#i've been having quite a few of these lately

[shouldhavestayedawayfromhere]

I've been befriending a pair of ravens lately. They listen to my call and show up when I visit them. Today, I saw them defending their territory against another pair of ravens. Quite a few of them live in that area, but I've never seen them interact before. Today they did, because there was a person who fed another pair of ravens just a minute before I came. So they followed me a bit. My raven friends were not amused to have them around. It was quite fascinating to watch.

[greenwitchfromthewoods]

second chance. l Frankie "Catfish" Morales

Summary: you broke up after a quarrel, now you've met again

Warnings: angst, mentioning drug addiction, crying, breakup, mentioned Santi, some fluff at the end

A/N: I had to clear my head. I'm not proud of it, but I had to write something. Be gentle. Thank you for being here and reading these scribbles.

your feedback is very important to me and I want to thank you for all the reblogs, comments and likes. I secretly hope you like this story.🖤 sorry for all the mistakes

[my masterlist][Frankie Morales masterlist]

"Hi, you look good."

You didn't expect those words, but you knew that voice so well that your heart skipped a beat. A strange feeling filled your body, as if someone had suddenly stripped you of all your insides and left you empty. Even though the pub was filled with people, suddenly it was just you and him.

"Hi, Frankie." You replied, trying to keep your voice neutral. "You look good too."

A small smile appeared on his lips, he probably realized that it was just a polite greeting. A greeting for those who know each other. But you were more than that, right?

You didn't expect to meet him in this pub that evening. It was a strange assumption, because after all, you lived in the same city. However, when you break up with someone, and that breakup was like a hurricane and an earthquake in one, you don't usually try to meet them again soon.

And so it was with you and Frankie. Almost a year ago, maybe a little longer. And now he was standing in front of you. In a clean shirt and dark jeans, in a cap you knew so well. Brown eyes stared at you with the same attentiveness as before. He really looked good. Like he had a good night's sleep, eaten a few solid meals and... was clean.

"Do you come here often?" he asked, he noticed you looking around the crowd of people looking for someone with your eyes. "Um, are you here with someone?"

"With a friend." you replied. "Do you remember Sarah?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I remember. A girls' night out?"

"Something like that. But no, I don't come here often. I don't have much free time."

Frankie smiled, and a part of your brain woke up sending you a signal - you loved his smile so much.

"I always thought you worked too much." he said, winking at you.

"That's not it." you looked down and there was silence for a moment.

You felt embarrassed by his presence, but it wasn't uncomfortable. You had worked through all the bad feelings you had when you broke up, and you actually missed him a little. Did it make sense? You had broken your hearts, but you still missed him. Was it masochistic?

"I've been going to school for a while now. You know, I told you about it. Back in the day..."

Frankie's eyes widened with interest as he remembered what you were talking about. "No, shit! Really? That's great! You've wanted to do this for a long time, so good for you."

A warm feeling crept up the back of your neck, but you smiled widely. "Thank you."

Frankie bit his lip and nodded in appreciation. "I've always thought you were incredibly smart. So that's what's taking up so much of your time now? That and work?"

"Yeah. Sometimes I go days without a proper meal or... I'm sorry, that must bore you."

"No! Go on, darling."

The sweet nickname slipped out of his mouth naturally, and it was even more natural when he took your elbow and led you a little to the side so you could talk in peace. The smell of his cologne filled your nostrils, you knew it so well. Your body began to react with pleasant excitement to his presence.

"And what about you? How's life?" you asked.

Frankie adjusted his cap and let out a breath. "Good. Quite good." he replied. "I changed companies, and now I have really good conditions."

"That's great."

"Yeah, I think so too."

It was late when he got home, but he could feel something was wrong from the very beginning. All the lights were on, and the noises coming from the bedroom were rather unusual.

Damn it, you should be asleep already. He didn't feel like starting another row, and they filled these walls almost every day. However, he dragged himself down the hallway and gently pushed the door open.

Frankie didn't expect this. There was an open suitcase on the bed. He noticed a bundle of your clothes thrown into it in disarray. The drawers in the dresser and the wardrobe were open.

He cleared his throat and took a step, but at the same moment you came out of the bathroom carrying your cosmetics in your hands. You stood there paralyzed when you saw Frankie in the doorway.

Your eyes were swollen from crying, but there was something else in them. Anger and stubbornness, determination.

"What's going on?" he asked in a slightly hoarse voice.

You lifted your chin slightly. "What does this look like?" you asked as well, quickly approaching the bed and throwing your things into the suitcase. With a graceful movement you closed it "I'm leaving. It's over."

A cold shiver ran down his spine. He took a few more steps and put his hands on his hips watching you struggle with the latches.

"Come on..." Frankie began "It's late. Let's talk about this."

You didn't react. Something inside him boiled and he grabbed the handle of the suitcase, dragging it across the bed towards him.

"Leave it!" you hissed, catching it and holding it "I'm not joking, Frankie! I'm leaving! I've had enough!"

"What this time?" he replied a little too loudly "You're making a scene!"

Before the words left his mouth he already knew he had overdone it. Your eyes widened in a second.

You reached into your pants pocket and after a moment you threw something at him. The small bag bounced off his broad chest and fell silently to the carpet. He recognized it immediately.

"I found it in the car. You must have dropped it last time." you growled.

"It's not like that..."

"Bullshit!" Tears welled up in your eyes. "I've been hearing the same lies for months! I know exactly why you got fired! I wanted to help you, and you promised me you'd never... Ohhh!"

You grabbed the handle of your suitcase and pulled it to the ground, then headed for the door. You pushed past him without letting him grab your arm. Frankie had taken you to the edge. You'd been together for almost two years, and you really loved him. But his addiction was becoming more important than you. You asked, you wanted to help.

The therapist you found for him told you that Frankie had only been to see him three times before he stopped showing up at all. He told you that he went there regularly. Then there were the problems at work and he got fired, he started coming home later and later, and when you were looking for something that had fallen on the floor of your car and you found that damn bag - you already knew.

Your heart was breaking with every step, but you knew that Frankie needed shock therapy. You knew you couldn't...

"Frankie!"

You almost reached the door when you suddenly lost ground under your feet. Strong arms wrapped around your waist and Frankie lifted you up. You started kicking your legs.

"Let me go!" you screamed.

"You're not going anywhere! You can't!" he thundered, putting you down and turning to face him "You have to listen to me, it's not like that..."

"Shut up! You've been lying all this time! All this time!"

"Not when I said I loved you, hermosa."

"Oh! Cut this shit! This isn't love!" your face was full of rage, you wanted to hurt him, to stick a needle in him so hard that it would hurt him for a long time "You just needed someone to clean up the mess after you! Someone to pat you on the head and let you do all this! You needed a pussy you could fuck!"

There was silence. Frankie's hands were gripping your shoulders tightly, his eyes darkened.

"You know that's not true." he finally said.

"Yeah? And what of what you're saying is true? Nothing. Zero. I wanted to help you, but you don't care at all." you jerked away "Let me go, Frankie."

"You have to listen to me..."

"Let me go! Now!"

His fingers loosened and you slipped out of his hands. You grabbed your suitcase again and this time you reached the door.

"I love you." his resigned voice reached your ears.

"I'm not so sure about that anymore."

You took a sip of beer while listening to Frankie. He seemed excited about his new job, and the energy that flowed from him was simply positive. His hand would occasionally brush your arm or wrist as you both burst out laughing, his eyes looking at you with the tenderness you knew from the beginning of your acquaintance.

"I guess I'll have to go back now." You sighed, glancing at your phone. "I have classes tomorrow."

"Do you like it?" he asked, watching you text your friend back, informing her that you had to leave.

"What do you mean?" you looked up at him. Frankie shrugged.

"Your life. Now. Because it seems to me that you're different. More fulfilled? Happier?"

"I don't know, I haven't thought about it to be honest."

He nodded, his hand shyly finding yours. "Can I give you a lift home?"

You agreed. Maybe you shouldn't have, maybe it was a mistake. But Frankie had somehow found his way to your heart, and you didn't want to part ways with him yet.

"When you left..." he began as you drove through the empty streets towards your apartment "It hit me. Really hard."

You clenched your fingers, but you couldn't look in his direction. But Frankie clearly wanted to talk, maybe he had been waiting for this for a really long time and could finally get it all off his chest.

"I drank for three days. I don't remember much from that period. Santi showed up at my place and... He told me something I'll never forget."

You could barely recognize your own voice. "What did he say?"

Frankie cleared his throat. "He said it was all my fault. That I was dragging you down, and you were trying to keep us both afloat the whole time. He also said that if I wanted you back, that if I loved you at all, I should do something about it."

Something tightened your throat and your eyes stung from the tears that were seeping into your eyelids. The car turned, you were already close to your apartment.

"I went to therapy. Santi took me there twice a week. It was a terrible time. He had to take my phone because I wanted to call you every day. I don't know how I managed to get through it without you."

"But you did it." You dared to look at him, a weak smile appeared on his face. "I'm so proud of you, Frankie."

"Thank you."

The car stopped. Your journey ended, and you got out, feeling like your legs were almost giving out under you. You whispered a quiet "thank you" and "I'm glad I saw you, Frankie." and then feeling like your heart almost jumped out of your chest, you headed for the door.

"I still love you."

You closed your eyes. His voice was clear, determined. You stopped, feeling like you could fall apart at any moment.

"Frankie..." you whispered, but he wouldn't let you do more.

He was right behind you now, you could feel the heat radiating from him. Your body reacted to his closeness.

"I knew you'd be at this pub today."

You turned around and looked at him, surprised. Frankie seemed embarrassed, but he continued.

"I met Sarah a while ago. We talked..."

He noticed a small frown between your eyebrows, "She didn't tell me anything..."

Frankie shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans and shrugged, "I begged her not to tell you. Listen, all this year you were the only thing that kept me alive. I wanted to be clean again, but I also wanted to be able to look you in the eye again. I'm sorry, hermosa... I'm sorry you went through all that with me. It was hell, and you tried so hard to save me."

You couldn't stop the tears that began to flow down your cheeks. You didn't even react when a warm hand touched your cheek and he wiped the tears away with his thumb.

"I still love you, hermosa." Frankie continued. "I don't know if I'll ever be able to stop. But I know I can't expect that from you, not after what I did."

"You hurt me, Frankie..." you sobbed, you saw the pain in his eyes, the same pain you still felt in your heart. "I wanted to save you, I wanted to save us... Maybe I wasn't strong enough?"

"No, it's not like that!" he shook his head, taking your face in both hands. "It wasn't a job for just one person. I understand that now. I'm sorry, I'm sorry I let you down so much."

You instinctively snuggled into his chest. Damn, you missed him so much this year. Almost every day you wondered what was happening to him, or you thought back to the times when everything was fine. There were days when you hated Frankie, when you resented yourself for always having him in your heart. But now you understood - you had to fall apart to understand what was truly important to you.

Frankie stroked your back, repeating silent apologies, and you felt as if all the tension that you had in your body was slowly leaving you.

"You okay?" he asked when you finally pulled away from him, wiping the last tears with your hand and probably completely smudging your mascara.

You nodded, "Yeah. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have..."

"Don't apologize, hermosa. You have nothing to apologize for."

There was silence for a moment. But it wasn't an uncomfortable silence, rather one where you were both trying to gather your thoughts. Finally, you were the first to speak.

"I'm so glad you managed to do all this. I'm really proud of you, Frankie. Now... Now your life will be different, better."

"You think so?" he asked, and you looked at him surprised. "I guess you didn't hear what I said earlier. I love you, and I don't know if I'll ever stop. But I know I can't force you to do anything. You listened to me, that's already a lot. Maybe that's all I deserve."

He must have already accepted it, except that he lost you, because before you could answer anything, he slowly moved towards his car. You watched him, feeling your heart pounding in your chest like crazy. You weren't even aware that you had opened your mouth, only the sound of your voice that cut through the silence brought you back to your senses.

"I'm finishing classes tomorrow after three. If you want to go for coffee, or..."

In an instant Frankie turned around "How about for lunch? You'll definitely be hungry, and you said you haven't been eating very well lately."

You smiled and nodded. "Lunch sounds good."

"Wonderful." He smiled too. That damn smile of his.

"So... Are we in touch?"

"Of course, hermosa."

With a slightly calmer heart you disappeared into the building, feeling that the smile didn't leave your face. 

Maybe a second chance really did exist? Maybe you too had a chance for a new beginning...

☆☆☆☆

Thank you for your time.

[mia-can-yap-too]

Colors

Who? :- Bachira Meguru x Fem!Reader

Warnings:- Fluff, kinda OOC

♫:- Disco — Surf Curse

Truly appreciating life can mean looking around yourself, noticing the colors that are woven into every moment of your life. Colors in themselves can have a lot of meaning. Orange can mean the color of the sky when the sun sets, it can mean the leaves of trees starting to wither when autumn rolls around or even the cat you see on the way to your morning commute. Blue can mean the sea you swim with your friends in during summer, the blueberries on the muffins you like to treat yourself to or even the violas you see when you pass by the local flower shop every now and then. Life truly is a colorful experience. 

Then why is your canvas still blank?

 You have been sitting in your school's art studio for a while now, staring at your still white canvas. You've been demotivated recently, needing to paint but finding no inspiration, no will to do so. 

Its been like this for a while now, you spending your last few days before summer break glaring at it, hoping that maybe if your stare was intense enough, a painting would appear right in front of you. You have tried almost everything you could think off; taking a stroll through the more scenic areas of your city, painting still life hoping it would light up the spark in you again, but alas, none of them worked. Lady Luck must have been ignoring you lately.

You are on the verge of tears when Miss Bachira, your arts teacher who also happens to be a renowned artist, taps you on the shoulder. Quickly, you gather yourself up before turning to her.

"Y/n," she smiles, "I would like to have a chat with you, if you do not mind." 

"Oh." You blink. "O-of course, Miss." 

She gestures for you to follow and then promptly leads you to her office. 

"Please, take a seat," her friendly tone still present. 

Have I done something? What if I've been hogging the art studio for too long? Am I gonna get in trouble? Or is it my art instead? Is THE Bachira Yu about to tell me how shit of an artist I am? That it was never gonna work out for me? That its so bad it can be deemed an abomina--

"I've noticed that you've been having trouble painting recently", she starts, calmly. 

"Oh, yes, I think I've uh.. hit an art block, probably," you answer, trying not to make your nervousness evident in your tone. 

"I see, it happens to the best of us. Though that is not entirely the reason why I wanted to talk. I've noticed that there is a lot of potential in you, and I would like to help you by guiding you through your difficulties and giving you a nudge in the right direction when needed. In other words, I would like to tutor you over summer break. Of course, you can say no if you already have plans or if you simply wish not to, I would understand," she looks at you with expectation in her eyes. 

You can't believe it. Bachira Yu, one of the most wonderful artists in Japan, wants to tutor you?! 

Your shock must be evident, as her smile turns even warmer than before.

You realize she is still expecting an answer. 

"Yes, I would love it if you tutored me, thank you so much for the opportunity, Miss Bachira!" you beam. 

Maybe, Lady Luck had other plans for you after all. 

-- 

It has been a couple of weeks since summer break started. Your tutoring sessions with Ms.Bachira have been going quite well, too. Seeing her in her element, listening to her talk about her passion as she guides you through her thought processes for her paintings have ignited a spark inside you as well. It makes your fingers itch for a paintbrush, to pick up paint from your palette and smear them onto your canvas until your emotions and thoughts are conveyed on the canvas. Yet, still, your earlier issue persists. Miss Bachira tells you to give it a little more time, to take a moment to live your life so that you may take inspiration from it. Until then, she teaches you various art tips and helps you perfect your style. 

You knock thrice before entering her studio apartment, not bothering to wait for her to answer the door as she now keeps it unlocked for you. You enter her studio, placing your bag in its designated spot. Looking around, you realize Miss Bachira isn't in front of the painting shes been working on, like she usually is.

"Miss Bachira?" you call out. "Are you there?" 

You wait ten minutes before deciding to go look for her. It's not like she would have minded, as she often asked you to go fetch things for her. 

You look in the main bedroom (after knocking, of course) and the living room before heading to the kitchen. 

Inside, you spot an open refrigerator door. Confused, you go to close it when a hand touches your shoulder. Startled, you scream, which in turn, makes the perpetuator scream as well. Turning around to get a better look, you see a boy your age with familiar golden eyes and fluffy, brown hair with yellow highlights. 

He smiles brightly at you. "You scared me, silly," he laughs. 

You eyes are still wide open from the shock. 

"You okay?" He tilts his head at you. 

"Uh, yes?" you say puzzled. "You are...?"

"Bachira Meguru. Buuut you can just call me Meguru, since you probably call my mom Bachira and it must be pretty weird to have to call two people Bachira, right? I mean, I wouldn't know but I don't think tha--" 

You cut him off, because you're sure that if you didn't, he would never shut up.

"I didn't know Miss Bachira had a son." His smile is still as bright as ever. The similarities are undeniable. 

"I get why you wouldn't, I'm usually off at Blue Lock, a football camp. You must be Y/n, the girl my mom's tutoring. She's told me a lot about you!"

You blush, flustered. "She has?"

"Yeah, totally, you're definitely her favorite student," he chuckles. "You were looking for her earlier, right? She's just gone to get some paints she ran out off, she should be back soon, though!" 

You nod, "I see, thank you for telling me, Meguru."

His smile seems to brighten even more as you call him that. "No problemo~! Hey, I was about to eat some ice cream, do you want some, too?"

"Oh, sure, I guess." 

"I only have chocolate though, its the best, my monster agrees," he says pulling out two bowls.

You furrow your brows. "Monster?"

"Yeah, my monster, its my best friend, and its telling me that you have a monster too."

"Oh? Do I need to be exorcised or something?"

"No,no, its a good monster. My monster seems to like yours. I think we're gonna be good friends." 

"Well, as long as I don't get possessed or something, sure," you smile back at him.

It was then, that Meguru realized, that he liked you too.

--

As the days pass by, you and Meguru grow closer. It started with him idly sitting in the studio, sometimes throwing a football against a wall and catching it as it bounces back as you paint with his mother. Smiling whenever you two made eye contact, making faces behind his mother's back in order to make you laugh and the occasional compliment on your art skills.

Soon it turned into you staying at the Bachiras for longer than usual. Playing video games together (you were an undefeated champion), trying not to laugh when you two drew portraits of each other (he named his masterpiece 'hyperpigmentation'), even attempting to bake cookies for his mom (you both ended up burning them). He tries to teach you soccer, and you try to teach him how to paint. You talk about your childhoods, why you chose art and he chose soccer. You listen when he tells you about his monster

He doesn't tell you how much he wants to kiss you all those times. 

You don't tell him how much your'e starting to like him.

It was when you two were playing Uno, he asked you out. 

"Hey, Y/n," he says as he picks up a card. 

You hum in response. 

"Theres a new Attack on Titan movie out, wanna go watch it with me? I'll buy tickets for us both!"

You blink, surprised. "Huh? You wanna go with...me? Are you sure you don't wanna use that ticket on someone else?" 

"Of course I wanna go with you, silly! Its fun when you're around!"

You're blushing, no one has ever said that to you before. "Really? Its quite fun where you are around too, Meguru. Sure, I'll go!" 

"Its a date, then!" 

You both are too consumed by your own heated faces to notice the other's.

--

You both meet up an hour earlier than the starting time of the movie. He holds your hand as he drags you two to a nearby photo-booth. 

He doesn't tell you about how he was panicking to his mother about how to style his hair (she convinced him to do it as he usually does) , whether to wear his overalls or yellow shirt instead (he chooses the shirt) and which pair of shoes to wear (he ends up wearing his usual pair).

You don't tell him how you were pacing in your room, worried if it was only you who were considering this as a date and whether or not this was casual for him. You don't tell him that you used your expensive perfume and spent hours on Pinterest for outfit inspirations. 

He pulls you into the photo-booth after you both grab props from the stall outside. The first picture startles you both, neither being ready for it. Next one is of both of you in cat ears. Then come the mustaches, corny peace signs and heart glasses. When the last picture comes around, you gain a sudden burst of confidence and face Meguru to kiss his cheek. 

His face turned red. "Where did that come from?" he asks, nervously.

"I-I'm so sorry, I should have aske--" you start, ashamed. 

"No,no! Don't be sorry, its okay! I liked it, actually," he interrupts you.

In return, he kisses your cheek as well, even though there is no picture for it. 

You take the pictures, a soft smile on your face as you examine them. 

Meguru doesn't tell you how beautiful he find you then.

You don't tell him how you'll cherish these photos forever. 

-- 

After the movie, you both find yourselves walking side by side, holding a popsicle each. Your free hands brush each other every now and then as you both recount your favorite moments. 

"I really liked today," you say, seemingly out of nowhere. 

"I did too!" His signature grin is on his face. "We should go out together more! Maybe we should go to the arcade next time, I'll win you all the plushies! Or maybe to the park, I could teach you how to play football! Or maybe we could have a picnic! Actually--!"

"Calm down," you laugh. "We'll do all of those one at a time, okay?" 

He intertwines your finger together. He knows it might ruin your relationship, but he needs to do it now, or else he'll never find the chance again. 

It doesn't take long for you notice him looking at you. 

"Yeah?"

"Y/n." His face is more serious now. 

You listen intently. You notice his golden hues shining. You want to tell him.

"I really like you."

A faint blush sits on your face. "I really like you too, Meguru."

"No, not as friends, as something more." He hesitates, trying to find the words. He knew from the start. When you didn't judge him for his monster, when you didn't make fun him when he couldn't stop talking, when you didn't run away when he wanted to hang out. He knew when he constantly wanted your attention on him, wanted you around all the time, wanted you. 

"I don't know how to do this but I want you to know," he looks away as he rubs his neck. "I've liked you for a while now. I want to hold you, kiss you and hang out with you everyday. You make life fun, you make me feel seen, make me feel like I'm worth hanging out with. I know there are other people, people who are normal, who don't have monsters, who aren't weird like me. And it would make sense if you don't feel the same, cuz you can do so much better but--"

"Meguru, don't say that," your tone is stern and you hold his eyes in a glare. "Don't ridicule yourself for being who yourself. You are kinder, funnier and better than most people in every way. I like you too, dummy. I thought the way I was blushing so much was an obvious hint, actually." 

You both laugh. This time when he wants to kiss you, he does. 

-- 

This time when you hold your paintbrush, you actually paint. Because now you know how colorful life can be from experience. Yellow is Meguru's hair when you run your fingers through it, the duck plushie he won for you at the arcade and his shirt that you mended for him. Red is your cheeks, the red velvet cake he likes to eat and the strawberries from the picnic. Golden are his irises, his laugh, the way he makes you feel. Blue is the color of the violas he bought you. Brown is the chocolate ice cream you sneak out to eat together. 

This time when you finish your painting, it becomes the best one yet. He knows that too. 

[tubbylili]

For the past 2 weeks I've been eating between 2500 and 2900 calories a day which is at least 1000 calories more than I should eat per day.

I didn't even do it on purpose I've just been feeling quite peckish lately, so I tend to grab a snack what feels like every few minutes instead of 2-3 times a day.

My sweet tooth has been begging me to go and grab another slice of cake or that whole giant chocolate bar and it never once crossed my mind to try and fight my cravings.

Maybe I should weigh myself tomorrow; I have a feeling my indulgence may have left its mark. 🤭🩷

[starrbar]

Thanks for the tag x3 Sorry it took me so long to get to it haha. I'll highlight characters in red if I had a lot to say about multiples in one answer.

Favorite girl: I think I'd say Jinx because I love her character. All her scenes in S1 are compelling and tense, and I found her to be thoroughly tragic by the end. She's the thread that holds everything else together and it's beautiful. Also Ambessa and Sevika are both super hot and I always look forward to seeing them.

Favorite boy: I like boys. O_O My favorites are Silco, Singed, and Viktor. Silco is one of my favorite villain characters, very layered and complex, and I was genuinely intrigued and excited as I learned more of his story in S1. I'm also totally guilty of mega-simping for him in S2 despite how my opinions of the story would later sour. Singed honestly just has a fantastic voice and animation that hits me the same way Rango's animation does, where "ugly" characters are treated with such care that they're a treat to watch anyway. He's so stimulating aaaa. Finally, Viktor's arc in S1 is one of my favorites, handled patiently and expertly, and his arc in S2 has quite a few problems, but I still... really enjoy seeing him, and seeing him with Jayce, so I don't tend to be bothered by how S2 handled Viktor.

Least favorite character: You know what? I was so close to posting this with "S2 Caitlyn" because she's a nasty person who never gets to have a proper arc in any direction, but I think a more fitting answer would be S2 Vi. Caitlyn being an awful person in some scenes was still interesting and believable, if a bit rushed, and I would have been fine with her character going that path had it been executed a bit better. Vi, though, is just... turned into a sad lapdog who doesn't act on her own at any point and is just depressing to watch, even in her "happy" moments. God damn, they destroyed her this season. ><

Favorite ships: Zaundads, Sinco, JayVik, and Jilco. If I elaborated on each, I'd feel like I spent way too much time on this, but they each have dynamics I enjoy for different reasons.

Least favorite ship: S2 Caitvi. They were cute in S1, but S2 made Caitlyn an abusive war criminal and then pretended that didn't need to be properly addressed before Vi just gave herself to her. Blegh.

Favorite side character: Lately, it's Salo because I like em pathetic ahaha~ I've always loved Mylo too, adorable little Junkrat kid. x3c

Favorite songs: Oooooh this is a hard one. x3 Goodbye and What Could Have Been will always hit me so hard and remind me how watching Arcane for the first time felt, and for that, they're extra special. I think Playground still gives me those vibes too. I also adore Guns For Hire, and Dirty Little Animals goes so hard. S2 introduced quite a few songs I love too. Ashes and Blood, Renegade, and Spin the Wheel are favorites. Favorite score songs are: The Bridge, The City of Progress, You're Stronger Than You Think, You Can't Escape the Past, A Story of Opposites, Stubborn to the End, I Can Help Them, The Era of Hextech, Revenge, You're a Jinx, A Bicentennial, The Assailant, Romance, Traitor, She's Back, The Toy Boat, I'm Right Here, Showdown, First Steps, You're Perfect, and I'm far less familiar with S2's score, but I can't stop listening to I Promised You. <3

Favorite episode: S1 episode 3. There are tons of scenes I love throughout the story, but this episode marked one of the greatest experiences I've ever had watching a show.

Least favorite episode: So like... I'm not entirely sure which entire episode is my least favorite, so it might be easier to list "chunks", like all the Mel/Black Rose stuff is a boring waste of time to me, and all the final battle stuff is like... uuuuugh. But I didn't just wanna say s2 episode 9 because I do still like the Jayce and Viktor stuff even if, critically, I don't think most of it makes sense x'D. Those two are legit just a guilty pleasure this season and I'm okay with that.

Favorite duo: Oooooh, mmmm..... I think Jayce and Viktor fit the term "duo" best out of my favorites. My other fave is Jinx and Silco, even though they basically never work together, but their interactions are priceless. <3

Favorite design: Aaaaa so many good ones, ummm... honestly? Powder is one of my favorite characters to watch and her design is adorable and complex (a lot of characters are complex in design, but ye). I really love the mismatched look of a lot of Zaun outfits. Also past Silco is um, I'm locking him in my basement. >u>

Least favorite design: Hm... so... I don't think I've looked at any design and hated it, just felt like a few of them were kinda... not as appealing to me as previous versions. So, I prefer Ambessa's pre-S2A3 designs, and I think it's because she looks too slender in her final look compared to previous ones making her look so big and imposing. I think Jinx's newest design is... overrated and kind of messy to look at. I know she's a messy character, so that would fit, but I dunno, there's something missing or... something. It's also hard not to let my feelings on the story taint my feelings for some of the designs, like Vi and Caitlyn's, which look pretty damn cool actually, but I just always picture that final cuddly scene with them and it makes me feel icky.

Favorite scene: The Guns For Hire sequence ✨

Least favorite scene: The Silco, Vander, and Felicia flashback because it ruins the motivations of Silco and Vander, not just to adopt their kids, but to free Zaun from Piltover's oppressive hold. Felicia is pretty and even has some fun sassiness to her personality, but I want her far away from my boys.

I don't like this ending on a negative, so Imma add one more question myself:

Favorite visual moment: Of course, I can hardly pick less than a dozen, but I'll just list a couple off the top of my head, not counting previously mentioned stuff of course. I love the scene of the mage saving young Jayce and his mother. It's so gorgeous and fluid and the music adds so much too. Gahhhh- I also super love that shot of Silco leaning back while smoking right after he talks to Marcus.

I'm always bad at tagging, so just like, do it if you feel like! 8D

On tiktok there was this arcane trend that was just about stating some basic arcane opinions of yours and I thought it would be fun to do something similar here! You can tag others and make it a tagging game or you can just answer the questions do what you want :)

Favorite girl:

Favorite boy:

Least favorite character:

Favorite ship:

Least favorite ship:

Favorite side character:

Favorite song:

Favorite episode:

Least favorite episode:

Favorite duo:

Favorite design:

Least favorite design:

Favorite scene:

Least favorite scene:

[dollieskisses]

𝑮𝒓𝒐𝒄𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓 ౨ৎ

pairing - dinerowner!chris x customer!reader wc - 496 warnings - swearing, use of y/n not proofread!

It had been a few days since y/n's and chris' first interaction. It might have gone over y/n's head but it played on chris' mind ever since it happened.

It was a cool winter evening, the sun had already set and the town seemed deserted. Everybody wanted to be at home late friday, but y/n found herself at the local grocery store looking for some late night snacks to feast on. She strolled down the quiet aisles, her fingers brushing against food packaging every now and again. A basket hung from her arm, it had varieties of ice cream to cheese lined up carefully next to each other.

five minutes earlier....

Chris spotted y/n walking past his diner window before entering the lonely store, he followed in after her slowly. The store was dimly lit and shelves full of food for the next days coming. Chris grabbed a basket and he walked into the aisle next to y/n's and pretended to shop.

A couple more items landed in y/n's full basket, she turned a corner walking down the last aisle of the store. Her eyes caught chris' figure, his basket was empty and he seemed quite fidgety. "Hello stalker." y/n called from afar. Chris' eyes looked in her direction as he hid a small smile. "Since when am I a stalker?" He responded. y/n took a couple steps down the aisle, closer to chris. "Isn't it a coincidence that it if just us two shopping right now?" chris grew red of embarrassment. How did she know? "Let me guess. You followed me in here because you wanted to apologise for being an asshole the other day." y/n snapped chris out of a brief daydream.

"Why would I apologise, when you were asking for it?" chris smirked. His eyes flicked back to the shelves. "What are you doing here then?" y/n challenged. chris' heart had come to a quick stop. Why was he here? His eyes widened in the moment before looking ahead. "Eggs," he spat, "the i've run out of eggs." chris grabbed a pack while finishing his sentence. y/n laughed to herself at his unconvincing answer. "Okay." Her eyes looked him up and down, y/n took a few steps back and turned around to continue her shop.

She came to an abrupt stop and swivelled on her heels to face chris once more. He brought his gaze back to y/n. "So now we are on kind-of good terms. Am I welcome back into your precious diner?" She held her basket with both hands in front of her. Chris sighed, "I guess you can have another chance." y/n flashed him a faint smile and walked to the checkout. But before chris could have some peace she called out, "As long as I have infinity chances, i'll be fine!" chris shook his head and let out a breathy laugh.

"And i'm having eggs tomorrow!"

a/n: guys send some requests!!!! fully committing to this au <3

ᡣ𐭩₊˚.⋆⁺₊Tags: @emely9274

𝑭𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝑫𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒆 𝒙𝒐𝒙𝒐

[patchworkcuddlebug]

Night of the Weredoll

Oh, my watch. Must be 11.

I can't help but sigh as I look around. It's been so long since I've been able to meet up with people. Everyone's either too busy, or wants to meet too late. Well, I'm not gonna let this curse get the better of me. Not tonight.

...Not for another few minutes, at least.

The next hour is a bit of a blur, but in a fun drunk way. I talk too loud to people I'm cuddling too close too. There's a movie on that everyone is half paying attention to, mostly to make fun of it.

There's a sudden pang in my stomach. By reflex, I reach back out to the veggie tray that's been laid out, but... no. This isn't hunger.

I look down at my watch. It's midnight. God fucking damn it, I set the alarm wrong! No, calm down, I can't let people see. I just need to leave.

I get up and try to avoid attention as I slink away to the door. Shit, shit, it's Andrea. Of course she's hovering right by the door, I can't just-

"Hey Jen, where you going?"

No! Damn it, everyone's looking...! I can't just not respond to her, good dolls are... No, no, not yet, please. "I just, uh... something came up, I gotta go, sorry..."

"Is everything okay?" Her tone instantly softens into sincere concern. "I haven't been drinking, I can drive you somew-"

"No, please!" I try my best not to sound desperate, and it definitely doesn't work. "I just need to leave, it's nothing you guys did, I..."

I can already feel the changes happening to my mind. The gentle tugging of strings, pulling me away from my humanity. It's rather rude to leave with such a commotion, wouldn't it be nice to stay and help them clean?

My posture straightens and my limbs stiffen It's like the strings are pulling me into place. Shit, I must look so scared...

I don't have a choice. I push past her and run to the bathroom across the hall, slamming the door behind me. This one is being much too rude. All I can do is mutter an apology under my breath. This... I can already feel it reaching my chest... good dolls don't curse, good dolls don't curse, good-

It's pulling. My shoulders. I push down on them, hugging myself as I try to keep my body from changing. I feel them shifting, churning, the joints of my bones growing segmented. Lines form on this one's slowly hardening skin, getting deeper by the second, until... pop!

It looks in the mirror, taking a second to just... stare at myself. The transformation is getting harder to hide by the second, especially since good dolls shouldn't be ashamed. The colour is leaving my body, nothing but sickly-pale porcelain almost all the way down to this one's hands.

A knock at the door, making me flinch. Good dolls should be more collected than that, this one needs to calm down. "Jen? Please, if something's bothering you, you can trust us."

This... I know I can. Good dolls... I can't just leave her without a response. "It's nothing you guys did, a... mmn..." I promise. That's all this one need to say. But it just gets caught in this one's throat. Dolls aren't supposed to say that word. "Just... please, leave... d-doesn't want to let... it..." No, this one needs to lie, she can't know, none of them can know.

Why is it happening so fast? This one needs to serve the others, it should be turning faster for them. No, no, this one should be a guest, it can't humiliate itself by... providing refreshments, and collecting empty drinks, and doing as it's told.

The emptiness is so strong. It feels like a black hole, trying to swallow this one's humanity. No matter how much it struggles, it... really shouldn't struggle. It's quite undignified. It's so close, there's so little left inside...

Slowly, cautiously, the doorknob turns. This one stands at attention, ready to... no, please, this one can't resist much longer. Something, anything. Yell at her, push the door closed on her, jump out the window. Anything other than... than...

"This one apologizes for its outburst." This one does its best to curtsy, trying to pull its jeans outwards at the hips. A regretfully unbecoming outfit. "How may this one be of service to you, miss?"

Andrea's eyes widen, and she begins to back away. "Wh... Jen, what... no, no, you're not... no, please..."

"This one is dreadfully sorry that it didn't explain things earlier. It was-"

The door slams in front of this one, and it hears the sounds of Andrea tripping over herself to escape back to the others.

She's scared of this one. It understands this. But... it should still do its best to serve her, shouldn't it? It's a doll, after all. Maybe it can explain itself, or help them calm down in some other way. This one hopes it can make itself useful to everyone.

With a gentle and put-together march, it begins to return to the people, following its purpose. This one knows that it would find all this mortifying as a human. For some reason, that part of it was always so resistant to the idea of submitting to her peers. Now, that resistance seems foolish. This one is a doll, obedient and docile. Of course it should make itself useful, it would be silly to think otherwise.

It dutifully opens the door, to be met with the stares of every person present. They seem as if a wild animal has wandered into the room, eager to pounce on the first to show weakness.

Mitch is the first to speak, before this one can even properly introduce itself, clutching a mostly-full bottle close to his chest. "Don't come any closer. You're not converting anyone here, alright?"

This one shakes its head. "This one wouldn't dream of doing such a thing without consent. It-"

Frantic whispers overtake the crowd. "So she can do it! It's not just a rumour!" "What do we do, she's already in here!" "Can we just tell it to leave?"

With a quick motion, Mitchel fixes his grip, holding the bottle by its neck. Just as one would hold a knife. He held it at an angle, causing some of the liquor to spill onto the hardwood floor. A messy accident, but one easily solved. "Please, allow this one to-"

"No! No." Mitchel calls out, brandishing the bottle. He speaks firmly, with a clear undercurrent of fear. "Just... get out. I'm not afraid to hurt you."

Andrea, still timidly hiding behind him, seems offended. "Mitch, that's still her!" She tries to sound insisting despite her whisper. Timidly, she grabs onto his shoulder as she peeks around him, trying to force a soothing voice. She still sounds terrified.

"Jen, you're... still in there somewhere, right? You're not just... some thing, right?"

This one hesitates from answering for longer than a doll should. It has never considered the question before. It blinks, taking just as long as necessary to articulate a response.

Its hands are politely clasped at its front. It speaks calmly and pointedly. "Dolls don't have an identity in the same manner that humans do. This one has Jennifer's memories, as well as some opinions and inclinations." It takes a moment to nod, intending to continue.

"Okay!" Andrea quickly blurted. "Okay, see? We can't hurt her, it's still... her in there." She looks to the others, to see if they're convinced.

Mitch looks incredulous, taking his eyes off of this one for only a second to look to Andrea. "What? No, we can't trusts that thing, it..." He trails off as he looks to this one. His eyes dart to the other guests, trying to gauge their feelings. All the while, he never stops facing this one.

"You seem to be uncomfortable with this one's presence." It explains in a matter-of-fact monotone. "Would you be more comfortable if it left?"

A heavy silence falls over the room. Nobody wants to speak first. "Yeah, let's..." Mitch blinks, hard, trying to swallow his thoughts. "You should leave."

"Understood." This one tries to curtsy again. "This one is deeply sorry for causing a disturbance. It hopes you can forgive it."

Without delay, this one obediently turns back to the door, closing it gently behind it.

There's a biting chill to the air as it walks through the night. Something a person would find intolerable. Jen would lament not being able to carpool back to her apartment, but the doll doesn't mind. It was just happy to do as was asked of it.

[fritzes]

well my fellow sunshine enthusiasts, it's time. the iw draw is out (~2 hours after it was promised to come out lol) and here are my thoughts:

atp:

jannik got banned and it seems that as a result this top quarter decided to be as chaotic as possible. I'm not quite sure how tsitsipas is the 8 seed, I know he rose in the rankings after dubai but I didn't realize he rose that much. however, both tsitsipas and zverev (who is the 1 seed and has been flopping hard since ao) are both historically terrible at this tournament. also in this quarter is machac, who just won his first title and is in great form, frances, matteo b, humbert, and holger, who is... holger. he made the quarterfinals last year (and beat taylor along the way) but he's been in poor form and very ill lately so I don't know if he's gonna be able to replicate that. gmp could make a splash here, and poor cursed tallon griekspoor is once again stuck in the draw of a top seed. I think this quarter is very hard to predict. I'd give machac a very good chance to make a deep run here

there is a lot of potential in this quarter. casper and daniil being the top seeds is kind of fascinating because they both have the same vibe of "frequent slam finalists who are the best in the world some days and absolutely terrible other days", and they haven't played since 2021. however, I think the odds of both of them making it to the quarterfinals are very low. tommy paul, like everyone else, was ill in acapulco, but if he's fit I could see him having a great run here, he came really close to making the final last year and just barely lost to daniil. arthur fils hasn't been doing much lately but his draw seems pretty open and he could make something happen. I'm also very curious to see how alex m and nishesh do here, they're both in daniil's section and considering what happened last time he played a californian next gen player... I'll just leave it there. I think one of casper and daniil will find some form and make a deep run, but not both

I am going to be so objective and rational about this quarter trust me guys I can do it. so, taylor fritz. obviously this is one of his best tournaments, and he had some injury issues in the past few weeks but in withdrawing from acapulco despite being in playing condition, it's clear how serious he's taking this tournament, but he's probably also feeling a lot of pressure to win it. so, as always, it's a question of getting out of his own head. other than him, this quarter has a lot of players who have been up and down lately: ben seems to be incapable of locking in against anyone who's name isn't flavio cobolli, andrey randomly won a 500 amidst some poor form, jack lost to andrey in the final of said 500 and is probably grateful that it won't be too hot in iw (but not grateful that felix is in his section), and learner is going from beating the literal world #2 to losing in straight sets the next day. like alex and nishesh, I'm curious to see how learner and joao fare here, the next gen have really been on a roll lately

and finally, yet another alcaraz/djokovic quarter. this time, though, it's coming on one of carlos' preferred surfaces. and I honestly think that a lot of what happened at the ao was mental with carlos, and if there's one thing about iw, it's that it consistently boosts carlos' confidence ever year. he has a decent draw, although shapo might randomly peak again. grigor is here, but he's really not in great shape right now and I don't think he can put a run together. on novak's side, adm could cause some trouble for him, especially on this slower surface. I feel like before every tournament, I'm like "oh novak is injured he probably won't get far" and half the time I'm right but then the other half he makes the semis or something. this tournament last year was where his first... idk, questionable loss was, so I'm very curious to see how he'll do. I can't see him beating carlos at iw, but I've been proven wrong before

interesting r1 matches: kecmanovic/griekspoor, arnaldi/kovacevic, etcheverry/mensik, fearnley/fonseca

interesting potential r2 matches: ruud/giron, michelsen/cobolli, medvedev/basavareddy, rublev/arnaldi, tien/shelton, draper/fonseca

wta:

honestly, I don't think aryna could have asked for a better draw. she's the top seed, and she got a top seed draw. jasmine hasn't had great singles results lately, and she seemed to be struggling with injuries in dubai. iva jovic is right in jasmine's draw, and honestly I think she's primed for an upset, she's been playing some great tennis on big stages and managed to hold her own against elena at the ao. dasha loves this surface, but she does not love playing against aryna. bia and leylah are as inconsistent as always, and to be perfectly honest I think the biggest threat in this quarter might be alexandrova who has been on a tear. but all things considered, this should be an easy draw for aryna. the issue is, aryna really hasn't been playing well since the ao. this is a tournament she's historically done well at though, so maybe she can get back into the groove of her hardcourt dominance. if she plays like she did in australia, she'll make the semis easily, but if she plays like she did in february, she's going to be struggling. I think getting through a long gritty match (like her match against peyton at iw last year, for example), will do a lot for her and I think maybe kessler could provide that in the second round. but I do think this quarter is her's to lose

the draw really said let's take every top american woman (except jess) and throw them in a quarter together. right now, coco has the same problem as aryna, in poor form since ao, but unlike aryna she doesn't have the benefit of an easier draw. madi is back, her first tournament as a slam champion, and she is way more well rested than everyone else. emma just won a title without playing a single three setter, which might be a miracle. and amanda won a 1000 and is at a new career high, which has certainly given her a lot of confidence. also in this quarter is diana, who's been a little shaky lately but is still one of the best up-and-coming players on tour right now, donna, anna (who isn't even seeded after dropping those dubai points), and the iw specialist maria sakkari. with the way she's been playing, I don't think she can make a deep run, but I thought the same thing last year and the year before that so maybe she'll prove me wrong. I think coco is gonna have a really tough time here, and some upsets might really help her out

is this how I find out jess is the fourth seed? apparently. she's been maintaining her ranking very quietly, always consistent, and those uso points are gonna be keeping her up there for a while. she just won a title and seems to be in great form, but peyton stearns in the second round is not what any top seed wanting to play short matches wants to see. on the other side of this quarter is elena, who has just been impossible to predict lately. I could see katie or mirra beating her. mirra especially has a great chance to make a run here, I don't see anyone in her section who could trouble her except maybe naomi, but I don't really know if she's playing well right now. elina, danielle, and of course penko could also be wild cards in this quarter, but I think mirra or jess making the semis is likely

oh boy oh boy. they put the chaos in the first quarter for the atp and they're putting it in the last quarter for the wta. iga, the defending champion, probably the favorite to win the whole thing, but she had a pretty rough start to the year, losing the united cup again, losing in the ao semis after having a match point, losing to penko again in doha, and then losing to mirra in dubai. I think she really wants a title right now, and even though this is one of her best tournaments, that might get in her head. of course, this is iga we're talking about, she's also very likely to breadstick and bagel everyone. qinwen is in this quarter, and she also had a terrible february (at this point, who didn't?). I honestly can't remember how she is on slow hardcourt, but the fact that I can't remember that is probably telling. I think she could very easily lose to linda in the third round. the middle of this quarter is totally stacked with marta, paula, karo, yulia, and ons. I think the semifinalist from this quarter is either going to be iga crushing everyone, or someone from the middle

interesting r1 matches: stephens/kenin, raducanu/uchijima, osorio/osaka, kvitova/gracheva, krueger/volynets, stearns/linette

interesting potential r2 matches: jovic/paolini, gauff/raducanu, danilovic/sakkari, anisimova/bencic, kalinskaya/shnaider, tauson/osaka, kvitova/andreeva, stearns/pegula, zheng/azarenka

[statisticalcats2]

Shout-out to any mindreaders who may exist and have had to ever pass by me and get fucking bombarded by my insane mental ramblings and screaming about Spider-Man: Far From Home

[johnnyshrine]

★ 053 // “When I’m Happy / When I’m Sad” (Reference below the cut!)

[waterfallofspace]

Allergic To Concepts

Is anyone else still into the M/agnus Archives? Maybe, maybe not, but I have had this fic sitting in my google docs for months, and I just finally managed to get myself to finish up the last bit, so here is part one of a possible two part fic, if I can ever manage to get myself to write the next part!

So, if anyone wants, please enjoy a little Allergic to concepts Jon. aka, Jon is so allergic to dogs that just the idea of them gets him a bit worked up~

I'll never be over this podcast, and I might start sharing small (tiny) drabbles of these guys if anyone would be interested <3 or even just to start coaxing myself back into writing~

Characters: Jon, Martin, Tim, and Sasha Word Count: 2.7k

“-so to conclude, we absolutely, most certainly, cannot do that,” Martin finishes, hands woven into his hair. Seems to happen more often nowadays; getting a job you’re not exactly qualified for tends to bring on a touch of added stress. What brings even more stress, however, are the faces staring back at him, twin smiles painted across worryingly calm canvases. Seems once a poet, always a poet, even in your own thoughts. 

Tim chuckles, mischief running through his eyes. “How do you even know that? You been stalking our new boss?” 

“W-well no, it’s just that…” Martin starts, beginning to study the floor as his rambling starts to take over. “Well there may have been an… incident, of- of sorts, with a uh… well it was, I was trying to open this door, but see I was holding files, and there was this dog, and they kinda just- well I was trying to stop it but it got in and- so I went to Jon’s office and he was just kinda… and then I-” 

“So what?” Tim interrupts, mercifully saving Martin from his own tongue. “Why should his issues stop us from havin’ a good time?” With a snap of his fingers, Tim casts Sasha a devious wink. The colour seems to drain from Martin’s face as he holds up a shaking finger, aiming somewhere behind Tim’s shoulders. 

“Ah, speak of the devil,” Sasha mutters, her smile never wavering. 

Spinning on his heel, Tim turns to greet the newest arrival to the hallway. “Fancy seeing you here, boss! Burning the midday oil?” 

Jon pauses, papers nearly spilling from his crowded arms as he fumbles with some keys. “That’s not an expression. And what are you all doing cramped in the hall? Don’t any of you have work to do?” 

Martin nearly keels over as Jon’s glare settles against him, seemingly deeming him responsible for this lapse in progress. As if! In fact, he’d been the one begging them to get back to work. Honestly, Jon should appreciate the fact that he talked them out of-

“Actually, we’re thinking of heading off for the day,” Tim cuts in, leaving Martin’s mouth nearly hanging open. Had they not just gone over why this was a horrible idea? As if to answer his unspoken question, Sasha joins in with support for Tim’s cause. Martin’s pretty sure there’s actually a gap between his lips. 

Jon, having opened the office by this point, merely stops and stares. Seconds pass, though it feels more like minutes. There appears to be some sort of staring match between the three of them. 

Finally Jon breaks the silence with a short… well, it’s hard to call it a laugh, more like a huff. His posture tightens as he attempts to pull himself to his full height, casting Tim a wary glance. “You can’t be serious.” 

“Quite serious in fact! See, me and Sasha have been thinking,” Tim pauses, gesturing to the aforementioned with a sickly sweet smile. Merely performance charm, which given the eye-roll she shoots back, Sasha’s well aware of. “All of us here need a chance to bond.” 

“Bond, you say,” Jon’s monotone voice offers no insight to how he’s taking this suggestion. As Martin’s mouth begins to dry, his hands start working their way back into his hair. 

“Indeed!” Tim continues, seemingly oblivious to Martin’s rapidly increasing heart rate. “We’ve all been stuck here together, figured we should become more of a team, you know? A team-building exercise you could call it. Something to get us more on the same page.” 

“And what is this ‘team-building exercise’ you have in mind?” 

Well, his heart may have been racing before, but it’s not anymore. In fact, he’s almost entirely convinced it’s just stopped completely. Jon’s eyes meet his own, and Martin drops his gaze fast enough to leave him dizzy. 

This time Sasha speaks up, her coy tone doing nothing to alleviate the heart attack symptoms Martin’s now convinced he’s feeling. “An animal rescue cafe. They rescue dogs and cats, the ones that need rehoming, and bring them there so you can get to know them before you adopt. One opened just down the street from here, and me and Tim have been looking into going. We figured, might as well drag you and Martin along with us.” 

Jon’s glare narrows further, a single hand coming up to rest between his eyes. The movement is completed by pushing up his glasses with a sigh. “And how exactly does drinking tea in a room full of animals qualify as team building?” 

“You can tell a lot about a person from the way they treat animals,” Tim offers. “Not to mention the fact that there’s a whole study about how psychopaths are more likely to hate cats, which is mostly due to the fact cats have willful behaviour.” 

Martin can almost taste his heartbeat at this point, a fact he’s finding quite alarming. Still rummaging through papers, Jon steps into his office. Much to Martin’s chagrin, they all seem to be following him. 

“Are you suggesting someone working in this office is a psychopath, Tim?” Jon continues, huffing out another sigh as he notices the entourage entering his office. Jon’s glare lands on Martin once more, something he’s almost gotten used to at this point. 

Laughter begins to flow from Tim, Sasha joining in with a mild chuckle. “Of course not, but hey, this job’s all about researching things that probably aren’t true. Better safe than sorry, right?” 

Seemingly the only one noticing Jon’s growing apprehension, or maybe just the only one that cares, Martin can’t peel his eyes off their boss. Unaware of the scrutiny, though perhaps expecting it nonetheless, Jon pushes up his glasses again. Martin doesn’t miss the way he lets a single finger brush against his nose during this action. Nor do his eyes skip over the light scrunch forming at the bridge of said nose. 

Oblivious as always, Tim’s still going on about the cafe. Something about which animals are available, what tea they serve, scones, and more useless information. Sasha’s typing something in her phone, apparently fact checking his current ramblings. Still, all of that fades into the background as Martin’s attention is drawn to Jon once more. 

At first, he can’t figure out why he’s watching. Jon didn’t speak, and from his posture he hasn’t made any significant gestures. There doesn’t seem to be anything specifically that should have caught his eye, and yet-  

And then it happens again. Jon’s brows tighten, his eyes begin to flutter shut, and his lips part just enough for his tongue to peek out between them. There’s a beat of silence, then a single breathy inhale, barely noticeable above Tim’s monologuing. 

“ihh-” 

Just as quickly as it began, Jon crushes it back once more, a hand roughing swiping against his nose. There’s a quiet feeling of– perverse excitement as Martin watches him. Why? No earthly idea. It’s not as if there’s anything specifically… exciting about the action. There’s no physical stimulation beginning, to phrase it politely. 

Still, there’s something… almost electrifying, about bearing witness to a moment so personal and private. As if the only person in the room is Jon, and he’s opened the door for Martin to join him in his world. Which, as you think about it, just becomes more and more– creepy as hell! Damn it! 

Pulling himself from his thoughts, Martin manages to peel his gaze away from Jon. Zoning back into Tim’s rambling, he just barely catches the tail end of a rant about different toppings on cinnamon buns. His silence was entirely unnoticed. Understandably, given only Tim had said anything in minutes. 

“Personally, I’m a fan of the regular cream cheese icing,” Martin offers, forcing himself to keep his eyes on Tim as another soft sniffle sounds behind him. The others don’t notice it, Sasha rolling her eyes as a light begins to dawn in Tim’s. 

“Well, interesting you say that Martin, they actually have those at the cafe down the street! Isn’t that such a wonderful coincidence?” Tim swirls his body towards Martin, casting a playful glance back at Jon as he continues. “Wouldn’t you like to stop by and get yourself one of those delicious buns?” 

Martin feels his face begin to pale again, and barely manages a meek, “W-well… I don’t need to… get one right now… but if you want-” 

Thankfully he’s saved from himself as a gasp sounds out from the desk. Everyone in the room turns, Martin included, just in time to see Jon duck into his wrist with a tight, “ih’nGXt–uih!” 

“Bless you!” Sasha calls, Tim and Martin echoing the sentiment. A flush begins to spread over Jon’s cheeks, but it’s brushed off as he waves a hand, continuing to scribble on some papers. Casting a glance over to Tim, Martin sighs as the mischief floods the other man's face. He’s very clearly not letting this go. 

“Was that actually a sneeze?” Tim laughs, mimicking the sound as Sasha suppresses a giggle. 

Jon keeps his head down, pen still moving across the paper in disjointed movements. “It was in fact a sneeze, yes. Happens to everyone from time to time, no need to make a big deal out of it. Now, I believe you were going to a cat and do- hiHh! rescue cafe?” 

The hitch manages to escape from Jon’s tight grip, his posture shuddering slightly with the force of continuing the sentence. It doesn’t go unnoticed by Martin that just the word dog seems to leave him breathless. 

“A dog cafe, yeah! You’re coming too, right boss? Come see all the adorable little puppies?” Tim offers, gesturing towards the door. Apparently it didn’t go unnoticed by him either. 

An audible gasp sounds out, and all eyes turn back to the rapidly hitching boss. Jon manages to stifle the first one almost silently, only a rush of breath escaping at the end. 

“Bless you, boss.” 

Jon waves a hand, wiping away the water beginning to flood his eyes. “Was just sihh… sighing, Tim.” He finishes the statement with another stifle, this time his whole body jerks along with the rough exhale.  

“Really? Because that sounded like another sneeze,” Tim taunts, poking a finger towards Jon’s face. “And given the way your nose is twitching, you seem far from done.” 

Jon seems to consider debating, but another frantic hitch decides it for him. Giving up the ruse, he ducks into his shoulder with another, “eh’tNGxt–uh! ih’NTchhuh!”  

“Bless yo-” 

“eH’DGZSHhh –uu!”  The volume makes everyone jump, seeming to surprise even Jon. 

“Oh- mby apologies, I seeb to be… hiehh–” Jon trails off, one hand frantically searching for a tissue, nose visibly trembling behind the other. In a move of uncharacteristic pity, Tim pushes the box within reach. Jon mumbles out a thank you, before swinging his chair around for a touch of privacy. 

The silence is almost deafening, cut up only by the rustling of fabric as Jon attempts to subdue the onslaught. “eh’nGNt –oo!” And fails miserably. 

“Do- maybe do you want… well possibly we should, actually I think you might- I mean he might want–” Desperately trying to find a way to fill the space, Martin rambles on, gaze bouncing between all three of his coworkers.

“Martin,” Jon cuts him off, “just say it.” 

The annoyance Martin’s come to expect seems unaffected by the breathy quality of Jon’s words. Unless you notice the flushed nature of his ears, which… is kinda hard to miss when his nose is starting to match. 

“S-sorry! I just figured you may want a touch of uh… privacy..? You seem… itchy,” Martin offers, already beginning to back out of the room. 

Jon glares, lining up a retort before pausing as the first syllable comes out muffled with congestion. A sharp sniff and quick rub later, he continues in an easier tone. “I’m quite alright. No need for such concerns.” 

“I mean- If… if you’re sure…” 

Tim interrupts this time, draping an arm across Martin’s back. “You heard the boss, he’s fine. Now, onto that cafe?” 

Before Martin can get a word out, Jon stands from his chair, dropping the tissues in the wastebasket next to his desk. Sasha chuckles out her approval, sticking her phone into a pocket and beginning to exit the office. Tim follows suit, leaving Martin standing alone with Jon. 

There’s a beat of silence, Martin watching, horrified, as his body refuses to move an inch, silently waiting for Jon’s approval. 

“Well?” 

It’s not exactly an invitation, but it’s more than enough to send Martin scrambling for the door, muttering more sheepish apologies under his breath. If Jon heard them, he gave no indication, busy rustling through a desk drawer. A few more muffled stifles make their way through the noise, no indication given they were heard either. 

As Martin makes it into the hallway, he catches Tim waving from the door. He’s propping it open with one foot as Sasha waits outside, once again on her phone. Martin waves back his acknowledgement, before gesturing towards the kitchen. Tim simply shrugs, calling something about ‘not waiting around’, before joining Sasha in the crisp autumn air. 

Making his way back to the kitchen, Martin pauses at Jon’s door. He’s not eavesdropping, just… listening in, to see if Jon’s alright. It’s his boss after all, and he’s an assistant! He’s supposed to… assist! Perfectly natural thing to do, isn’t it? 

A harsh double pulls him from his spiralling, Jon’s voice coming through audibly in the groan that follows. Alright, enough listening in, this is starting to feel more creepy than curious. 

With what little confidence he can muster, Martin works his way through his plan. The mugs are where they always are, but the water in the kettle was a bit more cold than a proper cup of tea would allow. Flipping the switch, Martin began heating it, and hurried out of the kitchen to his desk. He picks out a fairly bland tea, Jon seems the bland type… right? 

Another few sneezes sound out from the boss’s office, and Martin almost starts to feel guilty for still being in the office. It’s obvious Jon assumes he’s alone, if not from the sneezes themselves, from the groans that come after them. Ever the stickler for a Professional Appearance, he’d never allow himself to be seen or heard in such a state willingly. 

The kettle sounding pulls Martin from his thoughts once more, and he pours the water over the tea bag. Moving carefully, as not to spill, he makes his way back to Jon’s office, knocking softly on the door. 

“Yes?” The reply is sharp, a frantic sounding shuffling occurring as Martin begins to slide open the door. 

“Hey, yeah sorry I just- you sounded like… I just thought that maybe you’d want… you might need some…” 

“Spit it out, Martin,” Jon sighs, giving his nose a subtle swipe. Unfortunately for him, this seems to have been the wrong choice. His nose twitches, eyes beginning to unfocus, and Martin finds himself pausing for the interruption. At least, until Jon gestures at him to continue. 

“Well, I just ma-” 

“ih’tNGT–uu!” 

“Bless you. I just made you some tea, it seemed you cou-” 

“hHUh’dNT–uh!” There’s a pause, Jon’s breath catching dramatically, before he swivels around in the chair and aims a harsh, “eH’dZSHH– eih’DSCHhhh–oo!” at the fistful of tissues he managed to grab. 

It wasn’t exactly quiet, and Martin finds himself flinching against the noise, but holds it together as he places the mug on Jon’s desk, hurrying through the rest of his sentence. 

“Seemed you could use some tea, bless you again by the way, anyways I’m gonna head off with Sasha and Tim, I’ll see you there I guess! Or, well- not just me, we’ll all see you there, as a group, if you choose to come that is! Which of course you don’t have to, though we’d lik-” 

“Martdin,” Jon, mercifully, cuts him off, congestion seeping through his words. With a deep sigh, he finishes his sentence. “Thagnk you. You mbay go ndow.” 

Taking the out, Martin gives one last nervous smile, sliding out into the hallway. Another desperate sneeze leaves him wincing, Jon’s vocal groan sounding out yet again. The poor guy sounds miserable, and Martin almost considers going back in and telling him not to come. If he’s this bad from just the thought… well… 

But he’s embarrassed himself enough for the day, and, albeit hesitantly, Martin heads off to meet Tim and Sasha at the cafe.

[stardestroyer81]

Inspired by this post by @artpro86, I wanted an excuse to draw my latest blorbo, Cindy Bear, in a similar fashion... it didn't take me too long to be struck with an iconic reaction image to redraw with her instead.

[mysecretwindowuniverse]

1x16 | The Blind Fortune Teller 🔮🃏

And to think the way this scene - and the absolutely masterful performance by Cameron Monaghan - snowballed into what can only be described as Schrodinger's Joker for the rest of Gotham's run

[icewindandboringhorror]

Recent-ish things ~

[ratcandy]

Are non-mutual boops accepted. Would you allow that.

Non-mutual boops are incredibly accepted. Get over here I'll bap the shit out of you in return

[zeroducks-2]

Could I ask for a number 10 or 21?? Whatever you want. Both sound insane for sladick. <3

10. "Don't you dare" + 21. "Say my name" - Dick Grayson/Slade Wilson

(TW drowning, non-descriptive torture)

Waterboarding isn't the type of torture that should be attempted by amateurs, given that everything can go very wrong in a matter of seconds.

Dick is well capable of holding his breath underwater for more than five minutes. Not that much more than five minutes, but still. And it's probably because of it that his "interviewer" gets a bit overexcited, and decides to just... hold his head into the metal vat, without letting him up. At all. Dick makes a show of thrashing and trying to kick after less than ninety seconds, but it doesn't work and the asshole clubs him at the base of his back, strong enough for something in his pelvis to break, and Dick's focus is gone.

Water starts getting in his lungs and panic is quick to set in, but adrenaline fuels his burning muscles as Dick forcefully emerges with a snap, nape colliding with that fucker's face accompanied by the telltale crack of a nose breaking. And just like that he's out of the water but he still can't breathe. Regardless of how much he tries to cough and hack, his lungs stay full and it's with more rising panic that he realizes to be suffocating on the floor of the interrogation room.

He doesn't really feel it when someone lifts him up and cuts the rope around his wrists, he just registers that his arms now are free and there's pressure just below his rib-cage, then nothing, then a blow that forces him to bend over and expel a mouthful of water.

«Don't you dare.» A snarl comes from behind his back, then there's another blow to his upper abdomen, upsetting his already broken ribs, and Dick would likely scream if it wasn't that there is no room for air in his lungs. More water comes out. «Don't you fucking dare, kid. Breathe.»

Dick tries his best, fumbling for air and managing a strangled cry when more pressure forces him to cough, and finally he manages to gasp and draw a sliver of air in.

Again he's not sure exactly what happens after that, but at some point he's being held against someone's side, still mildly coughing but he's pretty sure he isn't going to die at this point. He chances a look around and sees the man who was interrogating him; he's lying face down in a pool of blood, and Dick's eyes narrow, he can't have killed him. He broke his nose, didn't he? But just that, the man shouldn't be dead. What the hell.

«There you are.»

Dick's head gets pulled up as he's held more upright, and he manages to sit up with a grunt, ignoring the pain all over. He frowns at the black and orange of the man's mask, and his addled brain puts together that Deathstroke is the one who killed Dick's torturer; all that blood comes from a bullet in the head, not a stupid broken nose. «Look up here.» There's a quiet hiss of smoke and then the man's helmet goes, showing gray hair and a sharp blue eye. Dick winces at his frown and looks away, but the other snaps his fingers and makes him reflexively look back. «Say my name.»

«Hn. Slade.» He croaks, but a moment later he's surprised to see the man's expression distend in relief.

«Yeah.» Slade roughly runs a hand through his damp hair on the nape, and weird as it is to acknowledge it, holds him tighter for a moment. «You're okay.»

«Were you... hah... doubting it...?» He rasps out, forcing a grin, and the man replies with a glare.

«What the hell came into you.» Slade pinches his chin with his usual "no arguments" tone, his glower staying. «I'm the one who decides when you work alone and when not. You were not supposed to take initiative.»

«What are you gonna do?» Dick coughs, having to turn around to expel more water. Slade lets him, helping him stay up in the process. «...punish me?»

«You know very well that I should.»

That's what Slade would normally do for a job badly done. It hasn't happened in a while though, and it's not like Dick remembers it fondly, but also... well, he kind of thinks he deserves it, because he really did mess up this time. He's gotten himself captured, to name one. Fledgling nonsense, that's what this is. At least he didn't speak a word and revealed absolutely nothing, even if it resulted in almost an entire week of starvation, a leg broken in two parts, a dislocated shoulder, contusions over the entirety of his back...

«Did they-» Slade narrows his eye and a flash passes through it, something wild that in another situation would make Dick wary. «Did they touch you...?»

Dick knows what that means. He shakes his head, not that it would change the fate of the people who captured him. He knows they're all dead already, or anyway they will be soon. But... at least it can help Slade's peace of mind. It's going to take a bit more convincing though, given the searching stare and the way the man grips him tight. Dick sighs and it sounds wet like he's had a chest infection, and tightens both hands on the man's biceps, forcing his swollen left arm to move.

«They didn't.» He says, trying to sound as assured as he can. «They didn't, Slade, I swear. They just beat me up. They wanted to know about you but they didn't make it personal... just this one,» he nods to the body of the man who went this close to drowning him. «I guess he had a few screws loose. But the others were, heh... pretty professional.»

The lines of Slade's face remain hard but there's something that unspools in his expression, Dick can tell. «Alright.» He concedes, touching a thumb to Dick's cheek subtly and briefly enough that Dick isn't sure he hasn't imagined it. «Now let's get out of here.»

Thank you for asking anon ♥ Here's the prompt list for whoever wants to peruse it, or send me another prompt :)