#i've had to pass through it a couple times and it's just so flat

[fickdichistwarum]

That's pretty cute really.

we passed a sign in boring that said their sister city is dull, scotland

[lucidfairies]

LET'S PLAY

pairing: ghostface!Abby x reader x ghostface!Ellie

synopsis: you've always been afraid of scary movies, but when abby recreates one of her favorites with some help from her best friend... lets just say you face your fears.

warnings: fear kink (?), threesome, pussy eating, strap usage, gendered pet names, double penetration + anal [r! receiving], face riding [e! + r! receiving], scissoring [a + e], very brief gendered talk ("but my sweet girl can take it, can't she?"), unrealistic squirting

wc: 2k

a/n: hi guys! to be fully transparent with you guys, I've been extremely busy over the last couple of weeks and have no chance to write. on top of that I'm extremely under the weather right now, so this is the only Halloween shot I have written. 😭😭 I'm really sorry that it worked out this way, maybe I can finish and post the others later on!

it was halloween. finally halloween. and the conditions were perfect. the dark night sky was filled with grey clouds that stuck out from the moonlight, fog had been gathering all day, so that once trick or treating started for the little kids and partying started for the older kids, it was just right. you had different plans on your mind, though. tonight it would be just you and Abby, with movies, popcorn, and definitely some costumes.

in all honesty, halloween scared you in the slightest. the movies that Abby often wanted to watch were gruesome, and you wound up with your hands over your eyes, merely listening to the shrieks and stabbings. abby loved it, though, so you found it in your heart to get over it.

that fear, however, resurrected itself when the clock passed eleven, knowing she was supposed to be home at nine-thirty. you had texted her a number of times at this point, even called her, with no response. it was more than strange; in all the years you and abby had been together, she had never, ever missed a halloween.

at a certain point you sighed and got off the couch, accepting that she apparently just wasn't coming home. you went down to your room, changing and laying down to sleep. you tossed and turned, not used to a bed without her body in it. after a while, you laid on your back with a huff, grabbing your phone to text her again.

before you could press send, you heard an aggressive jingle of the lock on the front door. it didn't stop, and you were slammed with the feeling that someone was trying to to get in. someone was trying to to get in. a bat hid behind your door, and you ran over to grab it before leaving your bedroom. you looked over your shoulder, into every room, but you didn't see anything. the kitchen was dark once you walked into it, and as you went to flick the lights on, you felt a strong hand on your hip that pulled you back, covering your mouth with their other hand.

the bat was ripped from your hands by a second person, and you screamed, but the hand covering your mouth was gloved and masked the sound. you could feel the captors heart beating and their chest rise and fall.

“sorry I'm late,”

it was abby. abby who followed you through your house and abby whose hand was over your mouth. the lights flicked on and you were faced with a different person, dressed in a ghost face mask and it's matching rags. you pushed out of abby's grip and turned to face her, realizing that she also had a mask on.

“what the fuck abby?” you quietly shrieked. “what was that? you scared me.” the light caught the knife in her hand, and suddenly a pit developed in your stomach. it was fear, flat, undoubtable, fear. “why do you have a knife?” she walked towards you slowly until your back was against the wall.

“don't worry baby, we're just gonna play,” her large body encased you. “you remember ellie, don't you sweet girl?” you nodded slowly, tears welling up in your tear ducts. “my poor baby, don't cry, we're gonna be real nice to you.” when she said that, you finally came to the realization as to what was happening. this is why abby loves the scary movies. she likes the control; the fear. you relaxed. “do you trust me, pretty girl?” you looked at her through the mask and nodded slowly. “do you trust me to not hurt you?” you nodded again.

“let's play then, baby.”

that's how you ended up here, on your back, with ellie on your face and abby between your legs. ellie had a hand in your hair, forcing you to look up at her while you ate her out. she was grinding down on your tongue, chanting your name as she chest rose and fell quickly. she had definitely already come, but she was using you to get off.

abby, however, had a strap buried deep in your cunt. you two hadn't used a strap before, you didn't even know where she got it, all you knew and could think about was how much she was filling you. the mask was still covering her face, but you almost got off to it. she had your legs pushed up to your chest, drilling her hips into your ass over and over, going even after your orgasm had lit up your body.

finally she let up, but you knew you weren’t even close to done. ellie got off your face and they both looked at each other, as if they were coming to a conclusion by just looking at each other, then they both looked over at you. abby discarded her mask and tossed it into the pile of clothes, loosening the harness from her hips and throwing it along with everything else. “get up,” ellie said, replacing you as you stood up. “sit on my face, sweets. face abby like the pretty thing you are.” the position was weird, but somehow it worked. you were backwards on ellie’s face, but her skilled tongue still managed to find everything you needed just right.

abby lifted ellie’s leg up, shifting herself between her lifted leg and her dripping center, rolling her hips down until they were both moaning. with the hand that wasn’t keeping ellie’s leg steady, abby grabbed you by the throat and brought your lips to hers, moaning into your mouth as your tongues met. ellie was so good at eating pussy, you almost didn’t want to pick between her and abby. maybe tonight meant that you could have both of them whenever you wanted.

ellie fucked you with her tongue while her thumb found your clit, spreading your wetness and her saliva over it and rubbing in rhythmic, slow circles. you were all but pushing all your weight onto abby, who was still riding ellie’s pussy. now, though, her head was back, neck exposed. you regained your headspace slightly, just enough to run your lips along her neck and suck. your lips traveled to her tits, marking her in a way you hadn’t before.

you stopped as soon as you felt your orgasm building quickly, instead opting for your previous option of grabbing her for support. it seemed as if you both were in the same boat, because her face scrunched up in focus, like it did every time she came. your head was on her shoulder as you came, whimpering at just how good it felt. ellie didn’t let a drop miss her tongue.

abby stood up, and you zoned in on how both of their pussies were covered in each other’s cum. your pupils were wide, your mouth was basically hanging open with drool. abby looked at you and chuckled. “wanna clean me up, sweetheart?” you got up from the bed and kneeled in front of her, assuming that’s what she wanted you to do, and waited for her to spread her legs. she leaned against the wall and propped her leg up on your shoulder, letting you lap at her until everything was gone. it tasted so good, so much like abby with a hint of ellie. it was the perfect blend.

though you wanted to lick up ellie too, she had already cleaned off with a bed sheet. “I have one more thing to try, if you’re up for it, baby.” you nodded profusely, and both girls looked at each other with a smirk. “get on the edge of the bed in doggy.” you did as told, putting your knees on the edge of the bed and arching your back so that your face was in the comforter. “good girl,” abby cooed, reaching down to pick up her harness and clip it on again. ellie also pulled one out from the jumble of clothes, and you wondered where hers was going to go. in the bedside drawer, abby pulled out a small bottle of lube, which she must have snuck in at some point earlier in the day to prepare.

earlier, when all of this started, you didn’t need lube, so you couldn’t understand what that was for. until both girls walked behind you. you felt the tip of one of their straps rubbing against your ass and you leaped forward, ill prepared. “this is gonna be a big stretch, baby, but my sweet girl can take it, can’t she?” you hummed at abby’s words, sucking in a harsh breath as her strap entered a new place. it was certainly different, but it felt so good. it was just the stretch you wanted, and it got even better when you felt ellie running the tip of her strap up and down your folds.

when ellie pushed her strap into you along with abby’s, the earth froze. “fuck, babe, look at your slut,” from what you could see, they were both admiring the way your stretched for them. You weren’t going to deny that it hurt a little, but with the way they were looking at you and the way ellie kept hitting exactly where you needed to plus the stretch of both of them, it made up for the slight discomfort.

once they gained a rhythm, you had them railing you at the same time, strokes hard and fast, with ellie’s large, skinny hands wrapped around your waist to keep you up. your hands grasped the bedsheets tightly, listening to your body as you neared closer and closer to finishing. there was another feeling building, one you hadn’t felt before, but you made an effort to ignore it. The closer you got, the noisier you became, moaning and grunting with every thrust until you were twitching on the edge of release.

the weird feeling that you were ignoring came back hard and fast, sitting somewhere strange in your bladder. it was like the urge to pee, but with some form of pleasure to it. they pulled it out of you with their harshness, making you squirt hard as you finished. you rolled your hips back at how strong your orgasm was, tears running down your face and creating a pool on the comforter.

you felt strangely empty as they both pulled out, unclipping both of their harnesses yet again and tossing them. “you did such a good job angel. let’s get cleaned up.” you all showered together, then abby surprised you with matching pajamas. ellie was packing up her stuff and you frowned.

“stay,” you said, and she looked up at you and smiled. “we can watch a movie. you can leave in the morning. don’t drive home in the dark.” she sat her backpack down and climbed into bed with the both of you. abby rolled over to grab the remote and turned on scream, just for the irony.

taglist: @inukastan1 @elliecoochieeater @pepperflakess @hastasupern0va @jazzys19 @purring4elliewilliams @decaffeinatedclodbagelweasel @lonelyfooryouonly @heyimrye (if your not tagged it said your account did not exist, I apologize)

[alastor-x-reader-stories]

"Bite Me" - Alastor x Reader - Part 2

prev

You....really shouldn't have bitten Alastor.

It was a threat, yep, and the guy did need to learn his actions had consequences, but...er. Was that really worth this?

The Radio Demon had practically been your shadow for the past week. His expression never changed, his tone never shifted. You were like, 90 percent sure he was thinking of the best way to kill you for maximum pain.

Pain wasn't good. You were allergic to it.

...That line usually got a chuckle out of whoever heard it, or in your case, whenever you thought it. However, this time, it didn't quite tickle your funny bone as it usually did.

Because Alastor was standing right there.

And staring at you.

In your goddam bedroom.

"....Hi." You said, chewing on your bottom lip.

Alastor's gaze darted for a second to your lip, then back to your eyes. And he said nothing.

"...Did you need something?" You said.

He continued to stare at you, unblinking.

You sighed "Listen, if you're going to kill me can you just hurry up already? I'm sure it beats how awkward this is."

Other than the slightest twitch of an ear, he still didn't respond.

You huffed, narrowing your eyes as a growl permeated through the air. "At least say something!"

He didn't.

"OKay, fine!" You snapped, throwing your hands up in the air. You crossed them over your chest with a pout, giving Alastor a mean side-eye. "Keep standing there doing nothing. I guess I could use a new hat rack anyway."

"...You don't have any hats?" He said, tilting his head to one side.

"I'll get some so I can justify having a hat rack." You said, tail flicking.

"Mhm... So, how sincere is this threat?"

"What?"

Alastor straightened his posture, taking a couple long strides to stand right at your bedside. "You make a lot of threats, my dear. And I've only ever seen you carry 1 out."

"Usually people listen to me." You said, rolling your eyes.

"So you've never actually follow through before?" He tilted his head to the opposite side than before. His grin seemed to stretched a bit, ears becoming less stiff.

"Does that make you happy?" You said, turning to face him "That you're the first idiot who made me actually do something?"

From how he practically beamed you can only assume it did. You sighed, flopping down onto the bed on your side. The intent was to ignore him until he got bored and went away or got sick of you and killed you.

Instead you found a shadowy tendril wrapping around your middle, rolling you onto your back. Alastor grinned down at you, his body a perfect 90-degree angle bent at the waist.

"I'm the first one you've bit?"

"...Yeah?" You said, raising an eyebrow. "I mean. I think I bit people when I was little and pretending I had rabies, but not really intending to hurt them..."

His grin widened. "How did I taste?"

...

"What."

"I want to know. How did I taste?"

Oh right he was a cannibal. You grimaced internally. Was that just something cannibals got giddy about? 'Hey I'm the first person you've eaten hurrah!'

The tendril around you gave a firm squeeze. You sighed and met Alastor's crimson eyes, giving him a flat look of your own.

"Dry and tough- like badly made jerky."

He laughed. "Well, of course! You bit into my jacket! Silly creature, you."

"....Well, you asked."

"That I did, that I did." Alastor hummed. He tilted his head too far to one side, leaning in closer to you "Would you care for a taste without my jacket?"

"No." You responded curtly.

The silence was palpable. Neither of you broke eye contact or changed your expressions for several moments. Those moments seemed very, very long.

His eye slowly twitched up and his ears dropped ever-so-slighty-

"Hm. Well, it's not like you'd manage that anyway."

"Probably not. Are we done?"

Another beat of silence passed before the shadows tendril dissolved into mist and Alastor was standing up straight again.

"Now, I wouldn't say this matter is done, but I suppose it could wait."

You sat up, staring at him. The more you stared, the more his eyes couldn't seem to decide on what to focus on. Was he...nervous?

That encounter didn't go anywhere else significant. He simply said a farewell and left you to your own devices.

===========

Your eye twitched as you took a long, deep breath.

Alastor was being so horribly, horribly annoying.

The last couple days he resumed his role as your shadow, but this time solely with the task of irritating you. He'd chew loudly, he'd step in an off-rhythm on purpose, he'd claw the surface of things you couldn't stand the sound of and it made your ears hurt and your jaw ache from how much you were grinding your teeth.

You had enough.

"Will you LEAVE ME ALONE!?" You snapped at him. He didn't so much as flinch, simply tilting his head and he leaned closer to you.

"Or what?"

"I'm going to shove your hooves so far up your ass you'll be coughing up horseshoes for a week-"

"I'm a deer, not a horse." He said, eyes crinkling up in amusement at your 'threat'.

You hissed out an agitated breath before taking a couple deep, long breaths and you felt your jaw lax (a little) and your temper die down a bit.

"...Yeah, you're right." You said after a moment "And I'm sorry. I didn't really have much of a reason to snap at you like that."

His eyes narrowed and you couldn't be bothered to wonder why. You said a curt goodbye and meandered off, feeling his eyes trained on your retreating form. You couldn't be bother to think about that, either.

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

Hi it's me the writer. Letting you all know that this is not planned in the slightest and i'm just winging it. No smut will happen EVER though because I don't wanna write it. So kindly look elsewhere if that's what you want. I will put a poll here though with considerations for potential next installment

[patricia-taxxon]

When I was a teenager, I had this idea for a movie that could never be made. Basically it'd be a small scale story about a girl who lives in a fantasy village, with a small scale conflict that ends with the main character failing and being banished for whatever reason. However, this would only encompass the first 40 minutes or so of the film, it would continue for much longer after that, showing the further adventures of this girl as she wanders aimlessly coming across new dangers and conflicts in an episodic manner. But then even this would begin to dissipate, the conflicts being solved by running away, or hiding, or just getting lost someplace else. Hours and hours would come to pass of almost nothing happening, just following this character wandering through increasingly abstract terrain.

I envisioned it as a representation of what long movies felt like to me when I was very young, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind was so long I could barely hold the ending and the beginning in the same place in my head. I remembered skipping to the end and feeling like I was out in space, someplace I could never have gotten by just watching the movie all the way through. This visceral sense of scale is harder to come by as an adult who knows how long days are. I've experienced it a couple times though, like skipping halfway into that video of the windows 7 startup sound stretched to 24 hours and realizing the remaining half-day of sound was literally just the jingle's reverb tail echoing slowly into the distance, skipping halfway through that 6 hour flat earth documentary and seeing footage of the guy just idly panning through an image of stars & feeling like I was stranded in the middle of the arctic ocean, discovering Bull of Heaven for the first time, etc. It's a very precious sensation that I cherish every time I get to experience it, a multi hour project that feels immense even in its isolated parts.

so then i made techdog.

[ennas-aesthetic]

What the fuck is Jesus up to in Good Omens season 3?

This is a question I've been thinking long and hard these past couple of days and I have some THOUGHTS SO. Buckle up.

Aziraphale and Crowley watching the Crucifixion (Good Omens, 2019)

First off. The answer to the question posited is relatively simple. What is Jesus up to in GO3? With s2's ending in mind and with the hints we've gotten for 668: Neighbor of the Beast over the years, we know he's descending to Earth to initiate the Second Coming. And that Aziraphale would probably make that happen - or do everything that he can as Supreme Archangel to sabotage it.

But I wanted to examine on how Jesus might fit into Good Omens' overall narratives and established themes - about morality and humanism and free will, and. I'm just saying, there are A LOT of fascinating routes they could do for his character.

(Disclaimer as usual: this is a theory that I obsessed over when I was stuck at the cemetery during All Souls' Day and must be treated as such. In no way am I insisting this should be how canon events must happen. I am just doing this for the funsies.)

The THING about Jesus if you situate him in the world of Good Omens (with the assumption that most of the pop culture Christology mythos associated with him remain intact) is that in this context he very quickly becomes: 1. Adam Young's narrative foil; and 2. an Aziraphale parallel.

Now, the first one is obvious. Of COURSE he is Adam Young's foil, duh. Adam isn't called the ANTICHRIST for nothing. Brought into the world just for the sole purpose of ending it. However, when the time comes for him to fulfill the Will of his Satanic Father, Adam flat out REFUSES.

Both the book and the show attribute this to Adam's human upbringing. He was raised as a human, and because of that he has the trait that the book uses to DEFINE human beings: free will. At the end, Adam had the AGENCY to reject the destiny planned out for him.

'Adam stood smiling at the two of them, a small figure perfectly poised exactly between Heaven and Hell.

Crowley grabbed Aziraphale's arm. "You know what happened?" he hissed excitedly. "He was left alone! He grew up human! He's not Evil Incarnate or Good Incarnate, he's just… a human incarnate—"'

- (Good Omens, 1990)

That is NOT what happened to Jesus.

Adam Bond as Jesus in Good Omens (2019)

Like Adam, he was raised as a human -- being a human incarnate was his WHOLE DEAL in Christology. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us... yada yada yada.

UNLIKE, Adam, though, Jesus wasn't able to REJECT his Destiny of Dying Really Horribly and Painfully on the Cross. Narratives in the Bible also made it clear that the Crucifixion was NOT his Will, but that of God's. Like... him begging to be spared from torment but ultimately following God's Will is such an important event entire devotional practices are made out of it.

"39 And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt."

- (Matthew 26: 39, KJV)

We get a glimpse of that in s1ep3 of Good Omens, too:

"JESUS

(muttering through the pain)

Father, please . . . you have to forgive them . . . they don’t know what they are doing . . .

Crowley, in black, comes up next to Aziraphale.

CROWLEY

You’ve come to smirk at the poor bugger, have you?

AZIRAPHALE

Smirk? Me?

CROWLEY

Well, your lot put him on there.

AZIRAPHALE

I am not consulted on policy decisions, Crawley."

- (The Quite Nice and Fairly Accurate Good Omens Script Book, 2018)

SO. Here we have the character of the Christ whose free will and agency had been STRIPPED from him in the guise of a "noble sacrifice." He comes back again on this Earth to fulfill another "inescapable destiny."

Aziraphale and Crowley need to stop him. The solution the Good Omens narrative offers to "inescapable destinies and systems" (both in s1 and s2) is for the character to realize they have the freedom to choose their own fates. It happened with Adam, and it happened with Gabriel, and perhaps it will happen to Jesus.

(At this point my sister frowned and said: "Are you telling me you think Aziraphale and Crowley are going to help Jesus realize he has agency and that him Dying on the Cross for the 'Great Plan' was kinda fucked up actually?" which sounds crazy when you put it like that BUT NEVER SAY NEVER BABIE.)

Because that brings me to my second point: if this all happens, Jesus becomes an AZIRAPHALE parallel.

In the same way Anathema is an Aziraphale parallel and Sergeant Shadwell is an Aziraphale parallel. Here is a character stuck in a suffocating status quo. To save the world, he needs to know he can escape that status quo and decide for himself. In the same way Anathema has to learn how to stop being a descendant or Shadwell to stop being a Witchfinder, or Gabriel to stop being an Archangel, and Adam to stop being an Antichrist, perhaps Jesus has to learn he can stop being... Well, the Christ, as well.

And this, of course, supplements Aziraphale's journey of letting go of the idea of being an idealized vessel of God, so he could finally enjoy the freedom of personhood and choice on Earth, with Crowley.

Or they could turn Jesus into a cackling villain who Aziraphale and Crowley need to kill in season 3, and I'd probably eat that up, too.

[couldnt-think-of-a-funny-name]

okay disjointed thoughts about the wicked movie 1 day after watching it lets go

-first of all, my movie theater put speakers outside and was just blasting the entire soundtrack on repeat. we could hear it down the street as we were driving up. that's just simply insane

-the opening establishing shots of the land were great but honestly. the very clearly animated dorothy and gang really annoyed me lmfao like I'm sorry it cannot have possibly been too hard to get a few extras to stand in front of a screen for point 5 seconds lol. it was so fast that I Know I'm being dramatic about it but they looked more cartoon than the flying monkey's did

-baby elphie and baby nessa are the cutest things I've ever seen in my life...

-I kinda...like the more human/animal hybrids that the stage show and the original movie had. sorry. like I Get they were only like that bc you can't make a real life goat sing and dance but they're just more interesting to look at than normal-looking animals who happen to talk!

-jeff goldblum's face being hidden every time he had a dance number...I have a sneaking suspicion that he wasn't really dancing lmfao

-whoever decided to bleach ariana's eyebrows deserves jail time

-when jonathan bailey first showed up on screen my mother leaned over to me and whispered 'he's HANDSOME...'

-when cynthia finished the 'wizard and I' I had to actually stop myself from applauding. it felt so weird and rude for there to be dead silence after that performance my GOD.

-also omg the part where she's singing about the wizard de-green-ifying her and the colors in the suncatchers were canceling out the green so she looked normal....inspired!

-madame morrible had these HUGE crystal ball looking rings and I just want them so much lmao

-glinda's friends were really funny the bit were she was like 'I need to lie down' and they immediately picked her up like a plank of wood and carried her off while the one was screaming 'WE NEED A PASTRY!!! IT'S AN EMERGENCY WE NEED A PASTRY!!!' had me cackling

-I wish there was more time between them moving in and 'what is this feeling' starting? like I wanted more time to see them bickering and then also more time seeing them getting along after the ball??

-'dancing through life' was BEAUTIFUL however two complaints 1) why would they cut the line 'what's the most swankified place around?' I Quote That Often and 2) at the end when glinda and elphie dance together like...it's beautiful and everything but from what I remember after their solo moment fieryo joins them?? and they have a cute three way dance moment??? and I'm very pro "they're all in love with each other" so I missed that lol

-also just in general would of liked to see more of fieryo with the girls! like it felt like ball->lion cub->emerald city, in the course of a couple days, and idk I just feel like they could have slowed it down a bit?? especially since they broke it into two movies?? like I don't think that Actually all happened in the span of a week, but they didn't do a good enough job establishing how much time was passing so it Felt like it. which is dumb bc then it just doesn't seem realistic that elphie and glinda are THAT attached to each other by defying gravity like it feels like not enough time has passed for them to really know each other

-boq felt very mild tbh I know ethan can be more unhinged than that

-would've liked to see glinda in magic class!!

-I was a little underwhelmed by elphaba's costumes? like there were clearly patterns on the material but it was all the same shade of black so you couldn't make anything out. it felt a bit flat. and I love the idea behind the freckles I agree with freckles I am pro freckles HOWEVER her's looked very obviously drawn on. like, I have seen way more realistic fake freckles before. so that was a bit annoying

-other than the lunchmeat dress glinda's costumes were good! especially loved the flower shaped one she wore to the ball

-the whole trying to escape in the hot air ballon scene was cool as hell but as the flaming remains of it fell to the ground I couldn't help but be like wow...she really just killed all those guards huh!

-also lmfao the bit in the woods with the lion club and fieryo has like a scratch on his temple. genuinely thought to myself 'is that his lobotomy scar' lmfao

-still trying to get over the part in dancing through life where people were dancing on the spinning gears in the clock tower...bitch

-the flying monkeys were correctly horrifying

-when I saw the broomstick I was like 'won't that be really uncomfortable between your legs' but then she just held it next to her like they do in the stage show and I was like....okay I guess you win that one? lmfao like I don't mind it for when she's hovering but when they had her like supersonic zooming on the broom it was weird that she wasn't actually riding it

-overall I just don't understand how it's an adaptation of act 1 but it's the length of the entire stage show?? lmao like I wish they took advantage of the split and added so much more but really really it was still just such a solid great movie. 5 stars. I can't keep talking about it right now I'm gonna start screaming.

[lovelyiida]

THINKING ABOUT HOW MUCH KIRISHIMA WOULD WANT YOU TO MATCH WITH HIM FOR HALLOWEEN, imagining the lengths he would go through to find that perfect outfit and show it to you, just for you to deny it.

"How about this one?"

"No."

"What about this one? I'm the plug and you're the socket!"

"Corny."

"How about I'll be a pirate and you can be a mermaid!"

"Mm... I feel like you're saying that because you want to be the mermaid."

A sigh escapes the redhead's mouth as he crashes on your bed in defeat. It's been several hours since he brought up the idea that both of you should match for the holiday, but you wouldn't budge. Either the ideas he gave were too corny or just painfully bad, and it was starting to hurt his feelings.

Both of you were invited to the annual UA Halloween bash; the whole school was attending, and everyone usually had on the best costumes. You didn't want to be rude, but you didn't want to be the peanut butter to his jelly, sadly.

Certainly, here's the improved version of the passage with corrected grammar and sentence structure:

"Hey, do you even want to match with me?" he says, shuffling closer to you. His face pressed against your stomach, he lets out a whine. Rolling your eyes, you then sigh.

"I don't know. I think this is the first time I've ever been able to dress up without someone else's opinion. I just want to be something really unique, not a basic couple's costume."

You run your fingers through Kirishima's red locks. You can tell he's upset by the visible silence that casts over the room.

"Kiri," you say. With a sigh, he turns around and looks into your eyes. "Hm?" he says, his tone flat and a little bit irritated.

"Don't be upset with me, babe," you say with a defeated smile. "You know I hate it when you're upset with me. Please say something," you add softly.

Kirishima lets out another drama-filled sigh and sits himself up. "I just thought that since this was the first party we would go to as a couple, you'd want to match. But I guess I was wrong." A frown visible on his lips soon disappears and forms into an understanding smirk.

"I bet I'll still have a better costume than you," he says with a mischievous smirk. The pressure from the previous conversation lifts, and a laugh escapes from you. "Yeah, okay. Wanna make a bet?" you say. Soon, the redhead climbs on top of you with a simple hum as a response.

"If I win, you're all mine for the next day, and you have to do everything I say," Kirishima says, but he cuts himself off by kissing your lips. "And! You have to match with me for the next party."

Giving him a nod, you then kiss him back with another peck. With a smug smirk you speak.

"If you lose, then it's vice versa... and I get to pick the stupidest costume there is known to mankind."

"The night of the party, it was hard to find your boyfriend. It felt like the whole entire school was there. Going through the area, seeing so many faces but none you could recognize, you finally spot a familiar face.

"Bakugo!"

The blonde soon turns around and looks you up and down, a smug smile plastered over his lips.

"Hey, looking for your boy-toy angel?" he says, all pun intended. You came to the party in an all-white costume with the cutest angel wings and a halo to match.

Rolling your eyes, your gaze lingers.

"Where is he?" you yell, the music blaring over your voice, making it hard to hear his response.

Grabbing your arm, Bakugo points over to the front of the room. With a nod, you venture over to the front of the room.

A crowd is still present, and you fight your way to the front. People thrashing their bodies and screaming to the lyrics make it even worse. Yelling out your boyfriends name, you look all around for him but he’s no where in sight.

Growing anxious from the blaring music and the suggestive stares you’ve been getting from multiple people you’ve passed; you grew anxious. Turning every which way to find him, you were about to break off into a jog until a strong hand grips you.

“Y/n!”

Turning around, you smile at the sight before you.

“Kiri!” You yelled in relief, throwing yourself onto Kirishima, you pull him into a tight embrace. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you!” You laughed.

Pulling away, your eyes linger down to his body, seeing the costume he had on made your stomach drop.

“A devil” you say, voice filled with humorous disappointment. Looking back up, you watch your boyfriends’ shit-eating-grin grow wide.

“I told you we’d match!” He chuckled.

Rolling your eyes you reach your arms around his neck. The redhead pulls you in close, “let’s call a truce?” You say, looking into his auburn eyes. Kirishima lets out a groan, but looking back at you he couldn’t help but to smile.

“Truce.”

❥: @xo-evangeline , @nar00 , @king-dynamight , @gold24fish , @lovra974 , @bakugospartner , @gaby-11 , @akqsa-xxi , @jolynegf , @goldenglow149 , @aliruuiz , @zukowantshishonourback , @ilovedenk-i , @atsushiki , @smolbeanzzz , @urdecentartist09 , @lem-hhn , @stevenknightmarc , @ryumiii , @idontevenknowlolls , @lyn07 , @kennshifts , @ackerman-suck-3-r , @elegantvoids , @thecurlyhairedgoddess , @sunyrose , @thisbicc , @thekookiecorner, @snxwycloud , @skylardarling

[live-laugh-lenney]

interruption | arthurtv

hello!

not very good as following a routine or any kind of schedule so the posting of my writing will be rather sporadic... i do apologise but bear with me on that.

here's one that i've been working on for a couple of weeks, from a request that was sent in to my inbox, so i hope that whoever did ask me to write this enjoys it. let me know what you think and don't hesitate to send in your feedback or send in any ideas that you want me to write.

thank you! love to you all!

enjoy. x

*

Cosy.

That’s how she would describe Arthur’s flat. 

Cosy and very him.

All open plan, with his kitchen melding with his living room mixing with his dining room, but so warm and inviting. A knitted throw-blanket folded and draped over the back of his sofa, that he always said was for show but he never scolded YN when she unravelled the fabric and threw it over her legs when she was curled up beside him, or took it to his bedroom when the nights were too cold for just a duvet and his radiating body heat. Books, labelled from fictional titles to nonfiction titles and autobiographies through to encyclopaedias sat on shelves attached the the walls of his living room, with photo frames of him and his family and wax burners filling in the gaps that melted scents of cinnamon and spiced orange, succulents draped down and in witty plant pots that his friends would buy him for Christmas. Lamps in every corner of his main living space because he felt that the main lighting was much too bright, especially for evenings spent at home with a good book that he’d brought from the bookstore on his outing into the city centre, or too bright for an evening spent at home watching a television show he’d been recommended to watch by one of his friends. 

Where her flat was more in the centre of London, closer to where she worked in an independent coffee house which definitely challenged the Starbucks and Costa’s that were close-by, she became used to the sounds of passing cars and honking taxis and the distant sound of the overground squeaking on the rails as it approached its destination. The hustle and bustle of tourists passing by the entrance to her flat complex, shops on her doorstep, in an area that was full of high-rise buildings and overlooked a park that she spent many of the summery days sat in, with a picnic from Waitrose and a good book and with Arthur, enjoying the time together. So being in the part of London that almost instantaneously switches off in the middle of the evening, once everyone had travelled home and everything had shut up shop for the night, felt almost peaceful to her.

She much preferred his living space to her own…but she was sure that it was the feeling of being in the same vicinity as him that warmed her more than being in the flat itself.

On the evenings he would film with Alex and George and Cam, for a Chaos Crew video that seemed to be in high demand, she found herself dillying around his home and finding things to do until he was finished for the night. If it wasn’t cooking them both a dinner to eat once he was done, it was reading something from his ever growing collection of novels; and if she wasn’t reading a book, she was logging into his Netflix and watching a film to pass the time and, if she’d had a busy day and felt her eyelids sitting heaving, she would curl up and take a nap on the sofa until she was woken up with a soft kiss to the forehead or a gentle nudge into her thigh to wake her up.

But there was something about that evening where she just wanted to be near him.

They’d both, surprisingly, had days off that coincided with each other so they spent the day together and they came rarely and not very often - taking it in their stride and making the most of getting to spend quality time together.They went shopping down the strip together and spoilt the other whenever they saw them looking at something for a little longer than normal, they popped into her coffee house for a cream cake and a coffee and to say hello to her friends who were working that day, they went food shopping because his fridge was a little scarce when it came to ingredients for a dinner that was substantial and they shared a late dinner together where they sat at the dining table with a candle and some fizzy apple juice to impersonate wine because neither of them fancied a drink that night. But she knew their time together was inevitable and she couldn’t help but look at the clock as she counted the minutes down till he said he needed to film a new video - and she couldn’t complain because, well, she had spent the last twelve hours with him. 

But, twelve hours just didn’t feel like enough.

She hated using the word clingy when it came to her relationship with Arthur but… she felt clingy. 

Across the space of his living room, she swerved the sofa and dodged his furniture and tucked the blanket a bit tighter over her shoulders as the gentle breeze of her movements blew it from the bare skin showing for her t-shirt - well, not her t-shirt but Arthur’s t-shirt, yet she claimed it as her own and he couldn’t say no to her when he thought she looked beautiful in his clothing - and she made her way down his hallway to. Goosebumps on her legs as she left the warmth of the sofa but they soon disappeared as she got closer to his office door, accustomed to the chill in the air.

“You know when this guy is telling him to tone it down that he needs to take it down a level,” she heard Arthur remark, a gentle snicker following in suit. 

“Uh, yeah, looking a little bit like a geek there… might want to tone it down,” George’s laugh came next, followed by a chorus of cackles and snickers from the other guys sat on the Discord video call.

“He’s got a fourth badge that’s just homophobic,” her boyfriend retorted back and at that, she rolled her eyes and an unsure smile on her lips because of the emphasis on the last word of his sentence.

She could hear that whatever they were watching on Youtube had been unpaused, ready to carry on before they took another break to add commentary content to the video, and her hand halted over the door handle to his office. Shuffling on her bare feet, the wooden floor of his hallway was cold beneath the pads of her toes, and she just couldn’t figure out the right time to poke her head into his room and ask him just how long he was going to be. She didn’t want to be a bother but the longing-for-him feeling, that sat low in her belly, was becoming a bother to her.

“It is kind of cute. I actually do kind of rate it, like being your own superhero and that… but it is the kind of thing you grow out of when you’re like six,” Arthur stated. 

“Yeah, you’ve got to go as something recognisable surely, right?” Alex questioned and there were some gentle hums of agreement throughout that she probably would have joined in with if they were all sat in a room together and discussing that specific topic, “if you’re gonna go as anything at all.”

“What did you go as to Comic Con?” Arthur wondered, asking the question that everyone was thinking; “I went as Obi Wan Kenobi,” came Alex’s response and he was instantly met with silence. YN could just imagine the smirks and the grins and the laughter that were almost bursting to come to light from the three guys sat there, taking in everything they’d heard.

And YN took the chance.

The door handle squeaked as she applied pressure and the door creaked as she opened it, poking her head into the room, met with the sage green wallpaper of his office and the dim lighting filling the space that he used as background lighting - because he still found his main light to be too bright when filming his Youtube videos. He turned in his seat and let his eyes adjust, smiling upon her arrival once he saw her full figure standing in the doorway, the screen illuminating the side of his face and he slipped his headphones from on top of his head and down to his neck.

“You okay, lovie?”

“Just wanted to know how long you were going to be,” she hummed softly, almost too quiet, but she didn’t want to interfere with their recording because then he’d have been there even longer than planned, “I was gonna have a nap on the sofa but I won’t if you’re not gonna be too long.”

“I won’t be long, no,” he said, “there’s not long left of this video. Give me twenty minutes?”

“I’ll wait up for you,” she smiled, “mind if I just sit in here and watch? Promise I won’t make any sounds. I’m a bit bored out there on my own.”

Arthur smiled warmly at her, letting his eyes wander up and down her body as he took in her comfy appearance, holding up his pointer finger as he turned back to face his monitors and slid his headphones back up his head, setting them back on his ears.

“Guys, YN’s here.”

She could hear the muffled cheers through his headphones from his announcement and she grinned shyly, tightening the blanket around her shoulders, and she closed the bedroom door behind her before shuffling across the carpet. He gave his thighs a pat, inviting her to come and sit with him for a brief few minutes, and she quietly took him up on that offer as she blushed and nodded. He situated himself a bit more comfortably in his chair, unplugging his headphones so she could hear what was happening and moving any lingering wires so she could settle herself down on his lap without pulling any screens off of his desk. Curling up under his arm and bringing her knees to her chest, covering herself with the blanket draped over her shoulders, releasing a content sigh. She wasn’t bothered by her appearance on the screen because she knew he wouldn’t include any of what was happening, without her permission, in the final cut on Youtube.

“How have you been, YN?”

“I’ve been good, yeah. Ready for a sleep but you guys just had to come first tonight,” she smirked, feeling Arthur’s hand tuck beneath the t-shirt hanging down her frame, his fingers tickling up her side in a relaxing and comforting manner, “I feel I haven’t seen you guys for weeks.”

“You haven’t actually,” George remarked with a hint of feigned annoyance, a similar smirk sitting on his mouth, “spending all your time with Arthur now, aren’t you? Taking him away from us. We’ll have to fight for custody.”

She rolled her eyes with a grin and dropped her head into the curve of Arthur’s neck and his jawline, inhaling softly and breathing in the faint scent of cologne still left on his clothing, his arms tightening around her. 

He was warm. 

So warm. 

His hands wouldn’t leave her skin. His arm stayed tight to her waist and his fingers traced soft circles into her hip, just above the waistband of the knickers that dug into her skin, and his free hand kept in its place upon her knee and he gave her a squeeze every so often. 

“I’m letting you have him this weekend,” she hummed, “Platform Roulette, no?”

“I only get him when he’s drunk and annoying,” George frowned playfully, “you get him when he’s all cute and soppy. One can only dream of that interaction, used to have it all the time.”

“YN’s cute and soppy also so they’re practically a match made in heaven,” Cam cackled and YN felt the heat creep up her neck and settle across the expanse of her cheeks, “look at you guys, it’s just adorable and it makes me feel sick.”

“Cam, oh my god,” Arthur laughed, “you guys suck.”

“We love you both really,” Alex smiled, “you know we do.”

*

honestly, ending a story just isn't my forte... i just hate every ending i write.

anyway!

if you got this far then thank you for reading. means a lot to me that you've reached the end. please let me know what you think and don’t hesitate to send me any ideas you may have for future fics. my ask box is always open so don’t hesitate to send anything in.

lots of love to you guys! thank you! xx

[toomuchracket]

Mads I have this concept in my mind. I see it with d word Matty. I think beginning of the relationship, maybe Matty is supposed to be away for a couple of days so girlie is having a self maintenance night. I imagine her with her hair up to have heat less curl, self tan, maybe some pimple patches. And then Matty surprises her by coming back early, maybe she's waiting for her food, she opens the door and it's Matty. She's super embarrassed/self conscious but of course he's super chill about all of it.

this inspired me to write a lil fic! seeing it as set after candlelight, but before any d words or l words were used lol. enjoy! <3

i've been dying to meet you (d word matty x reader fluff)

the doorbell rings just as you're applying your under-eye patches. you don't rush to get it, though - the drivers know to just leave your food order at the door to your flat once you've buzzed them up. god forbid anyone sees you like this, after all, in the midst of your thursday night routine; you probably look insane, wandering around in your dressing gown and slippers, hair wrapped around a pair of tights and clipped up, face covered in sheet mask and pimple patches, respectively.

but you feel good. and you'll look good tomorrow. which is imperative, given that you’ll see your boyfriend (it still feels weird being able to say that, honestly) for the first time in 20 days.

the thought of that has you slightly giddy. humming happily, you dance through the flat towards the door, only pausing in the living room to click play on the next episode of sex and the city and have a sip of your wine. the mouthwatering scent of your dinner seeps into the hallway, growing stronger as you near the door - it's never quite been so potent before, but then again, you’re fucking starving. 

still humming tunelessly, you open the door to grab your food, and come face to face with matty.

your breath catches in your throat in horror - he can't see you like this, so soon into the relationship! - but your heart swells at the sight of your boyfriend in his hoodie and sweats, your (open!) takeaway in his hands. he grins when he sees you, eyes lighting up as he takes in your appearance; you tense up in preparation of him taking the piss out of it.

he doesn't, though. “hi, baby,” matty says softly. “stole one of your prawn crackers - hope you don't mind.”

you blink. “how- how did you get up here? you didn't buzz.”

“offered to hold the door for the delivery guy and just came in after him. and then i offered to bring this up when i asked if it was for your flat and he said yeah. felt like i was 22 again, honestly, in my old job,” your boyfriend smiles. “although i can safely say i never ever delivered a takeaway to someone as hot as you back then.”

“don't make fun,” you groan, stepping to the side to let him into the flat - he kisses your temple as he passes you - and kicking the door shut. “nobody was meant to see me tonight. s'why i asked them to ring the doorbell and just leave the food without me answering.”

“i did wonder why it took you so long to get to the door, darling,” matty calls over his shoulder as he wanders into your kitchen. he furrows his brow when you walk straight past and continue into your bedroom, laying the food on the counter and following you - well, until the door closes before him. “babe? are you… annoyed at me?”

“no, i'm just putting underwear on,” comes your muffled reply, followed by the sound of a drawer opening and closing.

“don't feel you need to do that on my account, sweetheart, i insist. actually, i'm more than happy to also get naked, if you prefer.”

despite your lingering shock at seeing him, you giggle at your boyfriend’s eager tone. “no, it's alright, matty.”

“you're sure? i've already got my shirt off.”

the speed with which you open your bedroom door at that phrase is almost embarrassing. matty - shirtless, as promised - smirks when you do. “i can't believe you had no pants on when you answered the door.”

you frown, flicking him on the stomach; he just laughs and follows you into the kitchen. “shut up, i couldn't put clothes on, i had just moisturised.”

“what, your arse and all?”

“mhmm.”

“interesting,” matty smirks again. “wouldn't mind seeing that process, to be honest.”

“for fuck's sake, matthew.”

“sorry, darling, couldn't resist,” your boyfriend grins. his face softens into a more tender smile. “just missed you, s'all. hope you don't mind that i came over early and interrupted your pamper night - couldn't settle at home, knowing you were only a few miles away for the first time in weeks.”

the sweetness of his revelation goes straight to your knees; you wrap your arms around his neck to hold yourself up, and press your lips to his in a tender kiss. it deepens when matty runs his tongue across your lips, slipping it into your mouth when they open, but that's as passionate as it gets - the overwhelming emotion behind the kiss is just sheer affection.

“i missed you too,” you kiss matty's nose when you pull away. “and you're not interrupting anything, really, s'just my usual thursday night routine,” you pull the little containers of food from the bag and turn to get a plate from the cupboard. “d'you want to split this with me? i ordered too much.”

matty nods, taking the plates from you and grabbing a fork from the drawer to dish the food up. “thanks, sweetheart. so, tell me more about this thursday night thing. you do this every week?”

“yeah, whenever i'm home, just to prep for the weekend. haven't you ever noticed i always look better at work on fridays?” you grin, pouring your boyfriend a glass of wine.

“not really. i think you look beautiful every day,” matty smiles, kissing your hand after you pass him the wine. “although i have noticed your hair is usually really curly during friday meetings. i like it.”

you point to your head. “blame this.”

“serious? i thought you were going to get a blow dry after work or something.”

“nah,” you giggle. “i just go to sleep with this in. feels a bit weird, but i like the end result.”

“so do i,” matty smiles. “you're so pretty, baby.”

your cheeks burn, and you smile bashfully at the floor. “well, when i take all these weird stickers off my face, maybe.”

“no, even now,” matty gently tilts your chin up so he can look you in the eye. “you’re beautiful. my perfect girl!”

he leans down to kiss you again; you giggle as he pulls away afterwards. “oh, you're down bad bad for me, aren't you? still thinking i'm pretty even when i've got pimple patches on.”

“well, yeah, i have eyes.”

“pretty ones, at that,” you rest your hand on his jaw, and he turns to kiss it. “i'm glad you came to see me tonight. would you like to stay over?”

“if i say yes, do i get to be pampered a little bit?” matty giggles.

“oh, i'll take care of you, don’t you worry, baby.”

[ckret2]

I've been really looking forward to posting this chapter. It's got it all: angst, comedy, meaty plot progression, banter, Bill and Ford screaming at each other, Stan getting an MVP moment, Soos being Soos, and a grappling hook. And this:

It's admittedly harder to take Bill's stuck-in-a-human-body grief seriously when he's wearing a pony toga and goofy bug wing face paint.

Anyway here's chapter 4, and here's the masterpost. 8/5/2024 edited for TBOB compatibility!

####

The car had been on the road for several tense minutes before Bill announced his return to consciousness by startling upright, attempting to shout through his gag, looking around wildly, and then kicking Stan's butt through the back of the front bench.

"Hey. Hey! Easy!" Stan turned around to swat at Bill. Bill responded by headbutting his hand.

Trying to ignore Bill and keep his eyes on the road, Ford said, "Soos?"

"You got it." Soos leaned to the right, gently pinning Bill against the door.

Bill grunted, squirmed mightily against his fate, kicked the front bench a couple more times for good measure, and then started rubbing his face against the car door handle.

"Give it a rest," Stan said. "There's no way you're jumping out of a moving car. You're completely tied up and you've got a seatbelt on."

"Safety first," Soos said.

"Plus, the handle on that door sticks."

Bill gave them both a murderous glare, shot another at Ford just because, and resumed rubbing his face on the door handle.

It took a couple minutes for him to use the handle to peel the duct tape off his mouth. He spat half a wet sock at the back of Stan's head. "Where are we—Hey! Hey! Look at me! Where are we going?!"

Gaze never wavering from the road, Ford said, "You don't need to know."

"All that matters is you're not coming back," Stan said. "You're gonna stay with some old friends of mine until we figure out how to deal with you. Real professionals. Not even you could find a way out of this."

"There's nobody to manipulate when nobody is listening to you," Ford said.

Soos, ever helpful, threw in, "Stan hasn't really told us much about these dudes? But I've been getting some 'prisoner pit in a serial killer's basement' vibes off of how he's talking about it."

The rage quickly drained from Bill's face, leaving behind a stricken look. "It's not that golf cart chop shop, is it?"

"What?! How did you kn—" Stan whipped around to gape at Bill, then stared at Ford. "How did he—?!"

"He has eyes everywhere," Ford said resignedly. "I'm sure once he got his claws into me, he started looking into my family's lives."

Soos considered this, nudged Bill, and said, "Hey. What kinda creepy stuff do you know about me?"

Bill didn't answer. He was staring blankly at the back of the front bench. Voice oddly flat, he said, "So. You leave me with a bunch of professional criminals. What's your plan then, smart guy."

"I don't know yet," Ford said. "And that's exactly why we're leaving you with people who can keep you contained—andkeep your puppet alive, whether you like it or not. All they need to do is buy us time until we find a way to extract you from your puppet and destroy you for good."

"And what if you can't 'extract' me."

The car was silent. Finally, Ford said, "Then whatever poor woman you've taken over has already lost her life. Destroying you and her body would be a mercy killing." Stan nodded sharply.

Bill slumped back in his seat. He looked out the window at the dark trees passing by.

The car's headlights swept over a sign reading "Now leaving Gravity Falls."

Bill choked on his breath. His gaze whipped forward, staring through the windshield, eyes wide. "Whoa-whoa-whoa wait wait stop STOP STOP! WATCH OUT!"

Ford slammed the breaks.

"What'd we hit?" Stan leaned over the dash, squinting into the dark. "After you insisted you're a better driver than me—"

"I didn't hit anything—there's nothing in the road—"

Hysterically, Bill demanded, "Are you trying to kill me?!"

Which was such a fantastically stupid question that the whole car turned to stare at him. He was wheezing on the verge of hyperventilation, pressed as far back into the car seat as he could get, feet raised and braced against the back of the front bench, face contorted in exaggerated fear.

Trying to sound irritated to avoid sounding rattled, Ford said, "What the devil is it?"

"Are you crazy?" Bill snapped. "You almost drove straight through the bubble!"

Soos and the Pines all looked forward. There was nothing but the dark road beyond their car. Ford gave Bill a wary look. "The what?"

"The—the bubble! The weirdness barrier around this stupid town's Attractor Zone! You can't see it, can you." Bill jutted his chin forward, gesturing out the windshield. "Well whether you see it or not, it's right there!"

Stan shrugged. "So?"

"SO?!" Bill's voice cracked. "So whaddaya think happens to me if I hit a weirdness barrier in a moving car?!"

Stan considered that a moment. "I dunno... That sounds more like your problem than our problem."

"Hey, it's your upholstery, buddy! But if YOU wanna see what happens when you hit a deer and it teleports inside the car—"

Stan snuck a foot over to the driver's side footwell and pressed the gas, making the engine rev. Bill flinched and yipped like a threatened chihuahua. Stan laughed.

Ford was staring hard at Bill. "The weirdness barrier only exists on the physical plane—it shouldn't affect you in the mindscape. And if you're possessing a perfectly normal human body, it wouldn't be impacted, either. It would only affect you if... you have physical form?" He scrutinized Bill's face—not his alien pupils, but everything else, taking in his facial features, looking for something familiar. The shape of his eyes, the brilliant gold of his hair that almost seemed to glow in the dark car, the way his narrow shoulders and wide hips gave him a distinctly triangular silhouette. "You're... not possessing someone, are you?"

Bill's breath hitched.

Stan looked between the two of them. "You mean that's just him? He's a human now?" He gestured dismissively at Bill. "Why shouldn't we hit the barrier, then. Take care of him now. I oughta get the ol' Diablo reupholstered, anyway."

"Oh! Oh! So that's how you want to play!" Bill let out a shrill laugh. "Fine, be like that! Do it—if you're sooo sure it won't just set me free! Do you like the sound of that? Wanna find out whether blowing up this flesh prison will kill me or unleash me?" He leaned into Stan's face, baring his teeth, smiling viciously. "Go on, tough guy—think you can get me with another lucky sucker punch?"

Stan scowled—but instead of rising to the bait, he gave Bill a hard, considering look. "What's your game?"

"Ha! I'm playing games an idiot like you couldn't even imagine—"

On Stan's behalf, Ford tapped the gas, nudging the car forward a few inches.

Bill shrieked. "What's wrong with you, you maniac?!" Over Stan's guffaws and Ford's chuckle, Bill snapped, "I've had it!" The rear door swung open. Bill tumbled out onto the road.

"Hey!" Soos scrambled after him, but by the time he was out of his seatbelt, Bill was on his feet and running.

He was running very badly. He'd somehow managed to free his wrists and ankles—his ankles were raw and bloody and his handcuffs, still locked, lay innocently in the back seat—but his elbows were still chained to his sides and his knees were tied together. Stan jumped out of the car, saw Bill trip and sprawl on the asphalt less than twenty feet away, and laughed so hard he needed to lean on the car for balance.

Ford caught up just after Soos tackled Bill. "Well! There. Here you are." Ford's fists were trembling. "You couldn't have thought you'd escape, Bill. What was the point of that—that ridiculous demonstration!"

Bill's cheek was pressed to the ground so hard that he had to squeeze one eye shut; but it didn't stop him from giving Ford a smarmy smirk. "To be annoying," he said. "For you. Personally and individually."

"Fffp— For me?! Why? To what end, Bill?!" Ford knew Bill just wanted to see him angry. And it worked. "Of all the places in the world you could have gone, why are you back here! What could you possibly get out of harassing us again! After all you've done to us already!"

"What." The change on Bill's face was instantaneous. "After... what I... have done to you? WHAT I'VE DONE TO YOU?!"

His body shook with the violence of his screams, threatening to throw Soos off. "I HAVEN'T DONE ANYTHING TO ANY OF YOU! Look at you all, you hale and hearty little animals, with all your dwindling decades left to you—what about ME?!"

He jammed a fist in Soos's gut to knock him off and lunged for Ford, clawing at his ankle and coat hem like a zombie reaching from the grave. Ford stumbled back, tripped over Bill's hand, and fell hard on the asphalt. Bill wrenched an arm free from the chains around his chest with a sick bony CRACK and crawled on top of Ford.  "I was perfect! I was a god-king! I'm the most sublime thing your universe has ever seen! What am I now?!" Bill's bound knees dug into Ford's abdomen, his clawed fingers reached for his face. "MEAT! I'm MEAT, Stanford! I'm a greasy trash bag of raw leather filled with meat and bile! My body is rotting off its bones as we SPEAK, in a few years I'll be dust! AND YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT WHAT I 'TOOK' FROM YOU?!"

His fingers closed around Ford's throat. "What did you lose! TELL ME what you lost! I gave you EVERYTHING you ever wanted—knowledge, magic, validation, INFINITE worlds to explore! I offered you more! I offered you fame and fortune! Immortality! Divinity! So WHAT! DID! YOU! LOSE!" He punctuated each word with a furious shake. He was frothing with rage, choking on his rage, so furious he was nearly sobbing. "And do you REALLY THINK it comes CLOSE to what I'VE been through?! To the eternity you STOLE FROM ME?! You KILLED me today, Stanford! I DIED TODAY—"

A grappling hook whistled between their faces, nearly hitting Bill's nose, smashing into the bark of a tree. Bill froze, eyes wide, the taut wire inches in front of his mouth, staring down at Ford. And then he let go. He didn't resist when Stan dragged him off, or when Stan and Soos wrapped their arms around him in case he lunged for Ford again. His knees briefly buckled before he got his feet under him again.

Ford stared up at Bill, rubbing his throat.

He'd seen Bill angry enough to kill—yet he'd never seen Bill angry like that before. Bill's anger was always the petty tantrum of an entitled child who had been denied something he thought he deserved. This was different.

This wasn't just anger; it was grief. Bill was grieving himself.

"This... really is you, isn't it?"

Bill's jaw tightened.

"Great Uncle Ford!" Dipper dropped to a knee beside Ford, grabbing his shoulder. "Are you okay?!"

"I'm fine, Dip—Dipper?" Ford stared at him, and turned to look at Mabel and the two bikes further up the road. "What are you two doing out here?"

"Following to make sure Bill doesn't try anything?" Dipper said. "Like he just did?"

Stan said, "Whoa, kids, it's way too dangerous f—aw, forget it. Just how the heck did you find us?" (He'd handed Bill over to Soos, learning nothing from the lessons of the last few minutes; but Bill didn't make another move to escape. He leaned against Soos for physical support, shoulders slumped, his whole face sagging with exhaustion.)

Dipper said, "We figured you wouldn't let us come, so Mabel bugged the car after dinner."

"She what?"

"I poked a hole in a bag of glitter and taped it under your bumper!" Mabel pointed at the sparkly red trail leading along the road to the car. She was trying to pull her grappling hook out of the tree. "Hey, Grunkle Ford! We saved your life twice in one day! I think you owe us a pizza or something."

Dipper nodded seriously. "Definitely."

Ford rubbed his neck. "I don't think he was even trying to kill me. He was just..." Ford trailed off, staring after Bill. Out of that mad monologue of historical revisionism, the part that echoed in Ford's head was the last words. I died today. It still felt that fresh to Bill? Where had he been the past year—how did time move there?

Mabel frowned. "Aw, c'mon, Grunkle Ford. Lemme have this."

He dragged his gaze from Bill and laughed, ruffling her hair. "All right, all right. I owe you two a pizza."

"Yes!"

"No wonder you slipped these off," Soos muttered, holding the handcuffs in one hand and one of Bill's hands in the other. "You have delicate little baby hands. I bet it's really easy for you to get things out of jars."

"Sure." Bill sighed listlessly. "But it makes playing the piano a pain."

Soos more tightly handcuffed Bill's delicate little baby hands in his lap, considered how best to keep him from running off again, and finally wrapped an arm around Bill's shoulders. "There. Buddy system!"

Bill endured this indignity with the vacant-eyed stoicism of a shell shocked soldier.

"So, what's going on?" Dipper asked, looking at the stopped car.

"We're at the edge of the weirdness barrier around Gravity Falls," Ford said. "Bill can't cross it. Obviously, slamming him into it would be like driving into a wall. It would be fatal."

"To just Bill? Or the tourist, too?"

"There is no tourist. That's—him."

"Yeah," Stan said. "So he claims, anyway. I'm not sure I believe that."

Mabel gasped and grabbed Dipper's arm. "I knew it! Grunkle Ford, Grunkle Stan—I think he's telling the truth! When Bill possessed Dipper, he was all cold and gross like a dead body. But this time he's normal! I bet his book wanted blood so he could make a body out of it!"

"Like a homunculus?" The Book of Bill was made of human brain tissue—and Ford had gotten the disconcerting impression that he could feel vertebrae through the book's spine. "I wouldn't put it past him."

Stan screwed up his face, tilting his head. "All right, magic books and humonkeys are beyond me, but—something's still fishy. He's holding something back, I'm sure of it. Sixer, you've had more practice figuring him out than anyone else, what do you think?"

Ford sighed. "Unfortunately, he's also had more experience manipulating me than anyone else. But, all the same, I wouldn't put the possibility that this is really his body past him. I... I've never seen him so..." He meant to say furious. Instead, he said, "hurt." 

Ford wondered if there really was something to Bill's anger that he had never seen before—something awoken by dying?—or if it was just easier for Ford to see the emotions now that they were on a human face. If there were other nuances he'd missed over the years.

Glancing toward the car, Ford didn't see any anger on Bill's face now. It was completely blank—not neutral but empty, like he was too exhausted to feel. "Bill's a good liar, but I've never known him to be a good actor. I think that... outburstwas sincere."

Mabel said, "I've seen him impersonating Soos, Dipper, and Blanchin Blandin, and—he's convincing when he's doing normal stuff, but I've never seen him try to fake having emotions."

Dipper said, "Yeah, he's not really big on emoting. Pretty much the only expression he knows how to make on purpose is the world's creepiest smile."

"Okay," Stan said, "so he's probably telling the truth about being stuck in a human body and being mad about it. But what about that thing he said about setting him loose again if we kill his body."

(Dipper and Mabel exchanged a look. Dipper mouthed Trojan horse, and Mabel nodded.)

"Because here's the thing," Stan said. "Say that's a lie, and killing him will just kill him. If he's half the liar you think he is, he woulda been trying to convince us from the start that his life is the only thing standing between us and the apocalypse! So why'd he only pull this out at the last minute, when it sounds like a stupid excuse?"

"He didn't need to tell us before," Ford said. "We thought he was possessing a tourist, we didn't want to hurt her."

"Ending the world's a lot scarier than killing one tourist! Why bother with the 'tourist puppet' schtick and then escalate? Maybe that's just the kind of half-rate con artist he is, but—just—!" Stan flung his hands up. "Something isn't adding up!"

Ford said, "So you think it's double reverse psychology? He told us killing him would restart Weirdmageddon so we'll think it's a lie, kill him, and actually restart it?"

Stan paused. "No," he said. "No, that's not it, either. If it was, he coulda just let us drive into that invisible barrier without saying anything."

"Then what? What's he actually trying to make us think?"

Stan stared at Bill, still turning over their conversation in the car, trying to put his finger on what had seemed wrong about it.

Wanna find out whether blowing up this flesh prison will kill me or unleash me?

Stan could see Bill's face as it had looked yesterday, on the ground at his feet, barrel of a laser gun aimed at Bill's forehead, looking past it to stare straight into Stan's eyes. Go ahead, Stanley, let's find out what'll happen. He could have claimed then that killing him would end the world—or he could have forced Stan to shoot—but that was all he'd said. Let's find out.

Slowly, Stan said, "He's not trying to make us think anything. He's banking on us being too scared to gamble on what'll happen if he dies. Because he's too scared to gamble." Stan turned to stare at Bill. "You! You don't know if you can come back from this."

Bill blinked and focused on the Pines, glare darting between them.

"Do you?" Stan crossed his arms.

Bill's face twitched, and his defiance collapsed: "No! I don't know! I didn't get to see the terms and conditions on this stupid body—I don't know if I get my angles back when this body croaks, or if I just get shuffled into a human afterlife and that's it!" He forced a furious smile. "But if I don't know what's going to happen, then neither do you! Nobody does! So do you want to find out the hard way?!"

Bill looked from face to face; their silence was answer enough. No. They did not want to find out the hard way. He laughed loudly, reveling in his one tiny triumph.

"All right," Stan barked, "I've had enough of your crap." He cracked his knuckles, marched up to Bill, and socked his jaw.

Bill immediately shut up.

The other humans politely clapped.

####

If they couldn't take Bill out of the weirdness barrier, then for now there was only one place to take him: back to the shack. Stan borrowed a phone to step off the road and have a quick, hushed conversation with his contacts about the change in plans, while Ford helped Dipper and Mabel attach their bikes to the roof of the car.

When Stan returned, Ford said, "We're running out of seats." What he really meant was they were out of seats that would keep the kids away from Bill.

"Just stick me in the trunk!" Bill—leaning against the car boredly while the humans rearranged his incarceration plans—had regained some of his usual pep now that one small thing had gone right for him. He had, somehow, got his hands on the bat Soos had stowed in the back seat, and had been holding it like a cane, unnoticed until he used it to gesture toward the trunk. "I'm a prisoner! Humans put prisoners in the trunk, right?"

Stan snorted. "What, and let you kick out the taillights and escape? I don't think so. And who let you have a weapon!" He snatched the bat from Bill and tossed it in the trunk instead. "Kids, you sit on the front bench." Stan and Soos slid into the back with Bill jammed in the middle.

The drive was very, very quiet.

The only noise was the quiet squeak as Bill took up steadily kicking Ford's side of the front bench. Ford's grip on the steering wheel tightened. He said nothing.

Stan kicked Bill's ankle. Bill kicked Stan. Soos leaned against the window in a futile attempt to escape them and sighed.

And then the car was silent again.

"Say!" Bill said. The other passengers started. "What is it, about three? That's morning! Who wants to go get breakfast?"

"No," Stan and Ford said.

"Aw, come on! I think we're near that truck stop where Sixer had a psychotic episode!" Bill kicked the front bench more enthusiastically. "I thought you guys decided to keep me alive! You'll have a hard time doing that if you let me starve to death."

Ford said, "You're not going to starve to death between now and when we get home."

Soos blinked. "Hey, he slept through dinner, didn't he? Dude. How long has it been since you last ate?"

"Do socks count?"

Dipper and Mabel cast a suspicious glance at the damp half sock lying in the front footwell.

Soos shook his head. "Uh-uh."

"Then depending on which way of measuring nonlinear chronology you want to go by, it's either been a day, a year, or an eternity."

Soos furrowed his brow. Stan sighed irritably and said, "Would it kill you to give a straight answer?"

"It might. I've never tried before." Bill cackled. "It's not my fault I don't know which way you want to count chronology!"

Flatly, Ford said, "How long does your body think it's been since you last fed it."

"I've never fed it."

The humans stared in shock. Even Ford spared a glance in the rearview mirror.

"Ohhh right, that's not optional anymore. That explains the ceaseless abdominal pain! And all Chumbo's griping! And the vertigo when I stand up! And the mood swings!" Bill laughed, "Hey, Fordsy! Turns out I was just hungry!"

"I'll stop for breakfast if you never call me that again."

"Deal!"

Ford took the turn toward the Triple Digit Truck Stop.

####

[amethystwrytes]

-If I Had Asked-

Pairing: Jungkook x genderless reader

Genre: Romantic. Hurt. Comfort. Fluff. Exes to lovers. Oneshot.

Summary: Jungkook wants to catch up at a mutual friends birthday party.

Warnings: Language. Alcohol consumption and marijuana use.

Inspired by this prompt.

WC: 1.5K

Jungkook weaves in and out of the throng of people in the small apartment. Seokjin had insisted on a small party, but as usual he’d gotten carried away and vastly overestimated the capacity of his flat.

Jungkook can pretend to be outgoing, a crowd lover, if the occasion calls for it, but in truth he feels like his skin is crawling every time he brushes up against a stranger. Normally he would’ve left after wishing his elder a happy birthday and leaving his present, a compilation book of Marvels 100 best comics, on the counter.

However, he has it on good authority that Seokjin invited you here tonight, and that you’d said yes.

Jungkook hasn’t seen you since you packed your shit and left his apartment over a year ago. You hadn’t been the least bit unserious when you told him you were done, you really had been. It took Jungkook a long time to realize that he probably should’ve gone after you. Too long. By the time it had occurred to him, six months had passed, you were seeing someone else, and his window had closed.

He was immature with you, and maybe a year doesn’t make anyone wiser, but he’s learned a lot since then. Like how prioritizing everything over you because he just assumed you’d always be around was his biggest mistake.

His third circle of Jins apartment has him wondering if Namjoon had been wrong - you actually had no plans to come. Then he hears it. He would know your laugh in any universe. If he were in a coma he’d still hear it. It makes his heart ache.

You’re out on the terrace. A vodka cranberry, that’s probably more cranberry than anything, in one hand, a joint in the other. You’re chatting with Jimin, probably catching up, but like an invisible string is tethered, you turn your head and make eye contact with Jungkook through the glass. He see's you tense up for just a second, then you turn back to Jimin, looking like you're about to make a quick exit.

He can't have that.

Jungkook shimmies through the crowd and slides through the door. Jimin notices the change in the very air out on the terrace.

"Jungkook, long time no see," he says, trying to keep it light and charming, but the thick cloud of awkward is expanding by the second.

You look over the terrace out into the darkness, taking a long drag off the joint and blowing it into the air.

"Yeah," Jungkook shrugs, "I've been working a lot, not really had the energy for hanging out."

"For sure," Jimin nods. Then silence ensues. The noise from the party, lulled by the closed terrace door buzzes and beckons. "I'm going to go find Seokjin, see how drunk he is," Jimin jokes and the two of you offer up some forced laughter.

"Here," you say, handing him the joint, "I think I'm good."

Jimin takes it, offers it briefly to Jungkook who shakes his head no, then places it between his lips before retreating indoors like the terrace is on fire.

"Hi," Jungkook finally says.

"Hey there," you reply.

"Why is this so uncomfortable?" he laughs, taking the spot beside you to look out into the night. City lights dot the horizon like blinking stars and he focuses on one that seems to flash on and off every couple of seconds.

"I don't know," you finally answer, "I think these things are always awkward."

"What things?"

"Seeing your ex at a party for the first time since splitting," you clarify. "Though you'd think a years time would've papered over some of those cracks."

"I'm sorry," Jungkook offers, the list of things he owes you an apology for is too long though, "Sorry for letting a year go by without speaking."

"It's fine," you say flatly. "How have you been? Seeing anyone?" you mentally slap yourself for adding that last bit. That opens up a whole conversation that you'd rather not have.

"I've been fine, I guess. Kind of just going through the motions of life, really. Neutral I suppose is the best way to describe it," he says, "and no. I was seeing someone for a bit, but...I don't know. It just fizzled out as quick as it started."

"That's too bad," you say, though you don't sound the least bit interested. You take another sip of your drink and you wish you'd asked Jin for an extra shot of vodka now.

"How's Taehyung? I didn't see him tonight," Jungkook wonders, waits for your answer with bated breath.

"He uh..." you chuckle dryly looking into your cup, "He's in Japan. Took a promotion in the company but had to relocate. He asked me to go...but..."

"You didn't?" Jungkook finishes. "Why not?"

"You know how ill my grandma is," you smile sadly, "I didn't think it was a good idea to leave."

"Are they not taking good care of her at the assisted living place?"

"They are," you nod, "but still."

"So, did you guys like, break up? Or are you doing the long distance thing?" he presses.

"Is this why you came out here? To ask me if I'm still seeing Taehyung?" you wonder, not bothering to hide the confusion or irritation.

Jungkook shakes his head, "I came out here to just talk, ___. That's what I'm doing."

You sigh. "No. We're not doing the long distance thing. We decided it would be better if we ended it, well, he decided," you laugh bitterly. "Though to be fair I think it was less of a 'hard versus easy’ issue, and more of a 'he wanted to be able to fuck whomever he wanted without having to feel guilty for it' issue."

"I'm sorry," Jungkook offers genuinely.

"Why?" you snap your head over to him, "I figured you'd be pleased with that outcome. After all I basically did the same thing to you."

"You didn't dump me so you could fuck other people without feeling guilty," he reminds you, then after a long pause adds, "Right?"

You laugh. "No, that's not why I broke up with you."

"You weren't happy," he says.

"I felt like I was your parent, you treated me like someone who was supposed to cater to your every need and like my job, my dreams were second to yours. That made me unhappy. That wasn't very fair."

"No, it wasn't. I acted like that because that's what I thought a grown up relationship was, that's what I wanted it to be."

"That's unhealthy," you tell him.

"I know," he nods, "and you told me that then as well."

"You never seemed to hear me," you recall. "That's why I left."

"I know," he nods, "You weren't the villain, but I made you into one for a long time. I've always been taken care of, with my family, with my friends - I'm always the one taken care of, and it took me a long time to grow out of that. To realize that a relationship is partnership, you hear people say it all the time but it's easy to gloss over what that really means. I should've realized then, I should've heard you, but instead I just acted stupid, clueless."

"Thank you. That means a lot," you say, trying to fend off the tears.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"If I had asked, would you have stayed?" he looks at you, faces his whole body toward you so you do the same.

You think about it for a moment then shrug, "You didn't ask Jungkook. So I guess we'll never know."

You finish off your drink and turn the empty plastic cup over in your hand. "I need to go throw this away. I should really get going anyway."

He stands there defeated and nods.

"It was good seeing you Jungkook," you lay your hand on his shoulder, "Take care of yourself."

He stands there, listens as you slide the glass door, the dulled party buzzes to life, then lulls back out again, signaling you've made it inside and left him out on the terrace alone.

"Wait!" he yells, turning on his heels and pulling the heavy door. "___! Wait!"

You stop and turn towards his voice, along with the entire room. Everyone goes silent as they all look between the two of you.

"I'm asking now," he says, disregarding the audience.

You stare at him, skin hot from the gazes around the room. You rake your hand through your hair, letting it fall like a curtain around your face.

Jungkook crosses the room, eliminating the open stage that your interaction has turned into. He walks you back into a hallway that leads to Jins bedroom and bath. He backs you all the way up to the wall, his tattooed arms caging you in, shielding you from the onlookers who slowly, but surely, turn back into their own conversations.

"Are you drunk?" you ask.

"What?"

"Are you drunk?" you repeat, breathlessly.

"No," he shakes his head, "I had a coke, I have to be at work in the morning."

You nod. Your hands find purchase on his forearms and you uncage yourself, your fingertips sliding down his arm, tracing over your favorite, familiar ink, then intertwine with his.

You look up into his dark brown eyes, and smile, "Then drive me home."

[saintrocklee]

*:･ﾟ✧ RESTRAINT ╰┈➤ part 03 of 05

masterlist | pairing: itachi x reader publish date: 04.11.24 warnings: itachi pines. reader is oblivious, until you're not. there's alcohol, it's a party!

You're in slight awe as you're whisked up the stairs and through the archway that led to an oversized ballroom. No expense had been spared in furnishing and decorating the space. The fast moving wait staff along with being face to face with more famous people than you can count has you feeling lightheaded. There are pops of light lining your vision from all of the cameras and you're grateful for the warm hand guiding you through the chaos. You're not sure when Itachi had familiarized himself with your bare back but you immediately miss the contact when he takes a step away, only to fight back a smile when he offers you his arm.

If you were being honest you were out of your depth. Judging by how stiff Itachi felt as you slid your hand through the crook in his arm, you assumed he felt the same and took a steadying breath as he led you around the edge of the ballroom. There was a live band playing a soft song amidst the chatter of the crowd and three different bars scattered throughout the room serving drinks. Guests were still arriving and you can't help but pick out the people you recognize from some of the movies you've seen along with those you actually knew from working with Itachi. Multiple standing tables were set up all around the room, leaving a curious space in the middle you assumed was for dancing. You both come to a stop at an unattended table and you place your purse down on the black cloth cover before letting out a shaky laugh.

"This is ..." You trail off, failing to find an appropriate word for what you're feeling. Itachi hums.

"Overwhelming?" He supplies and you suck in your bottom lip to keep from grinning, nodding to a couple as they walked past.

"Over the top?" You counter and you're rewarded with a derisive snort.

"Excessive."

"Excruciating."

Itachi pauses and shifts to face you fully.

"Excruciating." He repeats and you rest your elbow on the table.

"Absolutely agonizing." You tease and there's a flash of displeasure on your boss' face. You let your smile come through and impulsively reach forward to feign adjusting his jacket, far too caught up in the moment to fully register what you were doing. It brings you a step closer to him and you miss the way Itachi's hands clench.

"It's too noisy in here, my shoes are kind of tight, my so-called date has already threatened to fire me -"

"With good reason -"

"For no reason, mind you -"

A girlish squeal interrupts you both and you blink, recognizing the sound immediately. Your fingers fall from Itachi's suit jacket just in time for a beautifully manicured hand to appear in your line of vision, jingling excitedly, bracelets twinkling under the lights. You turn and are enveloped into a comfortable but heavily perfumed hug while being chastised thoroughly.

"I can't believe you're here and you didn't text me, I have been begging for you to come to one of these with me for years!"

You pull away and smile warmly at Ino, an old friend of yours that you met when you started working for Itachi. She held a position equivalent to yours at a law firm and was currently working on passing her bar exam. It had slipped your mind that she would show face at events like this in place of her boss, and you keep still as she doted on you.

"You look ravishing, this has to be new - and I love the color. And your shoes, I honestly don't think I've ever seen your toes."

You smile and swallow a laugh when you glance back at Itachi, who seemed just uncomfortable enough to be in pain. One of your favorite things about Ino was how much she irked your boss and his face went from slightly tense to exasperated as she turned her attention to him.

"Finally letting her out, huh?"

Itachi's lip curled response.

"Ino."

His greeting is flat and rewarded with a roll of baby blue eyes.

"You're no fun." A flip of blonde hair. "I came over here to steal you." A pout of red painted lips. "I haven't seen you since that conference in Sedona."

You nod with your consent, having just spotted a couple of men making their way to your table. Whatever bubble you and Itachi had been in earlier was now popped and soon you'd both be surrounded by people, men and women alike, desperate to talk to him. You shoot him an edged smile as you grab your purse and let yourself be whisked away by Ino, partially grateful for your friend's obnoxious arrival.

Itachi's gaze follows you as you left with the boisterous blonde, tracking you across the room to one of the open bars that were now serving wine. Two men he barely recognized came to a stop next to him and he found himself participating in a rather dull conversation about a recent stock increase on a company he knew little to nothing about. Their time with him was short lived and soon they were replaced by another potential client, and so on it went. Itachi lost track of you in the crowd but he trusted Ino enough to know that you were in capable hands. After his fifth introduction Itachi finds himself alone and is about to find you when a drink is placed in his hand.

"Fair warning, it's not great scotch, but it's not awful."

Kisame grins down at him with more teeth than normal and Itachi sighs before taking an experimental sip. His friend's assessment was correct, but he's sure it's better than the wine they're serving and hums his thanks.

"Figured I'd wait till the sharks left you alone." Itachi ignores the obvious joke and Kisame continues, lips curling knowingly. "Saw who you came in with though."

Shrugging noncommittally, Itachi neither confirms or denies what Kisame was alluding to, and is rewarded with a barked laugh.

"So, what? Testing her out to see how the public reacts? Dazzle her with all the lights and -"

"Kisame." Itachi warns, but there's no venom behind his tone, and the larger man snickers into his half empty glass.

"Dinner and a movie would probably be easier than all this." KIsame pauses and looks at Itachi with eyes wide. "Don't tell me you made her come with you for work."

The frosty look he receives from the Uchiha has him grinning again.

"Of course you did."

Itachi opens his mouth to say no he did not but is interrupted by yet another group of people. Introductions and conversation flow much easier with Kisame next to him and time passes before Itachi is left alone with his friend again. This time Kisame avoids bringing you up and entertains himself by showing off pictures of his brand new baby daughter.

Itachi finds himself minutely distracted from the barrage of pictures as he tries to find you. He's become proficient at keeping you in his peripheral over the years and locates you quickly, off to the side of the crowd with Ino. You're both standing close together, shoulders brushing as you no doubt gossip behind almost empty glasses of wine. There's an easy smile on your face and he can tell by your posture that you're relaxed. Unwinding. Maybe even having fun.

Itachi taps his finger against his own empty glass as he wrestles with the unsettling realization that he is, in fact, more than a little jealous of Ino. Your lips are practically against her ear as you pull your wine glass down, just shy of your mouth, and whisper something that has her throwing her head back with a laugh. Kisame pulls at his attention once again and Itachi finds himself inappropriately agitated at the lopsided grin he receives. Deathly Uchiha eyes narrow and Kisame chuckles, motioning for Itachi's empty glass.

"Looks like you're in need of a refill."

With Kisame gone, he plays with the idea of collecting you when the music suddenly stops. Someone makes an announcement inviting couples on to the dance floor and slower music begins to play. Itachi's eyes find you again, idly wondering if you'd dance with him, and arches an amused brow when he sees you coming toward him. You're struggling not to smile and there's an anticipatory tingle in his chest that's making him work to keep his hands still.

"Long time no see." You breathe as you approach, standing closer than you were before. Itachi inhales a deep breath and hums, enjoying the soft scent of your perfume as you practically bounce in your heels. There's a twinkle in your eye that has Itachi weighing the consequences of running his thumb across your lip, just to see how you'd react, but he pockets the thought as Kisame rejoins the table.

Your face lights up when you see the older man, two glasses of scotch in his hands, and your smile turns devious.

"Good, you're both here."

Both men exchange a quick look as you shuffle in closer, leaning against the table and craning your neck forward. Kisame furrows his brow and hunches his shoulders down at your insistence.

"Okay, right behind me. You both see Hiruzen Sarutobi?"

Itachi could see him out of the corner of his eye and Kisame grunts in confirmation.

"Okay, okay. You see who he's here with?"

Kisame snorts into his drink.

"His wife?"

Your smile sharpens.

"Nope."

Kisame blinks.

"He's getting divorced. That is his daughter's babysitter."

The older man's mouth parts in surprise and Itachi snorts into his glass.

"They went public weeks ago."

Kisame and you both turn towards him in disbelief. He can see the betrayal in your eyes as you nudge him.

"And you didn't tell us? Rude."

Kisame nods in agreement and then jerks his head to the left.

"Notice Tsunade came alone?"

You and Itachi glance at the woman Kisame was referencing and you sigh, feigning boredom.

"Oh please, everyone knows she's sleeping with old man Jiraiya. I'll bet you fifty bucks they leave together."

Itachi hums a breathless laugh and Kisame groans, running a hand through his hair.

"She could do better. Did you hear about the Inuzuka family?"

"Yeah, there was something about the sister, right?"

"No, actually, her brother."

You cock your head in surprise as Kisame fills you in on the latest scandal and Itachi keeps himself entertained by watching the way your eyes widen and your lips part in surprise. He commits every detail to memory as he sips his drink, completely aware that he's fully enamored with you. Charming, he thinks to himself as you continue to relax and gossip with his friend. You were charming, eyes crinkling when you laughed, throat bobbing when you sipped your wine with a smile. He shifts, the back of his hand brushing against your side, and fights a smile when you lean into his touch. You're both shoulder to shoulder now, legs nearly touching, and Itachi slowly drags his knuckles up and around your waist to rest his hand on the bare skin of your back. Your glace at him as if confused and Itachi holds your gaze as Kisame pulls out his phone, excited for any excuse to talk about his daughter.

To his immense relief, you don't pull away as you turn your attention to awaiting baby pictures. That consuming and irritable tingling in his chest returns and to relieve some of the pressure, Itachi begins to stroke your skin with his thumb. You're soft and warm and he fights the urge to just grab you, call his driver, and leave. He'd take you back to his home where you both can finally be alone and confess everything against the unblemished skin just under your jaw. He'd watch the way your pupils would dilate as you finally understood the depth of his feelings, would weather whatever snark you'd throw at him, and maybe catch that stubborn bottom lip between his teeth. Itachi wants nothing more than to be gentle with you, to ease you into this and to take the time he knows you deserve, but you pulled at his patience like no other and he's prepared for the worst.

Itachi is pulled from this thoughts as Kisame is interrupted by a phone call from his wife. His friend excuses himself and before Itachi can say anything, you turn toward him, mouth set in a firm line. His hand moves from your back to your waist and he struggles with the urge to pull you even closer.

"I think I need some air." You tell him and Itachi nods once. Stepping out into the cooler air would help, he was getting too ahead of himself, too comfortable. He leads you towards a large door at the edge of the ballroom that is covered by a thick black curtain. The door knob clicks as it's opened and you sigh in relief when it leads to a balcony. It automatically swings shut behind you and Itachi lets you step away from him, eyes straying towards your chest as you inhale deeply. The area is empty, save for the two of you, and the light that peaks through the windows is faint.

"Thank you." You murmur as you turn back toward him. Itachi only hums in response and you roll your eyes fondly. His lip twitches in amusement and you let him see your smile. You're not sure if it was the wine, the fact that you were both alone, or the way your body was buzzing from the brief physical contact - but you felt a little giddy. Confident.

"And thank you for inviting me. This is actually kind of fun."

Your sincerity has Itachi's chest burning and he takes a step closer to you, unwillingly to be so far from you any longer.

"Of course." He murmurs, tone deepening as he lets himself feel. It's just the two of you, you're glittering and happy and responding positively to all of his advances, and that irritable tingling is back. He wants now, wants to tell you that you're beautiful, wants to drag his knuckles against your cheek and your jaw, wants to pull at your numerous hair pins and take in the scent of your perfume, he wants -

"I mean it. You could have brought anyone. So, thank you."

Your bright smile fades as you take in the way Itachi's mouth settles into a displeased line.

"I've already told you." He speaks and the finality in his tone is startling. "I prefer you."

You blink and what you say next slips out, pushed by the glasses of wine you've had and the sudden realization that you very much want him to mean what you think he means.

"Because we work together." You offer. A way out.

Dark eyes narrow.

"No."

The world must stop with how still you've become, with how silent everything else is. You're afraid to move, to breathe too harshly, afraid that you'll interrupt whatever spell you had been caught in. You're struggling to do anything but truly take in the man standing in front of you that just confessed he ...

Oh.

Oh.

Dizzy.

You feel dizzy.

Maybe lightheaded was the proper term. If not for your feet definitively touching the ground below you, you could argue that you were floating.

You can almost see it carved into the wood underneath you. The line you'd carefully avoided had materialized in front of you again and you're caught, caught in what feels like a trap but ...

But you're not trapped, you're with Itachi and your heart is stuttering in your chest and your throat is tight and you watch in anticipatory fascination as he steps over it like it was nothing. Crowds into your space like it was second nature and your pulse threatens to split the delicate skin right under your jaw. There's something so familiar about being here with him but the fear of not knowing what was coming next has you fighting the urge to run. To break the spell with an ill timed jab, to push it away yet again because -

"You're nervous."

It was like someone had snapped a rubber band against your skin.

"No." You immediately argue, going more off of habit than actually responding. The careful look Itachi had been giving you melts away into something soft and you can see the fond look in his eyes, in the way his face relaxes. A soothing warmth begins to take over the initial panic and you sigh, fighting back an embarrassed smile.

"Fine. Maybe a little."

Itachi exhales, mirth glittering in his eyes. They're lighter than you've ever seen them and the implication that it's because of you has your breathing catching.

"Why?"

You shrug and turn your head. If you were going to speak honestly you couldn't look at him. The sarcasm and bravado you've wielded as a shield for years were long gone and being vulnerable was challenging.

"I guess I don't," you pause and swallow, gathering courage "know why you're doing this."

He doesn't respond immediately and the wind tugs at you, causing you to reach up and brush stray hairs out of your face. You catch his eyes and blink at how open his expression was. He's searching your face and there's something raw about it. About him. You weren't standing in front of your employer anymore, you weren't standing in front of your friend; you were standing in front of man, a man that looked at you like he -

"I would think it was obvious."

Of course he would. The genuine confusion in his tone has you fighting back an exasperated smile.

"Obviously not."

You're barely whispering now, the light breeze taking most of your bravery with it, leaving you feeling bare. Open. Exposed. Itachi makes another move toward you, more of a half step, and you glance down to see your feet almost touching. His black polished shoes were a mere centimeter away from your heels and you can't think of a time you two had been closer. The line was nonexistent now. He'd done more than step over it, he'd gotten rid of it entirely. You couldn't even visualize it anymore, had no idea where it was to begin with, and blink when you watch his fingers twitch before disappearing into his pocket.

"I find myself growing increasingly fond of you."

You freeze, unable to look away from where his hand had slid into his pants. There's something rushing through you, adrenaline maybe, and you find yourself unable to respond. Itachi continues, either completely unaware of the turmoil you were feeling or enjoying the way he managed to stun you into silence.

"My intention is not to force you into this. I understand the delicacies of our working relationship and I do not want to make you feel obligated. I cannot, however, hide my feelings from you any longer. You have become," he pauses and your head flies up to see him. Dark eyes find yours and you swallow the sudden lump in your throat. The absurd urge to cry is from the glasses of wine you'd had, surely, and Itachi's gaze drops to your mouth. You find yourself nodding, blinking back the ridiculous tears that had started to gather, words thick with emotion.

"I feel the same -"

You're cut off by lightning fast hands on your jaw, by his thumb just under your lower lip. He grazes the soft skin there, eyes somehow going darker, and his next words come out strained and rushed.

"May I?"

You nod again, mouth opening to say yes but he's once again too quick and your eyes close just as his mouth presses against yours. It's you who makes the next move, parting your lips just enough to catch his bottom lip and pull. The hand on your jaw moves to your hair and tilts your head up, while his other hand finds the bare skin on your back and pulls you against him. Itachi takes the lead almost instantly, lips moving and pulling as he devours you. Your hands meet his chest and slide up to his neck, to his hair that you've longed to run your fingers through. It's soft and thick, free of tangles, and a noise catches in your throat when you feel the hand on your back tighten in time with your ministrations.

He likes it you think distantly and you wonder if you could get away with taking it down. Your train of thought is cut off when Itachi pulls away to kiss the edge of your mouth, the line of your jaw, and the noise in your throat turns into an audible gasp when his lips seal against your neck. Your body automatically arches into him and his grip on you turns to steel, his chest heaving in time with yours. He's working his way back up, lips continuing to dance along your skin, before claiming your mouth once again. He doesn't let you straighten and seems content to keep you pressed against him. You have to drop your hands from his hair and rest your forearms on his shoulders to keep yourself upright and whimper when you feel his tongue dip into your mouth. Your knees began to shake, you were having trouble breathing, and the heat pooling in your abdomen was sure to catch and burn you from the inside out.

He pulls away only to change the angle of his head before catching your mouth with his again. Confident hands move, one trailing down the side of your body to clutch at your upper thigh, gathering you closer. There's no space left between you and your dress rises as Itachi brings your leg up against his hip. You're on one leg now, completely at his mercy, and the kisses you're sharing turn more fervent. A whine leaves you as he grips the muscle there, his other hand tightening in your hair, fingers no doubt making a mess of your hard work.

We should stop, you think, but the reasonable side if you is gone, no doubt having melted under Itachi's touch. Your head falls back as the man begins to explore the skin of your neck, letting the heat of the moment consume you. There would be time for rational thought later. In the meanwhile, you're content to let Itachi have his way with you as your nerves buzz pleasantly under your skin.

Wait.

You blink away the fog clouding your judgement and frown. Something was buzzing. It takes you a second longer before you realize the source is coming from the inside of your boss' suit.

His cellphone. His cellphone was buzzing. Someone was calling him.

"Ignore it." Itachu murmurs against your skin, teeth catching just above your collarbone. A very unladylike groan leaves you.

"Itachi." You breathe, hoping to sound chastising. There was an entire event happening inside and people would no doubt be expecting to mingle with him. Your efforts have the opposite effect and you shudder at the absolute sinful noise he makes.

"Say it again." He practically purrs and you shudder once more, mouth accepting another heated kiss. The buzzing stops and your focus returns to Itachi's tongue curling into your mouth. He doesn't seem to be pushing you any further than this and it's perfect. You're almost completely lost in him again when the buzzing picks back up.

You tilt your head away and Itachi heaves an agitated breath against your ear. Fighting a smile at the borderline tantrum your boss was throwing, you adjust your position to reach inside his jacket. His hands keep you where you're at which earns him a glare as you wobble awkwardly. Judging by the smirk curling at his mouth, you're intimidation tactic was not working.

"Annoying." You huff, finally pulling his cellphone out. Eyes twinkle at you mischievously as you check the caller ID.

Kakuzu.

Your jaw drops in surprise as you show Itachi who's calling.

"You have to take this."

Itachi doesn't move or let you go.

"I thought it was Saturday."

Your nose crinkles and you bringing the phone to your ear with a scowl.

"Itachi Uchiha's phone."

Your tone is clipped and professional and Itachi sighs irritability as he finally lets your leg go. You shuffle away from him as presumably Kakuzu's assistant asks if Itachi is free for a brief chat. You turn your back to the man in front of you who's impassive face promised punishment if you didn't hang up the phone and confirm that yes, Itachi was free, please hold on. You mute the call and turn back, arm extending out for him to take the phone.

"If he's calling you now, it means he's considering -"

"I'm busy."

You glare at him and jostle the phone. Itachi's lips thin and you can't decipher if he's hiding a smile or a frown.

"I just checked your schedule and you're free. How convenient."

A snort.

"Maybe I should fire you."

Your lips pull upward.

"If you do, I'll report you for sexual harassment."

Your quip earns you a chuckle that sends warmth through your chest. Itachi finally accepts the offered phone and puts it to his ear.

"I will find you later."

You nod, biting back a smile at the promise in his tone, and turn to go back into the ballroom. Shaking hands attempt to smooth the wrinkles in your dress and you delicately pass your fingers over your hair. Surprisingly, most of your up-do held and you decide heading straight to the bathroom was your next logical choice. If Ino got wind of what just happened, it'd be on the front page of every trashy tabloid by the next morning.

Your hand is on the door when quick footsteps stop you along with a hand on your elbow. You turn, ready to give Itachi a piece of your mind, when his lips crush into yours. It's bruising, hot, and quick. He pulls away, phone still next to ear and hums in agreement to whatever was said on the other side. You blink owlishly at him as his thumb wipes away any wetness left under your bottom lip. His eyes scan your face before turning away, tone clipped as he told Kakuzu that was not what they agreed upon. You're frozen in place for a breath and then another before you pull the door open, not wanting to get swept up again, and rejoin the event inside.

[felsicveins]

I just wanted to say that I love your art style! Your use of color is really pretty and I love the way you draw blushing. Also, I'm curious about JD's other ex Barley I think was his name. If you don't mind, could you tell us more about him? Like did he and JD end on good terms?

Oo, yes! I've been meaning to do more with Barley!

Barley and JD met while Barley was herding the lonesome flats buffalo critters and JD was passing through the prairie. They set up camp in the same area and got to talking and found they really enjoyed each other's company. JD followed on the same trail for a couple of days, doing his own thing with Rhonda and then at night they would camp together, sing songs and share a drink and a meal.

But JD was on his way somewhere so when the trail split off they went their separate ways. For a while JD would go back to that area around Lonesome Flats and see if he could find Barley again but he had no luck for a while. Next time he ran into Barley he made note of the migration pattern of the buffalo so that he could "happen upon" his friend again. So they would spend a couple of weeks together on the trail every 3 months or so and you know..... Maybe they fell in love a little bit but their lives weren't conducive to a relationship at that point so they just appreciated the companionship 💚🧡

[jfleamont]

never, sometimes, all the time

a snippet from my upcoming uni/band au - 1701 words

The kitchen is scarcely lit and there's a faint smell of burnt eggs. Someone cooked during the party, probably Marlene. Nevermind that this isn’t her flat; the boys don’t mind. They’ve known her for a couple of months, but they welcomed her with open arms, just like they did with Lily. They’re good, she thinks. These kids are good. They let her smoke inside the house tonight— well, James did. She only smokes every once in a while. Mostly when she’s nervous.

He's sitting across from her, one arm draped across the chair beside him, his head thrown back. His eyes are closed and his lips are slightly upturned; he looks content. Lily thinks he's smiling. 

No, he definitely is.

Maybe it's the alcohol in his system. Or the music, which is still playing, though at a much lower volume than before; the others are already in their rooms, passed out, so they don’t care. This is just for the two of them.

She doesn’t know why she hasn’t left.

“You didn't keep your word,” she tells him. He'd promised Sirius he wouldn't get drunk. They hadn't said why, and only exchanged what looked like a meaningful look that she couldn’t decipher. Not yet, at least.

He chuckles, his eyes still closed. “I've only had one drink. And I didn't know you paid so much attention to me.”

“Remind me not to do it again. Also, it was a Long Island Iced Tea. A strong one, from the looks of it.”

He shrugs. “The situation called for it.”

She leans forward on the table, lowering her voice just a little. “Is this about Peter?”

“No. Maybe. I don't know.”

She waits for him to continue. He does. “It's just that we were so close to being great.” A humourless laugh, “Maybe I'm kidding myself. We weren't close at all.”

She notes the perfectly relaxed line of his brows. Maybe it’s just because he’s tired, but there’s no hint of anger on his face. “You don't seem too bothered by this, though.”

“Oh, well, I'm doing okay now. It's not too bad, I suppose.”

Lily snorts, and knows that he isn’t lying. “Yeah?”

He opens his eyes - they’re tired and soft like she’s never seen them - and fixes them on her.

“Yeah.”

“Always the optimist, you.”

He mirrors her position, resting his chin on his palm. “I had a good night, that's all.”

“I don't think that's all.”

“You’re right, it's not,” he shakes his head and runs a hand through his hair. He laughs quietly, a hint of anxiety colours his voice.

“So? Tell me,” she prompts him.

He pulls his bottom lip between his teeth and looks behind her for a moment. “I have a plan. Mind you, not a good one, but it's a plan. It's sort of insane and if I'm being honest, it’s probably the worst idea I've ever had.”

“Are we still talking about the band or…?” 

“I found a solution for next week's gig,” he announces grandly, smiling from ear to ear. The only thing that is missing is the jazz hands.

“You found a bassist? That was quick. Who is it?” 

“You.”

She blinks. Several times. James’ smile has faded a little, and his expression looks careful.

“You've got to be joking.”

“Told you it was a crazy idea.”

Lily doesn’t want to think about the implications of this. Being friends with the people Severus couldn’t stand was one thing, but actually performing with them? That couldn’t happen. It’s not like she cares about him anymore. No, that’s not it. Maybe a part of her misses him still, and she used to be a people pleaser when she was around him, but this has nothing to do with that. It’s the fact that she has been questioning every single decision she has made ever since she left Severus behind. With him, it felt right… until it didn’t. Who’s to say that this won’t happen again? She doesn’t trust herself anymore, and this is brand new territory.

“You want me to join your band. You?”

James sits up straighter and gives her a funny look. “Why do you sound so surprised? You're brilliant.”

“But… I can't.”

“You can't or you won't?”

“Can't! How am I supposed to learn your entire setlist by next week?” she exclaims. She doesn’t mean to raise her voice, but she can’t help it. The more she thinks about this, the less confident she feels.

“Actually it would be better by Wednesday.”

He doesn’t look apologetic at all. Strange, since he was so worried about asking her a minute ago. Either he’s mad - and this is a very real possibility - or he just believes she can do it, which, really, is another form of insanity. 

She tells him so. “You're not right in the head.”

“Evans—”

“I've got two papers to submit by the end of next week! There's no way I can play with you,” she says in a whispered shout, and now she’s the one with her hands in her hair.

He’s grinning. “But you want to.”

She suppresses a smile at his bravado, but he’s right. “I want to help you. But I can't.”

He leans in conspiratorially, and his enthusiasm almost wins her over. Almost. “Come on, it would be fun! And it's just a one time thing, okay? Or at least until we find a new bassist.” 

“Can't believe you're asking me this.”

“Please?”

He’s not pouting, but he might as well be, and Lily can’t deny it: she’s thought about this exact scenario. She’s seen them on stage, she knows how good they are: they’re miles better than everyone else in their local music scene, really, and Lily can’t help but wonder if she’ll feel out of place up there. She loves performing, but being in a band with Severus showed her how awful it feels to be overshadowed by someone else, and she doesn’t want a repeat of that.

“… Can I think about it?”

James’ eyes light up. “Is this a yes?”

“It’s a question.”

“Of course you can think about it! Take a couple of days,” he waves a hand around and sits back in his chair, looking triumphant. Lily smiles; she’s about to burst his bubble. 

“Hmm,” she rubs her chin contemplatively, “What do I get in return, though?”

He furrows his brows, not expecting her question. “Oh… We're not getting paid for this gig, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“I know, Potter,” she deadpans, rolling her eyes, but there’s no real annoyance in her tone. “I've performed there too. I'm talking about something else.”

The side of his mouth quirks up. Cheeky boy. “Anything in particular?”

“I'll let you know. After the gig,” she adds nonchalantly.

“What if I refuse?”

“These are my terms. Take it or leave it.”

James is thinking hard, by the looks of it. She doesn’t know what kind of favour she’ll ask him, but simply knowing that she has the upper hand in this situation makes her euphoric. He knows he’s signing away his soul if he agrees. She still hasn’t decided if she’s going to mess with him or not. Perhaps she’ll be nice about it.

“Fuck it. It's a deal,” he extends an arm to shake her hand and she’s about to do the same when a thought occurs.

“Hang on, did you say this was the worst idea you’ve ever had? What the fuck?”

“Shot myself in the foot, haven’t I?”

“I’m giving you one chance to recover from this. One.”

“Fuck,” he covers his face with his hands, and she thinks he’s blushing a little but she isn’t sure. “Remus is much better at this. He was supposed to broach the subject but he refused to, thinks I’m mental.”

She drops her smile and freezes. “Is he even okay with this? And Sirius?”

“Don’t worry, they both think you’re great. Sirius says you’re the female Flea.”

She beams at the compliment and relaxes into the seat. “Do you agree?”

His eyes roam around her face and Lily feels warm all over. It only lasts a moment, and then he’s smirking again. “You’re easier on the eyes, so…”

Right. He’s just messing with her. 

“Twat,” she responds, and kicks his chair.

His gaze softens. “But to me you’re more Macca than Flea,” James continues, tilting his head to the side as he studies her once again.

“He was fit when he was younger, not going to lie,” she deflects, because she knows she’s talented - she does! - but she feels the impostor syndrome kick in any time she is compared to another great bassist‒ she has a list; Paul McCartney is at the top. Wait, is James aware of this? She hopes not.

He laughs and nods vigorously. “Especially in the late ‘60s with that beard.”

“Shame he never grew it out again after that,” she sighs, and feels the tension dissipate.

James raises an eyebrow. “Wanna watch the Get Back documentary?”

She’s pretty sure he’s joking, but the last time she saw it she cried, and she doesn’t have the strength to hold back the tears in front of him. Besides, her eyelids feel so heavy that she would probably fall asleep ten minutes in, and she’d rather sleep in a bed tonight. “As much as I’d love to, you’re dead on your feet and I’m not doing much better so… I’d better walk home.”

James sits up straight, suddenly very alert. “No.”

“What do you mean no?”

He gets up from the chair and grabs the remote. “I don’t want to walk in the cold and neither do you,” he says with his back to her as he turns off the music, “so just do me a favour and use my bed.”

She can’t possibly sleep on James Potter’s bed. “You don’t have to—”

“It’s not up for debate,” his tone is resolute but he’s wagging his finger at her, which makes him look kind of ridiculous. “The sheets are clean, changed them this morning.”

“I can’t let you—”

“I’ll take the sofa, goodnight.”

And with that he walks to the bathroom and closes the door.

[becauseimanicequeen]

(I'm writing this after painting for almost 9 hours, so it might not make sense, lol, but here goes...)

Reading some thoughts/theories about My Stand-In the past couple of days has been equally entertaining and frustrating.

Some made me laugh because they matched my usual delulu theories (and I love delulu theories). (The whole reason I started my tumblr almost 5 months ago was because I wanted a space to share my delulu theories on DFF, lol.)

But, some of them were just... No. No. Fuck no!

And I'm writing this as someone who was raised on soap operas, Days of Our Lives in particular (which is weird because I'm not even American). Characters being kidnapped, possessed, dying and coming back to life is just a normal Tuesday for me. And I've mentioned earlier that I won't mind ridiculous shit happening in My Stand-In for this reason.

But...

If it turns out that Joe steps out into the light and magically travels back in time to a moment before Joe 1.0's accident so he can stop that from happening... I will riot.

Fortunately, I'm pretty sure they won't do this (even though I've been wrong about story progressions before).

But if they do, it will completely erase all of Ming's progress. Even though I know how fucking painful it can be to lose people you love (and add his guilt for being a part of Joe's untimely demise the first time on top of that), that was a big part of why he was so willing to sacrifice everything for Joe this time when he got a second chance.

(Yes, Ming is still a brat and all that, but it doesn't change the fact that he also gave up his anonymity/privacy to make sure Joe would find him, put up boundaries Tong wasn't allowed to cross, made an effort to be with Joe which Joe also noted was different, blackmailed Tong and his own family to be with Joe, was ready to trade places with Joe in the latest kidnapping, etc. All of that is progress.)

Sure, My Stand-In isn't really about Ming. It's more about Joe. But the same goes for him.

Stepping into the bright light (which is often a symbol of death/near-death experiences, even though the Master said it would break a cycle, so it might not even mean that he will pass on) to end his suffering doesn't feel like the choice the character I've seen in 11 episodes would make.

Joe will come back because, to me, he does the right thing rather than what's easy. If he's convinced it's the right thing to do, he does it (sometimes without thinking). He's shown it several times throughout the series (he even helped Tong, of all people, in ep. 11 because he knows what it's like to grow up without parents and didn't want the same for Tong and May's child).

Furthermore, there is no way Joe will leave when he still has unfinished business (especially with Joe 2.0's mom).

(I mean, come on, she's had a huge fight with her son twice now. Both times right before he was hospitalized. Cut her some slack!)

Having Joe travel back in time will fall flat for me, even if he decides to seek out Joe 2.0's mom and help her care for her son.

Again, I fortunately don't think this is the way they're going with the show. Instead, I think something will stop Joe before he walks out through those doors and steps into the light.

He might hear something (possibly Ming), he might see something (perhaps the flashbacks they included in the teaser for ep. 12), or he might just change his mind because he realizes he still has unfinished business (and love for Ming) and chooses life.

Or, he steps into the light (to break the cycle), but instead of passing on, he sees everything that happened after his first accident, realizes he's no longer a stand-in (at least in Ming's eyes), and is then faced with the choice to wake up from his coma or not.

Either way, I need Joe to choose. And I need him to choose life. Because he's coming back in one way or another. Of that, I'm sure.

(Just don't make him travel back in time. Pretty please, don't do this to me, lol.)

[iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia]

The Arcana HCs: M6 when a spell goes wrong and they're stuck as a small child for a day

Reverse scenario is here:

~ to set the scene ~

It's been a while since your little mishap with your notebook and spell development. At this point, your day as a toddler has become a funny story to share with guests over dinner. You're reminiscing on it early one morning as you lie awake next to your slumbering beloved. You never did figure out exactly what was going on with that circle. You decide to flip through your notebook and take another look at it while you wait for your darling to wake up.

As you're reading back over it, you feel them stir next to you. "MC? What are you looking at?" Still half asleep, they reach over to pull you closer, but instead their hand falls flat against the page. One bright light later, you're gazing over wide-eyed at the small child rubbing their eyes next to you.

(I've included the official art of child!Julian, Asra, Muriel, and Portia. Unfortunately there's no game art for child!Nadia or Lucio, but I was able to get sketches from the old livestreams. Enjoy! - brainrot)

Julian

Figures out his predicament almost immediately. From the way you're looking at him to how small his hands suddenly are, he knows

What neither of you expects is the pipsqueak voice that comes out of him when he opens his mouth to talk to you

"MC, I - ah! Is that my voice?!"

He's going to spend the next hour while you make and eat breakfast trying to figure out the funniest thing to say in a child's voice, ranging from his extensive knowledge of curse words to lectures on medicine to warbling ancient Vesuvian operas

Malak thinks it's fantastic. He's following nearby, cawing along to whatever Julian has to say

You end up putting him in one of his normal dress shirts, which looks like a dress on him now, and using a scarf for a sash

He'll get bored rather quickly - all of his favorite activities are off the table until he's an adult again

You remember him mentioning living with his parents on one of their merchant ships as a boy though, so you take him down to the docks

A couple polite requests later, and several of the sailors agree to let him explore their ships as long as he doesn't get underfoot

It's a special time for him, running around a ship with the same perspective that he had when his parents were alive. It unearths some memories he had previously forgotten and that makes him so happy

You also had Malak take a message up to the palace inviting Portia down (you didn't want to risk losing Julian in the crowd in the trek up) and she arrives just in time for lunch with Mazelinka in tow

Portia absolutely gets misty-eyed seeing her brother like this again, she always used to think he was so grown-up next to her but realizing he was just a child too is doing things to her heart

You'll have a late lunch on the beach together before heading back to his house

Since all three of them are feeling nostalgic, Julian, Portia, and Mazelinka will pass the afternoon reminiscing on what life was like the last time he looked like this

They leave before the sun sets - they have lives to get back to, and you have dinner to prepare

The first thing he does after poofing back is bellow out a raunchy sea shanty and hunt down the liquor he's been saving in the back of the cabinet. He missed being an adult

Asra

They knew what has happening as it happened, they saw their palm landing on the spell circle and had resigned themselves to the outcome before the light had faded

The first thing he does is take full advantage of his new size to snuggle up on your chest and fall back asleep

And hey, it's several hours before their normal wake-up time, and it's not like you'll be able to do anything else today, so you fall back asleep too

When you re-awaken it's to a suspiciously quiet house

When you find him he's tucked away in a corner with Faust, scheming brainstorming about the opportunities his temporary shift affords him

You're able to distract them with breakfast, but it quickly becomes obvious that their attention span is considerably shorter and their sense of propriety considerably less inhibiting than their adult form

Cue a wild game of chase around the closed shop, Faust watching gleefully from the rafters as Asra keeps setting off latent spells just to watch your reactions before scampering off in a fit of giggles

They're surprisingly docile once you catch them though, as soon as you've got your arms around them they're cuddling up. You've never held a snugglier child

There's also the issue of clothes - none of his clothes fit, and he couldn't care less. You end up tying a shawl around him and knotting it in the back where he can't reach to take it off when it hinders his freedom of movement

If you need to have a serious conversation with them it's entirely possible, they're just living in the moment

You manage to pack a lunch and take him over to Aisha and Salim's

To say they're overjoyed is an understatement. They missed so much of Asra's childhood and growing up, and you've just given them several hours of that back

For the first fifteen minutes or so, he's got his guard up a little. It takes a lot of vulnerability to revisit that stage in life, with the parents he so keenly felt the loss of

But then one of them cracks an inside joke, and all the emotional walls come tumbling down

You get to spend the rest of the day getting a glimpse into the past, of what their family was like before the hard times started

You're also relieved that you're not the only one responsible for keeping them in check

As soon as he poofs back, he's waving goodbye and heading out the door with you. He misses his kisses

Nadia

She realizes a split second after you do, and she is Not Impressed

She's spent most of her life trying to outrun being perceived as the baby of the family, and now here she is - a baby!

She's not upset with you though, she knows if there's anyone to blame it's her for touching the page like that and the look on your face says you didn't mean to

She also knows that there's still Vesuvia to run - oh well, it looks like she'll be taking a vacation

She's standing on the bed, robe pulled around her, arms crossed over her tiny rib cage as she gives directions for her absence

You're quickly realizing that her sense of authority didn't come from ruling Vesuvia - it's clear she was just born with it

Finding a good outfit for her to wear is also quite difficult. She knows it's last minute, but one of the ways she combats her own insecurities is by appearing as put together as possible at all times

You're not sure what to do at first. You know the last thing she wants is to be in touch with her family right now, and she'll get bored quickly if she just stays inside her chambers with you

Luckily for you, she knows exactly what she wants to do - and that is everything that she wasn't allowed to do the last time she was this size

She's leading the way to the stables and getting ready to ride off into the sunset before you can blink

It quickly gets tiresome though. She was already sneaking off the last time she was this age, and she already knows all the area around the palace

Your wave of inspiration hits as it gets close to lunchtime. She's always wanted an incognito tour or Vesuvia. This is the perfect chance

She's immediately for the idea. She was never allowed to do this as a kid, and it's something she still struggles to get away with

You find her some every day kid's clothes in the marketplace and spend the afternoon wandering the streets, giving her a taste of the "real" Vesuvia

By the time you're heading back to the palace as the sun sets, her whole perspective about the day has shifted. She might ask you to do this again, if she needs to do something undercover

She chooses to wait until after poofing back to have dinner. After the day she's had, she wants her Golden Goose

She eventually agrees to let you tell parts of the story to her family members. Watching their reactions helps remind her that they did not look down on her, but truthfully admired her as a kid

Muriel

Completely frozen. It's up to you to make the first move

He understands what happened as soon as it happens, but he's in denial about it

He'll only start moving once you ask him if he's okay, if anything hurts, if he can talk, etc

The sudden levels of attention you're showing him will spur him to action and then he'll start responding again, shifting around and pulling the shirt he's drowning in closer around his shoulders

You'll probably end up tucking him back in bed and suggesting he rest and get over the shock a little more while you prepare breakfast. He'll agree because he's not sure what else to do

It really hits home with him when he sits down to a full, hot meal at the small table with you. You accidentally prepared the amount that the two of you normally eat and he doesn't remember ever having a full stomach at this age

You'll watch him wolf down his plate and then pause, struggling between the instinct to eat while there is food and the desire to savor having more food than he can eat

The morning continues like that, with him silently processing all the ways his life has changed for the better from his childhood's perspective

There is a funny moment with the chickens when it's time to feed them, of course

They've had to wait a few extra hours, so as soon as they hear the feed bucket they're charging at you twice as aggressively as normal

Now that he's small, they don't seem as tiny to him any more, and the hungry chicken avalanche leaves him a little shaken

You decide to give him a day as quiet and pleasant and safe as he deserved as a kid

You'll pack a big lunch of his favorites and go on a quiet stroll through the woods, listening to the bird song and admiring the plants

It's a strange experience for him because he's so used to being the biggest thing in the woods that having to look up at stuff is weird, and slightly frightening

On the other hand, the different vantage point has him noticing all kinds of details that never stood out to him before

Eating your packed lunch together in fields where the grass grows above his head is surreal. Being able to lie down next to you and know that only you and the sky and birds can see him is liberating

When he poofs back after returning to the hut, it's the first time he's felt truly thankful for his size. He can protect you better like this, now that he's been reminded of what the world can be like when you're small

Portia

It takes her a second. She hit the notebook instead of your face because her curls were in her eyes, and they're still in her eyes, but why are her arms so short when she pushes them out of her face?

Whoah, you've turned into a giant. Scratch that, everything is big now, that means she must have shrunk

Now she's spotting the notebook in your hand and the shock on your face, and her own voice confirms it

"MC, I just set off a spell, didn't I?"

You're nodding slowly, watching her carefully stand up and look around

When she turns back to you, it's with an all-too-familiar look of mischief

"This bed is huge when I'm this size! I don't have to worry about breaking it at all!"

She's bouncing on the bed, shrieking with laughter and giggling, and all you can feel is relief that she sees the mishap as a good thing

She'll ask you to send a message giving her the day off of work, of course, and then she'll start brainstorming things to do while she chases a very confused Pepi around the house

"Do you think they'll give me pastries if I ask nicely since I'm so small now? You have to admit I'm pretty cute. I bet I could ask for anything!"

So. Much. Energy. You end up leaving her to her own devices while you get breakfast together, and by the time she sits down to eat she's already deconstructed the entire living room

All of her shirts have wide necklines and don't stay up on her tiny form, so you have to put her in one of your own with a ribbon for a sash. Good luck trying to tie up her curls

You decide to take her into town for the day, on the condition that she not let go of your hand. You both agree eventually to tie a ribbon around her wrist for you to hold on to just in case

You're able to find her clothes that fit, and get a read on Julian's most likely location

As soon as you find him and he spots Portia, he is one smiling mess. So much of his identity is wrapped up in trying to be a good older brother to her, and now he has the chance to do that as an adult

He'll put her up on his shoulders and the three of you will saunter through all the fun parts of town, getting into all the best kinds of trouble

You'll get a summons from Nadia as well for afternoon tea. She wants to see one of her best friends as a child too

When Portia poofs back that evening all the exhaustion will hit her at once like a wave. This day will become one of her fondest memories

Lucio

Is convinced that you're just playing mind games to make the world look bigger than it is until you show him the notebook and explain that it's the same spell that hit you previously

He's a little panicked now. He's been able to survive this long because he was strong and vicious, and when he needed your help his big thing to contribute was his ability to protect you

What if you decide to leave because he can't protect you like this? He couldn't blame you, after the past you unearthed with him he knows you know exactly who he is and sometimes it's hard to believe you love him anyways

You can recognize those wide eyes and trembling lips anywhere, the first thing you're doing is pulling him into a hug

The hug does him in, Morga was never the affectionate type and being held in a such a safe embrace when he feels so small makes him fall apart a little

Will deny any and all emotional vulnerability. He has a reputation to uphold, dammit

You'll get him situated with one of his shirts and a scrapped together sash. He's too busy marveling at having both arms again to complain about it not being stylish

Quickly realizes from your reactions to his requests that he is in fact adorable in this form. Contrary to your expectations, he doesn't mind that at all

It's also becoming more and more apparent that the child-likeness is affecting him. It turns out his obsessive love of partying comes from a very playful nature

If you're on a job at the time, you'll decide to make it a travel day

He'll find a stick to use as his sword and tuck it into his sash since you've temporarily confiscated the real one

He's running circles around you, yelling his little boy's heart out, scrambling up every large rock you pass so you can compliment his climbing skills

Each time you praise him he'll flush, his normally sharp smile softer with the baby fat on his cheeks and his scrawny chest all puffed up with pride. Being a kid around someone who lets him actually act like one is the best thing that's ever happened to him

And that's how most of the day passes, traveling a bit slower than usual through nature, listening to his breathless story telling as he fights off imaginary beasts with his wooden sword and kissing the bumps and scrapes he gets so they heal better

He begins to get a little scared when night falls, because he knows his golden day is about to come to an end

So as soon as he poofs back, you pull him back into your arms so he knows you will always be there to hold him, no matter the state he's in