched when he saw the sign, looking concerned before shaking his head, “Not…upset.”

You didn’t know how to respond to that, feeling that the opposite was true. Noa used the back of his hand then to roughly swipe at the dirt in front of him. Looking down, you saw the H had been wiped away. Noa pointed to each letter as he read, “N…O…A…my name…Noa.”

You smiled again, “Alright, Noa with no H. It was mainly silent anyway. At least now you know what your name looks like.”

He hummed in response. Soona tapped your shoulder then, apparently she also wrote in the dirt. You turned, seeing her spelled out S O O N A in clean strokes on the ground. You smiled at her, leaning to nudge your shoulder with hers, “Very good. I’m so proud of you.”

She smiled back, writing another word before underlining it.

M A L E S

You snickered, causing the other two apes to rush over and see what she had written. Noa and Anaya both sounded the word out before saying it out loud. You were surprised, watching as they pointed at each other. Apparently, friendly competition was a good incentive. You tucked that away for later as well.

Noa turned to you then, “Your…name?”

You sighed, trying not to look bitter as you scrawled your name in the dirt. The letters stared back at you, almost mockingly. You hadn’t seen your name spelled out in so long, and even though Noa said it recently in the library, it was hardly ever spoken anymore. It was as temporary as it’s dirt form, only here as long as you made sure it was.

Speaking of Noa, he stood over your shoulder now, staring intently at the letters. You shuffled to your left as he leaned over to trace the pathing of your letters with his own fingers. He let out a low hum in thought, concentrating as he began to replicate each one below your original markings. He took his time, saying each letter out loud until he finished. He paused, drawing a line under your name before he whispered it, almost to himself.

You felt heat rise to your cheeks, ignoring the small swoop in your stomach as you turned fully towards him. He smiled, that same smile he gifted you when your arms were entwined a week ago, in your burrow. You swallowed thickly, clearing your throat before you found your voice enough to say, “That’s very good Noa, I’m impressed. I’ll be more impressed if you can do it in a few days without an example in front of you.”

You stood then on nervous feet, stretching your arms and spine in a deep arch, hearing a few bones pop before letting out a small groan of satisfaction. The apes ability to sit on the ground for so long astounded you. You turned to Noa first, then Anaya, “We have a little bit more time before we lose the light and I need to head back to my shelter. You should read Soona’s Goodnight Moon, I know you haven’t memorized it so it should pose a bit of a challenge. And Anaya, do you want me to help you with Green Eggs and Ham?”

He nodded enthusiastically, practically running towards the pile of books on the nearby rock. He shuffled through them, but turned back to you a moment later looking anxious, “Not…there!”

Your brows furrowed, “What? I don’t understand, Soona do you have it?”

You pivoted to the female ape, who quickly paced back to her tree, checking her three-tiered stack before shaking her head. You were about to turn back to Noa, to ask him the same question, when his arm came around your body to place the book in question in your line of sight. You let out a sigh of relief, the words ‘thank you’ on the tip of your tongue when you felt his lips graze your ear and breathe out, “Here.”

The action alone caused a shiver to run up your spine, but the emphasized H and heat of his breath on your neck, forced a startled inhale from you. The air hissed through your teeth and rattled your lungs as you took a step forward. You whipped around to face him then, right hand coming up to cover your ear as you gaped. You hadn’t even realized he had risen from his place on the ground. He looked completely innocent to his deeds, seeming shocked by your reaction, but you knew better. As always, his eyes expressed everything his mouth and body language did not. You saw that playfulness, that mirth that was rarely displayed by the leader of the Eagle Clan. Except of course, when he was around his Sunset Brother and Sunset Sister. Except, apparently, when he was around you.

Anaya hooted lowly, teasing, “Noa…scared Echo.”

“Not scared,” you replied as you stared Noa down. “Thank you for the book in any case. Soona, can you sit with Noa, make sure he’s actually trying, please?”

She hummed in agreement as you made your way towards Anaya, and Noa moved to sit with Soona. You felt the brush of his fur against your bare arm and thought for a second that it was deliberate, but decided it must be your imagination acting up after his teasing. Still, you felt your own hair react to him, rubbing discreetly at the pebbled flesh along your arms. This was getting out of hand.

…

By the end of the day, the two male apes had turned a corner, showing real progress. You felt confident when you stopped and decided to send everyone home. It was twilight, just enough time for you to make it back to your burrow before a friendly visitor, hopefully, made an appearance. You had caught three fish, enough for dinner and breakfast, and one to spare. You were excited, having something to look forward to as you went home.

Anaya waved goodbye, his own catch hanging from his fishing rod as he made packed his things, two apples clasped tightly in hand. One for him, and one for his horse. Now that the apes were making frequent visits to the creek, they chose to ride on horseback to get there. You were fine with it, as long as it saved them time. You felt bad for the horses though, being tied up somewhere for hours waiting for the apes to go home, so you’d taken to bringing fruit that was a couple days away from spoiling for them. They deserved a treat for being so patient.

Soona was next, hand reaching up to cup the back of your head, she didn’t pull you in like you expected, but she smiled before nodding her head and releasing you. You returned her smile, nodding in return as she prepared to mount her horse. Jumping up onto the saddle, she settled before clicking her tongue, both her and Anaya trotting off in the direction of their village. You were confused by this, noticing Noa dawdling by his own stallion.

You took a deep breath, holding it for a moment before making your way over to him. He was feeding his horse the apple you had given him, patting its neck affectionately. You chuckled then, shifting the books you were holding to one arm. You jabbed your thumb back in the direction of the retreating apes, “You do realize you’re outnumbered now, right?”

Noa hummed, “Horse…is on my side.”

“As it eats the apples I brought.” You scoffed, pulling another apple from your own bag and letting the horse snatch it up from your hand. You were feeling good about your statement, when you heard a faint screech somewhere above you. You ducked, just in time to see Eagle Sun land on the saddle of the horse. He bobbed a moment, eyes trained on you as his talons readjusted themselves. You sighed, “I stand corrected, we are perfectly matched.”

Noa chuckled, “No…you are right…outnumbered…Eagle Sun…never on my side.”

“What is it with you and this bird?” You asked, hand gently outstretched to Eagle Sun. You remained wary of him, sometimes just as temperamental to touch as you were. Instead of the warning peck you were accustomed to receiving when he didn’t want your touch, he simply elongated his neck so you could give him his cherished chin scratches. “After all, he follows you, keeps an eye out for danger, and acts pretty calm around others. He seems like a sweetheart to me.”

Noa’s gaze lingered on you and Eagle Sun, before he confessed, “Was my father’s bird…we did not always…get along…we bonded…only after he died.”

Your hand froze, Eagle Sun tilting his head upwards to see what had caused you to stop, “You never told me that before.”

Noa shrugged both shoulders, “Never…had reason to.”

That was fair, it wasn’t often Eagle Sun made an appearance, choosing to fly free while Noa occupied his time with you. The few rare times the bird did choose to interact with you, it was usually because he wanted attention, or the food you were eating. You tilted your head, watching Noa shift from foot to foot, “Is there something else you want to tell me? Something you want to talk about?”

Noa looked down to the books in your hand, reaching for them and opening his saddle bag. You didn’t protest, simply asked, “Are you taking them back to practice more?”

“No,” he said simply. “Easier to…walk this way.”

“Walk?” You parroted. “Are you not going to ride?”

Noa shook his head, “No…you are…I am walking…you out.”

Your lips twitched upwards, a giggle threatening to burst out of you at the misuse of your phrase, but he was simply too endearing to laugh at. You figured this meant he did want to talk though, and decided to let him open up on his terms. Noa ushered Eagle Sun away from the saddle, the bird squawking once before taking off and landing somewhere in the nearby trees. You didn’t see where he landed, but knew he wasn’t far. You took the opportunity to step into the stirrup and hoist yourself up, before he thought to fly back.

You groaned under your breath, lingering tension in your legs reminding you what happened the last time you had been on Noa’s horse. He brushed knuckles along your outer thigh, “Still sore…prefer to walk?”

You waved him off, “No, I’ll be fine. Humans heal slower than apes I think, and you know, I’m not used to riding.”

Noa reached for the reigns, guiding his horse in the direction of your burrow as he hummed, “Not far…will get used to it…after a moon cycle.”

You tried to remember how long that was, but found yourself distracted by the colors smeared across the skyline. Soft pinks, purples, and a heady dark blue swirled against the clouds, creating a masterpiece that would never be seen again once the black of night overtook it. You glanced back to Noa, his focus solely on the path forward. You didn’t enjoy his silence, as you normally would. This one felt different, full of unspoken tension, like Noa was holding something back.

Your mind began to wander, and you couldn’t stop the question that slipped from your mouth, “Do you see in color like I do?”

Noa’s head turned sharply to glance at you, feet steady as he continued to walk, “Think so…how would I know…if we see things…differently?”

You pointed to the sky in the distance, “What colors do you see there?”

Noa was quiet a moment, “Blue…purple…black…light red.”

“Light red? Do you mean pink?” You asked, leaning forward in the saddle to be closer to the ape.

“Same thing.” Noa chuffed, “Like light red…better.”

“To each their own,” you hummed. “So, are you going to tell me why you’re walking me out?”

Noa was quiet. If not for the fact that you were so close to him, you might have thought he didn’t hear you, but by the extra power he suddenly added to his stride, you knew he had. You bit the inside of your cheek, sitting up again and fighting the urge to say anything else. He would tell you when he was ready.

“Need to…explain…a few things.” Noa said, sounding somewhat reluctant.

“Okay.” You asked, “Do you want to explain them now while we’re walking, or back at the burrow where you’ll have my full attention?”

Noa seemed to actually consider the question before replying, “Now is…good.”

“Alright then, Master of Birds,” you teased. “What needs explained?”

Noa sighed through his nose, “Before…when things were…tense…during the lesson…I did not mean to scare you.”

“Which time?” You asked.

Noa grunted, “When I was…loud.”

That certainly caught your attention, originally thinking he meant when he had whispered in your ear. You leaned forward again, “It seemed to me you were just processing what happened. I didn’t mean to do what I did, then Soona and Anaya’s reactions were…a lot. It’s understandable you were upset and lost your temper.”

Noa’s head seemed to bend slightly, admitting, “Was not…upset.”

“Not to argue, but if that’s not you upset, I would hate to see what you look like when you are actually angry,” you said playfully.

Noa stopped then, turning and making two different signs. The second one was upset, but you weren’t sure what the first one was. As if hearing your thoughts, Noa responded, “This is upset…what Anaya signed was this… it means bothered.”

You felt your body curl inwards, “I didn’t mean to bother you either. I have to admit, that’s a pretty small distinction for apes. Upset, bothered, annoyed…”

“Not that type…of bothered.” Noa confessed, urging his horse forward again.

You sat there, trying to figure out what bothered could possibly mean if not annoyed. Apes sometimes twisted or altered words, like echo, depending on the need it seemed to fill. Finally, you asked, “Bothered how, if not in the annoyed or upset way?”

“Same way…as you.” Noa said, head swiveling to look at you for a moment before turning back. “When I practiced…my small H sound.”

Another moment of confusion, then you felt your heart stutter to a stop, your breathing following suit. Your mouth went dry, and no matter how hard you tried you couldn’t think of a single word to say. Noa not only recognized your response to him, but apparently had felt the same way you did, when you had-…breathed on his hand while calling his name. Now you were the one who felt stupid.

How embarrassing

A hand came up to cover your eyes as you winced. No matter how innocent that had been in your mind, intimacy wasn’t solely a human thing. You had tried to show Noa like you would a child, but he was not a child. He reacted like any normal adult human, or ape, would. Oh, God. How uncomfortable he must have been in that moment, while you sat there confused and clueless.

“I’m sorry,” you said again, the only phrase that felt appropriate at the moment.

Noa hummed, huffing once before admitting, “I am sorry…Anaya signed something after…as a joke…and I…reacted poorly.”

Something inside of your brain screamed not to ask, but your mouth listened to the other part that just had to know. “What did he say?”

“Suggested,” Noa began, seeming to think about his choice of words. “Echo stay with me…in the village…would be happy to be taught…just you and me…no other apes around…it reminded me…of you…as a pet...made me…angry.”

The implication was there, but you chose to ignore it in favor of, “You didn’t tell Anaya or Soona about my history with apes…did you? Anaya never would have suggested something like that if he knew.”

Noa grunted, “Not…my…place.”

You thought about it for a moment, then asked, “Do you think they would treat me differently, if they knew?”

“Yes.” Noa answered immediately. He seemed to reconsider his one word answer before adding, “Would not do it…on purpose…would not want to scare…or hurt you...they are…good apes.”

You sighed, noticing your burrow up ahead, “It’s probably best they don’t know for now, then. I like the way things are between us, I don’t want things to change.”

“Apes say,” Noa began, stopping his horse and tying the reins to a nearby tree. “Change is nature…cannot control it…or stop it…only embrace it…as it happens.”

You patted the horse’s neck and mane as Noa finished the knot and looped back around to you. You snorted, “That sounds very wise, but here’s a little known fact about humans. We don’t like change. We actively try to avoid change. We like the security of the same thing everyday.”

“You…need change.” Noa insisted, hands reaching for you as you swung your left leg over the saddle.

You let him wrap an arm around your waist as you made to slide down, your own hands bracing on both of his shoulders. “So says, the Master of Birds. You think you know what I need?”

Your feet were not sure as they landed on the ground, but you did not stumble as Noa’s other hand came to wrap around your side and brace your back. He basically held your entire weight, only letting you take it back once he felt your legs lock in place. He glanced down briefly between the two of you, acknowledging your feet were on solid ground before his eyes darted back to meet yours. That intensity that was always there, burned now with a new type of determination as he said, “Yes.”

You felt the fingers of your left hand inadvertently tighten on his shoulder, grazing the skin underneath his fur. When that happened, you felt Noa subtly shift in place, somehow closer to you now. His hands trailed from their hold along your back, skimming down your sides, before stopping to rest on your hips. You found yourself caught in his gaze, trapped again at what you perceived as something dangerous in front of you. Only, this time, the sense of danger was completely different. He tilted his head slightly, eyes wandering across your face like you were a puzzle he was trying to solve. He sighed through his nose then, head beginning to tilt downward before something over your shoulder caught his eye.

Just as quickly as his focus shifted behind you, did he react. You were thrown behind him before your could blink, barely having time to process the movement as he screeched and yelled. You turned, watching him charge on all fours after the offending creature, growling, “Get away…shoo…Pest!”

You could have cried, seeing the fox you had been secretly feeding for the past week yip and whimper, trying to stand its ground against Noa. But Noa was bigger, scarier, growling and hissing as he circled and chased after it. You ran to stop him, calling out, “No! It isn’t hurting anyone Noa, just leave it alone.”

Too late, the fox whined and chirped as it is was chased off. You heard the leaves and rustling of bushes, but lost sight of it after a few seconds. Noa was panting, face scrunched as he snarled and grunted a final warning to the empty woods. Then you saw the harsh lines ease, canines retreating back behind his lips as he moved to stand on two legs. You had never been reminded so harshly before that he was an ape. It was a startling contrast to the intimate position you two had been in just seconds ago, and something in your stomach turned.

“Why did you do that?” You half whispered, somewhat breathless yourself.

Noa turned to you then, concerned as he pointed in the distance, “That…was a fox…not safe.”

Your brows furrowed, “But it wasn’t hurting-”

“Not…safe.” Noa interrupted with a final huff. “Predator…has attacked Eagles…nuisance that apes…usually kill on sight…in the village…cannot trust vermin…like that…pest needs to be…driven away…or will bring harm…to you…as all pests tend to do.”

You felt the blood in your veins, which had felt so warm moments ago, freeze. You had never been at odds with Noa before, and his resolve seemed absolute in this. It also showed you that once you had made an enemy of the apes, they were not so kind as to forgive. A fox had attacked Eagles, it might as well have killed an ape. You were surprised Noa hadn’t killed it on sight. You imagined your presence was the only thing that stayed his hand, since he never had been overly violent around you before.

This changed things

You hoped the fox would come back, but even if it did, you would have to make sure Noa was nowhere near your shelter. You owed the ape your loyalty, but you also owed the fox for all the food you had been depriving it of for so long. Noa was your-…friend, but the fox could be your companion…given enough time. Then again, maybe this was your sign not to pursue the idea of companionship with animals. After all, with what had just taken place between you and Noa, you weren’t exactly sure you were in a place to make that type of decision. You needed time to think, and to do that you needed to be away from Noa.

Said ape was pacing back to where you stood, rooted to the ground. Not for long though, as Noa’s hand reached for you. Without properly thinking, you took an involuntary step back, avoiding his outstretched fingers. He had no time to mask the surprise that immediately morphed into hurt, pulling his arm back and asking, “Are you…alright?”

“Yes,” you lied. “That just surprised me. It’s late and I’m tired, I think I’ll go to bed now.”

Noa turned to look behind him, “Need help…with rock?”

You smiled, “No, thank you, Noa. I’ll be fine. Go home.”

He looked reluctant, stuck in place as he seemed to search for the right thing to say. He swayed back and forth as you walked towards him, then past him. He turned, mouth moving but saying nothing, hands fidgeting until he seemed to remember something. He moved quickly towards you, stammering out, “B-books…books in…bag!”

You stopped in your tracks, “I almost forgot. I’ll grab them real quick, that way you aren’t riding back in the dark.”

Before you could take so much as two steps forward, Noa had run back to his horse and yanked them out of the satchel. He paced back over to you, holding the books out, somewhat hesitantly, “Will not…see us…tomorrow…big day of…preparations.”

You swallowed, part of you wanting to comfort him, but the other part screaming at you to distance yourself from him before you ended up in another situation like before. Your heart won out though, as you sighed, “That’s okay, will I see you the day after?”

“Yes,” he was quick to reply. “Do not have to…give lesson…next time we meet…can explore…or talk…or something else…you need to do.”

You gently took the books from Noa, pulling them into your chest as you promised, “I’ll think about it. I’ll probably rest tomorrow, make some repairs to my shelter.”

His brow creased at that, asking, “Broken?”

You shook your head, “No, just need to make some adjustments. It happened over time, but it’s nothing I haven’t done before. Don’t worry.”

Noa nodded then, lips pursing before he said, “I have…made something I…would like to give to you…next time we meet.”

Something about the way he said it made you nervous, made your stomach sink, but you brushed it away. “Well, now I can’t wait until we see each other again. Way to leave me in suspense. I’ll look forward to the surprise.”

“It is…nothing grand,” Noa hedged. “Will explain better…when you see.”

“Noa, I’m sure whatever it is will be great and I’ll love it.” Your heart hurt as you realized that you fully believed what you had said. “I’ll see you day after next, okay? Get home safe, and get some rest.”

Noa nodded, “You too…have been working…hard…goodnight.”

You started to back up, waving with your free hand as you hummed, “Goodnight.”

You turned as Noa made his way to his horse, pausing once you reached the entrance of your cave, to watch him ride off. His eyes didn’t leave your form for the longest time, not until his horse carried him so far away that you were only a silhouette against the rock. You swallowed, placing the books on the dry shelf before bracing your back against the stone wall and sealing yourself in for the night, leaving just enough space for your nightly visitor if they returned. You dropped your bag on the ground, the chain to your doorway swaying back and forth as you sunk to the ground. You leaned back against said door, questionable tears filling your eyes as the reality of your life crashed into you.

You wrapped your arms around your knees, conflict swirling within you as you tried to think rationally. You felt like you were at war with yourself, nothing making sense or feeling right as you struggled to understand any of it. A sob shook you then, the heels of your hands digging into your eyes. The material still wrapped around your palms absorbed your tears, which made you angry for some reason. You pulled the offending material off and threw it over with your bag, looking at the new pink flesh that had been revealed underneath. No scarring or bleeding, just edges of new skin.

Reminded of Anaya and Noa’s kindness, the tears returned with a vengeance and you tucked your head into your knees. You hated feeling this way, hated how strange and disoriented you felt. You just wanted someone to hug you and tell you it was going to be alright. But who did you have that would do that? The face you used to imagine was not the one that appeared in your minds eye now, and that broke your heart even more. In that moment, you pretended that the last five years didn’t happen, that you were seventeen again and had had a nightmare in the vault.

You opened your mouth, a sob stealing your breath before you desperately called out, “Micheal!”

You didn’t open your eyes. You didn’t look up, because you knew he wouldn’t be there… but just for a moment, you pretended he could hear you. You pretended he was throwing the blankets off of himself in bed, and making his way over to you in yours, to comfort you until you fell back asleep. You sucked in a breath when you suddenly felt a light touch on your leg.

And there he was, auburn fur and brown eyes. Your fox had placed a paw on your leg, looking up at you with something almost like concern. You swiped at your eyes, sure you were seeing this wrong. The fox yipped and whined as you made eye contact. You felt crazy, but tried again, calling out, “Micheal?”

The fox lowered its paw then, sitting up a little straighter as it observed you. You leaned over, reaching for your bag and pulling a fish out. The fox hardly reacted, simply taking it from you with its teeth. This time though, it did not run. It laid down on its belly, tearing into the meat of the fish while it sat next to you.

Your tears stopped all at once, and you chuckled wetly, “I guess I know what to call you now. You know we’ll have to be more careful from now on, right?”

Micheal, the fox, looked up at you then, licking its lips and blinking slowly at you before returning to his meal. You were pretty certain at this point that you had lost your mind, but hey, at least you had a friend to keep you company and share dinner with.

#planet of the apes #pota #kingdom of the planet of the apes #kotpota #noa #noa x reader #noa pota #fanfiction #slippery slope series #kotpota noa #noa x human reader #noa kotpota #kotpota anaya #anaya #anaya pota #kotpota soona #soona pota #soona

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backtothefanfiction · 1 year ago

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In Your Boss’s Office | Peter Parker Imagine

Summary: When your boyfriend comes to take you home after a late night at the office, he sees an opportunity to send your boss mad.

Warnings: smut, P in V, semi public sex, office sex, cum swallowing, oral (female receiving), dirty talk

Word Count: 2.1K

A/N: Okay so I have been trying to get this one finished for a while. This was supposed to be day 5 of Kinktober but we all know that went off the rails. I was gonna turn it into kink til Christmas but that isn’t gonna work out either. So this is me saying that the kink list is getting thrown out the window completely, but I will still write some of the stories as prompts and short imagines as there were a couple I was looking forward to but no idea when they’ll go up. Anyway, this was one of the ideas I was really looking forward to writing so I hope you enjoy!

You had been the only one in the office for at least an hour and a half, despite your boss leaving nearly 3 hours prior. It was dark outside, you were tired, you were missing your man but you knew that if you didn’t get this list for Jameson completed now, you’d all be really behind tomorrow.

There was a sudden ding as the elevator stopped on your floor. Given the time you fully expected it to be the janitor, coming by to give things a clean and empty the waste paper baskets, but you were surprised at the sight of your boyfriend walking towards your desk.

“Hey, what are you doing here?”

“What am I doing here?” he asked, “I think the real question is what are you still doing here?”

You had met Peter around 6 months ago now, when you had first taken on the job as J. Jonah Jameson’s assistant after the last one quit on him. He had expected you to also follow suit, he wasn’t exactly known for being the nicest boss after all; but you gave as good as you got and the head of the Daily Bugle admired that. Peter was a freelance photographer, stopping by every now and again with a new batch of photos of Spider-man that always made your boss both froth at the mouth and get literal dollar signs in his eyes.

“What time is it?” you asked, but you already knew.

“It’s time to log off.” he softly chastised and encouraged you.

“Uhh, Pete, I really need to get this done.”

“Fine. You have until I finish putting these photos on his lordship’s desk.” He said, pulling out a manilla envelope full of new pictures of Spiderman.

“Peter, you can’t go in there.” you tried to interject as he began to reach for the door handle to the office.

“Just watch me.” He said, turning the knob, pushing the door open and going in.

“Peter.” you chastise as you get up to follow him and make sure he wasn’t going to touch anything he shouldn’t.

When you got in the room he was already sat behind the desk, lounging back in the large leather swivel chair, swaying side to side. “You know, I see why he likes this office so much now.” he says as his eyes glance over pieces of paper on the desk.

“Come on.” you try to encourage him, “We shouldn’t be in here.”

“Make me.” he challenges with a smirk on his face. You really don’t want to find out what that smirk means, you just want to finish your list of tasks and go home but he does look good sitting behind the desk. His eyes are watching your legs closely as you hesitate in the doorway, shifting from one foot to the other in tiny motions. He leans forward placing both of his hands on the desk. “Close the door.” He instructs and you do. “Now come over here.” Your brain knows it’s a bad idea but you do.

He moves the chair back slightly as his hand reaches out to guide you round the back of the desk with him. When you are close enough he turns you and backs you into the desk. You hesitate at first but with further encouragement by his hands and the wicked look in his eye, you sit yourself on top of the desk. He hums slightly as his hands rest on your knees, pulling them open, then using his grip on them, pulls the wheelie chair closer to the desk, leaving you nowhere else to go.

“Peter, what are you doing?” You ask with a shaky breath as he starts to run his hands up your thighs and under your skirt.

“You work too hard for little reward.” He says as his fingertips reach to hook beneath the waistband of your underwear.

“Peter!” You interject, trying to push him away but he holds you still.

“Come on, don’t tell me you haven’t thought about it.” He teases. “He’ll never know.”

“Yes he will.” You try to hold strong, but his fingers are drawing lazy circles on your thighs that are relaxing you and wearing you down.

“But isn’t that more fun. He won’t know it was us, he’ll just come in tomorrow and he’ll know something is off but he won’t be able to put his finger on it.”

“Pete… Pete.” You try to say but your resolve is fading with his touch and when he tries again to pull your underwear down, you don’t stop him.

“Just relax okay. I’ve got you.” He said as he pulled you closer to the end of the desk. “So pretty.” He cooed as he looked up at you.

He pushed your legs up, your feet resting on the arms of the large swivel chair he sat in, as he leant forward, his tongue teasing at your clit, making you squirm. His hands held tighter to your hips, holding you in place as he began to lick through your folds.

“For someone who was putting up a lot of protest, you seem to be awfully wet for me.” He teased with raised eyebrows as his fingers moved to circle at your entrance before slipping inside, his fingers working you open.

“Uhhh, Peter.” You began to pant, as the movement of his fingers pulls tiny whimpers from between your lips.

You watch as his other hand begins to fumble with his belt, the sound of the metal clinking sending another wave of arousal through you. He undoes the button and zipper of his jeans, palming his length through his boxers.

Normally Peter would spend ages going down on you, making you cum and soaking his fingers with your slick before he even thought about fucking you, but you didn’t have time. Although it was late and no one else was in the office, the janitor could come up to this floor and walk in at any minute and Peter knew it was taking a lot for you to go through with this without pushing his luck.

“Come here baby.” He said, pulling his length out of his boxers and sliding the chair back slightly.

You happily moved to straddle his thighs. You slowly lowered yourself down on his length. You were so close and he was so deep in this position. It didn’t leave much room for movement, just subtle gyrating, your clit rubbing against the small patch of exposed skin between his jeans and shirt.

It made you so sensitive, your head nuzzling into his neck as you quietly whined and moaned.

“You naughty little thing. See I knew this was what you needed.” Peter said as he slowly thrusted his hips up inside you. It wasn’t his preferred pace but he knew you loved it. To be close to him. To have his cock rubbing against the most sensitive parts of you. To feel every little twitch you made around him. It was intimate. “You gonna come for me?” He asked. He could read your body like a book and knew from just the pitch of your moans alone you were close. “Come on baby. Cum for me.” He encouraged as he guided your hips up and down on his length harder and harder. “Cum for me baby and then I can turn you around and fuck you right over his desk. How does that sound?” You could only moan in response. His words always brought you closer to the edge. “Yeah?” He cooed. “Does that sound good for you? Come on baby. Come on… there it is.” He said as you began to shudder around him, your body collapsing against his chest. “That’s my girl.” He said, but he didn’t give you a moment of rest.

Just as promised he picked you up as he stood, before dropping your feet to the floor. He turned you around, his hand pushing firmly against your back, getting you to bend over your boss’s desk in front of you.

Your face and chest were pushed onto the desk top as Peter took your arms, folding them behind your back and holding them firmly in place with a single hand as he lined himself back up to your entrance with his other.

You let out a loud gasp as he slammed his hips into your ass as he bottomed out inside you. “Oh baby, you look so pretty like this.” He said as he began to snap his hips faster.

You almost completely forgot where you were as the feeling of his cock spearing you open sent shockwaves of pleasure to your core. Your gasps and moans grew louder and louder as you felt yet another climax quickly building inside you. “Fuck, FUCK! Oh my god! Peter.”

“Mmm baby, I love it when you say my name like that.” You could feel his thrusts growing sloppier. You knew he was close, only holding himself together so he could make you cum one last time.

He shifted you both back slightly between thrusts so he could reach his hand around between your legs and started rubbing quick circles around your clit, bringing you to your climax faster. He watched as you screwed up your eyes, your mouth hanging open in a silent oh for just a moment before your orgasm hit and you began to shudder around him once more, your voice finally ringing out into the air of the office.

“That’s it baby.” He said as he removed his hand from between your legs.

You felt him pump one, two, three more times before the removed himself from you, pulling you up off the desk with one arm and encouraging you to turn around and get on your knees in front of him, his other hand pumping his length.

You knelt before him, opening your mouth wide, sticking your tongue out waiting for him to cum. You closed your eyes in anticipation just in case as you listened to him grunt. Then you felt the tip of his cock on the flat of your tongue and his cum burst into your mouth. You shaped your tongue around his length trying to contain as much of it in your mouth as you could.

As you felt him still you opened your eyes to look up at him, giving his length and slit a lick for good measure and he twitched away from you at the sensitivity, You didn’t look away from his eyes as you swallowed his salty cum with a closed lipped smile.

“Fuck, your gorgeous.” He said as he took your face in his hands and bent over to kiss your lips. “Now come on. Pick your panties up off the floor, it’s time to go home.”

You didn’t argue with him. You both put yourselves back together before you left the office. You quickly closed down your computer and you left hand in hand.

When you went back to work the next day your boss’s face was a picture. You watched him closely when he came in. Stepping into his office, you hot on his heels with his morning coffee and a notepad ready to take down his orders for the morning, you saw him pause. His brow furrowed as he looked around the room.

“Everything okay sir?” You dutifully asked.

“Huh?! Yeah!” He suddenly barked not wanting to seem vulnerable. “Yeah.” He looked down at the papers on his desk confused again until he saw the Manila envelope. “When did these get here?” He asked as he sat himself down in his chair and began opening up the photos and scanning through them.

“Uh I think Mr Parker dropped them off last night.” You feigned innocence.

“Really?” Your boss pondered. He suddenly looked up at you as if finally remembering who you were and where he was. “Right. I want Anderson up here stat. I need him in here brainstorming headlines with me to get these out on the front page first thing!” He shouted at you, his hand slamming the photos on the desk as he leaned back and kicked his feet up.

“Yes, sir.”

“And make sure you get finance to send Parker over his money.” He commanded as he picked the photos back up and started looking through them again.

“Is that everything sir?”

“What!? Yes! Of course! Now get out of here!” He barked and you quickly hurried from the room.

As you sat back at your desk you smiled to yourself. Peter had been right, although he knew something was up, your boss didn’t have a clue what had really taken place in his office the night before.

#peter parker x reader #peter parker #andrew!peter parker #peter parker imagine #spider-man #andrew!peter x reader #tasm!peter parker #tasm peter parker x reader #j jonah jameson #Peter Parker smut #late kinktober

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strafepanzer · 2 years ago

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haze | h.shinsou

▸ ▸ ▸ warnings: mentions of shinbaku, fwb shinsou x fem!reader, no naughty stuff but 18+ conversation nevertheless, implied quirk usage

▸ ▸ ▸ word count: drabble-sized

▸ ▸ ▸ a/n: playing with blog formatting and inserting into shinbaku. more to come probably! no edits

The smell of his favourite brew and the soft jazz wafting from the speakers make Shinsou feel somewhat at peace. Despite the time of night, you've agreed to meet him at your usual hangout: the cafe across the road from the apartment building you both live in-- neighbours, nothing more.

Never anything more. Not really.

You're in pyjamas: a worn gudetama set that he knows is soft as shit, a cardigan for warmth, and socks and slides. Cute, honestly. Any other occasion he'd make a joke at your expense, but it's 10pm and he did only text you 39 minutes ago to see if you were available.

It was a shit shift, but you seem to understand that he doesn't wanna unpack it, content just to be there with him, passively enabling his caffeine addiction.

Rather than being on him, however, your attention is on the TV mounted from the ceiling near the counter. It's muted, but there's no doubting the hero flinging himself through the sky in a series of explosions and a blur of black and orange, and there's no mistaking the stars in your eyes.

"You got a crush?" He asks, popping the lid from his takeaway cappuccino and licking at the chocolate sprinked froth.

"Huh? No!" You laugh, eyeing Shinsou off as he replaces the lid.

But there's a flush there, an embarrassment that wouldn't be there if he were wrong.

"You do, though. I can always tell." He teases, but he's right. He knew when you had the hots for the new barista 6 months ago, and he guessed about that hopeless crush you had on your tutor in college when the two of you ran into him at that bar last year.

"Doesn't matter. That guy is way outta my league." You sigh wistfully, eyeing the television longingly.

Shinsou snorts. "Bakugo?"

"No, his dad." You roll your eyes.

Shinsou chuckles, "he's not, though? I feel like people put that asshole up on a pedestal too much. He's just a dude."

A very hot, very famous pro-hero who Shinsou sometimes crosses paths with.

You give him a look and take a sip of your drink before placing it on the table. "What are you not telling me?" You narrow your eyes before your voice lowers conspiratorially. "Did you fuck him?"

Shinsou loves how fast your brain works. "Maybe he fucked me."

Your eyes light up. "Oh my god, I've indirectly slept with him?"

"Okay, this is beginning to hurt my ego."

You snort, an action Shinsou is absolutely smitten with. "I'm torn between wanting to know all of the juicy details, being jealous, and being mad you didn't tell me sooner."

"You don't tell me every person you sleep with." He shrugs, pulling a melodramatic gasp from your pretty lips.

"I do!" You're offended, brows pulling together and eyes wide. "You're the only person I've slept with in two years."

He blinks. This is... a surprising turn of events. That's as long as you've been hooking up.

Your fingers idly play with the condensation dripping from your drink, eyes downcast. He's hurt your feelings, and that hurts his. He's torn between smoothing it over and over-explaining, his too-tired-yet-wired brain jumping from A to B and back to A faster than he can actually compute.

Sometimes he forgets people aren't as free with their sexuality as he is.

"It..." he starts, growing frustrated with himself. "It happened twice. I don't think there was any reason, he didn't seek me out the first time or anything. And it's just sex, honest."

This isn't what he planned to talk to you about. In fact, he was sure he never wanted to tell you about the two of them ever, but his brain and mouth are clearly at war.

When he cautions a glance up at you, you meet his eyes with furrowed brows. He lets you process, feels that fast brain of yours tick, tick, ticking. But you dont say anything; no jests, no jokes, no cheeky predictions.

"I didn't ask you here to talk about Bakugo," he begins, trying to lighten the mood a little. "I just wanted to hang out. Sorry."

"You don't need to apologise, it's not like we're exclusive." You mumble just loud enough for him to hear. "You... like him, then?"

If it were socially acceptable to cackle like the witch from HR Puffinstuff, he would. "Like him? Babe, you meet him once, and I promise that little crush you have on him will fizzle away to nothingness."

"Mean!"

"He is! Extremely so!"

There's a soft smile on your face now, and it calms Shinsou some; he takes a drink from his coffee, savouring the bitterness as washes over his tongue.

There's a comfortable silence that follows, the kind that usually occupies the two of you in his lounge room as you both scroll on your phones and half watch shitty Netflix shows. It's crazy to him that you've hidden your crush on Bakugo so damn well, then again, he hadn't quite been forthcoming with his connection to the pro-hero.

A few moments pass, and you're slurping the last of your drink through the straw, shaking the ice around and tilting the cup so you can get the dregs.

"Is he bi?" You ask, trying to sound casual. Trying.

His interest is piqued, nonetheless. "I'm sorry?"

"I mean, I know I'm convenient, and you're up for anything, but does he exclusively sleep with men?"

Wow, okay, a lot to unpack there, but he explains: "I don't think he does, but the stuff we do might not be up your alley, sweetheart."

"I can--" you begin, too loudly. "I can do butt stuff, Hitoshi." You level with him seriously, voice lowered.

He can't help the hyena-esque howl that bubbles up his throat. "This is not a conversation for here." He spares a glance over your shoulder to the barista fussing about with the coffee grinder behind the counter.

You follow his line of sight, before your large, hopeful eyes are once again on him. "Can I come over?" You whisper, before taking your bottom lip between your teeth.

He's once again torn, mind not knowing where to latch: your teeth in your lip, the "butt stuff" comment, you practically calling him a slut.

The possibility of explaining the ins and outs of how Bakugo begs Shinsou to use his quirk on him.

Heavy lidded eyes drop down to your chest, tits pushed together as you lean against the tabletop to be a little closer to him. "Yeah, you're coming over."

#shinsou x reader #implied shinbaku #shinsou drabble #leese writes

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healer-pop · 8 months ago

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U know what I been thinking abt.....an aphrodisiac fic. I've got it all written out in my head, reader and Sloane are out camping. They are having a good day, set up camp and while gathering wood reader gets poofed in the face by a flower (sporess ooo). Sloane laughs their ass off, and reader is a little peeved getting spores all over themself.

Fast forward, dinner is being cooked and reader starts to feel weird. Hot, high, and really bothered!! They go into the tent to hide, and Sloane knocks on it saying dinners ready. Reader never comes out tho and Sloane goes in to see them sweating, hot and almost sick looking. Sloane tries to tend to them, a wet rag and asking what's wrong are they sick?? The second Sloane touches reader tho...they mewl. Almost a whine that creeps out of the back of their throat. Super sexy sounding. Sloane chooses to ignore it because they think reader is sick... it's just them being sick.. yes obviously.

Maybe Sloane helps them sit up to drink some water and the touch has reader grasping onto their leg HARD. Readers panting like a dog and got them bedroom eyes...

Was toying with the idea of Sloane and reader being best friends everrr with some huge unresolved romantic feelings. This is just the dam that breaks it all open. Obv all consent is given and gotten, and I think it was actually well talked out. Reader reassures Sloane they've wanted this for so long, but if they said no that they could forget it ever happened. I'm crazy insane I'm shaking the bars of my cage.

Googling, “can I sue the anon that wrote the hottest, absolutely most well thought out, mentally damaging fic in my inbox for emotional reparation?”

LIKE HOW DO U DROP THIS AND NOT EXPECT ME TO FROTH AT THE MOUTH???? Anon, I don’t know how you knew that sex pollen fics have always been my favorite but I do blame you for the fact that this kept me up last night!!!! mainly because this is so spot on and also why I don’t really get together fix with Venture, especially with my flowery writing, lengthy ass. That shit would be like 20K before you guys even touched. To me, Sloane is not the one to make a first move. And if you aren’t either, it’s just never gonna happen. Once you’ve actually gotten established, they’re super touchy and able to respect your boundaries, but before? They are wayyyyy too nervous, their biggest one being that they’re just overthinking your interactions with them and they don’t want to mess anything up. Unless you directly say, “I like you and want to date you,” it’s gonna go over their head.

And that would work perfectly for this fic, it would be such a desperate, hot sloppy mess for the both of you: With Sloane, trying to preserve your friendship and not mess this up despite their desire for you, how much this is actually you and how much of this is just the pollen and desperation. And you pleading with them, trying to get across that no, you have wanted this for so damn long and it sucks that it took some stupid horny flower to make you say it, but please, for the love of AURORA, Sloane, TOUCH ME. God I could imagine how red their face would be. They would keep checking in with you to make sure they’re doing it right for you, whether they’re sliding their fingers in your cunt or sucking on your tits!!! You’re almost tempted to go and grab that damn flower and shove it in their face so they can loosen up, but… the way they take care of you, trying every single position to quell your burning arousal…. so loving and tender… it’s honestly what you crave more. They have you on your knees, thrusting back onto their fingers as they encourage you, their beaded bracelets click with every motion, their hand on the small of your back, kneading your ass. On their sleeping bag, legs wrapped around their shoulders, eating you out like you’re as yummy as those s’mores they had earlier, telling you to wet their sleeping bag, they’ll just cuddle naked with you in yours while you put that one out to dry. And yes…. you CAN fall asleep with their strap in you, if it feels good. You can wake up at any time and fuck yourself on it. Sloane will be awake in an instant, helping you roll your hips back, digging into them because god, this has only been a dream. Feeling your flesh in their hands, being able to touch and hold and clench. Might keep a mental track of how many times you’ve cum. You know. For posterity.

And after you’ve been fucked through it? When you wake up with the worst bed head you’ve ever had, covered in sweat and bruises, naked and pressed against Sloane in your sleeping bag? Sloane will kiss your lips shut, guide you back down, and show you the most loving, intimate sex, you’ve ever had. You’ll feel like you have never connected with a partner more than you have right now. Whispers of love from Sloane, complementing how pretty you are, how perfect, how you were made for them, how good you are to them, how they want to see you every day of their life. Completely overwhelming, yet so needed, especially how you were held so helpless to your own lust. They make sure you know that they aren’t leaving. They’ll be here by your side through anything.

#𓍯𓂃𓏧♡ messages from the red string of fate #WAHHHHHH HOW DID THIS GET SO LONGGGGG #🌸 my aphrodite anon

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montammil · 9 months ago

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frothing at the mouth and begging for more cruel lawrence content. either with marshall and nathan but since you mentioned nathan had it the worst, could you write something for that?

I've been so busy and burnt out lately, but I pushed through for once lol. I've written Nathan being tortured before, but since this has been sitting in my inbox forever, I decided I'd give it another go.

TW: Torture with hot iron, failed escape attempt, parental whumper, burns, infantilizing behavior

...

Even when Nathan tried to conform to Lawrence's twisted views on family and parenting, he always did something wrong. Even if he hypothetically didn't hate Lawrence's guts, he wasn't nearly as much of a lovey-dovey person as his captor was.

When Lawrence would hear what he deemed as a sarcastic comment or rude tone, he'd give him a warning and blank stare that hid any emotions that might be bubbling underneath the surface.

The situation was so bizarre, it was almost funny to him. How many people in the world had gotten kidnapped by a delusional man who believed he was their father?

Not a lot, he could assume. How unlucky could one be, right?

It seemed that Nathan was one of those people.

Surprisingly, Nathan's least favorite punishments weren't getting tortured in the basement. The punishments he hated the most were the infantilizing ones, where Lawrence would talk down to him like a goddamn baby, and then go make him stand in a corner or something equally degrading.

At least Lawrence treated him like the adult he was when he kicked him repeatedly in the ribs and called him every name in the book.

Nathan had a high tolerance for pain. He thought that was the farthest Lawrence was willing to go, physically speaking. As much as Lawrence liked to play daddy, Nathan didn't think he'd ever go so far as to truly hurt his "kid".

How wrong he was.

For a week now, he managed to pretend to be the sweet little angel Lawrence wanted him to be. Lawrence would see through his sardonic comments or wry tone and Nathan would get a warning look.

It would stop there, thankfully. Maybe if he played his cards right, he could gain Lawrence's trust and get the hell out of here.

The biggest issue was he could barely even be physically close to Lawrence without cringing and feeling his stomach turn. His fist wanted to act on its own when the blond bastard would call him "sweetheart" or kiss his forehead.

"You're quiet today," Lawrence mentioned at breakfast.

Nathan poked at the pancake on his plate with a fork. He wasn't very hungry. "I'm fine. I just didn't sleep well."

Lawrence tilted his head in sympathy. "I'm sorry, bud. Did you have another nightmare?"

He hated being reminded of that. One night he woke up screaming because of a nightmare--about Lawrence, of course. Lawrence had rushed into his room and cradled him in his arms like an infant.

It was nauseating. Nathan could remember vividly how his body had shuddered in fear when Lawrence insisted on holding him for the rest of the night.

The only reason Nathan allowed it was because Lawrence had hurt him badly the previous night. The last thing he wanted was another violent punishment so soon after his last one.

"No," Nathan lied. "It wasn't a nightmare. I just couldn't sleep."

Lawrence frowned, lifting his eyebrows in worry. "That's no good. Maybe you need a nightlight. Would that help?"

Nathan didn't know whether to laugh or cry at that suggestion. Sometimes he wondered if Lawrence was directly trying to piss him off.

"Sure," Nathan decided to humor him. "A nightlight might help."

Lawrence's features softened in happiness, thinking he had found a solution to a problem that wasn't even there. "Anything for you, buddy. You know that."

He took a bite of his pancake so he wouldn't have to say anything back to that. He finished the rest of his breakfast quickly and put his plate in the sink. Nathan wasn't in the mood for interacting with Lawrence today, so he went into his room and tried to nap.

Nathan didn't actually manage to get much sleep. He was exhausted, but the memories of everything Lawrence had done to him wouldn't stop playing over and over in his head.

If he didn't go insane in here, it'd be a miracle.

At one point, Nathan could hear his bedroom door opening. He buried his face under his pillow, pretending to be asleep. Lawrence must have bought the act, because Nathan heard him close the door.

After a few more minutes of laying down, Nathan sat up in bed and rubbed his eyes.

He was tired, but his mind was too noisy. He really needed something to do around here, or he was going to lose it. He decided talking to Lawrence was better than nothing, so he got up and headed into the living room. Lawrence was usually there, but this time there was no sign of him.

"Lawrence?" Nathan called out. No matter how much he was going to try to play nice, he was not going to call that man his dad. No way in hell. "Where are you?"

There was no answer, which was odd. Usually Lawrence was in the living room at this time.

He frowned, beginning to wonder if maybe he had gone out. He looked out the front window to see his car still there. That meant Lawrence was definitely here somewhere.

Nathan trudged back up the stairs until he heard him talking. He was using that different tone of his voice, more professional. Oh. He was on a business call, or maybe even doing some kind of interview or audition. He was usually on those calls for hours at a time, which meant Nathan was always restrained while Lawrence did his work.

This was a perfect opportunity he couldn't just not take advantage of. It was risky, but his gut was telling him to give it a shot.

He crept back down the stairs and to the front door. Knowing Lawrence, his room was likely locked and he probably had his keys and phone on him anyway, but maybe if he could find something to pick the lock with...

Nathan looked through the kitchen drawers and found a paperclip. It would have to do. He carefully inserted it into the hole, feeling around for a moment before the lock clicked and the door opened.

For a brief moment, he hesitated. Was it really that easy? Could he really just walk out that door?

No alarms, no locks, no Lawrence holding him back?

He stepped outside, shutting the door quietly behind him. As soon as it was shut, he took a deep breath and ran as fast as his legs would take him.

On his left was the eerily bleak and empty beach, and on his right was a thick forest that surrounded the house, that was somehow even creepier.

Nathan made a split second decision and ran for the forest, hoping there would be a road there.

He ducked under trees, sidestepped bushes, and leapt over rocks and sticks. He didn't stop running even when his legs began to feel like lead. Even when he had the wind knocked out of him by a low-hanging branch. He kept running.

For what felt like a lifetime, Nathan continued through the woods. It was mostly silent, save for his heavy breathing and footsteps on the ground below.

After a while, he slowed down so he could catch his breath and assess his surroundings.

Nothing looked familiar. There was a bit of sun coming through the leaves and branches of the trees above, but the sun would soon be gone. The farther he walked, the darker the area became. Nathan had never been afraid of the dark, but something about this place just made him uncomfortable.

Even if he wanted to return to Lawrence, to admit he fucked up and take whatever brutal punishment he'd be given, he wasn't sure if that was even an option right now. He had no idea where the hell he was.

Nathan gulped, deciding to keep walking.

The birds were going to bed, but a few cicadas and frogs remained awake. Their song was the only thing breaking the silence.

For the first time since his escape, Nathan began to doubt himself. Maybe running away was a bad idea.

After what felt like hours, he finally saw something other than trees and bushes.

A road, finally.

He sprinted down the hill to the pavement, breathing a sigh of relief when he saw there was a car heading down the road. Nathan held up his arm to flag the car down. It didn't stop for him.

Nathan couldn't help but groan. "You've gotta be kidding me."

He spent so long getting through those damn woods that the sun had completely gone down. And now here he was, following the road from the side and waiting for another car to come by.

Despite how late it was getting, Nathan was determined to get out of here. He'd follow this road for miles if he had to.

Hours passed, and the weather began to grow colder. It was practically pitch black now. Nathan's feet hurt from walking so much, and his hands were freezing. He wished he had grabbed a jacket or something before running out.

Nathan wasn't sure how long he'd been walking down the road before he heard something in the distance.

Headlights.

He perked up, running a few yards and holding out his arm again. "Please stop," he pleaded. "Please."

The car stopped right in front of him.

Nathan's heart leaped with joy. He jogged around to the driver's side window. "Hi, I--"

He immediately shut up when he realized who the driver was. Lawrence didn't even bother wearing that emotionless expression, he looked enraged. Nathan had never seen him look so mad.

Lawrence rolled down the window, just enough so that Nathan could hear him. "Get in," he growled.

Nathan weighed his options. He could either get into the car and face whatever consequences Lawrence had in store for him, or he could try to outrun him. But even he knew that was a terrible idea--Lawrence had a car, and likely weapons on him too. Not to mention Nathan was already exhausted. He didn't really have a choice.

Reluctantly, Nathan climbed into the passenger's seat. He expected Lawrence to say something to him, but he was quiet.

For a moment, Nathan saw Lawrence's eyes scan over his body, looking for injuries. Nathan almost laughed at that--as if Lawrence gave a shit about whether or not he was hurt.

Lawrence began driving back the way Nathan came. Neither of them said a word for the entire ride.

Nathan stared out the window at the trees, occasionally looking back at Lawrence's profile. The only emotion he could see was anger.

He wanted to break the silence so badly. Ask him what he was going to do to him when they got back to the house, beg him not to hurt him too badly, but nothing came out. His vocal chords were frozen.

When they pulled up to the house, Lawrence parked in the driveway and shut the engine off. He exited the vehicle in silence, making Nathan shrink into himself with fear. Lawrence opened his door, gripping his wrist so tightly Nathan hissed in pain.

He practically dragged him back into the house, slamming the door behind him and locking it.

Nathan struggled to get his wrist out of his grasp. "L-Lawrence, please--"

"You're not speaking to me," Lawrence interrupted. His tone left no room for argument. He dragged Nathan down to the basement, and Nathan just wallowed in his own self-hate for feeling too paralyzed to object or fight.

He was forced to lay on his stomach and have his hands cuffed behind his back. He could hear him rummaging through things in the corner, making him swallow anxiously.

When Lawrence returned to his side, Nathan closed his eyes. He refused to watch what Lawrence was doing.

A moment later, he felt the cold metal of handcuffs attach to his ankles as well.

Lawrence exhaled deeply through his nose. "You are in big trouble, Nathan," he told him in a low voice. "Do you have any idea what you put me through? I was terrified out of my mind when I saw you were gone."

Nathan still refused to look at him, and he wasn't even going to humor him with an apology. If Lawrence was expecting him to feel guilty, he would be sorely disappointed.

"I'm disappointed in you," Lawrence continued. "You know better than to run away."

"You don't know shit about me," Nathan snapped at him.

That only seemed to anger Lawrence even more. "Wrong answer."

He could hear him move behind him and his mind raced, wondering what he was going to do. It wasn't like he hadn't been punished in the basement before, but the air felt heavier than usual. He wasn't shocked, he had never gotten as far as he did when attempting to run away. Lawrence had always been able to find him quickly.

Nathan heard something being plugged into an outlet and tensed. "What are you doing?"

"I've been too lenient with you. This is the last time something like this happens again."

His words sent a shiver down his spine. Nathan wanted to shrink into himself when he felt Lawrence lift up the back of his shirt, exposing his bare skin to the cold air of the basement. "What are you doing?!" Nathan repeated frantically. "Stop it!"

Lawrence didn't say anything back to that. He thrashed and tried to buck Lawrence off of him, but he didn't budge.

"Lawrence, what the fuck are you doing?! Let me go!" Nathan yelled. "I'm sorry! Please, I'm sorry!"

"No, you're not," Lawrence argued calmly. "You're only sorry because you got caught."

Nathan's brain was racing at a million miles per hour, trying to figure out what Lawrence was doing. After a few more minutes of meaningless pleading and horrifying tension, he felt something on his back and screamed at the contact.

Whatever it was, it felt like it was burning him, and Nathan thrashed even more violently than before.

Lawrence didn't react to his cries other than putting more pressure on the object against his skin. Nathan could hear Lawrence mumble something along the lines of "it'll be over soon, kiddo."

The younger man was seeing stars behind his eyelids while he screamed in agony. This was so much worse than all the times Lawrence had tortured him before--he wanted to die. Anything was better than this excruciating pain. He could hear his skin sizzling through his own screams of torment.

After what felt like an eternity, the torture finally stopped. Lawrence set down the object he had been using, and Nathan sobbed in relief, hearing it make contact with the hard concrete floor.

He wanted to turn around and look at what the hell Lawrence did to him, but it was excruciating to even move in the slightest.

Lawrence sighed above him, as if this was just a chore that he was happy to be done with.

"Are you going to run away again?" he asked in a gentle voice.

"No," Nathan choked out through sobs. If it weren't for the fear of the iron coming back into play, he would've told him to go fuck himself.

"Good." Nathan stayed still while Lawrence undid his bindings. He was exhausted and barely had the energy to move. He laid on the ground, trembling, while Lawrence stroked his hair gently. "Poor thing," he murmured sympathetically. "Are you gonna listen to me from now on?"

Nathan didn't even care about saving face anymore, he was in so much pain that he'd probably agree to anything Lawrence said at this point. "Yes."

"That's my boy," Lawrence praised him. "It's okay, pumpkin. It's all over now. Dad's got you."

Those words were the last thing Nathan wanted to hear right now. He had been tortured with an iron, and Lawrence had the nerve to call himself his dad?

The two of them remained in the basement for a while, Nathan weeping on the floor while Lawrence cooed at him in a soothing tone of voice.

Eventually Lawrence got him to stand up on his feet, and led him up the stairs to the bathroom so he could clean his wound.

Lawrence dabbed the burn with rubbing alcohol, causing Nathan to squirm and grit his teeth in discomfort. When that was over, he carefully bandaged it. It made moving around very difficult, but the throbbing pain was starting to become slightly more bearable.

After Lawrence was done cleaning up, he took Nathan into his room and tucked him into bed.

Nathan usually slept on his back, but had to settle for his side for now. Lawrence ran his fingers through Nathan's dark locks. Nathan could make out his eerie smile through the dim lighting.

"Do you have any idea how lucky you are that I found you?" Lawrence's smile faltered. "What if someone bad decided to pick you up? You could've ended up dead in a ditch somewhere. I'd be heartbroken."

Nathan turned his face into the pillow so Lawrence couldn't see the fury on his features.

"If something happened to you, I would never forgive myself." Lawrence tucked some of Nathan's hair behind his ear. "I wouldn't be able to live with myself."

Then die, Nathan bitterly thought.

Lawrence leaned down to kiss Nathan's forehead. "I love you." Nathan didn't reply back, and Lawrence didn't seem to mind that. He simply smiled again and stood up straight. "Goodnight, sweetheart."

Nathan waited until Lawrence had shut the door and locked it to finally let himself cry. He bawled his eyes out into his pillow, shaking with sobs until he fell asleep from pure exhaustion.

#answered ask #lawrence oc #nathan oc #tw torture #tw burns #tw parental whumper #parental whumper #ive mentioned nathan has canonically gotten burnt with an iron so i decided to go that route

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my-castles-crumbling · 1 year ago

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There it is....

An excerpt from my longer fic, Long Story Short (rated M, Wolfstar, Dorlene, and Jegulus)

James’s face was unreadable. “Pads…what did you do?” He asked, pulling away from Sirius a bit.

Sirius opened and shut his mouth, trying to form words to explain everything that had happened. He decided to just rip off the band-aid. “I walked in on Moony kissing Fabian Prewett last night,” he started.

James, however, reacted quite more like he’d wanted Marlene to. “WHAT?” He yelled loudly, his mouth falling open.

Sirius would’ve smiled, if the situation wasn’t so out-of-control. Trust James to react exactly like he needed him to. He sighed and responded, “Yup.”

“Our Moony?” James confirmed, still looking shocked.

“Mhm.”

“Remus Lupin?”

“Do you know any others?”

“No, I just–well, okay, then.”

Sirius heaved a breath, trying to calm himself and organize his brain, which felt like some sort of large system of river rapids, swirling and frothing and bubbling uncontrollably. “Yeah, so I told Marlene. Just now.”

But James was again having big emotions. “You told McKinnon before me? Padfoot, what the hell!” He looked murderous.

“I–I figured it was Moony’s place to tell you and Marlene obviously gets it,” Sirius explained, though he wasn’t exactly sure why he was compelled to tell Marlene first.

James calmed a bit. “Okay, fine, I guess that’s forgivable, but why is she pissed, then?”

Sirius hesitated. How to explain? “I…I told her, but I was…I was upset, when I told her. Because, it’s Moony, yeah? K–kissing someone.” His hands clenched again at the thought of Remus kissing someone.

James nodded, but didn’t look like he understood at all. He stayed quiet, however. Sirius really loved him for that.

“So…she said something…something ridiculous, Prongs. Something…like, fucking mad.” Sirius took a breath.

James looked at him, eyebrows raised, waiting.

Sirius said nothing, hardly able to voice the absurdity of Marlene’s idea. She was so far off-base, so irrational, so…

“What’d she say, Sirius?” James asked, looking both curious and nervous.

“She said…she said I was upset because I liked Remus.”

After Sirius said this, he expected James to laugh. He expected James to smile and maybe poke a bit of fun at Marlene and talk about how she had no idea what he was talking about. He expected James to react somewhat rationally.

So, when James just wrinkled his forehead a bit, as if Sirius had been a Professor sharing some new, but thought-provoking, information to him during a lecture, Sirius wanted to punch him, as well.

“I do not like Remus!” Sirius exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air, thoroughly annoyed. Had everyone gone crazy today?

“Padfoot, you…you sleep in his bed,” James whispered softly.

Remus’s bed was warm. And safe and comfortable. A nice place to sleep. And when Remus accidentally spooned him while they were sleeping, it stopped him from having nightmares. So what?

“I sleep in your bed, too, doesn’t mean I want to–” Sirius started, angrily.

“You insist on staying with him in the Hospital,” James continued, voice a bit stronger now.

“I–I care about his safety! Forgive me for being a good friend!” Sirius argued, heat rising to his face.

“You…pouted for hours that one time he wouldn’t play with your hair. You steal his shirts to sleep in. You–”

“That doesn’t mean anything,” Sirius yelled, face bright red, now. It wasn’t his fault, after all, that Remus was the best at playing with his hair, or that his shirts had a calming effect on him. It was just…close friendship.

“D’you get upset when you think about me kissing someone?” James retorted. “Or Pete?”

“Urgh, no,” Sirius responded quickly, before thinking about it. “As long as it isn’t in my bed, that would be–”

“And Remus? What if he was kissing someone? Even a girl? How would you feel?”

Sirius’s insides heated up unpleasantly. No, Remus kissing someone was not a great thought. “That’s…that’s different because…because I’m more protective of him…because of his…his problem! Yes, that’s it!” Relief washed through Sirius. It made sense, after all. “I want to make sure he’s treated right, is all.”

James gave Sirius a maddeningly patronizing look. “Mhm,” he nodded sarcastically.

Sirius clenched his fists. “I’m not—you’re not—this is—this is stupid, Prongs. I don’t–”

“What if he was kissing you, Padfoot? What then?” James asked, eyebrows raised.

“That’s ridiculous! Why would he–?” Sirius objected, throwing his hands in the air again.

James interrupted, “It doesn’t matter! Just think about it! How would you feel?”

It was the first time Sirius had allowed himself to indulge in the thought. He pushed his mother’s screaming out of his head and pondered for a moment. What if he and Remus kissed? Remus’s strong hands in his hair, Remus’s lips moving against his own, his body pressed against him…possibly pinning him to a wall, pushing him against it roughly, both of them groaning as their hands moved lower–

Fuck.

That did not make him angry.

“Fuck,” Sirius whispered softly, hand covering his mouth. Suddenly, all he wanted to do was kiss Remus. He wanted to know what it would feel like, to have Remus’s lips on his, to trace his fingertips along the planes of his chest, to be so close to him that he could breathe him in. “Oh, fuck,” he repeated.

“There it is,” James whispered softly, eyes sparking with amusement.

Oh fuck, Sirius liked Remus.

Sirius liked Remus.

“Oh, kill me,” Sirius murmured desperately. He couldn’t do this.

Read the whole thing here!

#marauders #marauders era #harry potter #fanfic #sirius black kinnie #regulus black kinnie #wolfstar #jegulus #ao3 #dorlene

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marshmallowprotection · 1 year ago

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Mystic Messenger 7th Summer Event

I was on the money with my speculation. I was right on the money and there is nothing you guys can do to stop me from talking about this photo in its entirety. Oh, my God. I am frothing at the mouth at this very moment because Cheritz gave me everything I could have ever wanted in a photo.

It's Ray DRESSED as Unknown, and that is someone I never saw coming.

See, I have egg on my face because they said Ray in their post last night and I never thought they were going to throw this at me. That's because they've never done something like this before. Usually, when he is mislabeled, it's just one of those things that happen now and again because of marketing or trying to avoid spoilers, but in this case, they actually went out of their way to bamboozle me.

I never could have expected something like this. I am most definitely not complaining because this isn't something I didn't know I needed in my life. Unknown and Ray are my favorites so the fact that they are combined in this situation is sending me. I didn't know I needed this but I'm happy that I have it.

On that note, does anybody have commissions open because I need more Idol Ray in my life? I want my MC to be in the audience cheering him on with a penlight.

When I tell you guys I cried when I saw this, I am not kidding about that. I cried. There are a lot of reasons why I cried and we'll get into that in a second. First I think we need to appreciate this for what it is. I think this is the first time in a long time my speculation has been 100% accurate.

This photo is split into three different parts just as I expected it would be, Rika is trying to pedal the soda, and V is in his believer robes which I joked about because the color was accurate but I wasn't sure if they would actually go through with it, and Ray painted his fingernails and that's sending me to Heaven.

V cannot believe what he is seeing. Need I remind everybody in this fandom that his mother was a musician and knowing that fact makes this a hell of a lot funnier when you consider this was Rika's plot. I would not put it past her to have thought about using music as a ploy to mess with him, not only because it's something they shared with her love of Zen, but because she wants to use everything she has against V.

The context in this situation is amazing. I don't know if any of you have seen the new Twitter thread but I'm going to share it with you.

[Link]

When I tell you guys I screamed, I mean it. I screamed because Ray was so smug when he said he has a cute face. That was a lot of confidence in a short amount of time, and if he looked at me after saying that, I would have melted and done anything he told me to do. I mean, I would already do that in general, he knows what I am.

She literally decided out of the blue that she was just going to sell him out because he has a cute face. I mean, she's not wrong, but that's such a Rika thing to do. After all, it's not the first time she pushed him into being an idol.

So, what I'm going to say here is a little silly. I have to tell all of you the implication of what this photo means. This is Ray and he is dressed as Unknown. He has no means to be able to dress that way without us helping him.

That means the MC is the one that chose his wardrobe for him.

That means we are the ones who looked at him and his princely attire and decided he needed to look like he just walked out of Hot Topic. See, my favorite type of character is a toss-between princely and edgelord, so that's even funnier to me. Saeran Choi is my full package deal when it comes to aesthetics, I swear.

I wouldn't want to change Ray out of his magenta coat to dress like Unknown. Well, I say that, but if I tell him to wear that and he takes off the jacket, then I can put it on... oh, yes. That's the best way to get a boyfriend's sweater.

But it is the single-handed thought that the MC is the one that put him in this outfit that is sending me to another plane of existence. Can you imagine doing that to him? Because that is way more funny to me than the idea that Ray chose to wear that himself. But it is always possible that he did choose to wear it himself because he often says that his taste and clothes are nothing like the outfit Rika gave him.

I also need to point out that that tattoo would have had to have been drawn on with Sharpie or temporary ink. He doesn't have the tattoo in Another Story. That is a fact that a lot of people get confused about despite the fact that we are shown a visual of him in the shower that proves he doesn't have a huge tattoo.

I suppose you could read this as a bonus AU where in some universe, Ray is the one who gets the tattoo first... which, ouch, I don't know if I can handle that... "I proved myself, body and mind, to my Savior so it isn't possible she'll throw me away. If I brand myself with the cause of Mint Eye... I'll... I'll be safe."

But, what that also implies is that there is a picture of him with that tattoo drawn in some capacity lingering in his room at Magenta. It also means that despite the fact that he and Suit Saeran inevitably disappear after not being able to live up to the potential the Savior wants them to, Unknown stumbles across that design.

Ray: QUICK, I HAVE TO DESIGN SOMETHING EDGY FOR THIS OUTFIT.

Ray: A dragon!

Ray: ME for Mint Eye!

Ray: This certainly won't effect anything later in life!

Two and a Half years later...

Unknown: I don't know who designed this tattoo but it's sick. I need it on my body.

It is so gut-wrenchingly painful for me to think about that. It means that a piece of Ray still exists. Unknown does not even know where that tattoo came from nor does he know who designed it. Because he doesn't get to know Ray one-on-one since I personally believe he isn't Suit Saeran. I view Unknown and Suit Saeran as separate people, after all.

The reason why he has the tattoo is because Ray drew it. I have long wondered where he came up with the idea for the tattoo, and it turns out it wasn't Unknown at all. Ray was the one who drew it and I don't know what to do with that information other than cry.

The Savior only gave him a short amount of time to figure out how to be an idol and he said I'm going to have a tattoo. Sure, should we just assume this is an Easter Egg and the artist might not have known all the details involved in the story of Mystic Messenger? Sure, you can think that, but for the sake of my enjoyment, I'm going along with the theory that I'm right, lol.

That's something that an idol has. Ray says. He draws a sick dragon and a twisted ME. That tattoo is so large and ridiculous, but I love it dearly. Ray, honey, You Are My Forever Babe. But I don't know what to do with you sometimes.

[If you want to know how I think Unknown gets the tattoo, I have a post on that.]

Rika looks amazing here and there is no lie about that. I actually really like the outfit she's wearing even though we can't see a lot of it. It speaks to a music festival because of how simple but trendy it appears. She's trying to be that friendly face that can do no wrong. She wants you to buy her homemade soda, and you should do that.

You should do that right now. It's good for you. There's nothing wrong with it.

A little bubbly soda won't hurt you. What do you mean it's burning your throat as we speak? It's not doing that at all! You're just excited by the electric energy of this concert! Drink more soda! I think the important question to ask ourselves here is how many cans of soda did she bottle and does she think it's going to work out as well as she thinks it does?

I don't think we need to talk about the fact that she is wearing a cross necklace. I don't want to unpack her religious trauma right now. I don't have time to do that right now but I will say it made me laugh my ass off. On a side note, her hair looks good here and I'm jealous of it.

This man looks like his soul just left his body.

I don't know what he's thinking at this very specific moment in time but I know he's not happy to realize that Rika has decided to sell out Ray as an idol. I mean that's probably the last thing he expected to happen. But, it makes sense, Rika loves music and if she thought it would work, she would absolutely push Saeran, Ray, Unknown, etc, into doing that for her. But, it hurts to think about V... to think about those complicated feelings he holds about his mother...

He kind of wanted to learn how to play the violin to get closer to his mother... He's already got complicated feelings about musicians and I don't know if his adopted son here being an idol is doing much good for him. It reminds me of the bad ending in the RAE.

He wasn't particularly comfortable in that situation either and this just reminds me of that. Which is a shame, because that ending is so horrible. It is one of the worst endings that you can get in this entire series.

I don't think we need to get into that in general, but just know that if you want to hurt yourself, aim to get that bad ending. If I can say nothing else, I'm really happy to see his long hair because I think it's the most attractive aesthetic for him. I've always liked that style on him a lot more than the traditional one. I don't know what it is about that look for him but it just works. He's like a wet kitten in a cardboard box.

I can't believe she decided to hold the concert at 7:00 p.m. I mean, I can most certainly believe she would do that, but it feels like spitting in Ray's face. Why would you do that, Rika? I know it's just a cute little Easter egg to remind us of his brother but oh my God that's awful.

I don't think anybody I've seen talking about this has pointed it out but the background colors are literally the same as Ray and V's hearts. It's the magenta and teal hearts. I thought that was a good touch. I do know that it's also in homage to the fact that it's Mint Eye and the building is called Magenta. It's a 2-in-1 package deal. Just like the fact that I got to see Ray dressed as Unknown. This is a two-for-one deal!

I do think it's interesting that they chose to make the penlights white. That means his image color is white. Oh, yeah, idols have image colors that correlate to those penlights so those things are very important! I didn't expect white. But, I didn't expect him to be an idol ever again after that bad ending. I mean that ending is horrible but he has great hair in it so like we're winning and losing.

Best day of my life. I won Unknown and Ray.

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admrlthundrbolt · 1 year ago

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Under The Graveyard (Petyr x Chubby Reader)

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Having practically raised your younger brother Nick, you were always interested in meeting his friends. Though when you meet his literal savior, you can't help but be curious.

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Hey guys, I'm back at it again. I recently rewatched this movie and remembered how much I loved Petyr. His lack of fanfiction is an upset to the monster lover community. Anyways I hope you enjoy.

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Nick sighed heavily as he balanced the phone between his ear and shoulder. “I already told you, I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to meet them. They are vampires after all.”

You sassily copied his tone. “And I think I should. For God’s sake one of them kept you from dying.” A sudden hiss comes from his side of the phone. You winced in sympathy. “Sorry buddy, I forget about the new quirks. Anywho, I always want to be a part of your life.”

Slumping against a nearby wall, he rubbed at his temple. “I want you to, I just worry about you around them.”

You suddenly pepped up. “Then it’s settled. I’ll be over tomorrow night. I can’t wait to meet everyone.”

Nick gaped down at the phone. You had a way of always doing what you thought was best for him. But this time he really thought you were making a mistake. Shaking his head, he decided that the important thing was to get over to the other’s place. He needed to set some ground rules and talk to his sire.

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The house was filled with yelling and clatters. Viago faced the camera crew. “It seems Nick's sister is coming over.” Another bang sounded through the hall, causing him to wring his hands together. “Deacon is unhappy with Nick's decision to bring another ‘off limits' human into the house.”

The two men suddenly floated into the room, tumbling over one another in the process. They batted at each other and threw insults back and forth.

“It isn't your place to make the rules. You’re just a baby.” Deacon was basically frothing at the mouth. It wasn’t fair that Nick always got his way. He was the new fledgling, so he was last in the pecking order.

“But she's family. Besides you guys love Stu, so what's to say you won’t like her too.” He flung his hands into the air in exasperation.

This caused Deacon to pause. Stu was a great addition to their group. Even if he did come with the disappointment of Nick. "I’ll see when she gets here.” Then he stormed away to his room.

Viago clapped his hands together excitedly. “Perfect, I'll let Vladislav know when he gets home. You just need to let Petyr know.” He gave the documentary crew a nervous glance and left the room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Petyr wasn’t a stranger to other beings having a hard time with him. They thought that his age made him this monster. That was why he found Nick refreshing. He didn't treat him differently than his other housemates. So when he came down to ask for a favor, he had to admit he was interested.

“So you know how Stu is great and all?” Pausing he watched the older vampire. Continuing only after a nod was given. “ Well my sister is coming over and I don’t want her to get eaten either.”

Petyr stared at him with confusion. This would be another off limits human. Perhaps he picked a weak fledgling.

“I know. I told her not to come, but she insisted. Something about meeting my new friends and savior.”

This made him all the more interested in what the boy had to say. He was 8000 years old, but he may still have a bit of an ego.

“So do you think you can let her meet you and live?” He winced as he waited for his sire to shriek in his face. Though his scrunched posture relaxed when the older vampire only nodded.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The night had come. Viago had dressed for guest as usual, surprisingly so had Deacon. They had told Petyr that he would be fetched after the other introductions were made. Even though you seemed excited to meet them, they knew that he was in a league of his own. It wasn’t every day you came into contact with a vampire that old.

Vlad rolled his eyes as his dandy roommate fussed over pillows on the couch. This was a one time incident. They would reassure the sister that Nick was in good hands and she would leave happy. Simple as that.

At least that was the idea. When Nick brought you in you were the epitome of warm and comforting.

“Now boys I know you don’t eat in the conventional way, but I did think of a different gift. “ You pulled a large spray bottle from you bag. “This is a homemade fabric cleaner, it especially works well on stubborn blood stains. And don’t worry about the ingredients, Nicky told me what to avoid.”

This made Viago particularly excited. He hurried over to you and asked all about the fine details. Nick joined the other two vampires as you shared cleaning secrets.

“Are you sure she’s not actually your mother?” Vlad elbowed the fledgling .

He shook his head, but had a smile on her face. “She might as well be. We have a pretty big age gap, but when my parents died she took me in. No questions ask, just said she wouldn't have it any other way.”

This made Deacon shift uneasily. He had been planning to seduce you. If he couldn't eat you, then the best revenge would be to fuck you. But seeing the kind of person you were, it was making him second guess it.

You both rejoined the group. “Now that the gift is out of the way.” You put your hand out to the other two men. “I'm (Y/N), nice to meet you.”

Viago gave them an encouraging nod from behind you. It seemed you had already won him over. Vlad sighed and put his hand out. Your grip was much stronger than he would have expected.

“Tell me human. What has given you such strong hands.”

Your smile brightened at the comment. “I’m a substitute teacher and librarian at the local primary school. I guess you could say that wrestling kids into their seats most days keeps you strong.”

He too gave an approving nod towards you. If you could keep the demons that were small children in line. You must be a formidable foe.

Turning to the last member of the group, you found that his hand was already extended. Placing yours into it, you were surprised when he shifted it and brought your knuckles to his lips. “I can’t believe that Nick was hiding such a voluptuous beauty from us.”

Another surprise, but noticing the sneer Nick threw his way. You thought that this must be the Deacon he complained about so much. “As nice as the compliment is. I have a feeling that this is a disingenuous attempt just to get under Nicky's skin.” You pat his shocked face and grabbed your brother's hand. “I think that one more introduction is in order.”

He nodded and lead you to the basement door.

The rest of the vampires looked on in differing levels of shock. Until Viago broke the silence. “She is quite interesting.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The anticipation and excitement you had for encountering such an ancient being was making your heart race. You hadn’t blinked an eye at Nick revealing his condition to you. Your dream of being a librarian, at a young age, has always left you with a curious and creative mind. Thus legends and lore was an early interest for you. So it wasn’t an odd thing at how you were drawn to Petyr. And it seemed the feeling was mutual.

When his eyes laid on your form, he was taken aback. He had a hunger alight in him that he hadn’t felt in centuries. Your soft plush body was one that belonged in an oil painting. He would proudly hang it above the fireplace and admire it for hours.

Putting out a hand, to becon you over, he was bewildered when you took it in your own. You shook it with a bashful look on your flushed full face.

“I wanted to thank you for taking care of my little Nicky here. I don’t know what I would do if he wasn’t in my life. Is there anything I can do to ever repay you?”

In all his years on earth, he wasn’t sure he had ever had a more frustrating experience. His voice had escaped him some centuries ago. Now was the time he despised this fact the most. He wanted to speak sweet words to you. Tell you that for such an enchantress, he would hand you the world on a platter. For now though, he could only shake his head and give you what was hopefully a reassuring smile.

You deflated a bit, but perked back up as you looked around. “Let me tidy up the place. To be honest, this place is almost as messy as Nicky's room is secondary school.” You were already organizing things and picking up random bones.

He couldn't stop the purr of delight that rumbled in his chest. This was just what he needed to brighten his undead life.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Before coming across the group of vampires, you would have never guess this was what they would be like. You would have thought that it was more like a dark supernatural novel. Where as it was more like wrangling your usual young group of students. Still it was such a fun addition to your life.

The time you spent with Petyr was always the highlight of any visit. Some would think that communication would be am issue. But working with non-verbal children in the past made it easier than anticipated.

The conversation you had were never stilted or awkward. You filled the silence, while he would gesture and make slightly garbled noises. Still the pleasantness of the time you spent together was wonderful.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

His life was the best it had been in years. Your company breathed a new joy into his undead life. If you shone brighter or were any warmer, he would worry that he would burn in your mere presence.

He had considered using your brother to invite you over. But there was no need, you came willingly and often. Their group welcomed you in with no qualms. Even taking you out on the town every so often. It was a time they wanted to give you to relax and let loose. He found it highly amusing when you would make your way down and ramble about whatever came to your mind. He even got Nick and Deacon to move a couch to the basement. So you would be comfortable if you couldn't make it home after a night out. Though it seemed more often than not you would end up spending the weekend on the basement couch.

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Then an unfortunate series of events caused you to become a permanent resident of the house.

It was early one morning. You had fallen asleep on your usual couch in the basement. Until the sound of glass breaking startled you awake. Jolting up, you squinted into the dark room. Everything was still and quiet. Then a mumbling follow by a crunch came from the only window in the room.

Eyes darting around, they finally found a bone on the floor. In this moment you couldn't have been more thankful that Petyr wanted to keep a few around. Gripping it tightly in your shaking hands, you positioned yourself next to his coffin. Taking in a deep shaky breath, you noticed a shadow blocking the first trickles of morning light filtering through. This made your pulse skyrocket. Steeling yourself, you shifted your hands into a better position and charged.

The fight that ensued was more of a jumble of limbs and grunting. Then he got the upper hand. Pinning you to the ground, he slowly pressed a wooden stake into your chest. But it seemed he hadn't been at this for long, he pierced your lung rather that the heart.

In a moment of agony you called out to Petyr. He heard the pained cry and burst from his crypt. Screeching at the sight before him, he ripped the head from the man’s shoulders. Taking you into his arms, he began to weap.

You placed a trembling hand to his face. “Stay away from the light.” It came out in a quiet garble.

He shook his head and bellowed for the other vampires to come help. Even in your most desperate times you were still concerned for others.

As everyone rushed to your side, you felt your eyes close.

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The camera zooms in on a blurry image, after a bit of fiddling it focuses. You and Petyr are in chairs placed next to one another. Your hands are linked and you smile, showing your newly acquired fangs.

“So it’s official, we’re together.” Glancing over at him, your smile softened.

He was already looking at you with a gentle expression. Giving your hand a squeeze, he relaxed into his seat.

Getting up from your chair, you pulled him along with you. “Now if you’ll excuse us, we’ve got some coffin shoping to do.”

#what we do in the shadows #chubby reader #petyr wwdits #chubby reader x petyr #romance #nick wwdits #vladislav wwdits #viago wwdits #deacon wwdits #vampire #minor violence #character death #mutual pining #fluff #fighting

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goblinselfshippr · 4 days ago

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Yall, Bruce would be so done with my ass irl 🤣

Because dating a semi famous person means you have to eventually talk to the press. Sure, you could say no, but then you risk a hit to both of your reputations.

I just KNOW he would be holding my hand whispering through clenched teeth "dear god, please do not bring up jurassic park" and my tone deaf ass would IMMEDIATELY be like "Oh hey that reminds me of this scene in JW:D where—" and even worse, the older kids* would fully enable this behavior for their own amusement.

Bruce is just trying to have a normal interaction, and his autistic wife is violently frothing at the mouth bc she rewatched the movies last night. Then Tim pipes up "Oh ya, Caz is really passionate about historical accuracy. Tell em about what you said last night—"

"we have [bleep] KNOWN since the [bleep] late 1800s - early 1900s" cue Bruce cringing at the phrase 1900s "that dinosaurs had [beep] feathers! Well, actually, they're proto-feathers, something in between fur and modern feathers we think—"

(*We don't allow the younger kids any kind of exposure if we can help it bc Creeps. Unfortunately, we can't stop the adult kids from doing whatever the hell they want)

#yeah I know why they don't have feathers in the franchise. it's bc they used lizard dna templates blah blah blah #❤️[wonderland]

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pyro-madder · 3 months ago

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So for the ask game, what about Gehrman and Laurence? :D

*already frothing at the mouth* sure thing ! :) gonna try to group them both at once

favorite thing about them :

- G : probably his fight. It looks like a movie ! The beautiful scenery, the mentor and student clashing their weapons in the same fighting style, and of course the MUSIC ! (if i lack sleep and focus too much on the way the voices go down on "misereTE" i WILL cry)

- L : also his fight ! Despite the difficulty it's one of my favorites. Beautiful music as well. I also adore the calm of his english dub, it's one of the few I really prefer over the french one !

least favorite thing about them :

- G : how little we get to actually speak to him. I understand it's on purpose (we're just another hunter, why would he try to bond with us if it's gonna end the same as with the dozens that came before us ?) but it still frustrates me ! X)

- L : hard to say. sometimes i fear i don't see him as terrible as he may have been, but "may" is the key word here - he's nuanced, how much good and bad there was is up to each's interpretation and I consider this question to be canon-only

favorite line :

- G : "The night, and the dream, were long..."

- L : "EEEAAAAAARRRRRRGGHHH !!!" (+ "Fear the Old Blood" because his voice combined with Willem's sounds beautiful + "Indeed, Gehrman - it won't be long" because ouch.)

brOTP : I accidentally created a Gehrman/Damian friendship by upgrading the latter as school staff rather than senior student. Think about it : Byrgenwerth's groundskeeper and archivist, each finding themselves babysitting looking after their half of the squad (Laurence + Maria // Micolash + Rom, with Caryll somewhere in the middle), and then meeting again in the Dream ! (dissolving emoji) Gehrman parrying Damian's questions about the Doll ! (emoji dissolves harder) and now they're both sad old men who forgot each other yippie

There's also Oto whom Gehrman knew prior to the Workshop's creation and offered a position in ! And then Izzy :) your friendly neighbourhood craftsmen. And Ludwig probably !

For Laurence, it's Micolash. Two sides of a coin through and through ! Whether they're working together, making out or strangling each other, there's no filter between them, from their meeting to their separation. World's worst dormmates ! <3

OTP : eachother + Maria for Gehrman and Ludwig for Laurence.

gehrence + ludrence* are a hard tie, following a similar dynamic due to the common denominator, but with their distinct flavor since they happen at two distinct points of the timeline. gehrmaria's a bit behind for now but as I've said earlier I'm hoping to bring it to the same level 😁 They're all so beautifully tragic, with a lot of tenderness but also a streak of unhealthy dependance, doomed through and through. basically i wasn't kidding when calling them the World's Worst Polycule(tm)

*i know the fandom has other shipnames but i don't want to use them for several petty reasons, sorry if anyone out there needs to add my names to their blacklist.

nOTP : for both, none that I know of.

random headcanon : let's talk families ! Wolves have been hunted to extinction in Yharnam's region by the time the story begins in Byrgenwerth, and the person who shot the last one is a relative of Gehrman (his dad probably). On Laurence's side, only his mother is "known" (air quotes because he's extremely discreet about her, like everything in his past). Even in their homeland, she stood out, nicknamed La zorra/The vixen, and that reputation extended to Laurence who looks a lot like her. Her death (unsure circumstances yet) was the final thing that drove him to leave his homeland after getting his licence.

unpopular opinion : for Gehrman it's obvious, for Laurence i have no idea. X) i'm a hermit so if discourse doesn't appear directly on my dash i'll have no clue about how is it over there...

song i associate with them :

Gehrman : Old and Wise by Alan Parsons' Project

Laurence : Found God in a Tomato by Psychedelic Prn Crumpets

favorite picture of them : too much choice ! their boss cutscene, lots of beautiful fanart (@/redzombie's portrait of laurence, @/pupspuppet's gehrmans, @/subzeroparade's gehrences, Raquel Cornejo's illustrated lore...) i'm also fond of the pattern in my own art where laurence does his thing and gehrman looks either confused or tired sdfghjklm

#ask game #MERCI !!#took me 2-3 hours GODS. blorbo thoughts 2 strong

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redmelawashere · 6 days ago

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There's something lurking in the water (SNSMonth24 prompts - week 2)

Alright I'm behind again (mostly cause I wanted to post *one more oneshot* before this next set of summaries BUT AS A CONSOLATION - I never ended up posting the 7 one shots I wrote for the last year's 2023 SNS Month...As such!

First set of SNS Month 2024 Summaries can be read here!

Below, will be - the NEXT SEVEN SNS MONTH 2024 summaries AND the only seven I posted for last year's SNS Month (a total of 14 summaries✨)

As always, full fics can be read here on my AO3 😊 However this time, I've hyper-linked the specific chapters!

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8 - Mission together | Zombie Infection The familiar nickname had been enough to raise Naruto's blood pressure. Clearly his silence had irritated Sasuke who tauntingly nudged the gun against his hair. "Wouldn't make me use this, would you?" "Well after six years," Naruto had spat out, dropping his gun to the ground. "That's one hell of a greeting, Sasuke." On a mission to save Konohamaru from a deranged village in the south of Spain, Naruto has to contend with the lunacy of this mission, the new zombie variant sweeping through the land, and unfortunately reuniting with his ex-boyfriend. All, while suppressing the very same zombie infection he was trying to fight against. (Alternatively: that one where Sasuke is the Ada Wong to Naruto's Leon S. Kennedy who wants out of this goddamn haunted house.)

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9 - Mutual pining | Vampire romance

It was only when he turned around that she realized his other-worldliness. His snow-white skin and pale, pink lips glowed in the shimmering moonlight, his midnight locks of hair so ink black they almost seemed blue. He had sharp cheek bones similar to his brother Itachi, as were his radiant, scarlet eyes. She felt flash banged. She had expected someone as serious and terrifying as Itachi. And it wasn’t only because his appearance was contrary to what she expected. She felt…it felt insane to think, but she felt like she recognized him. (In which Naruto, a recently turned vampire during a no good, very bad night, meets Sasuke, her adoptive sire, for the very first time.)

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10 - Body Worship | Werewolves (but omegaverse)

“He’s wrong,” he reaffirmed, more firmly this time. “And I think those geriatric views about secondary gender and bloodline purity are insane.” Naruto snorted at that. Sasuke Uchiha, bred to be the pride of the Uchiha and who half of Konoha was frothing at the mouth at the chance to be bonded with, had opinions that didn’t match what his family spewed. Even if Sasuke was being honest with his outlook, it’s not like he could realistically live his life that way. His family would never allow it. (Sasuke, the most aggressive, brutal, and ruthless werewolf pup to be born into the Uchiha bloodline in the last decade, chooses Naruto, a female alpha who can't even turn properly, as his chosen partner.)

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11 - Naruto's Birthday | Human Sacrifice (Hitobashira)

Naruto swallowed the lump in her throat, nodding along to what Yuki was saying. She fucking knew it, the moment she saw those goddamn demonic depictions of Kurama with crazed eyes and breathing fire that they didn't take took kindly to chakra beasts. Kurama kept pulling on her consciousness but she worked hard to push him away. She couldn't talk to him now, when a villager who clearly viewed him—and her—as something evil was talking about how devastating the War was. "It's horrible," she croaked in agreement, trying to sound as sincere as possible. She should have stopped it there, but she couldn't help it. The lies came out of her like vomit. "I can't imagine what it'd be like to have a beast sealed within you." (When their investigation leads them to an isolated village in the Land of Fire, Sasuke tries to do something nice for Naruto's birthday, failing to realize the significance of this day. Part II of "Murder investigation.")

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12 - Werewolves (but omegaverse, again.)

When she’d glared in response, he raised an eyebrow and she was worried they were going to fight about this again but instead Sasuke sighed, pulling her against him. When she flinched, he wordlessly corrected his touch by stroking her hip through her thick jeans, dulling the sensation. “I love you. That’s all that matters.” (Naruto feels extremely insecure about their relationship. Sasuke does his best to reassure her. Honestly, the PWP part II to "Body Worship | Werewolves (but make it omegaverse)" that everyone should have saw coming with a dash of an extremely touch-starved Naruto.)

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13 - Don't die before me | Deep space

“What’s your status?” She punched in a few buttons to zero in on their locations. It looked…odd. There were only three dots. As if Sakura had broken away from the others. "Why did you split up?” she hissed through the radio. “The deal is it's two with two, the fuck? Are you reading me?" The silence was deafening. (With no choice by to find scrap on the most dangerous moon in the galaxy, Naruto and Sasuke are forced to finally admit the depth of their feelings for one another. AKA the Lethal Company AU absolutely no one asked for.)

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14 - Friends with benefits | Doppelgänger

He stopped moving, turning around with arms crossed over his chest. "Naruto," he chewed out, hyperconscious of his tone. "If I didn't hear it, it didn't happen. You can't believe every sound you hear in this forest." “That’s right usuratonkatchi,” a voice similar to his own drawled out from behind the thick foliage of trees, before what looked like a clone of himself emerged from the opposite side of the dirt road. "You can't trust anything he says." (A creature deep in the Forest of Death mimics Sasuke's appearance. Naruto almost falls for it. And Sasuke is so stressed he's about to have a heart attack. Part III of "Murder investigation.")

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Dancing in the Moonlight - AKA SNS Month 2023 Fics

1 - Modern AU

"Here you go, loser." Sasuke tossed the cookie towards Naruto who dropped her Switch onto her lap in order to catch it, staring at it oddly before looking up at him with a raised eyebrow. "You bought me a cookie?" (In which Sasuke goes to the airport Starbucks and buy Naruto the autumn fox cookie because it reminds him of her.)

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2 - Stay with Me

When Ino first tells Naruto, hushed in the middle of the bar they'd gone to after a gruelling day sorting through ancient clan scrolls, that Sakura is pregnant and its Sasuke's, she laughs so hard until she breaks down and cries. (A what if scenario if Naruto was a woman and Sakura still got pregnant with Sarada.)

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3 - Blank Period

"Holy shit, that's Uchiha Sasuke, right?" "Shut up, shut up, he's getting closer!" "What's he doing moving away from the tower? Is he gonna put us in a genjutsu?" "So, these are the little gremlins you keep telling me about, usuratonkatchi." "Did he just call Naruto-sensei, usuratonkatchi!?" (Naruto gets a genin team, much to her annoyance. Sasuke buys her a necklace, to make her feel slightly better about it.)

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4 - I'm happiest when I'm with you

“Sarada-chan?” she asked, feigning surprise. As if she hadn’t sensed the young girl bolting towards her with all her strength after an excruciating hour of training. “What is it?” “Please take me as an apprentice!" (Part II of "Stay With Me" prompt. A what if scenario if Naruto was a woman and Sakura still got pregnant with Sarada. AKA the Angsty Anti-Boruto!AU)

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5 - Sunrise

He grabbed both her shoulders, her eyes widening in question as he rumbled out lowly. “I would kill for you.” “Please don’t. It’s way to early for murder.” (Sasuke wakes up early from a nightmare. A slow morning with Naruto makes him feel better.)

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6 - I'll take care of you AND cooking together

When Sasuke started rubbing his throat irritatingly, clearing his throat and standing in the kitchen to blow his nose, Naruto started to panic. “Dobe,” he reprimanded with narrowed eyes, sitting back down next to her on the couch. “Don’t make a big deal out of it.”

“You gonna be sick?” “Hn, probably.” “Well. Sucks to suck, normie." (Sasuke catches a cold. Naruto, who has never had a single illness in her life, has absolutely no idea what to do.)

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7 - Adult Sasunaru

"How the fuck is my vision going when your clan's the one that's known for going blind!?" "You know I've had an eye transplant, right?" Now that was an idea. "Well—" "Hell no." (Naruto needs glasses and is unimpressed.)

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rodimissliveblogs · 2 months ago

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Yknow. Off of a post I reblogged to my main. Thinking about how the Grey Wardens are the only main Veilguard faction that the devs let be fucked-up and insane and how I think that substantially weakens the world. They want to have their cake and eat it too with Lords of Fortune being "pirates but nice". They ignore everything Zevran established about the Crows. When I read Eight Little Talons in Tevinter Nights, and then later heard that Teia and Viago would be in this game, I thought that would be a really fun opportunity to explore Teia's idealism regarding the Crows - she calls Caterina "Nonna", she considers the Crows her family - versus the ugly reality of them. But. no.

And even the wardens! Antione and Evka very clearly say that what they do - administer the Joining for infected people and then don't make them join - is against the order. I give them that. It's still established they shouldn't do that, and I grant the game that. Wardens doing things against the order is also something I love to explore. I am fine with Antione and Evka. But Davrin says he just walked up to the wardens and asked to join - he says that any criminal/person running from their past can just go join the wardens. The wardens don't take just anyone! Anders has to beg Stroud to take a dying Hawke twin! Is it different in the Anderfels?? I feel like saying that gives the game an excuse that it doesn't actually even care about having. I feel like that gives it too much credit.

(I was gonna make a complaint about Valya saying that she was recruited to the order but left before taking her Joining, but I just checked the wiki and apparently that is canon to The Last Flight, so that's been locked in for ten years, and is also due to particular circumstances. Okay. I'll accept that one.)

Anyway. I think they needed to let the factions be fucked up and insane. They can still be likeable despite that! I like Isabela, and she nearly let the Arishok burn down Kirkwall because of her actions (and in fact can just never bring the tome back if she doesn't like Hawke enough! She did that the first time I played DA2!). I liked Teia and Viago in Eight Little Talons, even with all the fucked-up Crow lore from Zevran running in my head! They chose to shave down all of the edges of their factions and the larger worldbuilding and that very seriously hurts the game. I have fun with it on its own, but when I start thinking about it in the context of all that came before, I start frothing at the mouth in anger.

#roddy plays dav

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purble-gaymer · 1 year ago

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*frothing at the mouth* arthur and gala. anything.

can i interest you in a one-shot of their first meeting in these trying times?

A dream. Dark, and cold. The empty black sky is littered with stars, multicolored and vibrant, shining upon the crystalline ground.

Arthur gazes up at the endless constellations. Strange. Nightmare usually brings him to far less eye-pleasing locations. Something must be different this time--he can’t hear the wizard’s voice, or even feel his careful watch. It’s almost like he’s been dropped here unsupervised.

The Star Warrior takes a closer look at the planet's surface beneath his feet. Deep blue and glittering--if he weren’t standing on it, he might think he’s on Aquarius, but last time he checked he couldn’t walk on water.

There are more crystals scattered across the ground, gleaming different shades of pink and green and blue. All around, sharp structures of rock reach up from the ground like claws about to close in on their prey. Such a strange little henge, where exactly did Nightmare take him?

Something must be wrong. Arthur cautiously takes a few steps towards the center of the circle.

Wind suddenly whips through the henge, and he raises his arms to shield his face. Peeking up towards the sky, his eyes widen as one of the small pink stars begins to glow brighter, brighter, the light quickly becoming blinding.

The star lowers to the ground, and the light fades. Left in its place is a large pink crystal. Between the glinting sides, he can almost make out a figure inside.

A figure.

He jumps backwards, immediately drawing his sword.

This isn’t any old henge. This is an arena.

The crystal cracks all along its surface, and in another bright flash of light, completely shatters. In its place stands a warrior, clad in platinum armor. Their mask guards a pair of golden horns, a four-point star cut across its center. Their feathered wings spread out behind them.

Red eyes flash open behind the visor. They turn upon Arthur. He flinches, but holds his ground.

The Aeon Hero.

The pink warrior narrows his eyes.

“What does Nightmare want with you?” he asks. His voice is low and ragged, as if it hasn’t been used in ages.

Arthur flinches again, then points his sword at him. “How do you know Nightmare called me here?”

“It’s a dreamscape, smart guy.” The Aeon Hero drops to the ground and turns to him, folding his arms behind his back. “I’d know if you went through the trouble of summoning me. Nightmare likes to let me out to play from time to time. It’s almost like he cares.” He adds sarcastically, then immediately returns to his glare. “But what about you? He’s still got it out for us astrals?”

“I’m the general of the Galaxy Soldier Army,” Arthur tells him, sounding as confident as he can manage. “Nightmare seems to take joy in showing me his latest murder machines.”

“Well, if it’s any consolation, that’s not what you’re here for tonight.” The warrior seems to smirk through his mask. “I’m a retired murder machine.”

“What exactly is that supposed to mean?”

The Aeon Hero rolls his eyes and walks up to Arthur. He puts a hand on the flat edge of the sword and lowers it. “Maybe I’ll talk if you quit threatening me. I won’t fight you unless you really want to. I don’t need to be fighting all the time here and in the waking world. On the off chance I get to be awake, anyway.”

Arthur reluctantly sheaths his sword.

“See? That wasn’t so hard. Looks like Nightmare wants me to babysit you. Not sure why he’d leave us alone otherwise…he probably figured we’d be at each other's throats all night.”

The general doesn’t say anything at first. After a moment, he holds out his hand. “The name’s Arthur, by the way. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Aeon Hero.”

The other clicks his tongue, eyes gleaming with a sly smile. “‘Aeon Hero,’ eh? Not even gonna ask for my name?”

“Is that…not it?”

“It’s a title, tin head.” He takes Arthur’s hand with a roughness that makes him jump. “Galacta Knight. Glad to hear you hate Nightmare as much as I do.”

Galacta Knight lets go of his hand and promptly sits down on one of the green crystals poking out of the ground. He flips up his mask and secures it on top of his horns. His eyes aren’t much different without the visor, still a strong, blazing scarlet. A scar is torn next to his left eye, but it looks to have missed its target.

His gaze slides back to the general. “Come on, now. I don’t bite.”

“I have reason to believe otherwise.” Arthur sits down not far from him. He removes the bottom part of his mask and sets it aside, revealing his face to the other. Galacta Knight studies him for a few seconds before returning to their conversation.

“So, Arthur, how’d you get involved with the big guy?” he asks.

“I’ve been fighting for most of my life,” the other replies. “I became general a long time ago, and that’s when he really started bothering me. It only got worse after we found Meta Knight. He’s…sort of our kid. My friends and I found him when he was young, and we raised him together.”

“You found a kid?” Galacta Knight tilts his head slightly. “What, abandoned? Town, battlefield?”

“Something like that. He crashed-landed in a small ship outside one of our bases. What we think happened is Nightmare was raising him, and threw him out for some reason. Nightmare was furious with us after we found him. Didn’t leave us alone for months.”

The Aeon Hero leans forward, expression hardening. “Is he an astral? What color?”

Arthur raises an eyebrow. “Yes…dark blue. Silver eyes, purple feet.”

He nearly jumps out of his armor when Galacta Knight appears to wilt. The pink warrior turns his eyes to the ground.

“Stars, you’re where he ended up,” he mutters. In an instant, he almost knocks Arthur over in a hug. The general is frozen for a moment, then carefully returns it.

“Thank you, thank you,” Galacta Knight almost whispers, voice weak. “I had no idea what happened to him after I was sealed. For the longest time I hoped…maybe he would come looking for me someday. He must have forgotten about me. He…”

It takes Arthur a moment to realize that the other is shaking slightly. He hugs him tighter, though he’s really not sure what to do.

“I’m so glad he got away. I was so worried.”

After a few seconds, Galacta Knight pulls away. He swipes at his eyes and clears his throat. “I’m sorry. It’s just…” He stares at the ground for another beat, then laughs. “‘Meta Knight,’ huh? I think I know where he got that idea from.”

Realization flashes through Arthur’s eyes. “Huh. I always wondered.”

“Well…” Galacta Knight returns to where he was sitting. “Tell me about him. How’s he turned out?”

Arthur doesn’t say anything at first. “Are you his father?”

The other laughs again. “No, no. I have no idea where he came from. Nightmare just handed him to me one day.” He grins. “Oh, you’ll love this: he was an infant at the time. Newborn. No color.”

The general’s eyes widen. “And Nightmare wanted him to fight?!”

“Oh yeah.”

“That’s absurd!”

“And I told him that a million times--he didn’t care,” Galacta Knight sighs. “Poor kid has been fighting for literally his entire life.”

Arthur looks away and cringes. He doesn’t speak for a few moments, even though he can tell the other is watching him expectantly.

“I’ve been regretting that recently,” he eventually says. “He may have had more of a life with the GSA than he would have in Nightmare’s forces, but he’s still known nothing but war.”

“More of a life?” the warrior questions. “What’s he been doing? Does he have any friends?”

“Yes! Two of them.” Arthur smiles, but it fades quickly. “I’m afraid they’ve both met an unfortunate end, but the three of them were very happy for some time.”

A pained expression crosses Galacta Knight’s face, and his wings curl in slightly. “...I see. How did he take it?”

“Oh, terrible.” Arthur gives a sad laugh. “Ha, I wish I could say otherwise. He was furious with everything and everyone. The galaxy had finally shown him kindness, only to tear it away again.”

He pauses and looks away. Talking about it only makes it feel worse. “Last time I saw him, he was miserable. I wish I had done more to help.”

“Where is he now?”

The beat of silence seems to stretch for ages as Arthur looks back to him. “I don’t know. He might be dead, or he might be wandering the galaxy. We haven’t seen a trace of him in ages.”

Galacta Knight turns away. His hand twitches, as if he were about to reach for his mask. “Nightmare told me about that, sort of,” he says. “Said he ‘wiped out the Star Warriors.’ That didn’t seem right, but I guess he wouldn’t lie about something like that.”

“No. I’m lucky to have survived.” He frowns. “I don’t want to say I wish I hadn’t, but I certainly wish it was him who made it out instead.” He looks up, and the two lock eyes again. “It’s been weighing on us pretty heavily. I imagine you felt something similar when you first lost him…we were his family, after all.”

They’re quiet for a long time. It’s not easy news to hear, nor is it easy to tell. After what feels like ages, Galacta Knight lets out a sigh.

“How long do you need to be asleep?”

Arthur blinks. “Why do you ask?”

“Well, you’re the only company besides Nova itself I’ve had since I was sealed. I’d like you to stay, if you can.”

“Hm. I suppose I have all night.”

#asks #camachine #headcanon pile #hehe :3 #this one's been sitting in my docs for a while now #sir arthur kirby #galacta knight

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pacifymebby · 1 year ago

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you're not the only one// chapter six

I'd been on shift every day since Sam's gig but he hadn't been in yet. Or if he had he'd been working in days whilst I was only in evenings. Today though he was back working the same shift as me and I was back to dreading every pint I had to pull next to him.

It was the bank Holiday weekend so it has been busy for days and I was all the more worn out for it. Not just from being on my feet all day but from being forced to keep my happy face on, forced to talk to everyone who came in and not let on that every time someone spoke to me I felt a little part of me die.

I'd been struggling all week, something about the relentless late closes wearing my patience thin, wearing me out so that it was getting harder and harder to pull a pint without shaking. My chest had felt too tight all evening and I was desperate to disappear, desperate to run off the floor and hide in the bathroom out of everyone's way. But it was too busy and I could tell I wasn't the only one feeling tired.

I hadn't said a word to Sam since he'd come on shift and he'd barely said two to me but I could tell that he was tired. Could tell that the lowlights was the last place he wanted to be just then as I glanced over at him and watched him place another pint of Guiness down to settle.

When he turned away to grab another glass from beneath the bar his eyes caught mine and his lips twitched the quickest, most half hearted of smiles. My heart stuttered and sank all at once because he'd smiled at me, but I'd been able to tell he hadn't really wanted to smile at all.

So I looked away quickly before he had a chance to catch me blushing, returned my attention to the pints I was supposes to be pulling, swearing when I pulled down on my tap and watched in agony as it started spitting nothing but bubbled white froth.

"Jesus fuckin Christ..." I mumbled to myself before I remembered my customer service smile, looked up at the man waiting on his pints and apologising, "sorry a think I've gotta change the..."

"Aye divvina worry about it Wyn," sighed Sam, his voice and his hand on my shoulder making me jump as he hugged me into his side before pushing me back a step out of the way. "I'll sort it like, away an have a ciggy or somat y'look knackered..."

I sucked my cheek in, looking up at him with wide doe like eyes. I wanted so badly to accept his help and scarper but I couldn't ignore the guilt I felt. He looked so tired too, his cheeks pale, expression nothing but washed out and shadowy. He had grey patches beneath his eyes like he hadn't had a decent night's sleep in weeks and I could tell the last thing he needed was to be picking up after me. But when I opened my mouth to protest he forced a grin, squeezed my shoulder with his hand and repeated himself.

"Av got this little Wyn," he said nodding to the back door, "gwan have a break sweetheart..."

And when I managed a small thankful smile up at him I was sure he saw the watery relief in my eyes. Felt his grip on my shoulder relax and found myself stunned and shivering when his fingers tickled down my t-shirt before he rubbed my back with his hand and gave my t-shirt a little pat to send me on my way.

I swallowed down a sudden lump in my throat as I hurried to grab my denim jacket from its peg by the back door and take myself outside for a cig. His touch had startled me but in a way I couldn't understand. Because it hadn't left me shaking the same way everything else had left me shaking. Instead it had set the butterflies in my tummy off and left me feeling a whole new kind of blushing nervous, overthinking what I was going to say to him when I came back off my cig break. If I was going to be able to say anything to him at all.

I sat down on the back step and placed a cigarette between my lips, flicking my lighter on, watching the flame as I shielded it with my hands. I could still hear the noise from inside, the clash of glass against glass as it was loaded into the washer grating on me and frayed senses. Every time something clattered or a group errupted with laughter I felt my whole body flinch. I fucking hated the bank holiday shifts with every fiber of my being. At least that was what I'd decided at about 4oclock in the afternoon the day before when I'd been five minutes into my first bank holiday shift. The thought of staying on for another five hours until close made me feel sick, made feel so sick that for a second I had to put my cig down and rest my head between my knees as my stomach twisted in a nauseous knot and I actually thought I might be sick.

I wasn't though and a few minutes later I stubbed my cig out and dropped it in the bucket by the door, pulled myself up and dragged my feet back inside. I shrugged my jacket off with a small sigh and hung it up on the peg. Resigned myself to my fate, a miserable, heart stuttering evening of nerves and over thinking. My anxiety wasn't going to let up, the noise was going to physically hurt and avoiding Sam was going to be near on impossible behind that crowded little bar.

There were too many of us on and it felt more claustrophobic behind the taps when I returned, hovering behind Sam hesitantly before I made up my mind to tap him on the shoulder.

He flinched at my touch, almost jumping out of his skin, hiding it with a grin when he turned and saw me standing their small and shy behind him.

"I can get this..." I managed to squeak out, the most unconvincing lie ever told, "y'look like y'need a cig..." I said trailing off when for a moment he looked like he was going to refuse my offer. But then his eyes lit up and he shook his head.

"Thanks sweetheart," he said with a soft smile, "you sure?" He asked but I could see it in his eyes that he desperately wanted to flee the scene. That he needed that five minutes quiet just as badly as I had needed it when he'd taken over from me and so even if I hadn't really wanted to face the customer waiting the other side of the bar, there was no way I was going to take back my offer then.

"Duh," I managed to force a little smile, a cheeky little eye roll which made him laugh. Left me blushing and feeling stupid when he cracked a grin and let his hand ruffle my hair.

"Thanks little Wyn," he grinned. He wouldn't have been smiling if he'd predicted the scene he would return to but he couldn't see the future and neither could I so I poured four more pints with as strong a smile as I could manage.

I did my best to concentrate on counting out the man's change, did my best to concentrate on the lips of the next person who leant across the bar, shouting over the music and the noise of people's chatter to be heard. I'd gotten pretty good at lip reading since working at lowlights but on days like that when I was shaking and overwhelmed it was hard to focus on anything long enough to make sense of what I was doing.

And that's how it happened. I didn't quite catch what someone asked for, thought I'd heard them ask for a pint of Carling and reached for the tap. Got halfway through pouring the pint before they noticed my mistake and snatched at me.

I'd been concentrating on their pint so I hadn't heard them when they'd asked "what the fuck" I was doing, hadn't noticed their temper until their hand was locked around my wrist yanking my body towards them so that I was pulled tight against the bar, the point of the tap digging into my chest.

"The fuck are you playin at pourin me that shite!" They snapped, their expression angry, red from the pints they'd already sunk. And when I looked at them I realised what I'd done and felt my stomach drop, felt tears prick in my eyes as my mind hazed over in panic. My heart was racing, that dizzy nausea returning so that I couldn't even choke out an apology. Could only look at him with wide startled eyes silently begging him to let me go.

And he did but not because he'd seen the tears in my eyes and taken pity on me.

"Everythin alreet little Wyn?" I recognised Sam's voice as he came up behind me, rested a hand on my shoulder and gave me a reassuring squeeze. I didn't recognise the anger bristling in his voice however, that kind of tension was new to me and it scared me a little hearing the flare of his temper in his voice as he reached for my arm and flared at the man across the bar.

When the man let go of me I knew it was because he'd seen the rage in Sam's eyes, I knew it was because he'd seen a threat he didn't want to rise to. Sam's hand on my shoulder remained when we caught the attention of Stevie our bar manager, my body beginning to tremble when I realised the troubled scene I'd caused with my stupid mistake.

I felt terrible, felt the tears brimming in my eyes. Wanted nothing more than to slip away between a crack in the floorboards and never show my face there again.

But when Stevie pushed through to get to us asking what was going on Sam moved me just slightly behind me so that I was shielded from both Stevie and the man the other side of the bar.

"Dylan what happened lass?" Asked Stevie when he caught a glimpse of me shivering behind Sam.

"Cunt fuckin grabbed her over the bar..." started Sam only trailing off when Stevie ushered him a step back from the bar with a nod to the red faced "cunt" in question.

"Areet lad calm down aye, tell us what happened Dyl." He said waiting for me to step out from behind Sam where I was determined to stay hidden.

I couldn't hide forever though and as Sam shifted reluctantly to let Stevie get a look at me I found myself struggling to swallow a lump in my throat. Certain then that I wasn't going to be able to hold back my tears. And for that I felt painfully childish. Felt like a fucking idiot for crying over something that was my fault anyway. Something that would have been entirely avoidable if I'd been concentrating on my job a little more.

I opened my mouth to speak but shook my head seconds later when my voice caught in my throat and a sob escaped me instead. With my eyes squeezed shut I felt myself beginning to panic, my body beginning to shake, my breath thinning as I struggled to keep control.

"Areet, it's areet lass, go outside yeah, have a cig take five minutes calm yourself down yeah, it's areet don't worry about it," said Stevie with a sigh in his voice as he watched me struggling not to crumble.

I did as he said without a second thought, fleeing the busy bar as quickly as I could, shrinking to the cool floor on the back step barely in control, body trembling as I curled up as small as I could and wrapped my arms around my knees.

I didn't want to cry because I didn't want anyone else I worked with to realise that anything had happened. Didn't want anymore of a scene that I'd already caused. Still I couldn't help it and no sooner than I found myself alone did the tears begin to stream down my cheeks.

I was only thankful I'd mastered the art of crying quietly. Muffling my sobs with the sleeve of my black hoodie pressed over my nose and mouth.

I scrunched my eyes shut and tried to focus on my breathing. It wasn't like I didn't know what to do when faced with a panic attack. I'd had plenty of advice passed down to me over the years, plenty of breathing techniques and grounding exercises presented to me as though they were some kind of magic cure.

I counted on one hand to five as I breathed in, tried to hold for five too but couldn't because I was shaking too hard. My exhale was sharp and rushed and so was the subsequent inhale. Each breath snatched a little sharper than the last until I finally managed to get a grip on myself and hold my breath for long enough to force my body to calm down.

Even if my mind was fuzzed up in a panic, holding my breath and counting down from seven could do a little to slow my heart which would in turn slow everything else down if I gave it the chance.

My hands shook as I wiped my tears away, cheeks stinging as I rubbed at them with my sleeves. I felt a little like I was going to be sick again but I knew it was just the humiliation of having cried so publicly. Knew that all I needed was a cigarette and then maybe, just maybe I'd be able to pull myself together. I needed to pull myself together, not only to save face but because it was busy and they needed me back on the floor.

So I struggled with my shaking hands to light a cigarette, dropping my lighter twice before I managed it. Drawing in shakey breath after shakey breath, eyes closed trying to focus only on breathing in, holding my breath and then breathing out.

When I opened my eyes I watched the smoke rising in front of me. Heard a conversation I wasn't supposed to being had in the backroom.

"Never mind cuttin him off Stevie, cunt should be fuckin barred, y'canna be letting em treat the lassies like that it's fuckin disgustin... Nah way he woulda tried that shit with one of the lads, fuckin bar him am tellin you..."

"Sam lad a know youre pissed off like, trust me a'am too but a canna just bar him, he's one of the regulars int he, management'll have me head..."

"Fuckin tell em I did it then a don't care if a see him in here again..."

"Settle down lad," warned Stevie then, "gwan have a smoke and take five yeah, I'll sort this out, make sure your lass is alreet..." Said Stevie with another sigh, chuckling when Sam did, when he laughed his last comment off and told him to behave.

I felt my cheeks burning when I heard his footsteps behind me. Couldn't ignore what Stevie had just said, couldn't ignore the way Sam had laughed him off like it was a joke he'd heard a thousand times before. It made me think back to that kiss we were supposed to have shared, the one Sam hadn't mentioned. The one I'd been trying to forget.

Left me feeling a little sick with embarrassment at the thought it might have been turned into some joke everyone was in on but me.

I saw Sam's trainers stop on the step beside mine, heard the shuffle of his jacket as he sat himself down beside me. I hadn't been expecting to feel the weight of it come down on my shoulders but when I realised that that was what he was doing with it I settled beneath it, grateful for the extra layer to shrink into.

"Are y'alreet little Wyn?" He asked me, his voice so much more gentle now that it was me he was talking to and not Stevie. "He give you a fright?"

I bit my lip. I'd managed to stop crying but his tender tone was making me feel vulnerable all over again, reminding me how fragile I really felt. Reminding me that all I really wanted was a hug from my brother or my dad. Wanted someone to tell me it was all alright now.

He hesitated to put his arm around me but when he did he let out a sigh and tucked me into his side rubbing his hand over my arm.

"Stevie's gan bar him so y'dont have to worry," he said after a minutes quiet, just the two of us smoking our cigarettes in silence. Me with tears still streaking my washed out cheeks, him with a steely glare set on the road as he tried to keep his own emotions in check. "Dya want a brew or somat lass, cuppa tea makes everythin better like," he said when I didn't say anything else.

"Nah," I said quietly, unable to hide my trembling, on the verge of tears again from my voice when I tried to shrug my shoulders and brush the whole thing off, "I'll be feet in a minute don't worry about me like..."

"Divnt talk rot lass," chuckled Sam squeezing me in closer to his side, "gan drive you home in a minute anyway like, may as well drag me break out a bit longer..."

"You don't have drive me home Sam I'll be reet in a minute it want even that bad like..."

"Wyn sweetheart," he smirked then, rubbing his hand over my back in a soothing little circle, "no offence like," he said as he stubbed his cigarette out and took the burnt out filter of mine from between my fingers before it could burn me, "but shut up."

He flashed me a cheeky grin then as he tugged his sleeve down over his hands and used it to dry my cheeks. I could barely breath with his face so close to mine, his fingers brushing my face through the cotton of his top. For a second my watery eyes had been locked with his but the second I'd caught his eye contact had I torn my gaze away and cast my eyes down to my shoes, cheeks rosied with the shyness I couldn't help but wear on my sleeve.

"Am takin you home lass," he said again as if to reassure me he wouldn't be letting me argue about that, "your big brother'd kill me if he thought I made you stay on after that..."

"Am not a kid like a can look after meself..." I tried to argue but my voice came out shakey and the fact that I couldn't even hold the lads gaze did me no favours at all so when he chuckled I wasn't surprised.

"Aye a know that, a saw you the other neet remember..." he grinned, his grin only fading when we both realised that actually 'the other neet' was weeks ago now and we'd hardly spoken to one another since. That however I'd been the other neet, I wasn't now and perhaps never would be again. That whatever had happened then, things weren't the same now. Things weren't the same between us anymore.

So I swallowed another lump in my throat, started playing with my fingers in my lap and focussed on those instead of on him.

"Aye," I said softly, "that was a good night."

"Aye," he said knocking my elbow with his, "maybe y'should come oot with us again like..." he said trailing off, the quiet between us broken by my nervous laugh.

"Don't reckon y'really wanna be babysittin your mates little sister again," I tried to shrug him off awkwardly, certain he'd only said it to be polite. Certain that if he had hardly spoken to me since that night over a month ago he couldn't possibly want me on another.

But when I said it he gasped his voice cracking defensively when he argued back.

"What're you on about lass you were the best thing about that night!" He cried out in shock, his sudden raised voice making me jump. And he must have felt me flinch beneath his arm because no sooner had I started and jumped out of my skin had he calmed himself and lowered his voice again. "A mean it like," he said much quieter, "be class if you came out again."

"Maybe..." I said, my heart racing as I felt my cheeks begin to heat up and tried to control the blush burning in my cheeks. I didn't want him to see the rosy hue he left on them then, didn't want him to think I'd gotten the wrong idea. But if he noticed my blush he didn't say anything. Instead he rubbed my back again and squeezed me into his side.

"Come on darlin," he said softly, that teasing tone still lingering in his voice as he smiled at me, "let me take y'home now eh?"

I didn't say a word, just looked back at him with relief in my eyes which I couldn't hide. Because as much as I'd insisted I would be fine we both knew I'd been lying. That fine was far from how I felt.

So when he stood up and offered me his hand I took it and let him grab my jacket and from the hook inside, gathering my things whilst I waited in the doorway for him to come back. He shouted a quick "cinnabit" through to the Stevie who was covering him on the bar and when he returned to me he tucked me under his arm once again.

Left me torn up inside because I loved how it felt tucked away beside him like that, but I couldn't let myself relax into his side the way I wanted to because I couldn't get Stevie's little joke off my mind.

The way he'd reffered to me as Sam's lassie. The way Sam had laughed him off as if that hadn't been the first time someone had said it to him.

Perhaps everyone could see what a childish little crush I had on him. Perhaps that drunken kiss was nothing but a stupid joke. Perhaps thats why Sam hadn't ever mentioned it. Because it was a joke to everyone but me and now that he could see how shy and soft on him I really was he was embarrassed to have ever gotten so close to me.

I was too much in my own head to notice when he opened the passenger door for me, only sitting down when he nudged me and said my name for a second time.

"You sure you're alreet little Wyn?" He asked as he reached over for my seatbelt, leaving my cheeks burning when I suddenly snapped back to reality and realised what he was doing. I'd snatched for belt so quickly then that I hadn't had time to look where I was reaching. My hand grabbing his so suddenly that I made him jump, left his own hand flexing with a start as he clicked my belt in and pulled away. His fingers moved like he'd been hit with a static shock, his laugh awkward as he made some joke about me scaring him before he did his own belt and turned his keys in the ignition.

I couldn't even look at him then, had to keep my eyes glued to my lap for the rest of the journey. Even when he asked me again if I was alright and I felt myself growing more nervous by the second.

The silence built up between us when I nodded my head, mouthed a quiet little "uhuh" before trailing off completely.

It bristled between us, the sound of the engine and the indicators the only noise. The tension thick enough to leave my whole body crawling with the pressure to say something, anything to break the silence. But I couldn't think of anything good to say and when I dared a glance in Sam's direction he was watching the road, a little frown of concentration knitting his brows together.

So I didn't say a word until he'd pulled up outside my house and cut the engine. Didn't say a word until he'd reached once again for my seatbelt, unclipping it for me carefully before he unlocked the car and let me out.

"Thanks," I said, my voice quiet, catching in my throat because when he offered me a small smile and told me not to worry about it I wondered if he really understood what I was saying thanks for. Because it wasn't just the lift home.

#sam fender imagines #sam fender fanfiction #sam fender imagine

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