#is this some sort of au?

[nateslehky]

For the kiss prompt, no. 38!!! for 829

38.…because they’re running out of time.

"Cale, cm'here."

The quiet mumble brushes the edge of Cale's barely awake mind, soft but insistent, coaxing him to consciousness.

"Mhmmm," grumbles Cale.

A weight falls across his back, followed by fingers digging gently into his side, pulling him close. Nate nuzzles into the crook of his neck, his breath warm against Cale's skin as he asks, "Are you awake?"

"No," says Cale groggily, his voice muffled by his pillow.

His dream had been good. It had involved him and Nate, he knows for sure. All the best ones do.

He remembers the warmth of the sun against their skin, Nate's burned a cherry red from its too hot touch. He remembers the creak of wood as they swung on the porch swing at Cale's childhood home. He remembers the feeling of contentment, time stretching before them and behind them, practically infinite.

The taste of coffee still lingers on his tongue and Nate's laugh still echoes in his ear and the breeze still tickles his neck, if he could just fall back asleep--

"I have to leave soon," admits Nate quietly against his collarbone.

"What?" asks Cale, his eyes shooting open, suddenly wide awake. He turns his head until his gaze finds the familiar blue of Nate's irises, feeling himself settle just a little bit, even as his heart continues to beat rapidly in his chest. "What time is it?"

He tries to sit up, reaching for his glasses and scrambling for his phone, but Nate tightens his grip around his side until he settles back down.

"Almost eight," says Nate. "I need to leave by eight thirty."

He doesn't need to say the second half. Cale knew that. Knows that.

He always knows when Nate has to leave.

Cale frowns and gives a little shake of his head. "We were supposed to wake up at six," he says. "I remember setting the alarm. We were supposed to have breakfast, I bought--"

He quiets as Nate reaches a hand between them, the soft pad of his thumb smoothing the crease between his brow. His hand falls to Cale's cheek, cradling Cale's jaw as he leans forward.

The touch of his lips is featherlight, but the weight of the emotions behind it feels heavy.

When Nate pulls back just slightly, his lips still ghosting Cale's, Cale closes his eyes and tries to take a deep breath, but his whole body trembles with it. This never gets any easier.

He presses forward, deepening the kiss to prevent himself from asking Nate to stay. He can't do that. He wouldn't do that.

But still, his fingers twist into Nate's shirt as though his feeble grip will be enough to keep him here, in his bed and at his side, for just a little while longer.

"We were supposed to have more time," he says quietly, his throat clogged with too many emotions to name.

"I know," says Nate. What else is there to say? "I know."

[fairsweetlonging]

truth serum / system reveal au where shen qingqiu gets hit with an uncloaking spell that reveals the system in the reflection of his eyes every time it pops up.

during one of his missions, in the treasure hoard of some dragon-like creature, he finds a golden, oval shaped hand mirror, its gaudy style more victorian based than anything (airplane you hack!), that doesn't seem to do anything when he looks into it. but when he does, it reveals the system's screen in his eyes.

he doesn't notice this, of course, because he can't see it, and the system, surprisingly, stays quiet.

the peak lords think he's cursed.

maybe mu qingfang is the first to notice, during the mandatory post mission check-up, when shen qingqiu is scrolling through his most recently accumulated points and mu qingfang can see the strange vividly-blue lines reflected in his pupils. it's gone when shen qingqiu blinks, like it was nothing but a trick of the light.

it comes out when yue qingyuan is visiting and, just as he's done laying out the plans for a new mission, shen qingqiu's eyes glaze over and a bright blue box takes over the whole of his iris. shen qingqiu goes quiet; the thing in his eyes moves, shifts, pulses for a second, like static worms crawling all over his pupils. then he blinks, and it's gone, and shen qingqiu accepts the mission that yue qingyuan was almost sure he would decline.

maybe there is an intervention, when the peak lords corner shen qingqiu at qian cao peak and try to figure out what's wrong, subjecting him to all kinds of treatments and curse-finding spells that turn up empty, they can't find anything.

of course, the silencing threat is still very much up and running. at first shen qingqiu was kind of confused by the whole ordeal, but when the peak lords start describing a "strange blue box", he realizes, with sickening suddenty, that they're describing the system. and he can't say anything.

this only makes everything worse, because their fellow peak lord now keeps evading every question and acts like he doesn't understand. liu qingge points right at his face and asks, "that blue box, what is it?" and shen qingqiu laughs nervously and starts talking about how bright the weather is and surely it's the sky and nothing to worry about!

even worse, during the intervention the system thought it was a good idea to start talking to him, so now even the peak lords who hadn't seen it and who might have been persuaded by light tricks and reflections, get a first row view that no, that definitely isn't a trick of the light.

they try to do the whole thing of "are you in danger, blink twice" but shen qingqiu can't even do that because it's still a direct admittance!

maybe eventually he starts saying vague confirmations that don't actually confirm anything, like "this master hears what you're saying", or maybe he goes with a classic "this master can neither confirm nor deny that." but the system starts warning him for that too and eventually he stops saying anything, which worries the others more.

luckily mu qingfang catches on that every time they ask a direct question about the box or shen qingqiu says anything vaguely confirming, it appears. it doesn't appear when they ask about curses or demons, so it must not see that as a threat.

for a little extra angst: maybe the peak lords keep pressuring him for answers, and at some point shen qingqiu gets fed up and snaps out something like, "why don't you understand that i'm not allowed to answer that!" the system counts this as a direct admittance, threatening it's existence. so it punishes. shen qingqiu has a qi deviation so bad it lasts two weeks and takes two people every day to cleanse his meridians. the system doesn't appear in that time. it doesn't appear for a long while after that, either. the peak lords stop asking, mainly because shen qingqiu will instantly leave the room if they do. they don't stop searching for a cure, though.

shang qinghua returns from a business trip and catches on the second someone mentions a blue box and forced silencing.

[batsyheere]

"So, handling your archnemesis," Danny starts. The room falls quiet, heads slowly turning to look at the man as he writes the words on the chalkboard. When finished, the characters somehow both messy and neat at once, Danny places the chalk back down and claps his hands.

"I typically call them fruitloops. Often they're in a better position than you are- older, richer, more powerful. They may have some sort of status that protects them when facing the public."

Tim wondered where Dick was right now, and if he was laughing. His brain was lagging like a computer as he tried to process what Danny was saying, and how seriously a few of his fellow teen vigilantes were taking this.

"Some of their more common tactics are-" the chalk was picked back up, and Danny writes as he speaks.

"Manipulation, isolation, conditioning, and empathy."

MICE.

Tim stares at the board, and quietly slips put his phone.

-What have I done to deserve this.

Enjoy your lessons Tim-

His head thumps against the desk. Conner leans over, gives him a pat on the shoulder but returns to taking notes as Danny goes on to explain the conditioning tactic.

[daftpatience]

haruhi is forever in my heart a sort of boy thingy

[noodles-and-tea]

For the twins in time AU, I genuinely wonder what kind of people the young twins grow up into because of Stan’s/Ford’s influence. Especially if it takes years for the portal to get fixed.

(Sorry if it seems like I already sent this question, I don’t know if it got sent the first time I asked)

I haven’t fully fleshed out how Ford grows up in the past but I do have thoughts on Stan presently

[tawnysoup]

two new critters just dropped

[shepscapades]

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

A young Xolotl and the strange build he’s spotted across the water from his starter builds! I wonder what it could be… how mysterious!

[sunnystrikerz]

Mac and his scary titan privileges :]

[canisalbus]

✦ 3 PM ✦

[shirmirart]

kissing and hope they caught us...

[strawberriesandstarsart]

More of my Arcane Kid AU to heal your soul.

Jayce: look mom I have a weak leg! *leg over a 90 degree*

Also… I have no idea if Sky has any family…

[galacii-gallery]

The man who carries a storm.

[almondcroissantsandink]

do you even play lol on your phone? is it a desktop computer game? idk i whited out for this one. i'm not meant to know

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Lan Wangji Goes To Lotus Pier AU: Part 1: Dread on Arrival

(Part 2)

[dcartcorner]

lovely weather for a sleigh ride together

[bluegiragi]

docile.

early access + nsfw on patreon