#if you've ever been - let me know if you visited anything really cool!

[ladyluscinia]

The competing trip planning arguments of "I'm not exactly rolling in money so I need to pay attention to how all this is adding up" vs "I can't afford trips with hotel stays very often so I should probably just spend the money and make it count"

[greenwitchfromthewoods]

broken trust. [part 3] l Joel Miller

Summary:  you used to be very close, but he broke your heart, now your paths have crossed again

Warnings:  +18, smut, angst, swearing, unprotected sex (don't do that), guns, blood, infected, Ellie and Tommy appears

 A/N: I don't know how many parts this story will have, I suspect maybe two more. I didn't expect anyone to like it anyway. I'm grateful for your feedback though, it means a lot to me. a few people mentioned tagging - @vickie544 @dreamtofus @missladym1981 🖤 

[PART 2]

You were gone.

Joel had no idea how hard this would be for him. He was starting to feel strangely familiar feelings, but he didn't want to name them and he definitely didn't want to think about them. 

His body was playing stupid jokes on him. He would wake up at night feeling like you were still lying right next to him, or that he would soon feel your arms as you snuggled up to his back. He would look up at every significant sound on the staircase and sometimes he would feel like he heard your voice in the crowd of people.

But it wasn't you. You hadn't been in QZ for a long time.

Joel knew he had made a mistake. You had told him many times that he was obsessed with control, but he had explained it to himself only by the fact that he had already lost so much - he didn't want to lose you too. Only your absence made him realize what he really felt for you. Because if it was nothing, would it hurt so much?

Joel didn't remember that time very well, how he functioned. At some point Tess appeared, then Ellie. He didn't believe he would ever see your face again.

He would see you walking around Jackson with Ellie, or hanging out at a local bar with a group of people you knew. He wanted every moment like this to feel normal to him, but he couldn't shake this strange feeling. The feeling that you weren't real in some way, or that you weren't within his reach.

You didn't talk much. Hardly at all. It had been a few weeks since you'd met, and you'd only exchanged a few pleasantries. Ellie had been spending a lot more time with you, though.

Joel didn't mind, especially when Ellie started complaining that you only let her visit you after school. From what he could tell, you and Doc had been showing her how to administer medical aid, and that could come in handy. And he really enjoyed seeing the two of you in Jackson when you were both laughing and joking.

He'd wanted to approach you many times. But he couldn’t do this.

"You think you can hide here?"

"I'm not hiding." he mumbled and looked towards Ellie.

The girl sat down on a haystack at the entrance to the horse corral. She looked pleased with herself, because she caught him doing something he denied.

"You've been hiding here for days." she continued. "Like you have something on your conscience. The horses won't help you with that, dude."

"You're talking nonsense." Joel muttered under his breath and went back to brushing the horse he was taking care of. "Don't you have anything to do?"

"Y/N went to the neighboring settlement, so I guess not. I wanted to go with her, but she wouldn't let me."

"And she did the right thing." he heard Ellie snort. "You must like her, huh?"

"Yeah, she doesn't treat me like a kid. She's cool."

"What do you talk about when you spend so much time together?"

"And why do you want to know?" The girl stood up and walked over to him, her hand gently running over the animal's body. "It's a girl thing."

"Yeah, of course." Joel sneered.

"Yeah! Periods, ex-boyfriends, sex. You know."

When she noticed Joel's furrowed brows, she burst out laughing.

"God, you're so grumpy!" she laughed, but then she became serious. "What did you do to her?"

"W-What?! What did she tell you?"

"Nothing, that's the problem." Ellie shrugged. "I've tried all sorts of things, but she doesn't say anything about you. Except maybe 'Ellie, Joel knows what's good for you.' and things like that. Boring. But I still like her."

Joel put down the brush and wiped his hands on a cloth. There were definitely things Ellie would rather talk about with you than with him. He didn't blame her.

He even envied her. He would give a lot for a few minutes with you, without all the mess that was between you and that you pretended not to see.

"Want to go for a ride?" Joel nodded towards the horse.

"Yeah, it'll be fun."

Ellie helped him prepare the horses, but she had barely sat in the saddle when Tommy appeared in the stable.

"Joel!" he panted. "We need you!"

"What's wrong?" he asked nervously.

"The patrol spotted a group of infected. They're on our route to the next settlement."

"Y/N went there!" Ellie squeaked.

Joel looked at her quickly, his muscles tensing nervously and something tightening his heart.

"I don't know anything about her." Tommy replied, clearly worried. "She went with one of our men, but the patrol didn't report anything. Maybe they're still in town?"

"Or maybe they've already met up with them." Ellie muttered.

"Get off." Joel ordered "Tommy, this one is yours." He pointed to his brother's horse and reached for the gun standing by the wall "Wait for us!"

"I want to help!"

"You stay!" Joel growled at the girl and climbed onto the horse.

"Joel?" the girl stepped back so Tommy could get out of the stables "Bring her back, please."

He knew he would do anything to do it.

His footsteps behind you were heavy, but equally fast. When you reached the third floor and opened the door to your apartment, Joel was already a few steps behind you.

"What the fuck were you thinking?" he hissed, slamming the door behind him.

"I wasn't thinking at that moment." you replied, throwing your bag on the table and spilling a few personal items out of your pants pocket.

"I noticed that!" Joel growled, "That was fucking unwise and stupid."

"But it worked, didn't it?" you smiled, looking at him.

Joel was furious. You could see it in his entire posture. He rested his hands on his hips, his chest rising with each deep breath. The wrinkle between his eyebrows and that vein pulsing on his sweaty neck, once again, had pushed him to his limits.

You could have easily been arrested by one of the guards, it was all a matter of a few bad moves, a few poorly chosen words. You had a lot of contraband on you, and you...

"I acted on instinct." You said in your defense. "You should trust me more, Joel."

"I trust you, but you know it's not about that!" He pointed a finger at you. "You can't take that much risk!"

"I can handle it! You don't have to protect me all the time!"

The man took a few steps towards you, but you didn't back up an inch.

"I have to if you're going to act so irresponsibly!"

"Irresponsible?!" You sneered at his tone.

"Childish."

"You're such a jerk sometimes, Joel! You can't admit that I succeeded and..."

You didn't have a chance to finish, his strong hands grabbed your face and your lips collided in a hard kiss. There was nothing gentle about it. Joel forced your mouth open, and his tongue slipped between your lips, ripping a dull moan from your throat.

You threw your arms around his shoulders, your fingers tangling in his curly hair as you pulled him closer, pressing your whole body against his. You shifted, although it was quite difficult, and on the way you managed to tip over the chair.

"Fuck!" Joel pulled away from you when he painfully kicked the table, "Come here!"

He grabbed your buttocks and lifted you up so that you wrapped your legs around his waist. It was more comfortable that way and soon he threw you on the bed, and then you felt his weight on you. 

His hands greedily ripped off your shirt and undershirt. You felt his teeth as he lightly bit your breasts through your soft bra. You could feel that he was aroused as hell. His hard cock rubbed against your crotch through his jeans, driving you crazy. 

Your fingers hastily unbuttoned his shirt as Joel fought with the belt of your pants. Your lips were constantly fighting with each other, kissing, stealing each other's breath, or nibbling. Eventually, you both succeeded. Joel stood up and almost forcibly ripped your jeans off.

His shirt landed on the ground next to the rest of your unnecessary clothing. He sat back on his heels and began to unbutton his pants. His hungry gaze swept over your body.

"A penny for your thoughts." You whispered, but he just shook his head.

He never told you what was on his mind in moments like this, and not only in them. You often caught him staring at you as if he wanted to remember a given moment forever. To engrave it in his memory.

His swollen cock finally escaped his jeans, and a pleasant shiver ran through your body. Joel reached out his hand and you lifted yourself up, then sat on his hips, hugging his hot body. The tip of his cock slid a few times over your juice-covered folds and he slid inside you.

You both fell silent for a moment. Joel saw you close your eyes, taking in as much air as you could. He loved the sight, and he had no intention of ever telling you that either.

His hands held your hips as you took him inside to the very end. His cock filled you completely and stretched you so wonderfully.

"Do you want to go for a ride?"

His low voice echoed right next to your ear, his lips brushing your temple. He didn't have to ask a second time. 

Your hips rose and fell, then again and again. Joel let out the most arousing moans you've ever heard. His hands just held your body, squeezing it occasionally. You felt your orgasm building inside you, but at that moment you felt something else. A hard slap on your butt interrupted your heated sighs.

Confused, you looked at Joel, a sly smile appeared on his face.

"Who's acting childish here?" you mumbled.

Another slap and you bit your lip. Your hand slid down his neck and then you squeezed his cheeks, gripping his face tighter.

"I don't know why I'm still with you, Miller." you whispered, shaking your head in disbelief. "So irresponsible."

"I think I know why."

His hands pressed your hips harder and his cock hit the spot that drove you crazy. Again and again, it was Joel who was now directing your every movement, setting the pace. You felt the muscles in your thighs burning, but you didn't want to slow down. 

You were so close now, and Joel followed you, hiding his face in the hollow between your shoulder and neck. When your walls tightened around him, the most beautiful sound he had ever heard escaped your throat.

"Joel!"

He quickly laid you back on the bed, his hips slamming into you much faster. You knew he was close. At the last moment, he pulled out of you, stroking his cock a few times. He spilled onto your lower abdomen with a loud groan and threw his head back. One of the most beautiful moments you've ever seen him in.

"You're going to kill me." he mumbled, falling down next to you. "You'll be the death of me."

"Don't be so dramatic." you laughed, reaching for the towel on the chair and wiping off what he left on you. "You just have to trust me. Because I trust you, Joel." 

He smiled slightly and pulled you in to kiss your head. He wanted this moment to last forever.

It was chaos.

A car and a few riders were returning from a neighboring village. The trunk of the car was filled with goods that you managed to exchange, and you were in a really good mood. You were moving slowly. Troy, your companion, was telling you some old jokes, and nothing foreshadowed what was to come.

First, one of the horses got spooked. You noticed it in the side mirror, and right after that you spotted them. A group of a dozen or so infected people came out from between the trees.

The spooked horse threw its rider off.

"Stop!" you shouted to Troy, grabbing his arm. "We have to help him!"

"Y/N!" the man pointed to a point in front of you.

More infected people appeared, this time right in front of you. Troy hit the brake. You pulled your gun out of its holster and pulled the other one out from under the seat.

"Got any magazines, kid?"

"Yeah. A few."

Troy nodded.

"Good luck."

The sound of gunfire filled the air. The whole group sped up at once. Joel felt anger and fear growing inside him. Everything here was happening too slowly, he should have been there, with you.

"Joel!" Tommy caught up with him. "People first! Don't do anything stupid."

"You'll tell her that too?!" he replied.

They rounded a bend and that's when he saw it all. 

Frightened horses running around the area, an abandoned car and two men standing on it trying to kill as many infected as possible. Joel saw blood on the side of the road, but he couldn't see you anywhere.

The riders scattered, trying to help the trapped people.

"Where are you?"

He aimed his shotgun and managed to hit several infected who fell helplessly. He felt panic growing inside him.

"God, let this blood not be hers! Let this blood not be hers!"

Another shot. Screaming. Horses neighing. A shot.

Joel aimed again. Then he saw you. You appeared suddenly running from behind the car, your face covered in blood, but you were still alive. He saw you change the magazine, but one of the infected was too close.

Before you could aim, he fell to the ground after one accurate shot.

"Joel..."

The man stopped his horse right next to you and held out his hand.

"Come on!!"

"I don't..."

"Trust me! Please!"

You didn't hesitate this time. Joel helped you climb onto the horse and hit its sides with his heels to get you out of there as quickly as possible. He could feel you were behind him, hugging him around the waist. Alive.

The sounds of gunfire slowly faded away. Joel noticed more people who had managed to get out and sighed with relief. He stopped and immediately felt you slide off the horse, he did so too.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine." you replied trying to see more of where you were.

"Hey, show me."

"Joel, please." you whined.

"Show me." he grabbed your arm carefully and you looked at him. "What's that? You're bleeding."

You rubbed your cheek with your hand and saw blood.

"I fell. I must have cut myself."

"Only this?"

You nodded and a heavy stone fell from his heart. Joel didn't think about what he was doing. His arms pulled you in and you disappeared into his embrace.

It felt so natural. All the pressure you had felt for so long melted away from you, you unconsciously snuggled closer to him. His heart was beating like crazy, you knew yours was too.

You heard the sound of hooves and quickly moved away from Joel. Tommy and the group of riders stopped right next to you.

"Everything okay?" the man asked.

"Yeah. Thanks." You nodded. "We didn't expect them."

"We thought you wouldn't run into them after all. We lost one." He shook his head and looked back. "But the car has to stay there. We'll wait a few days. Maybe this group was the only one."

"Or maybe it's something more..." Joel muttered.

"Maybe." Tommy trailed off, but then nodded to the men. "We're going back, there's nothing for us here."

The drive to Jackson was silent. You were sure that each of you wondered how all of this had come to this and what it could mean. It was already evening when you reached the city.

Joel stopped, and it was only when you got down that you felt how exhausted you were. Your muscles ached and your stomach clenched unpleasantly.

"You should see a doctor."

His voice brought you back to earth. You looked at him blankly.

"Your cheek." He pointed at you with his finger. "Doc should see this."

"I... I'm fine." You replied, but seeing his pleading look, you sighed. "Okay, okay. Jesus, you're so stubborn sometimes."

You turned around and didn't have time to see the small smile that appeared on his face. It wasn't until the door closed behind you that Joel could breathe a sigh of relief. 

He felt his hands shaking and he nervously put them in his pockets. He hated this feeling, this helplessness and loss of control.

All he ever wanted was for his loved ones to be safe. He hadn't managed to do that with Sarah, but Ellie, you or Tommy... Joel didn't want to think about the lengths he could go to keep you safe. And now that life had put you in his path for the second time, he didn't want to screw it up even more.

"Still here?"

Your voice was resonant and Joel closed his eyes for a moment, but then turned to you.

"Yeah, I thought I'd wait for you. If you need anything." he replied.

There was a small bandage on your face.

"Don't look at me like that." you mumbled, smiling "It's your fault. I barely stopped Doc from stitching me up."

"Oh, really?" Joel raised his eyebrows "Have you seen yourself? Do you know what you look like?"

"Don't say that!" you raised a hand to stop him "Don't even try!"

"Scarface."

"Who's being childish here? This isn't even funny." you snorted.

It was good to hear your laughter. He felt a pleasant warmth filling him and that's probably why he decided to try something more.

"Maybe..." Joel cleared his throat "Maybe you'd like to have a drink with me or something?"

His words hung between you for a moment. The ball was in your court.

"Sounds good." you replied after a moment.

He smiled, and you felt how much you missed this in your life. You missed him.

[PART 4]

☆☆☆

Thank you for your time.

[hughiecampbelle]

Being Hughies Supe Sibling Would Include:

Requested: hi!! i hope you're doing well 💓 can i request maybe an fic/headcanon where the reader is supe and hughie's sibling who hasn't seen him in years because reader stayed with their mother? (and the reader meets hughie when their father dies). feel free to ignore, but i thought the idea was interesting. Thanks!!! 🫶🫶🫶 - anon

A/N: I love this idea!!!! For this sake, I'm picturing Hughie as late 20s, making reader mid/early 20s. Thank you for requesting!! I hope you like it my love!!! Feedback is always appreciated 💕

Hughie found both you and your mother at your father's bedside. You were asleep, your head on the edge of his bed, your mother watching over the two of you

He's shocked. He hadn't seen either of you since he was a little kid. You were even younger, a toddler

He remembers very little before your mother left and took you with her. There's a clear line of before and after in his memories. Before you were a regular family of four. After it was just Hugh and Hughie, eating pizza rolls and watching TV reruns

He wants there to be a spark of recognition when it comes to you, he really does, but when he looks at you he doesn't see the baby sibling he begged for. The baby he played with. The toddler he read to, taught you everything you knew, and spoiled rotten with toys and candy. He sees a stranger

Hughie pills your mother aside, unsure of what to do, wanting to say so many things. Where was she? Where were you all these years? Why did she take you and leave him?

He learns the answer not long after: because you're a Supe. You were injected with Compound V as an infant, but your powers didn't appear until you were a teenager. Knowing it was her decision to give you the V, that Hugh would never have said no to her, Daphne took you with her, realizing that whatever happened to you, however you ended up, would be entirely her fault

She was even more depressed after you were born and, wanting to save you from this depression, from a life like hers, she thought the V would help

Hughie and Daphne talk out in the hall, not wanting to wake you or your dad up

"They missed you."

"Do they even remember me?"

That definitely hurts Daphne. She raised you knowing and loving your big brother. She brought pictures of him and made sure you knew he loved you. Because of this, you'd idolized him

When your mother found out your father was sick, she took you back to the city

It's not like you never wanted to reach out, but you could imagine the hurt your mother leaving must have caused. You didn't want to rip open that wound again. And, you feared, Hughie would hate you because you were a Supe

You followed Annie online and knew all about their public relationship. Even before then, you'd stalked him online and made a fake account to keep up with him. You even knew about what happened to Robin

It's not like Hughie forgot about you. You were his baby sibling, the best thing to ever happen to him. He didn't know you were a Supe, though. And, angrily, he assumed your mother chose you over him because you were too young to remember the family she broke up. You would love her because you didn't know anything else

Once you do wake up, it gets awkward

You're not sure whether to hug him or shake his hand, so you end up doing some weird thing in the middle before deciding to sit down again

Unsure of how to break the ice, you bring up Annie. How cool you think she is, how you've been following her since she was initiated into The Seven. Not knowing any better, you tell him how cool it must have been to visit Vought Tower

Immediately, he's turned off. He wants to be kind, be cool, but he can't think about Homelander and Vought while his dad is dying

Your mom leaves for a few hours, letting you two "catch up"

It's definitely painful conversation. You don't want to talk about your childhood, knowing it's a sore subject, so you go on to tell him about the semester you have left at God U and the internship you have because of it

"You're, you're a Supe?"

"Dad. . . didn't say anything?"

You sit quietly again before you find an excuse to leave (bathroom break, getting a soda from the vending machine) before you come back

"What, what can you do?"

You don't love how you became a Supe, but you love being a Supe

You show him, keeping things quiet so as not to disturb anyone

When he has to leave he promises to come back the same time, hoping to see you again

It's hard at first, but before you know it your dad is awake and the four of you are reminiscing about the years you were all together

Your dad loves hearing about the life you've had. When your Supe abilities appeared, your time studying at God U, all the good memories you have with your mom

When Hugh passes, Hughie holds you, taking on that big brother role like no time has passed

You know he's busy (with what, you're still not sure) but he promises to keep in touch and see you as much as he can

When you and Hughie and Daphne go on the tour to spread his ashes, you meet Annie and all their friends

They're more than welcoming, sharing funny stories about your brother, trying to make you smile on such a hard day

Annie heard little about you from Hughie besides the basics, but she falls in love with you immediately

You're not sure whether to tell you're a Supe, so you keep it to yourself. That is, until that asshole yells at Annie and Hughie tells him to fuck off. You get so upset on their behalf you end up showing your powers

"Hughie didn't tell us about that. . ."

After the memorial, you make sure to reach out to him, wanting to keep in contact

He's pretty vague, but he urges you and Daphne to get out of the city

You stay though, sensing something is off. You tell your mom everything is fine and, for her safety, you promise you'll be with her in a few days, you just want to see more of your brother

You follow them to the end, when they try to split up and say goodbye, after Butcher gets the virus

Keeping a safe distance, you follow Hughie and Annie's car. You're stopped short by a woman with a shaved head and men in tactical gear

When Hughie is dragged into the van and Annie flies off, you're handcuffed and sedated, your hands bound with Vought technology so you can't use your powers

"Y/n?"

[morningsunandnightsky]

Lie with you | Ten Lee

Pairing: ten x reader

Warnings: death, grieving, unprotected sex (wear protection pls), fingering, usage of petnames, skinny-dipping, illegal graffiti (not advised). Let me know if i forgot anything.

Word count: 4k

Genre: angst, smut, bit of fluff

18 +, minors dni

Sypnopsis: It’s been some time now since the love of his life left this world. But Ten still can’t get over you and he probably never will. He wants to see you again, hold you in his arms and show you how much he loves you. One day when he visits your grave, the chance of spending one more night with you might not be so impossible after all.

Note: chrysanthemums symbolize death and mourning.

An: if you read my work, you know that smut really isn’t something I do. So I was not expecting this story to take such a turn but it did because a friend of mine found out I write and well...long story short this is the result. It’s the very first time I’ve ever even attempted to write smut, so please bear with me. Feedback is greatly appreciated! I advise you not to read this if any of the warnings make you uncomfortable.

Ten's delicate fingers travel over the smooth stone, following the curves of the carvings that bear your name. He looks at you with tears in his eyes, as he does every time. In an attempt to remove the dust from the letters, he briskly wipes his hands across the surface. “I’m sorry, I haven’t visited in a while, my little star,” he whispers.

He lies on the ground next to the headstone, wiping his hands on his jeans. Whilst a chill runs down his spine from the coolness of the ground.

He notices the dazzling stars as he looks up at the pitch-black sky. The few clouds begin to break almost as if on cue, and then there you are, shining the brightest of all, his little star, softly dazzling upon him.

The cool night breeze brushes over his skin as he shuts his eyes and tilts his face up to the sky. His heart aches, and tears are starting to run down his cheeks.

-

Ten suddenly feels something along his skin, just as if someone was tickling him. His eyes flutter open, revealing…you. with a single white chrysanthemum in your hand and a gentle smile on your face. rubbing it lightly across his cheek. Ten eyes widen as he sees you and for a brief moment his breath catches in his throat.

"Y-Y/N." He mutters in shock.

You carefully wipe his tears away as you keep looking into his eyes with a gentle smile. “Don’t cry…we’ll be alright” you tell him.

He holds your hand tightly; his hand feeling warm against your own. Then he pulls you closer and wraps his arms around your body. Still not believing you’re in front of him,

“you’re really here," he breathes out with a trembling voice. You can hear his heartbeat so loudly and clearly, as if his heart only just started beating because of you.

You run your fingers through his dark locks. It felt the same as always, and yet it felt so different to all the other times you’ve done it before. You can hear him sighing against you, clearly enjoying your touch. You both stay like this for a while. You don’t even know how much time goes by, nor do you care. However, everything feels familiar and peaceful, just like you've returned home.

You look up at Ten and see him looking back at you already. His gaze holds so much love for you but also immense pain. So much so, that you can feel your own heart crumbling down by look in his stunning eyes. His whole face had changed since the last time you saw him. The suffering had left its marks, taking away the glow that was once present. You knew it was because of you.

Cupping his face in your hands, you give him a soft kiss. So gently, as if he’d break if you were any harsher. Ten closes his eyes and kisses back. It only lasts for a few seconds, but it was enough to hold the cracks of your souls together for now.

“Shall we head out of here?” you ask him as you climb to your feet and pull him along. He's still holding your hand, fingers entwined, his thumb softly stroking your skin, and he gives you a nod.

With a mischievous grin on your lips, you sprint back to your car together. You both know exactly what the other is thinking about since you’ve done it countless of times before. A curt nod followed by the engine starting, and you're driving down the highway before you even know it.

With your windows down and the music blasting through the speakers. Both of your voices are overtaking the song as you scream at the top of your lungs. You can tell the few cars that are passing by are giving you looks but you couldn’t care less.

“Do you have the goods with you?” Ten asks even though he already knows your answer. “Would I ever not have the goods?”, you answer and hear him chuckle beside you.

Not too much later, you reach your destination, hop out the window, and open the trunk. Your usual assortment of spray bottles is all spread out, and you shoot Ten a playful look that asks him why he’d ever doubt you. You both take the bottles with you and step into the abandoned factory at the edge of town. Climbing up the ladder and entering the building through a broken window. Graffiti covered the walls, shattered glass was strewn all over the place, and dust was floating around the space like snow in a snow globe. It was perfect. Since it was your little secret spot.

A wave of nostalgia hits the both of you as you walk past all of the murals you have compiled throughout the years. On the enormous wall were the love doves that represented the beginning of your relationship that you’d painted on your first date. And as you went deeper into the building, all of your memories seemed to be displayed like you’re walking through a museum about your own love story. The old place appeared more alive thanks to the vibrant walls than when the space was still in use.

Entering the final, hardly standing room on the rooftop, you lay out your stuff and start your final piece. The location was illuminated by the distant town lights and the flashes from your phones. You both work quickly yet carefully. The air feels thick with paint fumes and perhaps something else too.

You both decide to inscribe your initials within a heart-shaped graffiti piece tonight. It was simple, especially compared to your usual extravagant work the two of you'd do. Yet the simplicity also held a lot of meaning, as it marked the very end of your journey. It seemed as though you were bidding your work of art adieu and saying, "Let's meet again sometime."

Ten keeps stealing glances at you whilst you work, and he swears that every time he looks at you, the butterflies explode more than the last time. You looked as gorgeous as ever as if no time had passed since you last saw each other. He lets his eyes follow your movements, as he can’t take his eyes off of you. He stands behind you when you are completing the last details of your joint project. His body feels hot against your own, and you can feel his lips brush your neck as he whispers in your ear, “So beautiful…”, causing you to shudder.

"Ten…" you exhale, as his hands begin to explore more of your body and his lips start kissing your skin. However, he stops when he hears sirens in the distance. He dashes to peer out of the opening that served as a window.

"Shit, they're heading this way," he lets you know as he rushes back to get you, before escaping. You both notice the red and blue lights getting closer as you sprint back to the car. "Give me the keys, I know a spot," he says but before you can do that the police catch up quicker than you both expect, so you duck behind some bushes and pray that they haven't noticed you yet. And just as if your prayer is answered, they drive past you.

“Come on” Ten says, and you both run away, not even bothering to take the car now. You turn around slightly and look up at the building to take a last glance at the ‘TEN + Y/N’ mural you left behind. Was it a bit childish? Yes. Did you care? Absolutely not. Because it was your final recollection of each other.

After walking for a few blocks, you burst out laughing. "I can't believe that we got away with this." "I was so sure they had us this time," you scream as the thrill of adrenaline shoots through you. Ten laughs along with you, “I know right? If they came even a second earlier, we’d be done for.”

The walk is filled with more laughter and a whole lot of reminiscing about the past. And although you two are beaming, each step you take still feels heavier than the last, you both feel it but neither of you brings it up, not wanting to add to each other’s pain.

The air feels chilly as you make your way down to the secluded lake, Ten had taken you to. It was surrounded by trees, and it looked like it was taken straight out of a fairy tale. You look around mesmerized, “What is this place? It’s amazing,” you exclaim.“I’ve been wanting to take you here for a while now. I discovered it when I was driving around one time, and I’ve been coming back ever since. It should be all ours for tonight because nobody else is ever here at this hour.”

He takes your hand, brings you up a little cliff, and asks you to close your eyes. You take a hesitant step forward, and he has his hands over your eyes. He tells you that you can look when you arrive at the edge, "Okay, we're here," and removes his hands to show you. You see the moonlight reflecting in the water as the lake flows by. The trees' leaves are softly rustling in the mild breeze, creating a soothing sound. You were in complete awe of the sight, which was only enhanced by the lights surrounding the area. “Oh my god…this is absolutely stunning…” you say still not over the view.

Ten chuckles besides you and you feel his arms sneak around your waist again. He looks at you instead of the scenery, “yeah…it’s absolutely stunning…” his eyes flicker to your lips and he leans in to kiss you. It’s filled with all of his love for you, and you can feel every emotion seep through. You both kiss for a few minutes until he pulls back.

“Now…are you thinking what I’m thinking?” he asks with a sly grin on his face. You look from him down to the water. “You’re kidding, right?” you say feeling nervous as you can tell exactly what he is thinking. The grin on Ten’s face only grows as he starts shaking his head. “ofcourse, I’m not kidding. Why? Are you scared?” he asks teasingly. You huff and cross your arms, pretending to be confident as you answer, "Not at all," but you can't help but swallow anxiously as you glance down at the water.

Ten gives you a comforting kiss on the head and giggles as he hugs you from behind. "If you really don't want it then we don't have to do it but I think you do want it," he states. "It's not like I don't want to…it's just so high up and- and what if there is something in the water?" You nervously ask. "Well, we won't know unless we give it a shot, will we? And we’ll do it together like we always do, it'll be ok.”

you nod slowly as you consider it. "Are we completely undressing?" you ask. Ten gives you a nod. "You're aware of the expression 'go big or go home', right? So, let's go big because we definitely aren't going home." Despite laughing at what he said, you still agree.

You both quickly stripped off your clothes. And the thrill of seeing each other naked still made your hearts race even after being together for so long.

Ten's eyes follow every movement you make. You looked amazing to him; every inch of your skin was flawless. You feel your body heat up as he admired you and you can't help but glance at him too. His toned body and tattooed skin made your knees weak. You turn back to the water, trying to hide how flustered he makes you.

Grabbing his hand, you quickly run hand in hand towards the edge of the lake and dive in. The cool water envelopes your bodies immediately. And you swim around, splashing each other and laughing the whole time.

As you float on your backs, the silence of the night crept up on you pleasantly. Feeling completely content with each other's company, that’s filled with lingering gazes and rapidly beating hearts.

However, as you continued to swim, your innocent amusement soon evolved into something more passionate.

You swim closer and closer together until your bodies become entangled. The beautiful swaying of the water only fuels your desire for one another.

Your kisses are deep and strong, and your hands freely move across each other's bodies. You had never felt so alive, so engulfed by one another.

His hands rest on your waist, and he moves closer to you until you feel his chest press against yours. You feel yourself heating up, and the cold water appears to affect you a lot less now. Placing your arms around his neck, you close the distance until you are just inches away from each other. He notices how you’re biting your lip and it only turns him on more.

"Let me do that for you," he says against your lips before kissing you deeply. It was more passionate than any other kiss, and you could feel your entire body tingle. His skin melted into yours, and your lips fit together flawlessly as if you were only made for each other. The kiss became more intense as you felt his tongue glide into your mouth and start moving against yours. His hands went down to your hips, and you let out a gasp when you felt him squeeze your butt.

Ten begins kissing down your neck and sucking on your skin, leaving a trail of red marks. Your breath becomes heavier the lower he goes. His wet tongue glides against your collarbones, making you shiver. His mouth travels down to your boobs, and you can feel his lips wrap around one of your nipples. You can't help but moan at the feeling as you grab onto his hair. Taking his time with your hard nipple, he circles his tongue around and sucks hard, leaving you gasping for air.

"Does that feel good, baby?" he asks as he begins rolling your other nipple between his fingers. The way your back arches and the moan that escapes your mouth tells him enough. He switches hands and lets the other travel down your body, touching all the right places until he reaches your core. And lets his fingers glide against you teasingly.

"Ten…please…" You beg for more of his touch. "Please, what?" he asks with a seductive smile, pressing his thumb on your clit.

"Please touch me," you pleaded. His smile widens, and he begins playing with your folds. His fingers are getting coated with your juices as he gently starts rubbing your clit. You let out a loud gasp and grabbed his shoulders whilst grinding against his hand, wanting to feel more.

“I don’t think it’s the water that got you this wet,” he says with a smirk, clearly amused by how wet you already are when he has barely touched you.

You let out a small whimper as you try to press yourself more onto his fingers, knowing he is still teasing you by not giving in completely. "Do you want more?" he whispers to you. You nod at him, but he only chuckles, "You have to use your words, darling. Tell me what you want, and I will give it all to you.

"I need your fingers inside of me," you breathe out. The glint in his eyes darkens as he kisses you again, pushing a finger deep inside. The way you moan into the kiss tells him you didn't expect him to give in so quickly, which only makes him smirk more.

Ten raises your thigh and wraps your leg around his waist with one hand, as he starts to slowly push his finger in and out of your pussy. “You’re so fucking tight, sweetheart,” he tells you, picking up the pace. The feeling of his cold metal rings against your core only adds to your pleasure.

"Fu-uck," you whimper as he circles your clit with his thumb. You're dripping down his hand, and you can feel your walls tighten around his digits. "Hmm, so wet for me," he hums, adding another finger and curling it deep into you. Hitting your sweet spot so well. Turning you into a moaning mess.

Ten groans against your neck as he feels you clench around his fingers, and he takes it as a sign to fuck you faster. You can feel the knot forming in your stomach but not wanting to come yet you hold his hand still. When you do this, his brows knit together as he glances at your face. "I want to come with you inside of me," you mutter, gazing at him with glazed eyes and and heavy breathing.

He lifts your body and carries you out of the lake while you hold onto him. As you emerge from the water, your bodies glisten in the moonlight, there is a rawness and vulnerability between you that you've never felt before. It was as if the night had taken away all of your inhibitions, leaving only your love for each other.

He lays you down on the soft grass and caresses your cheek, locking his gaze with yours. "Are you sure about this?" he says, carefully examining your face for any symptoms of discomfort before he does anything.

You smile at him and pull him towards you, “I want you so badly. Please…I need you to fuck me” you say. When you tell him this, he wastes no time as his lips find their way back to yours, kissing you deeply. He settles between your legs, pushing them open. A string of curses escapes his breath as he sees your cunt completely soaked.

He strokes his cock a few times and spreads around the precum leaking from his tip before gliding it along your slit. His smirk returns to his handsome face as he watches how your face contorts in pleasure when he rubs his cock against your clit. Your breath hitches, and you buckle your hips up, wanting to feel him inside of you.

He aligns himself with you and slowly pushes in. "Ten…f-fuck," you moan as he fills you completely. He kisses your skin and holds still for a few moments, allowing your walls to stretch around his length.

"You okay, my love?" he asks, stroking your hair. You nod and tell him he can now move. His hips start to roll against yours. You can feel him sliding in and out of you, pushing deeper each time. You're dripping down his length, as your juices cover every inch of his cock.

"You feel so good…taking me so well," he murmurs as his movements quicken and the lewd sounds of skin on skin become louder.

Your bodies now completely connected in every way possible, as you make love underneath the stars. You moved in perfect harmony, the gentle lapping of the water providing a rhythmic backdrop to this moment.

As you pull him closer to you, the deep feeling in your stomach appears for a second time tonight. "I'm going…fu-uck Ten, I'm-" You can't even finish your sentence as your orgasm overtakes you completely, making you come so hard. The feeling of your walls clenching around him sends him over the edge too. And you feel his cum shoot up your core, filling you up as a raspy deep moan escapes his lips.

He slowly pulls out and lies beside you, trying to catch his breath. He draws you into his arms, “you did so well for me. That was amazing,” he states, still breathing heavily. Smiling at him, you let him know you enjoyed it as much as he did.

He wraps you in his jacket and brings your head to his chest. You snuggle up to him, and you both stay silent for a while. The coolness of the water is now a distant memory as you enjoy the warmth of each other's embrace. "You do realise we're going to catch a cold, right?" you ask after some time. Ten chuckles, "Yeah, probably, but it's well worth it. Everything with you is worth it." You scrunch up your nose at his remark, which only makes him laugh loudly.

"We'll have another excuse to cuddle up," he adds. You listen with a drowsy grin on your face. As time passes while you lie in each other's arms, a sense of melancholy fills the air. You can both sense it deep within your hearts. "I wish we could have more time together," you mutter quietly, eyes glistening with tears. "If only we had more time, maybe things would have been different."

Ten shakes his head slowly, refusing to accept the truth of your words. "I know, darling," he says with a sigh. "I wish it too." You take his hand and squeeze it tightly, hoping to savour every second you have left together.

He can feel your warmth pouring through his fingers as he holds your hand. "I don't want to let go," he whispers, his voice breaking.

Your eyes meet, and a wave of sadness washes over the both of you. You both know that you were about to part ways forever. So, you lean closer and kiss his cheek wanting to mend his broken heart even if it’s just a little bit. It's quiet between you again, and the air still holds your breath. Your chests rise and fall together, sharing the same heartbeat. The moonlight beams on your faces, casting an ethereal glow on the grass where you lie. It felt as if time had stopped just for you two.

Slowly, you open your eyes and glance at him again. For a split second your memories travel back to the first time you met him. It was years ago, when you met him unexpectedly at a time you thought you’d never find someone like him. You never believed in 'love at first sight,' but looking back, you realise your heart has loved Ten since the very beginning.

He never strays his eyes away from yours because he knows this is it, but he's not ready to let go. Running his fingers through your hair he can feel your breath on his lips. He has so much to say, yet the words never seem to come out properly. So he stays silent, wanting to remember this moment forever and seal it in his heart.

Each beat of your heart's echoes in the other’s chest when you wrap your arms around him, wanting to feel his body against your own one more time.

Your eyes fill with pain, knowing that you will have to let go of each other and return back over to your respective worlds. You exchange one more kiss as the clouds cover the sky, bringing an end to your brief yet beautiful rendezvous.

Looking into his eyes for the last time, you can feel the emotions well up inside of you as you see him cry. You want to tell him how you feel, how you've always felt, and how you'll always feel for him, even if you're apart. Because there is no one else you'd rather be with than him.

“I may leave you behind in this world, but I’ll never leave your heart. My love for you will never change. Even if my body is taken from you, my soul will always be with you.”

You tried to smile as you tell him, but the tears streaming down your cheeks make it hard. You couldn’t bear to see him cry and you couldn’t bear the thought of leaving him behind either. But the darkness creeps in even if you don’t want it to, and your voice wavers as you can’t keep your eyes open anymore.

“I love you, with every beat of my fading heart.”

-

Ten opens his eyes, and his tears keep rolling down his face as he searches for you in the night sky. A broken smile spreads across his face as his eyes find you again, shining so brightly. He holds up the single white chrysanthemum and whispers,

“I love you too, my little star”

[princeoftheeternalbog]

Marco brainrot :( he's so kind and handsome and strong I WANT TO BITE HIM

Im sorry if hes ooc im still getting used to writing.

SFW!

Marco the phoenix x reader

You presume your downfall can be attributed to a Mr. Portagus D Ace.

You don't know what he said but considering how drunk he was last night when you caught him whispering to Marco and the way he's now avoiding you, it must've been something. And the way Marco is staring at you right now is a pretty big indicator of the topic(your big fat crush).

Seriously though, it's really distracting.

You think that if you don't acknowledge it, maybe he won't either and then everything can be normal and fine and the same.

This is what you tell yourself as you retie the same knot you've been trying to tie for the last 3 minutes, Marco's gaze burning on the back of your neck. The sweltering heat of this islands climate doesn't really help the anxiety tummy ache you have but it's not like you can go visit the ship's doctor because he's- oh right behind you apparently.

"I'm sure I taught you better than this"

And then he's right in your space, strong arms curling around you, caging you in and he hooks his head over your shoulder. He starts pulling the knot apart.

"Distracted-yoi?"

His voice is lilted, you think he's teasing you but you can barely hear what he's saying with how the blood is rushing to your head. You do a half hearted little nod as you watch his hands move, muscles and tendons flexing, you wonder how strong they are and how they would feel holding you and you really hope also that you aren't drooling.

When he's finished, he doesn't step away like you expect. Instead his hands come to rest on your waist, gentle but firm, and you feel like you're going insane.

He hums lightly behind u, tightens his grip ever so slightly and then presses a barely-there-kiss to your shoulder before moving away. By the time your brain comes back online and you turn around he's nowhere to be found on deck.

"What the fuck"

Your whispering feels very loud now that you're alone.

-

With how distracted you are, you end up getting sent to your room by one of the assistant doctors to 'cool down'. You proceed to spend the next 2 hours before dinner alternating between frantic pacing and staring at the wall.

How are you actually supposed to proceed from here? Does this mean he reciprocates your feelings? Did he just think it would be funny- no he's not like that and pops wouldn't allow someone to do that. But how the hell are you supposed to bring that up??

The chaotic stream of thoughts are interrupted by a light tap tap tap on your door.

"Heyy... can i come in"

Its Ace. He sounds scared like he's worried you might hurt him for his little slip up.

He's right. Murder is on the to-do list.

"Sure but you waive your right to safety" Your tone is bitey but not cold because even though he snitched, you did get a kiss out of it.

His sigh of relief is loud as the door swings open,

"I really thought you weren't gonna let me in after-"

"Don't remind me."

"Yep right sorry" He looks pale and you decide to give him some grace.

"...He kissed me"

"WHAT"

"DON'T BE SO LOUD"

"HOW CAN I NOT BE WHEN YOU DROP SOMETHING LIKE THAT"

"JUST STOP YELLING"

"YOU STOP YELLING"

"OKAY THEN"

"OKAY"

You look at each other. He's grinning at you and you finally let yourself feel just the giddy butterflies.

"He kissed me"

"I knew it was gonna work out"

"No you didn't"

"No I didn't"

"I don't know what to do now though"

His brow furrows, "What do you mean, he kissed you so that's like a confession right? you're like dating now"

"Well it was like- he kissed my shoulder"

"If anything that sounds more intimate, I'm not seeing the issue"

"Well he didn't say anything about it"

"So you say something"

"NO"

"DON'T SHOUT"

"I'M NOT"

"OKAY"

"But seriously what would I even say, 'oh hi, you know when you basically cradled me against you on the deck and kissed me did that like mean anything or were you just trying something different?' No way, I'll sound stupid"

His face softens and his tone is a lot more reassuring when he says, "I'm sure it did mean something"

"How can you know" Your voice wobbles and this is so embarrassing.

"Just- why don't you sit next to him now at dinner?"

"But that's your usual spot?"

"I'll move up a bit"

"No I don't want to cause you problems too- AND people will definitely point it out"

"No they won't"

"Yes they will"

"No come on just- hey slow down" You're speedwalking out of the room like you can't hear him.

-

Nobody does point it out but you still wish you weren't pressed side to side with your division commander right now.

Ace had somehow managed to distract you enough that you didn't even notice Marco was the one moving to sit by you. It had ended up with Ace in Marco's usual place, you in Ace's and Marco in yours. What's worse is that Ace is now stuffing his face, paying no mind to conversation, so you have no distraction from the heavy, warm hand that's settled on your knee.

It's so hard to eat when you feel likr you heart is about to burst out of your chest. Still you manage to choke down a fair amount, 1. because it's your favourite and 2. because if your mouth is full then you don't have to talk to Marco.

You tilt your head to look at him and lock eyes, his mouth lifts a bit at the corners and he squeezes your knee gently before turning back to whatever conversation he was having. His calm demeanor is not at all helping.

By the time you've eaten your fill, you feel like you're vibrating. You're quick to stand up from the table and rush to put your plate in the pile before practically sprinting out of the hall. You know he's watching you go but you honestly think your blood pressure is hitting a new all time high.

-

The next few days or so go pretty much the same. Marco doing something that is heart attack worthy and you running away but trying to make it seem like you're not.

In this timeframe he has; caught you bridal style after the ship rocked too harshly, given you his shirt after a wardrobe mishap on an island(not mentioning the way he covered you up with his wings to protect your privacy), licked some spare icing off the corner of your mouth- which nearly made you faint- and that's only the half of it.

Coincidentally, you are now also dealing with another problem. A new recruit seems to have taken quite a liking to you and is apparently making it their mission to bother you every spare second of the day.

-

"Goodmorning!"

"...morning"

"Ah your sweet voice is such a good mood booster...though I would like to hear it even earlier"

Their tone is- well it's attempting to be sultry and the smirk on their face tells you that was definitely an innuedo but before you can reply with something in the realm of 'thats inappropriate', a strong, stern voice cuts through the air.

"Then how about you take the second late shift tonight."

You nearly laugh.

"W-well I don't uhm- I didn't- yes sir"

Their voice is defeated as they return to their duties but you won't lie, you don't even feel a twinge of empathy because thank god you don't have to deal with that anymore.

You turn slowly, because despite the rookies comment it's still barely daylight, and you are tired.

"Thank you. I could've dealt with it though" You can't help the way you smile when you look at him god you must look so silly.

"I know"

He's grinning lazily at you, posture relaxed and open.

"But you're important to me, I can't risk losing you to someone else-yoi"

You feel a rush of butterflies in your stomach and you cant help the giggle that escapes your mouth. You cringe, slapping a hand over your mouth because you don't giggle, you're not a giggler, how are you always embarrassing yourself. His grin widens more and he steps close to you,

"Cute...but let me see your pretty face hm?"

His hand is gentle in the way it grabs your wrist and tugs but you still didn't expect the strength there so you stumble forwards slightly. He seems to use this as an opportunity and his other arm curls tight around your waist and pulls you flush.

He clicks his tongue at you,

"Careful"

He somehow pulls you even closer together, your chests are touching and his thigh is brushing the inside of your own. He's so close to your face and he's leaning in and your lips brush and-

"Commander!"

You can see the way Marco's mouth twists in displeasure and to be honest you feel just as disappointed.

You feel dazed as he steps away from you to talk to whoever had decided to interrupt. You just keep replaying the moment in your head, the way he held you like you were everything. You don't even notice his conversation is finished until a warm hand brushes your cheek.

"huh"

"Lost in thought again-yoi?"

He looks slightly less irritated now but the lines of frustration are still noticeable in his face.

"I have to go back to the med bay now"

"Okay"

You still feel hazy to be honest, the fact that he was so close is just melting your brain. But you're cognizant enough to recognise the way his face drops ever so slightly and then you make up your mind.

Before you can chicken out or throw up, your hand comes up and grips the front of Marco's shirt and you yank him towards you. He doesn't have time to react before you're sliding your mouth over his, sweet and smooth.

You pull back,

"I'll see you later then yeah?"

He looks like he's been struck dumb.

"...Yeah"

But by the time he's responded you're already bouncing off inside to continue with your chores.

-

Welp okay that's the end because im not sure where else to go with it but i hope its good. I just get so sad there's not that much Marco fics😔. If you want a part two i can see what i can think of, but if you have ideas feel free to share also! I will write nsfw but I don't know if it'll be good so fair warning :)

[thepigeonhasapen]

hey can i request for charon from hades x male nymph reader who is a chef in the house of hades headcanons

Of course! This is my first time writing for Charon tho so forgive me if it's not great. Also I try to keep all reader inserts as gender-neutral as possible so I hope you don't mind, sorry! Hope you like it :D

🛶Charon/Chef!Reader Headcanons🛶

I imagine you meet through Zagreus as Charon doesn't visit the House very often. It's not that he's banned from it or anything, he just much prefers to be on his own. So Zagreus is really his only source of gossip. Luckily, Zagreus is chatty as hell and mentions you to Charon almost immediately. Hades rarely hires new staff so of course Charon's interest is piqued. He's even more interested when Zagreus brings him some food you've made. Now, Charon doesn't usually care for food one way or the other. He appreciates the Nectar Zagreus brings him, but honestly he'd be equally as appreciative of like a cool rock or something. Still, something about your food is intriguing to Charon. Maybe it’s your nymph heritage impacting the way you cook? After all, nymphs are rare in the Underworld.

Charon kinda lowkey pesters Zagreus to bring him more of your cooking. Zagreus happily does, but he also meddles because he's Zagreus and I'm pretty sure that man physically does not know how to not meddle. He'll start by mentioning to you that you've got a fan in the Underworld.

"You know... Charon's been going nuts for your cooking. Well, I mean, as much as he's capable of going nuts for anything really."

He'll also encourage Charon to go see you in person himself. It occurs to Charon that yeah. That is a thing he could do actually. He doesn't really care for the House but you intrigue him so he'll manage. For a few visits at least anyway.

I choose to believe that Charon is fully capable of making himself understood by anyone if he actually wants to talk to them. He simply doesn't bother most of the time because he just genuinely wants everyone to go away and leave him to his own business. However this isn't common knowledge so you're surprised when you find you can understand Charon. You certainly weren't able to understand him when he first picked you up from Erebus.

Charon gravitates most to the open, bold, chatty type, but he can appreciate it if you're quiet and somber instead. Be a decent person, treat him with respect and kindness, and Charon will keep coming back.

Nyx likes that you've encouraged her eldest son to visit more often and will draw you aside and tell you so. Which is probably quite alarming because she hardly ever talks to you. (Canonically she does tell Dusa off for talking with Zag, but it's different in this case. Charon is perfectly alright cutting ties if people push his boundaries too much, unlike Zag who will try to work it out.) Hypnos also stops by to thank you, because now he gets to see his brother more often! Also congratulations. By befriending Charon you have now earned the respect of both Thanatos and Hypnos! Thanatos is more subtle about it, but Hypnos is now so fully intrigued by your ability to draw his brother's attention that he will routinely ditch work to come hang out with you. I hope you don't expect him to help with cooking though. Hypnos is more of a sit on the counter and gossip kind of colleague.

Charon starts to make a point to visit you as often as he can. Like his brother, he'll sit with you, but unlike Hypnos he'll actually use a chair like a proper adult. He finds it fascinating to just sit quietly and watch you work, and will occasionally rumble out a question about what you're doing. May potentially be enticed to chop vegetables or stir something, but really he'd just prefer to watch. He can't help that he finds you so enthralling!

Kind of a nuisance to be perfectly honest. Won't outright steal food but he will stare at you with puppy-dog eyes until you let him taste. And once you two grow close, Charon becomes a lot touchier. Will stand directly behind you with his arms around your waist and rest his chin on your shoulder.

Scary dog privileges activated. Because Charon likes you, you have amazing job security. If you're ever fired, Charon will be over the moon because now he gets you all to himself immediately find you another place to continue your cooking. They aren't as prestigious as the House, but there are still bars and restaurants in Elysium he can find work for you, if that's what you want to do. If you're really broken up about it though, Charon will just straight up go on strike. Look, he's besties with Zagreus and he'll still charge him like fifty bucks for a sandwich even if he's on the brink of death. My man is a petty bitch.

[felice-jaganshi]

My Fallen Apple

Lucifer X Reader

Chapter 3

It's been a week, and you've been texting Lucifer every day since you left. You sometimes send him selfies with your friends or new places around heaven, and he does the same, sort of introducing you to the seven sins and the other rings through the pictures. It's a great time, really!

But now comes the hard part. You told your friends you had a “secret date” with someone and refused to say who. You also told them not to worry if you didn't answer anything till the next morning, as that just meant the date went really good.  

You made your way to where Adam had shoved you off before. You thankfully had managed to avoid him for the week. He was apparently “very busy” with higher angel stuff, not that you cared.

 

You took a deep breath, making sure your phone and backpack were secure before taking the leap!

You were free falling for a majority of the fall, pulling out your wings only when the castle was in sight. But before you could get too close something like a white missile came zooming up to meet you!

 

“You came! You really came back!” It was Lucifer, he'd come up to meet you halfway. He looked stunning, his wings out and on display. You can't help staring.

 

“wow… I've never seen someone with six wings before! Everyone I know has two or four.” He chuckled and danced around you in the air, showing off.

“Well, I am the strongest angel ever created by the OG big man himself.” You giggle at his antics, he was such a charmer. Suddenly you find yourself scooped into his arms, “come on, I got something really cool to show you!” 

You tuck in your wings and let him carry you around. He opened a portal and flew through. “Now, normally human souls can't go to the other rings, but since I'm literally the king , I can get you special exceptions to go anywhere at all, as long as you're with me.” 

He smiled, it had a smugness to it. Pride. But it was different from when Adam was being prideful and showing off, this time it was endearing and charming. Rather than obnoxious and irritating.

 

Next thing you knew, he was landing in front of a fancy restaurant. “A good friend of mine runs the place. I booked us a reservation.” As you entered there was sensual music playing and demons everywhere. But really, they didn't look that much different from angels. Other than a darker color palette on average.

As you were seated, almost immediately a giant demon made mostly of blue fire rushed over to your table! 

 

“Luci, baby! Oh it's been so long since you dined at my place!” He scooped the king up in his arms and squished him to his chest, rocking back and forth and looking so happy!

 

“Oh come on Ozzy! Has it really been that long?!” He laughed, and hugged back. Ozzy frowned and set him back down.

 

“Yes. Ever since you and She had a fight here, you haven't been back. That was 30 years ago, luci.” You hide behind the menu while this back and forth occurs. Another demon suddenly comes up behind you and grabs your chair, leaning over you and looking upside down! You drop the menu and try not to scream from surprise.

 

“And who's this little cutie? Is she the one who finally got you to leave pride and visit all of us?” His voice was raspy and he looked like a clown. 

 

“Hi… I'm-” before you can say your name, he turns your chair, making you spin round in circles for a bit. 

 

Lucifer smiled, “yeah she is, my new best friend.”

 

Ozzy gasped, “new best friend? Am I being replaced?!”

 

“Hey hey, no! Buddy! You're my brother, all, well, 5 of you are my family! I love you guys! She's just the newest addition to that family. That's all.” He then smiled at you. You were so dizzy you could hardly hold his gaze. “Yo Fizz, I think you overdid it.”

 

Fizzarolli looked you over, “oops. Sorry babe, you alright? No hurling on me now.” He made his way back to Ozzy's shoulders.

 

“I'll… be fine. Just gimme a second.” You take a few seconds to reorient yourself and take a sip of water before smiling at him. “All good.” He smiled back at you.

 

“Good, I hope this isn't too much for you. This is only your second time hanging out with me.”

 

“Hm, only second time and you brought her to my place? Luci, you certainly do move fast! And I thought I was the master of lust~.” He teased Lucifer, then went to your side. “Thanks for getting him out of the house sweetheart, we owe you a big one.” His voice was really sweet and he placed a warm hand in the middle of your shoulders. 

 

“It's been a pleasure to know him. Did you say you're the master of lust? Would that make you…”

 

“Asmodeus, the sin of lust, at your service baby girl.” He winked. “Would you like any recommendations for dinner? I can tell you all of Luci's favorites.”

 

“Oh, sure.” You were a little nervous now. “I'm not used to being anywhere this fancy. I feel like I'm underdressed for this kind of place…” 

 

“Oh honey, don't worry about that. You're literally here with a king. You can get away with anything when you're with him .” 

_______

 

After dinner, Lucifer took you back to his castle and you looked at more duckies together.

When he turned his back, an impulse came to mind. Hide in the pile of ducks. And well, why the hell not?

 

“Oh and this one- Becca? Hello?” He looked around and didn't see you. He then heard a squeak from your pile as you accidentally squish a duck. He grins, his voice going low, “oh my, looks like i got a rogue angel to hunt down.” He then chuckled and you felt butterflies in your gut. Oh no, why was that hot?!

The next thing you know, he's diving into the pile of ducks! He quickly finds you and you're now pinned beneath him, “So, what was the plan from here? Wait for me to leave so you can run around my palace unsupervised?” He smiled like the cat that caught the canary and tilted his head to the side.

 

“Um… there wasn't really a plan. Just sounded like a fun thing to do.” You were blushing and nervous, you placed your hands on his shoulders, not sure if he'd try to make a move or not. Would you even be upset if he did? He seems to suddenly become aware of your positions as you touch him. He pulls back quickly!

 

“Oh, whoops! Sorry Becca, didn't mean to make you uncomfortable.” He adjusted his tie nervously, standing up. You get up as well.

 

“I'm not uncomfortable Luci. But, if you wanted today to be a date, you should have said so. I would have dressed nicer.” He looks shocked by your words, a blush forming on his cheeks.

 

“No no no no!” He waves his hands dramatically before pointing to his ring. “I- I just wanted you to meet my friends! I'm totally married!” He was panicking now.

 

“But your wife has been missing for seven years?” You have to ask, “Did she take your daughter with her?” He sighed and shook his head.

 

“No, Charlie is an adult doing her own thing, that's all. And lilith… She and I… I don't know anymore. She promised me forever, and I want to believe this is just a rough patch and we'll get through it but… she hasn't even spoken to Charlie all this time either…” He looked more upset by that than her leaving him.” 

You give him another hug, “mind if I stayed the night? I brought a change of clothes and a toothbrush. I wanna spend more time with you.” He hugs back.

 

“Yeah, I have a guest room you can stay in.”

[fallatyourfeet]

Chasing Smiles (Thomas Shelby x Reader)

One Shot

Summary: It's been a really long time since you've seen Tommy's smile, so your hoping a day out together might help you find it.

Written For @runnning-outof-time 's 3K follower celebration Tales From the Flower Garden. Sorry it's taken soooo long K.

Word count: 1760

Warnings: Mostly fluff

A/N: It's been forever since I've written anything and this took a lot of broken sessions to complete (life's been increasingly hectic) so I hope this doesn't feel too disjointed.

Please feel free to send me a message/comment/ask, I would love to know what you think.

If you like this, please feel free to visit my blog and take a look around! You can find my masterlist in my bio.

It was hard. Hard for you to see Tommy this way. Fragments were all you got these days. Fragments of the man you reluctantly farewelled to fulfill his duties on the battlefields of France. Like so many others he returned forever changed, weighed down by the heavy shadows that lingered in his head. Shadows that twisted his dreams into nightmares any time he finally found sleep. But at least he returned, for many did not. And for that you were thankful. Because a world without Tommy by your side was a world you couldn’t comprehend. But you missed his smile, his real smile. And that’s what you were in search of today. A few stolen moments together. Hoping it might help him forget his relentless ambitions for just long enough to let that smile emerge.  

The cabin of the car was quiet, the only noise interrupting the silence coming from the engine under the hood. Tommy’s mind had been particularly absent these past few days and you had given up trying to sustain any form of conversation between the two of you. But it wasn’t uncomfortable, and you knew he appreciated the fact you weren’t trying to fill the silence with meaningless chatter.

Taking your attention from the road, you glanced towards him, his gaze moving over the passing paddocks outside his passenger window. It was a glorious spring morning. The sun was soft and golden, spilling gently across the countryside. Bringing to life the remaining drops of dew left behind by the cool night air. Pasture after pasture adorned with countless liquid filled jewels. It was a beautiful sight, such a stark difference to the dull grey streets of Small Heath and you hoped Tommy was taking it all in.

With a gentle sigh, he turned to face you, his eyes brushing over your hands upon the steering wheel before settling on your face. He smiled softly, though it barely touched his lips, “So are you going to tell me where you’re taking me?”

After a few short moments you replied with a shake of your head, “You’ll find out soon enough, we’re nearly there.” Deciding you were being a little too cryptic, you elaborated, but only a little, “It’s somewhere my nan used to bring me as a child, I snuck up here yesterday just to make sure it was going to be worth it.”

It was a poor effort at being less cryptic. Tommy’s brows furrowed at your reply, but his intrigue peaked. You had told him many stories about your grandmother and all the fond memories you had of her, but he couldn’t recall a single story that would bring him here, an hour’s drive out of Birmingham. You could almost see his mind flicking through the catalogue of every conversation the two of you ever had, his expression was perplexed and utterly adorable, and you responded with an amused smile. Lifting a hand from the steering wheel, you pointed up ahead to a small country laneway, bordered on each side by a row of beautiful oaks, “It’s less than a minute’s drive down that laneway.”

Answering with a little nod, Tommy shifted in his seat, for the most part content that his growing impatience only needed to endure for a few more minutes. Turning down the old gravel road, the sun was all but hidden behind a thick canopy of oak leaves, the new spring growth was so full and lush allowing only scattered ribbons of light to stream through, stealing Tommy’s attention just long enough for you to notice. Giving you hope that just maybe this day wouldn’t be completely lost on him.

Reaching the end of the laneway, you let the tires roll to a stop and set the parking brake. Exiting the car, you waited for Tommy to come around and meet you, before slipping your hand in his. With a gentle tug he pulled you to his side and slipped his arm around your back, “Now why have you brought me here? It’s a track that leads nowhere.” Looking towards the gate blocking the road, he gestured to the sign attached, “It’s Private Property.”

You began walking backwards, pulling Tommy with you as you went, your expression playful and teasing, “I’ve known you for a long time now Tommy. Since when have you ever followed the rules?”

Dropping his hand, you hitched up your dress and began climbing the gate, leaving Tommy standing there, eyes wide and forehead creased, his voice baring a hint of amusement, “And since when did you break them?”

Jumping to the ground, you spun around and shrugged your shoulders, your features innocent but your words suggesting otherwise. “Maybe I’m not the good girl you think I am Tommy.”

Tommy smirked, and before you knew it, he was hitching a leg over the gate and landing on the ground beside you, his arms enclosing you against the fence. Moving his lips just an inch from yours, he replied, “Oh, don’t worry. You’ve never fooled me.”

Hovering there a moment, his lips threatened an enticing kiss, but before he could close the distance, you smiled wickedly and ducked under his arm to run away, thankful you had decided to wear your flats. And you knew exactly where you were running to. Moving only fast enough to keep ahead of Tommy’s quickening strides, you came to a stop just a few steps before the gentle decent down the familiar hillside of your childhood.

Once again, you found yourself spinning around, this time giggling like a carefree child. And Tommy was soaking up the sight of your joy. He was almost close enough to reach out and touch you now, and that was when he finally took his eyes from you and caught sight of the very thing you brought him here to see.

Stopping just shy of your reach, he staggered, a visible intake of air passing through his chest. Tommy’s gaze moved with wonder around the gentle hillside behind you, and across the entirety of the valley below. Never had he seen anything like it. Wildflowers. More wildflowers than he could comprehend. Thousands upon thousands… hundreds of thousands maybe, in all the colours of the rainbow. All of them dancing under the light spring breeze, like the gentle swell of an ocean. He was almost at a loss for words.

Stepping forward, Tommy enveloped you in his arms, never once taking his eyes from the landscape. Placing a chin to your head, he squeezed you, “So, the saying is true then.”

Resting your ear to his chest, you listened to the rhythmic beat of his heart for a silent moment before asking him to elaborate.

Cradling the nape of your neck, his fingertips gently lost themselves in your hair, “April showers bring May flowers.”

A string of warm memories flooded your thoughts, closing your eyes a moment you savoured them before looking up to him, the warmth of those memories evident in every one of your features, “My nan used to say that all the time.”

“I know. I remember.” Kissing the top of your head, he adjusted you in his arms so he could see you better, “But tell me… why are you only bringing me here now?” Taking another glance around, he continued. “This place is stunning.”

You nodded in agreeance, “It really is.” A flicker of impatience touched Tommy’s face when you failed to answer his question and you took a little too much joy from it. The sight of it triggering your playful side. You really were feeling a tiny bit wicked today. When his impatience was just about to get the better of him, you moved his hands to rest loosely against your waist, leaving yours placed gently upon his chest, your face as serious as you could possibly make it. “It’s a very special place to me… so I usually only share it with the people I love the most… but I decided to make an exception today and bring you.” Taking a step back from him, you waved your hands flippantly in the air, “I mean, I’ve brought my other boyfriend here loads of times.”

Tommy rested his hands on his hips, his face flooding with an expression you knew very well, an expression that had been missing for far too long, the sight of it lighting up your heart. Clearing his throat you could hear the amusement in his voice, “Oh really… So where is he today, couldn’t he make it?”

Shaking your head, you frowned, wiping away a single fake tear, “It’s quite sad, really. He told me he doesn’t love me anymore, that he’s found someone else. All this time he’s been seeing another woman behind my back. Can you believe it?”

Tommy rolled his eyes, and shook his head, “The gall of him.”

Taking a couple of steps back, you threw your hands on your hips, “I know right?” Sighing deeply, you gently kicked your foot across the grass taking another step back towards the flowers, “Hmmmm, I’m really going to miss him… His skills between the sheets were.” (You made a chef’s kiss gesture)

Tommy burst out laughing, he couldn’t help it, but he was done with your teasing. Lunging forward, he reached out to grab you, yet somehow you managed to slip from his grip, leaving him standing alone at the top of the hill, your beautiful spring dress billowing as you ran through the mass of wildflowers. And it wasn’t long before he took chase. Not that you were going to make it hard for him to catch you.

Slowing down, you spun around to face him, his arms reaching around your waist, pulling you tight. Then down he went, taking you with him, conveniently and expertly spinning you around to land beneath him, the weight of his body pinning you pleasingly against the ground, still laughing. It filled the space around you. Warmed your very core. But that smile. That glorious smile. Here it was, staring right at you, just inches from your face. Not a memory. Not imagined. But real. And it was just for you.

Using the gentle fall of the hill to your advantage, you flipped him over. Setting your legs snuggly around his hips and seized his jacket lapels, holding him a willing hostage beneath you. Then leaning down, you hovered invitingly above him, speaking through the gentle laughter still present upon your lips. “Mister Thomas Shelby… Am I imagining it, or did I just make you smile?”

[silverskye13]

Rereading Redstone and Sculk, got to chapter 7, and suddenly was overcome by curiosity about how Evil Xisuma and Evil Beesuma see each other. Brothers? Awkward distant cousins? Pretend they don't know each other? Something actually approaching friendship? Would love to hear if you've got ideas for this

Hello you've unlocked my hidden lore that I didn't think was going to make it into anything because I can't contrive a reason for it [yet].

Putting under the cut because this got a little long! Sorry for the rambling :'D

So in RnS, Evil Xisuma is the functional admin. He has access to creative mode, and all the god-like powers that entails. When hels was smaller and newer, he used it to wreak havoc. Now, he mostly just uses it to stave off boredom. Given he's also the richest person on the server [god powers makes that easy] he's also a Colosseum Patron.

There's a small list of Colosseum Patrons who remain mostly anonymous [because there's a lot of betting involved with the Colosseum, and the betting gets less interesting when the self-proclaimed leader of hels announces who he's supporting. Everyone rightly assumes he picks the most likely to win]. Other patrons are The Demon [Hels!Impulse] and Etho's Hels, though I doubt we'll ever have a reason to meet him.

[takes a deep breath] Okay! Now that that's out of the way--

EX and EB actually used to have a lot of dealings with each other, since before Helsknight came around and took the Hels Champion title, EB held it. EX was his patron -- which mostly meant sponsoring his gear and occasionally footing bribe money to throw matches. EX has a massive superiority complex though [god powers does that to ya] so he never really saw EB as an equal or a friend. Mostly he was an asset, and a boredom killer. EX was capable of being civil, pleasant even, but he was also always quick to remind EB that he had motives for everything he did, including anything nearing friendship. When EB lost the Championship to Helsknight, EX dropped him like a hot rock to try and patron the knight instead. Helsknight refused his patronage though, so after bouncing around a bit he's settled on a new hels to the arena, because hey, underdogs are always interesting, right? [He's Evil Sausage's patron, something the up-and-comer takes a lot of pride in.]

EB for his part sees EX as like, his out of control older cousin. You know, that one cousin who lived in the same town as you and went to a lot of parties and generally caused trouble, so when you inevitably saw their teachers in high school, they threatened you within an inch of your life if you acted like them? [Maybe that's just a me thing? Hopefully not.] EB is a lot more chill than EX, and realizes he gets a portion of his reputation from sitting in EX's shadow. He doesn't like it, but he's gotten used to it, and sometimes the immunity of being related to the most important person on the server is nice. If nothing else, EX's pride won't let something happening to EB go unpunished -- no one makes the Xisumas look bad. Their reputations are inherently linked. He thinks EX's company is fine in short bursts, and they do still talk on occasion, whenever EX visits the Colosseum, but EB would be lying if he said he wasn't relieved they weren't a patron/fighter duo anymore. EX's unsolicited [and often impossible] advice on how to make a "cool and interesting match" was never something he enjoyed listening to. They do both share a love of mischief and redstone though, and have been known to swap prank ideas -- though EB will noticeably tone down EX's suggestions when he does them.

[hunieday]

Yuki – 16 IDOL ALBUM RabbiTV (part 3)

PART 1 - PART 2 - PART 3

Please note that I am not a professional translator and I'm only doing this to share the side materials to those who cannot access it, if you notice any mistakes please let me know nicely. Enjoy!

Yuki: There are many people in this world who perform pleasantly. The sound that was being played that day made my heart dance.

Yuki: He wasn't a famous performer, I think he's retired now…

Yuki: But my father was a man who believed that what he believed was best, not what society thought was best.

Yuki: That idea is still alive within me today. I'm grateful to him for teaching me such important things.

[cut to the present]

Momo: What you believe in is more important than what others think of you, huh. That's so cool…

Momo: When I visited the café before, I could tell that he was a person who’s serious about music.

Momo: Ever since you were little, he hasn't changed at all.

Yuki: That's right. If anything, his looks haven’t changed either.

Momo: I think so too! He looks crazy young!

Momo: how do I put it… I thought he seemed like the kind of person who’d nurtured Yuki's musicality, or that he was the one who brought Yuki into this world in the first place…

Momo: Kind of like the God of all Gods? God of God (1)?

Yuki: Hahaha! Come to think of it, you said "Thank you for giving birth to Yuki." to him.

Momo: That was the only thing that came out of my mouth at that time! “I wasn’t the one who gave birth”, he replied with such a serious face too!… so embarrassing…!

Momo: Even so, when I told him that you were raised by him, he said, "He grew up on his own."

Yuki: How typical of him.

Momo: But, I think your father must have been happy that you were devoted to the same things as him.

Momo: He thought what he believed in was good, and you believed in it as well.

Yuki: ...Is that so?

Momo: That's right! Because he's your father!

Yuki: I don't really remember him doing anything particularly parent-like in general, but if Momo says so, then you must be right.

Yuki: As for me, I would've appreciated it if I were taught more about what it takes to live as a human being.

Momo: Ahaha! That's why you should be grateful to Ban-san!

Momo: When I was with him the other day, he said, "There were times when I felt like I was raising a child when I was with Yuki."

Yuki: Raising a child? What were you talking about to bring up such a topic?

Momo: It was from the story about how when Yuki becomes absorbed in composing, he stops eating and his life ability drops significantly, isn't it?

Momo: He had to forcibly put an onigiri in your hand because you were going to die if he left you alone.

Yuki: Tha- well, Ban shouldn’t be the one speaking!

Yuki: He used to lose track of time and skip meals when he was absorbed in guitar practice.

Momo: But he was skipping one meal, not the entire day?

Momo: In Yuki's case, even now, there are days when you don't eat anything at all for the entire day.

Momo: There are times when you come to work feeling dizzy…!

Yuki: …That’s right… On days like these, you wrap me in a blanket and drive me home after work.

Yuki: I will never forget the warm vegetable soup and the toast you prepared for me.

Momo: Uu… But the vegetables weren't cooked through properly, and the way I cut them was messy… I'm not as skilled as Ban-san and Yuki…

Yuki: What are you talking about? It was the best soup in the entire world.

Yuki: Thank you for keeping me alive, Momo. I am grateful to you.

Momo: Me…?

Yuki: Obviously.

Momo: Yuki…

Yuki: In Ban’s own words, you've raised a child with him at this point.

Momo: Wai…Wait a minute?! How come? Ban-san and I…raising…?!

Momo: Wait, let me think about it for a night.

Yuki: Think about what?

Yuki: But you two have a great balance between punishment and reward. I feel like Ban would be strict while Momo would pamper me.

Momo: ... Let me think about it for two nights.

Yuki: You added a day.

Yuki: How many days do you need to come to the conclusion that you need a locket pendant with my picture on it?

Momo: Is it a condition that I have to have it?!

Yuki: That's right. Isn't it too much of a one-way street for me to be the only one who has it?

Momo: Yeah… Even though you know that it's not a one-way street…

Momo: To me, Yuki is... Re:vale is like a god that allowed me to be born again…!

Yuki: …yeah. It was Dad who taught me how to enjoy music but…

Yuki: It was Momo that changed the way I thought about music, and changed me into a new person.

Momo: Yu-Yuki…What's wrong, you're more gentle than usual today…

Momo: I'm so happy right now that I think I would be able to run many laps around the apartment...!?

Yuki: fufun…Because you're always pampering me, I want to spoil Momo too from time to time.

Yuki, thinking: My songs, our songs, are loved by both gods and insects.

Yuki: Let's continue to sing many songs together, both of us.

[End of episode 3]

Momo says “God of gods” in Japanese at first, then repeats it in English

[solsjustlionaround]

Things that should have clued me in on my nonhuman identity include:

Cats for Halloween over literally anything else. I primarily had cat themed costumes as a kid, lol and refused to give up my favorite one until I couldn't fit it.

Made any animal planet documentaries about lions into a whole movie-style celebration complete with doing my hair up in buns to replicate lion ears. I was a little kid so obvi my hair was just a mess.

Family member got obsessed with Thundercats, claimed to be a lion, and I vibed with it so I also explained how us lions existed (before knowing my lion identity, mind you. We were two cats in a humans world and nothing could stop our chaotic antics!)

Had a vampire friend who challenged my views on myself and became very connected with feral heart (which I made mostly feline avatars to goof off with!)

Retired my longest standing personal fursona when I drew a lion and it just made sense. (I now have a personal fursona and a kin-based fusona that are both leonid)

Felt at home just hanging out with the lions at the local theme park rather than enjoying the park as a whole itself. (I still go visit them and sit with them for a little while. I even know the prides by their names! :) I'm always at home when I go see them) {start of awakening lol}

Dug more into paleontology and lo-and behold found more information about pleistocene lions (and honestly its so fucking cool)

And finally, got involved with discovering myself. Which, surprise surprise, it took a while to narrow down the exact time frame of existence for my theriotype!

(more under the cut, mostly just rambling)

It took a bit to get here; if you've read my intro pin I've been awakened fully since I was 25, but I'm happy I understand myself more. Pinpointing what I am never was difficult, I was just in a difficult living situation that never let me stray far from my identity as a human. My hardest acceptance for myself was my gender and sexuality, thanks to my upbringings, but once that threshold was crossed things started making more sense.

I found myself. Though I don't think I ever really lost it, I just had to retrace my steps to remember.

Blegh. Vague rambling.

[notmorbid]

this thing between us.

dialogue prompts from this thing between us: a novel by gus moreno.

you dared me.

no heaven. no hell. do not collect 200 dollars.

i was trying to think like you.

the longest relationship i had before meeting you was with a leather jacket.

people want to believe their experience is universal.

what they say: 'call me'. what they mean: 'it's your responsibility to let me know when to actually care'.

what dead person didn't have a great smile? a great laugh?

you have to listen to this song. it'll help.

tragedy brings people together.

we both know i'm not alone here.

if you feel like you're going to be alone, you won't be.

i love you. you're stuck with me.

i'm too sleepy to be scared.

i still pull your hair out of my shirts.

people can be good, if you're patient with them.

come with me if you want to live and let live.

we have to at least try.

can you pull over?

my life's become the second act of a dateline special.

i come from a long line of natural-born fuckups.

you're the only person i'd choose to sit in a car with in heavy traffic.

i wasn't there, and i should have been.

i don't want to get over anything. i want to sink as far as it will take me.

i'm gonna miss you, kid.

you've got the address. come visit.

i need proof this is really you and not something else.

let go. you can't hold on so tight.

you've got so many boundaries around you.

the earth is not a good place. you live on the edge of a blade.

not everything has to mean something.

age before beauty.

would you believe me if i said i missed you?

you're grown enough to live with your mistakes.

i'm not telling you to believe me. i'm just telling you what's happening.

i'm done with knowing things and figuring things out.

i'd kill you for killing yourself.

i'm more tired than i've ever been. it's in my bones.

you've never had any problems with evil spirits, have you?

i'm sorry. for the things that still need to be written out.

it looks like it hurts when you smile.

i'm afraid that when we die, we end up where we always thought we'd end up.

all i want is to sit in that darkness with you.

when the world ends, this would be a pretty cool place to hole up.

take a stress pill.

you left me behind the first chance you got.

only in the darkness are we ever made whole.

[hinatastinygiant]

7 | Ring of Fire

Pairing: Ominis Gaunt x Fem!Reader

Serpents and Roses

After lunch and your magical artifacts studies class the next day, you meet Ominis in the courtyard. As you walk out from the doors, a smile grows on your lips when you spot him.

"Hey," you say, smile growing wider as you approach him.

"I'm glad to see you could make it," he replies. "I have something for you. It's a little late, but consider it a late congratulations for beating Sebastian."

"What is it?" you ask.

Ominis hands you a small book. As you open it, you recognize that it is a field guide to all the different magical creatures you've seen around the school. "Wow this is-"

"It's nothing," he shakes his head. "It's mostly pictures and since I can't, you know, see them... I figured it'd be of more use to you."

"Thank you, Ominis," you smile up at him. "This is very thoughtful. I was wondering what those flying black horses were."

"You were?" he says softly now, as if whatever you just said meant something important.

"Yeah," you nod. "They seemed really cool. So thank you. I will definitely make use of this."

"I'm glad. Shall we walk?" he suggests.

"Yeah, let's," you agree, walking next to him. "Where are we going?"

"To hogsmede. I figured you haven't been there yet so I wanted to take you," Ominis tells you.

"No," you shake your head. "What is it?"

"It's a village where witches and wizards can go and shop. It's a place where they sell everything you could ever imagine," he explains.

"Sounds wonderful," you smile as he leads you out the gates of the castle and down a path.

"It is," he nods, his hand touching yours briefly.

"Back at home, we have places like that. But they're called malls or shopping centers. They're not as big as a town, though. Do you have those here?"

"Oh yes, we have them, too. Just smaller. You know, more intimate."

"Right," you laugh. "I guess not everything is different between our worlds."

"Not everything," Ominis says as your fingers touch again. "But enough to make things strange, I'm sure."

"I can't deny that," you smile. "So tell me, Ominis, what's the weirdest thing you've ever seen?"

"Weirdest?" He questions you. "In what way?"

"I dunno. Just anything that sticks out."

"Let's see. Well, there was a time when I went to Diagon Alley and I heard a group of kids talking about this thing called a... what was it again? Oh yes, a car," he laughs.

"You've never seen a car?!" you exclaim. "What? You're kidding!"

"It sounds like something out of a kid's fairy tale," he continues, "and I was surprised to learn that people actually ride inside those unsafe contraptions!"

"How have you lived all this time without ever riding a car before? I mean, don't you want to see what the muggle world is like? I want to see what the wizarding world is like," you say, causing him to chuckle.

"I suppose I'll just have to visit your world one day," he smiles. "Perhaps we can go together."

"Yes," you grin. "I would love that."

The two of you spend the rest of the walk talking about each other's worlds and what it's like growing up the way you both did. Ominis tells you about his family as well.

"I'm from a very long line of purebloods. My father's side, the Gaunts, is one of the oldest families in the world," Ominis explains. "I know I must be proud to carry on the name, and of the things my ancestors have done."

"I guess in that respect we're complete opposites. Do your parents expect you to marry a pureblood witch or something?" you ask, trying to keep the jealousy out of your voice.

"That's part of it. But most importantly, they want me to marry someone who can carry on the legacy," Ominis tells you.

"So basically no one like me?" you laugh, although your heart aches.

"Well, if I'm being honest, Y/N, I don't want that either," Ominis admits, taking a deep breath. "I think a person should marry whoever they want."

"That's very progressive of you," you smile.

"Thanks. But if I were to be completely honest, I don't think my parents would approve of me being friends with you," Ominis then sighs. "They hate muggles and muggle-borns."

You're not quite sure what to say next. Of course you want to keep being friends with Ominis, but you can't help but think back to your friends' warning. If you get too close to Ominis, will something bad happen to you?

"I'm sorry," he says as he stops walking to turn and face you. "I shouldn't have said that."

"No, it's fine. It's better if we're honest with each other," you smile.

"Thank you," Ominis breathes a sigh of relief. "But I promise, I won't let anyone hurt you."

"And I promise the same to you," you grin, reaching out to squeeze his hand gently. "I know it's a lot to ask, but I hope we can still be friends."

"Friends," Ominis repeats with a nod. "Now, we're getting close. Let's head in."

When the two of you arrive, you look around at how beautiful the small town is.

"Wow," you gasp.

"Is it to your liking?" Ominis asks.

"Definitely," you nod. "It's amazing."

"There's a store here that sells jewelry. Would you like to go check it out?"

"I'd love to!" you beam.

Ominis nods and leads you towards the center of the town where a jewelry store sits. You can see through the glass display that there are many shiny objects inside, and when you walk inside, you're amazed by how brightly colored everything is.

"Hi there," a young girl with brown hair says to you. "How can I help you today?"

"Um, just looking," you smile, knowing damn well you can't afford even the least expensive thing in the store.

"Alright. If there's anything you need help with, please let me know," she replies, leaving the two of you alone.

"Thank you," Ominis nods.

While the two of you browse through the store, you head off in opposite directions. You catch Ominis talking to the worker, no doubt asking her to describe the items in the case to him.

As you walk around the store, you stop and admire a bracelet made of gold. It reminds you of something your mother would wear when you were little. You have no idea how she got it, but every time she wore it, you loved the way it sparkled.

Just then, Ominis approaches you and clears his throat. "See anything you like?" he asks you.

"No," you shake your head. "Just admiring."

"Okay," he smiles. "I found something for you, though."

"For me?" you repeat, looking up at him.

"Yes," he nods, holding out a velvet box with a silver necklace inside. As you reach out in awe to touch it, the blue-green hues of the crystals in the center seem to glow.

"It's beautiful," you whisper.

"Would you like to try it on?" Ominis asks, and you nod, turning around so he can place the necklace around your neck.

His fingers gently brush against your skin, sending shivers down your spine. When he steps back, you can feel your heart pounding.

"How does it look?" he asks you.

"Beautiful," you reply, causing your cheeks to flush. "Ominis, you shouldn't-"

"It's okay," he smiles, "I wanted to. Here, take a look."

You glance in the mirror and notice that the necklace suits your complexion perfectly. It's simple, yet elegant.

"Thank you, Ominis," you say, hugging him. He seems a bit shocked by the gesture, but after a moment, he hugs you back.

"Of course," he replies, pulling away.

"I wish there was a way for me to repay you," you sigh, looking down at the floor. "But I've got to admit I'm broke as fuck."

"Don't worry about it," Ominis laughs. "This was supposed to be a gift. Besides, I've got more than enough money."

"Right," you say, looking back up at him. "Thanks again."

"Don't worry about it," he says as she starts walking toward the door. "Come on, let's go to the three broomsticks. We'll have a drink."

"Alright," you agree, following him.

The two of you find a table at the bar and order drinks.

"So, you said you saw a Thestral before, right?" he asks as the waiter brings your drinks over.

"Yep. What about you?" you ask him.

"No, I've never seen one," Ominis admits, causing your eyes to widen.

"Huh, that's weird. Are they common around here?" you ask as you pull out the small book he had given you earlier today.

"I guess they're pretty rare. Most wizards and witches have only heard stories about them," he says, putting his hand on top of your book so you can't open it. "You're just lucky, Y/N."

"Huh, well I'm not complaining," you shrug. "They're quite beautiful. They have the most graceful wings, and their faces are so unique," you tell him, smiling as he chuckles.

"Are they?"

"Yeah," you nod.

"Maybe one day you can show me," Ominis suggests. "I'd love to touch one."

"Sure," you agree, thinking that perhaps someday, if the two of you become closer, maybe you'll take him to meet one.

After finishing your drinks, the two of you head back to the castle. The walk back is much more quiet than the one before.

"Thank you for everything today," you say as you reach the doors. "I'm really glad we became friends, Ominis."

"Me, too," he nods.

You stand there awkwardly, unsure of what to say next.

"Goodnight," Ominis finally says for you. "See you tomorrow."

"Tomorrow," you agree, watching as he turns and walks away.

As soon as he disappears around the corner, you let out a sigh of relief. You've never been very good at interacting with people, especially guys who you're interested in.

Serpents and Roses

[blackhakumen]

Mini Fanfic #1050: A Call With Dr. Ashling (Epithet Erased)

Sylvie: You did WHAT!?

Giovanni: (Painting his Toenails While on the Phone With Sylvie) I stole Beartrap away from that dumb toy store a night or two ago, found a suitable hideout spot for the two of us to stay at for the time being, and I, with the help of Crusher, have been raising her ever sinc- (Suddenly Heard a Very Loud Scream From the Other Line, Causing him to Move his Phone Away From his Ear at the Last Second)

Sylvie: (On the Other Line) WHYYYYYYYYYY!?

Giovanni slowly but cautiously return the phone back to his hear before hearing another 'WHY' screaming at his eardrums again.

Giovanni: ('Sigh') Really could do without the constant screaming, kid-

Sylvie: (Slams his Hand on the Desk) NO! Do NOT try and casual talk your way out if this one, Giovanni Potage! What the hell were you thinking!?

Giovanni: Well, I-

Sylvie: What POSSESS you into think that kidnapping Molly from here home was REMOTELY a good idea!? Huh!?

Giovanni: ('Sigh') Look, would you just let me-

Sylvie: Are you really....REALLY that hellbent on trying to be this....BIG SHOT villain you've been going on about or some crap?

Giovanni: (Eyes Widened) What? No! I mean, yeah, I wanted to be a great villain and all, but-

Sylvie: Then why, Gio? WHY would you sink that low into doing something so...STUPID AND-

Giovanni: I JUST WANTED MOLLY OUT OF THAT FUCKING HELL HOLE, ALRIGHT!?

'Silence'

Giovanni: (Sighs While Pinching his Nose to Calm Himself) Sorry, sorry. I just- ('Sigh') I know there's a lot to unpack here, but can we not yell at each other a sec? It's not getting us anything.

Sylvie: ('Sighs Heavily') Yeah, you're right. It's unprofessional. Just....please explain to me what's been going on before I have a migraine....

Giovanni: You're fourteen-years old and you're already having migraines? That has to be rough?

Sylvie: (Sighs While Shrugging) Yeah, but it's whatever at this point, you know? I mean, I'm actually fifteen and- (Eyes Suddenly Widens) Hey, wait a minute. (Starts Getting Frustrated Again) We were just having a conversation here! Stop getting off topic!!

Giovanni: Alright, alright, I'm sorry. We're going back on topic now. (Takes a Deep Breath Before Speaking) Okay, so....a day or two ago, I visited Beartrap in the toy store to ask her join our new villain join.

Sylvie: New villain group? You quit the Banzai Blasters?

Giovanni: Yeah, but that's another story in it of itself. So anyways, I was greeted by her older sister, Lori and she transported the both of us, her friends, their teacher, and this cool looking wizard guy into some fantasy land that has something to do with her Epithet, don't remember what it's called specifically, buuuuut to keep it brief, uhh....(Starts Using his Fingers to Point Out a Few Details) wacky adventures ensues, there bees and scarecrows along the way, I had rad horn and wings....Oh! Naven, Beartrap's teacher I told you about, and I hosted a cooking contest to see if Lori has what it takes to be a part of my gang!

Sylvie: How....did she do exactly?

Giovanni: Oh she failed. With flying colors!....But....she was kinda being a sore loser about and starts being all evil and try to sort of kill us. Luckily, we managed to beat her at her own game and got out of the fantasy world in the neck of time. I stole the hell hole's greatest treasure, Beartrap, found a place to hideout for the time being and the rest was history.

Sylvie: Huh. (Grabs his Chin While Thinking) I guess that would explain why I haven't heard from either of you as of late....But that still doesn't explain why you kidnapped her in the first place. And what do you mind by that toy store being a "Hell Hole"?

Giovanni: (Sighs While Getting Up From the Sofa He Was Sitting On) Dude, isn't it obvious? (Starts Walking Around the Room) Molly's been completely miserable working and dealing with people's crap in there for God knows how long and her own family sure as hell wasn't making it any better for her either! I mean, I know Lori has her own problems to deal with, but her dad.....(Crunches Up his Free Hand in Pure Frustration) Ooooooooooh does that jackass rubs me off in the wrongest way possible!!! It's bad enough that he makes her work at the store and clean after him all by herself while he does fuck all 24/7, but the fact that he has the nerve, the AUDACITY, to take ALL the credit his own daughters' worked hard for and acts like the "Breadwinner" of the family makes me wanna get my bat, go back to that stupid toy store, and shove that bat right up his, FAT, PINHEADED-

Crusher: Boss! Calm yourself! (Opens his Room Door and Quickly Rushes Towards Giovanni's Side to Gently Rub his Shoulders) You're going to raise your blood pressure and get yourself a heart attack at this rate.

Giovanni: I AM CALM!!!

Giovanni begins to whimper shortly after he lays his head onto Crusher's chest, hugging him. This, in turn, causes the big guy to hug his boss back in return, while gently rubbing his back

Crusher: ('Shh Shhhh') There, there. It's okay.

Sylvie: Yeah, I'm gonna have to agree with the guy on your line on this one. It won't do you any good being angry and constantly stressing yourself out no matter how egregious that poor excuse of a father really is......Uh...by the way, who....exactly is in the call with you right now?

Giovanni: One of my faithful Boyz, Crusher. Hey, Crusher, it's that Sheep Kid I told you about.

Sylvie: Not a kid. My actual name is Dr. Sylvester Ashling. (Smiles a Bit Sheepishly) B-But I suppose you can call me Sylvie if you-

Crusher: (On Giovanni's Line of the Call) PLEASE TO MEET YOU, SYLVIE THE SHEEP KID, MY NAME IS CRUSHER AND I LOVE MY BOSS TO PIECES!!

Giovanni: D'awwww~ I love you too, big guy~

Sylvie: Riiight.....So, back on the topic of Molly's father: Does he, by any chance, has yellow hair and beard, a green hawiian looking shirt, wearing socks and scandals together, and those small colored stars on that said beard?

Giovanni: Yeah, that fit the description alright. Why? You know him or something?

Sylvie: Not really. I saw him a few times on the day of that museum. He was so..... loud, obnoxious, and looked like he doesn't know a single concept of reality. And you're telling me that's the man whose a father of two? Ridiculous!

Giovanni: Exactly! And you wonder why he pisses me off so badly right now!

Crusher: (Nodded in Agreement)

Giovanni: (Takes Another Deep Breath) But....listen, Sylvie, I know what I'm doing right now is dumb and reckless on my part, hell, I keep having second thoughts about all of this more times than I can count! But when I started this whole villain gig, I made an oaf to protect, help, and be there for my minions each and every step of the way, Beartrap included. And there was no way I was gonna continue standing by let that little girl keep working herself to the bone while her so called "family" does little to nothing to help her out. She's still a kid, Sylvie. A kid that still has a whole life as being a kid ahead before the real word and adulthood comes in and take over. She deserves a lot more than a the crap she received. And if anyone who says otherwise will have to go through ME: VICENT MURDER! The new and upcoming villain Sweet Jazz City will EVER have the DISPLEASURE of meeting AHHHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

Crusher: (Applauds Giovanni's Introduction Performance While Wiping a Tear Away From.his Eyes) ('Sniff') That was so beautiful, Boss.....

Giovanni: (Smiles Brightly at Crusher) Thanks!~ I worked all night coming up with that one.

Crusher: You shouldn't stay up all night, Boss. You'll get tired out easily!

Giovanni: ('Groans While Rolling his Eyes') Oh come on, Crusher! How many do I have to tell ya- (Suddenly Let's Out a Loud Yawn Before Rubbing his Eyes a Little) I'll be fiiiine....

Crusher: See? You were just yawning right now. You ARE tired!

Giovanni: Dude, everyone has to yawn eventually. You gotta stop worrying about us all the time, big guy.

Sylvie had been silent as Gio and Crisher continues to go back and forth at one another about the importance of getting more sleep. And that's when young psychologist thinks to himself.....

What....what is happening right now? Is this really the same....loud, obnoxious troublemaker he met that night at museum a few days ago? I mean, he can tell that the guy cares about Molly some capacity, but to go this far as to take her away from a stressed-filled, dysfunctional place she used to call home and raising her as if she was his very own daughter?.....It sounds too good to be true and yet.....here we are, Giovanni Potage....doing the impossible. Maybe he was wrong about this guy all along. Maybe..........

But as of right now, he ultimately decided to keep all of this to himself. Fearing there might be a possible chance that the wannabe villain might try and rub it somehow.

Sylvie: ('Sigh') You really do care.....

Giovanni and Crusher finally stops their bickering as the resident soup man continues the call.

Giovanni: You said something, Sylvie?

Sylvie: Molly. You really care for her, do you?

Giovanni: Of course I care about Beartrap. I'll do anything for her and my Boyz. Preeeeetty sure we already established that already.

Sylvie: I know. I was just making sure is all. (Smiles a Little) She's.....lucky to have you guys in her life.

Giovanni: Awww~ (Smiles Brightly) I can say the same about you too, Sleeper!

Sylvie: Sleeper?

Giovanni: Yep! As of right now, I, Vincent Murder, has hereby enrolling you to our gang misfits!

Sylvie: Oh no. No no no. Hell. NO. I am NOT joining your crininal gang, Giovanni Potage!

Giovanni: Oh come on! You'll fit right in just fine! In fact, I can give you job as a Tech Wiz in charge ~

Sylvie: (Raises an Eyebrow) Tech Wiz, huh?

Giovanni: Yeah. You seem like the kind of guy who's skilled at computer stuff! You.....are good at computers stuff, right?

Sylvie: Well, I have taken three different computer classes in my first year of college with.....some success behind it.

Giovanni: Sounds good to me!

Sylvie: Didn't say I would agree to join, Giovanni.

Giovanni: Dude, just give it chance. You can do this whole Tech stuff behind the scenes so you don't have to join us on outside missions if ya don't want to. No problem. Plus, if you join, you can finally have the chance to hang out with Molly, whom talks about you a lot by the way.

Sylvie: (Eyes Widened in Genuine Surprise) R-Really?

Giovanni: (Smiles Softly) Yeah, man. She's been worried about you after that whole museum incident the other day-

Sylvie: Which you caused by the way.

Giovanni: Shut up. And to tis day, she wants nothing more than to come by your office to visit you. But alas, she fears that you would be far too busy for idle chit chat-

Sylvie: I'm not too busy!! (Immediately Clears his Throat as He Continues Speaking) I mean...Sure, I have patients and moutains of paperwork to complete.

Giovanni: Mountain shape Paperworks!?

Sylvie: ('Sigh') Yeah. It sucks. B-But besides all of that, my schedule isn't too hectic for the most part. So....if you guys really want to hang out with me, then.....(Starts Blushing a Little) I-I don't mind...

Giovanni: So does that mean you'll join our gang misfits?~

Sylvie: ('Sighs in Defeat') I guess. Sure.

Giovanni: Spendid! Our group is growing ever higher!

Sylvie: (Rolls his Eyes) And I couldn't be any happier. Just try not to cause too much attention in the public eye with your villain antics, alright?

Giovanni: Relax, kid. I'll be careful.

Crusher: (Taos on Giovanni's Shoulder) Um boss? It's time for us to go.

Giovanni: (Eyes Begins to Widened) Oh crap. Already?

Crusher: (Simply Nodded) Mmhmm.

Sylvie: Wait, are you guys going somewhere right now?

Giovanni: Yeah, it's time for Crusher and I to pick Beartrap up from school. Say, what time do you get off from your work or whatever?

Sylvie: Another hour. Why?

Giovanni: Do you wanna spend the rest of the day with us? We have movie night~

Crusher: WE'RE GONNA WATCH SMALLFOOT IN THEATERS!

Giovanni: We originally planned watch that new Puss in Boots movie at first, but a certain dingus who shall not be named- BEN! Brought us tickets to Smallfoot by mistake. So.....('Sigh') Fingers crossed for it to be good or whatever. In the meantime, we'll swing by your office once we gathered the rest of our Boyz.

Sylvie: Okay. I'll try and get myself ready by then. Be careful while in traffic though. It usually gets bigger whenever school is over with.

Giovanni: (Starts Walking Out the Door With Crusher Behind Him) Yeah, yeah mom. We'll be careful. Good thing about this is that Car Crash isn't driving for once.

Crusher: Mmhmm.

Giovanni: Anywho~ We'll see you in a little bit, Sleeper. Don't work yourself too the bone once we get there!

Sylvie: 'Kay, later.

'Call End'

Sylvie: (Sits Back in his Chair as He Looks Up at the Ceiling Sighing) So I guess I'm a villain now, huh? Not the most crazy life-changing moment in my so far, but......it's something. Although.....Having Sleeper as a codename doesn't sound too bad....Better than being called Sheep Boi, that's for sure.

@keyenuta

@cyber-wildcat

@jelloapocalypse

@epithet-erased-textposts

[hournites]

Rick tickles Beth or vice versa

So We're Agreed | Hournite Prompt

"What is that?" Rick asks, eyeing the paperback Beth is scribbling notes in on the bench in the school courtyard. She texted him to come meet her outside during lunch. They're avoiding the cafeteria like the plague. A stomach bug is going around the school and, as Yolanda put it, the cafeteria is a "cesspool of contamination."

Beth flashes the cover as Rick sits beside her, biting into his apple. 200 Questions for Couples.

Oh boy, Rick thinks when her eyes go pleading.

"I found it in the library," she says. "This sounds fun!"

"I don't know," he says. He doesn't want to come across as dismissive but it sounds a bit like a recipe for disaster. They're juniors in high school. They don't need to be answering hard-hitting philosophy questions about their compatibility when they've only been official for a month.

Beth senses his hesitancy and says, "We can pick the easy ones. I don't feel like getting into any arguments either."

Rick relaxes. "Fine, sure." He wraps an arm around her and peers over to look at the page. She put stars beside questions she found interesting. "Let's start here. What's the most ambitious thing you've ever attempted?"

Rick stares at her.

"The hourglass limiter," she answers for him with a sigh. She writes it in. "Right."

"Didn't you say that's a library book?"

Beth gasps. "I forgot!" She flips her pencil around, erasing out incriminating JSA evidence as Rick chuckles. "It's fine, I doubt anyone will attribute book vandalization to Beth Chapel. Your turn."

Beth lifts a shoulder. "Probably assuming I could bring my parents back together." She dusts away the eraser shavings. "I wasn't doing a good job."

"It worked out in the end," Rick says. Beth flips through some more pages. He stops at one and asks, “What different country would you like to live in, if you were able to pick one?"

"I’m not sure. There are so many places I’d like to go visit!” Beth leaned against Rick’s shoulder. “My family went to Trinidad for our last vacation. I really liked it. Maybe I’d pick there. You?”

“Iceland, probably.”

“Why Iceland?”

"The nature looks cool. Glaciers, rivers and stuff. All we have in Nebraska are the woods."

"Fair enough." Beth smirks after glancing down at a new page. "What's your favorite thing about your significant other?"

Rick bites into his apple again. He swallows and asks, "Physically or...a personal trait?"

Beth ducks her head and nudges his shoe with hers. "Both, I guess?"

"Physically, I would say your eyes." He looks at them as he tells her that, her gaze captivated as she listens to what he's going to say. He's sucked in by those big browns all over again. He blushes and scratches behind his neck. "And I love that you have this stubbornness about you to stick to the facts that's rooted in kindness instead of being someone full of grudges like me."

She doesn't comment on the word choice. I love that you...

Rick hadn't thought too deeply of it, but he wasn't going to take something back that was true.

"Your grudges are understandable for the most part."

Rick rolls his eyes fondly. "That's very diplomatic of you to say."

"For me, my favourite thing about you is your loyalty to our friends and family. It's like you'll do anything no matter how scary if it means it'll protect someone else. It's brave, but also a little scary?" She scrunched her nose up. "I would like to not have to bandage you up all the time."

Rick made a noncommittal noise. "I'll work on it."

"And as for physically..." Beth's eyes take a sweep his body. "I like that you're tall."

"Okay, I'm not that tall."

"You are for me! And I like your muscles." She sits back, satisfied with her answer.

Rick shifts in his seat, still really bad at taking compliments. "Uh, thanks."

Beth turns the page. "Are you ticklish?"

Rick makes a face. "Why is that even a question?"

"It's an interesting fact!" Beth laughs. "You didn't answer."

"Yeah, because it's dumb," Rick points out plainly. "The other questions are thoughtful and this is just silly."

Beth shuts the book with a mischievous smile. "So you are ticklish."

"I didn't say that."

"You didn't say no either." Beth inches closer and rests an innocuous hand in the space between them.

"Beth, this is stupid. I'm not ticklish."

"Only one way to find out." Beth skates her fingers along the side of his waist. Rick arches a brow without even a flinch. Embarrassment heats her cheeks and she retreats. "Not ticklish. Understood. Please pretend that never happened."

"Pretend what happened?" Rick furrows his brows with fake innocence and Beth grins up at him. "Perfect.

He wraps his arm around her again and presses a kiss to her head. Then his hand skirts up the side of her shirt and she gasps with a shriek, bolting up from the bench to get away from the tickle.

Rick sits back, flicking the book with his thumb. "I knew it."

"Never do that again!" she whines, sulking back to the bench.

"So we're agreed," Rick says. "Tickling is stupid."

"So very much!" she complains, sulking back to the bench.

"We still have 30 minutes left of lunch, want to hang out in the Mustang?"

The book gets tossed into Beth's bag, desperate to move away from the other benches with students who witnessed her glass-breaking yelp. "It's like you read my mind."

[limetameta]

Riza Hawkeye: If you ask Kimblee about anywhere in Amestris, he's able to tell you one important landmark to visit there. He's like a walking travel log.

Roy Mustang: Let's test this out.

Maes Hughes: Oi, Kimblee, ever heard of this *tiny town in the South of Amestris*? There anything cool to see there.

Kimblee: *gives detailed account of many things to see there*

Roy: How about North City?

Kimblee: *gives overview of all local attractions* Do you want to travel there? It's a bit cold for me. *lists temperatures in different seasons*

Riza: You've never been to these places?

Kimblee: Oh, no, no. :D I just read about them.

Maes, narrows his eyes: Why?

Kimblee, as if waiting all his life for someone to ask him this: My alchemy teacher would code her research in travel logs. I know more about Amestris than I care to, if I'm being honest. I wish she'd coded her alchemy in cooking recipes - I might have learned something useful... now I just know all about the material and immaterial cultural heritage of Amestris. :/ Ask me about the rainiest town in Amestris, Hughes.

Maes: No, that's all right.

Kimblee: No, ask me. Ask me about the rainiest spot in Amestris.

Riza: What's the deal with our climates?

Kimblee: Don't get me started on the climates! We have a mountain climate, some sort of moderate-continental climate, a continental climate, a desert climate, and then whatever near-tropical monstrocity we have going on in the west. Amestris is a wonder. I don't understand how such a country can exist. Ask me about the wind.

Roy: What's the deal with the wind?

Kimblee: Why, Mustang!! I'm so glad you decided to ask -

Maes, whispering: Holy shit we unleashed something.

Riza: He really looks like he's been waiting for this moment all his life.

Roy: Please, I think I've learned enough.

Kimblee: Oh! Oh but no - how could you forget to task me about the foreign currencies! Amestris didn't have cens throughout the entire country until 1899, you know! My teacher would have me learn all of the currencies and the conversion rates because she'd hide critical alchemy information after calculating how much one coffee cost in South City while using the Aeruogonian lir - which South Amestris used! Because of inflation that hit the entire country!? And then from the Aeurognian lir you'd have to convert it to whatever currency they used in the North in 1857. Do you know which currency they used in the North in 1857?

Riza: Cens?

Kimblee: No! Central and West used cens. East and Ishval used their own thing that was brought over from Xing of all places. South used the lirs. Try and guess - really - try and guess what the North used. South using the Aerugonian lir makes complete sense due to their geographical proximity.

Riza: The Drachman rubbes?

Kimblee: No. No, you'd think so, wouldn't you? That would be the logical conclusion to this thought exercise - but you would be wrong.

Roy and Maes, pensive af: We're stumped. Tell us.

Kimblee, all but vibrating with sheer loathing at what he's going to say next: The Aerugonian lir. There was a brief period of time in Amestrian history when the North of Amestris self-accepted and integrated the Aerugonian lir into their economic system. There's no legal document that says they got anybody's permission to do this. They just decided to do it on their own because it was the most stable currency. Central even imposed a ban on the lir in South Amestris because it was seen as unpatriotic - there was political play here. But even then! Even after the ban - North Amestris continued to use the lir even after Aerugo got rid of it in 1859. There was a moment when the only part in this continent that was using the lir was North City. Not even all of NA - no, just NC! Briggs invented its own currency, but luckily that was shut down only after seven months. This entire pandemonium lasted for close to 20 years all because in 1850 State Alchemist Pare transmutated an obscene amount of gold and just released it into the wild!

Mustang, patting Kimblee on the back: Maybe you should talk about Ishval in order to calm down, huh?

Maes, jumping in at seeing Kimblee's murderous look: THE WAR, Kimblee, not whatever travel log you read about Ishval. You know, the civil war you served in. *sweaty thumbs up*

Riza: I'm still curious about the rainiest spot in Amestris, tbh.

Kimblee: You know that small town in the forest bordering East and South Amestris? It's called Blost.

Riza: Yes.

Kimblee: Well, there's this cute monument in the shape of a bucket on a small hill. The bucket's constantly full because it rains so often over there.

Maes: That's actually a really interesting piece of information and I'll be sure to note it and take Gracia sightseeing. You got any more cool stuff to share? *getting his notepad and pen*

Kimblee, murder in his eyes: There's a cave system in West Amestris that has never been explored. It's got a 100% mortality rate. Would you like to go there?