#i'm really trying my hardest not to get tempted

[wcnderlnds]

last dance [part two] | choi seung-hyun (t.o.p)

・❥・ summary: weeks after the breakup and you're miserable without seunghyun but maybe a bigbang concert will make you feel better ・❥・word count: 2k ・❥・warnings: angst and fluff!! ・❥・ authors note: finally part two!! i'm sorry it took me so long. i've been going through a major depression patch lately but i'm slowly trying to get back into writing. hopefully you enjoy <3

PART ONE

The weeks seemed to pass by slower without Seunghyun. Time felt like it was torturing you, making you suffer for letting him go so easily. Waking up everyday and turning around to see the empty spot in your bed was one of the most heart wrenching things you’d ever experienced. Usually, you’d turn around and wake up to his smiling face or, if he’d had an early wake up call, he’d tell you to text him when you woke up so he could order you food. Mornings felt empty without him; the whole day felt empty, actually. There was a massive void in your life but it was one you were going to have to get used to. You both wanted different things and as much as you wanted to be with him, you couldn’t be. He didn’t want the things that you did – in the end, it was for the best. Right now, though, it hurt like hell.

It didn’t help that Seunghyun had left you a drunken voicemail just days ago. Since the goodbye in the back of the car, you’d pretty much had no contact apart from when he’d come to collect some of his things. All you knew right now was that he was staying with Jiyong, leaving the house that you had shared together to you. He was on a night out with the guys when he’d called you. It had taken several missed calls from him – each time you had been tempted to answer – before he left that one drunk message that you had replayed almost every single day since.

“Hey, baby, hey. So, this break-up? Stupid. So stupid. I love you so much. Like, I can’t think of anything but you and, shit, fuck it, I’d go out and buy an engagement ring right now and propose to you if I could but… baby, I miss you. I miss you so much it physically hurts. I can’t sleep, I don’t want to do anything and I know this is my fault. It’s my stupid fault because I can’t be the man that you need. I love you. I will always love you. My heart is yours forever…”

He must have got cut off at the end because before he could say anything else, the phone was hung up. Each time you listened to it, your heart beat a little bit faster. The sincerity in his voice made your head spin, the way his voice had broken each time he said he loved you. All you wanted to do was run to him, wrap your arms around him and tell him everything would be okay. At this point you were sure a hug from Choi Seung-Hyun would heal you. It had before and it would again. Except, now you couldn’t. That was the thing that hurt the most. Not only had he been the love of your life, he was also your best friend so now you had to grieve that, too.

Things weren’t okay but, eventually, they would be.

*****

Today was the day you’d been dreading. There was a BigBang concert that you’d tried your hardest to get out of attending but Youngbae had been persistent. It would be nice to get out of the house at least. Maybe some fresh air could clear your mind. All you had to do was try and avoid your ex. Easy, right?

Nope, not at all because of course he was the first person you saw when you were trying to get backstage. For some reason the stupid security guard wouldn’t let you through even though you had your pass – which Youngbae had given you – visible for all to see. As you stood there arguing with the security, being very adamant that you were on the list to be here, a flash of pink hair popped up beside the guard. Your breath caught in your throat – it was the first time seeing him for weeks and he was still as breathtaking as ever. You cut yourself off mid sentence, not really registering what was happening but Seunghyun must have said something to the security because before you knew it he was stepping aside to let you in. 

All you could do was stand and stare at your ex-boyfriend; the love of your life. There he was right in front of you, a frown on his beautiful face. Knowing him better than anyone meant that you could tell he was miserable. Most people wouldn't see it but it was all over his face. It was hard to fight the urge to throw yourself at him and wrap your arms around him.

“Thanks,” you mumbled, avoiding eye contact. There was no way you could look into those deep brown eyes of his and not crumble.

Seunghyun was about to speak but before he could, Jiyong rolled up, noticing the awkward tension. You had never been more thankful for him. If he hadn’t shown up surely you would have embarrassed yourself. “Seunghyun, Daesung wanted to talk to you. He’s in the dressing room.”

Seunghyun looked at you like he wanted to say something to you but decided against it, heading off down the hallway to talk to Daesung. Jiyong pulled you in for a hug and finally you relaxed. Jiyong was one of the people you felt the most comfortable with – the whole band was. It was a very much needed hug but in the back of your mind you couldn’t help but think that it was the wrong person giving you it.

“Thanks. I was probably two seconds away from making a dumb decision,” you laughed sadly, pulling away from your friend.

“Yeah, he probably was, too. He’ll be pissed when he realises Daesung didn’t actually want to talk to him but he’ll live,” he threw his arm around your shoulder, leading you down the hallway. “Happy you’re here. Youngbae worked his butt off to get you here. We miss you.”

“I miss you all, too. It’s just… awkward. I don’t want to make things weird by being around all the time. Seunghyun needs you.”

��You need us, too. We can be there for the both of you.”

“Yeah but… I just need you to make sure he’s okay, you know? We both know that he gets in his head and I don’t want him to spiral.” You looked at Jiyong with pleading eyes. All you ever wanted for Seunghyun was for him to be happy. You knew how much he struggled and got in his own head. He had always been so sensitive to the world, so attune to his own feelings and often got lost in them. He needed the support more than you did. You would be fine on your own.

“I know, don’t worry. We’ll make sure he’s okay,” he gave your shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “I promise.”

*****

The show went off without a hitch. The boys were amazing as usual. There was no doubt in your mind that they deserved all the success they had and so much more. Every show they put their all into, giving their fans everything they had. It often resulted in exhaustion but you knew none of them cared. As long as their fans went home happy, that was what mattered. Putting smiles on people’s faces was their main goal and they definitely did that. Hearing all the screams and cheers made your heart soar; it definitely lifted your mood until reality came crashing back down.

After the show you knew the guys usually went for a bite to eat before heading back to their hotel rooms. So, you’d decided to sneak out making a mental note to send texts to Youngbae, Daesung and Jiyong later. You just couldn’t bear to face Seunghyun let alone sit and have dinner with the four of them. The tension between you and him would bring the mood down and they deserved to ride their high for as long as they could. With your jacket firmly on, you headed towards the back door to head out but you were stopped when slender fingers wrapped gently around your wrist. As you turned you came face to face with Seunghyun. His hair was a mess from the show, sweat dripping down his forehead. He must have literally ran right off the stage to catch you. His touch was making your heart beat faster, memories of the goodbye in the car came flooding back to you. It was like there was no coherent thought in your head right now as he looked at you with determined eyes.

“Don’t leave. Not yet. I… I need to say something,” he rushed, still holding onto you as if scared you’d run the second he let you go.

“Seunghyun…” Your voice was barely above a whisper. It was all you could say. If you dared speak more, you’d be a blubbering mess.

“If you stop me, I won’t say it and I don’t know if I’ll ever get a chance to again so… please just listen.” He paused, letting you nod your head before he continued. “I love you. I love you so much that it’s killing me to be apart from you. I don’t know how to get through the day without you and it’s made me realise that… I don’t want to. I want you by my side every single day for the rest of my life. I was stupid, okay? I was so, so, so stupid. I want you and I want a future with you. You’re going to think I’m crazy and… I definitely am but…”

In one swift motion, he dropped down to one knee, fishing out a small box from the pocket of the pants he was wearing. He opened it up to reveal a diamond ring, the box shaking slightly as he held it showing you how nervous he was to do this. “Marry me?”

Shock consumed you. Words couldn’t leave your lips but as you looked down at his pleading eyes you knew right then and there that he meant it. Seunghyun wore his heart on his sleeve especially when it came to you. “I….do you mean it? I-I thought you didn’t…”

“I mean it. I really fucking mean it.” It was the determination in his voice that sold you. “I’m terrified, I won’t lie but I can’t lose you. I need you.”

“...yes, I’ll marry you.” You breathed out, pulling him up to his feet to kiss him softly on the lips. God, it felt so good to do that after all these weeks. It was like all the tension was leaving your body, your heart finally being where it needed to be – with him. “I’m scared, too. We don’t have to get married right away, okay? We can wait for as long as we want. Just knowing that you see a future with us is all I need. That’s all I wanted.”

He smiled, sliding the ring onto your finger, holding it up so he could look at it. “I did good.”

“Yeah, okay,” you rolled your eyes, playfully slapping him on the chest. “I missed you. Guess you weren’t lying about buying an engagement ring in that drunken voicemail, huh?”

His cheeks tinted red as he remembered the message. “Well, you know what they say. Drunk thoughts are sober words or whatever. Missed you more, though,” he sighed, his hand cupping your face, gazing lovingly at you. His lips met yours in another slow, passionate kiss. His thumb rubbing softly against your cheek as he tilted your head to deepen the kiss. You were almost certain he was about to back you up against the wall and give everyone a show until you were interrupted by someone clearing their throat.

Pulling away, you turned to see Daesung, Youngbae and Jiyong standing there. Jiyong raised a brow, a knowing smirk on his face. “Can we go get food now or are you going to stand here trying to eat each other's faces?”

taglist (ask to be added!): @ldydeath @justsisse @infinetlyforgotten @sherrayyyyy @come-as-you-are-111 @maskedcrawford

[inexplicifics]

Hiii! So your newest story got me binging your A/B/O fics (again) and got me wondering…

If AWAU was set in A/B/O, what dynamics would the main characters be? And would it have changed anything?

Ooooh what an interesting question. Alright, let's see how I'd make the AWAU omegaverse. I'm not going to do everyone, but I'll try to hit the main characters and relationships.

Jaskier: The obvious play is to go omega, but I think that's wrong. I think he's a beta, and therefore assumed he wouldn't be vulnerable to the "send off a less-valued child as tribute" ploy. This also explains why he was allowed to go to Oxenfurt and be a bit wild while there, as an omega might not - and why he's not higher in the line of succession for the county, as an alpha son might be.

Geralt: Again, the obvious choice is alpha, due to the whole Warlord of the North thing. But he didn't do that on purpose, after all, and part of the evolution of his relationship with Jaskier is Jaskier seeing past the Warlord-of-the-North mystique to the person beneath. Also, I'm going to assume that Witchers in the omegaverse AWAU have a method of concealing their scents, so as to mitigate issues with outsiders. So I think the feared and fearsome Warlord, who everyone assumes must be alpha among alphas, dominant and terrible, is an omega.

Eskel: Alpha. Of the "care for my pack" variety, specifically - he'll work himself to the bone looking out for the people who are his. And, occasionally, go avenge them on their enemies in dramatic and extremely violent fashion. And having a demisexual alpha pleases me.

Lambert: Again, very tempting to go alpha, with that temper. But I'm going to go beta, actually. He's just bad-tempered by nature and nurture - and getting less so as his life gets better. And the fact that he wasn't an alpha is part of why his father was so willing to sell him off.

Milena: Oooh, I'm not sure where to go here. Let's go with omega, because her parents do expect her to be a nice obedient pawn for them to move around and marry off as they please. And also it gives Lambert something else to be insecure about, the poor lad. (No, she does not want an alpha. She's very happy with him. Yes, even in her heats.)

Marika: Beta. Cool-headed and calm and rational, by stereotype and nature both. She's going to be a very good queen.

Griffin: Also a beta. Has never particularly wanted to be an alpha. Is genuinely glad that he doesn't have to deal with heat or rut; they seem deeply inconvenient.

Marta: She's an alpha, which explains why their parents were so willing to cut her so much slack and indulge her in so many things. I'm not sure how inheritance rules work in this variant of omegaverse, but she may even be heir to the duchy, right up until she kidnaps Jaskier and Eskel and Milena and experiences Consequences for possibly the first time ever.

Aiden: Alpha, because it makes his preference for bottoming even more scandalous to anyone outside the Witcher society. He's a cocky, charming, dangerous man and he knows it. He does have a bit of a temper but he's good at controlling it, and it blows over quickly.

Aleksander: Also alpha, because it makes him even more like his despised grandfather and he hates it. He doesn't want to be that sort of swaggering monster. Aiden's cheerful arrogance confuses him at first, the flirtation really baffles him, and eventually he's going to settle on Eskel as his role model, because that style of looking after His People makes sense to Sasha.

Livi: Omega - Duke Velen had strong preferences. Which probably means all the Mantikittens are omegas, too. Zia is going to surprise some people.

Dragonfly: Alpha, and has recently discovered her doting instincts.

Yennefer: Null, because she's a mage; their dynamics are removed during the ascension process. That said, I think she was an omega prior to that.

Triss: Also null, because she's a mage. Probably a beta before that.

and finally, Ciri: Oooh, this is the hardest one. But I think she's an alpha. And if she takes after her Papa in ferocity and her Uncle Eskel in protectiveness, she's going to be magnificent.

That's the best I've got - anyone else got thoughts?

[starlightandfairies]

Smarts ~Jade Herrera~

Description: Jade is baffled by reader's need to keep up with studies.

Warnings: she/her pronouns, swearing, maybe a little out of character

Little random piece of work that isn't too great.

@buteraroplace for you have your inbox request :)

Key: Y/N = Your Name, L/N = Last name, POV = Point of view

Word Count: 633

First person's POV

"What on earth are you doing?" Jade questioned, disturbing me from my hiding spot. Only place that allowed me to feel some sense of normalcy away from the town and Colony House.

I spoke without looking up from the textbooks that I had with me when I got stuck in this fucked up place that only Stephen King could have conjured up.

"Studying." A scoff left Jade's lips.

"Studying? What could you possibly be studying for?"

"Not all of us have PhDs, that can fulfill us with endless job possibilities. When I get out of here. I need to be caught up on my studies. I need to be prepared to get back to my life."

I resumed writing down notes from the textbook, trying my hardest to draw the diagram of the brain.

"You drew the cerebellum wrong." Jade pointed out.

"It's at the back, on the bottom, attached to the brain-stem. I did nothing wrong." I defended, not seeing whatever it was that he was seeing.

"Here. Let me." He snatched by workbook and pen away, like he was some little kid taking back his prized possession. Once he handed it back to me, he had drawn some medical-grade level diagram of a brain that made my little fun coloured diagram look like chicken-scratch.

Jade looked as smug as ever; that stupid little cocky smirk he does when he knows he is right. Drives me batty.

"What makes you so sure there's even an out of this?" Jade questioned, sucking away all effort that I carried to continue on with my studies. I shut the textbooks with a thwack, pushing them to the side and leant against the tree that became my safe haven.

"If I don't tell myself I can get out of here. I don't think I could survive much longer. I need this hope. Don't take it away from me." The words left my lips, separate from my own thoughts, soft and distant. Jade nodded briefly; taking a seat beside me, putting his focus at the empty archway in front of us. Some other mystical clue from hell.

"I... I'm sorry for taking that from you." I could tell, in a sense, it felt foreign to Jade, apologising. It was nice, however, hearing him apologise.

"Haven't taken it from me yet." A nod was all I got.

"So... psychology?"

"Yeah, wanna be a psychologist. I was only a month and a bit into my first year. I was driving from campus, there was traffic, I had a deadline to and I detoured. Found the tree, then got stuck in this nightmare just like everybody else."

Jade nods, taking in my words, he stands up and gathers my things.

"It's getting late." With a sigh, I stood up, following him towards town. We both gather in the bar, I cover the windows up, something I always do in the room I reside in among the town houses.

I lie on the floor, staring at the ceiling, taking in the silence that would soon be shattered by the monsters.

"You know. I was really liking college, it was fun... I was making friends, finally getting my life to how I imagined it."

"Look... I know I a giant hypocrite. The more you think about home, the more you'll destroy any remaining hope you have." I turned my head, appreciating his words, yet the comment just seemed to slip out.

"Jade are you being poetic for once rather than all brainiac?" I jumped up, grabbing some of the shit homemade vodka that always hurt my soul.

"You know what-"

"I'm sorry, that was mean, I know that..." Jade patted the floor beside him, grabbing the bottle from my hands.

"It's fine. I know I can be a prick at times too." The monsters began tapping on the window, whispering, attempting to gather attention that could be tempting enough to lure us out.

Another swing of the bottle. The taste bitter on my tongue, getting worse with each sip.

"Which one creeps you out the most?" He scoffed.

"They're all creepy-motherfuckers."

"Just- okay? Please, just... okay?" My brain was choking, I was tired and I swear I was struggling to even function at this point.

"That smiley-motherfucker."

"Yeah, he's pretty creepy." As I closed my eyes, the taunting of the creatures disappeared and the world drifted into silence.

[quezzzs]

"Gav, please-"

"I'm not going to that fucking party with you."

"PLEASEEEE"

"NO!"

Gavin is standing next to the coffee pot, waiting for the machine to be ready for use as Tina is literally on her knees and holding onto Gavin's leg dramatic like because she wanted his support.

One of Tina's relatives was hosting a couples only night at a pretty decent venue place and Tina recently asked out this blonde she's be talking to for some time to come along. However, because this was still semi-early to partake in activities when you're not officially a couple, this event was nerve-racking for Tina.

Which is why she's asking her best friend to go too.

"Gavin please, for this one time, THIS ONE TIME, can you do me this favor? You're my wingman, aren't you?" Tina shakes Gavin's leg back and forth, trying her hardest to convince the gruff detective.

"Officer Chen, get your ass off the floor."

Captain Fowler sternly warned Tina when passing by the break room.

Immediately Tina stood up and made a small 'sorry' to her captain before she turned back to Gavin with prayer hands and a bad attempt at puppy dog eyes.

Gavin grabs the coffee pot and pours himself some of the energizing liquid. "First of all, not your wingman. That supportive shit is for Chris, I'm here to take you back to reality."

"But-"

"Second of all, it's for couples only. If you wanna impress that blondie you've been with, then do it yourself. Besides, I'd get kicked out if security sees me third wheeling."

Tina scoffed and exaggerates her hand gesture to try and ease him. "There isn't gonna be security."

Gavin waved his hand with the coffee mug at Tina with an eyebrow raise. "A big event with roughly 120 couples? Your family has got to hire some guards to stand by." He chuckles once he saw his work bestie make a scowl on her face.

Tina placed her hands onto her hips but as Gavin was about to sip his morning coffee,

Tina got an idea.

An awful idea.

A wonderful, awful idea.

With a smirk on her mouth, Tina spoke in a smug tone.

"What if you weren't alone?"

Gavin paused to taunt her again, "Yeah? Who the hell would wanna go to that lame ass thing with me?" He then finally takes a drink out of his coffee cup, allowing her to answer.

"What if you went with Nines?"

In this context, Gavin has never choked on anything this intensely before.

Gavin settles down his mug onto the counter and covers his mouth with his arm, coughing into it a few more times as tears pricked on the corner of his eyes. Tina snorted as she ripped off a couple paper towels from a nearby holder and passed it to her male friend.

When wiping his mouth, Gavin irritatedly uttered, "Jesus christ."

Tina continued to give Gavin some more convincing.

"Just go as a couple for the night and you guys can go your separate ways until it's time to wrap up. Also, haven't you been craving my family's special cakes?"

"Tina, I don't care if your mom can make mouthwatering desserts. There is no way in hell I'm ever getting with that tall ass roomba." Gavin drops the unused paper towels onto the floor and used his foot to clean the floor from the coffee he spat out.

Even with Tina's tempting offer, he felt as though that deal was low in his benefits if he was gonna make a bold move just to help out Tina's date. Chris just had to go out on his own little date night with his wife.

This was torture.

"I can get you a cat."

"I don't have the money for a cat right now."

"New leather jackets?"

"Nope, mines' just doing fine."

"I can buy you that new coffee maker you've been wanting."

"The 5K one?"

"Yes, and the good quality beans that costs $50 per bag."

...

...

...

"Phck-"

That was all Tina needed to hear before pulling Gavin in for a tight bear hug.

"YESYESYESTHANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU!!!"

"GETTHEPHCKOFFME!"

══════════════════

Gavin was stuck on how he could even approach this discussion with Nines.

He didn't want to come off as needy, or a wimp, or just a desperate pussy, but he really wanted to get the coffee pot Tina promised him, and Gavin knew she'd keep her word.

Around the end of the day when Gavin was taking his things to leave, he had to pause himself before thinking of what to say, getting a glance over at Nines across from him.

'God, I'm really gonna ask this asshole?'

Nines glanced back at Gavin, scrunching his eyebrows slightly at the older man and waiting for a response.

'Fuck it'

Gavin stood up from his chair and gestured with his head to Nines so they could go over to a more private area in the precinct. Skeptical of what Gavin was planning, Nines rose slowly from his seat and followed Gavin by the lockers.

"Nines-"

"Are we departing now?"

"Wha- Huh-"

"I overheard your conversation with Officer Chen when you started to lose oxygen due to your coffee being ingested incorrectly. Next time, I suggest you to wait for a reply before drinking. You never know what might the other party will say."

Oh this bastard.

Gavin stared at Nines with a dead look of exasperation, a face that screams, 'I'm gonna run you over one day.'

Nines simply stared back with an apathetic expression, patiently expecting Gavin to answer with anything.

"So you actually wanna go to the shitty thing?"

"Well, I have nothing else planned if we are not going to have another session tonight. I wouldn't mind it at all."

So yeah, this was happening alright.

══════════════════

Since Nines doesn't own personal clothing, other than his uniform and a few casual wear shirts and pants, Gavin had to bring him to his apartment to try on old clothes that didn't fit Gavin anymore.

That's where Gavin found himself sitting at the edge of his bed and checking out the various outfits Nines had picked out from a box labelled 'for donation'.

Gavin was wearing brown jeans, that were semi torn at the bottom, with a dark green sweater and black leather jacket with some funky patches on his bottom pocket. Not his best outfit but this wasn't a formal event with suits and gowns.

However, he didn't care about what he wore because his eyes were dead set on Nines.

Even though the two have seen and felt each other's bodies multiple times for the past 2 months, Gavin couldn't help but get a weird warm feeling as he watched Nines undressing in a non-sexual context.

It felt...intimate.

Nines finally put on his final piece of clothing and turned around to get Gavin's approval.

It was unnecessary since Nines already knew what was 'fashionable' from the many articles and websites he internally searched up in order to fit in with his preference for a comfortable but respectable look,

but maybe it was because he actually wanted the other detective's opinion.

...

Nah, it was definitely the first reason.

"So, what is your personal rating for this one?" Nines asked as he stood straight.

Nines wore chic black pants that were somewhat wide at the bottom and a grey long-sleeved button up. A simple and plain look for a minimalistic android.

Nines' perfect look.

Gavin shrugged his shoulders and got up. "Eh, good enough." As he was about to leave the room, Nines spoke up.

"Good enough? Is there something wrong with this?" Gavin turned his head in confusion, unable to understand where the RK900 was getting at. "No- What? I said it's good."

"But you added 'enough'. Therefore, there is something missing that you aren't telling me."

"Fucking eh, when did you become a fashionista?"

"I'm not going until you point out what appropriate garment I've left unaccounted for."

Gavin rolled his eyes as he went over to his drawer, grumbling underneath his breath.

He knew that his work partner can be dramatic on a few occasions, but now wasn't the right time. Gavin really wanted to have a slice of Tina's mom's mango cake again.

Rummaging through his nightstand, he picked up a silver item in his hands and walked over to Nines. "Turn 'round for me, Barbie."

"This better not be a little prank on me. I will punch you if it is."

"Just shut up and face the closet."

Nines kept his neutral face on but complied to Gavin's command. Originally, he assumed that he was gonna make another sex joke or ruin the outfit in a way to annoy Nines but-

Okay that was too close for comfort.

Nines' LED went yellow for a moment when he felt Gavin's presence behind him and wrapped an accessory around his neck. It was only for a short moment but the energy felt...tender.

"There, now ya fucking trust me?"

Nines brought his hand up to touch the silver necklace that was now adorned. The texture was smooth and was a comfortable fit, but Nines' attention was more towards the northern star charm that he fiddled around with in his fingers.

"I suppose it is a greater addition."

"Alright then, move it. The sooner we're at the place, the sooner we separate."

Ah, yes. That was the plan Gavin had told Nines.

Must've slipped Nines' mind with all the rest of his thoughts.

When getting ready to leave, Nines' thoughts never quiet down.

He was wearing Gavin's old clothes.

Gavin's clothes.

That Gavin used to wear

That Gavin himself allowed the bot to wear.

Clothes that had a lingering scent of cheap cologne and faint cigarettes.

Why did it feel so nice on Nines?

Prev - Next

[iglowindark]

one of these days i'll create a master postt of the Pasta List and all of the scoring to date. today is not that day. sigh. i'm struggling to human over here, but i did eat pasta!

Fusili - 7 total points (i am very heavily biased toward fusili, so it took some moral strength to be fair about this)

the name is fun to say, the shape is ADORABLE - c'mon, it's a springy lil noodle!!! it works in a soup. it cannot stick to the ceiling, and i would refuse to drive my matchbox car over a fusili bridge, altho now that i say it out loud, "Fusili Bridge" kinda sounds like code for "Completely Futile Infrastructure Project", so that's fun!

it doesn't stick together or retain water (maybe just a little, but as i mentioned above, i am biased and i know how to shake it. the pasta, not my ass.) you can eat it with a spoon, you don't need to break it to fit it in the pot, but it definitely shatters when dropped.

points earned for the perfect red sauce bite and for the perfect primavera bite. (holds sauce REALLY WELL)

alternate uses: well, it would make a spectacularly unsafe waterslide for like, baby ants. i could see a cooked or uncooked fusili noodle starring in a rube goldberg device. oh, or have you ever seen the show Vikings and when they are trying to invade Paris (i think for the second time) they roll their boats over land by rolling them over a succession of logs? ok, imagine if those logs were giant fusili noodles. that would slap.

Anelli - 8 total points (this one surprised me! and is also a new to me shape. and is also SPAGHETTIOS and i never knew it)

no points awarded for "fun to say" partially because i've accidentally been calling it Annellini all day. they're not going to let me into italy anymore. cute shape, yes. soup worthy? yes. might stick on the ceiling? ok, you know it didn't stick on my ceiling HOWEVER. it's a cute lil ring. i think it COULD stick on the ceiling so i'm awarding a point. bridge material, nope.

sticks together? kinda, but not enough to annoy me. sheds water delightfully. can eat with spoon, and can pour into pot, no breaking required. these hardy little rings do not break from 5 ft! i don't advise 6 ft.

holds sauce relatively well, can def make the perfect primavera bite.

alternate uses: wedding ring for ferrets or otters. i need an otter wearing an anelli ring, stat. hardest carnival ring-toss game ever. and controversially, i am awarding a point for an alternate use that is still a food, because ANELLI ARE SPAGHETTIOS. i am just (clearly) blown away by this discovery, and spaghettios barely count as food, so i'm calling Spaghettio Stand In a valid alternate use.

@sideguitars i am really excited to see what you get up to with your Anelli, as i am now tempted to sub them in everywhere. i want watch an itamae slice into a specialty roll and see anelli tumble out.

cc: @makicarn, @cinnis, @waytooinvested-main

[delqcate]

-–— AUTUMN CHILL : FLUFFTOBER DAY 2

day two is finally here!! just a small sort of disclaimer, i have never experienced autumn/fall before but i am a lover of the season and aesthetic so this is just my idea based off of photos and films. also i'm back to my roots i love that for me 🫶 | flufftober | navigation

p.s. i appreciate your guy's love for the first fic. jellydoger liking my fic was definitely a small fangirl moment for me

summary: a game of hide and seek in the forbidden forest ends with worry over your cold hands

warnings/cw: no use of y/n , lots of descriptions , lmk if there's more

word count: 0.7k

paring: draco malfoy x you

Hogwarts always had a special charm to it when the chilly seasons came. The castle was already decorated with pumpkins and the air had never felt better, oh, and the leaves. The crunch as you step on them, how beautiful they look on or off the trees. Autumn in Hogwarts was definitely something worth experiencing.

Which is how you were able to trick Draco into a small game of hide and seek with you after some drinks in The Three Broomsticks. "I know you're here somewhere, darling. The leaves aren't really your best friend today." He calls out in a teasing manner while you were trying your hardest to not step on said leaves, no matter how crunchy they seemed.

The closer he got, the more you started to rethink your hiding spot. There weren't many places to hide in the forbidden forest besides trees, trees, and more trees— and as tempting as hiding in the leaves would be, that would be too much work— so you had to act fast and quick.

You quickly found a clear path but Draco was always close behind, staying still and silent to find you quicker. As you continued to run, you were definitely running out of breath, so as soon as you found a big enough tree to hide behind, you sat there and scanned your eyes all over the forest. Shades of orange and red fill your vision.

He felt close by as if he was right behind you. You weren't too tense since besides harmless creatures frolicking around, it was just the both of you, but you still had to keep your guard up. Something did catch your eye though: a leaf in the shape of a heart. Some parts of it were bent, but it also seemed natural.

A smile grew on your face as you continued to look at it, carefully pocketing it with the worry of getting it crushed. What you didn't realize, was that Draco—

"Boo!" He quickly taps your shoulders and yells, laughing as you flinch and slap his arm instinctively. "Draco!" Your breath was heavy, but you couldn't help but let out a laugh as well. He crouches beside you, your back pressed up against the tree and your legs curled up to your chest.

He had a soft smile on his face, perfect gray-blue eyes, and beautiful, kissable lips. He was perfect in your eyes, you were perfect in his. He leans in and gives your lips a soft peck before taking your hands in his.

"Your hands are freezing, love. I told you, you should've worn your gloves." He frowns, slipping off his own. "It's fine, I promise. I don't need yours, don't worry." She takes his hands to stop him, but he gently nudges them away, slipping one of his gloves on your hand.

"If you won't take both, at least take one. Mother made them..." He smiles, admiring the black gloves with the signature 'M' embroidered on the top with silver.

You look at the glove with a smile, it didn't fit properly, but it felt like it did too. Your eyes meet his and you let out a soft giggle as you noticed his face, his nose was pink, as well as his cheeks. You gave a soft kiss on all three spots, his cheeks seemingly getting more pink.

"The autumn chill hasn't been too kind to you now, hasn't it?" You tilt your head to the side a little to admire his face a little more, a small smile on your face. He chuckles and shakes his head, his blonde hair moving along.

"Maybe, maybe not. How about we warm up in the castle? The others are probably there as well anyways." He stands up and offers a hand to you, taking it graciously. "Sure. Oh, I wanna show you something I found!" You say as your smile grows wide, pulling out the leaf you found.

"Isn't it beautiful?" There was a sparkle in your eye, he loved that about you. He nods and smiles wide, wrapping an arm around you as if to warm you up from the cold weather. "Mhm, just like you." He kisses your head as both of you walk back to the warmth of the castle.

[petitelepus]

hi! may i have yandere transformers matchup? decepticon please. also i would be a human! <3

i’m kind-hearted, compassionate and caring, but also elegant and ladylike. i'm calm, delicate and sweet, i treat everyone politely and with respect. i'm cheerful, optimistic, friendly and bright. i'm very caring and loving, especially when it comes to family. i'm energetic, bubbly and happy-go-lucky, but i can be very mature when the time comes. i have also very strong sense of duty. i don't take any nonsense and i'm not afraid to stand up to anyone who gets on my bad side. i'm very ambitious, enthusiastic and i like making friends. i find satisfaction in life's simplest gifts. i love adventures, exploring and enjoying the nature. i have morbid, dark and sharp sense of humor. i can be stubborn and overwork myself a lot. i love children. i always related to disney’s miss bianca, maid marian and duchess.

my love languages: when it comes to giving, it's all five of them because i'm full of love and i like showing my feelings in different ways when it comes to recieving... i have no idea

thank you so much for even reading this! have a wonderful day <3

Blitzwing is Yandere for you!

You were a hostage at first, a civilian in the wrong place at the wrong time. That's how it all began between you and Blitzwing.

A little thing to hold on to, to ensure his safe escap-! Successful departure! He is a mighty Decepticon, he doesn't escape from a fight, unlike a certain screamer…!

My, what a sweet kind hearted little human you turn out to be! It would be a shame if someone would use that kindness of yours for their own selfish gains, now wouldn't it?

Blitzwing may think he can gain the location of AllSpark fragments through you but when you prove to be clueless about the fragments, and well, there goes that plan down the drains.

Yet he still doesn't let you go. No, his sense says that he should get rid of you… But he was never really sane, to begin with.

It doesn't help that you try your hardest to befriend the giant evil robot. You're like a space barnacle, once you get stuck you don't let go… And so, every aspect of Blitzwing starts to like you.

Icy may try to deny it but he can't erase his feelings for you. You're so mature, elegant, beautiful, and kind, but there is this royalty in you also, much like in Megatron and he likes it more than he dares to sometimes say.

This is a new thing, but if Icy got to decide, he would get you a beautiful and elegant mermaid dress to highlight your royal appearance.

Hothead loves your fierceness and how you take no bullshit from anyone and you aren't afraid to stand up for what you believe in. It takes real courage to stand up against a Decepticon like him and he respects that in you.

Hothead would like to see you in summer dress, light and so fair, and cute…

Random loves how kind you are even to a Decepticon like him and how you don't seem to realize that he is the evil and unstable giant robot who could eat you up! But don't worry, he understands that if he did so then he wouldn't be able to hear your dark jokes, which make him cackle like the madman he is.

Random, this maniac won't stop pestering you unless you agree to wear the black and purple ball gown dress he stole. He will laugh at how cute you look in the huge dress and how he is tempted to take a little nibble!

You're a multitasker when it comes to showing your love and you learn that Blitzwing and all his three different personalities have their own favorites and their own ways of showing love back to you.

Icy prefers acts of service. You went and got him some oil? An energon treat? How did you even manage to do that!? You just smile and tell him you have your way to make him happy. No one ever does that to him…

His way of showing his love towards you with words of affirmation. He will let you know that he appreciates your efforts to make him feel special.

Hothead is weak towards words of affirmation and he gets really flustered and all tsunderish when you give him honest and kind praises.

His way of showing love towards you would be with gifts. He is blushing and as soon as you smile and ask what's up, he gets flustered and pushes the gift to you.

Random loves and will take any form of affection you may show to him and he will shower you with them also.

Nothing is too much for him, he will sing for his fellow Decepticons how sweet his little human is and he praises you to the moon and back. Hell, if you let him, he will take you to the moon!

[cuteskunkz]

╭──────────.★..─╮

One Night With You

~ Part Two ~

╰─..★.──────────╯

(Mike Schmidt x Reader)

Summary~ After getting your number, Mike takes you out on a date to get to know you better. Read part one here.

Tags~ fluff, Mike is a gentleman aww, surprisingly no smut this time, reader is conflicted on their feelings, character building, Older Mike (Mike is 28 and reader is 20)

Note~ I've had a mean case of writers block lately, apologies for the well overdue update. Shorter fic tbh!!! My attention span is crying for help... This entire thing is pretty much me practicing my dialogue skills. Chapter 3 will definitely have smut, I just really want to build up before we get there ;)

⊱✿⊰

You drive home with Mike on your mind. It's been hard for you to connect with men lately due to your occupation, generalizing them to being horny and emotionally unavailable creatures. Something in you feels... different about Mike though.

As you reach your apartment you take a deep breath, feeling anxious. You walk in, dropping your bags at the door, and pop in the shower hoping to calm yourself down with a little pampering. After an hour of self care you get a call from Mike. You answer after a few rings, hoping to scope out his vibe a bit more before going out to drink with a random guy you just met.

After the 4th ring he speaks nervously, "H-hey! You got home safe?" He stares up at the ceiling, trying his hardest to speak confidently.

"Yeah! I have to say your bar suggestion sounds awfully tempting right now... you're not one of those dudes right? Yknow the 'I get girls drunk to make them more agreeable' type? Cause I swear to god I'll-"

He cuts you off, "I promise.... I just wanna take you out as a treat after the day you had... we don't even have to drink if you don't want to!" He hopes his words provide a bit of comfort to you. He couldn't imagine how tiring it must be to be a woman in the dating world, having to constantly stay vigilant about the dangers men can pose.

You sigh feeling embarrassed for accusing him of such a terrible thing. "I'm down to hang out now if you're not busy or anything! Which bar were you thinking?" You try to hide the excitement in your voice but the butterflies in your stomach are making it very challenging.

"There's this place not too far from me... I could scoop you and drive us down there, yeah?" He throws his head back and bites his lip to fight back the smile creeping up on his face. Mike can't get the mental image of your beauty off of his mind while talking.

You begin to blush from his raspy voice and reply, "Sounds good!! I'll see you soon then!!!"

"Text me your address and I'll be there asap, okay?"

"Yeah of course! I'm sending it now... lemme know when you get it." You text him your address with adrenaline running through body. Your heart feels like it's going to skip a beat from just talking to him.

"Yeah I got it...I'm on my way, I'll call when I'm outside... can't wait to see you..." Mike says, his voice dripping with elation. He hangs up and starts making his way to your house.

You run to your closet and begin picking outfit options, practically tearing it apart. After finally making your mind up, you apply some makeup and spray your most enticing perfume. You stare at yourself in the mirror, making note of the little details and suddenly feel a little confused on your giddiness. You don't know this guy, he could be some murderer on the prowl for a fresh kill for all you know.

The doorbell rings, you shake your mind of all of your anxious thoughts and make your way down to meet him. He greets you with a smile and presents you with a small bouquet of roses.

"I wasn't s-sure If you liked roses, but I wanted to bring you something as a thank you for even considering me" he mumbles, looking down at his feet. it was adorable seeing someone this shy because of you.

"They're very nice Mike... Thank you. I'm gonna go put these in a vase and then we can head out, hm?" After putting the flowers away you run back to the door, "Ready?"

"Extremely." Mike chuckles. He walks you out to his car, opening the passenger door for you. He gets it and connects his phone to play some music. "Hope you like Nirvana...it's like the only thing I listen to, not to sound like some rock elitist or something!"

You giggle and poke his arm, "Nirvana's fine, but I'm gonna have to put you on to something other than dad rock!" you tease. You watch his hands as he steers the car in the direction of the bar. They're callous and strong, his veins becoming more apparent as he gripped the wheel harder during turns. It's embarrassing to admit you got so turned on from staring his hands, Imagining what they would look like wrapped around your waist or better, your throat.

He pulls into a parking spot and pats your leg, "You're so beautiful, you know that?"

You tuck a strand of hair behind your ear and turn away from him to hide your rosy cheeks. "You mean it? Not just saying that to get into my pants Mike?"

"I would never... I definitely mean it, sweetheart"

He opens the door and guides you both into the bar. You hold onto him, arm locked around his bicep. It's a quaint little bar. Dimly lit and cozy, perfect for getting to know each other with the help of a couple shots.

"So... what's your drink of choice? I'm a tequila guy myself, especially with some salt and a lime"

You think for a second, "Hmmmm... I gotta go with Jager! Tastes like cough syrup a bit but the aftertaste isn't too bad"

"Bet." He walks up to the bar and orders the shots, bringing them back to the booth. "I got you a soda too y'know...in case you need a chaser"

"How thoughtful of you Mikey" you say sarcastically. What, does he think you can't take the shot like a big girl? 

He scoffs at the nickname. "I'm just looking out for you! I nearly died from fucking up a shot dude! It came out of my nose and everything." Mike laughs and rubs his nose as if he's having war flashbacks.

You laugh with him and pick up your glass and clink it on his. "Don't let it happen again!" You both tap your shot glasses on the table before knocking them back and sharing a drink of soda.

After a few minutes of small talk, asking the important questions like favorite colors and such, you start to feel the buzz. 

"Much better this time... my nose will live to see another day... or I guess... sniff another day? I don't fuckin' know anymore" He giggles and stares at you.

"S-something on my face?" you slur. A double shot wouldn't usually get you drunk this fast but you hadn't eaten all day, allowing the liquor to hit you harder than normal.

He shakes his head in defense, "Nah... you're just unbelievably hot." It's very clear the alcohol had made him lose his inhabitations.

"I could say the same about you y'know." you flirt back. "One more shot? Or are you scared it'll pour out of somewhere else?" You couldn't help but to snort and giggle at your own joke.

"Very funny little girl... One more won't hurt."

⊱✿⊰

*Read part 3 here*

Not gonna lie...self inserted twice here lmfao (I just turned 20 and JagerMeister is literally the best alcohol on earth).

@honey-eyed-munson this one's for you bbg, I wrote this today because your comment gave me so much inspiration :,)

[starstruck-sillies]

Mixed origin OSDD anon here again to ramble in your inbox

A lot of the reasons I've mentioned and many of your sentiments that I also share are honestly why I consider myself syscourse unaligned/neutral, because both sides have issues I really don't want to deal with and that I think need fixed, and because of that I don't want to align myself with either side of it... I'd rather judge people as they come and I think that I've been like that with a lot of things; It's hard to believe any facet of humanity is gonna fall into strict boxes for me, so I always try to approach things with nuance and open mind.

But as it stands both sides of syscourse have hurt me to a degree honestly, and it kind of? Sucks? Feeling like I belong with neither yet also being scrutinized for not wanting to take part inherently on a side.

I'm too medicalized and traumatized to feel entirely secure in pro-endo spaces, but my personal identity and connection to systemhood is too nuanced to feel secure in anti-endo spaces.

Trying to find spaces for CDDs is so overly riddled with anti-endos who've made these spaces a cesspit of lamenting how much they hate someone else or god forbid places like syscringe that spend their time laughing at people but claiming theyre doing it for the better of stopping misinfo or whatever. Eugh. But when I go into pro-endo spaces I... still struggle fully to find resources that entirely benefit my struggles and help me handle them as they are.

It's rough trying to find a safe AND understanding space among so many thorns. Unfortunately :(

I feel you, I've seen so many anti endos hating on endo/syscourse neutrals and honestly? That just really disgusts me. It really feels like people aren't allowing others to have nuanced views. I totally understand why people are syscourse neutral/unaligned, and I feel like people are way too harsh on yall, especially considering that picking a side can get you harassed over it. The fact that we haven't been harassed yet, especially considering how active we are in syscourse and how many people know about us is pure fucking luck. I don't blame anyone for wanting to just stay out of it, regardless of what their reason for it is. It's exhausting, and actively dangerous, even if you don't talk about it, you're still liable to be harassed. People have *got* to have more respect for yall.

I feel like there's nowhere near enough nuance on either end of it. Endos laser in on acceptance to a fault, leaving people with more medicalized/stereotypical experiences feeling ignored and alone, but then anti endo spaces, while not as filled with pure hate for endos as some might think, there is still a lot of it, and in the desperation to not have our experiences talked over and overlooked, and to keep the communities ""pure"" for lack of a better word, those with more atypical experiences are shunned.

I really want more people to try and find a balance, because the way things are now are just shitty. I really want more spaces that are syscourse neutral/unaligned. I know it's a very hard thing to balance, believe me, running a server for all stances is not for the faint of heart, but I feel like if more of us try, it'll get easier to do. We just need to have NUANCE for once.

I'll admit, it's kinda hard for me to get along with pro endos no matter how hard we try, and we've definitely gotten into drama with mixed origins, and we're just generally very wary of endos, especially created ones, but we still keep trying our hardest, even when we're so, so tempted to go full "pro endos DNI".

I feel like no one on either side bothers to even try to understand the other side of the argument. Pro endos always see us as raging, hate-filled bigots that aren't worth listening to, and anti endos always see pro endos as idiotic children who don't know anything. Nothing good will ever come of continuing to see each other like this, and nothing will ever change if we keep dismissing and ignoring every word from everyone we don't like. It's frankly awful that people keep doing this shit.

-Milkyway

[sams-whumping-ground]

I got a little caught up drawing this to draw the prompt (or was I feeling the Glitch/Axton love that hard? Who knows?). Whoops. Ah, well. To make up for the simple one of yesterday, I guess. I also don't write much and I know my dyslexic ass has made some mistakes somewhere.

Glitch. A well known villain in both the physical and digital world thanks to their ability of technomancy. No one truly knows who they are. Helmet, voice changer, costume. All of it was to ensure their anonymity. They voiced many times before that they liked their privacy after all.

After spending the day operating online, they decide to complete their daily routine by heading out into the night. They hop onto their motorbike and ride off into the city.

Bustling like usual. The night life here would be perfect if it wasn't for the heroes here. Making a mess of everyone's daily lives, their homes, with no regard for their safety, just to get away with it. These were supposed to be the people they swore to protect from the 'villains'. The way Glitch saw it, the heroes were the true villains.

The ride yielded its usual sights. A fight in the centre between a ‘hero’ and their nemesis. Standard. People getting mugged in alleys. Typical. Racers. Gangs. Terf wars. Kidnappings. Armoured vehicles tailing a limo. A tempting notion, but not tonight. Glitch tails the vehicles for a while before they pass the convoy after it stops at a high-end hotel. Likely a party of some sort.

"Pull over, Glitch." someone called from the vehicle beside them.

"No. I haven't done anything." retorted Glitch through their voice changer.

"Yet. Pull over before we make you."

"Not with that attitude."

This was typical. As far as anyone was concerned they were out for a night ride, but some 'hero' had to go ahead and ruin that.

Glitch makes their escape. They glide through the traffic being careful of the other road users. Hero? Charging through the traffic with the same lack of regard as usual.

Glitch leads Hero and Sidekick off the main road to somewhere less crowded. Hero's car rams the side of their motorbike sending them careening. The sudden sound of metal scraping along the tarmac. The grating of Kevlar. The bollard to Glitch's back.

Pulling themselves to their knees, the shoes of Hero came into view. Then Sidekick's a little behind them. Glitch is pulled up by the collar of their jacket.

"Told you we'd make you pull over." the hero scoffed. "What do you have planned for tonight? Going to rob some poor old woman? Bully some upstarts?"

"You’ve got me confused for someone else. I don't do those things." Glitch replied.

"Oh. So you don't steal anything or bully new heroes?" chimed the sidekick.

"I never said that. I only said I don't rob innocent old people and upstarts can mean anything." countered Glitch. "Who said I had something planned anyway?"

"You're a villain. You always have something planned."

"Not this time, Hero. Who are you calling a 'villain' anyway? As far as I'm concerned, that's your title. You all just call yourselves 'heroes' just so you can sleep at night. Has he told you how many casualties he's had during his term, Sidekick? How about the number of coverups? No? Not surprising really. What kind of 'hero' would he be to you if you knew?"

Hero had enough of Glitch. In the split second that he let go of them and they were still in the air, Hero punches Glitch clean in the abdomen. Sent flying through the air and into a building a little further down the road.

Before Glitch can recover, Hero was on top of them and had punched them through the wall into the next. This repeated again, and again, and again.

When they could finally recover, Glitch managed to sit up in the bed of rubble they were in. They were hurting. Not that anyone could really tell. Under the helmet, they were coughing up blood, wincing, and trying their hardest to keep their composure.

"Playing nice or are you just showing off?" hissed Glitch.

"I'm just getting started, you waste of space." Hero assured them as his knuckles cracked.

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

~~Taglist~~ [If you'd like to be added to the taglist please let me know]

@theninjabozo @confirmedcannibal @the-sinkmire-symphony @bestlittlesnek

[blu3-ja3]

Last one in the series! Woo Price! This will be a bit more backstory heavy for O'Connor. After this I've got like 6 little shorts so I can clear out my drafts to start working on the story!

!TRIGGER WARNING! Suicidal Ideations, Grief, Domestic Abuse

1) Coffee: Black with Two Sugar

I knew it was going to be a long day as soon as I walked into the mess. Usually the smell of coffee being brewed is the first thing you smell but not today. I walk towards Soap and Gaz who are currently at a table with the coffee machine gutted, electrics scattered across the table.

"What did you do to it?"

"I'm trying to fix it Doc, before Price walks in."

"What the hell happened to it?"

"Don't know, trying to figure that out." I shake my head and hope I can get into the kitchen.

They don't let me into the kitchen and refuse to brew just one cup of coffee. I'm heavily tempted to pull rank just to brew Price a cup of coffee, the man becomes a monster to work with if he doesn't get his coffee. And most days on base I'm the one who interacted with him the most. I step out to see the man himself standing next to the table with Gaz and Soap, Roach has joined them trying to fix the machine.

"Here." Ghost appears next to me, handing me a mug of black coffee.

"How di-"

"I know the Captain is a bloody bastard without his morning coffee."

"But how did you get into the mess?"

"My specialty is infiltration Doc... And I really don't want to deal with Price without his fix."

I thank the lieutenant and quickly make my way towards Prince. I can tell he's getting antsy already so I hand over the cup of coffee. I see the tension leave his body and I feel the men around me relax. Everyone has their creature comforts and for John Price it's a cup of black coffee with two sugars first thing in the morning.

2) What's Next?

I'm laying in bed as two people enter the room. These dumb feckin doctors have me positioned so that the side that was bandaged and basically blind was towards the door. I can't see who just entered my room. I hated this, I've asked them multiple times to change my rooms but they refuse. I can't really turn my head to look at who came in either so I just lay and hope they'll move to where I can see them.

I recognize my former CO instantly, he has more facial hair but I'd recognize that buckets hat anywhere. The woman I remember meeting a few times, Laswell, I never really interacted with her too much but she seemed nice enough. I don't understand why they're here but I'm sure I'm about to find out. Price leans over and whispers something to her before Laswell leaves the room.

"Hello Maevis... Would you like to talk?"

"I'm surprised you asked, most just coming in and start blabbing..." I see him nod before moving the chair to my right to a place on my left.

"Tell me, and be honest with me Maevis, how are you holding up?"

I bite the inside of my cheek as I felt tears well up. I've not seen this man for about a decade, not since I finished my divorce and was transferred to another team. Will was 8 when we last saw Price. But the first thing he does is check in, making sure I'm okay... He's still the same man who helped me through one of the hardest moments of my life. And here he is again. I let the tears fall as I speak.

"It's been hell, you know about Will? About what happened at Piccadilly," he nods sullenly.

"Yeah, know about it a little too well. Sorry I missed the funeral, I told you what I could, about where I was." I nodded remembering the note I received on my desk two days before the funeral.

"I held Will's funeral, Oliver and Da made it their personal mission to guilt me for everything they could think of. Had the nerve to demand that I not cremate him, demanded he be buried with Da's family. I told them about his tombstone that would be placed next to Ma's in Ireland." I reached up and held the green glass four leaf clover charm around my neck.

"After that I couldn't stay home, had to go, anywhere would do. So they sent me and my team to assist with refugees, they needed medical care and I was more than happy to help..." I couldn't look at Price, I knew there was pity on his face. I can't handle seeing that look anymore. So I look out the window, I'm not looking at anything in particular but it's better than seeing that look.

"Our tent was burned down, they attacked just us, going after the sick and injured. I survived, no one else did, a part of me wishes I didn't. I can't stand to sleep, every time I close my eyes I'm there again. And then the higher ups have to gall to promote me!"

"Really?"

"Yes sir! I'm Captain feckin' Maevis O'Connor! What a load of gobshite!" I felt bitter and sick when calling myself a captain. I don't feel like a captain, I couldn't protect myself, let alone those under me.

"They come to me asking a million questions and want me to retire. Don't want me anymore..."

"Do you want to retire?"

"Honestly? No, as soon as I'm on my own I know I'd eat a bullet. I know it's not healthy, but I didn't join this career because it was healthy..."

"I have an offer, I'm putting together a team and I need a second in command. I trust you Maevis, got a good head on your shoulders when you're in the field. And you're one hell of a doctor, I need a good doctor to keep these muppets alive."

"When do we start?"

"As soon as you're given the all clear, which will be in a few days yeah?" I nod

"Good Laswell will be here, she'll help with the paperwork of having you transferred and she'll debrief you on your team..."

"Can't wait Captain!"

Relief flooding my system. I'm going to be useful again, I can help again. And I'll be with an old friend. This will be good... The very thing I've hoped for but thought was impossible with everything going on around me. I have hope again.

3) Barefoot and Pregnant

I don't know where we're going, I'm just letting John drive. I'm in his truck, soaking wet and barely clothed. My face throbbed from where Oliver punched me, it wasn't the first time he'd laid his hands on me but something finally snapped. Maybe it was learning that he's been having an affair with my sister Bridget, maybe it was Da being right there when Oliver struck me and him doing nothing, maybe I finally realized that I'd end up like Ma if I stayed.

I walked to my office grabbed my phone and the divorce papers John helped me draft up and put together. I shoved them into Oliver's chest and left, walking out in nothing but my nightgown. I was so relieved when John picked up. He came right away, didn't ask any questions just helped me into his truck and drove.

"Whe-"

"Are you leaving him?" I nod in response.

"Maevis I need to hear you say it..."

"I'm leaving him John, I can't do it. I can't bring my baby boy into a world where I'm being beat by his father... I can't be my mother. I love her, rest her soul but I can't do what she did... If that makes me a coward so be it..."

"You're braver than she was, we're going to my place... I'll pop by the shop to get you something to wear for tonight. Tomorrow we're going to get some of yours and the babys things from Oliver... For now we're saying you're staying with Kinsey, I'm sure she'll be okay with that."

"Saying? Will I not actually be there?"

"No you bloody won't, you'll be staying with me."

"Lieutenant I can't I don't want to impo-"

"That's an order Sergeant. I don't want you out of my sight, Oliver is a violent man. And you're 8 months pregnant Maevis, you won't be imposing I've got a spare room and an office I don't use."

"What about-"

"I'm owed some leave I'm sure Kate won't mind."

"Thank you John."

"You're repaying me by leaving him Maevis."

"I am, I gave him the papers as I left."

4) A Comforting Talk

My leg is bouncing rapidly as John drives me to the cemetery. He told me to get into his truck and we had a day. He took me to get a bouquet of hydrangeas and forget me nots and then we drove towards Galway.

We stopped just outside the gates of the cemetery and he let me lead the way. It has been a bit since I was last here but I knew where to find his tombstone by heart.

I slowed a bit as I spotted the squared topped tombstone, my hands are sweating as I walked up, crouched down and sat on my knees in front of his tombstone. I can hear John walk up to me before standing next to me. Price sets something on top of Will's grave, I look to see a plane replica.

"Got you something Will, thought you'd like it. You always talked about flying that one."

Price stepped back standing behind me. He reaches down and pats my shoulder. I realized I'm crying slightly before I turned back to Will.

"We got you some flowers as well darling, talked to Jennifer and asked her what we should get you. She um said to get forget-me-nots... The um... florist said hydrangeas would go well so..." I swallow because it feels like my heart in throat.

We stayed for a bit while I talked to Will, about Jennifer his ex-girlfriend, about how his friends are doing, about everything I'm doing. Once I started I couldn't stop, it was cathartic. Eventually I said goodbye and walked back with John.

"Thank you"

"Anytime Maeve, it was nice to hear you were just chatting. Maybe next time we can bring the boys, I'm sure they'd like to visit." I smile and nod.

5) Paternal

"Go ask your mother, I will not give you the all clear if she doesn't..." I hear Price's smile as I walk into the rec room.

"What am I being asked?" I see the three younger 141 soldiers turn around towards me, all three giving their best puppy dog eyes. Price is standing next to Ghost who has his shaking head in his hand. I let out a deep sigh before gesturing for them to go ahead and ask.

"There's 3 extra rolls of duct tape from the move, we want to try something!" Roach is the one to ask... There's so much that could go wrong but it's been quite around here so I'm curious.

"And what is it that you're planning to do?"

"They're going to try and pin me 3 v 1, if they win I let them..." I hear Ghost take a deep sigh looking towards Soap.

"I let them duct tape me to their chosen surface... BUT IF I WIN!" All three look towards him as though they've not heard this part.

"If you win Ghost?" Gaz seems to be teasing the man with the prompt.

"If I win I'm duct taping all three of you and leaving you. You'll have to figure out how to get yourselves out."

"Deal!"

"Sounds Fair!"

"That's easy!"

All the men look towards me. I let out an exasperated sigh before saying yes. Immediately all three boys run over towards the ring with Ghost trailing quietly behind them. I walk over to one of the nearby folding chairs to watch, Price comes to sit down next to me.

The four immediately started fighting, and unsurprisingly Ghost was holding his own very well. The three younger soldiers aren't coordinating together just yet so Ghost isn't struggling.

"Why did I let you convince me to have kids?"

"To be fair I didn't think we'd have so many..."

"How did we end up as a married couple with 4 kids?"

"I don't know you're the one who had a kid first and was actually married..."

"To be fair my marriage was nothing compared to this one, at least we're both consenting to sleeping with others."

"What do you mean I've never slept with anyone else."

I actually laughed at how fake offended John sounded at that sentence. I watched as Gaz and Soap started using Roach as a distraction against Ghost, good strategy.

"John you forget, I'm the one who provides the whole base with condoms and lube. It's not hard to connect the dots when you come to my office and go to the drawer then Gaz is limping the next morning..."

I laughed even harder as John pulled his bucket hat down to cover his eye and cheeks with shadows. Ghost has picked up on the boy's strategy and has decided to go after Gaz and Soap.

"At least I knew I was gay and didn't deny it for years."

"I have no idea what you're talking about John!"

"Mhm, and I didn't have to watch you oggle every lady we interacted with for years!"

"I'm no better than a man!"

"Remember the first time you saw Kate in tactical gear?"

" I DIDN'T KNOW SHE WAS MARRIED! No one told me until after I started a hole in her shirt!"

"I'm almost positive if you asked her out Kate and Sarah would absolutely go on a date with you..."

"Kate has to deal with enough paperwork regarding internal fraternization I doubt she'd like more."

"She has more complaints about us being together than anyone else."

"Really?"

"Yes, some new private keep pestering her with complaints."

"I'm sure she's handling."

I look up to see all three of the younger soldiers finally pin Ghost. They all hop up and start celebrating as me and Price start walking over.

"Cheaters, you used Soap against me"

"All's fair in love and war LT!"

They all drag Ghost out of the ring and Soap kisses him on the cheek.

Don't ask me how but eventually, using all the duct tape, the boys manage to have Simon duct taped to the wall. He was so high up that his head was rubbing against the roof.

"Ghost do you mind getting the cobwebs in the corners?"

"I would if I could move my bloody arms Doc!"

He seemed very much stuck as he was wiggling like crazy. All three were laughing up a storm, Roach was rolling on the floor and Gaz was nearly crying. I smiled softly at the group that surrounded me. How lucky I am to have these people around me.

COD Master List

[seangelfish]

Matching keychains

Ramuda Amemura x Reader

Genre/s: Angst (no comfort)

Word count: 2,788

Plot/Summary: This feeling has always been lingering in the back of his mind, but he knew that this can't last forever. Despite loving you for so long, he finally decides to let you go.

A/N: I recommend you listen to the instrumental of Buster Bros' Re:start whilst reading this as I was listening to it whilst writing this and honestly, it made the angst 10x worse! I might continue this fic because I actually really like it, and I love Ramuda so why not?

[I love Hypmic so much and I've always wanted to write fics surrounding the franchise, but I'm still pretty new to it, so please bare with me on how I portray these characters. I'm trying my hardest to make these accurate to the character as possible. Thank you for understanding and I hope you enjoy reading!]

There was something important that you needed to get done today and it involved you visiting the most popular toy shop in Shibuya. This city was known for its shopping let alone its vast entertainment, fashion, and restaurants, so this task was bound to be easy for you!

You stepped inside the building in awe at the wide range of plushies. They ranged from big to small, from animals to people to even little accessories for them as well! You were already tempted to get something for yourself, but that wasn't the reason why you were here.

You wondered around the shop trying to find a specific item in stock. It was extremely crowded, so you ended up bumping into a lot of other customers.

Hmm, where could it be? you thought to yourself, already overwhelmed. It should be here...!

Thankfully, a shop assistant caught your eye and helped you find the item that you were looking for. Once you were shown the selection of plushie keychains, your worries disappeared just like that. You thanked the worker profusely.

You giggled to yourself as you picked up the two matching bunny keychains. One was pink whilst the other one was white. Both bunnies were wearing bows of the other's colour. It was so cute!

"Ramuda would love this!" you chirped.

Yes, the sole reason you came to this particular area was to buy a little gift for your boyfriend, Ramuda. You saw the two plushies advertised on your Twitter feed and instantly thought of him. You thought it would be so cute to have matching keychains with the love of your life!

You exited the store happily with the plushies you just bought. You can't wait to surprise Ramuda with them, and it was a perfect day to do so because he had asked you to meet up with him this evening.

"I wonder what he has planned for us tonight~" you wondered excitedly.

In his shop, Ramuda was anxiously scribbling in his sketchbook, thinking of ideas on what new clothes to design but to no avail because all he could think about was you.

The page he was currently working on was now filled with messy, indescribable pencil scratches. Whatever he was doodling wasn't pretty and he knew of it. He just wanted to rip everything out, destroy everything until these feelings of his were no more.

"Are you okay?" asked Gentarou, looking at Ramuda's sketches from behind his shoulder.

And as on cue, Ramuda immediately slammed his sketchbook shut and answered cheerfully, "I'm A-OK! I'm just having art block at the moment! Nothing too serious. I'll try again later~!"

Gentarou didn't believe a second of it, but shrugged it off.

"Just so you know," Gentarou began. "You can always tell–"

Ramuda cut him off. "I'm alright," he said slowly.

He jumped up from his seat to give his usual little twirl.

"Well, I'm off to see (Y/N) now~!" he exclaimed. "She's waiting for me, so I have to be there quick! I'll be back, so you don't need to close the shop. See you later~!"

Gentarou watched his friend skip out of the shop hurriedly. Once he was gone, Dice entered.

"I just saw Ramuda run out," he stated. "He wasn't looking too good. Is he okay?"

Gentarou merely shook his head.

You idled around the park, taking in the cool breeze and the amber sunset above. It truly was a beautiful evening and you couldn't wait to spend it with Ramuda.

A thought popped into your head. You should take a picture of the plushies you bought today with the sunset in the background!

You placed the two bunnies down on one of the park's benches, positioning them together as if they were holding hands. You giggled to yourself at how embarrassing this was, but it was such a cute idea! You were thankful that the park was empty at this time.

You quickly snapped a picture and to your satisfaction, it was the most beautiful picture of a sunset you have ever taken. You couldn't wait to post this on your Instagram page with your lover tagged!

"(Y/N)!"

You could hear faint footsteps running towards you. Shoving the plushies back into your bag before Ramuda could see them, you turned around to greet your boyfriend with the brightest smile on your face.

His pace slowed down as he stopped a few metres away from you. Seeing you smile at him like that made his heart ache. He would usually match your expression, but this time, he returned your smile with a look of such emptiness that it just wasn’t hard to miss.

Your smile faded away quickly.

"Ramuda... are you okay...?"

The distance between you two was unbearable, but you knew that you weren’t permitted to cross the invisible barrier Ramuda was holding up. So, you stayed stuck to your spot, and he did too.

“(Y/N),” he repeated, but with sadness to his tone. “Remember when you asked me where my parents were… or what my childhood was like?”

You didn’t know where he was going with this.

He continued, “…or which high school I attended? Who I was before I became a fashion designer? Before The Dirty Dawg? …But I didn’t answer any of it?”

You stared at him. He wasn't the Ramuda you were used to seeing everyday. His demeanour was completely different, but it wasn't too much of a surprise to you. Sometimes, you'd catch glimpses of this other personality, but you doubt he'd ever catch you noticing it.

“…I had none of what you had, none of what the average person has had in their lives. You could even say that I did not even have a life before any of this. You may not believe me, (Y/N), but what I’m going to tell you from this point on is the truth. Unfortunately, I can’t give you too many details as it’s not in my right.”

He watched your expression, the confusion and worry on your face. You wanted to ask him why he was bringing this up now, but you continued to stay in your spot, awaiting his explanation.

As he stated before, he didn’t bring up too many details. Though, he confessed that the personality he presented to others including you was all made up – a lie. He mentioned that he wasn’t the ‘real Ramuda’ and that he could never be the real one. He told you that he merely exists for someone else, not himself, and if he were to disobey them, he would be killed. He described himself as ‘defective’ as if he was a product. He revealed why he was a massive sweet tooth as the lollipops helped him to continue living.

“And that’s why… we should break up,” he said finally. “I’m just going to cause you trouble if I continue to be with you.”

You were speechless. It was so much to take in. He had finally told you about his background, but now he was suggesting that you two should break up. You didn’t know what to say, but all you wanted to do in that moment was to touch him.

“So please–” he began.

You pulled him in, letting his chin rest on your shoulder as your other hand held his head gently. It was getting hard to breathe as tears streamed down your face. Ramuda was frozen, his eyes showing nothing but perplexity.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that all on your own," you whispered. “I’m sorry if I wasn’t too attentive or if I wasn’t there for you.”

Ramuda chuckled with some sort of annoyance.

“It’s not your fault, (Y/N). You were always there for me; I just never made those feelings known. But we need to end things now. You can never truly be happy with me for who I am and what I will have to deal with in the future. Things will get too complicated and not only will it hurt you but me as well.”

Even when he was saying all of that, his arms couldn’t help but hug you back. He couldn’t stop himself from shedding a few tears. Why did you believe him so easily? Why did you trust him so much? Why do you still care about him even after confessing that his whole character was fake?

And as if you were reading his mind, you replied, “I don’t want to end things with you. I don’t care about who you were, I just care about who you are right now… even… even if it’s a lie. I don’t care. I know how kind and passionate you are. We can easily overcome these obstacles, can we not?"

Ramuda was silent, pulling away from your embrace. He shook his head and looked at you sadly.

“(Y/N), I’m going to let you go, and so should you. This is my final decision.”

"Ramuda!"

He smirked. “I’m not going to lie though, I really do love you, and it sucks because I’m going to keep loving you.”

"Then–"

He shook his head, interrupting you. “But we can’t keep doing this. I can’t risk you getting involved and I can’t keep you from being in a better relationship. You can’t be happy with me. So, go find yourself a better man; someone that will always make you feel safe and happy… like Ichiro or something.”

Before you started dating Ramuda, you were close friends with Ichiro. This was during The Dirty Dawg days where the leaders of each division were grouped together. Your friendship with Ichiro was genuine and he was so lovely towards you. You would always laugh with him and shared each other’s stories. People often caught you together by the lake watching the sunset.

Ramuda always felt guilty that he robbed you off a beautiful relationship with Ichiro. But despite knowing your mutual feelings, he still shoved his way through the bubble you and Ichiro had together. He did all he can to pop that little bubble of yours, he’d butt into your conversations whenever he got the chance. He didn’t care whether you liked Ichiro or if Ichiro liked you back, he just wanted you to be his. He liked you too after all! And eventually, with all his attempts of breaking you two up, he succeeded.

“What?! Why are you saying that?!” you cried. "Why would you tell me to go find another lover when all I want is you?! My feelings for Ichiro are in the past now! I don't want him, I just want YOU. Why is this so difficult to understand that I don't care about who you are?!"

“(Y/N), stop!” he shouted. “I’m not going to change my mind!”

He was crying. He was crying as much as you now.

“If I didn’t get in between you two, you would’ve been in a happier relationship. You wouldn’t need to worry about me or the troubles I will cause. You wouldn’t need to worry about where he is or what he’s doing unlike me! He’s genuine and he’s real. He’s probably everything you’ve been looking for in me!” he said as he choked on his words. “I’m sorry for doing that to you two. I should’ve ignored you back then so you wouldn’t need to hear me say all this stuff now.”

The tears in your eyes wouldn't stop flowing, but you were also getting fed up with him. You just wanted to reason with him. You didn’t want to end things like this, not now and not ever.

“I said I don’t care!” you yelled. “Ramuda, I just want to be with you! I will only ever love you!”

Ramuda was stunned at your words, but he laughed even with the tears gushing down his face. He cupped your face with both of his hands and kissed you softly – his last kiss to you.

“Ah, (Y/N), I’m really going to miss you,” he croaked. “I… I really am going to m-miss you…”

"Ramuda, please..."

"It's time for you to forget me, okay?"

How did such a beautiful day turn into something so sad? You just wanted to give him your matching keychains…

He whipped out some sort of device – a hypnosis mic? – and sang something. There was no time to react as everything became a blur. You tried calling out his name once again, but the last image you had of him was of him smiling at you with the glassiest eyes you have ever seen.

A few months from now...

There would be times you would feel some sense of melancholy in the air. That feeling would happen whenever you'd enter a particular shop or area, but you never knew why you felt that way.

Ramuda lived his life as usual. Before he took you home, he erased everything of his existence from your phone, computer, and physical photo albums – anything he could get his hands on. It pained him that he had to do this, but he wanted you to start anew. He hoped that you were still able to fall in love with Ichiro again even if it will hurt him.

"And done!" said Ramuda, finishing off his sketches. "It's perfect. The ladies would love this collection~!"

"Oh, you’re finally done?” Dice said as he munched on his lunch Gentarou paid for. “That was fast.”

Ramuda giggled. He was proud of himself for completing such a task. He couldn't wait to see how the final product will turn out.

"Oh, by the way," he started. "We're going to participate in the Division Rap Battle next week, so be ready~!"

You were convinced by your co-workers to watch the DRB with them after work, so you decided to clean your photo storage. You liked taking pictures whenever you’d attend concerts after all!

As you were going through all your photos, you stumbled upon a photo you didn’t remember taking. It was a photo of two bunny plushies sitting on a bench in front of a beautiful amber sunset; a pink and white bunny who looked like they were holding hands.

"I didn't know I had plushies like that..." you said slowly.

You got up and looked around your room for those plushies. As a result, you made a huge mess, but you were just happy you found one of them. It was the pink bunny with a white bow. However, you couldn’t find the white bunny anywhere, and you searched everywhere for it.

"Weird," you commented, looking at the pink bunny. "When did I buy this again?"

It was fluffy and soft, and the feeling of melancholy washed over you once again. You still didn’t understand why you keep getting that feeling. You shrugged it off like you always did.

Attaching the pink bunny keychain to your bag, you left the house to meet up with your co-workers to get to the stadium.

The stadium was packed. The girls around you were squealing over a particular figure, Ramuda Amemura, who was currently rapping against Matenro.

You haven’t seen Ramuda in a while despite living in the same city. You were good friends with him when The Dirty Dawg was still around, but after they disbanded, you two never kept in touch. He slowly became distant with you which kind of annoyed you because you had heard from the others how he still kept in touch with Ichiro and Samatoki.

You would see him a lot on social media though. He was super popular with the girls, and he had the best fashion sense that was to your taste. You even purchased some of his pieces online.

He was now active in Fling Posse and his raps were as brilliant as they were before. He seemed more energetic too.

You watched him from the seats attentively as the girls around you cheered him on. But you were extremely confused because as Fling Posse lost against Matenro and was ushered to leave the stage, you spotted it – the white bunny keychain, the same one in the picture that matched your pink bunny keychain you currently had hung on your bag. Ramuda had the bunny attached to his hoodie.

And yet you still didn’t understand why this sense of melancholy came back to you, tugging on your heart strings even more than ever. Even when your eyes locked with Ramuda’s for just a second, even when your eyes began to water, you still didn’t understand why you were feeling this way.

For some reason, you just wanted to chase after him and hold him tight, but all you could really do was watch him smile at the crowd and walk away.

Intro page | Hypnosis Mic masterlist | Requests rules

[gloomy-gores-world]

Thinking about the long term effects of my stigma.

and it's just pure angst....

Aka me trying my hardest to write a Blurb of my self insert. Let me know of any constructive criticism y'all have as I'm not very good at writing things. Also if anything is off, I apologize. I'm just starting the 8th episode.

(Psst. Rubia come look. @twstchatterbox )

major content warnings for: angst, Body horror

He was a regular civilian. I mean sure he was a little off-key from the rest of society. But that is never really a bad thing. Yeah, he was othered, stared at, and even occasionally overheard things said about him behind his back. Although despite how mean people were. He never gave up his faith in the kindness of others. In fact he almost seemed to double down on it. Constantly trying to do his part to make the world a better place. Even if it's small actions like complimenting people on things.

Emerald's time at Darkwick was a maelstrom of emotions. After all he was picked up from his normal life like a modern day Dorothy. However there was no magical tornado in his tale. And instead of being sent on a seemingly wonderful character-building adventure, the plot line he's been put in seemingly much more suited for a horror movie. His life was never supposed to end up like this really.

Though that fateful day changed everything. It was pretty chaotic, but it was fun. Hanging out with his friends and doing other fun things. It was just straight up having fun at the end of the day. It wasn't his plan to meet that demon at all. It was a pure accident, a spur of the moment thing that happened.

It most definitely wasn't in his plans to make that pact either. However, it seemed like such a sweet deal. After all, the negatives seemed relatively equal to what he was going to gain from it. He would finally be able to protect those he cares about, and that was a huge win in his book. After all he was never really athletic or strong or whatnot. Most times prior, if he were to get into any fights it would have been easy to kick his teeth in. Not that he liked fighting in the first place. Giving him the ability to stand up for not only himself, but others too was such an easy way to tempt him into taking the forbidden fruit.

Now looking back it's surprising he didn't realize it sooner. He didn't fully realize the gravity of the consequences. Or the way he'd be losing his humanity at the time.

He thought that he'd lose his non-physical humanity. He'd become apathetic, indifferent, and detached from his prior compassionate, bleeding heart ways. He thought he'd lose some, if not most of his empathy and sympathy. He believed he'd become what many would call a "cold hearted monster". But he would still be able to continue helping others in the end despite of it. It would be something instantaneous, yet extremely hard to live with in the long run. Causing unintentional pain to those around him.

It's what he expected the consequences to be. It's what he believed that would happen. After all it was something so good, and stuff like that deal always has to have a major downside. And boy, did it. But it wasn't what he expected at all.

He will never forget the bone chilling shock from still feeling "normally" despite the deal being set. But he could deal with being physically monstrous. But when he looked into that mirror, his blood ran cold. He looked relatively normal. Of course his teeth were a little sharper now, and his ears were a bit too pointy for a human. But the fact he was relatively "Normal" was something that made him feel a cosmic amount of deep, dreadful, primal, fear within him.

He came to the mortifying realization that his loss of humanity wouldn't be something instantaneous. He wouldn't just have the band-aid ripped off, left to immediately deal with the repercussions of his actions. He would have to slowly watch as he became something unrecognizable. The permanent effect from taking on a monstrous form to protect those he cares for like some cheap knockoff magical girl. Forced to watch as he slowly drives away those he cares about as he slowly becomes a monster. He'd lose all physical aspects of his humanity. He'd become an anomaly as Darkwick likes to call them.

Of course when Darkwick found out. They forcefully stepped in under a kind guise, something like helping him or whatever. He doesn't fully believe that, but had no other choice than to go along with what they said. He knows that his future as a non-humanoid anomaly is inevitable. He just hopes he gets treated with the same kindness and compassion he gave out when he was human enough. After all he's seen first hand how Darkwick typically treats anomalies.

[sincerely-astra]

☁️The hardest part of waking up - Trishna Jiwa x Ricky Potts☁️

“Ricky…”

“…”

“Ricky.”

“…”

“I know you’re awake. Please let me out…, I need to get back home.”

Despite the threat of her parents, silence continues to fill the air as Trishna’s plea falls on deaf ears, her wiggling and pushing to get away from her oh-so-clingy boyfriend not making a difference as the fatigue just hits her sooner or later. The exhaustion quickly makes her give up as she just sighs exasperatedly into Ricky’s embrace.

As much as she loves him, Ricky Potts can be really freaking stubborn sometimes...

While Trishna feels a pout form on her lips, just knowing that this was gonna get her into a lot of trouble later, suddenly she can feel Ricky's chest start to shake a little, tightening just to release before tightening again. Knowing exactly what was happening, her warm brown eyes gaze up to find Ricky silently chuckling, his face contorted into one of glee at her misfortune. Her brows furrow, feeling tempted to use this opportunity to break out of his clutches, but instead, she asks in an unimpressed tone, "What are you laughing for? You know this is serious." That wasn't the complete truth... As strict as her parents were, Trishna honestly wasn't taking this whole thing too seriously.

It was kind of hard to when she finds a reluctant smile start creeping up on her lips as she watches Ricky finally calm down enough to sign back to her, "Sorry, sorry..." If she wasn't before, Trishna knew for sure now that she was blushing, the brunette's bright smile so lovely and pleasant to look at... He could commit so many crimes, and she just knows the world would forgive him with a grin like that.

"I'm not sorry for not letting you out though, you're are trapped here forever now." Ricky continues, his amused face turning smug as Trishna's eyes narrow. Being as logical and as unwilling to play along with his games as ever, Trishna blunty replies with, "You have to let me out at some point." Her unwillingness to play along didn't deter Ricky though, who just rolled his eyes. "Uh, yes, I can."

Trying to pull away once more, a returned sense of motivation to escape the cacoon shes trapped in filling her. "No, you can't. we both have to eat at some point."

"Nope, we'll just photosynthesize."

"We can't; we don't have Chloroplasts. We are also gonna need to go to the bathroom at some point."

"You can hold it."

"Well..., what about your cats? Who's gonna feed them, hm?"

"My parents, obviously."

"...Uhm, there's still the issue about my parents. You know how they are, and you know that they won't let me see you for at least a week once I get back home."

"Guess I gotta make the time I have with my lovely girlfriend count before she's locked away again then, huh."

As they go back and forth in this playful discourse of theirs, every reason Trishna keeps bringing up to hopefully get Ricky to finally relent and let her go only gets rebuttled by whatever silly remark the boy can come up with to keep her with him longer. Even with all the pushing and pulling away she was doing, Ricky must have been using whatever strength he could with his arms (or it could be the fact that in reality, she definitely wasn't trying too hard-), but eventually Trishna just let out a groan as she was once again stopped from leaving.

She took a moment to breathe and process what she wanted to do next, her body 100% betraying her mind as it longed to be next to Ricky's warm body once more while the logical part of herself begged to get up. It was an internal fight she really wasn't feeling up for at 8 in the morning on a Sunday... Trishna's body relaxes into the plush mattress below her, closing her eyes and having to world around her disappear.

He really wasn't gonna let go, was he?

As she feels she's done a hundred times in just the last few minutes, Trishna sighs internally with a large sense of defeat.

Gliding over to the arms of the boy she loves so very much, Trishna rests her face on his shoulder. She could feel his hands moving from her waist to her hair, his fingers quickly finding themselves entangled in it, a habit he'd picked up when they first started dating. A warm peace just as quickly takes over whatever regret or dread she was feeling in that moment, leaving only the feeling of love inside of her.

Was it the smart decision? No, her parents will be furious after she goes hours without contacting them for a boy.

Does she care? Not at the moment, no.

A small hum of satisfaction leaves her lips, and Trishna mutters, "Okay, fine... Five more minutes it is."

A/N: I love them so much actually, they are such freaking nerds. :')

Honestly, I am kind of thinking of starting a series of fics where I write short fics for each and every ship in RTC. (Obviously, excluding Noel x women and anything incestuous.) I just really love the potential of ships like Talia x Ocean and Tammy x Hank. I seriously need more rare pairs in my life!!

That's just a thought, though. I'll see how I feel later, lmao.

[thecurioustale]

Course Correction

We live and learn, and I'm a big proponent of making changes when things need changing. I've been thinking the past few days about what to do with this blog after my bad experience last week.

Social media is a dangerous place, with many riptides that can carry you away quite suddenly. On the same day last week, I had posted three different posts of consequence: My cute "Federated Cereals" post, the only artistic post of the three and the one I would have liked the most engagement on, got no interest at all. My post about blocking all the "Death to Israel" tag users on Tumblr got by far the most Likes, but generated very little real engagement. And my post about how I'm not gonna treat ex-MAGAs like members of the fam who deserve praise and back-slapping just for leaving the fascist movement in 2025 when the stink of Hitlerism is still hanging thickly about them...that one is the one that caught all the engagement, but it left a sick taste in my mouth and had me questioning why I am even on this site.

I'm here to build interest in my fiction. What I would really like to do is have conversations about that. But that's tricky, of course, because I have very little published fiction and I'm quite guarded about spoilers for the upcoming stuff. So in lieu of those kinds of interactions, I've tried to be my authentic self in general, reblogging or writing originally about topics that interest me or occupy my mind, reblogging stuff that I want to boost (mostly art), and fitting in the occasional talk about my own art where I can think of opportunities to do so.

That's a workable goal here on Tumblr, but I have realized that, if I go on with it, I need to be more selective about who I am following and what I am reblogging. And, like I said last week, I need to be mindful of my own limited mental resilience for getting into debates with people. I need to assume that no one is going to agree with anything I say; that everything is going to be challenged. That's how real life is, after all, and total agreement is no fun anyway. But whereas I can absorb many kinds of disagreements, I have been reminded that I have "weak spots" as it were when it comes to viewpoints that I find personally sickening. Even now it disgusts me just thinking about it. "Oh, we won't win elections if we don't suck up to the goddamn Nazis who put down their swastikas only because eggs are still expensive and their uncle got fired from the government." Like...really? Really? That's your great wisdom after decades living on this planet?

Let me tell you...I have been heartbroken but also immensely relieved in recent days to see that the rest of the free world is seeing straight through America's bullshit and is rightly shunning us. We deserve it. We've gaslit ourselves, and failed ourselves, but the rest of the world is holding us to account, and thank the stars for that.

Still...the question of how to move forward here un Tumblr has been floating around in the back of my mind. My three options are clear: I could just leave; we must never forget that option. I could go forward as a sanitized "brand" account that only talks about stuff which is directly or topically related to my creative work. Or I could continue on as my authentic self and try to be more selective about who I follow and what I engage with, like I mentioned.

The second option is the most tempting of the three, but represents the hardest road. The posts about my art are usually the ones that get the least traction, which is understandable since nobody knows about my art yet.

But I think I'm going to try it for a little while, and see what happens. It's what I was doing when I first made a serious effort to build a presence on this site, writing effortpost essays every couple of days. Nothing came of it, and maybe that's indicative of a dead end, or maybe I just didn't stick with it long enough. Someone on here (I don't remember whom) did write a very thoughtful message to me explaining how it had all played out for them, and "time" seemed to be the key. Most of the users on this site are very young and very ill-behaved, and aren't a stable population for building a following from. But over a long period of time, perhaps the right kinds of messaging can draw out the people who are more mature, more serious, and more thoughtful.

So! Going forward, until further notice at least, this blog will be more art-focused. That doesn't completely preclude things like contentious political writing, but I'm going to try to be disciplined and austere about putting myself into situations that have a strong chance to upset me. Mostly it's just going to be reblogs of nice pictures or stories, and occasional essays by me about my own work or in response to the work of others. And I'll take stock of in the future and see how this is working out for me.

[staccatothejazzman]

What is your favourite episode of Johnny Staccato

Ooh, my first ask on this blog. Hi and thank you!

This is a really tough question because save for some outliers, I really think the entire series is excellent. And to be honest, I can't pick just one. So I'll try and outline my favorites, in no particular order, best I can because I'm not good with words. Under the cut, to avoid spoilers for people who haven't seen the series:

Episode 18, The Only Witness. I like it because we get to see Waldo fret over Johnny when he gets shot. At one point he full-on yells at Johnny because he just waves off his concern (one of many times within the series that he does this.) And of course my favorite line, "What do you expect to shoot with that cannon, an elephant?" The interaction with Shad, the scene with Clara, when Johnny finds Waldo out in his car - another instance of Waldo calling him John, I don't know I just really like Johnny's relationship with Waldo is all and wish there were more episodes on it.

Episode 19, Night of Jeopardy. It was directed by Cassavetes. Need I say more? Morris Buchanan's performance as Bobo, the bad guys holding Waldo, Hatcheck and Dennis hostage... But MOST OF ALL. When they start attacking Waldo and threatening him specifically, Johnny's face... THAT PART sold it for me. You don't see him crack like that often.

Episode 2, Murder for Credit. Another Cassavetes directed episode. Not sure why but when I first watched this, in the beginning I was thinking Rosemary (Marilyn Clark) was the killer, but the way they revealed Jerry Lindstrom (Martin Landau) was very well done. When Jerry asked Johnny, "What you said about the piece, it'll be played? For a long time, it'll be played? You'll play it, now and then, won't you?" it was... Ouch. As Waldo says, "Strange. A guy who writes music like that turns out to be a murderer. It's a funny world." Episode 7, Evil. Yet another episode where Cassavetes takes directing helm. I personally think Alexander Scourby was perfect casting as the villain.

Episode 8, Murder in Hi-Fi. Waldo gets threatened here to hire on a singer, and Johnny eventually finds out about it--but not after being beat up of course. He knows something's wrong, and while Waldo is fretting over him Johnny's having none of it. Waldo won't talk--"come on, Waldo, when you clam up like this I know something's on your mind"--but when he does... Johnny's immediately out on the prowl.

Episode 9, Fly, Baby, Fly. I don't think this one needs explaining. John & Gena, amazing suspense.

Episode 10, Tempted. The ending especially. Seeing Johnny look so sad like that made me want to yell at Faye. John and Elizabeth Montgomery were great together here.

Episode 12, The Wild Reed.

Episode 14, The Return. The episode that reveals Johnny is a Korean War veteran. The scene where he confronts Eddie Dasko is very well done.

Episode 16, Collector's Item.

Episode 20, Double Feature. Okay, so maybe the doppelganger trope has been done to death thousands times over. But this episode, there's something about it that I like. Johnny dealing with Joe Gillen who was already hard on him in A Piece of Paradise, Waldo backing him up when he gets arrested, "You know perfectly well John wouldn't do something like that!" and Johnny's just trying his hardest to convince people that yeah, he wouldn't. Plus, his remark: "My secret way out of here is to not break the law in the first place. It's a big secret, but you can have it for nothing, pal." I love his wit so much lmao

Episode 21, The List of Death.

Episode 22, Solomon. Cassavetes directs again. Elisha Cook Jr., returns too, alongside John, and Cloris Leachman. The noir feel of this is absolutely amazing.

Episode 25, Mask of Jason.

And finally, Episode 26, A Nice Little Town. Most people review this one badly?? I don't know why?! It's a favorite of mine.