#if this flops i might actually sob /j

[cookiegirlsstuff]

Surprise (or something like that…)

Lee: Yoongi

Ler: J - hope

✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆

For Yoongi, it was a normal day, just like any other. It was around 00: o'clock and he was sitting in his studio working on a new song.

And believe it or not, this time, for once, it wasn't his intention, but unfortunately he had a deadline and had to finish the lyrics by tomorrow.

He sighed and took another sip of his iced americano, exhausted.

Of course, the other members didn't like yoongi's constant absence either. And that's exactly why J - hope was waiting outside Yoongi's studio at that very moment, waiting for the rapper to come out.

Ironically, the older one didn't come out after a few minutes or even half an hour.

Hoseok was beginning to get tired of waiting and decided to simply drag yoongi home, whether he wanted to or not. If necessary, he would just carry yoongi all the way home.

With this in mind, he opened the door and was shocked to realise that his hyung was crying.

"Yoongi hyung, what happened?" he asked anxiously, taking his friend in his arms. Yoongi hardly ever cried and when he did, he really wasn't feeling well.

"I'm just so stressed about our new album and I don't know how I'm going to finish the title song by tomorrow!" the older boy cried desperately, burying his head even deeper into J -hope's hoodie.

J - hope patted Yoongi's head reassuringly and promised to help him later.

After a few more minutes, Yoongi's sobs became quieter until he finally stopped crying. Instead, he looked at his mate a little confused, as if he had to process what had just happened.

"Why did you actually come here?" he asked, looking questioningly into j - hope's hazel eyes.

"Yoongi….it's already past midnight and you haven't been home for days. I wanted to surprise you and take you home," said the younger boy, stroking his hand along Yoongi's back.

Yoongi was slightly startled by the new kind of touch and backed away. J - hope laughed and started stroking yoongi again.

But as he did so, he accidentally touched yoongi's stomach. And to his surprise, yoongi began to …. laugh? It took a few seconds before something visibly clicked in Hoseok's head.

"Yoongi… please stop being sad, otherwise I'll have to cheer you up," laughed Hoseok.

"What are you talking about? I'm not sad anymore!" suga clarified, a little confused.

"Yoongi…please stop crying," the other just said, pretending to be worried.

"I'm not sahahad," yoongi wanted to say, but before he could finish his sentence, j - hope began to spider yoongi's tummy.

"Hoseok - ahaha….stahahap please," the older one giggled uncontrollably as j - hope came close to his belly button.

"Why should I? I want you to be happy again," smiled j - hope.

"I ahaham not eveeen sahahad ahany MORE," suga tried to say, shouting the last part more as hoseok started tickling his hip.

“Be quiet! Other people might be able to hear you, you know!” laughed j - hope.

"HOBI PLEAHASE", yoongi screamed through his laughter. He had a full gummy smile on display and squirmed like crazy, trying to get ot of Hoseok's grip.

J-hope stopped tickling yoongi's hipbones and then dug his fingers into his armpits.

"NOHOHO STAHAHAP IHIHIT!!" yoongi squealed and thrashed around. It tickled so much. Hoseok stayed silent and watched the toss and turn of his cute hyung. "PLEAHAHAHASE STAHAHAP", Yoongi shouted.

"Okay," hobi said and removed his hands immediately.

But when yoongi thought is was over hoseok started again.

"Hobi please", Yoongi begged but it was no use.

“I think you need a bit more to be honest I mean you have been pretty down, haven’t you hyung?” he asked the elder.

“ NOHOHOHO” yoongi melted again, wiggling and squirming under hoseok's ticklish grip. And when he began, by tickling his ribs, it was over and out. He poked and lazily wiggling his fingers over Yoongi’s ribcage.

Suga absolutely shrieked, shooting into a sitting position before flopping back down, like a fish out of water. His laughter was louder than he thought was possible, and tears started flowing from his eyes in streams.

For five minutes this continued before Hoseok finally stopped. Yoongi stopped flailing as the sensation stopped, his arm coming up to cover his stomach and everything else and tired giggles broke through his lips.

“Tha-thahat was soho mehehean!”

"But it worked. You are happy now", Hoseok smiled and hugged his hyung. Then they got home together and on the next day they finished the song perfectly and in time.

Hope you like it 🙃

[merevide]

my highly professional and not totally delusional stance on the ‘who tops/who bottoms’ debate between villaneve

okay prefacing this by saying i think they’re both switches. but if someone had to top the majority of the time it’d be eve. also this is my opinion.

putting it under the cut because i do not want to clog up the dash.

eve’s whole motto is jumping into things impulsively. she’s predicable on the surface but is driven by a desire to not be what people expect her to be. but she’s also been wound up her whole life, suppressing every dark urge unless it is in private. so yeah sure, she’s inexperienced but when has that stopped her. you know if offered the chance she would be so eager to top. she’d just do it.

okay now onto villanelle, i think with other people she’d 100% be a service top. no doubt i think. villanelle likes the control she can have or exert over certain people, she finds it fun. she even thinks eve is that way. but as aforementioned, eve is not like that at all. which is why villanelle is so drawn ( and at times angered ) by eve. she does not act like villanelle expects/wants her to. and throughout how does this turn into her bottoming?

i feel like for her ( and eve too ) their whole character progressions through the seasons can play into this. now stay with me here. villanelle finds her humanity through eve, she finds her happiness. eve is her tether where everyone else in her life has treated her as if she is a full on monster. as if she doesn’t have any complexities behind that. eve understands her, her under the surface longing for a kind of normalcy. so with eve she softens, she lets go.

with eve, it’s basically the same thing but in reverse. she discovers her dark urges through villanelle, her grim impulses are not shunned or repressed, they’re encouraged even. eve’s entire obsession with villanelle stems from the fact that at the surface, she is what eve truly desires deep down, but later down the line falls completely for her. acknowledges her need for her. and through her, she also let’s go in a sense.

the whole top/bottom thing is another shade of a power dynamic, and i’m just choosing to look WAY too deep into literal intimacy roles but eh. who cares. villanelle softens with eve, trusting her with this. eve hardens through vil, but is also soft. she is eager but also wants to please because she loves villanelle. she trusts her to not repress her impulsivity, to let her show her how much she loves her through this physical act.

in the s1 finale i think it displays the point i’m trying to make nicely, vil’s ‘’i know what i’m doing’’, to eve holding a knife to her stomach, to “you can’t”/“i can.”, you get the gist. the knife is a symbol of the shift between them. the first instance of their dynamic, villanelle in the vulnerable position while eve is in full control, obviously it becomes softer and full of love over time (+ added consent. moral of the story don’t stab someone without their permission)and doesn’t involve blood all over the sheets but you get what i’m saying.

so that’s my ‘i’m reading way to far between these lines’ rant. again, i think they’re switches and aren’t stone cold tops/bottoms & this is just my opinion. if you think eve bottoms and vil tops all the power to you. thanks for reading this far. shoutout to the anon that wanted this lol.

[fleebledotcomrbls]

You Matter

Chapter 5

Summary: Logan sneaks out with Remy

Tw: Suffocation, Talks of death, Verbal Fighting, Outing somone as trans (its in passing but fair waring), metions of violence, almost drowning (let me know if i missed one)

Words: 1897

 The day seemed to drag as he watched the clock tick all day. It was friday and eleven o’clock He had his first training session with the hero's tomorrow. His mind was pulled right back into reality as Declan returned from his last meeting of the day. 

“Hey Lo,” He smiled at Logan. His eyes were heavier than usual, “Tonight I'm heading home to Remus. He will come with me in the morning to see you. Remember the rules.”

“Stay in my room. Don’t touch anything, and nobody comes in or out.” Logan recited. His father put these rules in place when he was ten. Tonight was the first night he was breaking them. There should be no reason Declan suspected him, but he couldn’t help but toss and turn these past nights. Right now is when it could all fall apart. If his dad suspected him for a minute. He called upon every bit of his minimal acting abilities.

“Good,” Declan looked straight into Logan’s eyes. Logan tried to keep his poker face, “You need to go to bed on time. You look like you aren’t getting enough sleep.” Declan grabbed his cheek and gave him a quick peck, “Love you.”

“Ew.” Logan deadpanned. Declan laughed as he exited the room.

Logan relaxed and looked down at his outfit. He knew it would be bad to show up in a onesie, but what else could he wear? He ran to the cluttered sideroom, with his bed and assortment of materials for all his interests.

He looked to his closet. It was full of star maps and more importantly his clothes. He looked through his closet. He had a lot of the same pair of jeans,  shirts from the lab, and flip-flops. He assumed he shouldn’t show up in his favorite shirt that says, ‘Got Powers?’. He scoured finding nothing. He looked across his room to see Declan’s mini drawer he keeps in Logan’s bedroom. He dug through the drawer, he saw a lot of the same shirts, but in his father’s size. Then, he saw a simple black polo shirt and a blue tie. He smiled and pulled the shirt and tie on. He grabbed his jeans. He went up to the door of his room and before he opened the door, he grabbed the R coin, and put it in his pocket.

He walked to the back of the lab, he had snuck out before, but it was to the edge of the woods. He never left sight of the lab. He saw the back door. He bolted a sudden jolt of excitement rushing through him. He felt someone grab his arm, and he felt the air push out of his lungs.

“What are you doing here kid!’ The attacker was looking at his band and let go of Logan’s arm. Recoiling as if he had touched fire.He went to grab his walkie-talkie as he fell onto the ground. Remy stood behind him, his palm outstretched. He had a small backpack.

“Snitches get stitches,” He looked up at Logan, “Ya ready to head out not so secret spy.”

Logan looked down at the man and placed a hand on his chest. Remy quickly took his hand, “He’s asleep. Nobody’s powers can kill someone. For someone who's been surrounded by powers your whole life, that would seem like a no brainer.”

 As Remy opened the door Logan contemplated the words. Letting their weight sit on him. Remy was right, Logan should know more about powers. He had met so many empaths and power canclers, and lots of people whose powers were extremely emotionally driven. He was allowed to walk around like any kid at one point, but that was when he was four or five. They decided to isolate him after he made a huge vacuum around other kids. They didn’t want him endangering others. It hit him that Remy was the first person he talked to with powers that wasn’t trying to control him in a long time.

Logan stepped into the dank grass outside, the smell of rain dancing in his nostrils. He felt a chill. The cold hitting his bare arms, Remy grabbed a flashlight from his bag. The stars shone bright, Logan couldn’t help but stare. He had seen so many photos and had plenty of maps, but the real thing was beautiful. The stars flickered, and Logan’s eyes dragged across the sky, to find the familiar shapes. There's Mars, Sirius, Orion, and The Big Dipper.

“Logan!” Logan was broke from his trance by Remy, “We’ve got to head out. We can go look at the stars in Carnville. The sky is clearer there anyway. We will be walking a mile or two, so we can’t wait around.”

Logan was not as strong as he should be. He walks around the Lab often, it was nothing like the road they walked on, but Remy distracted him.

“What's your favorite color?” Remy interrupted the cicada’s single note song.

“Blue. Yours?”

“Brown. Now you ask a question.”

“Hm,” Logan contemplated the question to ask,”Why are you here? You seem to have control over your power.”

“Some kids started attacking this other kid. Some kid could read minds, and outed this kid as trans. The kid started getting bullied, but some kid started beating the crap out of him. I put the kid to sleep. Their mom freaked and threanted sueing my mom, so I lied and said it was an accident. You?”

Logan should have expected the question to be asked back, but he had no plan. Almost everyone he's met has already knew why. He decided on a half truth, “I was put away for weak control on my powers.”

“For nine years? Damn, this place is dedicated. Hmm, you got any hobbies?”

“I like the stars, reading, and studying the periodic table.” Logan looked back to see the hospital completely out of view. There was no going back now.

“Down there is the road the superheroes from the academy use to go on missions, were following just far away enough so that they can’t see us,” Remy pointed to the left as a distant siren was heard, “So Mr.Nine Years, how is the outside world?”

“Cold, wet, and…”Logan looked to the sky, “Beautiful.”

“Yeah, after a rain most likely wasn’t prime time to sneak out, but we can still have fun.”

“I quite enjoy it.” Remy laughed at that. The walk continued with back and forth conversation.

Logan started to smell something salty, “Whats thats smell.”

Remy’s eyes lit up, “Just my favorite scent in the whole world.” Remy grabbed Logan’s wrist and raced off. Logan nearly tripped on multiple branches just trying to keep pace. Logan saw a faint light through the woods.

Remy broke through the trees, “This is Carnvill.” The town was alive despite it being at least 1 am. The market in the center was full of people trading goods. A bar nearby was lit up with fairy lights and people’s laughter. Actually, everything had fairy lights. There was a beautiful orange glow. The smell...had much to be desired. Logan looked to his left to see the ocean.

It was the first time Logan had seen the ocean, even though his whole life he had been around it. It was enchanting. The stars were reflected in the waves, and the glow of the town highlighted the sea. It was haunting, no one knew exactly what was beneath the water, but damn was it beautiful.

“I knew you would love it,” Remy led logan to a cliff that looked over the ocean, “Now we can stargaze. Those woods were not a good view.” Remy was right, it was an amazing view. The clouds had cleared. Logan could see the stars as if it was a picture…,but it wasn’t. It was real. Logan shivered the cold nipping at his nose. As Remy put his jacket on Logan, he couldn’t help it as water vapor came from his eyes. It only got worse as the rocks became liquidy.

“Whoa! Is something wrong?” The boy’s cool attitude slipped. Logan just started bawling harder.

“I-It’s j-ust the-that you.” Logan was suddenly sobbing, “You don’t think i’m dangerous.God, I hate emotions!” Remy turned to Logan and hugged him.

“Logan, when I saw that band I froze. I had written you off as someone who never questioned the system,” Logan felt vapor rise from his shoulders, “but then I saw that band. You never had time to question it. Heck, you never had people to help you question it. Have you ever thought for just a moment,” Remy pulled away, his face was damp, “That you’re allowed to feel and be a kid.”

Logan stood up, “No.” He tried to calm himself. He can’t...He can’t let his emotions get the better of him. That's when they hurt people, “You don’t know my me. What I’ve done.”

“Logan, You were 4!”

“I STILL DID IT!”

“YOU SHOULDN’T BE PUNISHED BY NOT LIVING,” It dawned on Logan that Remy was crying, “NINE YEARS! You’ve never played with a Wii or-or heard Lizzo! No first day of school. No having your friend pressure you into listening to MCR! NO CHILDHOOD!”

Logan felt something roll down his cheeks, he placed a hand to see liquid tears come out his eyes. Liquid, huh. That's the first time that had happened. This is the first time a lot of things have happened. Logan sat on the edge of the cliff and awkwardly patted next to him. Remy sat down, “I’ve never listened to MCR. You’re my- You’re my friend. You can peer pressure me.” Remy looked at Logan and started laughing. Remy fished something out his bag. He pulled out a cellular phone and a cup. He placed the phone in the cup and then he reached a hand out to Logan. Logan took his hand and Remy pressed his phone as lyrics came out.

Teenagers scare the living shit out of me

“Logan for once. Stop caring!” and Logan did. In this small town in the middle of nowhere. He danced and danced. Remy danced along with Logan. Steam started clouding around them. They were in their own world. Than Logan heard Remy scream,

Logan was alert in minutes. He ran as he saw Remy plummet of the cliff. Terror in his eyes. Logan jumped. As he fell he grabbed Remy mid-air. As they descended Logan felt a harsh smack. Logan realised suddenly that they were in a...bubble? of ice? Remy suddenly let go.

“HOLY SHIT! I ALMOST DIED.” Remy started laughing.

Logan started crying, “I’m sorry. Remy we’re gonna die in here.”

“Hey Hey Hey. Shh. Don’t be like that. Yeah maybe we might suffocate, but at least we're not alone.” Remy laughed.

“God, how are you so positive. We could DIE. Were most likely going to.”

“Decide your last words.”

“What?”

“If we’re gonna die we need good last words.”

“At least we’re getting to see the bottom of the ocean.”

“Dang, how am I supposed to top that,” Logan felt lightheaded, “Umm, Into the unknown.”

“Logan, hug me.” Logan did and as Logan hugged him, he started to feel sleepy. He knew Remy was putting him to sleep, but he was too tired to care.

“Into the unknown…”

Taglist: @thewhiteraven73 @hereforapathylogic @illogicalthinking @power-in-plain-sight

[tttinytrash]

Trust

Papyrus never thought they’d actually make it and stay up surface side. But in this case he was happy to be proven wrong, the kid had gotten them all up top and they’d stayed that way for almost a year now.

Given how many times the child had turned back the clock underground, Papyrus hadn’t really let himself believe they wouldn’t do it again this time for a long time. But once they got up, they’d never been dragged down. He’d finally come to trust that this timeline might actually be permanent, and it seemed Chara might even have too. The closed off child had slowly started to tear down their walls, though they were still guarded for someone so young. Seeing them try to better themself had actually made him pretty attached to the human.

Which was why said human was now draped over his his front as he lied on the couch, listening to them rant about their rough day as an ambassador. Their head was on his sternum, and they were small enough that their legs only reached to just above his pelvis. Being much larger, he didn’t mind serving as their mattress as he wrapped one arm back around his head, the other laying a hand on their back, and the part of his long snake tail that didn’t fit on the couch looped over the far armrest and splayed haphazardly across the floor.

Chara idly played with one of the strings of his hoodie just to give their fingers something to do as they continued to let their built up stress spill out along with their words. “The Senator even called me ‘it’ again, even though I’ve told him a million times to use 'they’ but apparently that’s difficult to get his pig head around, and then-”

They both stopped when a rolling growl surprised them into silence.

“…What was that, Papyrus?”

He sighed. “me. sorry kiddo, that was just my stomach.”

“But you’re a skeleton.”

“heh, yeah. i’m a skeleton with a snake tail made of magic.”

Chara made a face conveying ‘yeah, fair.’ “But I thought your stomach would also be made of magic? That sounded like a human, almost.”

“it is. i’m just fighting instinct, kiddo. and it’s yelling at me for it.”

“Instinct?”

“to eat you, it’s a naga thing more than a skeleton thing.”

Chara sat up, looking distinctly worried.

Shoot. “you’re forgetting humans and monsters are different. but i'm not gonna anyways, so yer fine.”

Chara had the same scared look on their face as the first time they met. He could practically hear the trust break, and his soul panged for it. Thank stars it didn’t make his stomach growl again.

“i said i wouldn’t do it, even if it wouln’t be what you’re thinking.” He sighed. “so what did senator asshat do?”

Chara readjusted to be fully sitting up, back against the couch proper and using his stomach as if it were the couch cushion. The reduction of contact was apparently enough to allow them to continue, but their stress relief stopped even if their story didn’t. 

Papyrus pretended he didn't notice and it didn't hurt. 

 -----

Chara remained distant for the next week. And not just from Papyrus, they pulled back from everyone now. 

*You point out that they're stressed now more than ever.  

"Yeah, Frisk. I know!" 

 The ghost child made a face at Chara, crossing their arms. 

Chara flopped back across their bed "Don't give me that disappointed look. I get it, I'm backsliding into old habits I made even before the Underground." 

*You suggest that they should try giving out trust again. 

"Fine, but that skeleton needs to earn it back first." They even refused to use Papyrus’ name.

*You point out that Sans didn't do anything wrong. And maybe he can even explain what Papyrus meant. 

Chara looked thoughtful, and left their bedroom right then and there to look for the younger skeleton.

----- 

"Sans? Your brother wants to eat me." 

The smaller skelenaga seemed surprised by Chara's statement, but then his eye lights turned to stars as he squealed "THAT'S SO CUTE! DID HE TELL YOU THAT?" 

Chara flinched and their voice faltered in bafflement "Y-yeah, he did. Why is that cute?" 

Sans blinked. "DID PAPY NOT EXPLAIN WHAT THAT MEANS FOR A NAGA?"

Chara shook their head. 

"UGH, OF COURSE. LAZYBONES!" He shook his head before launching into the explanation. "NAGAS HAVE BEEN KNOWN TO SWALLOW THOSE THEY CARE ABOUT AS A PROTECTION TACTIC. THEY TAKE IN THEIR YOUNG WHEN THEY'RE REALLY LITTLE TO BE SAFE DURING TRAVEL, OR SOMETIMES CLOSE FRIENDS AND RELATIVES CAN BE HEALED THAT WAY. IT'S EVEN PART OF OUR COURTING RITUAL IN THE RIGHT CONTEXT!"

"So... then he was saying he wanted to keep me safe?" 

"YEAH! HE'S ALWAYS BEEN THE CARETAKER BETWEEN THE TWO OF US. HE EVEN TOOK CARE OF ME WHEN I WAS A BABYBONES!”

Chara went quiet, and Sans let them mull over the new information patiently.

“Sans, did Papyrus ever... uh... you know, to you?” the human finally ventured.

“TAKE ME IN? OF COURSE! NOT IN A LONG TIME, BUT HE USED TO REGULARLY, LIKE A GOOD CARETAKER! THAT’S WHY I SAID IT WAS SO CUTE, IT MEANS HE’S FINALLY ADMITTING HE CARES ABOUT SOMEONE, AND THAT’S SOMETHING HE HASN’T DONE SINCE HE BEFRIENDED MUFFET. EVEN IF HE'S NEVER TAKEN HER IN.”

Sans had to cut the conversation there, it was sparring time at Alphys' place. But that was fine by the human. They set their face into a stern, DETERMINED expression and marched toward the front room.

'Ok Frisk, let's try this trust thing again then.'

---

Papyrus was back on the couch, having fallen asleep to Napstaton's report on their latest album drop, oh and also the government was launching another bill to instate monsters with citizenship. Maybe it'll pass this time! Anyways, keep your ears peeled for tour dates, blah blah.

When Chara walked into the room he stirred, forcing his sockets open more fully and giving them a sleepy look as they stopped in front of him expectantly.

"sup?" He asked.

"Eat me."

Well shit, NOW he was awake. "what?"

"Eat me. You said you wanted to." The human reiterated.

His instincts clamored at him to agree. 'Take them in, protect. Do it now!'

He shook his skull, attempting to dismiss the intruding thought. While adjusting himself to be sitting up on the couch, he asked "what brought this up?"

Chara finally broke eye contact, which had been boring holes into him, casting their at last softened gaze to the floor. They hopped up onto the couch beside him when he gave it an encouraging pat.

Papyrus was nothing if not patient, able to curb the obnoxious persistence of the instincts by focusing on Chara's SOUL. Its power as a human SOUL radiated in waves, but even so it failed to cover their nervousness tendrilling outwards seeking comfort.

A light push of support from his own weaker SOUL must have helped tip the balance for them as they managed to break their silence. "Sans explained. He told me what it means for nagas, and uh, how you used to care for him."

Papyrus nodded, knowing they weren't done and waiting for them to gather their thoughts.

"I just..." They clenched their hands int their lap hard enough to make them go white as the blood was pressed out.

Papyrus laid his metacarpals on their shoulder, a feather light show of support.

They looked up to him again, eyes slightly wet and voice small "I don't want to be scared."

"i scare you?" No hurt verbally shown, just a clinically asked question.

"No! J-just that one admission made me think I was scared of you, and I hate it!"

They finally did let their tears loose, and Papyrus hugged them while they let stress pour out of their SOUL as words poured out of their mouth.

"I hate that I can't trust people! But I just don't want to be hurt, so I'm scared ALL THE TIME and it's exhausting, Papyrus! I'm broken, and I can't fix it, even though I'm trying!"

They sobbed into his jacket, and he let them, wrapping his arms tighter around them and sending consoling pulses from his SOUL to theirs.

"yer not broken, kiddo. and yer not wrong, you've been hurt. so it's normal for trust to come slow. being scared sucks, but we all are at some point. friends are there to help you get out of those low points and bring you back up. you're doing great, and we'll be here whenever you need us."

Chara clung tighter, and slowly their tears slowed and stopped, and their breathing levelled. Things went quiet again.

"...Pap?"

"hm?"

"Thank you."

"heh, i just sat here on my lazy coccyx."

They batted him weakly, pulling away. "You know what I me-"

'Grrrroooooaaannnn'

As the skeleton's stomach growled, his face lit up orange in an awful blush and Chara burst out into laughter. After half a flustered moment he couldn't help but join in, chuckling along as the mood was shattered.

Once they calmed down, they contemplated for a moment before speaking again. "Paps, I still mean what I said. I don't want to be afraid. If you're ok with it, go ahead."

His instincts clamored all the more fiercely and he had to crush the impulse hard for him to instead ask for clarification. "you want me to...?"

'there's no way they actually want me to. no way in hell.' He thought

They took a breath, and rephrased. "Yes. Take me in, Pap. Please."

Papyrus fixed them with a serious look, locking eyes and not letting them go. He looked for any signs of lingering doubt, the tiniest hint they were forcing themself, any reason at all to not agree to their request. None, they seemed resolved. Full of DETERMINATION. Alright.

Here we go.

"ok, but lemme know if you want me to stop. we only do this if you really want to continue."

He gave them a moment to reconsider, but they just gave him a resolute nod.

He picked them up from the couch, setting them in his lap, splaying out his coils more to allow less friction upon entry while still supporting them as they sat atop on the outside. No struggle on their part, and Papyrus felt his tongue and throat manifest in anticipation.

He nuzzles the top of their head with his nasal bone, hearing the softest giggle from them in response as they gave his arm a light squeeze.

He sighed, "in ya get."

Papyrus let his jaw dislocate and gape, allowing the needed room for him to cup the back of the child's head and gently push forward to fit it into his mouth. He brought his head down over theirs slowly, giving them time to adjust to he sensation or panic in time to retreat.

Still as a statue on their end, and now the crown of their head was at the back of his throat.

One big swallow, their head is now lodged in his throat, and he moves their arms (one of which had still been shakily holding the sleeve of his sweater) into position at their sides.

Gulp number two, their shoulders are in his gullet, arms and torso atop his tongue. He can feel their heart fluttering frantically against their ribs, like a panicked caged bird. But they still make no move to escape.

Third swallow, their chest and SOUL along with it dip into his throat, and he tilts his skull back to allow gravity to slide their body past his clavicles and into his chest. His own SOUL pulses calm into theirs, all the more strongly with their newfound proximity.

Gulp four, their feet (which he removed the shoes from as he guided their legs in) slide out of view and he can close his mouth again at last. But he's not done.

The final, deep swallow on gulp five sends them down and his hands go up to his neck. His distal phalanges gently press and follow the bulges they create in his throat until they fully slip past his collarbones, and in a moment they slide into a far more open space.

Since his stomach is filled, the normally translucent faux flesh has turned opaque. But he hardly has need to see them since the sensitive magic can feel everything as their hands press against the walls, heart still nervously fluttering as their pressing fingers shake ever so slightly.

One hand reaches up to reaffix his mandible so he can actually speak, and the other presses in to where he can feel their back resting and slowly starts to rub. They initially flinch away from the touch, but resettle into it and he can feel them forcing their muscles to relax from their held tension.

They're warm, much warmer than he is. It's probably largely due to excess adrenaline but he enjoys their weight inside, and his instinct has finally shut up, which is a relief beyond words for the monster.

"you ok in there, kiddo?"

They flinch again at being spoken to, perhaps he sounds odd from inside. "Y-yeah. I'm ok...." They take a deep breath, and their heart finally slows to a more normal beat. "I'm fine."

"good, i'm glad. trip was ok? it's been awhile for me."

"Yeah. It's weird though. When I touch the walls," they press their palm into the giving flesh again before removing it. "It feels slick. Almost wet, but as far as I can tell from in here I'm dry."

"of all the first questions, that's the one you pick eh?"

He gets a foot pressed into him for his tease.

"yeah, alright. magic has whatever form serves its owners function. a bit inconvenient to have to hose down every time you wanted to cuddle somebody like this, yeah?"

"Ok, fair. This is considered cuddling, huh?"

"held close and comfy, i see little difference."

They chuckle, "It's pretty comfortable in here. I grant you that."

He chuckled, and hummed in contentment. He was indeed comfy, and their body heat had in fact dialled down after the panic faded. He loved that they were curious, and their lightly questing fingers brought a warm, nostalgic feeling. He readjusted to be on the floor, making them both more comfortable.

But then he moved again to be draping his torso across the section of his body Chara was contained in.

"Hey! You're squishing me you dumb skeleton!"

"nooooo, i'm cuddling. it's what you get for being so warm."

They pressed up at him, even through his own squishy tail he felt them shoving at his ribs, earning more chuckles from him. "Ugh! This is worse than normal, I can't even get away from you lying all over me!"

"exactly, it's so much easier."

"Cheating lazybones!" They tried to sound annoyed, but laughter gave away their enjoyment of the game.

They couldn't see his grin but probably heard it in his tone. "i call it efficiency, shortstack."

They got their legs involved, and he let his torso get pushed away by their short legs shoving at him.

They were both chuckling as he moved yet again (geez this was an active day for him) to nestle in his own coils. This time he made sure they'd be in a comfortable position too, and close enough he could rub their back some more. He smiled when they leaned into the indirect touch.

Warm, comfortable, and happy. To no one's surprise, he was ready for a nap. He yawned, and was mildly surprised to hear Chara yawn in reply.

"tired, kid?" He asked, poking their cheek and of course getting pushed away by a small hand.

"Yeah. You must be rubbing off on me."

"ah, corrupting the youth is a favored past time of mine. excellent."

"Whatever, old man."

He just snorted in response.

"Is it ok if I nap in here?" The human questioned a bit hesitantly.

"mmhm. means i have an excuse not to move."

"Stars, you ARE old."

"you pronounced 'pragmatic' wrong. night, kiddo."

"Goodnight, Numbskull."

Papyrus waited until he felt their breathing deepen and their muscles go slack. Knowing Chara was asleep, he nodded off too.

He even pretended he slept through Sans' cooing when the younger skeleton came home and saw what happened.

The ribbing (heh.) Papyrus would get from his brother over it was worth it for the nice afternoon.

[hellzyeahwebwielingessays]

The Not-So-Amazing Mary Jane Part 7: MJ blindly trusts Beck (even though she wouldn’t!)

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This post will be the first of maaaaaaany where I’ll be unpacking the problems prevalent in the status quo presented to us in at the end of AMJ #1.

My intent is to thoroughly explore these problems in this and consequent posts before moving onto issue #2. By doing this I (and others so inclined) can try to bear them in mind as prevailing problems with every issue until such as a time as they are addressed.

In future posts like this (at least until we get to AMJ #2) I will try to dispense with the preamble and get right down to business.

But for now I should start by clearly defining what exactly the premise presented in AMJ #1 even is.

The premise as I see it is as follows:

Mary Jane, out of sympathy for him and interest in the project, is making a movie with Mysterio. A Mysterio who has disguised himself as a respected film director and hired former felons and current super villains as part of his crew. He and MJ maintain Beck’s secret from everyone (which includes Peter but we’ll get there in another post).

In this instalment I will be addressing why MJ’s trust of Beck and failure to verify his claims is nonsensical.

As touched on in our coverage of AMJ #1, Mary Jane believes Beck’s sob story and ultimately agrees to work with him in spite of his crimes and the presence of active villains. Williams writes her genuinely sympathetic and interested in the film project, buying what Beck is saying and lacking any suspicion beyond that.

The most we get is MJ (arguably) noticing Beck’s abuse of one his staff and presumably bearing it in mind for future dealings with him.

Now, MJ is great at reading people and is very aware she possesses that skill. Between her upbringing moving around the country, her profession in acting and modelling (which puts many people, in particular young women, in potentially vulnerable positions) and her experience dating and living with a superhero, it’s an essential skill and one she’s honed. You could call it her personal brand of spider-sense.

If MJ’s Spidey sense were registering honesty from someone then it’d be crucial in her decision to ultimately believe them and judge their threat level.

These pages though get muddy because Beck is mixing the truth and deception. Technically everything he is saying is  true so MJ would likely be picking that up. But he didn’t actually need   MJ to be in the movie so he was lying about that and more poignantly he is omitting the fact this movie plays into Kindred’s wider schemes.

Is MJ’s failure to register deception from Beck a mistake? Is Williams dropping the ball here?

Actually no.

Mary Jane is a good read of people, but she is absolutely not flawless in this regard. There have been times she’s misread Peter and indeed been fooled by other people. Five key examples come to mind and we’re going to be starting with the most debatable ones.

Firstly there was Jason Jerome a fellow actor who offered friendship and support when MJ began working on the soap opera Secret Hospital. Jason was a harassing creep intent upon seducing Mary Jane, regarding her marital status as challenge that’d make his ‘conquest’ all the sweeter. I go into much more detail about Jason’s encounters with MJ in this post.

I will concede that it can definitely be argued that MJ was out of character or emotionally vulnerable during the course of this subplot so it doesn’t necessarily prove anything. Nevertheless, in MJ’s canonical history she was fooled by a fellow (and more experienced) actor than herself.

Secondly there was Aunt May’s death in ASM #400. Aunt May was impersonated by a dying actress who’d been genetically altered to look like and register as her. For around a year everyone (including MJ) believed their beloved May to be dead once more proving how MJ’s ability to read people isn’t flawless. Again though there is a lot of stuff that can be contested with this example, the most significant being that as originally written the intent was that this was the actual Aunt May, not an imposter.

However even accepting the retcon one could argue that due to her pregnancy, May’s miraculous recovery from a coma and the general stress of the Clone Saga up until that point Mary Jane’s ‘Spidey sense’ was not going to be working properly. However, canonically this is once again an example of a fellow (and likely more experienced) actress deceiving MJ.

My other examples don’t have nearly as much leeway.

Perhaps the most significant is Jonathan Caesar, the Parkers’ landlord who was obsessed with ‘owning’ Mary Jane. You can imagine what that  would’ve entailed. He abducted MJ and held her prisoner for a little while. The thing is initially MJ found the guy charming and the idea he was a threat never crossed her mind.

Unlike the above two examples there weren’t any obvious extenuating circumstances that I can recall to excuse MJ’s faux pas. She was just genuinely fooled by him.

Then we have her friend Lorraine whom you might recall from part 4 of this essay series. As mentioned there, Lorraine was an old friend of MJ’s who’d developed a cocaine problem. MJ sought to help her and Lorraine seemed willing to be helped. But when MJ left her alone for a little while Lorraine almost immediately snuck out to find her next hit.

Models are not actresses strictly speaking. But to my limited knowledge their profession must involve some degree of adopting a false persona. Even if we were to say otherwise, Lorraine was clearly capable of duping Mary Jane.

Finally, for an extended period of time the Chameleon fooled MJ and most everyone else when he impersonated J. Jonah Jameson in Web #52.

Like Beck, Chameleon made a whole career out of fooling people and Beck could be argued to be even better at it than Chammy.

So the idea that someone could fool MJ is definitely possible in a lot of stories.

But we shouldn’t take MJ’s trust as a sign that she is in the right. It’s so often tempting to side with the protagonist’s POV precisely because they are the protagonist. If MJ trusts Mysterio she must feel he isn’t dangerous and isn’t that bad really right?

But the possibility that she can be wrong is on the table based upon her history and (whilst I personally doubt Williams intended it this way) that is what is happening here big time.

Now I am not suggesting that MJ should second-guess every read of people she makes nor that the above examples should be sore spots in her mind. But collectively they would enshrine to Mary Jane herself that she shouldn’t just presume her immediate reads of people are accurate, and that would go even more so for professional actors.

In this issue MJ hasn’t got any extenuating circumstances to compromise her judgement. She isn’t in the midst of an emotionally turbulent time in her life. She isn’t being blinded my friendship, loneliness or familial love. She also hasn’t had much time to observe or get to know Beck up close and personal, this exchange being the longest amount of time they’ve ever spoken to one another.

But as I spent far too much time pointing out in parts 3-5, MJ is very aware of Mysterio’s skills, his typical tactics and the horrible things he has done. She knows he is a career criminal and a dangerous/nasty one at that. And she knows that he is an incredibly accomplished and experienced manipulator/deceiver/actor, almost definitely more experienced than her self. And this is to say nothing of the times he’s personally hurt her or the people she cares about.

Realistically upon learning of Beck’s involvement she should somehow start to work against  him and most definitely not trust him!

Even exempting the personal pain he’s been complicit in visiting upon Mary Jane and/or her loved ones, she knows enough about him to be suspicious.

In knowing his skillset and M.O. Mary Jane should either not trust him at all or at the very least not simply not take everything he says at face value. She would  be savvy enough to recognize whatever her ‘radar’ is reading. At best the odds are 50/50 that her radar is off. And those odds exist precisely because making you believe things that aren’t real is the entire conceit of Beck’s alter ego.

But wait, there’s more!

Beck basically admitted to:

Stealing a man’s identity

Wasting over a year of his life working on a project that doesn’t actually exist (in a location notorious for unaccounted for landmines btw)

Using that to con people into giving him their money

Using that money to make a movie which means he’s gambling with their money without their consent and potentially gambling with the public image of the film studio, the crew and the man he’s impersonating if the film gets a bad reception or financially flops

He’s doing all this off the back of what an extremely risky movie to make in the first place. Imagine if an empathetic and unapologetic movie about the life of George Zimmerman came out?

Said movie is a vanity project explicitly about himself

He’s using current super villains on the crew. If you are a current super villain then by definition you are not out on parole, you aren’t reformed and you are still wanted by the law.

And Mary Jane…goes along with this. Lampshading the fact that it’s insane for her to do that doesn’t excuse the extreme mischaracterization of doing that in the first place.

At the very least she should run a check online or with her various contacts in the super hero community to see if he’s actually  dying. Remember from MJ’s POV Beck has full on faked his own death at least twice.  She has no hard evidence for this whatsoever beyond the word of a man who is notoriously duplicitous.

Now to play Devil’s advocate we could argue that MJ believes Beck is out of jail legally. He might’ve served his time, been let out early for good behaviour or precisely because he is dying.  Or perhaps he had legal help that weaselled him out of being locked up.

However this angle of interpretation just doesn’t hold up to scrutiny.

For starters given his very long history of very serious crimes (even excluding the ones MJ is unaware of) it’d be common sense to presume that Beck would be serving time barring extenuating circumstances. Common sense would then lead anybody to try and confirm if any extenuating circumstances exist. This could prove impossible because how accessible records on costumed criminals are to the public is unclear. But anyone with a phone or internet access could at least try.

MJ has far more than mere common sense and she’s got far more than a phone and internet access. And yet there isn’t even a hint that she makes even a lazy attempt at confirming Beck’s story.

Now let’s pretend MJ forgot every single encounter with Mysterio she knows about before Nick Spencer’s run. No faking Aunt May’s death. No helping Doc Ock in ‘Ends of the Earth’. Nothing from ‘Guardian Devil’. None of the stuff we covered in parts 3-5.

Mary Jane would still realistically be fully aware Beck committed a HUGE crime mere months ago that involved the Avengers (plus other heroes) that was also the inciting incident that reconciled her with the love of her life.

This alone  should be enough for her to not so quickly or blindly trust Beck! Even if she was unaware of the legal fallout of that event it was still an event that endangered lots of innocent people and heroes. Chiefly it endangered the love of her life! MJ trusts the guy whose actions nearly killed the man she loves most in the world!

Speaking of Peter by the way, he’s a super hero who’s regularly tangled with this guy.*

She has also worked for, is an acquaintance of or personal friends with:

Tony Stark/Iron Man

Riri Williams/Ironheart

The main roster of the Fantastic Four

Several big name members of the Avengers (including Captain America and Jessica Drew)

The Avengers faithful butler Jarvis

Members of a support group comprised of the loved ones of super heroes (see ASM v5 #8-10)

Carlie Cooper, a forensics scientist who has worked for the police

She has also encountered shape shifters, impersonators, clones and body swaps in the last 10 years of her life, so a certain degree of safety precautions would be requisite for her.

Collectively this means MJ would not simply presume Beck is walking free legally and more importantly could and would  check up on that. It wouldn’t be hard. She wouldn’t even have to tell Peter if for some reason she was worried about him knowing; we’ll dive a lot more into this in a much later instalment.

Her research would then naturally turn up the fact that Beck clearly escaped from prison. Even if the details of Beck’s trial or consequent legal proceedings (like being paroled or cutting a deal) weren’t public knowledge Mary Jane’s contacts would be able to inform her of what would’ve happened. Thus she’d know  Beck was legally declared insane and sent to Ravencroft but not legally released. 

Similarly even if the details of Mysterio’s ‘death’ in Ravencroft weren’t publically known MJ would have the means of learning that and thus confirm that Beck had faked his death once again; (see ASM v5 #24-25). This would then open up the possibility to MJ that the body the authorities have belongs to someone else. 

From MJ’s point of view, at best that’s macabre and unethical. At worst it could mean Beck caused someone’s death. MJ is clearly aware that Mysterio might be capable of such a thing because she is almost immediately concerned Beck has done something bad to the real Cage McKnight!

Now I’m not saying MJ is going along with Beck even knowing he probably killed his psychiatrist. But what I am saying is that it’s utterly out of character for MJ (or pretty much any character) to not check this stuff!

Maybe  Williams will address all this, but reading AMJ #1 it seems far more likely she’s not bothered to consider the implications of the direction she has taken. Or worse, she has but is ignoring them because she wants to tell the story she wants no matter what.

The point is moot though because MJ wouldn’t give Beck the benefit of the doubt in the first place.

There is more to be said regarding MJ’s trust issues in the story, but I think I’ll save that for next time.

*And typically won through a highly unique danger sense that MJ lacks, a sense that mitigates Beck’s abilities.

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[dewitty1]

Chapters: 6/6 Fandom: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter Characters: Draco Malfoy, Harry Potter, Narcissa Black Malfoy, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Bill Weasley, Fleur Delacour, Kingsley Shacklebolt, John Dawlish, Original Male Character(s), Original Female Character(s) Additional Tags: Explicit Sexual Content, Explicit Language, Voyeurism, Frottage, Masturbation, Oral Sex, Rimming, Anal Sex, Auror Harry Potter, Veela Draco Malfoy, Winged Draco Malfoy, Veela Mates, Bonding, Soulmates, Enemies to Lovers, Mutual Pining, Angst with a Happy Ending, Draco Malfoy/OMC (brief), Past Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley, Case Fic, Minor Violence, Minor Character Death, Magical Theory, Magical Biology, Muggle and Wizarding Technology, Digital Art, Embedded Images, Harry/Draco Big Bang 2018, Community: harrydracobang Summary:

As if his recent divorce and sleepless nights weren’t bad enough, a rash of escalating crimes against purebloods forces Harry and his team of Aurors to protect the riskiest target in all of Wizarding Britain.

Of course, Draco Malfoy would still be ridiculously infuriating and impossibly gorgeous.

As well as a Veela.

Who happens to be Harry’s mate.

Excerpt:

“I don’t like Fletcher,” Draco declared. “He’s a self-important, pompous arse.”

Harry held his tongue at the irony. “Do you like anyone here?” he asked, quirking a brow. “It might not be a good idea to alienate all your options, or you’ll end up being stuck with me.”

“Even you’d be an improvement over this.” Draco flopped on the bed, the mattress dipping gracefully under his weight. “I can’t stand it, being around all these strangers.” He stood as quickly as he’d sat, pacing the length of the room and tugging at his collar. “I can’t breathe; I feel like I’m going to crawl out of my skin if I stay here another minute. You’ve no idea what it feels like, to be held prisoner here again.”

Harry took a long look. Draco’s golden complexion had already begun to fade, his intense eyes now a dishwater grey. His fingers were curled inward—nearly claw-like—while his shoulders remained tensed, his body restless and trembling.

“Hey.” Harry approached him cautiously. “Hey,” he repeated as Draco stiffened. Harry reached out, resting his hand along the swell of Draco’s bicep as he tried to reassure him.

The shock of magic which poured through him at the contact made Harry cry out. It burned, liquid hot through his veins, whiting out his vision as his heart sped, fluttering against his ribs. The world around him dissolved into a dull roar save for Draco’s gasp, a soft, indecipherable noise that escaped from Draco’s perfect, sexy mouth, causing Harry’s blood to pulse at a fevered pitch.

"Potter,” Draco shuddered as he leaned into Harry’s touch.

A voice in the back of Harry’s mind screamed that this was wrong, but the months of want compounded by countless sleepless nights caused logic to evaporate as everything narrowed down to the sudden need to feel Draco’s body against his. Harry surged forward, nearly sobbing with relief as Draco gripped the front of his robes, angling their bodies so their chests lay flush. Draco’s breath brushed tantalisingly hot against Harry’s cheek, prickling his skin, teasing him with that sweet mouth that lay so close.

Kiss me, he thought, but before he could get the words out Draco had turned his head, the soft press of his lips snatching away any remaining rational thought.

Harry inhaled deeply, unable to get enough of the salty tang of Draco’s skin, the spicy fragrance of his hair and the sharp citrus-notes of his soap. His mouth parted under Draco’s assault, Draco’s tentative licks growing bolder as he sucked and probed that wet heat. Harry pressed closer, unable to stop the grinding of his hips as his cock hardened with each passing second, his fingers splayed against the curve of Draco’s arse, pulling him in, seeking relief. It was as if all these months of wanting, all these years of wondering and waiting, had come down to this.

“God, yes, Harry,” Draco moaned throatily, the swell of his prick rubbing against Harry’s thigh.

Oh, God. Oh fuck. The sound of Draco’s voice—the voice that had haunted Harry’s dreams—was like ice water in his veins.

“It’s you,” Harry gasped, the sound nearly unrecognisable as he took a step back. “You’re—”

Draco moved closer. His pupils were dilated, his gaze almost unseeing as he caged Harry in. “You feel it too, don’t you Potter?” he asked, his voice husky. “I can feel how much you want it. How much you want me to fuck you.” His finger traced a line down Harry’s chest, slow and sensual. “I bet you’re thinking about how it’ll feel, my fingers working your arse, getting you all wet and loose for my cock.” His eyes flicked down to Harry’s obscenely tented trousers, then back up to his parted mouth. “Merlin, you’re practically gagging for it.” The feral smile he wore when he heard Harry’s moan made Harry’s heart race even faster.

He fumbled for his wand, squeezing his eyes tightly as he fought against his lust-filled thoughts. Malfoy’s scent—the way he tasted—was so intoxicating. “Malfoy—wait.” Harry tried to steady his voice, to avoid focusing on the ache that lingered in his groin. “This is mad; you don’t even like me.”

“Actually, Potter, I think I like you very much.” Draco’s eyes were half-lidded, pupils glassy, his voice dripping with seduction as he advanced once more. “Although if you were underneath me, I’d like you even better.”

The discomfiture and uncertainty which he had exuded had disappeared, replaced by something purposeful and determined. Even the pallor which marred his face had changed; once again, Harry could swear that Draco was radiant. Glowing.

It had to be a curse, or a dark spell that was causing them both to act as if they’d just downed several phials of a love potion. “Don’t move any closer, or I’ll be forced to restrain you,” Harry grit out.

Draco lifted his brow and purred. “If that’s your idea of fun,” he smirked.

[mischiefandspirits]

Iron Legion (8/?)

Never let it be said that Tony Stark ever does things by half. He might have grown up with little family, but he wasn’t about to keep it that way.

Tony Stark was seventeen when his first child was born, and that was just the beginning.

For Masterpost, AO3, and Fanfiction

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

Girl Fridays, Part 1

Tony Stark was thirty-six when his seventh child was born.

“I want one,” Tony said, watching the woman walk out.

“No,” Pepper said shortly.

“Definitely not.”

Tony pouted and turned to his daughter, who merely crossed her arms as she slipped into the room.

“Are you forgetting how quickly Aunt Pepper found out about us? You can’t have a new PA.”

“I had PA’s before Pepper and they never found out,” Tony pointed out.

“Because you never spent more than five minutes around them. The title was a joke back then. You’re too used to Aunt Pepper now, you can’t go without like you did back then.” Nebula’s face scrunched up as she glanced at the doorway. “Besides, you would want to be around that one.”

“Agreed,” Pepper said.

“I need a PA,” Tony huffed.

“I told you, I have a few picked out that -”

“Or I could do it.”

The two froze and even Happy turned to look at her.

Nebula tilted her head up and gave her father a serious expression. “I have completed my schooling -”

“You graduated high school.”

“I have a connection to the intranet so it will be easier for me to keep track of your calendar and rearrange appointments than any human,” she continued, ignoring her father. “The same applies to sending emails or texts or fielding calls. I am used to you so I could handle you better than some stranger could and there’s obviously no fear of me discovering myself or my siblings.”

“She’s got a point,” Happy added. “Plus, it’ll get her out of the house. And having a little extra muscle around couldn’t hurt with all the targets you’ve been slapping on your back.”

She smiled at her favorite uncle before turning back to her father. “I could protect you far better than that woman.”

Tony turned to Pepper, who looked a little nervous, but nodded.

“The point of keeping quiet about you kids is keeping you out of the limelight,” Tony said, exasperated. “This is doing the exact opposite!”

Nebula shook her head. “I’m not going to be your new Aunt Pepper. I’ll be an ordinary PA, not the girl dragging you around like a trophy husband.”

“Excuse me!?” Tony and Pepper said together.

“No one is going to be paying attention to me. If anything, this will give me a better cover. No one will question us being together or me being here at the house.”

“Fine, fine, you win!” he sighed, throwing his hands in the air. “You want the job, then take it. I guess my opinion doesn’t matter anymore now that I’m not the boss.”

“Nope.”

“I’m going to go find Teresa. She cares about what I have to say!”

“Trophy husband?” Pepper asked as he marched out.

Teresa’s door was open when he got there, the girl sitting in front of her mirror and fiddling with a lock of her short hair.

“What’s wrong, Gummy Bear?” he asked, spotting her scowl.

She jumped and looked at him in the mirror. “Daddy! I thought you were boxing with Uncle Happy!”

“Uncle Happy’s being mean right now,” he said, coming in to flop down on her bed. “So is Aunt Pepper and Nebula, so I figured I’d come hide in here with you.”

That made the girl smile and she came over to cuddle with him. “What happened? Aunt Pepper’s usually only mean when you do something fun.”

“They won’t let me make this really pretty girl my new PA.”

“But you like pretty girls. Why won’t they let her be your PA?”

“They’re worried she’ll find out about you guys.”

Teresa sat up and crossed her arms. “You’d never let that happen.”

“Thank you. Your faith in me is far greater than all the others’ combined,” he chuckled and poked her in the side to make her squeal.

She swatted at his hand before cuddling back up to him. “So who’s going to be your PA if not the pretty girl?”

Tony sighed and dropped one arm over his face, the other curling around her so he could card his fingers through her curls. “That’s the other thing I’m upset about. Nebula’s going to be my new PA.”

“Nebula’s going to work with you?” she gasped.

“Apparently.”

“But who’s going to stay with me then?” she asked quietly.

“Oh, Baby,” he said softly, bringing his other arm around her. “It will be okay. We’ll make sure someone’s here for you. It will be just like when Nebula was too small to watch you. If Aunt Pepper and I have to go somewhere together, then Uncle Rhodey will come to stay. Or Uncle Happy if he doesn’t come with us. And you’ve always got Jay and the twins. And if we are gone for too long, you can go stay with Harley for a little bit. You know I would never leave you alone.”

“But Nebs won’t be here.”

“No, she won’t,” he agreed, pressing a kiss to her head. “But Nebula’s getting older. She’s at an age when she needs to get out in the world. I’d prefer it if she was going to college or doing something she’s actually interested in instead of just deciding to tag along after me because she thinks I’m not capable of keeping our connection hidden, but she’s going to get out there either way. She deserves to.”

“Okay,” she sniffled.

“It will be okay, I promise. She’ll still be around. We all will.”

“I know. I just… I want to go with you.”

“I know, Resa,” he said, then something occurred to him. “Hey, you can’t come to Monaco, but how about when we get back we steal Nebula’s mask and the two of us can sneak over to New York to check out the Expo together, just the two of us.”

“Really?” she asked, looking up with teary eyes.

“Of course, promise. It will be fun.” And a chance to spend a little more time with his youngest daughter before…

“Thank you, Daddy!” she cheered, pressing a kiss to his cheek and hugging his neck.

“Anything for my sweetest baby girl.”

Teresa flinched back and he frowned.

“What’s wrong?”

“I…” she started, staring at him with her mouth open for a moment before closing it. She swallowed and shook her head. “Nevermind. I’m just excited to spend time with you.”

He considered pushing it, but decided to let her come to him in her own time. “Alright, but you know you can tell me anything.”

She nodded and buried her face into his neck.

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

Natasha frowned as she brought up information on Nebula Celeste Parker on her computer.

She had been sure Stark had taken her bait when she’d left his house. He couldn’t keep her eyes off her. And yet this girl had been given the recently opened position of Stark’s personal assistant. It couldn’t be Potts doing, all evidence said Stark would just go behind her back.

She scanned through what S.H.I.E.L.D. had, but it turned up nothing. At eighteen, Miss Parker was the daughter of Mary Parker and an unlisted man. She’d recently graduated from the private online school the Tomorrow Academy with reasonably high marks, though nothing outstanding compared to the school’s typical clientele. She had a younger half-sister named Teresa by Mary Parker’s husband who was nine and also attended TA as a far more outstanding student. Both had grown up under the care of a caregiver whose name was classified. Understandable given Mary’s profession as a CIA agent, though frustrating as S.H.I.E.L.D. should still have easily obtained the information.

Altogether, Natasha couldn’t figure out what placed the girl above her. She was pretty enough, but beneath Stark’s usual standards and well beneath Natasha’s looks so it couldn’t be that. She was fresh out of high school while Natasha had plenty (fake) accomplishments to her name, so it couldn’t be that either. The only thing she really had going for her was age, but Stark had never shown a desire for younger women before.

Perhaps TA pulled some strings? Stark Industries was one of their benefactors. It didn’t seem like something Stark would put up with though.

With a sigh, Natasha closed the files and pulled out her phone. Fury was not going to be happy about this. Especially after his first try at communicating with Stark had led to him nearly getting his head blasted off by some blue and gold security robot.

“Sir,” she started as soon as the line connected.

“I already know. Keep your cover. We’re working on the next step.”

“Yessir.”

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

“Wait here.”

“But -” Nebula cut off with a look from Aunt Pepper.

“If you go, you’ll fight. If you fight, you’ll expose yourself. We’ve got enough problems with Iron Man right now; no one can learn about you.”

Nebula growled, but marched back inside to watch the action on tv.

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

“I don’t want to go home,” Tony announced. “At all. Let’s cancel my birthday party and-and, uh… We can pick up the kids and take them to Disney World. They’d like that, don’t you think?”

“Oh, yes.”

“It’s a great place to-to… be healthy.”

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

“Honey, I’m home,” Tony called out as he entered the lab, belatedly noticing all the lights were already on only when a small voice called out to him.

“Daddy?”

He turned to see Teresa sitting at his desk. “Resa, you should be packing. What are you doing down here? You know you’re not -”

“Nebs took the laptop so Jay let me down here as long as I stayed at the desk,” she sniffled and Tony was immediately on alert.

“Hey, what’s wrong? I’m not mad, just worried,” he said, coming over to her.

“Daddy,” she whimpered, looking up at him with wide, tear-filled eyes. “Are you dying?”

He froze.

When he didn’t say anything, she sobbed and the tears started falling.

“H-hey, Baby, no, it’s… I… Why would you think that?” he stuttered, pulling her into his arms.

“I-I noticed th-that Jay was looking fo-or something new to put in your arc so I tried to look up palladium and… and…” she trailed off, burying her face into his chest and pointing at the screen of the computer she’d been sitting at.

The webpage listed The Dangers of Palladium.

“Oh, Gummy Bear.” He thought about lying, telling her he was fine, but he couldn’t find it in himself. Instead, he just held her closer, pressing his nose against the top of her head.

“I asked J-Jay, but he ju-ust told me he wasn’t al-lowed to say anything,” she sobbed and he wondered if J.A.R.V.I.S. was really just following orders and didn’t realize how she would take it or if this was his way of forcing Tony to tell someone.

Knowing him, it was probably the latter.

“Is this why Nebs is working with you?”

He sighed and pressed a kiss to her head before pulling back so they could see each other. “No, she doesn’t know. No one except you, Jay, and I know. That’s why Jay wouldn’t say anything. I told him not to tell anyone.”

She nodded and rubbed at her eyes. “I don’t want you to die.”

He ran his fingers through her hair. “Neither do I. That’s why Jay’s been looking into other options. It’s… It’s not going well.”

She gave him a determined look and pulled away. “I’ll help.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

She crossed her arms and nodded. “Jay and I will fix your arc.”

“Jay’s got it. Come on, you should go get ready to leave for the Expo.”

Shaking her head, she turned back to the computers. “We can go after we fix your arc!”

He wanted to argue, to point out that J.A.R.V.I.S. had already tested every option, but there was no way he was killing her hope. “Alright, Kiddo, let's do this.”

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

“You know, there’s a party going on upstairs,” Nebs said, leaning against the doorway.

“We’re doing silence, Nebs,” Teresa said, waving his sister away.

“What she said,” his daddy agreed, looking over a hologram.

“I’d like to remind you that it’s your birthday party,” Nebs said, walking over to him and giving Teresa’s head a shove as she passed.

“Hey!”

“Then I’m sure everyone’s having a blast. I throw the best parties.”

“I wouldn’t say you’re the one throwing it considering you’re not even there.” Nebs crossed her arms and tried to look at Daddy's work, but he closed it before she could.

“Sounds about right to me,” he said, turning to face her. “They usually just slap my name on the invitation.”

“Father, you are the guest of honor. You need to appear.”

“I told Pepper we should have canceled. Teresa and I are busy. The party will just have to go on without me.”

“What are you two even doing down here?”

“Science,” the two said as one, to Teresa’s joy.

Nebula growled, then picked Daddy up. “Whatever it is can wait.”

“Woah, hey!”

“Thirty minutes. You can attend your own party for thirty minutes.”

“Guess we’re taking a break. Break time, Jay.”

Teresa yelped as his work disappeared. “Daddy!”

“Break time, Sugar Cookie. Play some games, plan a route through the Expo, whatever. Clear your mind. I’ll be back in ten,” he called as Nebula carried him out.

“Thirty.”

“Twenty!”

“Forty-five.”

“That’s not how you haggle!”

“Aunt Pepper said not to haggle with you.”

“Who said Pepper was allowed to give you lessons?”

Teresa giggled as they disappeared up the stairs.

Turning back to his work area, he considered what to do before having Jay bring up the files for the Expo. He scrolled through them, looking for the map, before he spotted a video he recognized from the opening night.

His eyes locked onto the model Grandpa referred to as the City of the Future.

“Jay, can you bring up a picture of that model?” He asked, pointing at the video.

“Of course, Master Resa.” The video opened and fast-forwarded through it. “No clear picture is given. Would you like me to compile one?”

“Yes, please!”

The video ran through again, this time taking snippets of the model until a complete picture was before him.

“Thank you, Jay!” he looked over the model and nodded. “Okay, Jay, can you run the picture through the Play Well Program now?”

“Right away, though I’d like to remind you that without an accurate three-dimensional model, the result won’t be perfectly to scale.”

“That’s okay, Jay. Just do your best!”

The picture duplicated before the copy twisted, becoming three dimensional.

Then the copy exploded into LEGO pieces.

Smiling, he set to work reconstructing the model, “grabbing” the LEGO pieces and stacking them together.

“I’m back!” Daddy called out sometime later. “Nebula got distracted dealing with some guys who kept jeering for the Iron Man suit to make an appearance, so I was able to sneak away.” He came up behind Teresa. “Whatcha working on?”

“I made a LEGO set from Grandpa’s model.”

His daddy got that weird look on his face he always got when grandpa got brought up. “Good job, Baby,” he said, looking over his work. “I don’t think that building is supposed to go there, though.”

“Really?” Teresa looked up the photo to see where it was in the picture. “Does it matter?”

“Your grandfather sure seemed to think so. Everything had to be just so when it came to the stupid thing. You make it however you want though, sweetie. Bet you could make it ten times better than the old man.”

“You think?” he asked. A part of him wanted to prove his daddy right, but the other needed to match the predetermined design. “I don’t know. Maybe after I finish it first.”

“Suit yourself. Okay, where does that building go?”

Suddenly remembering why they were in the workshop, Teresa pushed the hologram aside. “I can finish it later. Shouldn’t we get back to work?”

“Yeah,” Daddy said, but his voice sounded distracted.

Teresa looked up to see him staring at the picture. “What’s wrong?”

He tilted his head. “Nothing, I think I’ve just been staring at too many element diagrams,” he said, but he continued staring at the picture. He squinted his eyes and held his hand up in a circle. “Jay, is this an accurate depiction of the model?”

“Not a perfect one, no. I created it using the footage used in the Expo’s opening ceremony.”

“Where’s the actual model?”

“In Ms. Potts' office.”

His daddy hummed then shot Teresa a smirk. “Hey, how’d you like to help Daddy break into his old office?”

[thegreyreylo]

Just Breathe - Chapter 8

RATING: MATURE 

Sample: 

We hiked in silence, occasionally offering one another a helping hand over the rougher bits of the hike. At one point I felt him quickly reach out and steady me at the waist when several rocks rolled from under my foot. I caught his elbow at another point when he slid. Thanks were not necessary; it was natural for us to support each other.

 Reaching the cliff faster than I had when I had trailed Luke, I smiled at the memory of Luke’s surprising agility and eccentrics. Ben spoke, confused at the random pole standing in between the cliffs, “How is this fishing?”

 “Like this.” Running, I did my best to mimic Luke’s motions and relied on the Force to properly snag the pole mid-air.

 “Rey!”

 Pure fear and worry rang across the force bond for a moment as he yelled and lunged after me, barely catching himself at the edge. Landing neatly on the other side, I glanced back at him and smiled. “I told you we were going fishing.”

  In all honesty, the unknown fish wasn’t awful.

 Rey had laughed openly at my obvious disgust when she explained how she had no idea but had seen Luke catch one the last time on Ach-to. Motioning to the large spear whole, she smiled again and said she would have to show me later today. Eating beside her was an interesting experience, because it was one of the most mundane acts two people could share and I was absolutely fascinated by her the whole time.

 She would not leave a single piece of food on her dish, even if the aquatic animal was slightly slimly and far too salty for anyone’s palate, and ate viciously. Our portions barely dented the beast and her eyes became wide as she surveyed the remaining food.

 “Do you want more?” I offered, curious about her odd behavior. Personally, I couldn’t see why anyone would want more.

 “I’ve just never had this much food in front of me at a time.”

 What did she mean? While this was a semi-large fish, it was nothing compared to my usual meal and meals often contained more than one food. Particularly not just one unappetizing food. I ate mine carefully and cautiously. I must’ve looked confused because she looked slightly uncomfortable for a moment before explaining.

 “I normally just eat portions; this is a lot of food.”

 “Portions?”

 Sliding her finger along the inner edge of her bowl she wouldn’t make eye contact with me. “That’s how you are paid when you are a scavenger. There is a junk yard master who pays you in portion bread for the items you scavenge that day. I normally got between a quarter and half portion most days.”

 “You only got a quarter to half portion of bread every day?”

 She shrugged and smiled, but the smile did not meet her eyes. “I lived, clearly.”

 A feeling of helplessness overcame me as it settled in that she lived on practically nothing for her entire life. That nothingness was bought by scavenging in the blazing Jakku dessert for broken engine pieces all day, only to have virtually nothing to eat at night. She was also completely alone, sold by drunks for a week’s worth of drinking money, and no doubt fighting for her right to survive. Yet, this gracious woman sat in front of me with a smile on her face because she lived.

 I would never understand how she became someone with such an incredible attitude.

 “I’m sorry, Re-“

 “Don’t be.” Smiling widely at me before climbing to her feet, “You said you wanted to train? What did you have in mind? I don’t exactly have a light saber.”

    “Focus, Rey. You have to focus.”

 Furrowing my eye brows, I tried desperately to ignore Ben standing behind me but listen to him at the same time. My concentration wavered constantly because he was carefully watching me and giving instructions as we moved through a movement. My staff felt awkward in my hands for the first time in years, but I buckled down mentally and ran through the motions again.

 “Better.”

 Relief washed through me and I began to try to replicate the motions, barely making it a third of the way through before he spoke again, “You are thinking too hard, Rey.”

 Huffing, I tossed the staff and flopped to the grass in frustration. The sun burned so bright that I squeezed my eyes closed and tried to disappear for a moment. My whole life had been a moment of frustration that I rose to meet and politely accept. I have no idea why I thought training, particularly with Ben, would be any different. Suddenly shade was cast over my vision and curiously I opened my eyes.

 Looking up, Ben was crouched quietly next to me as he configured his position so that he blocked from the sun from my eyes. “Rey?” Worried leaked in to his voice and the corner of his eyes scrunched in concern. With the tiniest push of my mind, I felt him struggling through the force bond over the idea that he might have pushed me too hard.

 “I’m fine, let’s go again.” Sitting up, I was surprised that he didn’t get up and instead remained frozen in worry. Inches from my face he kept eye contact with me as he carefully chewed his cheek. “Ben?”

 Everything in me wanted to scoot away from him, I was never one to handle close quarters – well, until Ben.

 I didn’t lean away, but instead watched him carefully. He seemed to be fumbling over what so say before he quietly breathed, “I suggest we end there today.”

 “Wait, I can do this-“

 “Let’s end there today, Rey.”

 His resolved tone surprised me, but I said nothing and carefully clambered to my feet. I was not exactly sure what his problem was, but he was getting to be in a bit of a mood. Dusting off my hands, I snagged my staff and heard him carefully following me. “Would you like to go fishing, Ben?”

 “Sure.”

 We hiked in silence, occasionally offering one another a helping hand over the rougher bits of the hike. At one point I felt him quickly reach out and steady me at the waist when several rocks rolled from under my foot. I caught his elbow at another point when he slid. Thanks were not necessary; it was natural for us to support each other.

 Reaching the cliff faster than I had when I had trailed Luke, I smiled at the memory of Luke’s surprising agility and eccentrics. Ben spoke, confused at the random pole standing in between the cliffs, “How is this fishing?”

 “Like this.” Running, I did my best to mimic Luke’s motions and relied on the Force to properly snag the pole mid-air.

 “Rey!”

 Pure fear and worry rang across the force bond for a moment as he yelled and lunged after me, barely catching himself at the edge. Landing neatly on the other side, I glanced back at him and smiled. “I told you we were going fishing.”

 Anger began to ooze from his body language.

 Whoops.

 I decided it was probably better to get on with it. Carefully gripping the massive pole, I repeated Luke’s fishing strategy with the massive spear and struck on my first attempt. “Got one!”

 Ben said nothing, but stewed with open hands. Hands I suspected were ready to force catch me at any moment. With a careful foot placement, and some force use myself, I carefully swung across. Not quite as tall as look, I couldn’t manage to get my feet underneath me in time but landed squarely on my knees. “See? It’s really actually quite fun-“

 “Rey, was that necessary?”

 Ben was crouched at my face again, worry and pissed were probably the best descriptors. I nodded and couldn’t help but smile, he had to be such a worrywart all the time. Rolling his eyes, he breathed deeply and seemed to relax slightly.

  Suddenly, he sat up and offered his bare hand to me. Ben looked so different without his arm wraps, as he opted for just his quilted tunic vest during practice. Whether it was on purpose to show off his toned, strong arms or just to regulate temperature I couldn’t decide. I didn’t exactly mind either way. I decided not to push because I was genuinely exhausted and tired of trying to forget Ben was there. Carefully, I placed my hand in his and marveled for a moment on the grand size of it. Almost instinctively his fingers wrapped firmly around my own and braced to support me weight.

 With the tightening of his fingers, I felt the tug of the force.

 If only if she would let me, I would never let her hand go –

 “Oh!” Surprised, the noise slipped out from me subconsciously. I was not one to be easily startled but the suddenness of our connection was as alarming as the first time. The force bond snapped shut.  His eyes widened, and he seemed to stumble over himself as he spoke, “Did you j-just hear that?”

 A blush creeped into my cheeks, “Not really!” and I flashed a reassuring smile and glanced over at a nearby Porg who was rooting around in our discarded cloaks to keep my eyes off his face. His hand was still holding my own.  

 The awkward moment was palpable.

 “Hey Ben, do you want to-“

 “Rey, please stop talking.”

 What?

 Snapping my eyes back to my face, I saw the face of a burning man. With his spare trembling hand, he cupped my face and pulled me closer to his own. Repeating quietly, with a controlled voice, “If only you would let me, I would never let your hand go. You would never be alone, and neither would I.”

 Tears pooled in my eyes and a rush of emotions overcame me. One of the most sensitive, stubborn, kind and tempered man that I had ever met stood before me. He begged for my hand again and a part of my heart was suddenly awake. I wanted to be with Ben, I wanted it selfishly. But I wanted what I saw when we touched during the force bond, I wanted him to turn and join the light. Let his heart fill with the light he gave me and never let go of his hand. He would never be alone again. My lip trembled and I knew if I spoke, I would sob in the way I should’ve instead of trying to take the lightsaber from him.

 His thumb stroked my cheek as he waited for my response, my vision blurring from the tears.

  Tears poured from her hazel eyes, and with each one I wanted to fall to my knees.

 Her grace, her power, her beauty and her heart were all more powerful than anything I could ever be and in this moment they overwhelmed me. Rey’s face was like satin under my hand, which was so incredibly ironic due to the fact that she was easily one of the strongest people I had met in my life. The wait for her response was torturous. I had spent the day watching her strength and talent surpass anything I had ever imagined of her. Her agility and fluidness would only improve with training and her natural gift for wielding a hand held weapon was superior to anyone else I had ever witnessed. She stunned me constantly, she was meant to wield a light saber. She was meant to be with me.

 Her own hand rose and gently traced the scar running down the length of my face before resting her palm against my cheek as well. “Ben, I-I can’t.”

 Hurt. Pain. Anger. Loneliness.

 It all stung and I squeezed my eyes and looked away from her. The emotions were too overwhelming to process. Suddenly, I felt her hand carefully stroke my cheek. Lightly at first, before gently increasing in pressure and trying to guide my face back to her own. No matter how frustrated I was with her, I was useless against her wishes. Her eyes met my own, but her tears seemed to have stopped falling.  

 She seemed resolved and composed all of a sudden.

 “Ben, I want the future I saw with you. You came to the light and embraced who you truly are, and I never had to leave your side because we belonged with each other. There was balance, balance to the universe, balance to the force, balance for us. You are worth every fight and argument and awkward moment because you deserve that future. So do I. I want you, I just can’t have you now.”

 Time froze the moment.

 She wanted me. In some shape or form, she wanted me. This wasn’t one sided and I wasn’t alone in my feelings.

 Only pure self-control kept me from sweeping her into my arms and kissing her till neither of us could breathe. But the moment shattered when I realized what exactly she wanted from me. She wanted me to repent the dark side completely, disregard my own vision of grandeur and the life I saw the two of us having. A king and queen, not quite dark but not light.

 A grey king and queen.

[gulescamisade]

Alaska: Day 6

DAVE: -at this point, he's probably right up against karkat and mituna. karkat for the purposes of comforting him, and mituna because he's the warmest motherfucker here. and daves likely warmer than mituna, so win-win. he's wide awake, shivering, in an undershirt and boxers. His head is pounding although he feels tired, the dizziness still very much a thing, so much that it's making him sick. he's doing everything he can to stay grounded, which means highly relying on emotional defenses he used a long time ago. GOTTA KEEP GOING. GOTTA STAY ALIVE. even if he feels like he's going to puke-

MITUNA: -His left arm is essentially just for show by now. After it essentially breaking against the wing of a buzzard his arm being separated at the joint entirely, it was useless. Well except for consistently reminding him that he's in excruciating pain. Dave moving causes lava to fire through his nerves, making him scream awake and vomit from pain. These megaman boxers do nothing.-

DAVE: -widens his eyes at the scream and vomiting and turns to look at mituna incredibly apologetically- s sorry

DAVE: k kind of a d dick way to s say s s sorry but i r really am

MITUNA: -He sniffs, wretching a little before regaining what little composure he has. At least this pain distracted from the screams in his head. He doesn't think he could bear hearing Terezi rn-

MITUNA: a7 lea57 i know i75 57ill a77ached hehe FUCK

MINDFANG: -With their talking shes starting to stir from what could supposedly be called sleep, not that she had been able to get more then a few minutes now and then. Shes not far from the pile of boys and she opens her one eye to look at them.-

DAVE: hahaha yeah -he's not quite sure he can make it out of this without frostbite. damn his vulnerable human anatomy and his fucking back which is making it hard to move at all- so

DAVE: anyone got a p plan

MINDFANG: I have.... 8een considering...options. -Takes a short breath in between every few words.-

MITUNA: 5park5 are 57ill ou7 of commi55ion

MITUNA: really 5hor7 lived -Leans more on Dave even though holy shit this hurts. Get this warmth-

MINDFANG: My powers are.... also... still unavaila8le. MINDFANG: I attempted....using them while.... you were sleeping. -Directed at Mituna. Yes she tried to pry into your mind, but sadly to no avail.-

MITUNA: dick move

DAVE: ch challenge one of those asswipes to a r rap battle -chattering teeth- h hey whos that one g guy who l likes troll p pokemon

MINDFANG: Smart actually.... If it.... worked on you... then i could consider...trying it.... on... our guards.

DAVE: ho dont do it

MITUNA: youre 7hinking abou7 7av and ruf

MINDFANG: I just said I cant-- -She hisses and then cringes immediately after. Instant regret her ribcage is onfire.-

DAVE: hey maybe if we just g glue ourselves to each o other we can have o one functioning b body

MITUNA: wi7h wha7 dildo hole

DAVE: good question

MINDFANG: Do you...have...an answer?

DAVE: fuck no

MINDFANG: Then your idea...is useless.

DAVE: d did they also j jack up your s sense of humor

MINDFANG: No, 8ut you seem... to have never had any to 8egin with.

MINDFANG: Also...Fuck jokes right now.

DAVE: burned

DAVE: iced

NYALAH: -with as much blood loss, the trauma of injury that her body has endured, and the lack of treatment, Nyalah is quite literally struggling to be alive right now. The only indication that she ISN'T dead is the shallow tick of her pulse. Otherwise, her blood matted body remains bound and crumbled. Too still against the frozen, terrible conditions of their imprisonment.-

MINDFANG: Refrain from mentioning...ice. -Shes shivering already. Underwear and tanktops do not make for good snow gear.-

DAVE: fire

DAVE: -poor nyalah... he wishes he could help her-

MINDFANG: -Please dont die Nyalah, thats a lot of bodies.-

MINDFANG: 8etter.

DAVE: you know what would be cool

DAVE: having a robot limb

DAVE: hows that workin out for you serko

MITUNA: i could u5e one righ7 abou7 now

MINDFANG: -Shes staring so hard at dave right now.-

MINDFANG: -Maybe if she thinks hard enough he will choke on his own spit.-

MINDFANG: If we survive this...

MINDFANG: Ill 8e certain you get one.

DAVE: thanks

DAVE: youre the real mvp

MINDFANG: You are welcome.

NYALAH: -at some point, her breathing is becoming rapid pants. Limbs twitching with tiny convulsions.-

MITUNA: 5hi7

MINDFANG: -Nyahla gains her attention. Oh dear, looks like the cat isnt going to survive after all.-

MINDFANG: -She frowns. Its really a terrible way to go.-

MITUNA: no no no no no no no -Flops and starts trying to inch to her-

DAVE: anybody know anything medical DAVE: that might help DAVE: -also attempts crawling toward her. Shit his back is SCREAMING-

MINDFANG: Not...without the supplies to...8ack it up.

MINDFANG: -She looks away from Nyalah now, out of respect.- 8e 8etter off ending her suffering.

DAVE: wheres her main injury coming from

DAVE: where is she bleeding out the most -he is working his way out of his under shirt, ripping it with his teeth so he can get it off. he may just have to use it to warm her-

NYALAH: -that would be the stapled gash from the vulture beak on her side. It's been agrivated as they were tossed around and not exactly been allowed to heal. She even lies on her belly as an unconscious attempt to guard it. And with the blood that had seeped from the crushing of her horn, things were not looking up for her.-

DAVE: -he decides YES he will use his shirt to warm her, and just kind of identifies her injuries so he doesn't hurt her, laying the torn shirt over her curled body and positioning himself so he's against her where it's least harmful-

MITUNA: -Gently flops over her to keep her warm-

NYALAH: -after a half hour of difficulty, her breathing begins to stablize and she passes out once again. Still breathing.-

DAVE: -we're doing good. mostly-

NYALAH: -it's another half hour before she starts to stir. Sniffing at the bitter air. What might be Dave's hair.- (hff)

NYALAH: (daven)

DAVE: no the better d dave -ITS SO COLD BUT SHES AWAKE AND TALKING THATS GOOD-

NYALAH: ....none better d than daven only ask him -It's strange. She's not so raspy or slurring at her words like she usually is. Could be she hasnt had nip in a while or. Who knows. She curls closer to him.- huddle

DAVE: ok thats t tmi but yeah huddle -WARMTH-

NYALAH: -shift shift. There's someone draped on her.-

MITUNA: -hisses- ow fuck

NYALAH: wait

NYALAH: -slowly starts to pry herself to sit, regretting her own actions but. She's gotta.- psion

NYALAH: -sniffs him.-

NYALAH: dislocation? -asking for a friend. She's sitting up more now, face scrunched up in pain. There's still a considerable welp on her cheek from being slapped around.-

MITUNA: -Groans- yeah and i 7hink i75 broken below the elbow his arm is having a bad time-

NYALAH: kay -hffs, starting to shrug off Dave's shirt. Using only her toes, she stuffs the rag into Mituna's mouth.-

NYALAH: stay -Now bringing her feet over to set by his shoulder. The contortionist cat. Keeps him in place.- sorry in advances

NYALAH: -and then applies a swift force to snap the joint back into place.-

MITUNA: -His scream dies in his gag. She's forced in back in place but disturbed the stab wound that caused the dislocation in the first place, blood gushing from his shoulder.-

NYALAH: shhhh -picks the shirt from his mouth and presses it against the wound. Brow furrowed in concentration. Even using that much force was agrivating her own wound.- n33ds catalyst

MITUNA: oh my fucking FUCK

NYALAH: lay still -doing her best to staunch the ooze of blood. Eyes bright with pain.-

DAELOS: - swings back into consciousness. he wasn't even aware he has slipped in the first place, he's so cold. he can't believe what he's seeing at first, Nyalah moving around after sustaining such heavy injuries. His snorty breath coming out in puffs as he drags himself over.-

[[ The Expunger isn't around currently, and the legislacerators that are there don't seem to be doing anything to stop their talking or mending one another. One of them simply watches. ]]

NYALAH: -puts her whole blood stained paw foot on Daelos's face.- alive

MITUNA: -Choking back sobs, the air stinging his cheeks- 57op moving dunka55

DAELOS: - Shocked for a second, and then kisses that bloody foot- I can see that

DAELOS: - He has nothing to offer but his weight. He leans it in to help her with Mituna-

DAELOS: - It should make things go faster-

NYALAH: -gross. Totally helping Mituna spoon with Daelos.-

MITUNA: -Jesus Christ his world is on fire. It's hard to tell if the screaming in his head is his or the voices-

DAELOS: - Gently crushes you-

NYALAH: -looking that one Legislacerator in the eyes as she attempts the wiggle her biocuffed arms under her butt. Gonna sit on these arms and manuever them up to her front.-

SEAKRAIT: -watches her do this... and the other legislacerators are too preoccupied looking out around them. She doesn't do anything to stop Nyalah.-

NYALAH: -okay cool. Uses her still bound front paws to keep pressing the shirt to Mituna.- NYALAH: sp33k to me

MITUNA: 7hi5 big blue 7ain7fuck i5 colder 7han fi5h nook

DAELOS: Rude... e%ceedingly rude -he will keep lovingly crushing u tho-

NYALAH: best things in life are cold as fish nook NYALAH: fur example NYALAH: fish nook -chirring as best she can. Comforting.-

MITUNA: -Maybe one day...he will know-

NYALAH: -Pls.-

MINDFANG: -Yall are being gross.-

DAELOS: - Scandalized snort. - Really Nyalah

NYALAH: its survival

MITUNA: -Wonders how Feferi is, suddenly-

FEFERI: -Pretty glubbing dead! Like always!-

MITUNA: -Lol get rekt-

NYALAH: -keeping her arms close to her middle, she is giving these biotech cuffs a careful look ver.-

NYALAH: -discreetly shows them to Daelos for him to have a peep at. He's the one who might know how they work and all.-

DAELOS: - Has an intent peep.-

DAELOS: - Of course he knows how they work, but he kind of averts his gaze. He doesn't want to cause a scene and get someone else battered or killed-

NYALAH: -That's good enough for her. She starts to scoot off and inspect Mindfang.- mrrp

REDGLARE: -She's been pretty quiet-- it's hard to tell the difference between her being awake and her being asleep, aside from the speed of her breathing. Her eye opens, and she casts a glance towards the group-- failing to linger for more than a second on each face-- before closing it again.-

MINDFANG: -Her eyes are shut, she was trying to at least pretend she was asleep in hopes that maybe it would give her a brief reprieve from the pain she was in with fractures and a break or two all over her ribcage. At least she hasnt lost a lung yet.-

MINDFANG: -When Nyalah approaches though her eye squints open.- .........What are you doing. -Keeps her arms wrapped around herself.-

NYALAH: -sniffs her.- s33ing

NYALAH: -scoots painfully past her to inspect Redglare.-

REDGLARE: -her leg is gross. bad and getting worse a little too rapidly. She doesn't acknowledge her outwardly.-

MINDFANG: You yourself should 8e resting....

MINDFANG: Its impressive you are still 8reathing now...Do not push it.

NYALAH: -hffs and sacrifices her own shirt to attempt to bind Redglares leg with. All she's left with is a sports bra and how visible and equally gross the gash on her side is.- im pushing it

NYALAH: til i cant push no more

MITUNA: -Groans-

 REDGLARE: -opens an eye again to look at her. She's not sure she understands this... why she's doing this.-

NYALAH: -because it's the harder thing to do. Also she almost died about an hour ago and is probably only moving out of adrenaline shots.-

DAELOS: - Silently gets emotional about this cat. -

KARKAT: =She's doing it because she's a good person and someone has to. He's not really responding to all of this just watching it. Heartwarming as it is. He's just been stupidly crying on and off in the cold but at least someone's got their shit together=

[[ Seakrait straightens up and looks elsewhere pretty quick, almost like she's hearing something no else is. ]]

SEAKRAIT: Yes, sir.

SEAKRAIT: Everyone on your feet!

NYALAH: butt face

NYALAH: -stays huddled with Redglare.-

DAELOS: Nyalah, obey them

DAELOS: Please

DAELOS: - Panicked-

NYALAH: -okay well she's going to stay to help Redglare stand then.-

REDGLARE: -She blinks her eye, looking up at Seakrait. Her voice is kind of quiet as she murmurs.- l3g's w34k. N33d to-- ngh. -holding onto her support.-

REDGLARE: ...Th4nk you.

SEAKRAIT: Orders are to relocate, -she snaps to the rest of the legislacerators.- \|/e're taking them to the pitfall.

KARKAT: =Great. a hole to put them all in=

MITUNA: 7ha7 game 5uck5

NYALAH: -quickly skirts her arms up behind her back and bows with the pain of having to stand.- i have two whole leg

NYALAH: and you two good horn

NYALAH: its even exchange

REDGLARE: h4h.

SEAKRAIT: -She reaches out and grabs onto Karkat's arm, deciding to drag him along in front of the group.- Move.

DAELOS: - Does his best to stand. It's not easy. One leg is useless and his good one is split at the foot. He wobbles. -

NYALAH: -limps along with RG.-

[[ Legislacerators still flank the group on all sides, encouraging their trek. ]]

KARKAT: =clenches his jaw and fights to not jerk his arm back. But he's just so goddamn tired of this and their game=

REDGLARE: - it's one dang slow trudge, that's for sure.-

DAELOS: - He tries to take a step. He falls. -

MITUNA: -He's trudging along-

MITUNA: -Stops for Daelos-

SEAKRAIT: -oh gdi. She snaps back at Mituna and Mindfang- You two get him moving.

REDGLARE: -glances over at Daelos... Eye drifting towards Seakrait again as she barks an order.-

REDGLARE: th1s wh4t you s1gn3d up for?

DAELOS: - Maybe he could shuffle if he has a wall to lean on or if the ground was not snow but at this stage he cannot walk. It's humiliating of course but not compared to the rest of their situation. -

MITUNA: how do you propo5e we do 7ha7 nookbrea7h

SEAKRAIT: I propose you do it. -ignores Redglare-

MINDFANG: -Glares right at Seakrait the entire time shes bending down to help Daelos up.-

MINDFANG: (8est to keep moving, they seem to h8 dead w8.) -Internal screaming as helping to take any of his weight feels like torture.-

MITUNA: -Tries to lean down to try and help him up-

DAELOS: - He's too mortified to say anything. He tried to avoid leaning on Mindfang as much as he can. - I apologize

MINDFANG: (Dont 8other. You are not the one who had the 8rilliant idea to maim a prisoners foot when you want them to-- -hff- move.)

[[ The group continues to be led by Seakrait through the forest, snow drifting gently around them in a too-beautiful discordance to the stains in the snow they leave behind them. Eventually, they see a familiar daunting figure in the distance, waiting nearby what is becoming ever more apparent as a giant hole in the earth. ]]

REDGLARE: -She laughs. Weakly and dryly.-

NYALAH: -presses her good horn at Redglare. One eye shut tight.-

SEAKRAIT: -She pauses just by the cavernous hole, releasing Karkat none too gently and looking over the crowd.- I'll do the honors, High Legislacerator.

KARKAT: The honors. Right. Like there's any honor to be had here. =He's just ready for the hole= Have fun.

SEAKRAIT: -She quickly sets up an automatic pulley system in the ground for climbing, tying the harness around herself, and then she moves toward Redglare. Looks like she's first.-

SEAKRAIT: You're lucky your survival will be left up to fate. But I'm not betting on it. -grabs onto Redglare's arm-

REDGLARE: -She pulls away from Nyalah.- p4ss3s for 4 tr14l, th3s3 d4ys, do3s 1t?

THE EXPUNGER: -gazes at the little crowd, chin high.- Don’t you worry. We’ll come back to retrieve your bodieS aS well, but only after Sufficient time haS paSSed to enSure you are dead. Luckily rot doeS not Set in So quickly in cold environmentS. You will Still be identifiable.

KARKAT: =He just tiredly looks up into the sky and sighs wearily= Fuck yourself on my horn when you come back. It'll be frigid enough for you.

SEAKRAIT: -She heads close to the hole, then grips Redglare tighter in her hold before shimmying them both over the edge and slowly... beginning to lower them down. Redglare can see the drop down is incredibly steep; it's unlikely most anything would survive a straight fall.-

REDGLARE: -it certainly is. She's mostly dead weight, anyhow.-

NYALAH: -shivers in the whole cold. Unable to protest or do much more than watch.-

SEAKRAIT: -They descend at a reasonable pace, but once they're a good twenty feet or so down, she holds Redglare tighter -- closer -- and begins to whisper.-

SEAKRAIT: (Don't speak. Be as quiet as possible down here. No one will hear you, but something else might. If you hear anything down here with you, don't let it find you.)

SEAKRAIT: (Focus on keeping yourselves alive as long as you can. Your leg is poisoned, but it won't kill you yet. I'm going to give you the antidote, bite down on it.)

SEAKRAIT: -She glances down to see how far they are from the floor of the cavern; it's about eight or ten feet now.- (If you understand, struggle.) -And then she moves to press her mouth to Redglare's for just a moment, slipping something pill-shaped inside with her tongue.-

 REDGLARE: -uhm. UHM?? She might have struggled ANYHOW regardless of her understanding-- and she's not sure she does. Poison... antidote... no noise. She's helping them, maybe?? She squirms and struggles, letting out an MPH as she swallowd the pill down a raw throat.-

SEAKRAIT: -And she drops Redglare about six feet from the floor, laughing loud enough that she's sure the High Legislacerator will hear before ascending once again, leaving Redglare alone.-

REDGLARE: -The spark of clarity left, at least, keeps her quiet as she finally hits the ground, with a start.-

SEAKRAIT: -SHE'S COMING BACK UP FOR THE REST OF THE GROUP. One by one she's lowering them down-- Karkat, Dave, Mindfang, Nyalah, Mituna, Latula, Aranea... and then finally, Daelos. Needless to say, he's more of a struggle. She says nothing to any of the others, but once Daelos is down, she spits on the ground of the cavern before ascending for the final time, and it hits the rock with a little plink.-

KARKAT: =A plink=

[[ A PLINK. ]]

MITUNA: -Two in the plink one in the stink-

[[ Shortly after they're left in the cavern, they will feel their powers begin to return. Also, it sounds like there's wind howling above; the storm on the horizon has finally reached their location, and the blizzard is kicking up. ]]

REDGLARE: -She does some very quick sign language as each is lowered. Silence. Danger. Time.-

NYALAH: -she had no powers to begin with but does take swift breaths of the icy air. The storm brewing. She shivers terribly.-

MITUNA: -Groans, but his eyes flicker, ever so gently-

KARKAT: =Silence, danger, time. He glances up hearing the storm=

KARKAT: =He's also going to go look at the plink=

DAELOS: - He's soon leaning into her, just like he had been with Mituna, except now he's trying to keep her warm, although since he's a blue blood it doesn't count for much. At least his hair is warm. -

[[ Funny enough, there's a pill in that plink. ]]

KARKAT: =A pill. He stares at it. It stares at him and he stares at it and it stares at him=

[[ It's sort of slobbery, but it looks like it has some kind of fluid inside. ]]

[[ You know. One of those fish oil looking pills. ]]

KARKAT: =Absolutely disgusting.=

KARKAT: =He can't believe that twat cheeked her vitamins from this morning=

[[ KARKAT PLS ]]

KARKAT: =COME GET YOUR PILL DAROLD=

MITUNA: -Soft crackling-

KARKAT: She spat this out.

MITUNA: (guy5 guy5)

DAELOS: - He doesn't realize he's been poisoned or realize that pill is for him-

MITUNA: (im ge77ing my 5park5 back)

REDGLARE: -She points at herself, her leg. Signs 'cure.'-

[[ Also on the plus side, the cave is a lot warmer than the surface, but chillier under the hole. ]]

NYALAH: -maneuvering her arms back in front of her. Looks to Redglare signing and Daelos's leg. Hhhhh. Alright fine.-

NYALAH: -picking the pill from the goo and stuffs it in Daelos's mouth. Keeps her hands clamped there and makes sure he eats it.-

DAELOS: -???? -

NYALAH: -rip in fucking pieces.-

DAELOS: - HORSE GROANY NOISE OF SURPRISE. but yes he supposes he would swallow this. -

REDGLARE: -signs JUST DO IT. like the shy le beef-

NYALAH: -also stuffs some snow in his mouth to help it go down easier.-

NYALAH: -eating some snow herself. Om.-

DAELOS: - NOW GET YOU FILTHY PAWS OUT OF HIS MOUTH-

KARKAT: =Don't it keeps him quiet=

KARKAT: =He just looks to the cave and starts to walk there=

NYALAH: -when the deed is done, she slinks off after Karkat. Clutching at her side.-

KARKAT: =How far back does this cave go? Is there any wood here? Is there a deeper part where he can just fuck right off?=

[[ The area of the cavern they're in is pretty vast, so it'll take some time to navigate the perimeter, but from first glance, there don't appear to be any exits. ]]

DAELOS: - Following this, he continues to eat the snow that looks the freshest-

REDGLARE: -Seems like the first and only time they'd be able to treat their wounds without being under duress. Her flask would've actually been useful if they didn't take her. Damn.-

[[ There are some fallen leaves and logs around beneath where the hole is above, rotting slowly. ]]

REDGLARE: -instead she starts to mill around the ground. Looking for some good, sharp rocks.-

KARKAT: =Relatable. But he looks around=

[[ Rocks are, at least, in abundance here. Such as sharp, pointy stalagmites and stalactites, for example, but there are probably some other chips and things around. ]]

NYALAH: -doing her best to wipe the grime from her wound with snow. The less she moves, the more the pain catches up to her. She actually has to stop and lean up against a boulder, just to focus on breathing and not vomiting.-

[[ The snow probably won't help Daelos and Nyalah with hydration too much, with the cold lowering their body temperatures and making it more difficult for their bodies to retain the moisture, but it at least wets their mouths. ]]

REDGLARE: -She wouldn't know Flint from any other kind of rock, so she's just looking for something that's sharp enough to scratch marks into the walls of the cave. Maybe having some concievable goal is enough to stop thinking about what she saw just last night.-

MITUNA: p5557 7ula

LATULA: -HEY BRUH DONT MIND HER SHE IS TOTALLY STILL TRAUMATIZED- LATULA: tun3z???

 DAELOS: - With the help of the cave wall he's able to slowly drag himself to his feet. As long as he leans against it, he can follow it in a circle, keeping his eye out for anything that might be missed. -

NYALAH: -finds some crevice to curl into, holding herself as she comes close to passing out again. So cold.-

MITUNA: 5how me your hand5

DAVE: -he definitely needed some help bring the only pathetic human in the group. his fingers and toes are lookin pretty blue, it's a little concerning. his back aches every time he moves, he stopped shivering a long time ago, when they were still outside. now when he speaks he's mumbling into his numb arm just lying there- theresno mmm snow

KARKAT: =Dave doesn't look good at all. Karkat looks at him then walks over to try and cover as much of him as he can= Sh. =cups his hands between his own= We need a fire going.

MITUNA: -Ahead of you, Kark. He's floating logs over, stacking them in a pile. His eyes glow, and his head swims from the concentration. Suddenly, optic blast, but it's weak, drying the logs more than anything rn-

LATULA: -She holds em out... fingertips are a little black.- dud3 your 4rm

LATULA: 4r3 you gonn4 b3 good???

MITUNA: Mnnnngh

LATULA: oh SH1T!

LATULA: dud3 FUCK!!!! TH4T WORK3D?

DAVE: -his hands are numb between karkats- gotta keep goin to the tunnel underground

[[ The logs give them the SMOLDER. ]]

KARKAT: =Blows warm air on Dave's hands= We need fire. If we find a hot spring down there you can punch me.

[[😘 ☁️]]

MITUNA: -Oh thank fuck. He stops, and starts blowing on the logs trying to get that fire going-

DAVE: how much time we allocate for naps DAVE: we cant waste time

REDGLARE: -LOOMS WITH A PAINFUL LURCHING STEP and holding up a rock.- (m4rk th3 w4lls wh3r3v3r you go. 1f th3r3 4r3 tunn3ls 4nd you g3t lost. c4n follow th3 l1n3s b4ck.)

KARKAT: Dave. Shut up. I'm getting you warm. Shut. Up.

REDGLARE: (surv1v4l f1rst. work out sh1fts. st4y qu13t.)

MITUNA: -Guess who has a fire going?-

NYALAH: -a little too quiet in her corner. Everything is being too much for her body.-

LATULA: -holds her hands over it...-

[[ The logs slowly catch into little flame at Mituna's encouragement. The wind howls overhead, sending heavier snow down through the hole. ]]

LATULA: th4nk fuck1n god...

KARKAT: =Thanks Mituna. He's putting Dave closest to the fire and sitting behind him. Snug up against his back=

DAELOS: - He carefully nestles Nyalah in his arms and slowly brings her closer to the little fire. Maybe being warm will do her good. His brow is cinched with worry. -

MITUNA: -Makes a psionic barrier at the top of the hole. Fuck you snow. This is a terrible long term plan btw. He's quiet, concentrating-

LATULA: -hand on his shoulder- uh

LATULA: 1t 41nt push1n too hard 1s 1t? 1n th3 br41nm34tz?

MITUNA: 5h we go77a re57

NYALAH: -definitely 100% unconscious again, even as Daelos keeps her close.-

DAVE: remember when youwere hella wrm

MITUNA: (ju57 le7 me be u5eful)

KARKAT: =mumbles against Dave's shoulder= Remember when I gave you that manicure? =It was like, not even a few days before all this. Holds up Dave's hands to the fire and just tries to focus on him=

LATULA: ...1m proud of you b4b3z.

DAVE: -pauses- ohyeah

DAVE: sall fucked up now

DAVE: youre so quiet (arewe whispering)

LATULA: but 1 sw34r to sh1z 1m gonn4 b34t your butt 1f you push yours3lf to f4r.

LATULA: >8P

MITUNA: ehehehe be7 on i7

KARKAT: I guess.

DAVE: -his breathing is a little shallow- im gonna go to bed while everyone elsisleeping now

KARKAT: =Makes a face against him and scrunches his nose= Run out of jokes already...?

DAVE: yeah

DAVE: ran out of em

MITUNA: -Keeps this roof going, it's just collecting snow. Good news is it helps keep the heat trapped too.-

KARKAT: Okay.... just. (Get up later.) =mumbles and holds him but lets him rest=

MINDFANG: -Shes returning from having done a quick survey of the immediate area of the cave. And also she had felt the need to move just to keep her brain working again. The sense of getting her mental powers back had come with a huge relief and now she is joining the rest of the group by the fire. Arissa carefully sits down and starts to dig her fingers into the joints and spaces of her metal arm to clear out snow and ice that she had felt trapped in there for hours.-

DAELOS: - While Nyalah sleeps he carefully melts snow in his hands and tries to wipe away the debris around her ruined horn without making the wound bleed again. -

DAELOS: - It would hurt if she were awake so now is the time-

ARANEA: -she's been conscious probably?? she's in alright shape, comparatively, though her chest hurts like a motherfucker and it's been keeping her quiet. she can't stop watching dave.-

NYALAH: -too exhausted to even protest or react to the streak of pain. She's out like a light.-

DAVE: -if he just...closes his eyes... a little...-

KARKAT: =Rest... but just let it be rest.=

KARKAT: =On second thought he's a finicky motherfucker and just all of this is settling wrong to him= ...Mn. No. Okay. Just. No jokes then. =Dave is so squishy and vulnerable, no sleep for you asswipe=

DAVE: are we spooning

KARKAT: Yes. You're welcome little spoon.

DAELOS: - He notices the way Aranea is staring intently at the poor little human and gives her a questioning glance, looking up from Nyalah for a moment. -

ARANEA: -catches his glance, meeting it with an unyielding concern. she scoots closer to daelos and fixes her attention on nyalah instead for the moment. she wonders if she can help her now...-

DAVE: -he is starting to fall asleep again- k

KARKAT: No kays.

KARKAT: Hum one of your dumb raps.

DAELOS: - Scoots to make room for her, she feels to cold nudge of his nose as he talks in her ear. - (Are you alright)

ARANEA: -turns her head to brush cheeks with him- (I'm... Just concerned.)

DAELOS: - Sighing- (Well... there is certainly cause for it)

DAELOS: - He always imagined he would die in a hole but he wants something better for his loved ones and crew members. -

MITUNA: -He keeps asking for death. And yet....-

DAVE: -hums something unintelligible that kind of sounds like my humps-

ARANEA: -she shares some of the light eminating from her fingertips with nyalah. she will likely stay unconscious, but hopefully it will be a more restful kind of sleep. the pain inside her head should begin to subside. concentrating is difficult for her, but her own strong sense of self preservation is motivation enough to keep trying to exercise her abilities. they have better chances together. and after what she saw yesterday, she isn't exactly willing to let anyone else fall at the hands of those bastards.-

DAELOS: - Seeing this warm his heart. Perhaps... just perhaps there is a chance they will make it out of this. He nuzzles Aranea gratefully. -

DAELOS: Thank you

ARANEA: -leans into him, only nodding in response. but maybe some of that light will transfer to him too...-

MITUNA: -He's sweating next to the fire, quiet with the strain of all this snow accumulating on his barrier. His brain is a muscle that hasn't been exercised in forever. A time ago he'd be able to do this no problem. He grunts softly, trapping the collected snow in a psionic bubble and moving it past the entrance of the hole to plop that huge pile somewhere else. Sorry guys, no ceiling for a while. He breathes a little heavy-

DAVE: -he's been practically forced to stay awake because concussions are great and karkat won't let him go to sleep anyway. he's still pretty out of it, but the warmth seems to be doing at least something. he ain't dead yet right?-

MITUNA: -He's really tired you guys-

DAVE: -tired club-

MITUNA: -snow starts drifting into the hole-

TEREZI: =Would have been proud of them.=

DAVE: -rude ass dead rude ass-

MITUNA: -Gdi Excalibur-

TEREZI: =shup=

MITUNA: donde...e57a...la biblio7eca

MITUNA: me llamo 7 bone la arana di5co7eca

DAVE: -watches mituna even if he looks blurry-

MITUNA: -Come on Dave you know this one-

MITUNA: di5co7eca

MITUNA: muneca

MITUNA: e5 en bigo7e grande pero man7eca

DAVE: manteca bigote gigante

DAVE: pequeño

MITUNA: la cabe5a e5 nieve

MITUNA: cerve5a e5 bueno

DAVE: -takes a good minute before saying the next part- buenos dias me gusta papas frías

MITUNA: lo5 bigo7e5 de la cabra e5 cameron diaz

DAVE: -another minute- yeaboi

MITUNA: -Soft bomb noise-

DAVE: -breathes- when are we

DAVE: gettin out

MITUNA: no7 ye7 bu7 youre bein pa7ien7 a5 fuck -A snowflake lands on his nose. He's exhausted, but he's still floating a couple logs to the fire. The wet logs snap and crackle with moisture-

DAVE: were gonna

DAVE: get out of here

MITUNA: yeah i know -He glances up. He's only gonna rest a little while longer before continuing to keep the cold out for everyone. Just thirty minutes alright? He doesn't even know how long thirty minutes will be...but still.-

MITUNA: fuck america though dude

[[ Mituna could try counting 1-Mississippi, 2-Mississippi all the way up to 1800-Mississippi. ]]

[[ It's even the spirit of USA! Amurrica, frick yeah! ]]

MITUNA: -Fuck you America-

DAVE: dude dont

DAVE: youre doin some stuff

DAVE: you gotta calm down

DAVE: with your teleport

DAVE: teleconnecticut

MITUNA: i go77a...do 5ome7hin....even if i75 ju57 givin your 5orry a55e5 a chance 7o re57....ehehe

DAVE: we have a fire were good to go

MITUNA: i75 no7 57rong enough ye7

ARANEA: -she's been drifting in and out of consciousness. being cool blooded as she is, the cold is taking it's toll on her. but being slightly delirious, she doesn't think much as she starts wiggling in dave's direction, her hand out towards him.-

DAVE: -watching aranea and this hand thing she's doing and it reminds him of movies and dead people and angels and all he can do is look at her- im dead now

MITUNA: lmao lucky cock5ucker

DAVE: oh nope im alive

MITUNA: poor bi7ch

ARANEA: -ha... is he likening her to an angel? dont' be silly, boy. she touches his shoulder, or hand, or whatever she can get ahold of first and lets the little bit of warmth she has to offer extend to him-

DAVE: -just like that, he feels it...a warm sensation putting feeling back into his fingers and his toes. he watches her carefully as this happens, without a doubt a little confused and delirious with hypothermia but...it appears that his fingers and toes begin to lose their blue color-

MITUNA: -Grins a little, but he's so tired. His head lulls back, eyes fluttering closed. Just for a moment. Just for thirty minutes.-

ARANEA: (We're going to get out of here.) -affirms what he was already saying... if he had any doubts, he couldn't possibly now.-

DAELOS: -LOUD SNORING ON NYALAH DURING THESE TOUCHING MOMENTS.-

DAVE: -his gaze meets hers and he slowly nods- were gonna

NYALAH: -no worries. She's affectionately chewing his neck fat in her sleep.-

MITUNA: -Probably about 44 minutes later he puts the psionic ceiling back up-

[[ Sleep MORE. It means you need it! ]]

DAELOS: -Except at some point he wakes up. His sleep is rather restless. And other than Nyalah chewing on him, he notices that Aranea has left his side and wiggled more towards Dave. And they're holding hands.-

DAELOS: 👀!

DAELOS: -Well. It's cold and humans are fragile. Perhaps it's merely kindness. He tries to go back to sleep.-

DAELOS: -He finds it a bit difficult to stop low key watching them, though.-

ARANEA: -for once doesn't notice when she's being given extra attention... she's zoning in and out a little too much while still looking at dave.-

DAELOS: -MMmm.....-

DAVE: -his fingers are moving a little now that they actually feel like they exist. he's not sure what's happening now but he also doesn't have the sense or strength to get up and do something else-

DAELOS: -On second thought, he doesn't want to look at this anymore. He's gonna slowly just turn so he's facing the other direction. And eventually he'll be able to sleep.-

[wearevillaneve]

my highly professional and not totally delusional stance on the ‘who tops/who bottoms’ debate between villaneve

okay prefacing this by saying i think they’re both switches. but if someone had to top the majority of the time it’d be eve. also this is my opinion.

putting it under the cut because i do not want to clog up the dash.

eve’s whole motto is jumping into things impulsively. she’s predicable on the surface but is driven by a desire to not be what people expect her to be. but she’s also been wound up her whole life, suppressing every dark urge unless it is in private. so yeah sure, she’s inexperienced but when has that stopped her. you know if offered the chance she would be so eager to top. she’d just do it.

okay now onto villanelle, i think with other people she’d 100% be a service top. no doubt i think. villanelle likes the control she can have or exert over certain people, she finds it fun. she even thinks eve is that way. but as aforementioned, eve is not like that at all. which is why villanelle is so drawn ( and at times angered ) by eve. she does not act like villanelle expects/wants her to. and throughout how does this turn into her bottoming?

i feel like for her ( and eve too ) their whole character progressions through the seasons can play into this. now stay with me here. villanelle finds her humanity through eve, she finds her happiness. eve is her tether where everyone else in her life has treated her as if she is a full on monster. as if she doesn’t have any complexities behind that. eve understands her, her under the surface longing for a kind of normalcy. so with eve she softens, she lets go.

with eve, it’s basically the same thing but in reverse. she discovers her dark urges through villanelle, her grim impulses are not shunned or repressed, they’re encouraged even. eve’s entire obsession with villanelle stems from the fact that at the surface, she is what eve truly desires deep down, but later down the line falls completely for her. acknowledges her need for her. and through her, she also let’s go in a sense.

the whole top/bottom thing is another shade of a power dynamic, and i’m just choosing to look WAY too deep into literal intimacy roles but eh. who cares. villanelle softens with eve, trusting her with this. eve hardens through vil, but is also soft. she is eager but also wants to please because she loves villanelle. she trusts her to not repress her impulsivity, to let her show her how much she loves her through this physical act.

in the s1 finale i think it displays the point i’m trying to make nicely, vil’s ‘’i know what i’m doing’’, to eve holding a knife to her stomach, to “you can’t”/“i can.”, you get the gist. the knife is a symbol of the shift between them. the first instance of their dynamic, villanelle in the vulnerable position while eve is in full control, obviously it becomes softer and full of love over time (+ added consent. moral of the story don’t stab someone without their permission)and doesn’t involve blood all over the sheets but you get what i’m saying.

so that’s my ‘i’m reading way to far between these lines’ rant. again, i think they’re switches and aren’t stone cold tops/bottoms & this is just my opinion. if you think eve bottoms and vil tops all the power to you. thanks for reading this far. shoutout to the anon that wanted this lol.