#in case you can't tell i have a special interest

[darlingshane]

new chapter

Joe Teague x F!Reader

Summary: On his wedding night, before he gets to spend some time alone with you, Joe listens to the conversation you're having with your daughter as you tuck her in. The little girl has some interesting questions regarding him and his new role in her life that you're happy to answer to put her at ease.

CW: +18, explicit, smut, oral sex (f. recieving), p in v sex, fluff, wedding night, pregnancy, dancing, established relationship, mention of past abuse, mention of divorce, set in the late 40s.

Word Count: 2,3k

— Links: AO3 // Joe Masterlist

Joe takes one final look around the first floor to make sure all doors and windows are locked before heading upstairs. The kitchen is a cluttered mess of dirty dishes piling in the sink from the casual reception you hosted right at the brand-new house. Dishes can wait till tomorrow. It's been a big day worthy of celebration and while it's sad to see it come to an end, he can't wait to see what this new chapter in his life with you brings him.

He's excited to see what the future holds, what these walls would tell ten or twenty years from now. This is where he's putting his roots, and he's betting everything on it that there won't be no bail this time. You are it for him. There's no doubt in his heart.

Though it’s neither his nor your first marriage, it feels just like it. The experience is completely different, given that both of you come with your own baggage; and kids in your case from your first marriage. You chose to have a simple ceremony at the courthouse, followed by a small reception at the house, and it couldn't have gone better. He can't get over how beautiful everything was. He knew you were special from the moment he met you, but the sense of pride and love he's felt today comes second to none. Not only did you look stunning in the custom dress you made yourself, but the way you've handled every little detail is something to admire.

He still has part of his uniform on when he steps into the hallway of the second floor to see you tuck Grace, your six-year-old, into bed. He leans on the door frame, listening to your voices through the cracked door.

“Mama, you look like a princess today,” she says as you pull the sheet over her body, folding it carefully at the hem as the little girl gets comfortable on her pillow. Just like Joe, you're still wearing your wedding dress with no shoes on.

“Thanks, baby. Did you have fun today?”

“Yeah, I wish you’d marry every day.”

“Every day? That’d be a lot of work with that many husbands.” She breaks into laughter along with you. “What was your favorite part?”

“The cake.”

“It was a great cake.” You agree, pushing a strand of hair off her face.

“Will you make me a dress like yours for my wedding day?”

“Sure, but first I need to know who you're marrying.”

“Hm, I don't know yet.” The little girl shrugs, holding a stuffed teddy bear in her embrace. “Someone like Joe, I guess.”

“Yeah? You like Joe?”

“He's pretty funny.”

“Pretty funny looking, I'd say.” Joe watches you glance over your shoulder, smiling at him.

“Is he my dad now? Should I call him daddy?”

“Only if you want to.” You sweetly caress her face. “Do you want Joe to be your daddy?”

She nods. “What if he doesn't want to? Is he going to be mean to us like my other daddy was?”

It breaks your heart hearing her express it like that at such a short age. As much as you tried to protect her, she was still aware of how awful her father was to you both. You thought she had forgotten about him after he died a few years ago, cause she was still a toddler. It was hard to explain to her that he didn't come back from war, but somehow your little girl understood that your lives turned for the better the moment he was gone. And surprisingly, she’s never mentioned him until now.

“Baby, I promise you, Joe is a good man. He’d never hurt us like that. We wouldn’t be here otherwise. You might see us sometimes argue, but I give you my word that no matter what, Joe loves us more than your daddy ever did. He’s going to take care of us, and we���re going to take care of him, okay? We’re family now. It doesn’t matter if you call him daddy or not, he’s gonna love you the same.”

Grace hugs her teddy bear tight as you watch her pondering for a moment in silence.

“Do you wanna ask him or do you want me to do it?”

“You do it.” She sticks out her finger and boops your nose.

“Alright, I'll do it.” You turn your head again to nod at Joe, beckoning him to come closer.

He steps into the room and bends down by the bed, propping a knee on the floor and holding his forearm on your lap.

“Hey, Gracie Jo.”

“Hi,” she says shyly, even though she's usually pretty chatty around him. But this is a big ask, you're aware, and a big step for all of you. “Mommy wants to ask you something.”

“Oh?” he gazes at you with a smile on his face, very aware of what you’re going to ask. It’s something you’ve talked about before, but you didn’t want to force Grace into accepting Joe as her father before she was ready.

“Gracie and I were wondering if you’d like to be her daddy.”

He fondly looks at you and then turns to her to assure her there's nothing he'd love more.

“It'd be an honor to be your dad, sweetheart,” he promises, placing a kiss on her forehead.

It melts your heart to see them both beaming in delight. You have no doubts that Joe would be up for the task to fill that role in her life better than anyone. You and Grace would've been fine with or without him in your life, but you're glad you got the opportunity to meet him and fall in love with him like this.

You curl up with Grace until she falls asleep and then retire to your new room.

You've got the house for a week now, but with all the arrangements for the wedding and the hassle of moving, you haven't had a minute to stop to look at it as your new home until now. There's still work to do, but you're proud of what you've accomplished to make it feel safe and comfortable for your daughter. That's all you needed. You're exhausted, but it was all worth it at the end. Hopefully, you'll be able to slow down in the next few days while everything settles.

When you step out of Grace’s room, you leave the door slightly ajar. Next to it, by the staircase there's your workspace, and a bathroom on the other side. There’s an empty bedroom in front of hers that would soon be filled with baby furniture for the little guy growing in your belly. You haven't told Grace yet, she would have babbled to everyone at the party that she was having a baby brother or sister, which is something she's been asking for years. In a couple of days, you and Joe will tell her and you know already she'll be over the moon.

At the end of the hallway is yours and Joe's bedroom. There's only a light coming from a night lamp when you go inside. There's music playing on the radio while he waits for you, sitting on the chair by the window. He still looks as handsome as this morning, when you first saw him fully dressed in his uniform. Now, his shirt is half unbuttoned, his pants are creased, and the shoes are off.

“Thought you’d be in bed by now, Mr. Teague,” you say as he stands up to meet you in the middle.

“I was waiting for you, Mrs. Teague.” He picks up your hand and brings it up to his lips to print a kiss on your knuckles. “I didn’t get a chance to dance with my bride today, I was hoping we could do it now. Would you like that, sweetheart?”

“I’d love that.” Your lips form a smile as he spins you around in the middle of the room before securing an arm around your waist.

You place your palms on his chest, smoothing the fabric of his shirt across the breadth of his chest, locking eyes with him for a moment before pillowing your head on his shoulder.

Closely tucked in his embrace, you both start moving your feet to the slow cadence of the song playing on the radio.

“I’m sorry we didn’t get to dance today. I wanted to do something small, I didn’t think that you’d—” you say softly before he cuts you off.

“Sweetheart, don’t apologize. It was perfect. I wanted something small, too. I told you I didn’t care for fanfare. I like it like this, just you and me.”

You lift your head to look at him. “You’re the sweetest man I’ve ever met. How did I get so lucky?”

“All it took was a robber. I’d like to thank him personally for bringing us together,” he quips.

That’s exactly how you met. The tailoring shop you work at got robbed about a year ago, and Joe was the lead detective on the case. It was a terrifying experience, but it gave you Joe, so you have to look at it as a blessing. After a couple of follow-up interviews, he started showing up casually around the neighborhood to check in the place here and there until the robber was caught red-handed again, trying to rob a jewelry shop a couple of blocks away. By that time, Joe didn’t have any more excuses to show up, so he started bringing some of his personal pieces of clothing to fix. First a jacket, then a couple of shirts, a pair of pants… Until one day he built up the courage to ask you out for a coffee. Before you realized it, you were falling madly in love with him. It was never in your cards to marry again, but Joe was the odds that changed your luck. He wasn’t only great to you as a boyfriend, but the way he treated your daughter played a major factor on that decision.

“How are you feeling, sweetheart? Is our little buddy behaving today?” He glances down at your still seemingly inconspicuous four-month bump hidden under the loose fitting of your dress.

“Hm, he’s been an angel. I haven’t been sick all day. Just a little tired.”

“Yeah? You’re ready to go to bed?”

“No. Not yet. When the song ends.”

You lock your arms tight around his neck as he lets his forehead touch yours before letting his lips crash with yours in a firm kiss that almost makes your legs crumble down to the floor. His arms anchor you in place as the sweet undoing of his kiss sends you somewhere closer to heaven.

As the melody fades, your bodies come alive against the other. The magnetic pull of your unwavering love guides your lips to fuse together in a hot frenzy of desire. It hurts so good, you can't help but moan in his mouth. When you grow breathless, you pull back and turn around so he can unzip your dress. You quickly shed every piece of clothing and undergarment to consummate your marriage for the first time as husband and wife. It helps that you've had sex many times before, otherwise you'd be ridden with anxiety. But everything has always been so easy with Joe, and this night is no different. He makes you feel desired in ways you've never experienced before. He evokes something so powerful inside, you can't speak coherently without tripping over your words. So you suffocate him with kisses and hold him for as long as you can.

As your lungs lose the ability to breathe properly, he places you down on the mattress. Your body buzzes with anticipation when he kneels at the foot of the bed. He climbs his way between your legs that he spreads open as far as they can stretch. He kisses the inside of your thigh from you knew up to your groin, making your skin rise into pimples all over. His lips make an urgent stop at your center to bury his tongue between your folds. The eagerness to taste you causes your legs to shake like an earthquake. His tongue collects the essence of your arousal as if he was a starving man. Your core wounds up in an impossible knot made of fire that is almost unbearable to contain. You have to cover your mouth to muffle the sinful sounds that come out of your lips.

“Joe, honey,” you pant, extending your hand to grip at his hair so he would climb on top of you. “I want you inside me.”

Following your request, he slithers up your body, nestling between your legs, letting you feel his hardness against your sex. He deliciously rubs himself on your folds before guiding his cock between your soaked lips.

One of his hands holds your jaw, while his forehead leans against yours. His hips slowly push inside you, capturing the warmness of your walls that contract gently around him every time your hips slant against his moves.

“God, I love you so much, sweetheart,” his voice comes out ragged as he ups the pace of his thrusting.

“Not as much as I love you.” You use your hands to press harder on his ass, so you can feel every inch of him filling you up to the hilt.

Joe presses his mouth open against yours, seizing your breath as he takes you to the final line where your orgasm comes crashing against his own. They merge together for a second, surrounding both of you in a cloud of elation that rushes through the tangled mess of your bodies like thunder. Your legs tremble as the flutter of your opening squeezes every drop out of his seed.

— Credits: beautiful divider by @cafekitsune

[softmagenta]

android models #4

Having achieved the basic result, androids began to think about becoming more unusual, more stylish. Real people, indeed - they're just like us. There are too many non-standard models, especially their hybrids and their altered versions. (Clipping from a fashion magazine; article on unique “fashionable” android models that have a narrower focus) ────────────────────────────────

Molis Lux

One of the most unusual models - I can admit it! The gel used mainly to fill the joints has become this model's “skin”. Although the gel here is just an outer shell, it covers the entire body so abundantly that the internal skeleton and mechanisms are not visible from the outside at all.

Readers ask, “Why don't they have mouths?”. This is a very interesting story! A great many custom models were put into production during the “teenage android fashion rebellion” (ha-ha, I like that unofficial name so much). Unconventionality, flamboyance, brashness and unbelievable solutions! The release of many non-standard models was accompanied by some sort of pathos slogan that carried a certain rebellious meaning. The slogan of this model is “I don't need a mouth to tell about myself”. Translated into calm language, it means something like “I don't even need to talk about myself so you could all know what I'm like.” It's ridiculous, considering they can speak anyway, but the symbolism is really interesting.

The gel color usually matches the iris color of the eyes, and the face and hair are usually a different color because they are not created from the gel. These models are basically a custom created body, not something from mass produced androids, so it's up to the customer to choose the color palette. But at the very beginning of this model's release, a few test androids were created (a few hundred, I think. As with all other models), and in that case the colors were randomized by the software.

Under certain conditions, the gel can go into a soft state where the android themselves (while wearing special gloves!) or someone else can mold the body into whatever they want. Many ML models create clothes for themselves in this way by simply molding them out of their body, and the lack of clothes (molded or real) would not mean that the android is naked. Very handy! The model itself is really one of the most comfortable, I think. (And the mouth can always be made at official accessories and details ComCenter showrooms, don't worry!!!) The part below the ankle and the foot is made of a harder gel, which is a substitute for shoes. It's a bit inconvenient because although such an android can walk around outside without real shoes, it still has to wash their feet every time after going indoors, so many people just wear real shoes or special “socks”. (Editor's note: so that's how they do it… by molding the certain parts? HAHA it's very cool) (Writer's note: I hate you) ────────────────────────────────

Mea Elections

One of the most modern custom models out there! ME (very symbolic name in abbreviation, by the way) is mostly used by cosplayers either social workers who work with children, or just those who see themselves in this style.

Mobility is not affected at all, despite the unusual limbs and body proportions. The main problem with this model is that all clothes have to be sewn to order or bought in specialized stores for ME models, but there are so many variations of ME that even there you can't always find something for yourself. ────────────────────────────────

Spatium Fuga

One of the oldest representatives of non-standard models! This is the very case when the representatives of the crowd, who were striving for humanoidness, decided to return to their roots and radically strengthen their “roboticism” in a more fantastic style!

This model is also mostly used by cosplayers, but less often, because the model has quite specific details. But among fashion figures, there are a lot of SF representatives! This unusual and mesmerizing look attracts the eye.

The SF line and its hybrids are so diverse that you are unlikely to meet two identical androids of this model. The design is very futuristic and everything is limited only by your imagination! However, remember that it is very expensive, and the unusual limb connectors may tear your clothes. Just a friendly reminder.

[the-halcyon-effect]

copying @jackfromthefairytale again but it's the imminence album this time

come hell or high water: this was honestly my least favorite of the singles, it's good but it's kinda repetitive. i think it's good as an opening song tho

desolation: first song i heard by this band! it's good, and a VERY good description of their sound, but there's not much more new i have to say.

heaven shall burn: 2nd favorite of the singles, behind the title track. eddie is pissed off and i am in danger 👍

beyond the pale: first new track! i have high hopes

ooh that's an architectsy riff. i like it

OOH THOSE VOCAL LAYERS IN THE CHORUS ARE SO GOOD GJEKIDJDOSKEKDPLSKSKDLSK

their architects influence is SHOWING and i am PERFECTLY okay with that

oh it's breakdown time. obliterate me pls

YUP I'M GETTING OBLITERATED

i call these "train breakdowns" because they feel like getting run over by a train OH WE'RE STILL GOING WAIT WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS DEATHCORE NOW‽‽‽‽ and now it's just the chorus again. holy shit

eddie berg how do you do that. just how.

death by a thousand cuts: VERY good track! this is the song i use to describe imminence's sound. wasn't my favorite of the singles but it's still one i put on often bc it's still SO GOOD

come what may: WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT INTRO THIS IS HEAVIER THAN CONTINUUM

OH FUCK THAT STACATTO (? forgot the word) VIOLIN IS SO GOOD

GENUINELY WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS HOLY SHIT IT'S LONGER THAN THE TITLE TRACK

THIS IS ALREADY BETTER THAN ALL THE SINGLES WHAT oh and now the chugs are broken jesus christ

genuinely how the fuck is this the same band as songs like erase. this is fucking brutal i love it

this one might beat the new mts song as my fav song this year so far

oh no it's breakdown time. i am about to die

oh? maybe not? are we getting a violin solo?? yeah i'm ABSOLUTELY down for that

OH THE DRUMS COMING IN TOO WITH THE GLITCHY SNARE oooouuuughhh (nonsexual)

this is their best song ever. like there's no contest WHAT'S THIS OH THE GUITARS ARE BACK THIS IS SOME SYMPHONIC METAL SHIT

and you're telling me this ISN'T the closing song. wtf

welp that's gonna be on repeat for a while

cul-de-sac: gonna guess this one is an intermission, it's pretty short and also following up whatever that was

yup sounds like it. it's cool tho. kinda reminds me of the intro of viking by stp in a weird way

this album is wild so far. like i'm trying to also level up my d&d character but i can't because i have too much to say

the call of the void: ok the intermission built up at the end so this is gonna hit hard i'm ready

I WAS NOT READY WHAT IS THIS

that's not a guitar. those are bombs.

man. when heaven shall burn came out i thought it was gonna be the heavy one. then continuum came out and i thought it was this one. now eddie is just screaming "RAGE" at me and i am happy

also. very good chorus. i enjoy

it takes some skill to make an album where this ISN'T the best song. like holy shit

breakdown???? i'm in danger

oh we got the low cleans. this is ABSOLUTELY gonna be a breakdown

WHAT THE FUCK

WHAT THE FUCK

WHAT THE FUCK

WHAT THE FUCK

WHAT THE FUCK

WHAT THE FUCK

WHAT THE FUCK

eddie berg is not human. that was a banshee. with bombs.

continuum: while this one was a great single i kinda wish it wasn't released as one. it would have been great to have to process this while still recovering from the previous song. plus there were too many singles for this album imo

l'apelle du vide: tbh i have no idea what to expect here but if i had to guess i think it's gonna be acoustic (like the arabic one on heaven in hiding)

ok yup i was right

this acoustic guitar is beautiful

oh this is GOOD!! this is kinda some ghost atlas shit

are we gonna get vocals on this? it doesn't sound like it but i don't mind that tbh

why is there a boat horn what's happening

oh i guess there are vocals (technically)

OH THE DRUMS

OH THIS IS AMAZING

god i love this band so much

the black: best of the singles, easily. would be best of this album if not for come what may. to be honest, though, i don't think it should have been a single. l'apelle du vide gives a really nice chance to rest and recover from the pure brutality of the previous tracks, and having something new afterwards would have been nice. to be clear, though, this is not a huge problem at ALL and it's frankly the only complaint i have about this song.

le noir: idk much french but i think "le noir" is french for "the black", so i'm guessing this is gonna be an alternate version of the title track but in french (kinda like the spanish version of temptation they did). the only reason i have to doubt that is that that's typically the sort of thing that would be a standalone release or on a deluxe version, but here they have it as the closing track of the album, so idk. we'll see!

oh it's only 3 minutes? maybe i was wrong. this violin is beautiful tho

ok this is interesting. i have no clue where this is going

oh this is fucking beautiful

it's kinda expanding on the melody of the title track, i like it a lot

okay yeah i'm crying now. this is amazing

okay that was an incredible album. final thoughts time!

first, i know this is kinda nitpicky, but there were way too many singles for this one. if it were me, i would have kept continuum and the black unreleased before this. the only new parts in the last part of the album were the acoustic instrumental tracks, which were good, but i would have wanted it to be a fully new experience, especially for the title track itself.

as for the good stuff, where the FUCK do i even begin??? this is somehow simultaneously the heaviest and most emotional this band has ever been, and in my opinion it's also the best. this album really is an emotional rollercoaster, with tracks like heaven shall burn and the call of the void being absolutely brutal, while songs like dbatc and all the acoustic stuff being super emotional, and then there's ALSO songs like come what may that are just both at once. besides the nitpick i had earlier, i never knew even remotely what to expect, and that was fantastic of them. i really wish i could forget every song and listen to the whole thing with fresh ears, because i can only imagine how hard it would hit having not heard any of the singles.

i do also wanna talk about the acoustic stuff specifically, because imminence has always done that SO WELL. i do wish we got a proper acoi track with vocals, though, because that kinda felt like it was missing here. not only did we get one both on turn the light on (love & grace) and heaven in hiding (the arabic one), but they had 3 whole fully acoustic songs, and i feel like it would have been nice if one of them had vocals as well, especially the last one. le noir felt to me more like an intermission than a closing track, and i wish it either had vocals, was longer and had more melody, or was moved to before the title track.

to be clear: this is an AMAZING album. it's gonna have to take something absolutely MASSIVE to beat this for my aoty. the complaints i have don't even come CLOSE to outweighing how masterfully done the album as a whole is, and they're also quite literally the only things i can complain about.

also, i'm not gonna do a full ranking of the tracks from worst to best until i listen to the album more, but come what may is the best track. like there's no contest.

[mamawasatesttube]

i do think that despite being the squad's designated nerds, kon and bart struggle to watch lotr together because kon physically CANNOT stop infodumping through any of the movies (and of course they have to watch the extended editions only), but bart's like. you want me to sit in one place and watch one screen for 12 fucking hours. and on top of that you WON'T SHUT UP the ENTIRE TIME? i already can't focus on movies and you TALK THROUGH THE WHOLE THING? im going to fucking bite you--

[gghostwriter]

Can i have a fluffy spencer x reader piece. Just something cozy where they are all at rossis maybe after a case for some team bonding and chill time. And like he is offering everyone wine and reader goes along like "i can't" bcs she pregnant? Fluff fluff super fluff pls

Spencer Reid x Fem! Reader Trope: Established Relationship; Fluff! Just fluff! wc: 0.6k A/N: Reader is not part of the BAU, hope that's alright. I had fun writing this, hope you enjoy! Comments and reblogs are greatly appreciated 💗 Main masterlist

Special Diet. // Spencer Reid

Your fiancee and his team had been out on the field for three consecutive cases all over the country. Just through Spencer’s nightly ritual calls alone, you could tell how tired and stressed he was and by extension the other members. Which was why, during their second night back in home ground, you volunteered to cook them a small feast—as long as Rossi hosted it in his place, which he readily agreed to as he was never one to say ‘no’ when a culinary chef such as yourself volunteers to cook up a meal.

“So what did our local chef cook up for the night?” Morgan asked as the team sat around the laid out table by the backyard.

You smiled, placing the finishing touches on the table. “I wanted to give the Italian cuisine a break so I present to you, French delicacies. For the starters, we have here salade lyonnaise with slices of baguette—” gesturing to the mid-size plate to their upper left. “—our mains, steak frites, and yes, I remembered to make yours rare, Morgan—” a few chuckles escaped from the team members as the called out profiler sheepishly placed his hand down “—and profiteroles for dessert.”

Rossi then started going around the table with his choice of wine to match the lavish dinner you’ve prepared.

“If you weren’t engaged to Reid, I’d marry you,” Penelope gushed as she took a bite of her meal.

Emily chuckled. “Get in line, Penelope. I get to marry her first if she changes her mind.”

“You never fail to impress me, Bambina. Now can I interest you for a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon?” Rossi asked as he reached your seat between Spencer and Emily.

“Actually, no thank you,” your answer eliciting an echo of utensils being dropped on the table. “I’m trying to cut back.”

JJ leaned forward. “Our very own wine connoisseur is saying no to Rossi’s aged wine?”

“I’m trying this special diet,” you shrugged, subtly studying if any of the best profilers the FBI has to offer understood the real reason why. Based on Hotch’s small smile behind his glass wine, the unit chief had caught on quite quickly.

“You don’t need to diet. You’re petite and fit, right kid?” Morgan clarified.

The corners of Spencer’s lips pulled slightly up as he squeezed your hand in his. “Actually, she does need to stick to the diet.”

Penelope gasped, clearly appalled at the stance your fiancee had taken. “Take that back! No way you said that, Reid!”

You giggled at the affronted reactions of the team—minus Hotch and Rossi as the two older profilers clinked their glasses together at the side. “It’s fine, Penny. It’s the truth anyway.”

Emily sent a dirty look to Spencer before asking on. “What else does this special diet entail?”

“Unpasteurized dairy, cold cuts, liver, game meat, and raw sushi to name a few,” Spencer listed out loud and with each, the smile on his face grew bigger and bigger.

“Wait, isn’t that—” JJ mumbled before promptly standing up from her seat and rushing to give you a hug.

Morgan tilted his head to the side. “What? What did I miss?”

Spencer chuckled before revealing the most obvious clue. “She has to follow the strict diet for 36 more weeks.”

There was a beat of silence before shouts and squeals emitted from all ends of the table.

“You’re pregnant?” Penelope gasped.

Emily added on. “With boy genius?”

You both nodded, bringing out a printed sonogram safely tucked in Spencer’s jacket that was draped around your shoulders. It had been a surprise when you went in for your yearly check-up but it was the type of news that Spencer quickly became happy with. His own family was expanding and he couldn’t have chosen a better partner than you.

“We present to you, baby Reid!”

Comments and reblogs are greatly appreciated!

[ozzgin]

I love your reader insert stuff!! The yandere yazuka series was vvvv entertaining, I wish I had a big scary gangster to scare away my stalker lol

If you are open to requests, how about Idol!Reader x Yandere!Bodyguard. I love the trope so much, and I'm interested and what you'd do with the idea. No worries if you're not interested tho!

Best wishes

-🌟

I just finished writing it and you've got me punching the air with your prompt. It wasn't really my thing but I'm now sold. Thank you for the trope idea. :’)

Yandere!Bodyguard x Idol!Reader (I)

Short scenario featuring your bodyguard that takes his duty a little too seriously. Not that you’d mind…

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3]

TW: violence

(Cover from the manga “A girl and her guard dog”)

"Fantastic show tonight!"

The older man guides you in and closes the door behind him. You smile warmly and seat yourself on the sofa. He quickly follows, although at a terribly uncomfortable proximity. His legs are pressed against yours and he extends an arm behind you, pretending to stretch. You shuffle awkwardly and lock your hands in your lap. You can already tell where this is going.

"With your talent, I'm confident we could triple the number of attendants. We just need a bigger venue." He nods at you and taps your thigh with his other free hand as encouragement. You notice the wedding band digging into his skin. 

"Alas, let us not waste the evening with business talk. I'm sure a stunning lady like you has better things to do." He laughs at his own compliment and ponders for a minute. "In fact, why don't we have dinner together? I know a great restaurant in the area."

You open your mouth to speak, but are distracted by the sudden, mild pressure on your leg. Somehow, his greasy fingers have wandered further up in the time you listened to his shameless offer. You've been in this career for long enough to guess what such proposals entail. If you say no, best case scenario he presses further, calling you a stuck up bitch and reminding you who has the power in this partnership. Worst case scenario, he leaves the room and the calls and invitations to perform will gradually drop. 

Yet your situation is special, benefitting from an additional possibility. A loophole, if you may.

Should you scream? Oh, he always gets so angry when you act scared. It's an immediate trigger. He really has a soft spot for your glistening, frightened eyes. You glance up one final time at the perverted smirk silently disregarding you. If you are to be honest with yourself, you'd very much enjoy seeing it wiped off forever. Why not? You're feeling particularly mean today.

So without hesitation, you release a high pitched yell of help. The door bursts open and the hinges creak. A tall, toned man walks in, and without a word he lunges at the manager, pulling him by the collar of his cheap dress jacket. You hold your cheeks dramatically, and bat your eyelashes at your bodyguard.

"H-he tried to molest me..." you mumble between sobs.

That's all he needs to proceed. Now the real fun begins. You can hear the muffled screams of protest. The bones crack and the flesh bends under his iron fists. Standing before your bodyguard, they all end up looking like ragdolls. Comically limp and weak, folding and breaking with no resistance. It amuses you greatly.

When did it all begin? You can't remember anymore. You were in your early years and this scary looking stranger entered your little backstage room. His explanation was brief and to the point: as your fame increases, so will the threats to your safety. He was appointed as your bodyguard. You couldn't care less, so you just shrugged. 

You've always been on the playful side. Not necessarily rude, just some innocent tease and banter wherever it's well received. Seeing him so quiet and stoic, you couldn't help but try to push his buttons: changing in front of him and requiring his assistance, occasionally asking him to pick you up and carry you because you could no longer walk. Naturally you would've stopped at the first complaint, but that's the strange part: no reaction ever came. He went along with everything. You assumed it's part of the job. Celebrities aren't known for their good manners, so hiring someone that loses their temper easily would be a fast ticket to termination.

Then you had your first encounter with one of the unpleasant fans you've been warned about. You could only stare in terror at your bodyguard's feral, unhinged reaction. The unfortunate fan's face was so disfigured, you wondered if anyone could ever manage to fix it back into shape. The bodyguard was panting and you could see the sweat coating his face and chest. You were rather confident there were many other ways to deal with it and this wasn't on the recommended list. Thus you felt compelled to ask the million dollar question:

"You act like a jealous spouse. Do you have a crush on me or something?"

You kind of regretted your audacity towards a man that had just nearly killed someone. But his features softened instantly and he turned to you, wiping his forehead and straightening his collar. 

"I suppose so. Is that an issue?"

As you stared ahead, processing his unbothered act, you sensed your cheeks feverishly burning. Uh oh. You hadn't anticipated such a nonchalant confession. You thought back to all the times you stood before him, bare and flirty. Was he merely holding back his urges the entire time? Or was he finally paying you back for all the teasing? Then again, his face didn't betray any hint of humor.

"I've never heard you joke before", you decided to test the waters.

"I'm not. Why would I joke about something like this?" He gazed at you incredulously. 

As somber and honest as ever. Well, that would indeed explain why he'd let you get away with the cheeky behavior. The more you considered it, the more entranced you became with the idea of indulging in such a relationship. As a famous idol, you couldn't be seen dating anyone. One rumor of you having a boyfriend and the agency would've had your ass suspended. But no one said anything about messing around with your bodyguard. He has to be with you all the time, so no one would suspect a thing. And you could definitely expand his list of responsibilities. You'd been terribly stressed lately, after all, and an outlet to release your frustrations would be most welcomed. Your bodyguard would never refuse pleasing his beloved.

You chuckled and pulled him towards your dressing room, giddy with excitement. Something about his imposing presence, like a wild animal that had just escaped from the leash, aroused you to no end. You've had your share of crazy fans, but this was the cherry on top. 

"Should we leave?"

You're jolted out of your daydreams by his low, rough voice. Ah, you missed the grand finale. Too bad. The bodyguard approaches you, with the shirt wrinkled and the top buttons popped open under the shuffle of his vicious attack. You can feel the knot forming in your stomach.

"Not yet. You know how I get when you act like this..." You pout and look away. "You need to take care of me first."

He grins at your last statement.

"Of course. Is the sofa okay?"

You nod.

"Then let's get you undressed, miss."

Is this what they call a scary dog privilege? 

[luveline]

If you have any interest, how about a Spencer blurb where he's off on a case and gets or misses a late night call from the reader and is super worried, only to call them back and find them drunk and missing him. And of course the team rags on him after.

thank u for ur request! fem!reader

Spencer looks down at his phone and goes ghostly white. 

"What?" Emily asks. "They had a sale at Waterstones and you missed it?" 

Spencer clicks a bunch of buttons on his phone and brings it to his ear, crushing limp hair to his neck. "Seventeen missed calls," he says. 

Derek comes to the rescue, though the lightness in his voice is slightly forced, "Don't panic, wonderboy. Who wouldn't be eager to talk to you at… two AM?" 

"Is that the time difference?" Emily asks, leaning forward in concern. 

Even Hotch puts down his pen. The team listens to the phone ring. It loops, loops, loops, and everybody breathes a sigh of relief when you finally answer. If something happened to you Spencer wouldn't survive it. Nor after everything he's already been through. 

"Hey?" he says. There's a gap of silence. "Y/N, are you there?" 

"Spencer!" 

Spencer turns away from the table they've congregated at and looks through the open window at the parking lot, police cars roaming in and out of spaces. "What's wrong?" 

"I miss you so much." 

Spencer's nose wrinkles of its own accord. "Yeah? You sound odd. Are you– are you drunk?" 

Derek laughs. Like marionettes held tight with strings suddenly cut, the team stop their stressing and send each other knowing, amused looks. 

"Just a little bit!" you promise, clearly lying. Your voice catches on the syllables like they're coated in sticky honey, the slightest slurring tripping you up at the end. "We went for– to Chilli's. I had a blooming onion and seven margaritas!" 

"I can tell." 

"I'm really sorry, Spence, I know I'm not s'posed to call when you're away," you begin. 

Spencer glances back. Rossi and JJ have returned with coffee and a late dinner, neither of them bothering to act as though they aren't listening to the conversation. 

"No," Spencer says, turning back around and hunching inward, "that's the opposite of what we talked about, isn't it? You can call whenever you want to, but I can't, you know, always answer. I thought something bad happened. Maybe next time you could text me?" Rather than call almost twenty times and give him a heart attack.

Laughter echoes from behind. They team act like a teasing family sometimes, Spencer their teenage son who's never dated. 

He would fluster if you weren't talking to him in loud but loving tones, "I can barely walk, texting wasn't happening. I'm para-spelgic." 

"You're not," he says, firmly at first. "Are you? Who's with you? Is Rebecca there?" Rebecca being your best friend. Spencer trusts her to take care of you.

"She was, but she said that I– uh… She said I talked about you too much and made her nauseous. I feel kinda sick, too, but I just needed to talk to you, Spence. I miss you. I miss you, are you home soon?" 

"Is Rebecca really not there?" he asks. He thinks about the room full of special agents he's standing in and drops his voice to a murmur. "I miss you too." 

"She's making toast or something." 

"That's good. It'll soak up the margaritas." 

"I don't want toast, I want you! Please come home safe, angel. I really wish you were here to do that thing with my ear." 

Spencer has to give in. You're speaking so loudly it's impossible the team hadn't heard it, but he can't find the will to be embarrassed any longer. You're drunk and ridiculous and all you can think about is him.

"I wish I was home, too. Do I need to worry about you? Make sure you're drinking water, okay? Alcohol makes you dehydrated, you'll get a bad headache." 

"It makes me miss you," you whine. 

He smiles fondly. "There's no cure for that." A door opens over the line. "Is that Rebecca?" 

"Yeah." Murmurings. "She says sorry for letting me get so drunk, but she didn't let me do anything. It's like you always say, Spence, I can do whatever I set my mind to." 

"And you set your mind to getting drunk at Chili's." 

"Exactly!" 

You talk a little more before he hangs up. He knows you're getting taken care of. 

A gaggle of smiling faces greet him as he turns around. "Everything okay, 'angel'?" Derek asks. 

Spencer puts his phone in his pocket. You'll text him in the morning with a hankering for Tylenol and sore eyes, but you'll be fine. "Everything's great." 

[normal-thoughts-official]

It's actually insane how brave Wyll is when it comes to Mizora. Not only by not killing Karlach but also all the small ways he defies her - calling her an asshole, saying she's full of shit, even when Mizora is literally choking him he's still telling her that she's a liar. Whenever she shows up it's pretty much guaranteed that she will have to threaten him with lemurehood because he simply refuses to play nice. Even if it accomplishes absolutely nothing and in fact is actively dangerous to sass her

And like. Of course this ties in with how Wyll has pretty much nonexistent self preservation skills and a sense of moral fortitude so strong he can't even pretend to not be hostile towards her. But i also think it ties with Mizora's obsession with him

Because while we all know Mizora is evil and annoying on principle and all that shit, she seems to be particularly interested in tormenting Wyll. I have to assume shit like putting a tracker on him and showing up randomly just to spite him and staying in camp just to be annoying even after the contract is over are Wyll specials, because if she did this to every single one of her warlocks then she would have time for nothing the fuck else. And we know from Karlach that she's generally more worried about sucking Zariel's toes, so

(Also, I've been told that in early access she was like... Straight up jealous if you romanced Wyll, so, again. Obsessed with him in particular)

I always got the impression that she was so evil and annoying to him because she was overcompensating. Mizora is a cambion, which means she's half human, which means that in Hell's hierarchy she is fucking trash. Even the official cambion lore states that they are often rejected in both realms and struggle to earn one of their parents' approval. And it's obvious that in Mizora's case she's aiming to be accepted in the Hells.

I've seen some people claim that Mizora is too cartoonishly evil, and while that is objectively true... I think it works precisely because it's so cartoonish. I'm thinking particularly of how she describes her home in the Hells being all "oh, how I adore it, the delicious agony of it all". It's so over the top it's eyeroll worthy. I don't think Zariel herself would be Like This about it

In other words: Mizora is a tryhard

And Karlach even implies that Mizora resented her because she was Zariel's favorite, which is why I think Mizora's tryhardness was intentional as opposed to just a lazily written villain. She wants to fit in the Hells so bad it makes her look stupid. And she never will, because no matter how over the top she is about being Generically Evil, she is simply not that powerful or important.

So she overcompensates, and then she uses Wyll as her punching bag. If her own superiors will always see her as vermin, then at least she can cope with that by treating others that way as well.

But like I said, she will have no time left to suck Zariel's toes if she spends all her time tormenting every single warlock under her patronage, so the question is: why Wyll?

Obviously his unwavering goodness is the biggest reason. His soul is already damned and yet he refuses to be selfish with the time he has left on the material plane. Mizora can own him, but she can't corrupt him, and that makes her hate him. The fact that even despite her best efforts he is still recognized and beloved as a hero has got to sting too, considering she tries so fucking hard to be the Evilest Cashier In Hell or whatever. And the fact that he still manages to belong in his world (however isolated and lonely he obviously is) despite his connection to hers and she can't belong in her world because of her connection to his... Well, jealousy is to be expected.

But I think his refusal to play nice with her also plays a big role.

There's the obvious "this makes her resent him even more" factor; if Mizora wants to feel superior, it must piss her off to no end that Wyll refuses to bow to her, even if he does her bidding.

But, paradoxically, this also makes her feel more powerful.

Because at the end of the day, she does own Wyll's soul, and he does have to do her bidding, even if he doesn't go quietly. And the fact that he hates her so openly makes it all the more satisfying to have him do what she wants anyway. In Wyll's words, "the more bullshit she pulls, the more [he's] forced to swallow". His hatred for her is exactly why she wants him so bad, even though she obviously hates him just as much.

And so this is why she's so desperate to get Wyll's soul back, and why, even if he breaks the pact, she still makes it a point to stay in camp just to fucking spite him. Because Wyll is the only warlock that actually makes her feel appropriately Powerful and Evil, if we assume that her other warlocks are simply not as good aligned as Good Alignment Georg or even just don't want the trouble of spiting her for no reason. She can be obeyed and tolerated and maybe even revered by the other warlocks, but only Wyll can make her feel like an absolute, inescapable power. Because the other warlocks choose to obey her. Wyll makes it clear that he has to, and thus, she feels like she is mighty.

And obviously I know that the whole "person who has it all is obsessed with the one person who doesn't obey them" trope is a well known cliche, but I think Mizora and Wyll's dynamic is unique in that Mizora doesn't actually want to make Wyll bow to her and respect her as an authority; she wants him to fight back so she can feel like she's winning.

(And, of course, because Mizora doesn't actually have it all; she's just a petty errand girl who wants to feel special)

So, yeah. Wyll's incredible bravery in constantly defying her is exactly why she is so eager to keep him

[reveluving]

SHY WIFE AND PRICE....ARE YOU FREAKIN KIDDING ME!!!!!Imagine this Adonis of a man spoiling her from the first date and even her being shy, the 141(plus Kate) KNOW who's the boss( he ALWAYS have a photo and a story about Mrs.Price and it's just the cutest thing how his eyes light up that they also love her)

CUUUUUUTE AAAAAA!! GNAWING ON MY BARS RN!! And thank you for specifying the Adonis of a man bit! Can't forget about that!! ☝🏼😌💗

Includes: tooth-rotting fluff!

COD x shy!wife thots closed! Thank you, everyone, for your time & amazing minds! I sincerely hope I can do this again with y'all soon! 💌

Come & check out my COD m.list!

In any case of our beloved shy!wife fics, especially with his line of work, just expect your husband to have a polaroid or five of you ready.

And John is no different.

You must be a special one if you managed to catch the eyes of the captain, and to clarify, you are!

John knew there was no going back to his mundane yet chaotic lifestyle the second he asked you out. It took everything in him not to chuckle at your look of disbelief, your lips parting just a tad bit. He didn’t want you to think he was making fun of you, you were genuinely adorable with your expressiveness. And though had told him you were open to anything, even specifying that you wouldn’t mind anything small and simple, he didn’t let you.

He took you out to dinner on your first date, nothing too fancy, though that couldn’t be said the same on the later dates, gifted you a small but beautiful bouquet and the rest was history. 

And amazingly, he gets even better at spoiling you after he puts a ring on your finger. As if he wasn't already good since your first date!

Kisses or cakes, hugs or huge bouquets, he'll always find a way to spoil you. Because you—your smiles, giggles and laughs, your time and your love for him means so much.

More than you can imagine.

A sweetheart, a gentleman. You couldn’t ask for a better man to fall for you, though, like him, you were mind-blown to even think a man, no, a hunk like him showed interest in you. Made you feel wanted, special—someone he wanted to be with with zero hesitation. 

He wouldn’t be able to forget your shy smile, how you’d mindlessly trail your fingers across the table or your lap out of embarrassment, how your fingers curled around his hand, despite averting your gaze from his cheeky smile many dates later.

And though the wedding was small, to him, it felt like a sweet fairytale.

To finally be able to call you Mrs Price.

Laswell had the privilege to meet you first before everyone else. She enjoys the sisterly moments you’d have, a breath of fresh air from the craziness, to say the least, that she has to witness in her lifetime. Always appreciates you checking in on her via messages or if she’s lucky, a quick call. And it becomes a tradition of hers to jokingly remind John to take care of you and not to drive you crazy.

And then, there were the boys.

Johnny was the one who asked about you, catching the man looking at one of the polaroids of you with nothing but love in his eyes. Longing to get it over with and come home to you. Johnny didn’t think he’d be willing to talk about you at all, let alone more than a few sentences, i.e. privacy reasons or he just prefers to be on his own. Take in the quiet moment before any hell breaks loose later on.

Understandable, so imagine not only his surprise but also the rest of the 141 when he talks about you. First, with pure endearment in his tone, then the story gets romantic, cheesier even, but all three of them listened to his stories like no other (read: a father telling his kids how he met their mother), even if they acted like they were just casually fixing their weapons or thinking to themselves.

C’mon, he knows them!

Like John, you treat the boys like your very own. If Johnny, Kyle or Simon wanted to be doted over—to be cared for, something they haven’t felt in a while even if some of them wouldn’t want to admit it, then you’d give them millions! Even something as little as a handwritten message or passing them a few words i.e. take care and good luck via John.

Visiting the Price’s house now feels like a family thing. Again, it’s cheesy, it’s corny, and maybe even childish to some, for a bunch of men to be looking forward to these visits like a child being away from their parents at a dorm during college, none of you cared. Not you. Not John. And most importantly, not his boys.

None of them could have imagined your words to stick in their minds in dire times. A little motivation to return safely. Back to the base, for John, and back the Price’s home, for you.

“Johnny, I’m out of a few things in the kitchen. Could you drop by the store and get these for me, please?” “Can do!”

“Simon, have you seen John’s car keys? I can’t find them anywhere.” “I can help look for it w’you.”

“Kyle, I told you I can handle the fireplace.” “S’not that hard. Don’t worry!”

Home.

Bonus: A lil’ story I’m still working on with the COD men + dogs includes John with an American Akita. Similar to Phillip and Kai, John’s gigantic pupper tends to prefer listening to you to him.

His intolerance for certain people or animals drops in an instant the second he sees you, turning into a baby (your baby, might John add) but he also knows when duty calls. Ears tilting back and growling at a stranger who doesn’t know, or worse; ignores that you're taken.

And in John’s words: good boy.

˚ · . f i n . · ˚

[f1-stuff]

Did carlos also used the friend word? Do you know when?

Hi, so I actually compiled some links mostly for myself, but also for you and anyone else interested. See below the cut!

Times Charles has referred to Carlos as a "friend":

The most recent instance: 'He has obviously become a friend.'

‘We were already good friends before we joined Ferrari.'

'We have a very special relationship. I mean, we are obviously friends outside the track as well. We are sharing good moments. We spend so much time - I mean, I see Carlos more than my own family...'

Times Carlos has referred to Charles as a "friend":

'My teammate and I are friends off the track, we get along very well and we have a very good relationship. And we make a very good team. I think that if there is something that worked and works in Ferrari, it is the two drivers...' (translated from Spanish)

This is just what I could track down, but if anyone knows of others let me know!

Carlos has spoken about how he and charles get along very well, but that it's hard for him (and other drivers) to truly be friends with their teammates bc they're always so competitive with each other, and there's so much pressure to beat one another. ("Friend is a strong word that I don’t like using for anything or anyone.") And combine that with what we know about how, as a kid, he was surprised by other kids he thought were his friends running him off track and out of the race, we can see how much weight he applies to the 'friend' label.

To Carlos, I think a 'friend' is someone that a part of his brain would hesitate to race too hard against, and he can't let that happen with his teammate, who he wants and needs to beat more than anyone. He can afford to maybe leave Lando or Alonso a little more space on track bc he values his relationship with them as friends, and they're not currently his teammates. But he can't let himself have that relationship with Charles, or, for that matter, Alex next season.

Will he be able to say that he and Charles are friends more readily next year when they aren't teammates any longer? I think so. That was certainly the case with Lando. But I also think his relationship with Lando was a bit different - Lando was almost like a little brother to him. With Charles, he's more firmly a peer, and I think that hyper-competitiveness between them may always linger, right up until they aren't racing eo anymore, maybe especially bc their partnership was cut short before either could win a championship as teammates.

Time will tell, but it's clear that they already view their time together very fondly. They've spoken plainly about 'hating each other' inside the helmet when they've battled and disagreed, but that they always make up after two minutes. It's beautiful that they can always come back to the respect they have for one another. It's a unique relationship, and I look forward to seeing how it evolves in the years to come. ❤️

[mywitchyblog]

The Coolest Thing About Reality Shifting: DR Memories

What Are DR Memories ? :

One of the coolest things about reality shifting is that you can get DR memories—these are memories from your desired reality (DR). What’s really cool about these memories is that they fill in the blanks, like adding extra content to the story. But what makes it even better is that these memories often answer questions that the original show or movie never explained. It’s almost like having secret insider knowledge that makes the story and characters make more sense and feel more real. These memories can add extra background information, character motivations, or small details that clear up plot holes. It makes the universe of that show or movie feel more complete and satisfying. That’s why I think DR memories are one of the most interesting parts of reality shifting—they add a lot of depth and detail that you wouldn't get otherwise.

Claircognizance and DR Memories :

In case you didn't know, a DR memory is a type of claircognizance. Claircognizance is a psychic ability where you get knowledge or insights without any logical explanation—it's like the information just pops into your head. It’s not like remembering something you already know or imagining something new; instead, it feels like this information just appears in your mind without any effort.

I can tell the difference between a DR memory and a daydream because with daydreams, I actually create them myself, almost like I’m walking through the daydream and deciding what happens next. Daydreams are like a creative process, where I have control over what happens. With DR memories, it's the opposite—the memory just comes to me, almost like downloading information from somewhere unknown. It’s passive, and I feel like I’m just receiving it instead of making it happen. DR memories usually come with a strong sense of certainty that they’re real, which is very different from daydreams, which feel more like imagination.

How I Recognize DR Memories :

That's how I can tell the difference between the two. I'm currently working on developing my psychic abilities, and from what I've learned, claircognizance is the best way to describe what happens when shifters get DR memories. Claircognizance is like getting information from a place you can't see, almost like an invisible source of knowledge.

One reason I value these memories so much is that they make things suddenly make sense, like putting together puzzle pieces that finally fit. They don’t feel random—they come with a clarity and sense of completeness that I can't ignore. I knew it was a DR memory because it came with a strong sense of certainty, a conviction that I wouldn't normally have if I was just imagining things. It’s that feeling of knowing that tells me it’s not something I made up, but something real and meaningful, which makes the experience even more special.

Example: Teen Wolf Filming Locations :

Here's an example that really stood out to me. It's related to Teen Wolf, specifically where they filmed the show. In the first two seasons, they filmed in Atlanta, Georgia, which gave it that small-town vibe and charm. The setting made it feel like a real close-knit community, with overcast skies, thick woods, and an older, worn-out small-town look. But from season three onward, they moved filming to California, which totally changed things.

The new location made the show look different since the Californian landscapes had more sun, wider streets, new architecture, and brighter natural scenery. This change impacted the show's overall tone and feel. The new brightness made everything look cleaner and less gritty, which affected the mood and atmosphere. What always bugged me was that the show never explained in the story why the high school changed so much between seasons two and three. It felt like a sudden, unexplained shift, and it always stood out to me as something inconsistent when I watched the series again.

The DR Memory That Explained It All :

Then I had this DR memory, and it all made sense. Basically, in my DR memory, there was a big renovation. The old high school from seasons one and two was in an older, run-down part of town with outdated facilities and a dull look. The town council realized that the school was no longer meeting the needs of the community, and it couldn't keep up with modern education standards. So, they decided to build a brand new high school—one that was bigger, more modern, and way more functional, with updated technology and better facilities, like advanced science labs, new computer rooms, and bigger athletic fields.

The construction project took about two to three years, and it involved a lot of community effort, planning, and even some fundraising by the local residents. The town was really proud to build something that would be a central part of the community and give students a much better learning environment. By the time summer break was over (like the one at the very beginning of season 3A), the new high school was ready, with modern classrooms, great sports facilities, an upgraded library with digital resources, and a cool, sleek design. It was a huge improvement compared to the old school. So, by the time season three starts, the high school is completely new and very different from the old one.

Better Than Devenford Prep :

What I found pretty funny in the DR memory was that some of the new facilities at our high school ended up being even better than the ones at Devenford Prep, which is supposed to be this elite school with the best resources. The upgrades were so impressive that even some of the prep school students came over to use our facilities, especially things like the athletic spaces and the new multimedia studio (which is, in a way, canon since I think there are scenes of Brett Talbot training at the BHHS lacrosse field). The swimming pool and gym were way nicer than anything Devenford had, which was surprising because private schools are usually thought to have better stuff than public ones.

Finally, I had an explanation for why the high school changed so much between seasons two and three, which the show never actually explained. It was really satisfying to fill in that missing piece because it made the story feel more realistic, like everything fit together and made sense, almost as if it had always been part of the original story.

@shiftingwithmars i think you have a teen wolf DR ? So maybe this lil storty time of mine will make some sense to you.

[sulumuns-dootah]

Can I request a headcanon of whb kings and gn mc going to the human world and meeting mc's toxic ex

WHB kings meeting MC's toxic ex

⟡ Masterlist ⟡

A/N: Accidentally wrote this with a male ex in mind, so sorry if you wanted to see female ex U.U

Warning: There's a lot of swearing from the ex :D (I don't normally have the need to warn about this but I did kinda run loose this time)

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

Make sure to explain to Satan that ther are laws and he can't just kick people as he wishes to when he's visiting you on Earth

But that doesn't stop him, really

So the moment your ex stops you while you've both just walking down a street and starts angrily going on about how quickly you moved on (it's been more than a year) and exchanged him for some short ass mf, Satan's already dragging him into the nearest back alley and having a "word" with him

There's no guarantee the ex will ever leave the back alley on his own - if even

Ngl, it's kinda hot to imagine :D

       ༺☆༻

Just a calm, normal day of Mammon treating you to a café date

Then suddenly a hand lands on the small table between the two of you

Yep, it's your toxic ex

'Seriously?! You broke up with me just to become some cheap sugar baby slut?'

So... Apparently your ex didn't miss the quiet luxury outfit on Mammon memo and thinks you're after his money

Before you get to speak up to your own defense, Mammon starts laughing

Your and your ex's heads snap in his direction

'Yeah, you think it's funny, asshole? This bitch is a goddamn golddigger!'

Mammon stops laughing and gets up

You can only see the horror in your ex's eyes as the mountain of a demon starts towering over him

"I'd really appreciate if you didn't talk about my fiancé like that. If you must know, they are the one making more money than me."

Mammon didn't even get to finish his second sentence and your ex is gone, vanished

       ༺☆༻

You're in some expensive store, picking out some new clothes for yourself to wear to some event that Leviathan's taking you to as a date

Coming out of a changing room, you do a little twirl to show your outfit to him

As Leviathan's hands smooth down over your curves, appreciating how the clothes complimetn your body, your toxic ex appears

'Hey fucker, hands off my gf/bf!'

Your ex grasps Leviathan's bicep and tries to pull him away from you

Levi only gives you a tired look

"Y/N, why is this cretin touching me?"

As you eyes widen, the shock stops you from making any sound

'You think you're being funny? I'll fucking kill you, dickhead!"

"Ah, I see..."

You and Leviathan agreed to not have him use his abilities so you don't get into trouble and possibly expose Levi as a demon

But this is a special case

So Levi turns to your ex and whispers "Choke"

And the next second, your ex is gasping for air, falling to the ground, meanwhile you and Levi try and get you changed bakc into your normal clothes so you can pay and leave ASAP

       ༺☆༻

A cute dinner date, what could go wrong?

It was kinda hard for Beelzebub to eat like a human and not shovel food into his mouth like he normally would

When your second course arrived, Beel stopped for a second

...?

That's odd...

"Hey mister waiter, this food smells interesting... Can you tell me why does this food smell like - what you guys call - rat poison?"

What. The. Fuck?

You freeze and look at Beel across the table

He's looking at the waiter with that smile of his that tells you he knows more than he's sharing

And then you look at the stuttering waiter

Fuck

That's your toxic ex

"B-Beel, what do you mean rat poison?!"

"It seems to me, our mister waiter gave us an extra ingredient into our food before bringing it here"

Beelzebub gets up and grabs your ex by his chin

The whole situation escalates to the point where your ex gets arrested for attempted murder

       ༺☆༻

On the rare occasion when Belphie isn't sleeping his day away, you both find yourself on some local version of comic con

You both decided to cosplay your favorite characters from a Hentai you both enojoy

It's a bit niche, but you guys were okay with that

But then from one of the booths emerges your toxic ex

'Ah, so I had to fight tooth and nail to at least get to see your tits once, but now you're just gonna whore yourself around?'

Your eyes dart to Blephie, but he's looking somewhere else, possibly dozing off standing up despite telling you he wouldn't

"May-"

You don't even get to say anything when your ex slaps you hard

That gets Belphie's attention and he's more awake than ever before

Normally, he's probably tell Beleth to kill that guy, but he's not there with you

So now Belphie has to be the one to deal wiht this nuisance

"M'kay, I'm giving you three seconds to skedaddle before I turn you into minced meat."

Your ex just starts to laugh, but doesn't get to for long since a black fog surrounds him and makes him disappear for good

Why bother with prolonging his inevitable end? Besides, Belphie is getting tired and you two still have a lot of things to check out

       ༺☆༻

I'm not even gonna introduce a scenario

It's not like you can even go outside with Asmo without having him get hard from something

But

If Asmo had to deal with your toxic ex, he'd go the I fucked your mom way

Which he probably actually did at some point

That would explain that absolute fatherless behavior of your ex during your relationship

       ༺☆༻

You and Lucifer are at a pharmacy, partially because you got a minor scratch on your elbow from *cough cough* but also because Lucifer is interested in what kinda of medicine humans have

And then you run into your ex with a broken hand who immediatelly starts going off to you about how messy you look and how you'll never find anyone again since even getting together with him was a charity on his part

You don't look messy at all

Okay, maybe your hair is a bit messy and and your outfit is a bit wrinkled plus you walk with a bit of a tiny limp, but that's because you did find someone else

You're aboutt o answer swomething witty, maybe even poke fun at your ex fro getting his hand broken, but Lucifer beats you to it:

"Excuse me, if I may chime in as a professional in the medical field, there seems to be a condition with your broken limb. If you keep saying such stuff to my partner, I'm affraid you'll find that your other hand is also broken, if not more of your bones. Should this condition escalate, your condition might turn lethal."

Your ex blinks, trying to process what Lucifer even said, but at that point you're both walking away while you're trying so hard to not burst out laughing

[rey-jake-therapist]

Sauron, Galadriel and touch

Each time we see Sauron hug someone, touch their arms or their hair, put his arms around their shoulders etc. it's never gratuitous. He always has an agenda. He does that to manipulate them in a way or another, or to steal them something. He isn't a touchy type of guy, really.. I think he probably dislikes it, most of the time.

In Elendil's case, he probably didn't just pickpocket him but used some magic trick as well, because there's no way Elendil wouldn't have noticed. Not to mention that the dagger literally disappeared from Halbrand's hands up until he gave it back to Galadriel. Anyway, he still hugged Elendil to distract him from what was happening. There was not a bit of sincerity in that move.

Later, he put his hand on the smith's shoulder in an attempt to convince him to take him at his service. It was meant to be a reassuring gesture : "trust me bro, I'm the best !"

In this case, it was slightly different :

Sauron did that to steal Tamar's guild crest, so the intention was similar to when he hugged Elendil. But this time, he didn't do it discreetly. We know now that even as Halbrand (so not in full possession of the powers he had as Annatar), he was able to make his blood look red; so he could have easily projected the image of the guild's crest on Tamar's tunique, to make him think it was still there.

But see, Tamar offended him. He recalled him that Galadriel would probably never want him (though not because he was a "low man", but because he was the very evil she sought to destroy), and Sauron didn't like that. So what he did was provoking Tamar by stealing his crest in plain sight, so Tamar would follow him and give him the excuse he waited for, to do that :

We can also count that as touching, I guess ? But tell me again that Sauron wasn't interested in Galadriel romantically... It makes total sense for him to lose his shit because some man implied he wasn't good enough for her, right...

(I'll later write another meta about the few times that Sauron loses control. It doesn't happen often, but when it does, it's hot terrifying).

In season 2, I think we saw him touch Mirdania twice, and maybe once for Celebrimbor ? Though I can't find a gif of Sauron touching him except when he grabbed him at the end, so I'm not sure about that.

I've already discussed several times, including today, how Mirdania was a stand-in for Galadriel, so I won't go back to that here. Sauron doesn't feel any affection for Mirdania: wether he touches her hair and hand to manipulate her, or because she reminds him of Galadriel, or most likely, for both, it is, again, not gratuitous and not genuine.

And as for being touched... Oh boy, he doesn't like that at all. His reaction is most of the time him pulling a disgusted "how dare you touching me, you miserable worm ?" face.

This scene in particular was hilarious in this regard. He was very upset by Celebrimbor's refusal to forge rings for men, and Celebrimbor unwillingly added to the offence by giving him a condescending pat on the arm. Sauron probably had a hard time refraining the urge to murder Celebrimbor on the spot, here.

The Galadriel Case

Her case is special, as usual. Until episode 8, Sauron never touches her without her consent : after they arrive in Numenor, he invites it, but doesn't force it on her. it's supposed to be a "friendly" handshake symbolizing peace and a mean to give her Finrod's dagger back, but, well, hmm...

It's just straight out flirting. The way he looks straight into her eyes while pulling her to him, his weird conception of personal space... I can't NOT tag @apoloadonisandnarcissus 's thread about the Freudian symbolism in Haladriel interactions... It's worth reading. There was nothing friendly/platonic in his behavior, but, again... no unnecessary touching here.

Galadriel remains equally guarded towards him, even after she spends time with him and considers him as a "friend". As Sauron in episode 3, she only invites it, on the boat that takes them to the Southlands.

Even when she gives him back his pouch, in the forge, she does it in a way that her fingers barely touch his.

When she finds him wounded, she touches him where he's wounded, to check how serious it is. She could take his hand to comfort him, but.... Nope.

And yet, she's not usually that guarded with her friends, those with whom she shares a (truly) platonic relationship with, as we can see with Elrond and Arondir.

It's definitely not because she doesn't trust Halbrand/Sauron. She does, or she wouldn't be that heartbroken over him in season 2. No, I think she keeps him at arm's length because what she feels for him is not platonic at all, and she wants to keep her feelings in check. Keeping her distance with him (physically) is the way for her to do that, or so she thinks.

Now, back to Sauron. While during all season 1 he was never touchy with Galadriel, in episode 8, he suddenly is.

Not only that but he's also very flirtatious, like... more than usual.

Galadriel seems surprised with this unsolicited touching, and iffy, because she doesn't trust him anymore. She has just asked one of her fellow Elves to look in the catacombs of Eregion for everything they had about the Southlands and their royal lineage; after she heard Celebrimbor talk about "power over flesh" and seen Sauron enthusiastically offer his aid to the smith, she starts suspecting that Halbrand may be not who he claims to be.

Coincidence ? I think not. Even if she remained discreet, Sauron probably felt that something was off. He's very observant, and he knows her mind. If she changed of attitude with him, if she seemed even a little bit wary of him, there's no doubt he noticed it.

He certainly planned to tell her the truth about him very soon, at that point, but he also wants the rings to be forged so he could show her what they'd do with them. So this, imho, is Sauron buying time. He knows she's attracted to him, he may even know she's in love with him... I think he's trying to breach her defenses, here.

Did he succeed, even for the few weeks that separated this scene from the Sauron revelation ? That, we don't know. I'd say probably not, because just before the Elf brought her the records she asked for, she doesn't look like someone who trusts him again.

But then she's still in denial about him even after he admits he isn't the king of the Southlands, going as far as claiming he convinced Miriel to go help the Southlands, while it was her idea entirely... So who knows what happened during these three weeks. It's also possible she didn't suspect him to be Sauron, of all people. And anyways, she loves him. She definitely hoped till he revealed himself that he had a good explanation for everything.

Yesterday I published this post very late, and it's only this morning that I realized I omitted to mention a couple of other very important touches... Stupid me.

How could I forget the chin grab ?

We're in full "unsolicited touching" territory here. Personal boundaries be damned ! The chin grab has several connotations here : it's coded as romantic, but it's also an act of dominance and control, though there's no brutality at all in his gesture. Sauron wants Galadriel to look at him, aka to face the truth : he's still the man she loves, but he's also the monster she hates. They both coexist, in him, hence why the claims that "Halbrand never existed" or "Galadriel loved Halbrand but doesn't love Sauron" are both nonsenses and a complete misunderstanding of the season 1 finals. Galadriel knows who he is in this scene, and yet she's tempted.

The act of grabbing the chin is in itself controlling/dominating, but there's also tenderness : he's gentle, he caresses her cheek almost shyly; he wants her trust for Halbrand back, not her fear of Sauron. He wants to show her that she's loved, but you can feel that if she asked him to take his hand off her, he would back off.

Finally, this post ends with Sauron taking Galadriel's hands into his, with her holding Finrod's dagger.

You know, what he did with Morgoth's crown in season 2, binding her to him through a forced blood oath ? He wanted to do almost exactly that in season 1 already, and that's what this scene implies. Except in this scenario, Galadriel would have been ok with it: it would haven't been a metaphorical rape, but the closest to a consensual sex scene we'd have gotten in this show, if they had followed this route.

I'm not saying I wanted this, just to be clear: Galadriel was tempted to join Sauron in this scene, but it would have been a major breach to the LOTR lore if she had. "Touching the darkness", in Finrod's and Galadriel's minds, was never about embracing it wholeheartedly. It was precisely where Galadriel and Sauron's visions diverge. She knows it will never be the way. She knows she'd end up being a tyrant if she succombed to the temptation, and that's why she rejected it, and Sauron with it.

[howtofightwrite]

For a character that virtually can’t die and regenerates in order to keep living, how do you make action interesting? Emphasize they still feel pain, why they’re doing it?

I'm actually going to step back a bit from this question first, and complement it. This is a very honest question, and something most writers who include violence in their work, should really think about. Even if you don't think you have characters like this, you do.

Now, I'm going to dunk on Ben “Yahtzee” Croshaw for a moment. Ages ago (I think it was in one of his Resistance reviews), Yahtzee described, “threatening to blow up the world,” as the laziest form of raising the stakes. Because, “hey, I live on a world.” He's mostly correct. Threatening your protagonist's life is even lazier. In the vast majority of cases, your audience knows you won't go through with it. That you won't kill off your protagonists.

With that in mind, when you decide your protagonist is completely immortal, that changes less about how you write them than you might expect. The biggest difference is simply that they're directly aware of their plot armor, rather than them engaging in faux indecision based on their perceived mortality. Again, this is something that every writer who uses violence should think about, at least a bit. It is natural for a character to fear for their life, and have reservations about risking their life, but making the part where your character's lives are on the line isn't automatically suspenseful. In a lot of cases (consciously or not), your audience will call your bluff, when you threaten to kill off a major character.

If you think back to major character deaths where something drops them without warning, part of what makes those scenes work is the lack of (apparent) setup. The writer didn't spend pages teasing you with the idea, they just went for the throat and ended that character on the spot. This is more respectful of your audience, because you're not telling them, “well, I might kill this character, or I might not.”

To be clear, I'm not saying that there's no place for teasing your audience with a character's impending demise, just pointing out that in a lot of cases, this won't generate the kind of suspense you'd hope for.

So, to get back on topic, how do you make it interesting? Remember that while this character can't die, the same is not true for the characters around them. Depending on the tone you're going for, you could create an absolutely brutal crucible effect, where everyone around your immortal gets burned off, sooner or later. Whether that's literal, or figurative, is up to you. Even if your character can't die, watching people they care about suffer and die is going to have an effect on them.

You probably don't need to draw special attention to the physical pain they experience, but you do want to be aware of it. Especially in the context of how pain affects the victim's behavior. Beyond that, there is probably an element of pain being far more annoying to the immortal than it would be to a normal person. They know it's not telling them anything meaningful, but it is distracting.

Long-term, both of these can easily result in personality shifts. And, legitimately, this is a scenario where a character may be immortal, but they would still experience significant changes over time, and with the growing emotional pain, could have very adverse effects on your personality. This does have some very real, “live long enough to see yourself become the villain,” potential. How many friends can you lose before you stop caring? How many funerals can you attend before you start taking the phrase, “you're either part of the solution or part of the problem,” a little too far? How many times can you pick yourself up off the pavement a blood-covered alleyway, surrounded by corpses, before you start to forget what made you human in the first place?

And, that's not the only option. The simplest answer for maintaining tension when one of your characters is immortal is keeping your eye on what they're trying to accomplish. Keep track of their objectives, because I guarantee they can fail those. Even just keeping their own nature concealed from the mortal world is probably fairly important, because of the idea that men in hazmat suits will drag them away to some research lab and poke them until they figure out how to replicate their immortality, is a classic (and potentially plausible) threat. (Bonus points, if you're wanting to loop in something like the medieval inquisitions, or some other secret societies that could pose this kind of a threat.)

So, what do you do? To dig out an old cliché threat, “there are fates worse than death,” and it's probably worth exploring them. This also opens up new possibilities for threats. Finally, it's worth remembering that immortality does not guarantee success. If your character is hoping for that, it might be time to give them a very harsh lesson.

-Starke

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[meanbossart]

How did your DU drow react when he got told he had to kill his spouse? and then when he went to wake up Astarion and get tied up? I think I just wanna know how your DU drow mentally/emotionally is doing during and after that part, and when talking to Astarion afterward, I'm a sucker for hearing about those deep kinds of moments (hopefully that makes sense?) Also, how did your DU react when you met Kressa Bonedaughter and learned all about what was done to him (again, I know none of the companions really comment on literally something horrible being told such a shame, honestly) but how would you say or think that Astarion and Shadowheart might have reacted hearing that info? Again, thank you for all your art and for answering these questions! PS: (I really don't care if your answer is super long; I WILL EAT IT UP)

Sooo for the first question, I wanna preface by saying that I personally don't think their relationship was that in depth yet, at that point. Yes, DU drow enjoyed Astarion's company and relied on him in a similar way which he relied on Shadowheart. And also yes, Astarion saw DU drow as the first person who ever took him and his agency seriously - but I think feelings were still in their infancy. DU drow's mind was a mess through and through; he drank constantly to keep his urge at bay, he kept his distance from everyone most of the time, and when he did seek out comfort in either Shadowheart or Astarion (the non-sexual kind, they didn't really fuck at all), it was a kind of primal instinct and desperate longing for companionship - if you asked him if he was in love with anyone, however, he would have said no.

Similarly, while I think Astarion's act 2 confession is sincere, I also think that he's being sincere when he says that he doesn't know what you are yet. You're not really a lover, but you aren't a victim, either; what you are is a person who he would rather not have to murder eventually, and as someone who has had their empathy squeezed out throughout the course of two centuries, that's meaningful enough. He may fantasize about the best case scenario for you two - but he has no expectations that whatever this is will last. But it is nice, for the time being.

So the "murder your darling" scene, rather than a proof of love and trust, is to me the turning point where:

A) DU drow has to come to terms with the fact that he doesn't have as much control over the Urge as he thought, and B) When Astarion snaps out of his care-free, just-go-with-the-flow nature around his plan and this relationship. They both realize they bit off more than they could chew and are now caught in each other's crossfire.

Which is to say that I don't read Astarion's words of comfort to him as entirely honest - specially when you compare it to certain dialogue deliveries later in the game. I think he's still, to a degree, telling you what you need to hear so that you hold out for just a bit longer and kill Cazador. You probably can't be together forever as he idly fantasized about once or twice, when he let his mind wander - but god damn it, he needs to at least be free, and it seems like you have bloodlust to spare to make that happen.

Meanwhile, DU drow finally comes to confront the fact that he is not in control. Doesn't matter how hard he tries or how much he drinks, the urge will do to him as it will, and when it wishes. It stops being fun and it gets scary, from that moment on.

But here's who did stop it: Astarion. Where alcohol fell short and his willpower failed, Astarion stepped in.

So, more interesting than the scene itself to me, is how from that point on DU drow would have no choice but put his trust entirely on the vampire to control him. He ties him up, he keeps an eye on him, he has full spoken-word permission to kill him if necessary - he is forced to be as vulnerable at humanly possible under his hand, every night. Regardless of whether or not DU drow realizes that Astarion is doing it for his own reasons, he doesnt care, because Astarion has now become his rock and his bondage - hell, if Astarion does have a reason to keep him alive that's all the better; someone else might just slit DU drow's throat and be done with the concern altogether.

And so, it's only from that point on that DU drow truly starts to see Astarion as an equal, and even a partner. He's thinking that, if his whole life has to be like this, at least he has someone who can handle it.

Astarion, meanwhile, I believe only comes to truly consider (and wish for) DU drow's freedom after he's free from Cazador - and after he bestows that freedom upon his siblings and the other spawn. That's when he finally understands the length of DU drow's devotion to him and the value of freewill as a concept- and how he wants it for both of them, instead of being content with his own.

Not to mention... I think in Astarion's mind he was 100% not going to survive Cazador LOL so when he succeeds he's like "oh shit I guess anything is fucking possible huh. Yeah fuck it lets go fight your dad, also I've decided I want you for realsies, now."

Anyways, can you believe I thought this was gonna be a short ask. Here have a doodle I made while thinking about all this bullshit:

As for Kressa, I got an ask about that before but I can't find it now LOL to summarize; he was pissed, angered, and in a far more personal level embarrassed to have had his dirty laundry aired (AKA, victimized) in that way in front of the others - but this isn't something he would have expressed outwardly, and I think both Shadowheart and Astarion would have known better than to inquire him about it. It's not really something he would have sought out comfort for in anyone, so, I think the subject died as soon as Kressa did. In this case, their lack of commentary was completely appropriate - If they had reached out in any way (which would have been, in my opinion, completely out of character) DU drow would have shut them out with a quickness.

[burningdaybreak]

Aun no Beats & BAD DOGS' Relationship

Hello everyone! Today is August 19, which is a pretty special day, since it's both Aun no Beats' original version's release anniversary, and Akito and Touya's middle birthday (the day in the middle of both of their birth dates, which are May 25 and November 12). Added to the game on June 6, 2022 (JP server), the addition of Aun no Beats has always been quite an interesting case. The song is covered exclusively by Akito and Touya, which is a pretty rare thing; not many songs are exclusively covered by just original characters, and it hasn't happened for a while now; as of writing this, the last one was Amanojaku (released in the JP server on October 1, 2022). Furthermore, the song's original producer, Hanyuu Maigo, prohibits covers of their songs being sold commercially, which is most likely the reason why it was not included in Vivid BAD SQUAD SEKAI ALBUM Vol.2. So, why did Project Sekai go out of their way to add a cover of this song to the game, even though they wouldn't profit from it at all? They must have really wanted it in the game, then... and looking at the lyrics, I think it makes sense; the song represents Akito, Touya, and their relationship and story so well. And so, in this essay, I will talk about Aun no Beats, and look at its lyrics and analyze them, and talk about how they represent Akito and Touya and their characters and story.

1. What is Aun no Beats about, and how does it represent Akito and Touya's relationship?

Aun no Beats is a song about a relationship where both parties understand each other without a need for words, but they'd still like to hear those words.

So, giving and receiving, I never needed to look for the words Even so, I wanted to hear them from you

However, with the We were going to be together forever in the lyrics, the song feels like it's about a relationship with a bad ending, where they're separated for some reason, whether a break up or separated by death... The meaning of the word aun in the title is taken from the Japanese idiom 阿吽の仲 (a-un no naka), a phrase that indicates an inherently harmonious relationship where both parties can understand each other without the need of verbal communication.

When it comes to Akito and Touya, my interpretation of the cover for them, and possibly the most common interpretation, is that it represents them in the main story, and the short break up they went through due to their lack of communication (therefore, the things that weren't said). Aun no Beats represents them pretty well because of the incredibly close bond they have and how they understand each other so well without needing to communicate their feelings... but they both still want to hear how the other really feels. As for the "bad ending" in the song, it represents the miscommunication issue they had in Vivid BAD SQUAD's main story; this conflict arose from the fact that Touya felt like he wasn't good enough about singing to be Akito's partner. Even though Touya kept these feelings to himself for the two years that he had been singing next to Akito, seeing Akito berate An and Kohane and how they aren't serious enough about their dream of surpassing RAD WEEKEND made Touya decide he can't keep going like this. In the end, he decided to claim he didn't want to sing with Akito anymore because he felt he wasn't worthy of being his partner, but avoiding telling him the real reason and riling him up on purpose, because he'd rather lie than disappoint the most important person to him. This culminated in Akito allowing his emotions to overtake him, and punching his partner, and BAD DOGS breaking up temporarily. However, unlike the song, their story has a happy ending, since at the end of Vivid BAD SQUAD's main story, Akito and Touya talk it out, Akito making Touya realize that he actually loves music...

🥞 You love music. You love it like an idiot, you really do. You love it… and I know that better than anyone else!

... And Akito declaring that he'll never team up with anyone other than Touya...

🥞 STOP SAYING THAT!! … Don't you get it! I'm never gonna team up with anyone other than you!

... Which finally makes Touya talk about how he truly feels:

☕ Gh…! Isn't it obvious that I want to…! I've felt that so many times! I wanted to chase that dream with you as far as I could…!

With both of them on the same page, with the same feelings, they can reconcile and be a team, once again. Although Touya is still doubtful if he's truly worthy of singing by Akito's side, Akito shuts him up with the following line:

🥞 Oh, shut up already. Don't go makin' this complicated. I want to be with you, and you want to be with me as well. And after that, our dream will come true. ... Isn't that enough?

They know how they feel. And they now have words they were looking for. This is all they need, to be partners: just knowing that they respect and appreciate each other, and wanting to sign with each other. With this, they can now be together forever. In short, this song would symbolize Akito and Touya's relationship during Vivid BAD SQUAD's main story; most specifically, the period where they temporarily split up (often jokingly called their "divorce arc"). But they come out of it stronger and more determined than before to be with each other, which is why the song doesn't fully represent their relationship, since their story does have a happy ending... they reconciled, and still have a future together. It's not the first time that they get a song that symbolizes their short break up during the main story, as Fragile can also be interpreted that way (among other covers, but Fragile is the one with most similarities to Aun no Beats); however, compared to that, there's a few things that stand out about Aun no Beats. Fragile was added with Project Sekai's release in September 30, 2020, back when the only story content Vivid BAD SQUAD was their main story, so it made sense that have that song available right when the game came out; but Aun no Beats came out over one year and a half after its addition to the game (June 6, 2022), when Vivid BAD SQUAD was well past the main story's events.

Fun fact: Aun no Beats' addition to the game was announced in the 20th Wondershow Channel stream, which took place on May 25, 2022 — the same day as Touya's birthday. Quite a coincidence, huh?

Another curious thing, which I mentioned back in the introduction, is that the release anniversary of the original version of Aun no Beats (August 19) is the very same date as Akito and Touya's middle birthday. It could most definitely be a coincidence, but considering how well the song represents them and their characters, one starts thinking... could it have been on purpose? Fragile also represents them really well, and it makes you wonder the same thing, and if perhaps they wrote these characters when considering the song's lyrics, but Aun no Beats' case is even more intriguing because of all these odd facts. To add on, both are songs where Akito and Touya sing by themselves, with no accompanying Virtual Singer. These two songs are the only Vivid BAD SQUAD covers with this trait (along with Odo, covered by An and Kohane), making them stand out among the other duets (which all have at least one Virtual Singer); and considering both can be interpreted as representing their relationship, this makes them even more special. They are the BAD DOGS songs. Taking into account the situation with the original producer and their rules regarding commercialization, there genuinely wasn't much to gain from adding this song to the game as a cover, but since it represents BAD DOGS so well, along with the other reasons I've mentioned, I feel like the Project Sekai team really wanted to do this.

2. Song Analysis

I've talked about how the song represents the events of the main story, but I feel like the lyrics symbolize not just that; I would say they also represent Akito and Touya, how they feel about each other, and their personal relationship. And so, here I will look into Aun no Beats' lyrics, and talk about what I feel they represent: (Note that I'll be posting all the Aun no Beats lyrics, for the sake of putting everything here, but I won't analyze all of them!)

🥞♪ Everyone has gone somewhere and became nothing 🥞♪ They had it coming ☕️♪ I wanted to believe it, so I stopped voicing it out

Everyone has gone somewhere and became nothing // They had it coming, lines sung by Akito, would represent how Touya left him, leaving him alone once again. The became nothing part can be viewed as Akito expressing his frustration at how they're nothing by themselves (both him and Touya). And the They had it coming could be about Akito's reaction to their break up, with Akito punching Touya. He "deserved" it, he believes; therefore, this part of the song would be Akito expressing his frustration at how everything went down, anger at his partner, and anger at himself. On the other hand, though, this line can also be considered from Akito's point of view, singing about himself — They had it coming being how he deserved this, because of his reaction, because of something he must have done wrong, because he didn't notice his partner's feelings... Akito is a character who is very harsh on himself, he regrets that they ended up like this, that he reacted like that, and so, he believes he had this coming. Then, I wanted to believe it, so I stopped voicing it out, sung by Touya, is about how he feels about himself: believing he's not a worthy partner for Akito, with half-hearted feelings, but keeping it to himself... deep down, he enjoyed singing with Akito, and wanted to keep doing it, but due to his insecurities, he pretended he was just singing with him because it was better than nothing. Therefore, he wanted to believe it was fine to sing with Akito, even though he thought he didn't deserve it. He didn't talk about how he truly felt, and even when he faced Akito when his insecurities peaked, he lied; he avoided telling the truth, he avoided voicing it out, because, for Touya, disappointing Akito would be worse than losing him.

🥞♪ Why do I want to be loved? ☕️♪ Why do I want to love? ☕️♪ I dressed it up and shared it

(cracks knuckles) I've already talked about these lines in the past, multiple times, and also love as a theme in Vivid BAD SQUAD; but I really like it, so I will do it again. While I think these lines can be associated to the events of their "divorce arc", Akito's Why do I want to be loved? and Touya's Why do I want to love? are, pretty much, the core of their characters, and a very significant part of their characterization and personalities. Akito is a character with a lot of love to give: love for music and his goal, love for the town, love for those he admires, love for his partner... however, that love is often not reciprocated. People make fun of him, they don't take him seriously; the town doesn't love him back at first. Why do I want to be loved? symbolizes Akito's desire to be loved back, how he wants people to respect him and to take him seriously. Akito wants the love he receives to match the love he provides. This line would represent, too, how he loves and appreciates Touya: the guy he met who he found interesting and immediately knew that he wanted to share his dream with; that person who had been singing next to him the previous two years, practicing endlessly with him; always listening to him, taking him seriously, respecting him; always by his side... and Akito wants that love to be reciprocated. And even though he knows Touya feels the same, he wants to hear those words. On the other hand, Touya is a character with a lack of love in his life: trapped since he was young in a home where his family barely provided him love, only really caring about his musical skills, Touya grew up away from a life where he could be free and express himself properly, attempting to meet his parents' expectations and his love for music diminishing as time passed. Ultimately, he ran away from that life, but after meeting Akito, he could enjoy music, once again, even though he's not aware of it at first. Why do I want to love? symbolizes Touya's inexperience with love; not used to being loved, having forgotten how to enjoy music, and not knowing what it's like to have someone close to him — a friend that cares about him, he didn't really know what "love" is like... furthermore, this line also symbolizes his desire to give back to Akito and to everyone else who has supported and watched over him, grateful for their support and for pushing him forward, helping Touya find himself and learning what it's like to be loved. In the past, Touya believed that Akito could do better, that he wasn't worthy of being by his side, that he was singing with him because "it's not classical music"... but he didn't realize that Akito truly cares about him, and wanted to have him as partner, above anybody else; and that, even if he ran away from classical music, even after all the pain he went through because of it, he still loves music, and he realizes that thanks to Akito.

🥞 You love music. You love it like an idiot, you really do. You love it… and I know that better than anyone else!

Touya thought that he'd disappoint Akito by telling him how he feels... but, besides the fact that Akito knew those feelings are not true, he would never be disappointed in Touya — because he loves his partner above anybody else. Touya is the one and only partner he could ask for; and Touya's so grateful to Akito for that, for making him realize that he's loved, appreciated, and that he still loves music, after everything. And thanks to Akito's words, and all the love he provided, the current Touya is so much happier with his life, able to express his emotions better, and no longer bound back by a miserable life of unrealistic expectations. He can now be his own person; and so, the reason why he wants to love is because he wants to repay everyone's kindness, supporting his partner and teammates, and helping everyone in any way he can — Touya wants to reciprocate the love of the people that allowed him to find a place where he can laugh. Love is a very central theme for Akito and Touya as characters (and for Vivid BAD SQUAD as a whole), not just for music and everything that surrounds them, but also for each other, with it being a very prominent part of their relationship: Akito giving lots of love, always caring for his partner and having helped him find himself and learn about a whole new world, surrounded by people that actually care about and love him; and Touya learning to love, grateful for everything that his partner did for him, wanting to repay his kindness, and a desire for Akito to rely on him more — he wants to give all that love back. Which is why the lines of Why do I want to be loved? and Why do I want to love? fit them so well; because it's what they're missing, and what they want from the other. In short, these two lines are very significant to their relationship and how they feel about each other, and I really like it a lot.

☕️♪ I— 🥞☕️♪ My sympathy is due to vagueness 🥞☕️♪ And my fearless sensory 🥞♪ Don't worry, don't worry, it's okay 🥞♪ I will make you smile

Despite the briefness of the line, I believe that the I- is pretty significant; it being a Touya line, it represents his hesitation to speak up his feelings up until then, and keeping them hidden rather than voicing out what he wants to say. Don't worry, don't worry, it's okay // I will make you smile, lines sung by Akito, are quite nice, as they symbolize multiple things: first, Don't worry, don't worry, it's okay is about how Akito wants to reassure Touya that voicing out his feelings is fine, he'll accept Touya no matter what. He wants to hear how his partner feels, and he'd never be disappointed in him. Then, I will make you smile is how Akito wants the best for Touya; to make him feel happy, loved, accepted. It shows all the love Akito holds for his partner, and his genuine wish to be by his side, and make him smile. No matter what, Akito will always be with Touya.

☕️♪ So, giving and receiving, ☕️♪ Stay here so you won't disappear 🥞♪ Then, 🥞♪ "Please reply to me, too"

So, giving and receiving, // Stay here so you won't disappear, both lines sung by Touya, are really good and pretty significant. First, So, giving and receiving, is also a core part of Akito and Touya's relationship, closely tied with what I talked about love in the Why do I want to be loved? // Why do I want to love? section.

Their relationship can really be boiled down to giving and receiving, a mutual exchange of love, respect, help, feelings, dreams... they share everything, they give and receive things from each other, and this allows them to grow as people, together. They make each other whole, and that's what makes them inseparable partners — they're each other's one and only partner. Following that, Stay here so you won't disappear, it represents Touya's yearning for Akito, not wanting him to leave him, despite these insecure feelings he has, these feelings he thinks will disappoint Akito. No matter what, he wants Akito with him... and he'd rather lie than disappoint the one he loves. And then we have Akito's, Then, // Please reply to me, too. This is a direct response to Touya's Stay here so you won't disappear, which symbolizes Akito wanting to hear how Touya truly feels, so they'll stay together; representing that moment during their dispute where Akito tells Touya to voice out how he really feels, but Touya keeping his feelings to himself. Akito wants to hear how Touya truly feels, to hear what's wrong. He doesn't want to let go of Touya the same way Touya doesn't want Akito to leave him.

☕️♪ I held up my heart to you, ☕️♪ Give it back someday, be gentle, okay? 🥞♪ I really wanted to go back 🥞♪ Going back after this is fine, too

Then we have these lines, which I think symbolizes them right after their break up and how they feel. I held up my heart to you // Give it back someday, be gentle, okay?, sung by Touya. This line would represent how Touya trusted Akito, how he enjoyed their time together, even if he never expressed it, and deep down regretting what he said, hoping his partner will forgive him. Akito then sings I really wanted to go back // Going back after this is fine, too; the first one showing his regret towards their fight, and the second line showing that he still wants to be with his partner, after all. He won't accept it, he won't give up on his partner and leave it like this. He'll fight for his partner. This part is interesting since their lines have a similar structure, with the first one showing "regret" or wanting what they had before their break up (I held up my heart to you and I really wanted to go back), while the second line symbolizes their hope to be reunited again eventually (Give it back someday, be gentle, okay? and Going back after this is fine, too).

🥞♪ We... 🥞☕️♪ We— 🥞☕️♪ We were going to be together forever 🥞☕️♪ We were going to be together forever ☕️♪ Don't worry, don't worry ☕️♪ It's a wonderful end for us both

Akito's solo We... is really good, as it comes right after his Going back after this is fine, too; he still talks about himself and Touya in plural. He wants to be with him, after all; to be partners, once again, because there's nobody else he'd rather be with. Comparing Akito's We... with Touya's previous I— is interesting; Touya's earlier line is about hesitating to speak up, unconfident about being by Akito's side, while Akito's line, on the other hand, shows confidence in wanting to be together and still thinking of them as a duo, even if they're currently apart. Which is, frankly, quite a nice contrast, since later on, it's Akito who's more unconfident (in his skill and himself), while Touya's confident in wanting to be by Akito's side. Akito and Touya are very contrasting characters, and even here it shows; these contrasts really make them fit to be together, like they're made to be with each other — they make up for the other's faults, and that allows them to push each other ahead and grow together. Following that, there's another We—, this time being a shared line, showing how they still want to be with each other; and two We were going to be together forever afterwards, also sung by both of them, show that they both feel the same: regretting what happened between them, and yearning to be together. However, these lines are followed by Touya's Don't worry, don't worry // It's a wonderful end for us both; these symbolize Touya thinking that no longer being Akito's partner is the best outcome for both of them, and how he believes that Akito's better off without a half-hearted guy like him and that he can find someone better than him — someone who actually takes music seriously the same way Akito does.

🥞♪ So, giving and receiving, 🥞♪ I never needed to look for the words 🥞☕️♪ Even so, 🥞☕️♪ I wanted to hear them from you

Once again, the line So, giving and receiving, appears, this time sung by Akito. As mentioned before, this is a core part of Akito and Touya's relationship, and with both of them singing the same line, we know that their relationship is one of mutual exchange, that is, giving and receiving; providing to each other what they're looking for, and making each other whole in the process. I never needed to look for the words, sung by Akito, is also an important aspect of Akito and Touya's relationship; as long time partners, by now they know each other really well, and as time passes and they grow together and experience more things alongside the other, their bond will become even more inseparable, not needing to put into words how they truly feel — individually, and about each other. By the point of the main story, their relationship is still relatively early (even though they had been singing for two years together already by then), and they hadn't experienced any major setbacks, simply singing together and enjoying themselves, so they weren't truly close yet — but still, they knew, deep down, how the other felt... which is why Akito thinks that he never needed to look for the words; no matter what Touya said, he knew Touya still loved music, and that he enjoyed singing by Akito's side, and that he wanted to be with him. Even if he never truly expressed himself, Akito knew how his partner felt, which is what makes their bond so strong. ... However, as the next lines say: Even so, // I wanted to hear them from you, lines sung by both of them, they both still wanted to hear those words from each other. They want to hear how each other feels; Touya wanting to be reassured that Akito wants to be with him, and Akito wanting Touya to open himself up. As partners... they want the other to rely on them, to help them and to guide them; so they can become the best partners, and reach their goal together. And for that, they need to communicate; even if it may not be necessary at one point, as they'll know each other without a need for words, voicing out their feelings is necessary to get through this setback — to reach each other.

☕️♪ "We were going to be together forever" 🥞♪ "We were going to be together forever" ☕️♪ Even so... 🥞♪ Even so... 🥞☕️♪ Even so... 🥞☕️♪ "I want you to say it to me"

And with this, we reach the finale of the song, with both of them saying "We were going to be together forever" and Even so... once, before saying Even so... together, and ending it with "I want you to say it to me". All of these have appeared before, with "We were going to be together forever" expressing, once again, their regrets of having ended up like this, and the multiple Even so... expressing that, even though they're like this, they want to fix their relationship... they want to hear how the other feels. They have a desire to communicate to be with each other, yet again; as they complete each other. They're the best partner the other could ask for, and they want to keep being together. Forever.

3. Conclusion

And that's it for Aun no Beats' lyrics! Pretty much all the lyrics can be somehow related to Akito and Touya's story and the events of the main story, and their relationship, which is so great. The fact it fits them so well makes all the aforementioned facts, such as their middle birthday happening to coincide with the same day as Aun no Beats' original version's anniversary day, and how the Sekai team went out of their way to add this song to the game even though they wouldn't benefit financially from it, very interesting. Could it truly be a coincidence? Oh I am so curious... Aun no Beats is a song that can be interpreted as a couple with a close bond that has been separated, a song with a sad ending; and this plot sounds very much like Akito and Touya's "divorce arc" during the main story. Fortunately, their relationship was fixed and now they're a stronger couple than ever. As I've explained in past essays, even though their relationship may not be inherently romantic, because Vivid BAD SQUAD's "partner" (aibou) does not have the romantic meaning that the western partner does, their relationship is very reminiscent of a romantic couple: as of current story events, Akito and Touya are very much like an old married couple, experienced in relationships and being together (as partners), and everything they go through and how they interact with each other really can give off romantic vibes sometimes (look at Let It Ring! Beautiful Sound!'s Touya's card's side stories, for example; the way Akito reacted at Touya was so... unusual of a regular pair of friends); while An and Kohane are a newly formed couple that is still learning to be together and how to be partners, with Akito and Touya guiding them through this new experience as an experienced couple. Although the previous paragraph was slightly unrelated to the essay, the point I am trying to make is that Aun no Beats is often interpreted as a couple that has broken up or that has been separated by death, so the romantic associations for Akito and Touya's relationship are existent. This is definitely up to interpretation, of course, but I believe Akito and Touya are one of the pairs with most chemistry in the game, due to how they're pretty much made to be together, as they complement each other so much, between their contrasts and their personalities. Their break up during the main story was quite similar to how an actual couple would fight, due to their mistakes and lack of communication leading to an argument and split up. However, they manage to make up, and they become partners once again, and their bond has been inseparable since, growing further as they keep singing by the other's side. Their relationship, in the end, is all about giving and receiving; relying on each other, loving and learning to love back, and supporting each other by making up for the other's shortcomings. They grow and learn together, they desire to sing together, and they yearn to be by each other's side. This is, after all, what it means to be partners. And together, they can surpass anything. They're fated to be together, and there's nothing that can separate them anymore. They're each other's best partner they could ask for.

4. Afterword

And with this, the essay is done. Truthfully, I've struggled a bit to write since my last essay, and I am still halfway through Part 4 of the Freedom and Captivity series essay; I may have stressed myself by putting on unrealistic deadlines, first meant for August 1, then for August 19. It wasn't necessary at all to release it on August 1, and it was more of continuing the joke, but I did want to get something out for August 19 because it's a very special day. Fortunately, I got a bit inspired, and I had the idea of writing this... and I wrote it in like, 2 days? (lol) And I'm glad I did because it's a very fitting essay for this day, talking about both Akito and Touya's relationship (since August 19 is their middle birthday) and Aun no Beats (song originally released on this day, too). I'm satisfied, and I'm relieved I can take my time to finish the next essay, since there's no deadlines now... from now on I won't set deadlines so close to the actual thing, haha. To finish off, I'd like to thank my friend Dainn for supporting me as I wrote, both this and the previous essay that I failed to finish in time; I appreciate it a lot!! Also thanks for proofreading my essays as always. And thanks to artemis for proofreading it, too; consider this my gift to you for getting T100 in Let It Ring! Beautiful Sound! Congratulations! Anyways, thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed this essay! See you next time!