#in his case I just... saw some of myself in him. Like we're not completely the same obviously and we handled isolation differently

[pierswife]

i love your ships w the 3 stooges(/lh) (albedo... your whopperflower prince/j, piers, and flavio!)

THREE STOOGES-- WHOPPERFLOWER PRINCE-- KFHQIDHW HELP

But thank you Miri <3 I will never not get over whopperflower prince, it makes me giggle and also cause

[3rachasdomesticbanana]

Just Friends | Han Jisung

Synopsis: Unrequited love is a bitch. Especially when it's between you and your best friend. Even more so when both of you think it's one sided. So what could possibly happen between you and him during a night of partying? Nothing right? You're just friends after all.

Pairings: au Han Jisung x Female Reader

Content Warning: Underage alcohol and drug use (marijuana only), Heavy smut, Friends to lovers, Public unprotected sex and light fluff at the end.

Author's note: I do not advise any anyone under the legal age to take part in the actions that take place in this work of fiction. Both parties are consenting adults over the age of 18. Please be responsible.

Part II

Want more smut? Follow the banana 🍌

"Y/N, you made it! Sweet!” Your best guy friend Jisung bounces up to you when you walk into the party.

His cheeks are flushed and his eyes are slightly glassy. Looks like he got a head start on partying but he makes sure to help you catch up. Pushing a plastic red cup into your hand the liquid sloshes over the top a little and you're hit with a strong whiff of vodka. Shaking your head with a smile, you eye your best friend since middle school. His silly grin makes your heart flutter and wakes up the butterflies that laid dormant in your stomach. Why did I have to fall for him? You think to yourself but quickly shove the thought away. Tonight you're going to have fun. Being a good girl all the time has gotten boring. Besides it's your last year in highschool, better live it up.

“Dude, of course I came. No way in hell was I going to miss watching you make an ass out of yourself.” You say jokingly and force a large gulp of your drink down.

Fuck, it was strong but all the better to get you quickly to the level Jisung was on. He wasn't just tipsy either, a lit rolled joint rested in-between two of his long fingers. The embers softly glowed in the darkened basement of the house the party was held. Some girl you barely knew but her parents were cool. Staying upstairs and even supplying the drinks. As long as no one was driving, the way they saw it, it was better we were safely doing it here rather than out on the streets.

“Oh come on y/n when do I ever make a fool of myself?” Jisung asks, spreading his arms wide and a bit of his drink splashes onto his arm.

Covering your mouth and laughing behind your hand at your high and drunk friend, who you were madly in love with, you pointed your cup in his direction as to prove your point. “I rest my case.”

Stealing the joint from his fingers you put it up to your lips and inhale deeply. His eyes watch the way your lips cover the end of it, the way they tighten around it to inhale the smoke that heats your tongue and throat. He's transfixed, it seems, completely forgetting what you two were talking about. Instead, thoughts of your lips sucking his cock just like that flashes in his mind. His fuzzy mind wanders, imagining scenarios of you down on your knees in front of him while he's giving every drop of him.

When you lean your head back, eyes towards the purple and orange Halloween lights strung up on the ceiling and exhale the smoke, Jisung's eyes find their way to your neck. His gaze travels to your collarbone and down to the black v-neck T-shirt you wore with skeleton hands over where your breast lay nestled away underneath. Lingering eyes notice the way your chest rises and falls with each breath and how delectable your cleavage looks in that shirt. He can't help his thoughts. You've been the cause of all his wet dreams.

Of course you don't notice a thing. In your mind you think he doesn't notice your body, you think he doesn't see the way your tight jeans hug curves. Why would he? You think, taking another puff and another. I'm probably just one of the bros to him.

“Woah, woah, woah. Bro take it easy.” Jisung says chuckling and taking the joint back from you.

His words only confirm your thoughts. Yeah, we're just bros… just friends. You roll your eyes and with an already cloudy brain you chug your drink. It burns going down but the feeling is better than the feeling of unrequited love.

“I need another drink. Where'd you get this?” You wonder with eyes scanning the party.

Bodies pressed close together as they dance. Practically fucking in the middle of the room to the loud music that plays with its heavy bass. But you don't see the drinks. Looking back at your friend he's just staring at you with his lips parted. Raising an eyebrow you silently question his weird behavior only for him to smirk at you before continuing to smoke.

“Follow me lovely.” He says, using the age old nickname he gave you years ago.

Every time he calls you that you swear your panties become instantly drenched and with your head swimming in alcohol and weed, the fantasies of you and him run rampant in that cloudy heavy head of yours. He leads you between the throngs of your classmates who are equally fucked up as you are or more to the kitchen. It becomes hotter the further you move into the basement yet entering the kitchen the breeze through the open window feels great on your already heated skin. Various bottles of alcohol are lined up on the counter in the middle and next to the fridge there's different types of sodas and juice. Reaching a hand out you go straight to the watermelon vodka, smirking when your hand wraps around the glass. Jisung loves watermelon. Watermelon flavored anything really. You often wonder if you were to kiss him would he taste like watermelon? Sweet and juicy like the red flesh of the fruit.

Knocking back a couple of more drinks and even getting a fresh joint all to yourself, courtesy of Felix, a friend of yours and Jisungs, you feel… free. Both light and heavy at the same time. Every beat and every bass of whatever song that plays you swear you can feel. Really feel it in your bones. The feeling is heavenly. Leaning back on your elbows against the counter of the kitchen's island, you listen to Jisung and Hyunjin -another friend- talk about the new Call of Duty game that dropped last week.

“Did you see the tits on that hot redhead in the campaign?” Hyunjin says dramatically, covering his face with both hands and dragging them down.

You just laugh and flick some of the ash off the end of your joint into an abandoned cup of water. Watching it sink to the bottom of the cup you bring your own up to your mouth and drink deeply.

“Oh fuck yeah I saw those babies. Although those tits don't come close to y/n’s.” You hear Jisung say and you almost spit out your drink. Wide eyed and coughing up a lung you look at the two boys as they throw their heads back laughing.

“Shit, you should've seen your face. I thought you were going to pass out for a second there y/n.” Jisung laughs, patting you on your back.

“Well excuse me. I didn't expect my tits to come up in a conversation.”

He chuckles again and his hands begin to rub your back in small circles. His fingers sprawled out wide and you're hyper aware of the heat emitting from his palm as well as his body that's pressed up close to the side of you. Hyunjin isn't paying attention to either of you by now. His phone is his top priority as his fingers fly over the screen texting someone.

“I can't help it if you got nice tits lovely.” Jisung whispers in your ear causing you to shiver.

He takes your joint and holds it out for you to take a drag. Swallowing hard and wetting your lips you lean forward, eyes on him and cover the end with your lips. He watches you inhale deep and when you turn to blow the smoke out he takes a hit as well.

“Dance with me?” he asks you abruptly, taking your hand in his. Dropping the joint into Hyunjin's hand on the way out of the kitchen he guides you to the middle of the makeshift dance floor.

What the fuck? I know I'm pretty shitfaced but am I hallucinating now?

That thought repeats in your head the entire time Jisung dances with you. You're convinced that you imagined the entire conversation in your intoxicated state and start to move your body to the music. Eyes closed, hips swaying left and right, head slowly bobbing to the beat of Chase Atlantic's Slow Down. You're singing along with the sensual and suggestive lyrics when you feel a pair of hot hands on your skin just below the hem of your shirt. Eyes fly open in surprise but when you turn to look at the person who's now pulling you into them your pulse quickens. Jisung's lips are close to your own and you can smell the watermelon vodka you and him drank all night. Fingers pressing into your hips he encourages you to keep dancing, willing you to grind your ass against him.

Too faded in your mind to feel any ounce of nervousness you'd have on a normal day you go all out. Hips swirling in a circular motion you continue to dance pushing your ass against him. He moves with you matching your movements, bodies rolling together. The hardness in his black jeans is unmistakable and it only makes you want him even more than you ever have. For seven years you harbored your secret crush on him and for 3 of those years you lusted after him. Nights in your bedroom alone you'd moan into your pillow crying his name over and over imagining his fingers rubbing your velvety walls instead of your own. The very fingers that tease and caress your skin as they make their way to your belly.

Needing to see his face, because part of you still believes that you're passed out somewhere dreaming, you look back at him and the sight breaks something in you. Maybe it's the walls you kept up in order to not get hurt, maybe it's your sanity, you don't don't really know. All you know is that you need him. You need to feel the stiffness that's clothed and pressed on your ass inside of you.

Jisung's eyes land on your lips before he slowly brings them back up to look at you. Fuck it, you do what you've dreamt about doing and kiss him. It's blissful and for a moment it's sweet. His lips taste exactly like you thought. Watermelon. It's only when the hand that rests on your stomach travels south that the kiss intensifies. It becomes messy, hot and hurried. He cups your sex over your jeans and you moan on his mouth.

As if he wasn't already hard, you feel his cock stiffen more and he groans softly on your lips. The sound carries its way inside of you down to your feet. The bodies around you fade away, leaving just the two of you in a intimate, private bubble. Holding onto you tightly he pushes himself hard into as if he could penetrate you through all the layers of clothing that currently keep you two from actually fucking right there in front of half the senior class. This teasing, it's an excruciating sort of sensation.

“Fuck me Jisung.” You beg, “Fuck me hard.”

“Shit.” He growls.

He doesn't hesitate, doesn't even let go of the hold he has on your waist when he pulls you into the kitchen and out the glass door into the backyard. There's not a lot of people out here but they're just a blur to you while you get dragged into the dimly lit garage through a door on the side of the house. Only thing illuminating the space is a large bug zapper. The soft neon purple light bounces off the two cars and random objects, casting strange shadows on the walls. You're jerked forward into Jisung's arms and his lips are on yours again. His hands palm your ass while his tongue dances with yours.

“Mm baby, fuck why do your lips taste so good?”

His words, dripping with lust, fall from his mouth. You don't get a chance to come up with some witty or stupid reply because he's spinning you around and bending you over the hood of a black mustang. The hood is cool to the touch from the late October night air but your body is scorching. Fumbling, drunk fingers clumsily undo the button on your jeans, making quick work on the zipper next. Doesn't take long for his pants and yours to be a pool of denim around the pair of your ankles.

His hand comes crashing down over your ass smacking it once making you gasp in shock. He moans appreciatively, licking his lower lip watching your skin turn pink. One hand palming where the strike connected he uses his other hand to guide the leaking tip of his cock to your opening.

“Damn you're so wet.” He shuddered, rubbing himself in-between your folds.

“J- just for you, Ji.” You purr.

“Yeah baby? You get this wet for me all the time?”

You nod your head in response. Speech becomes increasingly difficult the more he teases your cunt and rubbing himself over your clit. When he rams into you suddenly the sound that leaves you is so foreign to you that you aren't even sure it came from you. This strangle whimpering cry seems to only make Jisung crazier. He's driving into with so much force that the car rocks underneath you. He's so thick and the feeling of him stretching you wide, has you feeling higher than any strain of weed you've had.

“F- fuck y/n... Why do you feel so good?” He hisses, pushing his cock deeper and deeper inside of you.

You can't speak. All you can do is moan and whimper incoherently, watching your breath fog the shiny black surface of the car. His balls slap against your clit each time his length disappears inside of you. He isn't quiet either, he doesn't shy away from moaning your name praising you or telling how good you feel on his dick. Your name is repeated like a mantra.

“Jisung, fuck!” You manage to cry out clawing at the smooth surface below you.

“That's my girl. Keep talking lovely. I wanna hear you. Wanna hear your sexy voice.” Rolling his hip he slams into at such an angle your legs begin to shake.

“Don't- don't stop, shit. I'm so close Sungie. Fuck, your cock feels so good inside of me mmm.” Your words push him closer to the edge and his fingers dig painfully into your hips.

Doesn't matter though, chasing the climax that's building quickly inside of you is what matters. Feeling Jisung's cock slide in and out of you creating this beautiful slippery sound when your bodies connect…. you don't know how you'll ever get enough of this. With a shuddering breath you squeeze your eyes shut so tight that you start seeing specks of white lights flashing behind your lids. Your skin prickles and your walls clench down around him pulling a strained groan from him as your orgasm crashes through you. Burying your face in the crook of your arm you attempt to muffle your anguish moans. Jisung pumps into you at a frenzied pace groaning and grunting and cumming with you at the same time.

“Ah, y/n, y/n! Shit, fuck, baby!

Your pussy pulsates milking his cock for every drop of cum that he gives you, filling you up to the point that some starts to drip down your inner thigh. Your legs feel like jelly and the sound of your shared heavy breathing and panting seems to somehow sync with the rhythm of the muffled music playing from inside the house. Groaning he slides out of and you shiver feeling the cold hit your ass.

“I've wanted to do that for a long time.” Jisung admits softly after your clothes are back in place.

The sudden confession makes you feel suddenly shy as if he wasn't just rearranging your guts one minute ago. With gentle hands he cups your face and places a sweet and tender kiss to your lips. When he pulls back from you his eyes blaze with unspoken words that you feel in your chest. With the high from the weed gone and the buzz slowly wearing off it becomes clear that this wasn't a one time thing. The love you thought was one sided wasn't and he wanted to be clear about that, even if he couldn't put it into words right now.

“Come back to my place? I don't want the night to end yet.” His hands find their way to yours intertwining your fingers together. “My parents aren't home.” He adds with a cocky smirk.

A giggle bubbles up from you and you roll your eyes playfully. “Can't get enough can you Ji?” You tease, finding it easy to still have the best friend vibes between you.

“Lovely, the way you felt on my dick, I don't think I'll ever get enough.” He confesses and picks you up, tossing you over his shoulder carrying out of the garage into the Halloween night air.

[cutielando]

hi! i was wondering if you could write an imagine with jj x reader kinda based of the scene jb and sarah “marry” each other when they were on the boat

married life | j.m.

a/n: thank you so much for sending this in!❤️

my masterlist

Times were tough.

By this point in your life, you had gone through what other people never have to experience ever in their lives, let alone at such a young age.

You thought you would finally have some peace and quiet after Big John had come back. That things would finally have a sense of normality again.

But that was far from the case.

Ever since you head Big John’s plans to fine the mythical city of El Dorado and the gold, your blood had run cold in your veins.

You loved Big John, he was like a father figure to JJ and a protector to all of you, but this was taking it a step too far.

You had already put yourself in harm's way a number of times for your friends, giving your parents one too many reasons to completely disown you for the stress you would cause them.

Telling them that you were going to another continent to search for a city full of golf that might not even exist? They would murder you before you'd even get the words out of your mouth.

JJ, surprisingly, felt the same way.

He loved John B like a brother and saw Big John as his father figure, but even he could admit that the old man's tales sounded far too amazing to be a reality.

And, as much as he would want to go for the sake of his friends, he didn't want to take you with them, and he didn't want to leave you behind either. So, in his books, he couldn't possibly go with his friend and leave you unattended at home.

This sparked many conversations between you two, analyzing the situation and the spot you were in dozens of times. Searching desperately for an answer, for the universe to tell you what the right thing to do was.

But no answer ever came, so you were stuck trying to figure it out by yourselves.

"Are we being bad friends by wanting to stick back here?" you had asked JJ one night while the two of you were relaxing in the hammock installed in your backyard.

"We're just looking out for ourselves, like any sane person would. I don't want to put you in more unnecessary danger than I already have, I would never forgive myself if something happened to you. Plus, you heard what John B said, he doesn't want us to go with them" he explained, twirling locks of your hair around his finger.

You sighed, nodding into his chest.

He was right, nobody should be mad at you guys for thinking about your safety, for once. You were trying to become more responsible, and this was the first step that would help you do that.

"I'd like to go, as far as one would want to leave their life behind to go on a deadly quest for a city of gold that might not exist, but my parents would definitely murder me if I told them about it" you joked, making the both of you laugh.

"They would murder me first for letting you even think about it, let's be honest" he added, making you laugh even harder.

As funny as that was to the two of you in that moment, he was right. Your parents were counting on JJ to keep you safe when they weren't around, and even though he had done exactly that even in your adventures, they would prefer it if you didn't leave home like that ever again.

"Thank you for keeping me safe all this time" you said softly, turning around so you were face-to-face with your boyfriend.

He smiled cheekily, thinking of a witty comeback, but he gave up once he saw the look of completely love you were giving him.

"It's my job, and it's not like you didn't take care of me either. I would have gone insane on that island if it weren't for you. We protected each other, and we're always going to look out for one another no matter what happens" he kissed your forehead, pulling away to look at you.

The bond you two shared is something nobody could ever understand.

You met at a time when you were both in a dark place, but especially JJ, because of his father. You were the first person not to run away when he completely broke down into your arms, telling you about all of the things his father had done to him over the years.

There was not even a second when you contemplated leaving him, or giving up on him. You couldn't imagine living in a world where he wasn't yours, right by your side and ready to tackle anything life threw at him with you by his side.

He was truly your one and only, the person that you wanted to grow old with and have children with, the only man you could ever love in this life.

The realization hit you like a tsunami, making your brain stop functioning and having a mind of its own.

Which is why the next words that stumbled out of your mouth shocked the both of you to the core.

"Let's get married"

JJ thought he had heard you wrongly at first. Surely, you couldn't actually mean that you wanted to get married, right?

You were both so young, and you always spoke about how you wanted to wait until at least 20 years old to get married.

"What?" JJ asked, chuckling a little to ease the tension.

In any other case, you would be embarrassed to the ends of the Earth, just asking him to forget you'd ever said anything.

But right now, in this moment, you were more confident than ever in your words.

"I don't mean that we actually go and get married, not yet anyway. But just between us, something only we are going to know. Be unofficially officially married. We don't need rings, we can just tie pieces of the bandana you gave me on your first date around our necks or something as a sign of our commitment to each other" you explained quickly, getting excited and unwrapping the bandana you always kept on your arm.

JJ chuckled, watching you scramble to tear thin pieces of the bandana for the both of you.

He didn't want to admit, but he loved you more in that moment than he had ever before. He wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of his life with you, shout from the rooftops that you're his and only his. So how could he ever think to deny you?

"I would love nothing more than to marry you" he whispered, giving you a long kiss before taking the bandana and wrapping it around your neck, you doing the same to him.

The feeling that you had that night was like nothing you had ever experienced.

As you sat with JJ under the starry night, limbs intertwined and hushed promises and kisses exchanged, there was nowhere you would rather be.

In JJ's arms.

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[aphrmoosun]

{Noa and the Beast}

Nomae: One shot

• Sipnosis.

Noa is the new leader of the clan, his responsibility was to his own. But an Echo enters their lives and they decide to kill her due to the ancient writings that defined her as dangerous. But when Noa has her in front of him, his world changes completely...

• Pair.

Noa and Mae

• Movie.

Kingdom of the planet of the apes {Half AU}

• Tags.

Nomae, interspecies relationship, interspecies sex, interspecies romance, yes it is a ship fic, smut, romancing, Beauty and the Beast, Half AU, Noa hunt Mae, but the Noa falls in love with Mae, Long One Shot, Writer isn't English Native Speaker, etc

• Other nomae fanfics.

You and Me

No words

_________________________________

DO NOT COPY OR SHARE IT ELSEWHERE WITHOUT PERMISSION!

• Noa and the Beast [One Shot]

**First Act**

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The day was coming to an end. Noa was returning home with a successful hunt. He and his friends had managed to catch a pair of rabbits and a adult deer, earning them a warm welcome.

The situation was difficult for the village. Since his father had died, he and his mother were the only hope for their survival. They had to lead the rest to survive, and that was his duty as the new leader of the village.

"Well done, son," his mother said.

Noa sat down beside his mother, hugging her and offering her a piece of food, which she refused.

Their happiness was interrupted by some apes who arrived running and shouting.

"It's an Echo! We've seen one near here!"

Noa managed to understand what one of them was saying.

"Calm down," Noa said, standing up and addressing them. "It's probably just passing through. Echos usually move when it starts to get cold."

"This one is different. We've heard it talk! It was settling near the village."

Another ape spoke up, frightened.

"Don't worry, it won't hurt us."

"You don't understand. Echos are evil, the farther away from us, the better."

"If that means underground, even better."

"Yes!"

Many of the apes supported the idea of killing the Echo.

"We can't act impulsively. We need to think with a clear head."

Noa defended the idea of reaching a consensus.

"You're our leader. You must defend our home from those things!"

The ape began to feel the pressure from his village. Everyone wanted to see how the new leader would handle a dangerous situation.

"Fine! I'll take care of it myself." Noa didn't like the idea, but he said, "Tomorrow, I'll go to where you saw it and bring back proof that the Echo is no longer a problem."

Noa received a big ovation, but he couldn't take his eyes off his mother, who disapproved of his attitude.

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**Second Act**

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Anaya and Soona, Noa's best friends, were already ready to go after the Echo. They were determined to accompany their leader, not just as friends, but as family.

The plan was to approach the Echo on foot, without horses, so as not to scare it, and kill it with the arrows they used for hunting. But Noa had taken something else from the village - a remedy that they took when they felt pain, in case he couldn't bear the scene, he would give it to the Echo himself.

It would have been just another Echo, but the idea of being able to hear one talk for the first time had haunted him all night. What if he could talk to it? What if it could defend itself by talking? What set them apart from animals if they couldn't talk?

But his village needed him. They had never encountered an Echo like this before, and it was a danger to his people. It was written that way.

When they were far enough from the village, Noa turned to his friends, stopping them.

"I have to go alone from here."

"What? No, we're not going to leave you." Soona approached him, grabbing his hands.

"Soona, I have to do this alone. I'm the leader now, and I have to be responsible for my words and my responsibilities towards our people. And one of those responsibilities is taking care of you too."

"I don't care about your position. We also want to take care of you."

Anaya joined the two, and they ended up in a three-way hug.

"I'm sure I can handle this. But I need to do it alone." He finally convinced them.

Anaya and Soona walked away, and he began to walk forward. He didn't look back, it would be easier to fulfill his responsibility alone and as the leader he had to be.

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**Third Act**

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He could observe her easily. She didn't seem to have seen him, and she continued with her life as usual. She walked back and forth, going to and from the river near the home she had built.

She was very resourceful. With the help of stones, branches, sticks, and leaves, she had built a kind of settlement near the river. She had everything she needed to survive just a few steps away.

Noa couldn't help but analyze her. From her physical features to her delicate movements. What she seemed to be doing was cooking with leaves and fruits he couldn't recognize.

They had warned him that this Echo was not normal. If she could talk, it was already very different from the ones he had encountered before, but he had never imagined what he had in front of him. If it weren't for her small body, little hair, small eyes, small hands, small waist, the bulge on her chest, and small feet, he could have sworn he was looking at an ape.

But he had to push those thoughts out of his mind. He had come to kill her, and he had already wasted too much time analyzing her.

He raised his bow and placed the arrow right at the Echo's heart direction. His hands were shaking. It was the first time they had shaken like that. He had to admit, this wasn't a normal hunt. He wasn't going to kill her out of necessity, nor did he need her skin or any part of her body. He was going to kill her because he feared her. Not just him, but his people. And that had to be his thought, his people were waiting for him to bring back proof of the event.

His vision became blurry as his heart began to beat strongly, he couldn't look. He released the arrow without being able to see well where it was headed.

"Ah!"

He heard the Echo's despairing cry.

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**Fourth Act**

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Noa found himself in front of the Echo. His blurry vision and sweaty hands hadn't allowed him to hit his target. His main objective was the Echo's heart, but due to his nerves, the arrow had ended up hitting one of her sides.

She looked at him with open, frightened eyes, trembling while she held her side. She had pulled out the arrow and was trying to stop the bleeding.

Noa could have stood there, watching her die from bleeding, but he couldn't help but approach her and offer her a piece of cloth from his own arm to stop the bleeding.

The human looked at him doubtfully, taking the cloth.

"Why?"

He didn't know what to answer. Why had he attacked her? Why was he helping her? Because his heart was in constant struggle over what was right against his mind.

Echos had to be kept away. They wouldn't approach them, and they wouldn't live with them. Beyond the Valley was forbidden to cross because Echos were there.

The elders of his clan described them as monsters that killed each other, creatures that took everything around them and massacred it. Wild animals that would kill their own siblings for power.

But in front of Noa, he saw a smaller creature than him, harmless, and not having harmed them, alone, and with no signs of damage to nature around her. Not even signs of fires or dead animals.

Noa crouched down beside the human and covered her wound, helping her stop the bleeding.

"I don't know why. Neither do I."

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**Fifth Act**

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Noa had decided to move the unconscious Echo to the nest of leaves covered by a roof of branches. At least there, she would be comfortable and covered in case the sun bothered her or it rained. But he had to go back to the village, he had to go back to Anaya and Soona, because if he took too long, he was sure they would come to see what had happened to him, and that wouldn't be good.

He had to do it quickly. Kill the nearest animal he could find, so he would have something to feed the Echo when she woke up, but also use a significant part of it to show in his village, her heart.

A hare had been the sacrifice for his plan, he didn't have time to go for a bigger animal, and with the hare's heart, he was sure his village would calm down.

He took long strides, quickly, so as not to take too long. Right where he had left them, Anaya and Soona were waiting for him. They ran to hug him and looked at what he was carrying.

"Did you do it?" Soona asked, stepping back from the hug.

"Yes."

He was lying. He was lying to his friends for an Echo. But he didn't have another choice.

In the village, they received him as the leader he was. With hugs and praise towards him. He couldn't bear the weight on his chest. He was lying to everyone.

"Son, are you okay?" His mother was the only one who could feel something in him, and she didn't take long to approach him and ask questions.

"Yes, why wouldn't I be? We've gotten rid of that Echo! Isn't that right?"

"Because it's the first time you're acting like the leader of the clan." His mother hugged him. "I know it's hard, going against your ideals to follow the clan's ideals. No one asks if you're okay when you come back, they just receive you as the leader."

"I'm fine, mom."

She was the only one who could discover everything if she noticed his strange behavior. So he had to act normally... how was he supposed to act normally after supposedly killing an Echo that hadn't done anything to them?

_________________________________

**Sixth Act**

_________________________________

That same morning, Noa had gone back to where the Echo was. He expected to find her where he had left her, but he was surprised to see her standing, trembling, by the riverbank.

"Hey, you shouldn't be there."

She jumped back, trying to get away from him.

"It's okay, I'm here to help you."

"You're the one who hurt me."

Well, he couldn't deny that.

"I'm sorry. Please, let me help you."

"H-how can you apologize for something like that?"

She had started to breathe with difficulty, holding her wound.

"Sh, it's okay. We'll talk when you're cured."

Noa held her wound again, seeing how it was still humid, and proceeded to clean it, forcing her to lie down on the nest.

The ape had brought new bandages in case he needed to change them, so he proceeded to change them.

"I'm sorry. I didn't want to hurt you."

"It's hard to believe. Did you think I was livestock or something?"

"No, my village is scared of you, and they wanted me to kill you."

"And, why didn't you?"

Noa continued to change the bandages, unable to look her in the eye.

"I don't know. I didn't want to kill you personally, without knowing you. But it's my duty as the leader."

That information silenced the human. She grabbed his hand with the one he was using to clean her.

"Well, as the leader, stop. You've done your duty, you've tried to kill me, give them that information, and I'll run away from here. That way, you can say I escaped."

Noa shook his head, turning his hand to hold hers.

"No, you're already dead to them."

_________________________________

**Seventh Act**

_________________________________

Noa had been going back and forth from the village to where Mae, the Echo, was for a week.

During the day, he took care of his leader duties, and at dawn, he would return to the human's nest, where he would cure her, feed her, and take care of her. In those moments, they would talk, forgetting about the ape's attempt to assassinate her. Mae had opened up completely to him.

A human who had lost her family recently and was trying to survive away from the rest of humans who had hurt her. He didn't understand how they had hurt her if she didn't have that physical aspect, only the wound he had inflicted on her. But she explained that the wounds those humans had inflicted on her were not visible on her body, but in her heart.

Noa felt like seeking out those humans and defending the human to make her feel better. But she told him she was already learning to forget them.

"The wound is much better."

He didn't like how she was healing so quickly. Mae would have to leave when she was fully cured, that had been their agreement, but he wasn't ready to say goodbye so soon.

"Yes, I can do things on my own now. You should rest more at night and not come to see me."

"I don't need to rest. I want to come see you."

"Noa..."

"What?"

The ape continued making the meal, actually watching how the fire was made.

"You know I've forgiven you. You don't have to keep feeling guilty. Forgive yourself too."

"I-I can't. I failed my village. But I also failed you. If only I had shot higher, you would be dead and I wouldn't have met you."

"But you're a good ape and didn't do it. If it had happened this way or that, it wouldn't exist anymore. The reality is that we've met."

________________________________

**Eighth Act**

_________________________________

That day, his mother wouldn't leave his side. She observed him closely without speaking, but that made him even more nervous.

"What? What's going on?"

He stopped in front of her.

"Son, you can lie to the whole world, but not to your mother."

"What do you mean?"

"Your nighttime escapes, the lack of sales, your fatigue during the day. Tell me, son. Where do you escape to?"

"Nowhere, mom. Just... I go climbing alone to relax and sleep."

"Yesterday, you slept very late, the sun had already risen. And you started talking in your sleep."

Noa averted his gaze so she couldn't keep reading him like that.

"Your dreams mentioned Mae's name."

"Oh, nonsense. I don't know anyone by that name."

He turned around, trying to ignore his mother's comments so as not to get more nervous.

"Son, do you sneak out at night to see Mae? Is she the Echo you didn't kill?"

"Mother! I don't know what you're talking about!"

"I've known you since you came out of me. Small, hairy, and noisy. Since you were very young, you showed that you weren't like the rest of the apes. You were very analytical and more intelligent than most. Your father knew that you took twice as long to think things through, just like your grandfather."

"Mom..."

"That's why I knew when they asked you to fulfill this responsibility that you would take your time to think it through and not do it, because you're a fair son of mine."

"Mom, I couldn't kill her. She hadn't done anything to us and lived peacefully alone by the river. She didn't pose any danger like the elders make us believe."

"I know, son. I know you very well."

His mother hugged him, and he took refuge in her arms. Taking a weight off his shoulders since he wasn't the only one who knew about Mae's existence.

And not just the two of them anymore. One of the aoes in charge of the birds had overheard their conversation, hiding from mother and son.

_________________________________

**Ninth Act**

_________________________________

That morning, Noa found Mae packed and ready to leave, with her things in a backpack and the fire extinguished.

"Where are you going?"

"I have to leave now, Noa."

"What? No, why? You're still hurt. You can't leave yet."

"I'm not hurt anymore, Noa. You saved me."

"No, no, no, no."

Noa grabbed the girl's hands, trying to stop her.

"We knew this moment would come. I'm very grateful that you gave me the opportunity to meet you."

"No! It's the other way around. I tried to kill you and you forgave me, letting me into your life."

"That doesn't matter anymore, Noa."

"Yes, it does. I came here to kill you because I thought you were an animal, a monster, a beast. And I ended up realizing that the only beast here is me."

"Don't be so hard on yourself."

"I have to be. I can't forgive myself because if I do, I'll think I have a chance with you and it's not like that. I can't, n-no..."

Mae grabbed his cheeks, making him lean his forehead against hers, looking into his eyes.

"You're not a beast. You're my savior, but I have to leave so I don't cause you more problems."

Noa shook his head and leaned in to kiss the human, savoring the sweet taste of Mae's mouth.

They separated as they heard horses and apes cries.

________________________________

**Tenth Act**

_________________________________

Noa was startled. The only apes near the river were from his village. And it couldn't be, they didn't have any nighttime exploration planned.

"What's going on?"

"I don't know."

He turned to the human, grabbing her cheeks to make her look at him.

"Don't worry, you hide. I'll go see what's happening."

Mae looked towards something behind the ape's back, and he turned to see what had caught her attention, finding his friends.

"Noa."

The two apes ran to hug him.

"You don't know what's going on in the village. Maximo told them about the Echo and they're all coming to kill her."

Anaya explained quickly, without taking a breath.

"How did you know?"

"Why didn't you tell us?"

Soona responded with another question.

"I couldn't. She was in danger."

"We're your friends! We would have helped." -Soona raised her voice.-

"It's okay, guys. We'll discuss this later. Now we have to help the Echo." -Anaya turned to Mae.

"You have to distract them while I help her escape." -Noa grabbed Mae's hand.

"No!" -Soona refused.- "You're the clan leader, you have to give them explanations after what they found out. You have to be consistent."

The ape couldn't refuse. His friend was right.

"Mae." -he turned to her, grabbing her shoulders.- "You're going with Soona and Anaya, they'll help you."

"I'm staying with you." -Soona gave him her back as he said goodbye.-

He couldn't make her change her mind, as the apes were approaching.

"Echo. It's better if you get on my back and I'll run." -Anaya offered her back to Mae, and she got on without taking her eyes off Noa.-

________________________________

**Eleventh Act**

_________________________________

The group of apes arrived, finding Noa and Soona together. Both apes were standing side by side, bearing the gaze of the rest.

"Where is she?"

"We know, Noa. The Echo is still alive."

"We have to kill her before she attacks us."

"She's a demon."

Several apes spoke at once.

"Silence!" -Noa shouted, making them all quiet.- "She's not a demon! We're the ones who pursued her and tried to kill her without harming us."

"She'll do it, it's written."

"The elders say so."

"The elders are wrong!" -Noa shouted again.- "And the laws are wrong!"

"Noa, step aside!"

Several apes approached violently. He couldn't let his clan lose respect for their leader.

As the leader of the eagle clan and respectful of his clan's ancient tradition, he began to sing. He still hadn't joined with any bird. Due to his father's death, he had decided to wait out of respect for the previous leader. But now... it was the only solution he could think of to regain his clan's respect.

He continued singing, and no eagle came.

"It doesn't work like that!"

"What eagle would want to join you after you betrayed us?"

The apes' voices enraged him. His voice rose above theirs, and a large eagle with a strong presence landed on his arm.

When Noa looked up, he was surprised to see the eagle Sun, his father's eagle. Known as the strongestin its nest and stubborn like his father. Everyone feared and respected it.

_________________________________

**Twelfth Act**

_________________________________

Most of the apes kneeled before Noa, who stood proudly, looking at the eagle on his arm.

"It can't be, the eagle Sun has finally chosen its new master."

"It can't be, Noa, he's a traitor."

"Maximo, stop talking like that about the clan leader. He's already proven with actions that we should trust him."

One ape began to defend him, and most of them joined in. Noa knew he had regained his title as leader.

"We can't forgive his lie!"

That ape, Maximo, ran forward. Noa saw his intention to go after Noa and Anaya, so he stood in front of him, growling.

"You're not going to pass!" -he shouted, making Maximo take a few steps back.- "The Echo is my responsibility." -Noa began to address everyone.- "If anyone has a problem with her, they should come to me and I'll resolve it."

Maximo walked away with his head down.

The rest of the a apes roached to congratulate him on his union with Sol, and Soona stepped aside, observing him. In the end, it hadn't been necessary to help him; he was the clan leader, and she regretted having doubted it.

_________________________________

**Thirteenth Act**

_________________________________

The next morning, Noa met with Mae again. Anaya had told him the location where she had hidden her, in the cave where the three of them used to hide as children when they wanted to escape from their parents or play pranks.

Anaya had confided in Mae about the location, knowing how important it was to her friend Noa.

The ape and the human looked at each other intensely when they met. Mae was sitting on a rock, holding a piece of fruit, and had heard him enter. She was anxious to see him.

"Noa!" -she stood up, looking him up and down.- "Didn't they hurt you?"

"No, no, Mae." -Noa put his forehead against the human's, closing his eyes and breathing in her scent more closely.- "Y-you, are you okay?"

Mae let out a laugh.

"I'm fine. You faced your clan for... for me."

"Yes, for you. But I know that's not as scary as riding on Anaya's back and climbing up here with his rough scaling."

"Anaya took good care of me, you don't have to worry."

"I know."

Neither of them wanted to break the silence that followed. They hugged, feeling each other's skin so close. Mae's breath hit Noa's lips, and he couldn't resist anymore, leaning in to kiss her again, this time knowing every centimeter of her lips and mouth as he introduced his tongue.

"Noa."

Mae whispered the ape's name, and she pulled away, placing his lips on her cheek.

"You shouldn't kiss me like that. And I won't be able to leave if we keep doing this."

"Then don't leave. There's no need, no one wants you to leave. Come with me and live in my village, with my clan."

"No! Noa, I don't want to bring you more problems."

"You're not going to bring more problems." -Noa hugged her.- "Since I met you, you've brought nothing but joy and laughter and good thoughts to my life. You've made me happy, and I don't want to lose you."

"Okay."

Noa shouted happily, hugging the girl and lifting her up.

"You make me so happy, I love you!"

Mae looked into his eyes, unable to respond since she had lost her breath.

The human leaned in, kissing him again, this time with tenderness, and pulled away after a few seconds. As if her lips had given him strength and air to speak, she responded.

"I love you too."

_________________________________

**Final Act**

_________________________________

Mae moved in with them. The village had welcomed her with open arms when they saw her arrive with their leader.

Noa's mother received her literally in her arms, in a strong hug.

"Welcome."

The Echo, the beast everyone had feared, had found a place in everyone's heart. She had sought her place in the village and now fulfilled her responsibilities so that no one would ever have to take care of her again.

A certain leader wasn't very happy about it, since it meant they spent less time together, but he was happy seeing how everyone had learned to love her.

There was even a moment when he felt jealous of the attention she gave to the other apes.

Mae dedicated herself to healing and feeding the smaller or injured apes, or those who were lonely. This made her spend more time with others than with him. But he couldn't say anything, he had to fulfill his clan duties too.

At least he had the hope of ending the day and finding her in his nest again.

"Noa."

Mae sighed in his ear. Noa couldn't help but lie down next to the human and kiss her from her cheek to her neck. He had seen her sleeping already, but he missed her and needed to feel her in his arms.

He placed himself on top of her, lifting her clothes and pushing them aside. It wasn't the first time they had done it, but he had understood that those garments were important to cover the human's attributes. For the apes, it was rare to see those clothes, but Noa's ego grew when only he could see her like that.

Naked, trembling from his kisses and caresses, and so sensitive that she responded to every touch he gave her.

He introduced his virility, making her moan, making them both moan. His thrusts were quick and concise. That night, he needed to feel her with urgency. The desperation in his chest to make her reach climax and hear her scream his name.

"Noa!"

That scream and the contractions of the human's vagina around his penis made him come with a grunt.

"Mae, Mae."

He leaned on her, placing his elbows on both sides of Mae to avoid hurting her, and waited for his heart to calm down after coming.

"I love you."

He heard Mae.

"I love you too."

The ape responded before falling asleep next to her.

His life had taken a huge turn since the Echo, his Echo, had entered it. From believing he was going to kill a beast, to believing he had become one, to falling in love with an Echo. She had saved him from drowning in a life full of desperation and lies. She had entered his life to make the monsters that haunted him disappear. Mae was, is, and will be the love of his life forever.

________________________________

END.

[sofiareidings]

I'm Not Yours

Summary: You're getting over a breakup and meet a cute guy on a case, what you didn't realise was that your best friend has been waiting for years. Warning: Swearing

A/N: I'm sorry my post is so late!! I had it queued up to post at 9am like normal and then it didn't?? And then I had a math test so I couldn't go on my phone or anything, AND THEN HALF THE STORY JUST DISSAPPEARED SO I HAD TO REWRITE IT?!?!? It has been quite the hassle. Also this was a prompt from @andiebeaword's 3000 follower celebration! The first sentence of the story was the prompt. Also, I meant for this to be gn!reader so if anyone sees any she/he pronouns for reader please tell me! Love you all <333

Word Count: 1.5k

Song Suggestions: Yours - Conan Gray

"I can't stand you choosing another person over me, again."

***

His bright blue eyes shined in the sun, a ray hitting across his face perfectly. Pushing his short brown hair out of his face while smiling at you made your insides flutter, completely forgetting about your ex now.

"So as I was saying, it would be best for you and your team to set up here. There's lots of room and we haven't used it in years." His voice came out in this long, deep tone. JJ walked into the room raising an eyebrow at you before taking over the conversation with the officer.

"What was that look?" Jumping slightly, you turned around and saw Penelope. It was that once a year situation where she actually had to join the rest of the team for a case. "Someone likes the officer."

The girls took any chance they could to get you to talk to the guy. They weren't wrong, you did think he was insanely cute but, you just weren't quite sure if you had the guts to really talk to him.

"I do not!" You laughed, "And even if I did…it's not like anything could happen." Penelope continued pestering and Emily joined the conversation and made sure to give her opinion as well.

***

"You better at least get his number, we're only gonna be here for a few more days." Penelope had been bugging you the most out of anyone, "Well, I let you sit on that thought. I need to go work my wonderful magics so I will talk to you about this later." She smiled and strutted away back to her laptop setup down the hall.

"What was Garcia talking about?" Turning back to the task at hand, Spencer was standing at a board. Working on the case. "Is this about that officer?" His voice was very flat, little emotion which was unusual for him. Especially around you, the two of you had been best friends since you transferred to the BAU.

"Yeah it was, she's trying to get me to get his number." Not turning from his work you started to flip through some files and continue to talk. "I do think he's pretty hot, but I also think it's way too early to start putting myself out there you know?"

"Yeah, yeah I guess I can understand that." Peeking over his shoulder briefly to look at you. Hearing the way you were talking about this guy was leaving him conflicted. The first day he had met you he'd already fallen in love. No statistic or math problem could explain how that happened. He's been sitting on the sideline for the past three years, watching you go from boyfriend to boyfriend, letting him be your shoulder to cry on when it was heartbreak after heartbreak. But honestly, he didn't know how long he could keep going like this.

"...But it could also be some type of fate thing. Like, I break up with a toxic asshole and then meet a dreamy police officer? I don't know, what do you think Spencer?" Walking over to him to put up some photos and thoughts on the board you look up at him, waiting for his response.

"Whatever you think is best I suppose," It took him a long time to respond, the way you were speaking of this guy was just breaking his heart more and more. It was taking all his power to not just scream 'I LOVE YOU!!' and see your reaction. "Do you want to ask him out."

"I think so, I guess he is really nice, and really good looking…" Going on about him a bit more, you paused then changed your thought process. "I mean everything and everyone is telling me to go for it but some small part of me is saying no."

"I think I'm just being paranoid, why shouldn't I put myself out there? It has been like three months. And if it doesn't work out, so what? At least I tried. I think I'll do it." Just like that, the hope died. Should he just say it? Get it out there and hope for the best? This was impossible.

"What does that mean? Are you just not ready to put yourself out there again or is it because there's someone else?" A small glimmer of hope ignited in him, maybe he still had a chance after all.

***

"I'm going to do it. So you can stop annoying me about it, Pen." She smiled and started to ramble about how it will be so good for you. The case had been solved and you were all packing up. Everyone with the exception of Hotch and Rossi were in the room given to the team.

"I'm so glad you're going to do this! You two would be such a sexy pair I just know it." You and Penelope continued to talk, but Spencer was just heartbroken. Standing on the opposite side of the room he could still hear you. He was packing up his things slowly, hoping to get a chance to talk to you alone.

"You should just go for it kid, don't let them get with another guy without you atleast saying it." Derek, giving his opinion to Spencer while leaning against the wall. Tossing a ball now that he was all packed up.

"What if you say something and they like you back?" Derek counter protested. Spencer thought about it for a minute, he had a point. But on the other hand he couldn't tell what would be worse; watching you ask someone else out again or telling you and losing such an important person in his life.

"I know, I just don't want to ruin three years of friendship. What if I say something and they never talk to me again?" He questioned, still listening in on your conversation.

***

"I'll be done in a minute!" You called out to Penelope and Emily. Still packing up your things it was only you and Spencer left in the room.

Finally throwing your bag over your shoulder you started to catch up to the rest of the team you heard Spencer call out to you. "Wait! Can I talk to you for a minute, please?"

"Yeah, of course." A little confused on why he sounded so nervous you stood infront of him, waiting for him to continue. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing it's just," He cleared his throat, no or never. "I was just wondering if you gave that officer your number yet."

"Oh, not yet. I was actually about to do that. Why do you ask?" Titling your head, curious. He started to fidget with his hands, not sure what to say.

"Oh, so you are going out with him." His voice barely above a whisper. "That's nice I suppose."

"Okay…" You smiled and started to head to the door. "I'm going to go now, see on the jet Spencer?"

"I- please, I need to say something." He tripped over his words, come on Spencer, just say it!!!

"Are you okay? You seem nervous." Why was he acting like this? It was so confusing to you.

"Okay, I'm just going to say it." He sighed, "I don't want you to go out with that officer. I mean if you really want to you should do it of course but I don't want you to because I want you to go out with me. If you don't feel the same way tell me but it's just, I can't stand you choosing another person over me, again." Biting the inside of his cheek, waiting for your response.

"Oh," Was all you could say at first. You didn't really know what else to say. "You, you like me?"

"Yeah, I do. And if you don't feel the same way I get it and pretend I never said anything because I don't want to lose you. But if you go out and date this guy I'm going to have to put up a boundary, I'm sorry."

"Spencer, I don't know what to say," You laughed lightly, not sure how to say what you were thinking. "I feel the same way, I just assumed you never would like me back so I have been trying to get over it."

"Really?" He smiled and gave that puppy-dog face he always made. "Are you serious?"

"Why would I lie?" Throwing your bag over your shoulder you hugged him then stepped back giving a small smile. "We should go though, the jet is supposed to leave like now. But can we talk about this later?"

"I would like that." The two of you started to head out, and you completely forgot about the officer. Spencer just walked out with a huge smile on his face. Why didn't he say this sooner???

[myymi]

wrote this in three hours cause my other angst fics aren't close enough to finish so it's not as good as it can be but i wanted to put the imagery in everyone's brain lmao

happy broken bond sunday everyone <3

Sonic and Tails were angry.

Which isn't entirely unusual for them during fights, Knuckles notes as his fist collides with another motobug.

But this time it was different.

This time, they were angry with each other.

Knuckles has heard about them fighting before, but this is the first time he's ever seen it happen. It's such a surreal, unthinkable situation and yet it was happening right before his very eyes.

The usual witty banter the brothers would shout to rile up their human nemesis was completely gone, replaced by a silence that hung heavy with anger as the destroyed badniks in a much more aggressive manner. (Knuckles didn't think Tails could ever get more explosive than he was, but he was very quickly proven wrong today.)

Eggman seemed to notice the change too, unsurprisingly. He kept poking them about it, curious about their silence.

Knuckles, while not one to usually mediate fights, tried to get some information. But when he'd ask them, he'd be shrugged off with a grumble.

It was a little worrying, to be honest.

Knuckles freezes when there's another explosion, but this time accompanied by a loud yelp. He turned to the sky, eyes searching for the little fox that was handling the buzzbombers just in time to watch as he fell.

Smoked trailed him, and Knuckles quiet prayed that the way it looked like it was coming from the kid's tails was just a trick of the eye.

But before the echidna got to even think about running to catch the fox, a blue of blue shot through the air, taking Tails with it.

Sonic was behind Knuckles a second later, trusting him to provide cover as he looked over Tails’ injuries.

But as soon as he was put down, the fox pushed his brother away. “I'm fine.’

“No, you're not.” Sonic argued, wrapping a paw around the youngest’s arm to drag him closer again, “Stop acting like this.”

“Leave me alone, Sonic.” Tails frowned, trying to tug his arm back. “Despite what you think, I can take care of myself.”

“For the love of Chaos, Tails, really?” Knuckles’ brow furrowed as listened to the quiet argument. What happened between them? “You're being dramatic.”

“That's so ironic coming from you of all people.” The kit argued back, rolling his eyes.

“In case you haven't noticed, we're in the middle of a battle right now, Tails.” Sonic leaned down to be at eye level with the little fox, “We don't have time to deal with this tantrum.”

“Because that's all it is, right?” Tails grumbled, pushing the hedgehog away. “All you ever do is deal with me, huh?

“If you would stop being a brat every time I do something you don't like then I wouldn't have to deal with anything, would I?” Knuckles could feel his expression morph in a mix of shock and anger. What had gotten into these two?

When he turned around to check on his brothers, he could see how Tails’ eyes were shining with tears. Knuckles never liked it when the fox cried.

Sonic didn't seem to fully understand what he said until he saw the expression on the youngest’s face. His eyes immediately filled with regret as he processed his own words.

Tails sniffed and scrubbed at his eyes, backing away when Sonic reached out for him. “I'm so sorry adopting a mangey child wasn't the happily ever after you were hoping for, Sonic.” Is the last thing the kid said before turning and flying back into the battle.

“Tails, wait!” Sonic shouted after him, but heavily groaned when he realized the kid wouldn't listen to him. He ran a paw down his face as he stared after his little brother.

“What happened between you and the kid.” Knuckles demanded more than asked, roughly turning Sonic to face him. This is the first time he's ever seen the hedgehog make Tails cry and he wanted some answers.

“It's been a long morning, okay?” Sonic sighed and shook his head. “I'll explain more later, but I gotta go apologize to–”

Sonic's sentence was cut off by another, much louder explosion than the previous ones.

The teenagers turned to find the source of it, their eyes widening as they watched a building collapse.

And Tails was nowhere in sight.

“Tails?!” Sonic screamed, speeding over to the destroyed building to search his brother. Chaos, please let the kid be okay.

He could hear Knuckles not far behind, also calling out for the fox, but he didn't care. His full focus right now was finding Tails, he didn't care about anything else.

It didn't take long to find him.

Or– it didn't take long to find most of him.

Tails was unconscious. Thick streams of blood spilled from a gash on his head where his left ear was supposed to be. His left arm was also missing, the hole at his shoulder gushing out more blood.

And, oh Chaos, how long is the pole impaled through his chest? It's so close to his heart. It didn't pierce it though, right? It couldn't have. Sonic can lose Tails. He was going to be fine, right?

Sonic pushed down the rising nausea, dropping to the fox’s side to cradle his head with one paw as the other searched for a pulse. He was muttering to himself, pleading with someone to keep his brother alive.

His gloves were quickly staining red as his paw frantically felt around the kit's body for some sign of life.

His panic grew when he couldn't find anything. It had to be because he was shaking, right? There's no way Tails is– he has to be fine.

“Sonic.” The hedgehog stilled at his name being called. He didn't look away from his brother's body though, even as a tear fell from his cheek. How long has he been crying? “Let me see him.”

The teen shook his head. He couldn't step away and let someone else take his place, Tails needed him.

Knuckles stepped around him, wincing at the sight of the little fox. He kneeled down to check for a pulse, but he knew he wouldn't find anything.

Tails was a strong kid, but there was no chance at surviving being impaled through the heart.

Sonic had leaned down to press his forehead against Tails’s, whispering a million apologies to the kid.

Knuckles closed his eyes and took a deep breath before turning to look at the hedgehog.

The younger met his eyes, a deep plea for the echidna to tell him his brother would be okay.

“He's gone.”

[shelbgrey]

Code baby(Lance Sweets) Part 1

Paring: Lance Sweets x Wife!Reader, Angela Montenegro x Sister-in-law!Reader, Cam Saroyan x Best friend!Reader

Summary: Lance's wife gets unexpected suprise at work and word travels faster than she thinks

MasterList

“Can you pull the security footage from two weeks ago?” Cam asked. “sure..” Angela said and started typing on her iPad. The footage popped up on the screen and the three of us studied it.

Without really realizing it I slowly started to tune out Cam and Angela by mistake, as they continued to talk about the case my stomach started to turn like it did early this morning and the. I cleared my throat and picked up the hot tea I was drinking, hoping all I needed was a drink. As soon as I sipped it tasted awful and smelled horrible. I forced myself to swallow it and set it back down on the table.

I took a deep and swayed slightly as I moved, I tried to focus on the surveillance footage on Angela's screen.

“N/n…” Cam asked softly and turned towards me. Angela stopped talking and looked at me with a concerned look. The two women watched me like I was about to combust.

My stomach started to turn more and I felt nauseous. “I think I'm gonna be sick…” I looked over at Cam and Angela then nodded. “Yup definitely gonna be sick” I covered my mouth and ran to the nearby bathroom, not caring who in the Lab saw me.

I sprinted through the bathroom door and ripped the biggest stall open making it fly backwards and banging up against the one next door. The noise stung my ears but I was glad it was masking the nauseating sounds of me emptying my sorry excuse of a stomach.

As I took a deep breath there was a soft knock on the door of the stall. “y/n? Can we come in? Are you okay?”

“Yeah... Everything is cool” I groaned to my two best friends from the closed bathroom stall, I screwed my eyes shut then finished emptying out my stomach then flushed the toilet.

“Do you think she's pregnant?” Angela mumbled quietly to Cam as the toilet went through its cycle.

As I unlocked the door of the stall, both Cam and Angela stared at me. Angela crossed her arms and had a slight smirk on her face.

“What?” I asked.

“Are you Pregnant?” Angela said, ripping the bandaid off so to speak.

“Cutting right to the cash aren't you Angie” I chuckled awkwardly.

Cam shrugged. "hey we're just worried is all... You've been acting weird lately and then you puked at just the sight of your tea and now you were in there puking.. just seems like all the signs ya know”

“Honestly I don't know…” I then started counting the days since my last period in my head, then I thought about last week when me and Lance had sex. “Maybe I am” my eyes widened as I chuckled in both happiness and nervousness.

Cam and Angela both looked shocked, but also had small smiles on their faces. Then Cam cleared her throat and looked down awkwardly. “how recently have you ummm.... you know...?”

“What?” chuckled and purposely played dumb. Cam wasn't one to be dirty minded...Nor talk about her sex life. But me being me I just wanted to hear her say it.

Cam sighed trying to not be awkward and stay her serious self. “How recently have you and Lance...You know…”

Angela rolled her eyes and cutted to the chase.“When was the last time you jumped Lance's bones?” Angela asked me, Cam elbows her.

“Umm...this weekend…” I trailed off then mumbled the last part. “In his office…”

Cam and Angela shared a look and busted up laughing. “You did it in his office?” Cam asked, raising an eyebrow, she almost looked impressed.

“huh… Didn't know Lance had it in him” Angela nodded, she looked completely impressed.

My cheeks started to turn red and hid my face in my hands as I laughed. “yeah…”

Cam and Angela kept laughing. “how did it happen?” Angela asked, laughing. “Com’on, details Sweetie”

The three of us never really hid anything about our relationships with our husbands. But Cam was a little less… Detailed then Angela. “mm... So I went to drop off some lunch for him... He was stressed from the case... Then ya know…” I trailed off.

The girls kept laughing. “So you did it right there?” Cam asked, laughing and Angela laughed even harder.

“I mean... The door was locked” I shrugged.

“So just on his desk?” Angela asked, trying not to laugh.

“You girls want a play by play?” I laughed and shook my head.

Cam and Angela kept laughing. “I mean your pregnant after what we just heard it seems like we might as well get the full story and enjoy the fact that you're not the first woman to get pregnant on your husband's desk” Cam said.

I rolled my eyes playfully, knowing she's probably right. “I still think I need to take a test”

“You're probably right,” Cam nodded, looking over at Angela.

I mean... We can use the Dna test again” Angela shrugged. When Angela was pregnant with Michel-Vincent she used a DNA test from the lab as a pregnancy test, then Temperance did the same thing. I haven't done it yet, but I know it as accurately as they come.

Cam nodded. “I can go quick to grab just one if you want”

“Yeah... Let's try it” I nodded.

Cam nods, with a smile on her face. “Okay I'll be right back” She walked out to go get the test, She came back about two minutes later. “all right we have get some blood and I'll test it”

I nodded and the three of us left the bathroom and went into Cam's office to do the test. We sat at her desk as she took a sterile needle and poked the tip of my finger,taking some blood. She put a drop of blood on the test then put it in a container so the test could do its job.

After a few minutes Cam looked at the test because I was too nervous to look myself. She looked at me with a big smile. “it's positive… You're pregnant!”

“Really?!” my eyes lit up as I smiled ear to ear.

Cam smiles, nodding. “You are in fact pregnant!”

Happy tears pricked my eyes and hugged both girls tightly.

--------(3rd pov)--------

Lance was in Seeley's office discussing the case and going through files. It was going slower than usual, but other than that it felt like a normal day for them. What they didn't expect was for Jack to knock on Booth's office door.

“Hodgins, what's up?” Seeley asked, Lance looked surprised to see his brother-in-law. Jack always stayed at the lab with y/n.

“So umm... I'm only bringing this up because the girls have done it before” by the girls he means Temperance, Angela, and y/n. “but umm…” Jack hesitated because in the end it was an odd thing to bring up.

Seeley crosses his arms. “Just spit it out, Bug Boy. What is it?”

“So, the girls have used DNA tests from the Lab as a pregnancy test in the past and when I was taking evidence to Cam's office I saw an unlabeled DNA test…” Jack Cringed now wondering why he even came all the way down the Beauro to bring it up.

Seeley blinks, processing this information, Lance did the same thing but with a more psychological sense to it. “So what? You're saying the unlabelled DNA test from the Jeffersonian was a pregnancy test?” Seeley asked.

“Probably” Jack nodded. “because if it was evidence for a case it would be labeled and with the remains”

Lance thinks through this, trying to process which of the female scientists may be pregnant. Booth snapped his fingers, making Jack and Lance look up. “Wait a second- Hodgins, do you know if the unlabelled test was positive or negative?”

“P-positive…” Jack looked at Seeley and Lance. “One of our wives are pregnant”

Lance raises a brow, but still wanted to hear what Jack had to say. “So wait... you're saying that one of our wives is pregnant but you have no clue which one?”

“It wasn't labeled!” Jack shrugged.

“That's fantastic, just fantastic Hodgins” Seeley rolls his eyes as he says this. “So we have the entire day ahead of us, going nuts trying to figure out who is pregnant, is that correct Hodgins?”

“Would you rather me not tell you guys?”

“Probably” Lance shrugged, closing the file he was reading.

Seeley sighs. “It's fine. So who do you think it is?”

Jack shrugged. “How should I know? I don't your your sex lives” Jack then looked at Lance. “and I rather not know his because he married my sister”

Seeley and Lance both snicker. “Alright then, we need some more information. When exactly did you find the test?”

“about an hour before I came here”

“I think we should keep this to ourselves…Especially if it is one of our wives, they should be the ones to tell us when they are ready,” Lance added.

“Now I think about it… All three of them have been acting kinda strange” Jack said.

Lance was staring off into space, counting in his head. Seeley looked over at him with a questioning look. “Something on your mind, Sweets?”

Lance ignored him and continued counting on his head. Seeley raises his brow “Okay... what the hell are you doing?”

“it's regarding y/n, Do you really want to know?” Lance asked bluntly. Dispite y/n being Seeley's best friend he indeed didn't want to know.

“nope... I'm good”

“It's gonna be a long day” Jack sighed, regretting what he found and just wanted to know who it was.

[strawberryradiodemon]

Even if you do add asexual, ace or aromantic to the search there's gonna be those "no fictional thing should ever have to present anything accurately or respectfully ever" people like "as an asexual you have my permission to do whatever you want with alastor's asexuality!" like... who tf asked them? they have an agenda they're trying to push, they do not speak for the ace community as a whole 🙄

Yeahh, even with the aro and / or ace tags we're not entirely safe unfortunately.

Such things do annoy me, I'm not gonna lie. I can understand that romance positive aros, sex positive aces or those who still have sex / are in relationships/ etc use the "aro/ace people can still date / have sex" or remind people that it's a spectrum and some still feel these type of attraction because yes, that's true.

But what annoys me is that saying that to people annoyed about the constant sexualisation/ shipping of Alastor is basically siding with the non aroace spectrum people using that "aroace people can still feel that/ do these things!" who saw that and ran with it purely to be able to continue with what they want to do.

Yes, asexuality and aromanticism are spectrums. Yes, some feel the attraction. Yes, some don't but still engage in these activities. And if you're on the aroace spectrum and it's your case obviously I'm not going to shame you for putting alastor in such scenarii because you're using a character like you to relate, and still acknowledging his aroace identity. The problem is that most people putting him in these situations totally disregard his aroaceness. And when as an aroace (spectrum) person, you say "people can still ship him, I do! Aroace people can feel these things or do them!"... You're basically enabling their erasure of his identity. Deep down you're right, but non aroace people don't care about that, and don't do these things the same way you do.

That's why, to non aroace people shipping alastor, I will remind them that he's aroace. And clearly not on the part of the spectrum where he still feels those things, nor is he interested in pursuing them.

And to the people on the aroace spectrum, I will just say, please, don't mistaken their words for a reel need to showcase the variety of our identity, because most of the time that's not what they want. You don't forget his aroaceness in the way your ship him, they do. Ship him all you want, because I know your heart is in the right place. But please don't defend the others.

As a loveless aroace, it pains me to see him constantly shipped and sexualised by everyone (even though that's clearly not what he'd want), and these things being defended.

I thought I had found a character I could relate to, that I could search stuff about him peacefully without seeing all kind of romantic and sexual stuff. I've been proven wrong, and it hurts. And the excuse they use hurt even more, because it feels like we're only palatable or interesting if we can still feel these attractions sometimes or engage in those things. As if alastor being a loveless aroace is a disappointment, that they *need* to ship him to be satisfied, for him to be enough.

Sorry for the rant, I definitely repeated myself, but I wanted to take the opportunity this ask gave me to give a bit of my opinion on this.

Tldr: I have no problem with aroace spectrum shipping him because I know they keep his aroaceness in mind. I have, however, a problem with non aroace spectrum people doing that because they erase his aroace identity completely AND use the diversity of it as an excuse to continue doing so. And it pains me to see fellow aroace people defending that, because I feel like they don't realise how those people ship him.

[softspeirs]

These Heartbeats Clear (6): Rosie Rosenthal x OC

A/N: This is quite a bit shorter than the other parts, but I thought it deserved its own time to shine. I hope you enjoy this part, Rosie lovers. It's been one of my favorites to write. These Heartbeats Clear Masterlist

Six. Confession.

They land back at Thorpe Abbotts in the mid-afternoon. His breath rattles in his lungs, post-mission adrenaline making him feel twitchy and on edge.

He wants a nap, and he wants a cup of coffee.

Mostly, he just wants to talk to Grace.

He's been too in his own head to seek her out since their disagreement two days prior. He misses her with an ache he has never felt, one that leaves him rubbing at the spot over his heart like it's a physical wound.

After interrogation, he doesn't even stop to change out of his flight suit - he just turns in whatever gear doesn't belong to him, and then gets the hell out of dodge. He has too much nervous energy, too much adrenaline to go to the mess, or catch up with any of his guys.

He changes course, heads back towards his plane.

On the hardstand, his heart kicks into high gear when he sees a familiar form standing there, arms crossed over her chest, assessing his plane.

Her hair is falling out of its pins, and he knows he must look the same - she's never seen him directly after a mission except for once when Pappy had to go to the hospital, and he's strangely self conscious about his wild hair and the sweat drying at his temples. The smell of cordite is still thick in the air near his plane.

"What are you doing out here?" His voice sounds rough even to his own ears. He didn't think she'd be here.

She turns around, and he can see the tears in her eyes from paces away, and it startles him into action. "Grace." He says, worried.

"I thought-- someone said they saw flares, and I couldn't find you, you weren't in the hospital--"

He shakes his head, hands on her shoulders to try to get her to meet his eyes. "I'm fine, we're-- we had two wounded men, but it wasn't serious."

Her eyes are wide and wild as she looks up at him, cataloging for herself that he's intact. It's caught him completely off guard to be the sole focus of her attention like this.

She said she wasn't angry with him a few days ago during their argument, but he didn't really believe her. Couldn't figure out why she'd walk away from him if that were the case. But she's here, and that's got to be a sign, right?

She takes an enormous, steadying breath. "I'm sorry." She says on an exhale, the words washing over him.

"What?"

"I-- I made you upset, the other day. I'm sorry. I was too pushy. Too-- Everyone's always telling me that I can be too much sometimes."

"Everyone is wrong," he says vehemently. "You're not too much. And you don't owe me an apology."

Her words had hurt, yes, but they were also a wake-up call. She had been frustrated with him because he wouldn't let her in, and he's not going to make that mistake a second time. If there's anyone on earth that he's going to bare his soul to, it's going to be Grace Fleming. It's a foregone conclusion, already written in ink since the second he first met her, pristine in her nurse's uniform and sparkling eyes the day he arrived from the States with his unit and she had to declare them fit for duty.

He had felt it then, the electric current that ran between them with only a gaze, and it only got stronger the longer he spent getting to know her. Sometimes he feels like she's the only person on earth who understands him, so when she suddenly didn't -- that's what made him upset. Not that she was pushing him to be honest, be vulnerable, to let her in.

"I'm the one who's sorry." He says, voice cracking. "Grace, I have no idea how to do this." He can't look at her. He does a good job hiding it, but some days he feels unbearably unworthy of praise, hers or anyone else's. He feels shy, especially under her gaze. "I have to stay in a rhythm, you know? And if I let myself dwell on things in the past that I can't fix, I won't be able to keep going up there."

"I thought you died today." She croaks.

He takes a step closer. The tips of their shoes bump.

"I didn't."

"I know. I have faith in you, Rosie. Please don't ever doubt that. I want you to be safe. That’s all I can think about some days, and I never want you to feel like you have to keep all your feelings inside. Not with me.”

“I know.” His hand finds the side of her face, fingers grazing the shell of her ear, making sure she meets his eyes. “And I trust you to keep me safe, more than anyone else.”

“Up here too, right?” She asks, tapping his forehead in an echo of their previous conversation.

His conviction has never been a problem before - he's lucky that he's always been sure of his reasoning behind the choices he makes. He saw an injustice happening, and was determined to help stop it. When he became a lawyer, he wanted to help people.

So why is he so damned scared to make this one choice, even when he's sure of how he feels?

Looking in her eyes, he's starting to realize that this is what a good partnership is. Despite their disagreement, she was still here, still checking on him the way she always did.

Maybe nothing about that would change, even if he lets her in on that niggling voice in the back of his mind that makes him doubt himself. Even if he shows her that shy side of himself that people so rarely see.

And maybe that's how it is when you fall in love with someone - you trust them to catch you when it happens.

Mind made up, he leans in so there are only a few inches separating them. “Please let me kiss you.” His voice is so hoarse it's barely a whisper.

She nods, and before she can say another word, he surges forward, the frenetic energy of the day leaving him as soon as their bodies connect.

Her touch is a soothing balm, her heartbeat under his hand on the side of her neck a reminder that they’re both here and alive.

This quiet moment between them feels like a universe away from everything and everyone else, and when she sighs into his mouth, Rosie knows right then and there that he’s done for.

When they break apart, they’re both panting, her hands so tight on his lapels he can’t move an inch even if he wanted to.

“I’m crazy about you.” His voice is low and rough with intensity.

She laughs, a breathless thing that he feels all the way to the tips of his toes. “I just adore you, Robert Rosenthal.”

His grin is wide as he leans back in, their noses brushing. They just linger there in the in between, basking in this newfound intimacy between them.

He has half a mind to remember that they're on the hardstand where anyone could see, but he also wonders if at this point anyone would care. They're all doing what they need to do to get through this war, and it's not uncommon to turn a corner in the darkened light of the evening and find a couple trying to salvage any kind of romance.

Still, she's just been promoted, and so with regret, he takes a step back from her, his fingertips grazing hers. "Can I take you to dinner?" He asks.

"Please."

They just end up in the officer's mess, the only place they can get to before dinner is over, but it's fine because it's them. No one raises an eyebrow or makes any suggestive comments. They don't touch, but a new awareness has sparked between them that Rosie can't get enough of. He's felt it for weeks, but now he knows it's mutual, and that feeling is a heady one.

They talk. Well, he talks. He's as honest with her as he can be about where his mind is. They talk about home. They talk about work. They talk about what it'll be like when this is all over.

Afterwards, he feels so stupid that he hadn't trusted himself to let go like this with her before. It could have saved two days worth of missing her, but then again, it lead them to right here, right now.

He walks her to the nurses hut as the sun is setting. Satisfied no one is around, he kisses her goodnight just as the field beyond them drifts into a dreamy twilight.

He flies again the next day, but this time the anxiety it normally causes is absent as he climbs into his rack later that night, the memory of the feeling of her finally in his arms sending him into a dreamless sleep.

[theacecouple]

I didn't see anything from somerton until about a month ago when he popped up in my recs and I ended up binging his content for about 2 days, but something kept being off and I noticed some of the lies/ignorance, and there was something really dismissive and weird about how he talked about aspecs and women in particular... I stopped watching him cause I watched one of you guys' podcast and realized I also just felt like crap after his videos.

I did end up getting his rwrb video in my recs when it came out cause of the binge and I just remember leaving a comment about the way he talked about aces in it. It was especially upsetting seeing people in the comments who were simply happy he mentioned aspecs at all. He replied to me just saying his cowriter was ace. I don't reply to youtube comments but I just remember wanting to point out that same co-writer he was using as a shield said aces don't face discrimination or conversion therapy, and in that video wrote that aces have to have sex to find out they don't like it. Being something doesn't make you instantly know everything about it, as somerton himself demonstrates with his ignorant comments about gay history.

I'm not really one of his victims since I avoided him as soon as I found him, but I feel bad for all the people he tricked and/or guilted into believing him. I hope some other creators make videos exposing the weird way he manipulated the queer community, cause I think a lot of young folks could use a breakdown of it.

Anyways I just wanted to finish by saying I love you guys' work and learning from you. You helped me understand why certain phrases make me upset, and that and watching your podcast back to back with his videos helped me figure out what I didn't like about Somerton, so you helped protect me from him and not convince myself I was just being Weird as I often do when I get Bad Vibes from someone.

Thank you so much for reaching out <3

It's so fascinating that you stopped watching Somerton after finding us. We've tried to keep things as professional as possible these last 2 years by only citing directly harmful things he's done to us and direct members of our community, and even then it was sparingly and as kind as possible.

When we first spoke with him about including Asexual representation in his future Telos endeavors, he assured us that not only was there already an Ace in the writers' room, but that two real, fully-fleshed out Ace characters were already being written. This was encouraging! After all, we had no way of knowing if he was the kind of cis gay man who loathes Aces or doesn't view us as queer. Since this didn't seem to be the case and rep is important, we supported him. We now deeply regret not doing our research on him first.

Even before his video "The Queer Erasure of Asexuality", we started watching a few of his YouTube videos for the first time and some of the subtext was NOT kind to our community. Subtle things that we'd see get repeated by his fans over and over again, like how queer art is bad these days because all the "artists" and the "exciting queers" who "really lived" died in the AIDS crisis. Or the implication that the Interview with the Vampire reboot was *more queer* because the vampires actually had gay sex on screen, despite this being a complete departure from the source material and neglecting the fact that Anne Rice's vampires have always been undeniably queer *and also* sexless. In fact, we didn't say his name, but we did mention some vague "bad takes" we saw about the series in our podcast episodes 75 & 76 The Triumphs and Failures of AMC’s Interview with the Vampire Part 1 and Part 2...At least some of those came from James.

We did not see his rwrb video, because we had long given up on him by that point, but it is not at all surprising to hear that he had bad takes and also hid behind Nick once again to shield himself from any criticism. It was very much his MO, and yet we're also certain we've heard him chastise straight women for using the "I have a gay friend" defense.

It is so good to hear that our podcast has been helpful to you. There are FAR too many Aces who are willing to let bad behavior or ill-informed takes slide just because someone with a decent following noticed us. We deserve so much better.

[thatfreshi]

"Some Kind of Melancholic Mist" (Uni AU P. 8)

tw - themes of anxiety

As all good moments do, this one ends. You're almost too busy taking in Astarion's genuine smile to notice when he goes to check his phone. You don't pry, but he clearly isn't happy with whoever's calling him.

"Sorry, I have to take this."

The mood shifts very suddenly, like it felt at the party that night. You stay silent, not wanting to interrupt. When he puts his phone up to his ear, you notice the scrap piece of paper you wrote your phone number on, folded in the back of his phone case.

"Yes?

You said tomorrow.

No I-

Yes.

Yes I know.

When?

Now? That's-

Yes.

Yes, of course."

The call ends abruptly, and you see his hand tense around his phone.

"You have to go?"

"Yes, sadly. This though? It was... it was nice. And I'm sorry."

"Why?"

"Because I believe you have poor taste in people, and I hope it doesn't get you hurt. That's all. I'll see you around."

Before you can say goodbye, he's gone, like he turned into some kind of melancholic mist. The magic of the moment is tainted. It's as if that entire hour disappeared, sand running through your fingers. Not sure what to do with the sudden downfall of your feelings, you travel back to your dorm room, and find Gale standing outside. He's on the phone, a big smile across his face.

"Of course. I'll see you then."

You have an evil little smirk on your face when he notices you approaching.

"Was that... your secret lover?"

He almost wants to roll his eyes, but talking about her is just too exciting.

"Yes. God, she's spectacular. Surprised she even wanted to start seeing me, but it's far too late to question it now! Just have to enjoy the glorious hand I've been dealt."

"Nice to know at least one of us is happy. You here to see Shadow?"

"Yes. Apparently Karlach messaged her privately, asking if she wanted to go to some diner tonight, and now she's all nervous."

"Then I guess we have ourselves a mission Gale."

The two of you shake hands like you're in some cheesy sitcom, and laugh to yourselves. He holds the door open for you after you scan your key.

"Where have you been by the way? I saw you skulk off with your little lover boy."

"It's not like that. I just think he's nice, misunderstood. We talked about philosophy stuff for a while. It was really nice actually."

Your conversation is interrupted by Shadowheart, who walks up to the two of you with both eyes done in a completely different makeup style, somehow both being intensely sad and greyscale.

"There you are Gale! I can't decide if I should do the winged liner with the glitter shadow, or the smudge with the matte! I have like an hour!"

He grabs her hands.

"Okay first of all, you know doing the smudge only looks cool on TikTok. Second of all, you would really give up the opportunity to show her that you know how to do a cat eye?"

"Ugh, you're right. See, this is why we're best friends! Because I'm pretty and fun and smart, and you're the voice of reason!"

She walks off to the bathroom to wipe off the right eye, and Gale follows.

"Hey, I am also pretty and fun and smart thank you very much!"

You follow the two of them to the tiny bathroom as Shadowheart haphazardly starts removing the eyeshadow.

"You two have to come with me, or else I will make a fool of myself. And you know I hate making a fool of myself."

"Shadow, she most certainly wanted this to be a date."

"Yes, and I won't get a second one if I look like an idiot. Please?"

"I'll go, but if I'm a mood killer that's your fault."

She then turns to you.

"Uh, sure! I have nothing else to do."

"Thanks! I would hug you guys, but you know I hate touching people."

After arguing with Shadowheart about what outfit she should wear, the three of you pile into Gale's car.

"I'm telling you, if I have to drive there I will throw up."

"Fine, I'll believe you, but you're paying me for gas."

You sit in the back because Shadow calls shotgun, but you don't mind the roominess. Gale's car is one of those sensible vans, a mom-mobile type. It's close to 4:30 now, and you stare out at people walking down the sidewalk, going about their daily lives. You wonder about the strangers, if they're happy, if they're off to do something important. When you get bored of theorizing on the lives of others, you go back to scrolling through your phone, and you're met with a message in the newly made group chat.

mama_k: Hey guys! Just wanted to say hi :)

Shadow giggles in the front seat.

"Agh, she's adorable! Gale, I don't know how you don't understand the hype around her. Karlach's wonderful."

"Well, firstly I'm a taken man. But also you barely know her."

"She's like a golden retriever! Tav, you get it right? Or are you still thinking about your new pale friend?"

"I'm telling you, it's not like that."

"It was like that when you had sex with him."

You kick the back of Gale's seat.

"He didn't even like the sex anyways! So it's whatever."

Shadowheart turns around to look at you.

"Wait, you're telling me you had sex with him, and it was bad?"

"No, that's the confusing part, is that it was really good, he just didn't seem into it?"

"Well, when you fuck as much as he does, I'm sure you get bored."

You and Shadow both turn to Gale.

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, working with Mystra I hear plenty of things from other people in the arts. Assistants, hairdressers, make-up artists. Let's just say plenty of them have experiences with him."

"Well, I mean whatever floats your boat I guess. I'm not one to judge, love a good one-night stand when I'm desperately single."

Gale and Shadowheart continue to talk about her ho phase, as well as her upcoming date that you two are crashing. You think hard about Gale's comment, and what that means for you. Technically, it means nothing, especially if you were just one in a long line of hookups, but why go through the effort if he didn't even enjoy himself? Perhaps you really were just that rusty. Before your thoughts run any deeper, you've arrived at the diner, a small place with an arcade in the back. Karlach knocks on the window next to Shadow, scaring everyone in the car. When everyone calms down from the fright, the four of you make it inside.

"So, you brought along Gale and Tav?"'

The wrestler seems a little dissapointed.

"I just thought they'd be fun! But I'm sure if we get bored of them, we can ditch them."

The two women laugh, grazing hands, which causes Shadow's face to go red fairly quickly. All four of you order some greasy food, cheap stuff to share between all of you, and you quickly find yourself sitting in a small booth next to Gale, across from the two sapphic lovebirds. You all shoot the shit for a while, picking at boneless wings and cheese fries, feeling like true college kids. It's close to 6 now, and Karlach has slowly inched her arm over Shadowheart's shoulder. While you smile at the sweet moment, the two staring into each other's eyes like middle schoolers, your phone vibrates in your pocket. A call from an unknown local number. You step outside and answer the phone.

"Tav?"

The voice from this afternoon.

"Yeah?"

"Can we talk... please?"

You almost don't know what to say, surprised Astarion even called.

"Sure. What about?"

"No, I mean in person. I really don't like phone calls, I just- I'm freaking out."

[lightyaoigami]

If you have to choose your favorites 5 scene/dialogue in Those, what would it be?

amazing question. i will not be including 'my doctor doesn't even consider me a smoker' because that's everyone's favorite already.

one

"When I first saw you at the funeral, I thought you'd be the same. Yet another of The Lady's beautiful court jesters. It surprises me when I'm wrong." "I'm glad that I obliged." "You haven't obliged me with anything yet. This dinner doesn't count." "You're a fast worker but I'm faster. We could have skipped this shit, you know? There's no need for dinner and candlelight at our age. And, y'know, neither of us is wearing a dress." "I wanted to speak with you," he says thoughtfully, following it up with a more cheerful: "And get you out of your clothes, but that goes without saying." "We could have done both of those things at your place." "No, I'd like to understand you." Something about his personality has changed. He's much more softly spoken and pure sounding, which worries me. The dreamy quality of his voice makes me feel pensive and angry, so I reach forward suddenly and pour myself another glass of wine. "I don't want to be understood. To be understood would make me dead."

two

I remember once when, back in the day, I went to a party. It was house party but it was in a really big house. We had to wear masks, so it was one of those parties. I wore a skull mask; a white skull. L was an abstract crow or something. He saw me just as I saw him and we knew. Couldn't see each other's faces, but we knew. That was a good night. Anyway, he didn't know that I was going to be there and I didn't know that he was going, so we were strangers. Only we knew. Point is, if I wasn't there, he would have found someone else. Someone less.

three

"I don't know, but it looks very important from where I'm standing." "Stand somewhere else then." My consistent smile parts my lips when I take a few long steps towards him until we're only inches apart. Well, I can't really see his suit anymore, which is what he wanted. "Like, here?" I ask. His panic is practically another person between us and he drops his briefcase, so this tactic must have been perfectly balanced and executed. I congratulate myself as I kneel down to pick it up to deliver the killing stroke. "I'll get it," he says hurriedly. "It's no problem," I say, smiling up at him in my most winning way. This is a tried and tested method and he out of everyone was a complete sucker for it, always. I grab the handle of his case with one hand and hold onto his leg with the other. For support, obviously. When I stand again, I can almost see the gleam in my eye reflected in his face. While he's apparently unable to move, I lean forward and breathe in over his neck, but I don't touch him until my face is so close to his that our noses barely glance and slide off each other. He sucks in air when I lick his cheek lightly with the tip of my tongue. He's dying inside. His poor eyes can't lie. "You know, you really should be more careful," I tell him, and tilt my face slightly so my lips hovers over his in some worshipping adoration. He pants softly, swallows and his eyes grow heavy as he looks at me, but I won't do anything unless he gives me a sign. An almost silent "Oh fuck" catches in his throat as he stares at me, and I drop his suitcase to the floor again. Hallelujah.

four

"Light, I'm not going to say this again until the next time you leave your wife for me, because you'll get bored of it, but you're the best person I've ever met and I'm proud of you. Of what you've done, despite what I might have said in the past, because I'm a liar and I was lying before. And I love you." Oh. I'm more stunned by how he says it than what he actually says and I don't know what to say, so I stuff something that I hope is only a slimy, battered carrot into my mouth instead, and it's revolting. Once I've finished chewing, I talk down to my plate. "It's really hard to cut spring onions all slanty like." "It looks like a forty-five degree angle." "It is." "Well done."

five

So, picture the scene. I was on my way to the door wearing one of my less good suits. That doesn't matter, but I think that it expresses something about my state of mind and health. But I didn't make it as far as the door. I was overwhelmed by a sudden sickness, ran to the bathroom and threw up my guts into the toilet until my throat burned and I nearly passed out. It was like how people describe botulism, only worse. Those bastards don't know how I suffered. Anyway, Kiyomi found me dying on the bathroom floor, and I remember it in the same daze I experienced then. L wasn't in my mind at the time because all I could think of was trying to find some way to stop feeling as terrible as I did. My mind was empty like the rest of me was, so I just lay on my side and hoped that it would pass. Some unprecedented disaster had happened and I was powerless to do anything.

bonus from i know the way it ends

"Your face was almost golden because of the lights everywhere. Remember the gold coin neon lights over the casino? The lights made you look like you were gilded. I've only seen you look at me like you did then a few times, but you were beautiful, I thought my heart would burst, I… Palpitations from all the coffee, probably but… yeah."

[nat-the-notorious]

HEAR ME OUT-

I have come from the abyss to make a proposition.

We all know the ikemen series can get admittedly a little interchangeable with some of the thems and characters. Not that there all the same by any means, but you could most definitely switch up the cast without sacrificing too much plot, or atmosphere. So, a little worm crawled in brain a while back and refuses to die so...I guess I'll pass it along....

You might've seen the Villains/Prince card gotcha colab they did a month or more ago with Jude and Liam. It was relatively well received, yet I'm servierly disappointed this concept hasn't been played around with much in the respective fandoms.

So, since Cybird gave us some princely villains, I've come armed and prepared with the alternative.

"But the princes are all to sweet to become villains!" you cry.

Oh, ho, ho~ How wrong you would be.

The curses of the Crown members actually correspond with the personalities of the Rhodolite princes quiet nicely and we must remember that they fundamentally change how one naturally goes about their life. It's an entirely different mental strain that I think in the cases such as Leon's (whose self righteousness is glorified in its own right) could bring out some juicey aspects of their character we wouldn't otherwise see. (Honestly Leon was too perfect, I kept wondering when he was gonna go savage, nope...never did. I really want him to go all William on some evil...if that makes any sense.) Not to mention we'd go from the "we care because we're family" group dynamic, to the "well, shit i guess we're sorta family" dynamic. (Chevalier and Clavis being begrudging childhood friends working as business partners? Yes please!)

So we got (as I see it)-

A monarch-Leon

Fox- Nokto

Mirror- Clavis

Fairy- Chevalier

Huntsman- Jin

Throns- Luke

Sariel fulfills the role of the tall, dark, and dominating leader. (Not that Victor is...wait, nope, wedding event. Epilog)

The only issue I had was with Yves and Licht. They just don't fit, right? I mean honestly-oh, wait....

These curses change their holders more than any of the others. Really-would Elbert be a normally traumatized dude without his obsession with beauty? And Liam...

Well, that something else completely- but back to Yves.

My conflict regarding him came from the initial comparison I made between him and Liam. They’re nearly opposites when you think about it, or at least not the neat squeeze the others were logically beyond them both being cat-coded, until...

The fits.

This curse is particularly sinister due to them and it was when I began to think of the fits it all came together, ish...it's not like I've really flushed it out or anything.

Yves can't kill.

It's a horrific embarrassment for him as a member of the queen's secret army, of course, one the others make do to point out early in Emma's stay as fairytale keeper.

"We know how to cover eyes, just fine. Don't we Yves-ie boy?"

He grunts, pout twisting into a snarl. "I've never closed my eyes! I can stand it all just fine, thank you! I just like to have a little control over myself, unlike some people!"

"Aw, but what's the fun in that? Don't you ever want a taste of the 'darkness'," Calvis snickered, fingers quoting the air.

"I taste enough as it is, thank you."

"So you really haven't..killed? Her guts lurched, rejecting the abnormality of the sentence.

"What-of course I've killed! I'm apart of Crown! You saw us murder a man, remember?"

"It was mostly Leon," Licht flatly chimed.

Yves shot him a glare full of daggers. "The point is that I have-"

"Not on purpose." The room stopped, turning toward Nokto and his silver smirk. "It's why you joined, isn’t it? How’s it going by the way? Any trouble with the fits?"

Not everyone is rude about it. Actually, there's an overwhelming amount of support working in the background. They give him important, granted safe, missions that allow him to explore and exploit his curiosity without fear of cracking under the weight of it. Our princey boys would be a lot more resistant to their curses than our villain babes. In Yves case, he is so repressive he lives in fear of zooting out everyday for a whole different reason than Liam.

Liam's fits are connected to anxiety, grief, depression, guilt...

Well for Yves it's fear primarily. Don't get me wrong, there's self-loathing in there, but it's almost like a defense. So, due to events of the past that would be drawn out over the course of 18 chapters, he is terrified to kill, yet has and certainly will, but avoids doing so at all costs. (Which some of the others secretly respect him for. )

He takes it upon himself to survey Emma as fairytale keeper-to ensure her competence, NOT because the situation sucks and she must be so scared and everyone’s so scary-

Then of course it becomes exclusive, because he's safe and the missions are easy...

Until it's not.

He wants a challenge, something really plump to sink his teeth into. (Emma has really done a number on his confidence at this point.) They give it to him and it goes well, that is until one of the left over thugs, (which ever one tried to have a monolog, you know) grabs Emma when he's distracted. The situation turns, some of the dudes are up. They rough him around, threaten her, that sorta thing, then one pushes him down.

"You might as well go home kitty, you can't do shit to us."

He gets up, hand grazing the touch of metal at his side. It slips from its leather bed. He approaches the bastard tormenting Emma and plunges his knife between his neck and spine. One guy tries to get him by the shoulders; he turns and stabs him in the gut. The rest back away, he steps forward, both hands clinging to the now dripping blade-

And lunges.

Emma doesn't even have time to breathe.

(Does it look like Yves? Probably not, but for a 15 minute 2am pen-sketch it's okay. It's actually what inspired me to write this whole thing.)

He twirls around to face her, so, so happy and it takes everything not to scream. She smiles instead, moving towards his open arms, her own broadly spread.

"You did it!" Her body collapses against him, trembling. "That man, he-I...thank you."

Something dark passed through his gaze, then sank into the crook of her neck. "You're welcome..."

So yeah that's what I got. Cool, ay? Come on, it'd be fun....

Still unsure abut Licht, kinda feel like you might have to make up a curse for him. Big bad wolf or something...more or less to match Nokto. They are twins after all.

Welp thanks for reading if did!

Peace~

[captaincoldzero]

I Can't Go Back to that Market | Peter Quill x Male Reader

Fandom: Marvel

A/N: Sorry for any mistake. English is not my first language.

The ship landed on the target planet. We needed to find a seller for an item, although Peter wasn't planning on buying anything. We talked separately. Rocket and Groot went after more equipment and weapons for Rocket; Gamora and Drax were behind blades, swords, and things nearby while being followed by Mantis, while Peter and I were behind the store which was the goal of the Guardians on that planet.

I shoved my hands in the pockets of my aviator suit as we were getting a few stares for being two humans walking in space, but then being completely ignored.

One day on Earth, a group of alien criminals kidnapped me to sell me as an exotic human slave in space, but the Guardians kind of invaded the place and created a riot, amid the confusion I ran away and entered the Guardians' ship. It was at that moment that they saw the power that I had fought so hard to hide. Now they called me Ghost Pilot and I became Milano's official pilot.

We were hired to get an object from a store on this planet. I wanted to leave that planet full of criminals, space traffickers, and selling various other criminal products.

― Do you already know where we should go? ― I asked Peter as we walked through the streets of the foreign city.

― I think so. ― Peter spoke as they walked through the dangerous streets.

Since joining the Guardians of the Galaxy, he has discovered new planets and aliens that he had never imagined. I was sure the world was much bigger than a human could even imagine.

I approached a table of a man who was selling something that looked like it would be edible to other aliens, but to me, it was just some weird purple goo.

― Want to try one, Y/N? ― The foreigner behind the desk, who looked like a green insect, asked.

― How do you know my name? ― I ask scared.

― It's your name on the jacket, isn't it? ― the foreigner asked, pointing to the jacket I was wearing.

I had forgotten about it. I had on my leather aviator jacket that had my name on it. It reminded me that people on Earth probably thought I was dead.

― True, my bad. ― I said a little embarrassed.

― Want one? ― He asked, bringing a plate of purple goo closer to my face.

― I wouldn't eat it if I were you. ― Peter said looking with the same expression of disgust at the goo.

― I had lunch just now, I'm not hungry, thanks. ― I said, politely declining.

― You're the loser. ― He said as he handed it over to another customer.

Peter pulled me by my elbow to pull me away.

― Don't leave my side. ― Peter spoke as he walked past the criminals of the place.

― Sorry, I'm having fun getting to know other planets. ― I looked at the strange things they found in the scattered tents.

― Focus on our mission. ― Peter spoke while still holding my arm.

― I'm not a child, Peter. I can defend myself. ― I spoke, but there was no communication in my voice, yet I guided my arm from his hand.

― I know that, I just don't want you to get lost. ― Peter spoke worriedly.

Peter and I had been at it for a few days now. Show concern and sometimes even flirt with each other, but act like it's just a joke between friends.

― You're not going to abandon your pilot here. I said with a spontaneous smile.

― Rocket can fly.

I looked offended at Peter causing him to laugh.

― We're not going to abandon the best pilot we've ever had. Peter said putting his hand on my shoulder.

― Don't let Rocket hear you saying that. He will blow you up. ― I said laughing. ― Look how nice it is.

I said walking quickly to a tent with several different weapons. There were several types, including ones that were bigger than me. They were all obviously stolen, but it's not like anyone cared.

― Did any of them catch your eye? ― a blue-skinned foreigner who had a feature with tentacles-like hair, who I guessed was the owner of the shop, asked.

Peter approached, looking with interest at the grenades in the cases.

― Why don't you try this one? ― The foreigner asked to pick up a gun, next with a rifle and handed it to me.

I held tight and aimed for the wall, testing the weight. It was heavy and seemed to be those weapons with strong recoil.

― It's too heavy. ― I said returning the gun.

― And this one ?― He asked, handing over an oddly small pistol.

I held it and aimed, but the gun grip felt small and uncomfortable.

― I don't think so. ― I said returning the gun.

Then I saw two identical pistols in the display case. It was slightly larger than a regular pistol, especially the barrel which was longer than a human pistol. It was made of black metal with a purple light.

― Would you like to try? ― The foreigner asked, obviously wanting to get me to buy something.

I walked over and picked up the two pistols. I pointed to a wall to be able to test. It wasn't too heavy, but it wasn't too light either. The footprint was perfect. I turned to Peter displaying the weapons.

― What do you think? ― I asked Peter as he posed to show off the weapons.

― I think it suits you. ― Peter responded by raising an eyebrow. ― But do you know how to use a gun?

―Don't worry about it, Peter. ― I said carefree.

―Wait, there's more. ― The alien salesman said, taking the two pistols from my hand.

He moves his hand with one of the pistols making the fist lift and fit the other pistol, making it turn into a type of sniper rifle with a scope. The seller handed me the two guns that had now become just one. I aimed, looking through the scope on top of the gun.

― That's impressive. ― I said impressed with the gun. ― But I do not have money.

I said handing over the gun and the salesman seemed to make an expression of disgust with a mixture of anger that I had wasted his time.

― Let me pay. ― Peter said, handing over some crystal pieces to the seller who smiled again and handed me back the sniper rifle.

― Serious? You don't have to. ― I said, but I was already holding the gun tightly so I wouldn't let go.

― And I'll take it out of your pay later. ― Peter said, smiling at me.

― Very funny, Peter. ― I said rolling my eyes.

I let go of the two pistols making them go back to being two separate weapons. I handed the little money I had to the seller to buy the pistol holsters because obviously, he wasn't going to give anything away for free. And we left the ship. I was really happy with my new purchase.

― Thanks. ― I said to Peter as we walked back to the street.

― You pay me back later. ― Peter said laughing, but I knew he would charge me later.

After walking the streets for a while, we entered a shop with various artifacts and antiques. Peter's gaze wandered over the shelves until he finally found what we were looking for. Peter disguised his gaze so as not to show interest in the piece.

― I'm looking for a piece to give to my girlfriend. ― I approached the vendor so I could distract him.

― But of course, we have lots of jewelry that would make any woman's eyes sparkle. ― The alien with orange skin, four black eyes, and six thin arms spoke excitedly about having a new customer.

He took me to a showcase with several pieces of jewelry with different stones.

― Does your girlfriend have ears? These earrings could look beautiful. ― The alien asked, showing sparkling earrings.

― No, she doesn't have ears. ― I said, pretending to methodically analyze each piece there.

Meanwhile, Peter silently approached the golden egg he was going to steal.

― And a necklace? Every lady loves a necklace. ― He said, putting his hands together excitedly.

Peter reached for the golden egg and took it gently. He took it to his pocket, putting the object away.

― Do you wanna know? I don't think there's anything that would suit her. ― I said, pretending to be disappointed. ― Sorry to waste your time.

― You don't understand anything about beauty. ― The attendant said irritably.

Peter and I left the store. We try to walk calmly as if nothing is happening.

― It was easier than I thought. ― Peter spoke proudly.

― Get back here, thieves! ― The store attendant shouted from the store door.

― You had to talk. ― I complained as we started to run.

While running away from the store clerk, we ended up bumping into several people and knocking her into stalls, and breaking products. This drew a lot of attention and made more people chase us.

― Now you're feeling what it's like to be a Guardian of the Galaxy. ― Peter spoke as we ran.

Shots passed by us as they tried to hit us to stop or maybe even kill us. I saw a motorbike parked and I pulled Peter over to it.

― About there. ― I said and Peter went upstairs.

By touching the handlebars of the motorcycle, I let the spirit out of me. My jacket took on a charred appearance as my skin burned and I became a flaming skull.

I possessed the bike causing it to start and start roaring down the street. I heard the motorcycle owner complain but I was already gone. I revved the bike, leaving a trail of fire in my wake but going too fast to follow.

I dodged several people, not counting those who jumped out of the way. Some people were still shooting and others were trying to give chase. We were making a huge mess until we finally reached Milano.

I saw Rocket and Groot loading some weapons into the ship while the others helped them. When Gamora saw the mess that was following us, she drew the attention of the others, causing all but Drax to run into the ship. Drax drew his blades, excited for a fight, when Gamora returned and pulled him into the ship.

I stopped the bike haphazardly in front of the ship as we ran into the ship. Upon arriving in the control room, I sat in the pilot's chair and possessed Milano. The ship began to take off while I began to be possessed by my flaming spirit.

― Speeds up! Speeds up! Speeds up! ― Peter spoke desperately, slapping the bench that accompanied his voice.

― Let's kill them all! ― Drax yelled with his swords in hand, fully excited for a fight.

― What did you do? ― Gamora asked irritably.

― More importantly, did they manage to steal that golden egg? ― Rocket asked from above Gamora.

I accelerated the ship causing it to leave the planet. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, except for Drax who looked disappointed that he couldn't fight.

But just when we thought everything would be calm, the ship's alerts warned that we were being pursued.

― Weapons in position. ― Peter spoke while Rocket and Gamora went to the ship's weapons.

I accelerated Milano while doing maneuvers to help Rocket and Gamora land the shots. Until finally I managed to lose them all.

― I think we made it. ― Gamora spoke, but still with her hand on the gun sights.

I engaged the ship's autopilot and rose from the pilot. Each one started to get distracted with what they liked to do on the ship and I went to Peter who was analyzing the Golden Egg he stole.

I approached looking at the Egg along with him.

― Why does he want this so badly? ― Peter asked, examining the piece carefully. ― Let's stall a little before we hand it over.

Peter spoke and was going to put his hand on my shoulder, but when he realized that I was still in Ghost Pilot form, he stopped for fear of getting burned. Realizing this, I suppressed the spirit within myself, causing me to revert to my human form.

― Sorry I forgot. ― I said when I got back to normal.

― Alright, do not worry. ― Peter smiling at me.

I looked at the egg more closely and noticed that it didn't appear to be massive, I picked it up from the table and it made me more sure of my theory.

― I think there's something inside. ― I said, turning the egg in my hand.

― Here. I think this is where it opens. ― Peter said, taking the egg from my hand.

He found a small knob of sorts on the side and as soon as he turned it, the egg opened like a sliced orange.

― What is that? ― I asked eyeing the glowing red crystal from within.

― I don't know. ― Peter said taking the crystal.

― You don't think he'll notice? ― I asked, smiling as I watched Peter put the crystal in his pocket.

― I'm sure he will. But let's get the money first. ― Peter said closing the Golden Egg again.

― It's just a little space thief. ― I said laughing.

― The way you like it. ― Peter said with a wink.

This time, I felt my face flush a little. He caught me off guard at that point and he knew it. Peter just smiled at me and put the egg back on the table.

— You can stop this nonsense, it's already tiring me. ― Rocket said as he walked by with some equipment he was setting up.

Peter and I looked away with a little embarrassment.

― I was just thinking…― Peter started a little nervously. ― If you don't want to go out some days?

―We're always through space. ― I said laughing.

― But this time it would be for a date. ― Peter said with a smile. ― What do you think?

― I think it sounds pretty good. ― I said with a smile.

[cannibalsrider]

Hi! Saw you asking for req under the bsd tag soo if possible I'd like to request for Tanizaki and/or Ranpo with gn!reader. Just overall fluff/comfort stuff of reader being super drained for a days and not managing to catch a break, which get them on the verge of crying for even little stuff like accidently burning food

Hope it is fine and thank you🫶

of course and i hope u like it anon^.^ lowk apologizing now if Tanizaki seems ooc at all I haven't written much for bsd yet!

ft Tanizaki x bsf gn!reader

warnings: mentions of reader overworking and mentions of reader just being overworked and needing a hug, derealization kinda but lightly implied

a/n: lowk is one of my favs so far and a fun fact I finished this while listening to a bedtime story I found on Spotify about Prometheus!

In a way, you could say the past few weeks had been like watching the charge on a phone slowly deplete with each passing second. It wasn't anyone else's fault; cases had just started to pile up, and I was trying to handle each one as quickly as possible while assisting other agency members when they needed help. But something about today felt like the metal casing of the pipe my life had become wanted to burst at the seams.

Standing by the stove with Tanizaki as we made Tempura, everything felt overwhelming. The hot oil popping up sporadically and the heat of the kitchen added to the exhaustion I felt. As I stood idly in front of the stove, holding a piece of Tempura tightly under what felt like scorching oil, time seemed to freeze. It felt like I was the shrimp, unable to swim back up, staring at my exhaustion holding me down.

"(Y/N)?" Tanizaki tapped my shoulder, trying to snap me out of what felt like a near-unreal state inside my body. "Huh?" I mumbled, snapping out of my thoughts as I looked down at the nearing burnt shrimp in the oil, quickly retrieving it and placing it with the rest. I blinked a few times, hearing the stove click off as Tanizaki moved the pot of oil to a different burner. "You looked like you weren't there for a second. Are you alright?" he asked me. I nodded, wiping my hands off with a small towel before rubbing my face with my hands, trying to wake myself up, but instead, tears threatened to burst from my eyes.

Why did it have to happen now? I hadn't given myself a break in almost a full week. "I'm fine. I think I'm just not feeling good," I mumbled, trying to brush the tears away. Everything was fine, right? I just needed to sit down for a moment, and everything would be fine. I'd feel better, and I wouldn't look like a complete idiot in front of him. "You don't look okay, (Y/N). Sit down; let me get you some water, okay?" Tanizaki suggested.

I nodded as he went to fetch water. As I sat down at the small table, I realized the scattered papers from the case we were supposed to be working on for the past couple of days. Now, I couldn't even give a straight answer if I was supposed to work or not. Tanizaki returned, sitting across from me. I tried to wipe my tear-stained cheeks clean, feeling embarrassed, but I could tell he knew it was more than just tears.

"You know, you don't have to do all of it," he said, his voice like a soothing breeze. "Picking up all those cases… We can all help you, (Y/N). We're like a big family, and we all want to help each other whenever possible. You aren't alone." His words reassured me, and suddenly, tears began to flow uncontrollably. I didn't even try to stop them; I just let them flow as I stared down at my hands.

"I know. I just thought I should do as much as possible," I managed to say through my tears. He hugged me, my head resting on his shoulder, soaking his shirt slightly with salty tears. "You do more than enough, (Y/N). You don't have to overwork yourself to the point of exhaustion to prove that, I promise," he said, warding off any lingering thoughts of self-doubt in my head.

[dearweirdme]

Saw this comment under a message I sent a few days ago. "'What does he do that they don't think a gay man would do? I'm genuinely curious because I don't get it.' Is anon being serious right now ? So according to anon gay men in 2023 sing about loving women and having sex with women everyday ? And according to anon gay men also flirt seriously with women, speak with sexual innuendos to women and try to get the attention of beautiful women on them ? Either anon is blind or anon has never met a gay man in her life." Yes I'm being serious, is this commenter serious? In 2023 the vast majority of queer people globally remain closeted. In 2023 there are queer people who pretend to be straight, who have to pretend to avoid negative repercussions and I can't believe they think that this wouldn't apply to a K-pop idol. Especially one who has the entire world's eyes on him right now and who has not yet completed his mandatory service in a country that upheld its draconian sodomy laws for the military just a couple of weeks ago. What kind of privileged bubble do you have to live in to think closeting is no longer a necessity at all? Because that is what is being suggested here so are they not aware that its not just careers at stake over this? To say something like this seriously this person has to believe that if any of them are gay they would be open about that which I'm sorry is an absolutely insane take. We're going to keep having this conversation over and over again as long as the world is not safe for all queer people to be open about it and people have the nerve to go into queer spaces every day to try to gaslight people into thinking that is no longer the case. LOTS of gay men have sung songs about women, lots of very famous gay men have sung songs about women. Where has commenter seen him flirt "seriously" with anyone????? How are Taekookers called delusional by people who in the same breathe talk about musical performances and mvs like they're reality, and take his flirty banter with fans is "seriously"? Is that what they're talking about??? Commenter, I'm a queer person myself, I know and love lots of others and it is YOU who are blind to the struggles queer people go through every day. Yes even in 2023 and guess what, it will sadly be like that in 2024 and beyond.

Hi anon!

Yes, thank you for this! That comment bothered me to no end. That person has a very biased and factually wrong view of the world. They may think artists are beyond harm due to being queer, bit that is simply not true. Sure artists come out these days, but how many wait until after the peak of their career, how many may still be closeted (anon does not know that)? In a country like SK, where there’s actual laws against queer people.. without even knowing the number, you can bet there’s many people not out.

Just a few facts:

This is a map of the countries in which being queer is punishable.. in some cases even with the death penalty. The world is bigger than America and Europe, and being artists.. they need to be safe everywhere, because they travel to and through those countries to perform. Jk went to Dubai to perform..

For some reason I’m unable to post links atm, but the site is mentioned in the bottom here.

Only five countries have equal rights for queer people and non queer people. There’s many many countries in which the equality is barely in sight.

South Korea is not great, this only just happened, and it’s not like men have an option to opt out of military service… so they’re stuck.

And that’s only part of the legal consequences queer people have to deal with.. the social aspect of being queer is in many many countries harsh. Queer people everywhere get harassed, attacked, abused, ostracized, just for being queer and loving who they love.

That comment was super ignorant and blatantly diminished all the struggles queer people still have these days. Great that the person posting that comment feels so free.. but it would suit them to open up their thoughts to places where people aren’t that lucky.