#if you think oh the drawing looks flat well its because of me having no skill to make good photos

[peasant-player]

Elrond with dramborleg WIP ! !

Inspired by @polutrope that elrond should use a battle axe.

I agree.

[taffycandyqt]

hey so how badly do you think the rottmnt boys would be easily persuaded into things by their s/o? Who has self control and who throws caution to the wind for their s/o? Like their s/o is not manipulating or anything. Just like “No! I’m not joining”. “*genuine sad understanding doe eyes* If you’re sure, I wanted you to be the one to come with me though since I love you so much and I’d feel better with you there, but if you’re uncomfortable, it’s ok” if their boyfriend changes their mind, s/o is confused at the sudden change but look ecstatic? Or like they make their boyfriend angry and s/o is like “I did that? I’m sorry. I didn’t realise *genuine sad doe eyes. Makes it very hard to stay mad at*”?

Honestly, the rise boys are all so hungry for affection in their own ways. I feel like they are all pretty weak to their sweet little s/o. Also the one shots aren't exactly the best example of the headcannons but I was STRUGGLING so this is the best I got.

Weak in the Knees

Rise turtles (separately) x reader

How easily can you persuade them using your irresistible charm??

Warnings: Mentions of shooting as a hyperbole to emphasize a point. Not explicit. No deaths. Only in Donnies. Angst? ends happy so its fine

Established relationship

Fluff, crack

Donnie:

We all know Donnie is a sucker for praise.

You ask him to do something stupid or dangerous with you it will be a no.

You want him to step away from his work for a break? absolutely not.

You want him to accompany you to Witch town. ARE YOU CRAZY?

Buuuuuut. If you just so happen to have thrown out a couple compliments his way beforehand.

It will almost immediately be a yes or a "Sigh! I suppose!"

Let's be honest here too, there is a lot to compliment Donnie on.

You praise him for his work, a gift he gave you, helping you, or for literally anything he is already wrapped around your finger.

But if you praise him and then add a little kiss on the cheek or hand. Maybe a small hug?

He would literally let you shoot him if that's what you wanted.

Bro is so in love with you it's not even funny.

Not to say he doesn't draw the line somewhere. No bees. No spiders. And NO BEACH BALLS.

Oh and nothing that could phically harm you in any way.

He ain't about to let you get hurt on his watch.

It doesn't matter how many times you call him the most handsomest genius boy and kiss his nose, you are not diving off the empire state building for him to catch you mid air.

"Donnnnnnnniiieeeeeee!" you slumped towards him as you drew out his name. After you got to him you rested your head on his battle shell. Your hands were positioned on either side of your head laying flat on his shell as well.

"Yes my dear?" He chirped. He wasn't very good at initiating physical touch. Don't get me wrong, he tried, he just let his Donnie overthink get the best of him more often then not. So when you initiated, it was very welcome.

"I looooove youuu." You answered him, "your the sweetest boy I've ever met, did you know that?"

This got Donnie to set his tools down real quick. You always liked to compliment him at random times. At first he thought there was a reason behind it. You wanted something, you wanted to get away with something, you wanted him to forgive you, ect. But no matter how many times he conducted the experiment. No matter the duration of time it took. The results were always purely random. You did it simply because you wanted to tell him how much he meant to you.

And honestly, it was his favorite thing in the world. The only problem was that it would always catch him off guard. There was no consistency to your charming onslaught so it was always left as a surprise till the very last minute. His face burned red as he proceeded to just stare at his work, trying to look like he's trying to figure something out.

"I'm not sure. You say I'm a lot of things," he tried to keep his voice even as he spoke to you.

"Well it's true! Your the sweetest, smartest, and most perfect boyfriend ever and your my absolute favorite."

At this point Donnie was trying to hard not to happy stim. Not because he's not comfortable stimming around you, infact he does it all the time. The thing is, even after all this time he still wanted come off as a cool, emotionally unavailable bad boy. What he conveniently doesn't remember is that he's already willing done things that counter that image. You don't need to tell him that though.

"Thank you dear. You're quite lovely yourself," he told you. He folded his arms and sat stiffly trying to keep his stimming under control, eventually opting for some speedy finger tapping.

"Awwwwwww, thank you my love!!" you said as you finally lifted your head off his back to lean over and kiss his cheek.

This caused him to jerk in his chair and mess with the weight distribution resulting in him tipping and falling right on the floor. Instinctively he reached for the table in an attempt to break his fall. Unfortunately, he ended up grabbing his current project instead. As Donnie fell a component of his invention was ripped from it's position and landed on the floor beside him.

"Oh mi gosh! Are you okay?!" you rushed to Donnie's aid and helped him off the floor.

"I'm alright, thank you," he smiled at you softly and went to pick up his chair.

"I was just caught off guard is all," he told you, but as he bends down to grab the chair he noticed the crucial piece of his latest invention laying off to the side of it.

"GASP! Nonononono!" he picked up the piece and scrambled to his work desk to inspect the damage.

"Nooo!!" He wined in frustration. He rubbed his eyes with his thumb and index as he tried to calm himself down.

"Donnie? What's wrong?" You asked as you inched your way to his side.

"THIS!" he exclaimed shoving the broken piece in your direction before dropping his arm and turning away from his project to pace around the room.

"I'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS FOR WEEKS AND NOW I HAVE TO BACKTRACK AND REDO DAYS OF WORK! ALL BECAUSE YOU-" he stopped talking immediately when he say your face. He had originally turned to look back at you in order to emphasize his frustration. Seeing the look on your face though, made him instantly regret letting his frustration get the better of him.

"I- I'm sorry. I- didn't mean for that... I just wanted to... um..." you were on the verge of tears and couldn't think of anything to say that would fix the issue. So you just clasped your hands together and looked to the floor.

"I'm sorry," is what you eventually settled on.

"No! no, I'm sorry," Donnie told you as he approached and grabbed your shoulder while placing the other in his chest. He leaned his head down in an attempt to catch your eye as you kept your eyes locked on the ground.

"I shouldn't have yelled like that, and besides it wasn't your fault anyways. I was the one being careless in the first place." He eventually placed his and on your other shoulder and leaned down more, practically begging for you to look at him. When you did, your eyes were big and glossy with tears that streaked on your cheeks.

"I shouldn't have distracted you," your responded and you looked back to the floor.

"No, hey, your not a distraction," he told you in a gentle voice. He stood up straight and pulled you into a firm hug, burying his snout in your hair.

"Your the best thing that happened to me. Your never a distraction," he was really hoping this got through to you.

"Really?" You sniffed.

"Really really. Two reallys," he told you. With that you adjusted to wrap your arms around him and then lay you chin in his plastron.

"Do you think ice cream would make you feel better?" you asked.

"Me feel better?" he questioned. You were the hurt one, you were the one crying. Why were you concerned about his feelings?

"Even if you think it's not my fault, no doubt you're still upset with the amount of work you have to redo," you explained, "and ice cream always makes me feel better. So would ice cream make you feel better?"

He gave you a small laugh and traded the hug to hold your hand.

"Firstly, it's not your fault," he spoke matter-a-factly while waving his other hand around dramatically, "And secondly, ice cream sounds delightful."

So with that you both made your way to the kitchen. Donnie ended up not eating any ice cream at all and instead opted for flavorless juice. He was happy enough watching you eat your ice cream with a big smile plastered on your face.

Did he have a lot of work to redo? Yes. But as long as your there it might not feel as long. He might have to make a 'no flattery while one is working in the lab' rule though. For safety.

Leo:

Remember how Donnie had a line? Yeah, no Leo doesn't have that.

Due to this, and his already mischievous nature, you can already get him to do pretty much anything just by asking.

However he does have a responsible mood. If he's in that mood nothing will work.

you know what I mean. Like how he acts in the movie while their driving in the turtle tank?

like that, just without the internal and external issues clouding his judgment.

It's s not a bad mood, it's just not good for getting what you want.

Lucky for you he's not usually in that mood, and if he is it's usually not so bad that you can't bring I'm out of it.

That being said Leo, like the rest of his brothers, needs praise so badly that it's kinda sad.

Any praise will work but if you want him to do something absolutely idiotic to the point that even he thinks so? Your gonna need to make him feel ✨special✨

Your gonna need to pull out the my man, my champion, special man, and perfect baby.

Names like that, that make him feel like a million bucks.

If he's showing off to you, one compliment will butter that sucker up like you wouldn't believe.

He would literally do anything for you, it's not even funny, bro has no standards.

"Y/n! Hey! Hey! Y/n look! Look at this sick trick!" Leo called to you from atop their indoor skating ramp. You were on the floor below talking with April while Leo skated.

"Okay sweets I'm watching!" You call back to give him the go ahead.

With that Leo was off down the ramp. As he came up the other side and was propelled in the air he flipped the skateboard from beneath him and then landed perfectly on top as gravity pulled them back to the surface. When he came back up the other side Leo jumped off the board and looked down at you with a big grin on his face.

You and April clapped and he came down to meet you.

"What did you think??"

"I think that was awesome. Your my talented man for sure," you told him sweetly as you kissed him on the cheek. Leo blushed slightly at this before puffing his chest out and holding his skateboard all cool guy like at his hip. He used his other hand to point at himself with his thumb.

"Well not everyone can be as skilled as ah-THIS!" He boasted while punctuating his sentence with a dab.

"Okay, Mr. Talented," April teased, "If your done I'd like to tell you the reason I stopped by today."

"What?" Leo said with fake shock, "You visited for a different reason other than admiring my rad skills?"

"Impossible I know," she snarked to play along with him.

"So what's up April?" You asked.

"I was working my new job as a part time graveyard day guard and I saw this totally creepy and totally abandoned house right outside my post!"

"April if you're about to tell us you saw a ghost," Leo told her.

"No! But I DID want to find out if there COULD be ghosts in there."

"Why are you telling us this?" You ask.

"Because, I'm not gonna trespass on abandoned property by myself. That's just asking to be kidnapped," she answered while folding her arms.

"I don't know April, I better stay here and keep practicing my skating skillzz, right y/n?" Leo said.

"Well I think it sounds cool April! I'd be so down to go with you!"

"Heck yeah! Girls trip!"

You two high fived and right as you hands made contact Leo popped up in-between the both of you and clasped yours and April's hands together with his own.

"Though I suppose it would be unbecoming of me to not do my chivalrous duty to you both and tag along as a safety precaution."

April looked unimpressed at Leo's forced attempt to be cool in front of you whilst also begging for your attention. As you and April let your hands down Leo's went with them and you took his empty palm in yours shooting him a soft smile.

"So what time did you have in mind?"

"Oh, I was thinking like right now if y'all aren't busy," April told you.

"Sounds good to me, come on Leon!" You said as you dragged Leo to the Lair exit.

-

Apon getting to the building it was abundantly clear that it was very abandoned and very illegal to trespass. A rusted chain link fence surrounded the building with warning signs plastered all around it. Though, it was to dark to clearly read them without a flashlight.

"Uhh, guys?" Leo started, "Are you sure we should go in there? There are way too many signs around this place for them all to be just 'no trespassing' signs,"

"Do I hear someone who is scaaaaared?" Teased April. This prompted an offended gasp from Leo who put a hand to his chest.

"SCARED?! HA! I'll show you who's scared," he snarked at her before opening a portal to bypass the fence straight to the front door. He gestures for you and April to enter first. Before you followed April in you turned to Leo.

"Everything will be fine, and if something does go wrong I know you could bail us out," you smiled sweetly at him and then stepped into the portal. Leo straightened up and blushed, then sauntered confidently through the portal after you. It felt good to know you trusted him so much.

As all three of you stood at the front door you heard the sounds of the house creaking on the inside. The old wood constantly fighting to stay upright. April pushed open the door with a loud creak and shinned her light into the entry. It was dark and messy. A brownish carpet greeted you along with a broken sidebar cabinet. stairs leading up to the second floor were covered in dirt and old enough to be one big splinter. Next to the stairs was an entrance to a different room. There were also different rooms on either side of you as well. As you all shines your lights to get a better look you could see the dust particles littering the air.

"I'm gonna go investigate upstairs!" April told you before disappearing to the second floor. Leo had gravitates towards the right side entryway before turning to you and gesturing for you to follow him.

"I think this is the kitchen," he said, turning his head back. You filled him as you both inspected the room. You broke looked around and noticed some light scratching sounds coming from what you assumed to be the pantry. As you opened the door the smell of rotten food and crap hit your face and you immediately gagged. You plugged your nose with your hand and you used the other to direct the flashlight. You didn't look around for long though as you saw a small, fast moving figure rush past your foot. You let out a short yelp as you stumbled backwards and out of the pantry slamming the door shut.

In an instant Leo was by your side.

"What?! What happened?! Are you okay?!" he gave you a once over looking for any injuries you could have procured.

"Yes! Yes," you sighed out patting his shoulder, "I'm okay, just a... rat. Or something,"

"Okay. Umm, just stick close to me for now ok?" He asked you. He was clearly a little nervous, about what exactly though you couldn't say. He grabbed your hand as you both made your way out of the kitchen.

"You've been hearing those sounds too right?" He asks as he turns to you. You both stop under the archway separating the kitchen and the entryway.

"W- what sounds?" This was, admittedly, making you a little nervous yourself now.

"The scratching. Like something's in the walls," he said in a hushed voice as he squoze your hand. You didn't at first but as you sat and listened, sure enough. Scratching. Or... Scurrying? It wasn't consistent but it happened often enough.

"Yeah," you answered in the same muted tone.

"I think we should leave," Leo told you, "Whatever this houses issue is it's not gonna be ours. Let's grab April and VAMINOS."

Before you two could take more that a stepp up the stairs you hear a loud crash and the house starts to rumble. April begins to scream and you can hear her rushed footsteps against the floor and as you both try to find her you ended meeting her at the top of the stairs.

"RUUUUN!! GO GO GO!" she yelled at you. She pushed you both aside and grabbed Leo by his mask tails to pull him along. Before you two started running though, you see what April was running from. I giant hord of mutant silverfish. They took up the entire hallway from floor to ceiling and they did NOT look happy.

As Leo was being tugged along by April you were tugged by Leo who still hadn't let go of your hand. In trying to position his body to run forward easier and April still holding on to his mask tails, it ended up turning his mask on backwards and obscuring his view. As all three of you exited the house Leo tripped out the door on top of April causing you to fall on top of him.

"LEO PORTAL! PORTAL NOW!" April yelled at him.

"I CAN'T FIND MY SWORD!" he told her frantically trying to fix his mask so he could see.

"HERE TAKE IT!" you said handing it to him. The silver fish where almost in top of you by the time Leo took the sword in his hands. With a swift swing of his sword the portal was opened and all three of you stumbled through it closing right as the silverfish burst out the door.

All three of you lay on the ground between where the two skate ramps met, panting and trying to gather yourselves.

"Everyone okay?" April asked out of breath.

"Yeah," you breathed out.

"All good here," Leo puffed.

"Great..." April sat up sluggishly, "I'm gonna head out then, see ya."

And with that she stood up and left the lair. You both waved her off best you could from the ground. You both just laid there for a while catching your breaths.

"Let's never do that again," Leo said after a while.

"I don't know, I kinda had fun," you told him.

"You have got to be kidding me," he looked over at you unimpressed.

"Ya know... I saw this abandoned processing plant a couple days ago," you said turning your head to look back at him.

"Y/n. We almost died."

"And now we know to be prepared for hords of mutant silverfish," you looked at him, "Please?"

"Uuugggg. FINE. But not for a while, I need a break from whatever the heck today was," he told you.

"Sounds good to me!" You chirped and cuddled into his side.

"Yeah yeah," he playfully rolled his eyes and wrapped a lazy arm around you.

Mikey:

Oh he is just the sweetest little buttercup to you.<3

Surprisingly though, he also is the hardest to persuade.

I mean come on, doctor delicate touch loves you but he will be quick to tell you why a certain idea is....... not so great.

That being said if you get really sad about him saying no he will do everything in his power to make you happy.

He'll make your favorite food, watch your favorite movie, play your favorite game, whatever you want that isn't the first thing that you wanted.

Out of all brothers, Mikey is the one who need praise at the most normal amount.

You guys will probably have compliment competitions while cuddling.

So safe to say praise isn't going to get this dude to do stuff for you.

However, Mikey is able to see how his brothers feel like they can't fully express their feelings and wants them to feel safe enough to do so.

Frankly he wants everyone to feel comfortable enough around him to express their true thoughts and feelings.

So if you are the kind of person to emotionally shut down or pretend like everything is fine when it's not?

He will be a bit more willing to do stuff for you.

Again, there is a line. A straight cut no exceptions line.

Buuuuuut he might be willing to find a couple loop holes just so that his darling can feel better.

Piece of advice tho, don't push it. If he feels like you don't respect his boundaries that's gonna be a whole other issue.

"Hey Mikey!" you chirp as you enter his room, "What'ca up to?"

Mikey looked up at you from the floor, you could see the canvas in front of him and got increasingly excited to see what he was putting together.

"Oh just paintin', like one does," he tells you with a cheeky smile.

"Okaaaaay," you smile back, playing along, "What'ca paintin'?"

At this Mikey looked to his right and then his left, like he was scoping out the area for spies. Except it made less sense since it was his room. Then he looked back up at you and gestured for you to come join him with his hand.

You sat down on the floor and cozied up next to your boyfriend to which he revealed his masterpiece. It was a family portrait of Splinter and his brothers from when they were younger.

"We took this picture a couple years back," he handed you a small photo, "it was always dads favorite so I'm painting it for his birthday!"

"That's so sweet Mikey!"

He smiled and blushed at the compliment. You turned back to the painting. It was beautiful. It was the same picture but Mikey had taken some creative liberties with the colors. They were bright, vibrant, and harmonious. The painting felt like it was buzzing with energy because of it. It felt warm and inviting and at the same time unpredictable. The way the lines, colors, and textures went together, it almost made the painting feel alive, and it was hypnotizing.

"It looks like you've finished, right?" you ask, turning back to him.

"Almost!" He perks, "I just have to add a few finishing touches and it will be done!"

"Weeeeeeelllll," you said mischievously, "Since they're just finishing touches, maybe I could help."

One of the first things that people find out when they meet you is that you suck butt at art. When you met Mikey he tried SO HARD to teach you but no matter how hard you tried it just never clicked. You always saw it as a cute 'opposites attract' sort of thing honestly. The proficient artist and the one who couldn't draw a dot right it they tried. How romantic.

So when your little tease entered the space Mikey knew exactly what you were trying to do.

"Oh no no no my dear," he played along, "You see, I feel your artistic talents are needed else where."

"Else where?" you questioned with big doe eyes feigning innocence.

"Yes. Else where," he told you again, still with his playful expression.

"You mean," you picked up one of his used paint brushes, "HERE! you said as you lunged forward attempting to pin him down in order to paint his face. Attempting.

"NO NOT HERE!" he giggled trying to keep the paint brush from making contact with his face. He had been mostly successful but you still managed to land a couple good swipes.

You both continued to wrestle and giggle as time went on. At one point Mikey flipped you both so he was the one pinning you and reached for a paint brush of his own. You managed to wiggle free in the nick of time and this led to you both running around his room with paint brushes in hand. Every now and again one of you would corner the other, but the other would always manage to escape leading to the chase once again. At one point you realized that you might be able to catch Mikey off guard. You see, outside of cornering each other, all you guy have really done is chase the other and try catch them.

So in a moment of what you deemed to be 'brilliance' you took an abrupt stop and made a sharp turn on your heel to face him. However, that resulted in Mikey crashing right into you and you both falling straight to the floor.

"OH ME GOSH! Are you okay y/n?!" he scrambled to get off you quickly and inspect any possible damage to your person.

"Yeah, I'm okay, I think. Just landed on something hard," you told him as you picked yourself up.

When you looked back at him there was an expression on his face that could only be described as soul crushing horror. You were so confused, and concerned until you followed his line of sight and saw exactly what you landed on.

His painting.

His super sentimental and lovingly handcrafted painting meant as a GIFT FOR HIS FATHER. and now, there was a hole straight through it. Not a small one at that. Not to mention some of the paint was still wet and had gotten smeared and smushed at the impact. There was absolutely no salvaging this painting.

"Oh Mikey I am so sorry," you were horrified at what you had caused. Mikey didn't look at you, he didn't respond either. He walked towards to ruined canvas and slowly knelt down to pick it up.

"I- I didn't mean for this to happen Mikey I'm-" he cut you off.

"Can you please go? We'll talk later, I just need to be alone right now," still without looking at you. You were so heartbroken you had to hold in your tears.

"Okay," you told him in a shaky breath. You left the lair that night, and for the first time since you've known the guys, you left in a considerably worse mood then what you had when you got there.

The look on Mikey's face haunted you that night. You hate to think that you were the one to cause that pain. You were the one that hurt him. You wanted to make it up to him but you didn't know how. It's not like you could remake the painting for him. Heck you couldn't even paint!

You decided it would be best to stay away from the lair until Mikey invited you back. Fortunately for you, it only took about four days for that to happen. Unfortunately for however, it was through a very distressing text that read 'We should talk'. Eeeee 😬

Before you went you baked some cookies to hopefully help lighten the blow. You may not be able to... 'art'... BUT YOU COULD BAKE. When you met with Mikey it was in a secluded area of Todd's Puppy Land, or whatever its called.

"Hey y/n," he said giving you a weak smile and finally looking at you. He looked tired. Like he hadn't slept since you both last talked.

"Hey Mikey," you responded, "I uh. I brought cookies." You gave and awkward smile and his expression softened. He motioned for you to sit next to him on the bench. As you did you placed the cookies between you both as to give him some space.

He sighed, "I'm sorry y/n, I didn't mean-" you cut him off.

"YOUR SORRY?! WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO BE SORRY ABOUT?!" you were exasperated.

"Well I-"

"NO! I ruined your painting that took you forever to make that you made for your dads birthday! If anyone should be sorry it's me!"

"Thank you," he told you, "and I accept you apology, but it wasn't really your fault. It was an accident due to us both being reckless."

"But I started it!"

"And I didn't stop you, *sigh* listen. I didn't mean to scare you like I did. I just get very emotionally attached to my art so I was having a lot of feelings that day. I want to make it very clear that I don't want to break up with you and I'm not mad at you."

At this, you let out a sigh you didn't even know you were holding. When he looked back at you he was shocked. Your eyes were glassy with tears and your cheeks were red. You looked so sad. And so sorry. Oh, if he didn't already regret what he said to you that day he sure did now. How could he had asked you to leave?

"I still feel bad about it," you told him looking down at your hands. He moved the cookies behind him to close the gap between you both and pulled you into a hug.

"Hey, I get it. But if it makes you feel any better I was able to fix mistakes I made the first time and clean up areas I had previously messed up. On top of that I'm pretty close to being in the same spot with its progress that I was last time," he said, trying to console you. you pulled back to look at him.

"You mean you repainted it?"

"Well yeah. It's pops birthday gift, I had to," he smiled at you.

"Didn't that take you weeks to do?!"

"The first time yeah. But I kind couldn't sleep until I was back to were I was before sooo"

THATS WHY HE LOOKED SO TIRED! HE HASN'T SLEPT IN FOUR DAYS!

"Alright well someone's going to bed right now," you told him, picking up your cookies and dragging him by the wrist. He happily complied and followed you back to the lair. Not before thanking Todd for letting you guys use his space.

Overall, you both were just glad that everything was back to normal.

Raph:

Oh bb. He's so soft for you.

Bro will kiss the ground you walk on.

He's also the most responsible.

However most responsible does not mean least chaotic.

I mean the dude tries to lift a bus and ate a literal phone.

So honestly, I can see him being pretty open to a lot of stuff as long as your safety isn't jeopardized.

Notice how I said 'your safety'?

Yeah. Again, remember the bus incident? I refuse to believe that he wouldn't do something stupid for you as long as he's the only one with a possibility of getting hurt.

That being said, like Mikey he has a line. Unlike Mikey that line is drawn with chalk and is very easily swept away.

Now Raph does not like crossing this line. I mean who likes compromising their boundaries?

But he will do it.

Raph is very susceptible to peer pressure and if it's coming from you of all people? He'll do it.

He won't be happy about it after though.

Like he's happy your happy but he will being to feel like his feelings don't matter to you the same as yours matter to him.

So for the sake of this poor boy please don't press further if he said no the first time.

It makes him feel like a bad boyfriend. :(

You and Raph were cuddling on the couch watching Jupiter Jim movies. As per the usual when you both are bored and have nothing better to do. You were positioned on his lap knees pointing to the side so you could rest your head on his chest.

"Hey Raphy?" you said grabbing his attention.

"Yes?" he said looking down at you.

"You wanna crash a wedding?"

"What?!"

"Do you. Want to. Crash a wedding. ... With me."

"And why are we crashing a wedding?"

"Fun," you told him, "but also I'm bored."

He giggled at you. You were such a little cutie and he could never get over it.

"What would we be doing?"

"Oh ya know, dancing, eating the food, photo bombing. The ushe," you shoot him a cheeky smile.

"Okay, one question though," you nodded at him, "how are we gonna do that with... this whole situation," he told you gesturing to himself.

"Sweets, we're in New York. You put on a suit jacket and act like 'this whole situation' is normal, most people will chalk it up to eccentricity," you told him.

"You sure bout that?"

"I've never been so sure about anything in my entire life."

"Well I guess we have a wedding to prepare for," he said nuzzling his snout into your cheek.

"YESSSsssssssssss!!" you exclaimed.

---

After a quick social media search you found the perfect wedding to crash. You and Raphael dusted off your best wedding attire and set out on a mission to have a good time.

You guys had made it to the reception so you just walked in and pretended like you belonged there. Raph was obviously still a little worried about walking in full green skin and three fingered but you assured him it was fine. And you were kinda right. He definitely got weird looks but he tried his best to follow your advise and pretend like was nothing was wrong. So for a while now body bothered you guys.

"See? What did I tell you, no body even cares!" You smiled at him as you pulled him to the dance floor.

"Yeah, I guess," he told you a tad nervous. He smiled at you regardless and you're both began to dance.

It was a fun, up eat song so you and Raph jumped along in your own little world. Twisting, turning, and shimming to the beat, it felt like you both were walking on air.

After dancing for a couple of songs straight you guys decided to try some of the refreshments. You took some lemonade and the little cheesecake bits and found a vacant table. You both chatted about little things, telling jokes and having a good time.

Eventually someone from the party approached you. She was a skinny old woman. Not old enough to be grey haired and senile but just old enough that she had plenty of wrinkles.

"Excuse me, I don't believe we've met," she told you as she sat down her to you, "what are your names?"

"Oh, I'm y/n and this is Raph," you gestured to him and he gave a small wave.

"Well it's nice to meet you. I'm the brides aunt Tina."

"Well in that case, congrats! I'm sure your so happy for her!"

"I am, Oliver seems like such a a nice man. He treats Sara so well. On that note, who are you here for? The bride or the groom?"

Raph sweat dropped, he didn't like lying and it made him nervous that he might have to if you both wanted to stay.

"Oh we're not," you told her honestly. Raph was relieved for about half a second before he realized that now you guys might cause a whole other scene.

"I'm sorry, not what?"

"Here for either the bride or the groom. We don't know either of them, we were just bored and wanted to dance."

"Wh-," her face showed her absolute disbelief, "This is a family and friends even you can't just waltz in uninvited!"

"Well I mean. You can. We just did. Wether or not that's a respectful thing to do is an entirely different debate though."

Tina's face was starting to turn red.

"Well! I'm going to have to ask you both to leave!" she demanded raising her voice while she stood and pointed to the exit.

"Hey, what's going on Tia?" the bride asked putting a hand on her aunts sholder.

You leaned back in your chair resting your arm over the back of it while you took a swig of your water.

"These two hooligans weren't invited! They don't know anyone here!"

"Well that's hardly fair Tina, I thought we formed a connection over the last five minutes," you teased which prompted Raph to shoot you a disapproving look. Tina looked absolutely appalled by you attitude.

"What?" you questioned Raph with a giggle, "Come on this is kinda funny."

"Your making her upset!"

"Eh, she would have been upset anyways,"

"DONT IGNORE US GET OUT! SOMEONE CALL THE POLICE!" Tina was full on screaming now, which prompted Raph to shoot out of his chair. He apologized quickly and picked you up by your sides and ran you both out of the wedding.

"Awwwww I wanted to grab some more of those cheesecake bites before we dipped."

Raph shook his head and smiled.

"Your unbelievable."

[catmask]

do you ever find it hard to just....Keep Drawing? what keeps you motivated? what keeps you inspired? i've been finding it hard to pick up a pen lately despite loving drawing and wanting to do it more than anything, how do you do it? also, i hope you have a nice day!!

oh i absolutely do. i think like.. last night i was having a bit of a rough one. and talking to my boyfriend about it.

sometimes motivation for anything (not just art) feels like if i stop moving, ill fall flat on my face. its difficult for me to get going, especially if i get interrupted or get suddenly thrown into a social situation.

on one hand, drawing has always been my stim/self soothing activity of choice (as im autistic). but 'work drawing' can sometimes be difficult when im scared i might be interrupted in the middle of the day, or if someone might need me to like 'be a person' suddenly.

all this to say, i try my best to stay motivated by taking care of my body and my brain, because if those things go out of whack then i know for sure i wont be able to draw well. and then, in terms of artistic motivation... i look at other people's art, and i go on walks a lot.. and i spend a lot of time alone with my brain/feelings.

art sort of is just like... an engine through which i am taking the outside world, processing it and pulling it through to show everyone how i feel about it. sometimes its as simple as 'this thing was beautiful, i want to show you' 'this thing was cute, i want to show you' but sometimes its also 'this is something i learned, let me teach you' 'this is something that hurt me, let me heal it with you'

... in a lot of ways if i dont keep drawing, i dont know how id communicate with other people, really. so i guess, i have to keep drawing because id get very lonely otherwise.

[melliemell]

Pairing: Poe x f!reader

Contents: SFW, touch-starved Poe, lap-sitting, Sub!Poe vibes flying everywhere, fluff Approx 1.1k words

One two three, one two three. Deep breath. One–

Your laugh startled him, forcing Poe’s attention away from the Cambodian calming technique he specifically read on in preparation for this. It was of no use– the sensation of your thighs against his, legs straddling his lap as you oozed confidence as if this was merely your typical Wednesday afternoon.

It hardly counted as afternoon yet, and it certainly wasn’t any laughing matter! 

“Sorry, sorry. I’ll be serious, yes,” you said, smile barely contained, and you looked at Poe with doey eyes of pristine innocence. 

His head flopped, sighing dramatically as the tell-tale signs of worry spread over his body again, fingers fidgeting with the hem of his vest. Remaining stock still, like a wire drawn through his entire figure, Poe was hyper-aware of every single point of contact between you. Which wasn’t much, considering. The warmth of your body mass was merely accumulating, drawing attention with its effect against his. 

Although, if he were to reach out and touch, Poe would simply faint. 

It was not going as planned. At all.

Neither of you were anywhere near being naked. The mere thought made Poe’s ears flush deep. No, this was simply an exercise. One born out of necessity. 

One which you insisted on and he carefully considered, yielding in the end because– as much as he enjoyed your mind and way of thinking, Poe could hardly come up with times he’d expressed his affections more… physically. 

He could’ve never predicted you’d climb into his lap; what started as a plain jest– an equivalent to diving in the deep but ended up far more deadly than expected. 

“If you must know,” Poe began, carefully, “this a lot harder than it seems. I’m hardly used to such closeness, let alone initiating it. I hope you’d forgive me for being as I am.”

“Poe…” Your hand reached, cupping his as your thumb stroked gently against his knuckles. His heart could barely take it. You were so tender with him. “Oh, I’m sorry too. This was a silly idea. I don’t want you to feel bad.”

“Nonsense!” He forced more authority in his speech, only to wince at the result as you raised a brow. “I believe it was splendid. I just need some time to… um– it is quite all right, I assure you.”

You were so small compared to him; he was used to perching over others with his height. But now, sitting like this, you could almost be considered at eye level. He was so very lucky to have this– to have you. You with all your silly ideas, always pushing him beyond the edge of familiarity. Never doubting his capabilities, not once, only encouraging. Poe hardly noticed leaning closer, mind distant yet instincts sharp as a feathered quill. 

You had yet to share a kiss.

The realization froze Poe in place, eyes going wide as he registered what he was about to do. Thank goodness you were too preoccupied with holding his hands, gaze distant and deep in thought as you looked down.

What absurdity. To think of doing such a thing without asking you first. The fright it would give you. It was good he caught himself in time. Yes, quite good.

“Hey, Poe?”

He blinked. “Hmm?”

“I will rest your hands on my legs. Is that okay?” 

“You will what?” Poe said, voice going higher. A slight dusting of pink spread over his cheekbones. “I mean– I, well. You see–” It grew even deeper by the second.

You leaned in quick, barely giving Poe time to react as you booped your nose against his, a wide smile on your lips a moment later.

Poe swallowed. 

“If you insist,” he whispered.

Breathing was crucial now. Poe had to remind himself of that as his fingertips brushed against your clothing, resting flat on your upper thighs. Your hands remained over his, drumming an absent rhythm as if calming him. 

“Huh.”

A nervous shiver ran through Poe’s back. “Is something the matter?” Blast, what if his hands were too sweaty? Surely he could have used a handkerchief before or–

“Just thinking,” you said, humming. “We really are two silly little people. Doing silly things we worry over like it’s the end of the world.”

Poe found it hard to deny. He was being over-dramatic, he’s well aware. But ever since he found you, every interaction just felt a bit… too much. Like keeping up with a never-drying well of– emotions that he hardly had to deal with before.

He cherished you. A lot. And holding himself back from expressing it was unfair to you when you were so…

Poe’s lower lip trembled, and he gasped, trying to catch himself in time before becoming too emotional. You had just about the opposite idea, looking at him confused. Poe felt your pull at his wrists.

“Hey, if this really isn’t okay, we can stop.  You know that?” you said.

“No, no.” 

Poe took a breath, bracing himself before he tentatively trailed his hands up, embracing you from the waist instead. You looked even more confused, but there was no time for hesitancy! You were warm, and soft, and so lovingly you. Poe sighed, feeling your hair brush his cheek as he pulled you against him. 

For a moment, you stood still. Poe’s mind spiralled. Self-doubt was beginning to seep in again when hands rose up, draping over Poe’s shoulders as you hugged him back tightly,  an, “oh, you silly man…” whispered against his ear. 

Poe melted right there and then, body completely slacking against yours as he buried his face in the crook of your neck. You trailed your hands through his hair, pulling at his locks lightly as your boyfriend turned into a glorified pudding. 

“You know what I think?” you asked, humming absently.

Poe did not move as he answered with a muffled, “yes?”

“If we’re like this now…” you pulled back, cupping Poe’s face as you brushed his hair aside, eyes locked with his blinking ones. “I really wonder what sex would be like.”

A moment.

Two…

“Don’t– don’t say that!” Poe spluttered, pulling back. 

You laughed. His face was beet red, and no matter how dedicatedly he tried to sculpt it into one of neutrality, it seemed to only serve in making you laugh even more. “I am confident we’ll have a great time!” he said, and immediately winced. 

Still giggling, you squished his cheeks together before brushing your nose against his. It was like a swarm of butterflies had found refuge in Poe’s stomach, eyes blinking and breath heavy as he tried to regain some sense of dignity.

It was a long night after that. Even if Poe doubted he’d live this down anytime soon, at least he got to hear your joy because of it. He was going to sulk about it later, though. 

Definitely. 

Probably.

He wouldn’t mind if you made him company then too.

[luveline]

so! we were talking about hockey!sirius a couple days ago soooooooo

i would love to request hockey!sirius flirting with a reader who is not yet his girlfriend. (bonus points if he does the lighting her cigarettes for her like i would die actually)

thank you for requesting! —hockey player!sirius asks you on a date. 1k

"Hey, you." 

You squeeze your box of cigarettes but manage to keep your flinch to yourself. "Sirius, you're like a ghost," you complain, letting your bag fall back behind you. 

"A fit one, at least?" he asks. "I've caught you, haven't I?" 

You fish your box of cigarettes from your bag guiltily. "Don't tell my coach and I'll give you one." 

"Give me two and I'll let you borrow my clipper."

"A clipper," you drawl, drawing two cigarettes from the box to pass him. "I didn't think you were rich." 

"You know, my parents are loaded." 

You put a cigarette between your lips and shove the box down the depths of your bag, your dirty little secret hidden once again. Sirius knows because he's the only other idiot sportsman at your rink stupid enough to smoke at practice. "Weird brag." 

"Well," —he bobs his head from left to right gently, inhaling sharply as he lights the end of his cigarette, breathing through it, "it would be if I spoke to them." 

"Oh, shit. Sorry." 

"Don't be sorry," he says, his cigarette held carelessly between his lips as he ushers you forward. He's much more careful about you, holding your arm in a gentle hand as he lights the end of your cigarette, and nodding encouragingly when you inhale, his eyes a stony grey where they meet yours. "I brought it up." His hand coasts briefly up to your shoulder before he takes a step back. "I like telling you things." 

You lean against the wall and Sirius leans beside you. The outside of the rink is boring, a huge parking lot full of cars going in and out. Sirius' car, a dark cherry red oldsmobile with more scratches than paint, is parked not too far from where you're standing, a dent the size of a sledgehammer head in the driver's side that wasn't there before. "What happened to the vampmobile?" you ask. 

"James. I bet you never would've guessed," he says sarcastically.  

"I wouldn't have. He's a sweetheart. I'd be much more tempted to think you did it doing doughnuts on the industrial–" 

Sirius cuts you off, flicking the tip of his cigarette with a put upon attitude, "I don't do doughnuts. You think so little of me, sweetpea." 

He says sweetpea like you're the cutest thing on earth. You nudge him mildly and stub your cigarette out on top of the square black bin, half-smoked. "I better go home."

"Working tonight?" 

"No, I finally have a night off. Got a ton of stuff I need to do, but it shouldn't take long." You lift your arms into the air and stretch your sore shoulders, angled away from him to avoid giving him a show of the world's ugliest yawn.  

"Wanna get something to eat?" 

You hurt your jaw trying to stop your yawn midway through, arms falling flat to your thighs. Sirius isn't looking at you, gaze on the vamp mobile, smoke curling like a ribbon between his fingers. He has nicely shaped hands, very boney in the sharp way but still rather inviting, when you think about it. 

"Now?" you ask. 

"Tonight. If you want to, I'll take you out." He takes another drag, eyes flaring in time with the ash. "Don't act like you don't know," he says through the exhale. 

"Know what, Black?" you ask. 

"That I'm mad for you." 

You're suddenly and deeply aware of how you look, a mess after practice, hair straggled from its styling, face without any make up. There's nothing wrong with the way you look, but when you picture someone on Sirius' arm, it's never you. You fiddle with your jacket zipper, voice low, "I didn't know that." 

"I don't believe you." He's not accusatory, simply stating a fact. Sirius stubs his cigarette out next to yours, black hair ruffled in the wind, the scent of him adrift. He smells like smoke, of course, but there's a nicer woodiness beneath it. "I'll take the way you're looking at me as a solid maybe. You can text me." 

"No, I mean. Yeah. I mean–" You stammer as Sirius laughs warmly. "I'll text you. If you really are mad for me." 

"Want me to prove it?" he asks. 

Your lips part of their own accord. You look like a deer-in-the-headlights for sure, completely stopped by the implication. Even the thought of a kiss from his has your pulse capering hard. His hands cold from the rink pressed gently to the warmer stretch of your collar, slipping into the hemline, curling behind your neck as he steps close. You can't summon the kiss itself, too close to bursting, because what would you do? Where would you put your hands? Is there a specific place? 

"Don't look so nervous," he murmurs, his eyebrows pinching ever so slightly together. "I'm not gonna jump you." 

"It's not like that, I just don't know…" 

"About us?" he asks. "That's why I'm trying to ask you on a date. You can make your mind up about us and I'll help you bulk for sectionals."

"I don't need bulking," you say. 

He laughs. "No, you're perfect. Beside your bad habit, that is. We have that in common." Sirius steps forward, pauses. "Can I kiss your cheek?" 

His asking is the last straw. You're melted like a slush curl. 

"Yeah," you say weakly. 

Sirius kisses your cheek gently, and then he tucks his face against the side of your head and gives you a hug. "Text me, yeah? If you want." He peels back to grin at you. "I have to go back in. Elite league won't win itself. Talk to you later, doll."

You watch him retreat back into the centre, not sure what you want to do first; text him, or smoke another cigarette. In the end, you decide against the cigarette. If he's really going to prove how mad he is for you, you don't want to taste like smoke. 

[cowboyheyxu]

"i can't do this anymore."

"rough day?"

"rough life," you shove your face into dan heng's pillow, "this biology project is kicking my ass," your voice comes out muffled from the pillow. you've somehow wrapped the whole thing around your entire head.

the mattress dips as dan heng sits down beside you, "do you need any help?" he asks in a soft tone, lightly running his fingers through your hair. the feeling calms you down a bit as his fingers nimbly tread through the strands.

"no," you sigh into the pillow that was covering your face, "i'm ok. it's almost done anyway, just a lot of work."

dan heng tucks a strand of hair behind your ear, "well, i could always help you finish that work faster," he persists.

you remove your face from the pillow and move to lay on your back. you're facing dan heng now, with his face right above yours. you're nearly pinned under him, had it not been for the one arm propping him up. he was leaning on his side on one arm, looking at you with diligent eyes.

you let out a small snicker, and your boyfriend's expression switches from an insistent one to a confused one.

"what?" he furrowed his eyebrows, looking at you with puzzlement. his lips were in a slight pout as he turned to you. you had to purse your lips to hold back another snicker.

"nothing," you inched closer to your propped up boyfriend, leaning into him slightly. as you got closer to him, a smirk slowly rose on your face. once you were close enough so that both knees were touching, you smiled, "you're just really cute." you lightly tapped the tip of his nose after your comment.

you take pride in his flustered expression once he heard your quip. satisfied, you roll over to your side and relish in his bemusement. however, before you could roll all the way over, a hand grabs one of your arms and holds you flat on your back. then, dan heng positions himself above you.

you try to ignore the rising heat that settles in your chest. you try to ignore the fact that it's rising to your neck, and that it will soon make its way to your face. you hope that dan heng doesn't notice the way your breaths shift from slow draws to quick movement.

but, to your surprise, he lays his entire body over you.

"feeling comfortable?" you raise an eyebrow at him. he didn't see, as his head was nestled in the crook of your neck. his arms were wrapped around your waist and torso as his legs crossed between yours.

"very," you could feel the smile in his voice. your hands travel up the nape of his neck, making sure to caress it softly before you move to his hair. your hands make themselves at home on his head, venturing through tufts of dark hair.

dan heng lets out an unstrained sigh. you wonder if he came in here to relieve you of your troubles, or himself.

"is this your idea of helping me finish faster?"

"well i have a lot of different ideas for that."

your face falls flat, "you're getting kicked out in two seconds."

dan heng laughs, and it's a euphoric sound. it reverberates throughout your entire body, and for a second you want to pull him closer to you than before. however, dan heng had a contrasting idea.

he lifts himself from you and perches himself above you, arms propping him up once again. you tilt your head in question, wondering what he was about to do.

"i thought you didn't want my help," dan heng refutes.

"i never said that."

"yes, you did. you said, 'i'm ok. it's almost done anyway, just a lot of work,'" dan heng quotes you, word for word at that.

you playfully roll your eyes, "okay, so i did say that," you pull dan heng back down onto you while muttering, "how do you even remember that?"

"i just like you a lot."

"oh, i can tell," you scoff, "you came in my room just to lay with me. i bet you didn't even come in here to offer your help. i think it was just because you missed me," you teased.

dan heng lifts his head up to face you. you crinkle an eyebrow at his sudden movement, since he seems oh-so comfortable beforehand. but when he trails a finger on your cheek, you know what's going to happen next.

he leans down slowly. too slowly, for your taste. you want to pull him down harder into you, but for once, you will let him take his time. he rests his hand on your cheek as he pulls you into him slowly. he eases your face into his first, slowly inching it close enough so that the tips of your noses would touch. then, he takes his other hand and wraps it around your waist, elevating you from the bed just ever-so slightly.

you take this as an opportunity to wrap your arms around his neck and deepen the kiss. what started as a small peck would turn into your mouth opening ever so slightly, and his tongue prodding in very carefully. your hands travel from his neck, to his jaw, and finally to his shoulders as the kiss comes to its end.

you pull away from him, breathless, while dan heng is breathing perfectly fine. you resist the urge to pull him back in so he could be in the same state that you are in currently, but that can wait.

when dan heng looks back up at you, he utters one thing, "yeah. i did miss you."

not one of my best works i just wrote this so i wouldn't be rusty for my comeback.

[r0tting-rat]

DCA PROMPTOBER 2024

I KNOW I'M STILL LATE I'M STRUGGLING TO CATCH UP I'M SORRY

Day 2 - Paper Pals

Pairing: Sun x Gender Neutral Reader, romantic Warnings: None Words: 3000+ Summary: While making paper pals with Sun, you begin a game you quickly regret starting.

-Shit, this thing is so ugly,- you grinned, looking down at the paper pal you were working on. You were sitting at one of the colorful plastic tables in the arts & craft area of the daycare, with your fingers sticky with glue and your arms covered in doodles made by the kids. Some of those looked more like scribbles than actual drawings, but when one of the little boys pointed at his masterpiece and said; “-Cow!-” you had no choice but to laugh and say; “-Oh, I love your cow, David, it’s so cute!-”

The only problem was that the “cow” in question was green, it had three… eyes?—you didn’t even know if those were eyes, since you couldn’t understand which was the face and which was the butt—and more legs than you could count. Could it be that the child actually wanted to draw a centipede but didn’t remember its name? Maybe, but unlike the animatronic sitting right beside you, you weren’t an art critic.

-It’s not ugly!- Sun protested, looking at your paper pal, -I think it’s lovely.-

-You also said David’s “cow” was lovely, but that thing looks more like snot,- you laughed, and Sun gave you a dramatic gasp.

-Are you calling me a liar?!- he said, placing a hand over his chest like an old lady clutching her pearls. Grinning even more, you leaned a little closer to the robot. 

-Hell, yes I am.- Your whisper caused Sun’s rays to spin in fake outrage. Luckily for you all the kids were playing in the jungle gyms in the play area, so Sun was allowing you to swear as much as you wanted with no repercussions. Of course, he still twitched and flinched every now and then.

You and Sun had decided to stay there, sitting at the tables, to finish the project of the day which you didn’t have time to work on during the arts & craft hour. Paper Pals! Loyal, cheerful, flat and… horribly ugly little guys which Sun adored with his whole mechanic heart. Well, not all paper pals were ugly, yours surely was, maybe because you couldn’t decide on the theme. You had drawn blue stars on the face, like they were freckles, but changed your mind half-way and tried to fix it by making the entire face blue. The only problem? The blue you were first using had run out, so you had to choose another blue to finish the face, which was of a lighter shade than the previous. 

To add to the list, the silver glitter glue had been spilled the day before and the next batch was not going to come until Monday, so you had no silver glitter glue to make your pal prettier. 

-If you don’t like your paper pal, how about you make another?- asked Sun, looking at you curiously. You shook your head, beginning to draw a brown button-up on your little pal, like those shades of brown and blue didn’t look absolutely hideous together. 

-Nah, he’s ugly, but I like him.- You were so focused on your little guy that you didn’t even look up as you spoke, -He’s like, my ugly son.-

Next to you, Sun wheezed.

-Y-Your ugly son?- he asked, half between a laugh and a question. 

-Yeah! His name is Robert, I love him and I will treasure him forever, even if he’s ugly,- you nodded, -I don’t mind ugly things.-

Something you could pride yourself upon was, in fact, that look didn’t matter to you. Be it animals, people, drawings or paper pals, you didn’t care if they were “ugly”. In fact, you had decided you were going to make your paper pal the ugliest one in the existence of the Mega Pizzaplex, and you were going to love him to death. David’s cow was also coming with you. Was it ugly? Damn right it was. Were you about to do anything you could to let it stay on your skin as long as possible? Fuck yes. 

You grabbed a mouth for your paper pal, one of those with full and soft lips, then colored it so it had bright green lipstick. You glued it on Robert, satisfied, before noticing you had glued it on wrong and that it was slightly tilted to the side. Okay, that… you hadn’t done that on purpose, but oh well. 

-Is that why you like us so much?- Sun asked, and your ears immediately picked on the slight nervousness in his voice. You turned around just to see him working on his own paper pal. 

-What do you mean?- you asked, unsure. 

-You said you don’t mind ugly things,- Sun explained, gluing a leg to his pal, -So I’m wondering if that's why you don’t mind us.-

You stopped working on your project just to turn completely around on the little chair, until you were directly facing the animatronic. Noticing your stance, Sun also stopped working, looking at you with a surprised expression.

-Has something happened?- he asked, like he didn’t just call himself ugly.

-No, just…- you looked at him, like, looked at Sun, up close. You even stood up so you could have a better angle. -Just checking something.-

Wide-eyed, Sun stared at you as you inspected his skin, his features and clothes. He followed your movements as you hummed to yourself, mumbled as you touched the silicone of his hands and clicked your tongue, deep in thought. 

-Mhm, yes, I’m afraid it’s exactly what I suspected,- you spoke out loud after a few seconds. Sun smiled, perplexed. 

-What’s your verdict, doc?- he asked, amused. Satisfied, you sat back down. 

-You’re stunning.- Was your reply. As soon as those words left your mouth, Sun’s eyes widened even more and his fans turned on, working to keep his internals cool. The robot looked at you for a few seconds, mouth wide open, baffled by your response. He had expected so many things, but not… not this one! 

-Y-You don’t mean that…- he whined, but immediately regretted saying those words, because they betrayed how flustered he truly was. Sun suddenly felt the urge to hide his face behind his paper pal. 

-Are you calling me a liar?!- you gasped, echoing the same words he had spoken just a few minutes before. You even copied the way he had clutched his chest.

-Yes!- Sun replied with another whine, -Look at me, I’m…-

-Beautiful? Pretty? Perfectly detailed, amazingly shaped?- you suggested, looking at the jester with a grin and an amused look in your eyes. Sun’s fans whirred louder, reminding you of the sound of your old pc when you tried to run The Sims 4 on it, along with all the mods you had downloaded. Sun was overheating, and if the circumstances had been different you would have suggested he take off his blouse to let his fans do their job, but you were afraid that would have actually caused him to implode before anything could be done. 

Sun’s fingers were twitching and he was keeping his eyes closed, like not seeing your smug expression would have helped with cooling off. 

-I’m… f-full of those craters, and… and my pain is chipping off,- he tried to argue, like you weren’t ready to prove him wrong. 

-Those craters are absolutely adorable,- you pointed at the little dots on his face, which reminded you of freckles, -They make your smile stand out. But you’re right on the last part, we should get you re-painted, so you can glow even more than you do now!-

Your smile widened when Sun grabbed his rays and hid his face on his knees, groaning.

-S-S-Stop!- his voicebox was glitching, adding a static-y layer to his voice which made him sound even more desperate than he actually was. 

-You’re like the actual sun, Sunny,- you leaned closer, grinning viciously.

-Impossible to look at?- he sniffled, still refusing to look up.

-No, a true hottie.-

☆

You immediately had to call maintenance to get them to bring Sun down to Parts & Service. After all, you had to look after the kids at the daycare, so you couldn’t leave, as much as you wished to. Apparently you had gone too far with your teasing, causing Sun to enter a reboot and drop unconscious on the table where you and him had been doing arts & craft. You had worried a lot when it first happened, but as soon as you checked that everything was alright you breathed a sigh of relief and began to laugh. Shit, you didn’t know that could happen. Oh well. 

The security guard on duty explained to you how to open up Sun’s chest cavity from the outside, giving his internal components the opportunity to cool off, then told you what to do in case Sun woke back up without a mechanic nearby. You listened carefully, just in case something like that happened again, but when the guard asked you the reason why Sun had overheated you struggled to stifle a laugh. 

-I, uhm… I complimented his… paper pal.- Yeah, sure, that could do. 

Not gonna lie, guilt was beginning to creep up on you. Maybe you should have been more careful, and not just because overheating could cause problems to Sun’s internal wiring, but also because there was a possibility you were overstepping his boundaries. Just the thought of making your friend uncomfortable was painful to you, so you decided you were going to apologize as soon as you saw him. 

Fortunately, not too much time passed before Sun was brought back up from Parts & Service, maybe just an hour. The mechanic told you that he was in tip-top shape and that there was nothing to worry about, but as soon as he left Sun turned his back to you and began to pout like a child. 

-Sunnyyy,- you called, prolonging the y as much as you could. The kids were playing Simon Says and by your prediction you still had a few minutes before any of them decided to randomly bite someone else or take off their pants, so you were fine. -Sunny boy?-

-Don’t call me that!- replied Sun with a huff, -You don’t want to make me overheat again, do you?!-

You smiled, but then apologized, gently asking your friend to turn around. 

-Sorry for what i said,- you began once he was finally looking your way, -It won’t happen again. I hope I didn’t say anything inappropriate and made you uncomfortable, that was not my intention.-

Sun was still pouting, and his eyes switched constantly between you, the floor and the ceiling, like he didn’t know where to look. 

-You won’t do it again?- he asked, and you nodded. 

-I won’t.-

-Ever, ever, ever again?- Sun repeated, like he wanted to make sure. 

-I promise I will never tease you again,- you swore, holding one of your hands over your heart and the other in the air. 

-...Oh.- 

Your brows furrowed. Sun seemed… disappointed? Wait, did he…? A grin opened on your face.

-...Unless,- you began to say, and the animatronic looked at you with hopeful eyes, -Unless you wanted me to tease you.-

Your smile was as large as your face, opening from ear to ear in an unsettling manner.

-Is this what you’re after? Praises? If that’s so, I don’t mind, I’ll tell you how adorable you are all day long.- Your voice ran smooth, dripping with honey, and it had the desired effect when you noticed Sun shuddering. He stared at you in disbelief, like he just realized that you meant every word you said, and his rays spun around his head. Something told you that, if he could have blushed, his entire face would have been red.

-T-This is a game we both can play, Friend!- Sun replied, sounding like he was reprimanding you. The stern expression on his face made you feel like that, at least.

-Then play with me, Sunny boy.-

You and Sun spent the following days teasing each other, fake-bantering like a couple of idiots, but quickly you realized that your robotic friend didn't lie to you when he claimed to be way better at this new game than you had first predicted.

You spent your free time at home thinking about more ways to get him to fluster, and he did the same after he was done cleaning the daycare after a long day. You whispered praises when there were no kids nearby, you dropped random compliments during normal conversations, but more often than not you and Sun ended up actually flirting with each other, and hard.

-You look absolutely splendid today, Sun. Have you polished your rays?-

-Friend, today you smell absolutely delicious, is it a new shampoo?-

-What a flatterer! You truly have a way with words, Sunny.-

-Oh, shame I can’t eat, you would have made a great snack, Friend.-

That particular last sentence made you choke on your water when you first heard it. Shit, you couldn’t let Sun see how flustered he could get you! It was almost like, the more you complimented him, the bolder he got, and it was beginning to have quite the effect on you. Multiple times during the day you had to slip in the bathrooms just to splash cold water on your face, but each time you did Sun teased you to no end. Your little game had long turned into a war which you had no intention to lose, but unfortunately for you, one day the worst thing happened.

-Friend?- Sun called you after finishing a game of tag with the kids, -We ran out of glitter glue, will you come with me to grab some?- 

His tone was completely innocent, but still you refused to let yourself be fooled. The last time you went with him in the supplies closet he had locked the door with you inside until you agreed with him that you were terribly handsome.

-I don’t know,- you said, looking at him suspiciously, -Can I trust you?-

Sun nodded, eagerly. 

-Of course you can! I’m not in the mood for playing today, I will leave you alone,- he promised, looking like a happy dog with that cheerful expression. You looked at the robot up and down, unsure, but eventually you decided he looked honest enough. You sighed and nodded, following the jester in his cheerful steps across the daycare, but not before asking the security guard on duty to keep an eye on the kids while you were away.

You and him headed for the supplies closet then went past it, much to your surprise. All the while, Sun didn’t stop skipping and humming the daycare tune.

-Wait, shouldn’t we…?- you began to ask, turning to look at the closet door.

-No, no, Friend! The glitter glue is up in my room,- Sun explained, -Follow me.-

Doubtful, you still tagged along, following the animatronic past a secret passage, a set of stairs and eventually the door to his room. You stopped before entering, hesitating. You had never seen Sun’s room, and even if it only made sense for them to have a private space all for themselves you had never really thought about it. You didn’t know what to expect, but even if you did expect something, what met your eyes was completely different from anything you could have come up with. The little space was messy, covered in kids drawings, old plushies and other stuff you were sure the animatronic wasn’t supposed to have up there. Random boxes were stacked around and used as tables or something of the sort, although many of them had a thin layer of dust covering them, like Sun never bothered to move them around or even just tidy the place a little. The robot held a hand on your shoulders and turned you the other way when you tried to look at a mass of metallic arms and… staff bot heads? Did you see that right? When you asked more about it, he avoided the question.

The jester asked you to grab a specific box on the side of the door, then went to grab two more himself. You cracked it open, seeing many packages of glitter glue stacked inside, while your friend began to tell you about something that happened with one of the kids that morning. Apparently Jimmy had tried to eat a red crayon, but after just a few seconds something caught your eye and you stopped listening. Hanging from one of the walls were some paper pals, all grouped together like they were friends holding hands, and between them you recognized some of the pals made by the kids a few days prior. They were messy, the colors had no harmony and many kids had glued eyes and mouths upside down, but they were the loveliest paper pals you had ever seen. What caught your eye however was your paper pal, in all of his blue, brown and green glory, kept on the wall next to something that looked like a makeshift bed made with various pillows and blankets. You were left speechless, unable to form a word, wondering how your paper pal had managed to grow legs and crawl all the way into Sun’s room.

-Ah, you saw Robert,- Sun chimed in. He was exactly behind you, -I hope you don’t mind I took him, I just thought he could… be friends with my paper pal.-

Next to Robert, in fact, was another paper pal. Its blouse was the same color of your uniform, the eyes were the same shade of yours and the expression drawn on it—a mischievous smirk—felt oddly familiar.

-Is that… me?- you asked, pointing at Sun’s paper pal. The animatronic laughed.

-Oh, no, silly. They are my new friend,- he replied, smug, -Aren’t they just lovely?-

You swallowed, then nodded.

-What’s their name?- you asked after a few seconds of silence. As you expected, your own name fell from Sun’s silicone lips. -I see.-

The hands of the two paper pals, yours and Sunny’s, were glued together, and they stood very close to one another, like they were the best of friends. You suddenly felt Sun’s presence a lot more than before, you could hear the little mechanisms moving inside his metallic body, you could hear the soft whirring of his cooling system, you could feel his eyes on the back of your head and his huge frame looming over you. 

-I’m happy to see Robert has made a friend,- you commented with a smile. 

-Agree. They are the best friend one could ask for.- 

As soon as those words left Sun, you immediately covered your reddening face with your hands, and in that exact moment you knew that you had lost the game. Shit, shit, shit. You had lost, and the blush covering your face, ears and neck was so deep you could feel your skin burning under your hands. All because of some paper pals.

[djs-sideblog-for-pog-trains]

@putuponpercy's (and previously, @togetherness23's poll) post on the matter of James and "would you still love me if i was a worm"ing has been rattling around in my brain for a few days.

so i wrote 1.7k words about it. It was supposed to be silly but got a little sad/tender at the end. (heavily drawing on my hc that James suffers insomnia and sometimes its bc of night terrors)

--- --- ---

It starts far too late at night – or really, too early in the morning. Thomas is roused from his sleep at a whispering of his name. Not a subtle whispering, though, not one that actually respects the fact that he was asleep, but a stage whisper, fully intending to wake him up.

“Thomas.”

James and his bloody insomnia, Thomas grumbles, blinking blearily awake, squinting in the gloom of the shed at his fellow engine – a dark red shape just on the edge of his vision.

“Thomas, are you asleep?”

“I’d love to be,” he replies, yawning. “What time is it?”

“Never mind that,” James says, and his voice is hushed, but not really hushed enough, and Thomas winces at how his sharper consonants cut through the quiet. “I have an important question.”

“Have you slept yet?”

“Sure,” says James, and he sounds like the answer to that question is barely. “Look, Thomas, would you still love me if I was a worm?”

Thomas blinks once, twice, before he squints harder in James’ direction, trying to see the engine’s expression. If James is fucking with him right now, he doesn’t appreciate it.

“Did you really wake me up at…” Thomas looks up now, there’s a clock hanging inside the sheds for moments like this, “god, 3am, to ask me that? James.”

“Thomas,” James says back, and he matches Thomas’ flat tone, but there’s a hint of something alarmingly sincere simmering under it that Thomas would really love not to think about at 3 in the bloody morning. “I’m serious!”

“No,” Thomas says. “You can’t be serious.”

“Oh,” James says, and – Thomas purses his lips as his eyes have adjusted enough to see James’s face in the moonlight that cuts through the high windows of Tidmouth Sheds – the idiot actually looks relieved. “I thought you were saying you wouldn’t love me.”

“James, are you-?” Thomas tries to keep his voice from raising, but he can’t help it. His indignation ends up waking Percy beside him, who must be well-attuned to the sound over all these years. “You’re an idiot.”

“What’s he done now?” Percy asks, still half asleep.

“He’s woken me up to ask me a stupid question,” Thomas says. “And now you!”

“What’s the question?” Percy stops to yawn too, but he seems very unwilling to open his eyes properly so he can hopefully drop right back off to sleep.

“Would,” James cuts in, a little louder so Percy can hear clearly, though Thomas reckons he’s just outright trying to wake the whole sheds now, “you still love me if I was a worm, Percy?”

Thomas watches Percy’s expression now – mostly because it makes him snort. Percy blinks a couple of times as well, comprehending, before he glances at Thomas, deeply confused.

“What?” he asks, and he looks more awake now. “What kind of question is that?”

“Just answer it!” James says. “Would you?”

Percy scrunches up his face. “I mean,” he says “I don’t really like worms. And they’re so small, I’d lose you, it wouldn’t be fair.”

“So… no?”

“Can we keep the chatter down?”

“Great,” Thomas mutters. “Now you’ve woken Henry.”

“Henry,” James says. “Maybe you can answer. Would you sti-?”

“James, I’m begging you to go back to sleep,” Thomas says. “We all have trains to pull in the morning.”

And another voice joins in. “That we do,” comes Edward, sleepily. “What’s all this about?”

James shoots Thomas something that could be a glare. It’s hard to make out in the dark. Thomas shoots him one back.

“Would you still love me if I was a worm?” he asks. “Either of you?”

“…What?”

He’s even stumped Edward.

Henry sighs sleepily. “Worms are valuable little creatures,” he says.

“So is that a yes?”

Henry purses his lips, the closest equivalent to a shrug he can get. “Sure,” he says.

“Sure?” James echoes, and his voice raises again, he sounds a little outraged, and Thomas lets the aggravation write itself across his face. He knew he should have stayed at the Ffarquhar sheds tonight. Toby would never do this to him. “Henry, you can’t just sure me.”

“Ask me when it’s not the middle of the night,” Henry says.

There’s a lull in the conversation, where James falls into one of his stewing silences, and Thomas glances back down the sheds to see Henry yawn and settle back down, Percy’s eyelids flutter back closed.

Then, “Why ask, James?” Edward asks, and Thomas glowers.

“It’s-!” James flushes a little. “It’s… I overheard someone asking it once, and it- it’s a hypothetical. A test.”

And then, what Thomas has been dreading.

“What are you yammering on about?” Gordon asks. He sounds dry and bleary, so freshly woken up he isn’t controlling his volume, and his voice booms in the quiet of the sheds. “A test of what?”

“Of friendship!” James insists.

Gordon blinks at James too, before he frowns.

“What was the test?” he asks.

Thomas sighs loudly.

James sighs too, before he asks his question. “No one else has given a real answer yet. Would you still love me if I was a worm, Gordon?”

Gordon… closes his eyes, holds his breath. He looks like he may be counting to ten.

Thomas can’t help but snort.

Gordon’s silent for a good long moment, and Thomas glances at Percy, who’s now more awake, too, and they can’t help but shoot each other a little grin.

“That implies,” Gordon says slowly, “that I’d love you now.”

Thomas can’t help the guffaw that leaves him, even as James goes quiet for a good long moment.

Then, “…you don’t?”

“Not at 3 in the bloody morning,” Gordon mutters grumpily, pointedly closing his eyes, though he does open one for a moment to glance at James beside him. “I don’t think I like anything at 3 in the morning.”

“He has a point,” Thomas agrees, even as James goes from staring abashed at Gordon to  Thomas, and he actually looks a little wounded. “What?”

James pouts, though his bottom lip does genuinely wobble a little.

Thomas frowns at him. “…Are you alright?”

“Fine,” James says in a voice that’s a little too thick. “Sorry. Go back to sleep.”

“…We would, James,” Edward calls. “Just for the record.”

“Of course you’d say that, of all engines,” James shoots back, and he closes his eyes a little too tight to be causal or gentle enough for sleep, and Edward huffs from his berth at the opposite end of the sheds. “Look, just…”

“We didn’t mean to actually upset you,” Percy says softly. “If it’s that important to you, then yes, James.”

“…Do you want to be a worm?” Gordon asks after a moment, and he’s shooting James a most curious look, which only makes James flush again, and harder. “It’s a most peculiar thing.”

“No!” James says. “The worm is a metaphor.”

“Don’t call me a metaphor,” Percy mumbles, which makes Thomas snort and shoot Percy a dry look.

“Go back to sleep.”

“Fine by me,” Percy replies, and he yawns wide before he closes his eyes. Henry’s already snoring.

Edward sighs also, but Thomas sees him resigning himself to trying to get back to sleep.

Gordon is still looking at James like he’s really thrown a spanner in the works here, and James refuses to meet Gordon’s eyes, though he does shoot Thomas a look.

“Look, it’s a yes-or-no question,” he says. He sounds remarkably fragile. Then, he pouts, and glances at Thomas, then Gordon. ‘If you can’t bring yourself to admit how you love me, then that’s fine too.”

Thomas can’t help his laughter. Gordon snorts too, shooting Thomas a dry look of his own, before closing his eyes.

“That’s enough nonsense for one night, little James,” he says. “Some of us have important work to do tomorrow, I imagine yourself included. Do try and actually sleep?”

James’ lip curls a little, but he doesn’t bite back.

In fact, he goes silent until the sounds of even breathing and gentle (and not so gentle) snoring fills the air once more.

And Thomas squints back up at the clock. He has shunting he’s expected to do in just almost 2 hours, now, but…

“Why does it matter, James?” he asks again. He knows James isn’t asleep yet.

“It’s not about the worm,” James says, so very softly. “It’s about the love.”

Thomas blinks twice, before scrunching up his face a little.

“I don’t follow.”

“Would you love me if I was a worm,” James repeats. He hesitates before he continues. “…Would you love me if I was suddenly tiny and… incapable, if I was worthless.”

He then sighs, clearly trying to breeze past what he’s just said, even as Thomas’ eyes widen, and he shoots James a far gentler look.

“Look, it’s silly,” he says. “Just-“

“Yes,” Thomas says softly. “Even if you were suddenly different. Or even useless, I’d still love you. I promise.”

James’ breathing hitches. He sounds remarkably genuine.

Thomas has a thought, and he frowns.

“Did you have a nightmare?”

“Maybe.”

“Oh. I’m sorry, James.”

James is the one to snort now, and he sounds tired.

“It’s fine,” he says. “I overheard a couple of children say it to each other on the platform a week ago, and it’s rattling around in my smokebox since. Isn’t that stupid?”

“Eh,” says Thomas. “Maybe. Not really. Humans are weird like that anyway.”

That does make James laugh, thankfully.

They fall quiet again, before James pipes up again.

“Thomas?”

“Yes, James?”

“Thanks.”

Thomas eyes James. He does have to admit it: James looks like he needed it.

“Of course,” he says, closing his eyes. “Goodnight, worm. Love you.”

“Lo- Thomas, don’t call me that. Thomas. Thomas.”

Thomas ignores him, pointedly closing his eyes and yawning before settling down, even as James tries to get his attention again, hushed and a little frantic. He only peters out when it’s clear Thomas has stopped responding, and Thomas really has to hold back another laugh as James lets out the most forlorn sigh he’s heard in a long time.

James settles back down to sleep, now, too, but not before one last thing.

“Love you too,” he murmurs. “Goodnight.”

Despite himself, even as sleep drags him back down into its inviting depths again, it makes Thomas smile.

[veritas-scribblings]

hold - @bartylusmicrofic - words: 967 [mature: discussions of sex and under-age sex, some references to gender dysphoria]

[follow-up to 'teach', (y)earn universe | because @rayjkss said 'second part' and then this was on my brain all day]

‘Why didn’t you tell me?’ Barty demands. He drops himself onto the bed opposite Regulus and stares with such intensity that Regulus is forced to look up from the book he’s reading. ‘We need to give it a name. I don’t know what to call it.’

‘Deimos,’ Regulus says. ‘I’ve always liked that name. And in my family, we name things after stars. Granted, it’s one of the moons of Mars, but Narcissa is a flower name, so I think we can bend the rules.’

‘No, I meant your dick.’ Barty says this so bluntly, angrily, that Regulus feels his heart leap into his throat and suddenly he wants to shrink and die on the spot. ‘Evan told me about it.’

Regulus frowns. Because surely Barty isn’t stupid. Evan can’t be that stupid either. So, Regulus doesn’t know what’s happening anymore. Barty seems to be on a different wavelength than he is, which isn’t unusual since Barty is normally on a different wavelength than most people.

Only, Regulus can normally keep up with him. Now, however, Regulus’s world is dust.

Regulus closes the book in his lap with a snap and tries not to close his eyes as well, because Barty looks so angry and frustrated that Regulus wouldn’t be surprised if he started crying. ‘Barty,’ he says in a low voice. ‘I don’t have a dick. I thought you’d realised that from all the times we’ve, well, been naked together.’

Barty flops down onto the bed dramatically, groaning. ‘This is why we need to give it a name,’ he says to the roof. ‘And you’re not calling it Deimos. Because, I fully respect your right to name your own body, but calling it Deimos while we’re in bed will make it feel like there’s three of us.’ And then quieter, sounding almost sad, he says, ‘I didn’t realise it wasn’t good for you. I’m sorry, I thought it was good for you too.’

‘Barty,’ Regulus sighs. ‘Respectfully. I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about.’

Barty sits up, eyes wide. ‘Sex. I’m talking about sex. According to Evan, you’ve never had an orgasm and I’m doing it all wrong, and I didn’t know! I’m sorry, there aren’t books in the library on “how to have sex” or “how to make sure sex is good” and I just don’t know where to find that sort of information, because it’s not like my parents keep sex guides in the house. I guess I could rob an adult book store, but I just didn’t think I’d need to because I didn’t think I’d need an instruction manual to do this properly!’ 

Oh. 

‘I didn’t realise I needed to draw you a map,’ Regulus says, flushing. 'And you didn't do it all wrong. It felt just fine.' It comes out flat, curt, which makes Barty even more upset. But Regulus just really doesn’t want to be having this conversation right now. 

Right now, Regulus wants to know how he can kill Evan without hurting Evan. And maybe only temporarily. Because he’d been pretty damned clear when talking to Evan that the conversation and the contents of it were to remain entirely between the two of them. Forever away from Barty’s ears.

‘I don’t need a map,’ Barty mutters. ‘I just…need to know of its existence.’

Regulus sighs, shuffles back so he’s leaning against his pillows, knees pulled to his chest. He thinks, perhaps, he can set the bed curtains on fire, run away in all the chaos, because he doesn’t want to be having this conversation right now.

The thing is, Regulus has never been uncomfortable about his body around Barty or Evan, not in the way he feels uncomfortable around others. The way he avoids using the Quidditch Change Rooms because he doesn’t like the eyes of others on him, people wondering why he's different.

Regulus trusts Evan and Barty implicitly and has historically been very open with them. Comfortable dressing and undressing around them. Laying in bed together, cuddling, curled up in their little ball of comfort, when there’s been limbs and body parts everywhere. 

But things with Barty are different now. When Barty touches him in a way that isn’t the normal way friends touch each other. Makes Regulus feel in ways friends don’t normally make each other feel. Regulus just doesn’t know how to deal with it, with the topic of his body when he willingly gives Barty access to it. He wants Barty to just know, the way Barty generally just knows everything. 

And Regulus is aware that this is unfair of him, to lay those kind of expectations on Barty. Even Barty can’t just know everything.

Barty shuffles over, wraps an arm around Regulus and curls against him so he’s in Regulus’s arms. He looks up at Regulus, all doe-eyed in what he probably thinks is a ‘seductive’ sort of way, and says with a small smile, ‘Evan says we need to “communicate more”. Apparently communication is important.’ 

‘I hate talking.’

‘Sure, but you love me. And,’ Barty grins, ‘I want to make sure it feels good for you.’

‘It felt fine.’

Barty rolls his eyes and nudges Regulus in his side. ‘It shouldn’t just feel fine. It should feel incredible. Like, the best thing you’ve ever felt. I want to make you feel good too.’

Regulus sighs and slides down so he’s laying on his side, face buried against Barty. The thing is, it’d genuinely felt good. Nice. Sure, he'd been aware that it'd felt nicer for Barty than it had for him. But Regulus hadn’t seen a problem with that, even when Evan had called it a ‘problem’. Because apparently Regulus is not allowed to have, what Evan had called, ‘subpar sex’. 

Regulus nods into Barty’s chest, hoping desperately that Barty intuitively knows (the way Barty naturally seems to know most things) what he means. Regulus will try—he will—to work through this.

[bluecapsicum]

hi Blue! I am absolutely IN LOVE with the "Reports From Unknown Places" series. If you don't mind me asking, how did you learn to draw the clouds and the sky so well? I've always found the prospect very daunting, but you draw them in a way that simply amazing! Do you have any tips for brushes/practice?

Hello!

Thank you so much for the message, and your kind words! I'm so glad you enjoy Reports.

I completely understand how one might find drawing the sky daunting. I still regularly give myself headaches when working on reports. Everyone has their own issues when it comes to drawing, though.

For instance, this might sound a bit absurd, but one of my main issues as an illustrator is that I don't think well in 3D, and I ended up realising that I was unconsciously thinking about the sky as a flat image. When I started drawing clouds as objects moving in space, everything became a little easier.

(This is the kind of epiphany that I had. Truly a revolution in my mind. Now I can totally rotate clouds in my brain.)

This all came about as I kept on drawing more and more, sure, but the most important part really was watching clouds for myself, as much as possible, and to try and notice things every time. It's mostly silly stuff, especially at first, like oh yeah, I guess clouds produce shadows on other clouds too. Wow! Or, huh, this cloud doesn't have the same density throughout, so the light scatters differently inside of it.

Because it's all fundamentally physics, it ended up sounding incredibly simple once I had noticed it. Of course! It's all logical! I had just never connected the dots before I saw it in person.

So I also bought some books, and watched videos (all those airplane videos are fantastic), read websites, looked at pictures. Everything was helpful in one way or another. Listen, I knew about cirrus and cumulonimbus and that was pretty much it, at first. So looking at diagrams about how high cirrus are in comparison to stratocumulus, for instance, was a revelation. Looking at the life cycle of cumulonimbus explained so much for me.

These are studies I did on the side of Reports, in November 2020, then April 2021, and the third one in September 2023:

I think I'm able to look at these and tell that I got progressively more confident because I understood what I was drawing a lot better.

If I had to say, a few concrete things I learned that work for me is being bold, not to be afraid of contrast and sharp edges, and to treat light as an actor of its own. I can't find it right now, but I once read a quote by (I think!) Cezanne that went something like "I'm not painting the mountain, I'm painting the air between me and the mountain". I think it's the most helpful thing I've ever heard for painting and drawing. It's obviously especially relevant here. The air changes everything.

Anyway, I could go for ages more, I'm totally rambling, so I'll just leave a few references I find helpful:

The International Cloud Atlas

The Cloud Appreciation Society

What's This Cloud

In the end it's just fun, and good for the soul, to spend quality time with clouds, so nothing is ever lost!

[fipindustries]

not a question but basically any time i remember your art exists im looking it up and down and trying to take inspiration from it. your expression work is always top notch, and the way you depict faces is the perfect balance between cartoony and well defined

oh my god this is such an amazing compliment! thank you so much!

you know, i think this has been a long time coming. im going to take this as a chance to go in depth about how my style works, why i do what i do and how i do it. do keep in mind that none of this is me saying "this is the objectively correct way of doing art" but rather just how my own process works, what I like to see in my own art.

that balance that you speak of comes from a commitment to underlying structures. what im going to call the stylization sandwich

i start with a clear, well defined solid structure, i add whatever wacky cartoony features i want on top of it (none the less strongly tied and guided by the underlying structure) and then i refine by adding as many more realistic, grounding details i want, although you can go too far with it so i gotta be careful or ill end up with those shitty "cartoon character IRL would look scary!" clickbait drawings.

(quick aside, this trend fucking sucks, its obvious the artist went out of their way to make the drawing creepy, this pretension that "actually the character would look scary irl" deliberatly misundertands the principles of stylization, its as creatively bankrupt as jokes about mario eating mushrooms)

getting back on topic, the point is that, as long as the underlying structures are solid you can build whatever you want on top of them and it will make sense

a key tool here is internalizing the way the proportions on the face work. and i say internalize because obviously i dont actually have the golden ratio memorized inside my head nor do i stop and measure and calculate all the proportions in the features. i just read a lot about drawing, i drew a lot, i tried to always keep a critical eye to what im drawing and see if it "feels" disproportionate. once you get an eye for it then you know how far you can push things before they complitely break

let me give you another example of what i feel is a botched execution of this.

if you look closely at the face on the left there are a lot of things that dont make sense. the corners of the eyebrows dip down into the eyes when usually the eyes are enveloped by the eyebrows, the way the beard grows around the nose is just not how facial hair is distributed, the mouth is too big, etc. on the left i used photoshop to reorganize the factions into something that makes a bit more sense to me

(another quick aside, the real big problem at the heart of the original drawing were not so much the proportions but the tangents, when different lines touch each other like this that is usually a big no no but that is a topic for another day)

also a lot of it is just me cheating. yeah i cheat. you ever heard how people say there is no innate talent and its all practisce and hard work. well, yeah, that is mostly true, but is also true that some people are born with inherent advantages. either taller or more predisposed to being thin or with better facial structures or better innate hand-eye coordination. i was born with an uncanny capacity to visualize stuff. i have whatever the opposite of aphantasia is. i can borderline hallucinate things if i want to. and that goes coupled with the visual intuitions i developed through practisce and training.

so first come the learned wisdom, and then comes the innate talent that helps me exploit that learned wisdom to its full potential

on top of that is corporeality, i try to draw in such a way that it conveys depth and weight to the things im drawing, certain kinds of stylizations dont care about that and choose instead to have their drawing look flat, a classic one is the UPA style

is a very fun style! very cute, very dynamic, very expressive in its simplicity. it became very popular in the 60's and 70's. personally i choose to go in a different direction. i draw in such a way that if one were to turn my drawings into 3d models not a lot would get lost in the process.

whereas other artists....

...not so much

but yeah, ultimatly it all goes back to underlying structure. any drawing can work

as long as you have a strong foundation underneath.

PS: if you like my style i cannot reccomend enough the art of @rezuaq i feel they follow a lot of the same principles i talked about here but i could be wrong.

they have been my biggest inspiration as of the last 4 years, i shamelssly stole the design of one of their characters for jennyffer. go to their blog and give them a like

[lunalikestowriteanddraw]

Okay, I normally don’t post my art if I use a base as a starting point (which, I’ll be frank, I tend to do. Mostly just because I view them as dolls and they help me get character/outfit designs down), but yall. I had a fucking VISION. I started this yesterday at like 1 in the morning, didn’t stop until I finished the outline (at 3 in the morning), and I just finished it today (also at 1 in the morning…huh). And I am so fucking proud of everything in this and I just need to share oh my GOD

It’s he!!!! It’s human Kremy Lecroux!!!! And I know I don’t have his top hat, and that’s for a few reasons

1) the hair was already a learning experience on its own and I didn’t want to overcomplicate things and get myself frustrated because of it

2) the hairstyle I went with wouldn’t really allow for his hat

3) I can’t draw hats. Like at all. They always look like shit.

But anyway! I am so proud of the hair yall. I didn’t actually want this hairstyle, i actually wanted them to be down, but the hair just want hairing. The Timelapse doesn’t show the amount of times I hit the back arrow (which was a lot. Especially in the sketching phase. Especially for the hair), but it was A LOT. So I just kinda went with this. I think it fits Kremy though, probably moreso now than it would’ve before

Also, I used this watercolor brush when sketching out the hair, and then when it came to outlining, I traced over the individual brush strokes. I think it worked out beautifully. I then used that same brush later for the individual texturing when i started on the detail work.

Also, that tattoo on his neck was actually inspired by Kremy’s cane and Dr Facilier as a whole (I actually wanted to use the background of Dr Facilier’s shop during “Friends on the Other Side” as the background for this, but they all had Dr Facilier in the picture and I didn’t feel like copying all those details). That’s also the reason why I gave Kremy a shadow, instead of the thick white outline I have a tendency to do on my other works.

Also, notice the ring? I’m just gonna say that’s his wedding ring. Bc why not. It’s cute, it’s him, and the ruby in the middle is vaguely inspired by this fanart I saw on here that essentially had Kremy using his wedding ring as a makeshift lighter on the rare occasion his personal space heater of a husband isn’t there to light his cigarette for him. Just…ignore that it’s NOT on his left ring finger

(Btw, it’s also loosely based on my own personal headcanon—where essentially Kremy, Gideon, and the pixies all got these magical fae wedding rings that magically appeared on their fingers bc it was technically a fae pact so…)

And please ignore the hella inconsistent shading. I had intended on doing highlights as well, but I forgot. I also forgot his mustache. Ah well. I think you can still get the Kremy vibe without it lol.

Idk man I am just so fucking happy with this. I very rarely get so into a drawing that I just…draw. Like this. Most of my artworks lately are just simple shapes and flat colors.

[abbys-wifey]

red looks good on you

pairing: vada cavell x female reader

warnings: drug use, alcohol consumption

a/n: vada is literally the cutest little person.

Bored. That’s how I felt being stuck at home on a Friday night with no dads, no sister and no fucking weed.

Of course it was my choice to not go to some dudes party that my twin, Mia, had decided to go to but I hate the party scene anyway, hormonal guys trying to pull you into a bedroom so they would get some stupid alone time, and crappy cheap beer. Not my type of fun time.

“Uhhh.” I groan and collapse onto the couch a simple cup of vodka in my hand. Taking a sip and trying my hardest not to make a face I check my phone to see Mias number flashing on my screen.

“Yeah?” I pick up the call and place it against my ear.

“Hey Y/N just letting you know Vadas staying tonight. We’ll be home in like twenty.” Mia’s voice is slurred slightly.

“Ok just get home safely.” I reply and I can hear the rolling of her eyes. “Just because your a minute and thirty seconds older doesn’t mean I’m a fetus. Relax.” She scoffs before hanging up.

I smile softly at her drunk bickering before leaning my head against the armrest of the couch. Vada. I may or may not have a tiny crush on the small brunette girl. Since the shooting her and Mia had become inseparable, and she had been at our house every day which is given me enough time to be somewhat smitten.

“Hellooo.” Mias voice echoes through the house as she bursts through the front door. “Living room.” I yell back taking another sip of my drink.

Mia appears first, hair disheveled and stance wobbly. But the person I was really looking at stood slightly behind Mias tall stature, Vada looked somewhat the same, her hair pulled up into a messy bun and her outfit stained with what looked like a variety of different alcohols.

“Hey Vads.” I smirk waving at the shorter girl who seems to blush slightly, an awkward hand rising to wave back. “We are going to shower. And then we will come find you for a drink partay.” Mia spins in a circle, almost tripping over her own feet as she giggles like a small child.

I roll my eyes at my sister who tugs on Vadas wrist pulling her up the stairs, my eyes following her tiny figure until they disappear.

As soon as they disappear my eyes widen. “Shit I forgot to ask Mia.” I slap my forehead and down the liquid in my cup (with disgust) before scrambling off the couch and up the stairs.

I think the drink had taken its effect slightly as I became oblivious to the shower running, and instead burst into Mias bedroom.

“Hey have you got any we-“ I trail off as Mia is no where to be found, instead a half naked Vada dressed only in shorts and a bra stands with flushed cheeks beside Mias bed.

“Oh shit sorry, I was just gonna ask if you guys had any weed.” I duck my head down and go to close the door when Vadas voice stops me.

“It’s in her dresser, and it’s ok. We are both girls anyway and I’m sure you’ve seen your fair share of girls in bras. Not saying that your a slut or anything because your not. Well you could be I don’t know. But like-“ Vada continues to ramble as I smirk, slowly opening the door again and trying not to let my eyes drift to her chest.

Shifting through Mias draw I finally find her stash while Vada continues to talk. “Vada. Honestly. Shut up.” I laugh watching her face go red. “Sorry, I ramble when I’m drunk or around hot people. Not saying that your hot. Well you are but like it’s different cause I’m also like kind of drunk.” She begins again and I chuckle at her rigid stance.

Moving slightly closer to the girl I raise an eyebrow. “So you think I’m hot?” I whisper. That causes Vada to shut up, her mouth opening and closing like a fish. I open my own mouth to speak again when Mias voice stops me.

“Oh my god. Stop hitting on Vada Y/N. And is that my weed?” She stalks over, dressed in only a towel and pushes me towards her door. “Give me my weed.” Her hand opens towards me palm flat as I stand at her door occasionally glancing over at Vada who remains red and frozen.

“Love you Mia.” I turn on my heel ignoring Mias curses as she slams her door closed. Holding the weed in one hand I head back to the living room and grab the rolling papers stashed in our cupboard.

…..

“Give it back. I swear to god Y/N. Or at least give us a hit.” Mia groans now fully dressed and standing over me as I tilt my head up at her batting my eyelashes innocently.

“You may have a hit.” I hold out the joint to her and she scoffs snatching it from my hands and placing it in her mouth. “Your infuriating.”

Mia inhales and gestures over to Vada who joins me on the couch, a safe distance between us causing me to feel slightly upset. “Here.” Mia hands the joint to Vada who inhales with a slight cough. “Right now I’m going to piss. Save me another puff.” Mia glares at me before heading back up the stairs.

“Here.” Vada passes me the joint blushing as our hands ghost over one another.

“Thanks.” I grin at her and inhale letting the high wash over me like a wave.

Vada remains silent for a moment and I can almost hear the gears in her head churning as she thinks of what to say next. Her eyes drift over to my face as she turns her body so it’s angled slightly further my way.

“You are hot by the way. Like just in case you didn’t understand what I meant earlier. Like your hot to everyone. Not just me. Not that I find you like hot in the ‘I like you’ way but like-“

My head turns to face Vada as she rambles her eyes finding a way to look at every other surface in the room but mine. I grin slightly before sighing. “Fuck it.”

With swift movements I cup Vadas face moving my lips to meet hers cutting off her ramble. Her eyes widen for a second before her lips begin to move against mine. A second passes before I pull back reality hitting me. “Oh shit. I’m sorry I didn’t mean to do that. I kinda just thought about doing it and it happened.” It’s my turn to ramble as Vada watches me with red cheeks.

Her hands find my my face, abruptly cutting off my rambling as she pulls me back to her lips. “I didn’t mind.” She smiles pulling back after another second.

I laugh relief flooding over my body as I lean my head against her shoulder. “Let me take you out? Like on a date yeah? So I can show you it’s not just the weed making me feel like this.” I look up at her to see her cheeks flushed as she nods.

“Red looks good on you.” I chuckle gently caressing her face.

She simply groans in embarrassment.

“Shut up asshole.”

I bite back a smile and place another kiss on her lips.

“So this Tuesday. Me and you. On a date.” I whisper.

“Sounds like a plan.”

[ravishinglavishingluvr]

i <3 flustered bob

a/n: i've developed this top gun obsession and i decided i have a crush on bob. so naturally, i wrote this with bob floyd in mind. like imagine how red and wide-eyed this baby would go. this was very self-indulgent. got me drooling and giggling like a menace fr :D hope you enjoy!! ik it's nowhere near marauder stuff but i do what i want <3

warnings: mentions of smut, tattoos, horny bob lmao, gn!reader, not edited!!

"hey bobby, i'm going to the shops in a bit. do you wanna go with me?" you ask as you dig for a shirt in your wardrobe. bob trails behind you into your shared bedroom. his eyes widen as he sees you getting undressed, mouth gaping.

"uh- um, yeah. yeah, okay." he tries to avert his gaze but all attempts fail when the tattoo running down the length of your back catches his attention. the dark ink and its beautiful swirls and shadows between your shoulder blades make his mouth run dry. immediately, his mind leads him to dark thoughts and dirty memories of what the two of you do together. he stares at the dip that runs down the centre of your back and recalls the image of your chest pressed flat to the mattress and your gorgeous tattoo on display just for him. he knows the moans you let out as he fucks you all too well.

bob licks his lips and tries to even his breathing as he feels his jeans begin tighten around his crotch. he closes his eyes as if to calm himself down but the image of your naked back as he takes you from behind is tattooed on the back of his eyelids. with a mind of its own, his hand snakes down to cup his crotch through his jeans. no no no he shouldn't.

"bobby baby?" you call out. "bob are you listening to me?"

the sound of his name draws him away from his thoughts. his head whips up to catch you giving him a knowing look. he gapes like a fish at first, "huh? oh, yeah i'm listening sweetheart." the way you're looking at him makes him feel like he's melting inside, and an easy smile takes hold of his lips.

"really?" you both knew he was lying. "what were you thinking about, baby?"

his eyes waver. he can't admit to you that he was having such dirty thoughts about you at 2pm on a tuesday. let alone that the sight of your naked back got him so flustered, it's pathetic.

he meets your eyes one more time, "i um- how much i like your tattoo," he murmurs.

"oh, yeah?"

"mhm," he nodded like an eager puppy.

"good, because it's all for you anyway," you smirked and tilted your head. giving him a teasing wink as he fumbled and struggled to hold eye contact with you. and the laugh you let out made him shake his head as his ears warmed. you loved making him flustered, it wasn't an easy feat. bob was always ready with a quick remark to send you to embarrassment and submission. but for once you were able to override the dominating power he had over you. god it felt good to turn him into a flustered mess choking on their words.

your smirk broke into a wide, adoring smile, "c'mon, bobby." you moved towards him, fully dressed, and looped your arm around his. "let's get going, yeah? wanna make you a nice dinner f'tonight."

bob gave you a curt nod and fell into step with you, "whatever you want, sweetheart." looking up at him one more time as you made your way to the front door, you smiled and stroked his bicep with your thumb. he was already looking at you, but quickly averted his gaze and reached for the door handle.

[thechaoticplayer]

Good Puppy

Author's note: the brainrot- it's too strong... fuck fuck FUCK

Summary: embarrassed for his amusement (writing this at 3 am I apologize if it seems like yk I'm not thinking)

Contains: nsfw content, very short drabble, chaotic is feelin a bit horny (lmao help), gn sub reader, dom Vox akuma, puppy reader....

Mdni or not I ain't yer mom

VOX AKUMA had simply had asked to give you a scratch under the chin. At first, you were skeptical, because the demon was known to be such a teasing type. But he genuinely seemed to want to, eyes bright and wide and somehow bewitching you to nod.

It felt so fucking good! Your eyes slowly drifted shut, a hum vibrating through your throat as Vox's fingers scratched underneath your chin. He stood over you as you sat on a chair in front of him, tail wagging. Vox chuckled, pupils dilated as he asked to scratch behind your ears this time.

Content and finding it impossible to say no, you say yes again.

You literally lean into his touch, causing his heart to increase its rate. All "chihuahua behavior" as he called it (you weren't a fucking chihuahua you'd always retort back) ceased in a matter of seconds. Vox found it adorable.

A kiss to your forehead took you by surprise. Your eyes widened and cheeks flamed, tail wagging even harder, to your dismay. Vox chuckled, brushing a hair back as he cupped your cheeks affectionately.

It seemed all very fluffy and cute, right?

So how the fuck are you on your back arched, clawing at his back, whimpering and begging like a bitch in heat?

"Good puppy," Vox praises, eliciting yet another keening whine from you as be bullies into you, the bed groaning under the effort. "Such a good fucking puppy, yeah? letting me fuck you so good, hm?"

You nod eagerly, all you wanting is to please him. "Yes! I- mmph!" You moan against his neck, nibbling a bit at his flesh and he chuckles.

"What an obedient puppy... since you're so obedient, why don't you call me Master?"

Embarrassment courses through your veins as you look at him, brows furrowed. "I... am not doing that."

"Why not?" Vox pauses his thrusts for a moment, and you whine. He pretends not to hear you as he hooks a finger through the collar around your neck. He yanks hard, causing you to yelp but somehow making your tail swish hard. "You had no problem putting this on for me, puppy."

"W-well," you stammer, shifting your hips.

Vox raises a brow, slowly rolling his hips into you and drawing out a whimper. "Well what? I'm waiting, puppy."

"It's embarrassing!" You quickly spit out, ears flat against your head as you flush.

"Embarrassing?" Vox echoes, another roll making you bite your lip hard. "Oh, so you think that is embarrassing? Just you wait until what you see what I have in store for you."

"Wha-?"

Vox abruptly slams himself hard into you, making you sob out a moan as you dig your nails in. Tears outline your eyes and Vox wipes them away with an innocent smile.

"Now say it."

You shake your head. "N-no!"

A sharp thrust that makes you see stars. He's already stretching you out as is, the burning sensation becoming pleasurable already, his tip kissing your sensitive spot so nicely. You were almost there, but Vox is adamant about this. He watches you with a predatory stare, expecting.

"C'mon puppy..." Vox cooes, pinching a nipple and making you jolt underneath him. He laughs. "Just say it, and I'll let you cum."

Vox drags his cock out almost entirely all the way, only his fat tip inside you before shoving it all back in. Another cry, legs quivering around his hips.

"Master!" You gasp, shame filling you for a brief moment.

Vox grins, fangs glinting. The last thing you see before all you see is white, Vox ravaging your insides and all the while calling you his good puppy. Shame out the window as the urge to serve him and please him became too strong.

After all, there was no denying you were his good puppy.

[revasserium]

118 with daichi? ::

reqs are open :)

118. the power of goodbye

daichi; 2,349 words; teeth-rotting fluff u__u 4 times you say goodbye, and 1 time you say hello instead "what was it like to lose him? asked sorrow. there was a long pause before i responded: it was like hearing every goodbye ever said to me -- said all at once" -- lang leav, love and misadventure

01. “bye! see you next week!”

you’re waving at him, standing on your tiptoes, your other hand caught in your mother’s palm as daichi waves back just as furiously. you are both seven years old and somehow, both your mothers had thought to sign you up for after school art lessons.

“see you!” daichi sighs as he turns back to peer up at his mom, frowning slightly, “mom… i don’t think i’m very good at drawing…”

“ah? but dai-chan, i thought you liked coming to art classes? you’re always so excited!”

daichi furrows his brows as he and his mom start on their slow trek home, up two blocks, turning right onto the main street where daichi knows he’ll pass by the convenience store he likes with the iced milk pops.

“i… i like coming here cause i like my friends! but…” he kicks at the ground, a half-crumpled picture clutched in his other hand. his mother laughs lightly, taking the picture and smoothing it out with her hands.

“mah… as long as you’re having a good time, i think that’s all that matters.”

daichi pouts, pressing his lips, because yes… he supposes having fun is… well, fun, but being good at something is fun too!

he thinks about how your eyes glitter whenever the teacher hands out a fresh, new piece of paper, how eager you are to grab at the crayons and markers, how your tongue gets stuck between your teeth when you’re scribbling color across a page, like you could take the whole world and put right there on the shiny, white surface. sometimes, he thinks you can.

he wonders if he’ll ever find something that makes him feel like that.

“do you still want to come back next week then?

daichi starts, looking up at his mom with wide eyes.

“of course i do! i wouldn’t miss it for the world!”

02. “so… practice, right?” you ask, your hands laced behind your back as daichi shrugs, laughing, scratching at the back of his neck.

“yeah… but i’ll see you after your traditional arts club right?” he pauses at the end of the hallway that leads towards the volleyball gym. you teeter on the balls of your feet, your hair in twin pigtails near the nape of your neck. once, daichi had felt the urge to tug on them constantly, back when the pair of you were still in elementary school, but now that he’s in middle school, he’s decided that it’s high time at like the grown up that he is.

so he settles for a shy smile as you nod and wave at him, jogging off back towards the school’s main building.

“see you!” you shout, even as you disappear from around a corner and he’s left with his hand aloft, blinking after you.

“sawamura? what’re you staring at?” ikejiri blinks as he peers around the doors to the gym.

“oh! nothing — coming!” daichi blushes as he hurries to join ikejiri, casting one last look over his shoulder at the place where you’d been standing.

03. the summer sun blows itself out over the flat of the horizon, the july air sticky with humidity and the lingering taste of possibilities.

“so… where are you going next year?”

you turn your head to look at him, your hair done up in two neat plaits, the ends pinned to the sides of your head so as to keep them from tickling your neck. he tugs lightly on one of the loops; you let your head lilt to one side, offering no resistance as he pulls his hand back.

daichi casts his eyes up at the dying light of a fading sky and grins.

“karasuno! remember when we saw them on tv the other day?”

“oh yeah! they’re the team that went to nationals in tokyo, right?”

“yep! and… i wanna go there one day!”

daichi catches himself, feeling a blush work its way into his cheeks as he looks back down at his hands, resting over the worn old volleyball in his lap.

“don’t worry, you will.”

your voice is a splash of cold water, and he finds himself shivering. he looks up to meet your eyes, and he almost doesn’t want to ask. he doesn’t want to know —

“so… where are you going?”

you purse your lips.

“mom said her job’s moving her to tokyo so…” you shrug, “probably somewhere there…”

and then, painfully, startlingly, you laugh.

daichi’s head jerks up at the sound.

“but when you make it to nationals, then… you’ll be there too!”

he blinks at the smile on your face, too bright for the darkness of the oncoming night.

“r-right! so, i’ll see you then!”

he lets out a laugh too, though it sounds a bit too loud, a bit too forced. you smile nodding.

“i’ll see you then.”

it takes daichi half the walk home to realize that you hadn’t said “if” but “when”.

04. [daichi]: dont stay up too late studying! college entrance exams aren’t till next year!!

[you]: easy for u to say (¬_¬)… u’ll just get a sports scholarship or something…

[daichi]:… p sure im not but okay

[you]: p sure national-leveled athletes get scholarships bUt oKaY

[daichi]: p sure we haven’t made it to nationals yet

[daichi]: go to sleep.

[you]: no, u („• ֊ •„)

[you]: did u fall asleep

[daichi]: (－_－) zzZ

[you]: okies gnight! (─‿‿─)♡

daichi stares at the heart at the end of your message for way too long and tries not to read too much into it.

he stays up all night reading into it anyway.

05. “so… she’s gonna be here. at nationals. to watch you.”

“yes suga. that’s what i said.”

“okay but i wanna make sure you know what you said because from what you said, it sounds like she’s super into you and you’re just refusing to —”

“it’s not like that! w-we’re just old friends —!”

“ah… i know it might not be my place to say this but… it does sound like she might be interested…”

“ha! see? even asahi says so!”

“wha — when did this become a group discussion?!”

“huh? what are you guys talkin’ bout over here? is it that girl daichi-san’s always texting?”

“nishinoya! don’t say that so loudly! and — i’m not always texting her —”

“wait!!! are we finally meeting daichi-san’s mystery girlfriend?”

“tanaka! shut up! and she’s not —”

“daichi?”

daichi freezes and the next moment, several things happen all at once — suga gasps, tanaka stops dead in his tracks, asahi nearly bowls him over, and nishinoya smacks straight into asahi’s back, sending all of them toppling forward like a series of badly placed dominos and it’s all daichi can do to sidestep the mess before they drag him down as well.

but there you are, standing feet from him, watching all this unfold with that same amused smile on your face, with the same bright, sharp eyes he’d always remembered, and god — you look so similar and yet so… so different.

two and a half years has never looked so good, he thinks, as he swallows hard and tries to find something to say.

finally, he settles on, “h-hey! long… long time…”

you laugh, and it’s all he can do not to melt into the sound. because that — that hasn’t changed one bit — the sound still warm and sweet as a spring morning. it shakes through him, breaks him open like the sun over a cracking dawn — he takes a deep, steadying breath.

“yeah, no kidding! but…” you trail off as you take a few steps closer, your eyes flickering over his face, lingering on the broadness of his shoulders, the straightness of his spine, “kinda feels like no time’s passed at all, hm?”

daichi can’t help it — he blushes, clearing his throat as he averts his eyes.

behind him, suga is muttering something and he hears the distinct sounds of the rest of the team being shooed away and for once, he’s thankful that suga pulls his weight as vice captain when it really, really matters.

“i mean, two years is a long time,” he says, feeling suddenly too young and too old all at once, his stomach roiling inside him. he thought he’d have mastered nerves by now; he’s faced down mountains that no one had ever thought they’d summit but somehow… this… this is different.

“it is… you look good,” you say, grinning as you take another few steps forward, as if testing the waters, pushing the line of demarcation closer, and then ever closer. he doesn’t step back though it takes almost everything inside him to hold his ground.

“wow, you’re taller,” you laugh, looking up at him, now close enough for him to touch — reaching out a palm from the top of your head to just below his chin, “much taller…”

your voice is softer, then, like a sigh, a whisper, an admission of sorts. and it’s only then that daichi notices he’s not the only one blushing.

he coughs, swallows, flexes his fingers and forces himself to speak.

“y-you look different too — i mean, good different! you’re… uh — your hair is — longer and —”

daichi fights down the urge to curse, to turn around and run, to lay down on the ground right then and there and pray for the earth to carve itself open so he can fall into it’s dark, unending depths —

you blink, a slow, teasing smile spreading across your lips and daichi finds himself caught, as a thread on a chain-link fence, he looks at you and laughs, helpless, shaking his head.

“sorry… it’s just…” he casts about for words he isn’t quite sure he has. you shake your head, grinning.

“no, it’s fine — i know… it’s a little weird, isn’t it? i mean, two years is a really long time.”

“yeah but… like you said, somehow, it doesn’t really feel like… any time’s passed at all.”

daichi finds his hand reaching up before he can stop himself, almost like second nature, his fingers grazing the ends of your hair, now skimming halfway down your chest, twisted in a loose braid over one of your shoulders.

“it really did get longer but i cut it recently — you should’ve seen it before —” you laugh, looking down at where his fingers are still outstretched, reaching up your own hand to tug at the freshly trimmed ends.

“so… do you uhm — you still do art, right?” daichi asks, tucking both his hands into his pockets.

“yeah! and… you finally made it to nationals. congrats!” you wave an arm around the pair of you, and for a second, daichi had almost forgotten where the two of you were, standing in the bustling entrance hall of one of tokyo’s largest gymnasiums, all bright lights and excited voices.

“yeah — i guess i finally did… took us a while, but… we made it.”

you smile.

“i knew you would.”

daichi chuckles, letting his shoulder shrug up as all the awkwardness falls away between the pair of you, the years falling away day by day, month by month, until it’s just him and you and an entire future of the bright unknown, laid out at your feet.

“yeah, you never did doubt us… even when i did.”

you open your mouth, but someone’s voice cuts through the fray.

“daichi! we gotta go warm up!”

daichi jumps as suga waves at him from down the entire hall, looking both apologetic and exasperated.

“ah — sorry —” daichi turns back to you, his heart halfway to his throat as you nod, the pair of you suddenly tossed back into the present, like a movie caught in fast forward, the frames scrambling to catch up to the here and now.

“no! no — it’s okay! go! i’ll —”

“i’ll text you — see you after, okay? i mean, i don’t know how long — or if you had plans —”

“i don’t! text me — i’ll be here —”

“okay! good! that’s… that’s good!”

“daichi! c’mon, seriously!”

“sorry suga! i’ll be right there —” daichi turns back to you, caught between a frenetic panic and excitement, “i’ll… see you later, yeah?”

you nod, a blush high on your cheeks, nodding, “yeah! good luck! i’ll be watching.”

daichi opens his mouth, wonders if he should say something else, but suga is yelling for him again, and then there’s something warm pressed to his cheek. before he can think, you’re pulling away, your lashes dark and fluttering, your breath hot against his skin.

and then, you’re pressing a hand to his chest, pushing him into motion.

“for… for good luck. now, go!”

“y-yeah — uh — bye!”

you laugh, waving, pressing your lips together as you watch him stumbling rather blankly towards where the rest of his team is waiting for him.

“see you later!”

daichi raises a hand to the place on his cheek where your lips had been, feeling as if you’d smacked him across the face, in all the best of ways.

he looks stares down at his hand, and then back up at you, standing there, still waving.

“don’t — don’t go anywhere, okay?”

you laugh, nodding, now shooing him off proper as he reaches his team and suga starts to drag him bodily from the hall. daichi can’t help looking over his shoulder one more time before you disappear into the crowd, but he finds you immediately, standing on tip-toe, waving furiously at him.

“i won’t! i’ll be right here!"