#it’s cause they all have the same premise with slight differences

[brutal-out-here]

Of course I have like three first avenger fanfics that never got past the first chapter and what’s the problem with that

[cannibaled]

situations

wanted to challenge myself, since i'm used to only writing for ocs. i thought it'd be fun doing something different with a preexisting character and self insert :3 —

☆ warnings: none, slight nsfw. mostly in language.

☆ premise: possessive felix, farleigh being farleigh

it was difficult being felix catton's best friend. much less, his younger best friend.. which, happened to only be by a year, by the way.

despite this fact, he treated you like a child. as if he was an overprotective college brother, holding control over his high-school sister. except, you both attended college. the. same. one. you were schoolmates, for gods sake.

there was a set of unspoken rules felix expected you to follow. with you both attending oxford, it only made it that much easier for him to watch you.

you could be friends with his friends, but not too close with the guys. you couldn't hook up at parties if he was there. he would make a scene, and bust the poor guys ass. it was aggravating. you were grown, desperate to explore college hookup culture with an itch that needed scratching, and despite how annoying he was, he was sweet. you couldn't just snap at him. just imagining him looking like a kicked puppy enough to scar you for years. and, he did he mean well, really. his execution just sucked.

you took a drag from the joint that hung lazily between your fingers, inhaling the smoke that escaped from your lips. loud music, muffled due to the barrier of doors separating you from the party inside, caused the large house to vibrate. it was late, and the summer air had cooled into a refreshing breeze. something you needed desperately, having felt suffocated from the hot, sweaty bodies that trapped you in.

the door opened and closed, slamming shut with forcefulness that demanded attention. you turned, looking up curiously at the person who interrupted your pity party. there farleigh start stood, in all his 6'5 glory. he quirked a thick eyebrow at you and took a seat next to you on the step, leaning back with a sort of lazy confidence that caused your lips to twitch.

"well, look who it is," the boy drawled sarcastically. "little (L/N)."

"shutup," you groaned, giving him a glare when he plucked the joint from your fingers.

he took a drag himself, playfully blowing the smoke in your face. it was always difficult, with farleigh. you never really knew if he was playing around, teasing, or genuinely being mean-spirited sometimes.

"i'm finding it difficult to understand why the hell you're out there, when the party is in there."

you didn't respond, still pouting over the joint. his lips quirked into an amused grin, and he held it back out to you.

"what? will felix crucify you for joking back or something?"

"ha ha ha." you responded dryly, snatching the joint back. you took one last drag before putting it out, slipping it back in the little case you carried around. "i'm just having a bad night, and i'm not in the mood for your bullying."

"what's up?" he was still leaning back on his elbows, but when you looked at him - really looked at him, you could see a twinkle of concern in his pretty brown eyes. you swallowed, feeling annoyed. pulling your knees towards your chest, you rested your elbow upon them and your head in a hand. "it's embarrassing."

"oh, come on. i'm not going to make it a big deal." you shot him a suspicious look, and farleigh held his hands up in surrender.

"just..it's annoying. not being able to date, and stuff. felix is really overprotective, and it's annoying. and of course, everyone listens to the tall golden boy."

"i see," farleigh tsked. "so, you need to fuck, but felix is preventing that."

you turned your body so you could smack at him, causing him to laugh and grab your wrists. "way to be blunt, dude," you hissed, cheeks red with embarrassment.

"c'mon, it's nothing to be shy about. sex is perfectly natural." your eyes flickered down to his large hands, which swallowed up your wrists. you took a shaky deep breath, but made no move to pull away.

"why am i even having this conversation with y-"

"i can help."

you blinked. "huh?"

"i said, i can help. i'll fuck you. luckily for you, i happen to be the only guy in this preppy ass school who isn't afraid of felix."

you stared at him in surprise, and he simply raised his eyebrows at you, an amused smirk on his lips. "well? you can say no."

"..fine."

you remembered every detail from that night. from the way you felt eyes burning into your back as you and farleigh kissed hungrily, almost devouring each other. from the way the feeling of being watched intensified as you and him left to his room - or, more so, how he dragged you along, and you struggled to keep up. everything was clear in your mind from the moment your lips locked once more in the privacy of his room, the way his hands eagerly but gently undressed you, to after, when you tell asleep on his chest.

that's why, it was difficult for you to understand why he was denying anything had happened. you remembered him saying he wasn't afraid of felix, so, why?

you had woke to pure chaos, alone in farleigh's bed. you rushed to your room to get dressed before heading downstairs, tired eyes falling onto a pissed off felix, and annoyed farleigh. oliver sat quietly, his icy eyes observing the two quietly.

"what the fuck is going on?" you huffed out, almost jumping when felix turned to face you.

"did you and farleigh fuck?"

"w-what? excuse me?"

"oliver said you did. he saw you two leaving together and making out."

you stared in disbelief.

"yes." you said finally, crossing your arms over your chest.

"oliver is a lying, delusional little bastard." farleigh spat, and you shot him a hurt glare.

"yeah, i find it hard to believe you can't keep it in your pants, far," felix shot back, sarcastically.

"i wouldn't fuck her if we were the last two people on earth, felix."

that did it. your face stung with anger, hot and red, your eyes burning with tears. the room was quiet and still, and the irritated furrow in farleigh's brows dropped. he knew he went too far.

"you know what - this is bullshit. im a grown ass woman. so, believe what you want, but i can have sex with whoever the hell i want. you don't own me, and you can't protect me forever."

jaw clenched, you turned on your heel and stormed upstairs, slamming your room door. the old estate shook, but all you could do was throw yourself in bed, and scream into your pillow.

you stayed holed up in your room all day. meals were brought to you, courtesy of duncan and you guessed, venetia, who felt bad and requested it. you only opened your curtains to smoke by the window, attempting to avoid the three as much as possible. you knew you wouldn't be able to stay in there forever, but you needed to calm down. to breathe. you didn't go out to seek them, and they left you alone as well.

it was late when you heard a knock on your room door, and you peeked over the pillow that you buried your face in. you were restless, eyes swollen from crying. how ironic was it that you visited saltburn to celebrate another successful year, to get away from the stress of school, and let go; but, yet, you were more stressed than the exams and studying could have possibly made you.

you didn't answer to whoever was at the door, instead turning away. regardless, whoever it was decided to let themselves in, and you sat up angrily, eyes locking with farleigh's.

"what do you want?"

"i was worried about you."

"great. you see that i'm very much alive, so... bye."

his eyebrows twitched with annoyance, but, surprisingly, he didn't make a snide mark in return. he took a seat next to you, his large body taking up most of the space in your little bed. you scooted away, as if you had been burned, curling into yourself and leaning against the headboard. neither of you said anything. you stared, and he fidgeted with the bracelet that hung loosely on his wrist.

"i thought you weren't afraid of felix." you spoke, your voice cold. he looked up, peeking over at you from beneath his lashes. you suddenly felt angry again. why did he have to be so pretty? and why did he have to look so.. vulnerable?

"i'm not afraid of him. but i'm afraid of losing him." you said nothing. you supposed that was fair.

"but," he continued, his deep voice raspy from yelling earlier. "i should've stood up to him. lets face it, you're an adult. i am, too. plus, oliver is a nosy little shitstarter." you hid your amused smile in your knees.

"you know, i wasn't even all that angry with you. i was hurt. felix and oliver? i was pissed. but, it's just, like.." you took a deep breath when farleigh looked at you, and outstretched your legs.

your hands shook ever so slightly, but you rested them under the backs of your knees. "i really like you. you're always so catty, and sometimes really mean. but i still like you and i don't know why. i mean, i know why," you scratched your cheek awkwardly, your face burning. you avoided looking at him. "i was really happy when you made a move on me last night. but i don't know, when you said what you did today, i felt scared that you just wanted that to be a one time thing."

"baby, i purposely went looking for you," he responded, just as blunt as ever. but, he was gentle. soft. he gingerly gripped your ankles and pulled you closer to him until your butt was flush against his thigh, and propped your legs over his lap. his large hands rested on your legs, rubbing circles into your skin. "it's hard for me to commit, and shit. you've known me for a while, so you know that." you simply hummed. "but, i want to apologize for being a major dick, and make it up to you."

you felt dizzy. sick, almost. resting your head on his broad shoulder, you peered up at him, taking in his pretty features. how annoyingly clear and smooth his skin was, how his lips were naturally pouty.

"and how do you intend to do that?"

"fuck, i'm not a date person, but-" you gave him a look. he swallowed, and gave you a lopsided grin in return. "butttt, i would like to take you out. okay?"

"i thought you were supposed to be making it up to me."

"yeah?"

you looked at him expectantly, and his head fell back into the wall behind him. groaning softly, he closed his eyes, his smile widening. "god, okay. please?"

"please what?"

"please, go out with me."

you hummed, pretending to think, and plucked faux lint from his shirt. he narrowed his eyes at you, squeezing your calves roughly. "c'mon."

"okay, okay. i guess i could, since i'm free and all."

"you'd be free, anyway. i'd have you make time for me."

with a toothy grin, you scooted closer and closer until you could throw yourself over your lap, pressing a brief kiss to his lips. his hands found their rightful place on your hips, before slipping down to grip your ass.

"farleigh start, you are spoiled."

[gghostwriter]

Yours Truly, Romeo

Chapter 4 __ The Profile & The Profiler

Spencer Reid x FOC

Summary: Washington, DC - A string of grizzly murders and obsessive love letters causes Olivia and Spencer’s paths to intertwine. With a serial killer proclaiming his undying devotion to her and the thick tension surrounding her and her agent turned bodyguard, Olivia’s life is writing out like a contemporary love story that she, as a successful writer, could see herself publishing.

previous chapter || series masterlist || next chapter

"You are a lover. Borrow Cupid's wings and soar with them above the common bound." - Act 1, Scene 4. Romeo & Juliet by William Shakespeare

“We believe our unsub is a white male driving an SUV. He uses the vehicle to abduct and transport the male victims from Washington DC to Maryland,” Hotch stated in front of the members of the Washington PD.

Morgan stood next to him, hands on his hips. “His victims are between the ages 27-35 and we think the unsub is in the same age bracket.”

“Add to that, our unsub is experiencing a psychosis specifically called erotomania. This form of delusion is when an individual believes that another person, usually of a higher status, is in love with him. His weapon of choice also gives us another understanding on his psyche to these killings, using narcotics to kill symbolizes the emotional detachment the unsub has to his victims—” Spencer elaborated.

“Which means the victims were a crime of opportunity, rather than crime of passion,” Morgan injected.

“—and with his use of methanol and formaldehyde to preserve the body parts, we believe we are looking for an intelligent unsub.”

“Which is not unusual. True psychopaths often have above average intelligence.” Hotch clarified.

“This type of unsub will not have injected himself into the investigation as we often see. He will not be following the case very closely unless his fantasy to Ms. Olivia Hill is disturbed.” Morgan concluded. 

The Washington chief detective raised his pen up in the air.  “So how come he hasn’t tried to kidnap Ms. Hill rather than kidnapping all these male victims?”

“It’s because his fantasy—transformation if you will—isn’t complete yet. He’s collecting all these different body parts to fit into her perfect male partner. Once that process is complete, he will try to kidnap her next.” Spencer explained.

Morgan took a deep breath. “There is something about him that would be helpful, he has a superficial connection to Ms. Hill. Not enough for her to notice his feelings but enough for him to project his fantasy, possibly a colleague or someone she interacts with on a daily short basis like a delivery man.” 

“We suggest not to go public with this information and to re-interview female co-workers to ask if they’ve noticed any untoward or suspicious behaviors from their male co-workers to Ms Hill,” Hotch said as Morgan’s phone started to ring. “Thank you very much.” 

With his back turned to the police officers leaving the premise, he accepted the call and put it on speaker. “Prentiss, what you got?”

She sighed. “Another body has been dumped in the Potomac River, skinned from his upper thigh to feet.”

“That completes his suit,” Spencer noted.

“Forensics is currently running his fingerprints in the system to see if we have him in the database. I’ll get Garcia to forward any information she has,” she stated before ending the call. 

The two FBI agents turned around to face their stern unit chief for further instructions. “Morgan, you’re with me for the re-interview. Reid, you go back to Ms. Hill’s residence and Reid,—“

“Yes?”

“—keep us updated on any slight disturbance.” 

Spencer nodded, gathering his belongings before dashing out of the precinct. 

———

Dusk was beginning to settle when Spencer turned off the SUV ignition in front of her residence. Crossing the empty and calm street road, he took note of any rustling noise, flickering neighborhood lights—the lack thereof—and dark corners where the unsub could hide while keeping watch of the doorstep. All the curtains were shut, he observed, as if mimicking a moat bridge drawn up to protect the castle and it’s inhabitants. Steeling his nerves, he knocked on the door and announced his presence.

“Olivia, it’s Dr Spencer Reid,” He called out.

Several bolts were heard being unlocked from the other side before the door fully swung open, Olivia’s eyes darting behind his stature before widening as it settled on his form. 

“Oh, uh-hi Dr. Reid, you look—different,” her cheeks turning a rosy shade of pink as she observed his change in attire. Gone was the brown sweater vest that emphasized his lithe form and the lilac button down shirt that was once hidden underneath now had its sleeve pushed up to his forearms. With the vest out of the way and the gun holster secured on his waist visible, he looked formidable, sensual, and dangerous rolled into one. The sharp contrast to the soft spoken and intriguing male that she met this afternoon to the knight and shining armor rounding her living space had her feeling lightheaded with desire.

Spencer sat down at the worn love seat sofa located in her office. “My team is re-interviewing your female colleagues and I’d like to ask you for any strange male colleagues and interactions that rubbed you off the wrong way.” 

“I don’t really interact with any other publishing employees beside from my agent and publicist,” she sat beside him with a glass of water in hand. “One of the perks of being a writer is not having to interact with anyone beyond necessary.” 

A heavy silence covered their surroundings. Their thighs softly caressing the other, as if whispering the subconscious declaration of intrigue and attraction. Eyes flitting across the room, never meeting each other’s gaze afraid of unconsciously communicating their innermost thoughts. 

His palms opening and closing, unsure of what he needs to do and apprehensive of what he wants to do. Hers drumming on her thighs, nervous of the palpable tension around them. He wanted to touch her delicate hand, he realized—to envelope hers in his, to trace patterns on the back of her hand that will never leave a trace but wishing it would, and to never let go.

“Dr Reid, is it too forward of me to ask if you’re in a relationship?” Olivia rushed out to ask, clearly sheepish with her inquiry. 

His ears turning red at the implication behind her questioning. “My job and its urgency isn’t ideal for a relationship,” he explained. “Being on call 24/7 and not knowing when I’ll be able to return home isn’t a fair deal for a potential partner. Statistically speaking, divorcees are common in the FBI, especially in the BAU.”

“Oh, that makes sense.” 

A silence crept between them. 

“Spencer,” he clarified, noticing the little scrunch of her nose as if asking him to further clarify. “Call me Spencer.” 

She smiled, the kind so infectious that he felt his own lips curling upwards and his filter evaporating into nothing. “Did you know that women in the romance community are more likely than the general population to be currently married or living with a partner?” He articulated as his fingers tapped a rapid beat on his thigh, an outward display of nervousness. “More often than not, most writers are to be in happy relationships. The stereotype depictions of the lonely, lovesick romance writer who pens alluring novels is largely false in narrative.”

“Huh, I’ve always thought the minds behind romance would be the hopeless romantic pouring over their frustrations, hopes, and dreams into ink to escape reality and live out their fantasies,” she countered back. 

His body shifted to face hers. “That is not necessarily incorrect. Romance novels are, for the most part, written by women, about women, for women but it also allows the writers to explore who they are as a woman. Who you want to be. Finding out what you can be. Pushing yourself to be more of who you are.”

“So it’s more of self navigation and therapy?”

He nodded, pleased that his intention was understood even if he explained it in a convoluting way. “Yes, actually more like a self discovery and research.” 

“Sadly and realistically speaking, I do tend to fall on the stereotype category of being a romance writer,” she shrugged as if it was no big deal. “So Mr Genius, how’d you end up in the FBI and as a profiler?”

His eyebrows scrunched in concentration unsure to what extent he should divulge. “I was recruited and this was the path that I wanted to do.” 

“Can you profile me, then?” She smiled, leaning further into him. “I’m no criminal but I’d like to see your job in action. To see if it’s how they portrayed it in the movies, I mean.” 

She was obviously flirting, Spencer noted. He was known to be oblivious to these types of advances as Morgan pointed out, mainly rooting from his deep sense of insecurity, but she was making it clear that she felt an attraction to him or maybe he was just projecting his own emotions, he countered in his mind. After all, he didn’t have the typical male physique—muscles that allude a capability to protect and attack. His greatest asset would be his IQ of 187 that slashes into 60 whenever her set of doe-eyed eyes looks into his with such trust and comfort. His hand moved on their own accord, swiping on her lower lip that was being assaulted by her teeth.

Her breath hitched and his hand quickly dropped, a visible flush coloring his cheeks. “That was, uh, that was inappropriate of me—“

“It’s alright, Spencer.” 

“I—it’s really not. You—you asked for a profile, yes?” He brought up, desperate to diffuse the atmosphere and change the subject matter. “You’re a perfectionist based on the organization of your home. Your books are a financial success but you still use an old sedan, possibly a hand me down from your father based on the color and make, which tells me you’re frugal with your income, despite the fact that your house is located in one of the pricier neighborhoods—I believe this is your biggest purchase to date—and that you possibly grew up in a middle income family. You subconsciously tap your fingers on your thighs when you’re nervous and you keep your nails short meaning you’re other tic would be nail biting which you’re trying to break. And you mentioned that you fall under the stereotype category of being a romance writer which tells me you didn’t date much during your school years and never felt the need to go through all the usual considered landmarks of being a teenager, kissing under the bleachers and such. Perhaps you’ve had a boyfriend or two, nothing noteworthy for inspiration and romance, so you pour your hopes and dreams into the characters and scenarios you create.” 

“You missed one more important piece.”

He titled his head, thinking of what he could have possibly missed.

“You, and my apparent attraction to you. How I’d like to see you again once this situation is through,” her voice trailed off, the sudden confidence evaporating from her body. 

There was silence. His intelligent, hyper-active mind not knowing how to respond. Her confession had rendered him mindless and mute.

The lights flickered, as if wanting to escape their bodies as the space in between lessens ever so slightly, before complete darkness and danger shrouded over. 

[beautifulfuckup99]

May you please write a Yoongi imagine, doesn’t matter what the premise is, I just want a fluffy husband Yoongi<3!!!🫶🏼

Sure Thing!

Title: I've Got It From Here

Rating: G

Warning(s): Hurt/Comfort, Mentions of Yoongi's Accident, Talks of PTSD, Anxiety, and yes there will be FLUFF.

Author's Note: I hope you all enjoy! Keep the requests comin!

************************************

He doesn't know what triggered it, really. Maybe it was sleeping on it wrong? Maybe it was the cold weather of Seattle, where he was touring currently? Maybe it was performing so hard every night?

No matter the real cause, this morning Yoongi woke with a stiff shoulder and a tightness in his chest like he usually got when experiencing this pain. It's like with the pain came the memories, came the flashbacks of the tire...

Yoongi shuts his eyes, wanting to push the image away. Days like this convinced him that he, indeed, was not over the past. But he had to be. For the fans, for the sake of the tour, and more importantly, for you.

You had finally gotten a free schedule to come visit your husband on tour and Yoongi would be damned if this trip was ruined by his damn shoulder. Damnit.

And so, with a deep breath, and slight wince, Yoongi got out of bed and proceeded to get ready to meet you at the airport.

********************************

It's all a rush of cameras and screaming fans and the flash, God the flash. It was broad daylight, why the hell did they need the flash on?!

And then as quickly as it's all too much for him, it becomes background noise the second your arms wrap around him. And he bears the pain so he can hold you back as you laugh in pure delight at being back in your husband's arms.

"God, this feels good..." You laugh happily as you snuggle more into his chest, kissing his shoulder softly as usually, and Yoongi bites back a soft hiss.

"Tell me about it..." He sighs softly as he puts his face in your hair, breathing in your scent with a deep and full whiff. You'd never know how much he needed this. Needed you. He felt calmer already.

"Let's go! I've been looking forward to this for weeks!" You laugh as you hold his arm while bouncing towards baggage claim. Yoongi stiffens and shuts his eyes. You pause instantly. "Baby?" You ask in concern.

"I-I'm good." He says fast. "Didn't get enough sleep last night." He says. You'd been hard at work these past few months while he's been gone. This was your vacation. And he was not going to ruin that. He could take it. He could endure. The smile on your face would be worth it.

********************************

As soon as you're settled in the hotel room, you're dragging Yoongi around the hotel and find a display of activity brochures. You gush over the different restaurants, museums, and live concerts they have this week. You playfully hold up a 'Folklore Concert in the Park' pamphlet. "Maybe you'll get inspiration for the next album..." You joke and he smiles a thin lipped smile.

"Maybe. Do a whole country folklore album. Hat, boots, and horse." He teases along and you giggle as you nudge him. He holds his arm when you're not looking and when you gasp, he straightens up.

"Festival! Winter Festival! Happening tonight. We can go, right? It's ok?" You ask hopefully as you look up at your husband with the same big eyes that always get him.

He looks you in the eyes. Getting lost in them was better than any coping mechanism. You were the best distraction and anxiety reducer. How could you not know how much those eyes meant to him? He finally hums. "I think we can stop by, look around..." He gives in softly.

"This is gonna be the best vacation ever!" You giggle and hug him tightly. He squeezes his eyes to stop the tears. "I love you!" You giggle and he lets out a soft sigh. "I love you..." He whispers.

****************************

Later that evening, you're led into the Winter Festival that was taking place at some park by a river. Families, couples, and groups of friends of all ages are running around. Christmas lights adorned the trees, and the freshly laid snow on the ground looked like something out of a movie.

You're wearing a casual outfit with your sweater and one of Yoongi's leather jackets with fur inside of it on top. Layers were the most important thing in the winter, so you didn't mind the wool hat and scarf you were nuzzled in. Yoongi holds your hand to the best of his ability, but the cold weather and the heavy winter coat was not helping. And the scarf around his neck felt like a noose.

And, oh my god, was he breathing? When was his last breath? This coat was so damn heavy. He couldn't focus on what you were sayin-wait. You were speaking?

He finally blinks, trying to focus on you as you joke about the huge inflatable decorations. "They'd look good in front of our place. Of course, I think if we ever posted our house looking like this, Taehyung would be the first to mock us for it." You giggle as you enjoy the 'Winter Wonderland' aesthetic.

Yoongi hums and you eye him a bit. Something was wrong with your husband. You could feel it in your heart. He'd been quiet the whole day. Barely eating, barely laughing. He was deep in his own thoughts. Something that only happened when he was either thinking of a new song, or when his anxiety got really bad.

You grip his hand a bit firmer to try and ground him, but he barely reacts. You finally move in front of him and stop, causing him to bump into you. He curses at the suddenness, and you watch him in concern.

"Yoongi..." You try as you make him look at you. "I'm fine." He says fast. "You want... Decorations." He says to prove he's been paying attention, but his voice comes out in soft pants. His skin is pale, his lips are trembling, his eyes show the panic in his head.

"Baby. Stay here, I'm gonna get you something to drink." You say fast before you walk off, pulling out your phone to check the time and to see if you could text the driver to come around for you two.

You're busy on your phone and Yoongi watches you walk away but is thrown further into his panic when he sees a black car swerve around the corner to enter the parking lot. The same parking lot you were about to cross to get to the refreshments table.

Flashes of that day runs through his mind as he takes off after you. "Y/N!" He screams in horror. You stop in your tracks and turn fast to face him with wide eyes. He grabs your arm and yanks you out of the street as the car full of teenagers speeds past.

"What is the matter with you?! You didn't see that car?! It could have-" You cut Yoongi off as you try and get him to focus, but he continues his panicked rambles. "I won't lose you. I won't lose you." He repeats fast, over and over again as you grab his face hard.

"Baby!" You say finally and his bottom lip begins to quiver a bit as he looks at you. His walls, his prideful stubbornness, his 'don't worry about me' attitude... it all crumbles down right in front of your eyes. You stroke his cheeks gently. "What's wrong, baby?" You whisper as tears slowly slide down his puffy cheeks that are pink from the cold.

"It hurts." He finally admits and your heart breaks as the realization dawns on you.

"I've got you, baby..." You sigh and carefully pull in his 5-foot 9 frame like he's the smallest thing. "I've got you..." You sigh as you nod at security to lead you two away.

****************************

"Ah... Ah... Ow!" Yoongi groans as you focus on putting some muscle relaxer cream on his shoulder and then wrapping it, so the lidocaine cream doesn't get anywhere else.

"Why didn't you tell me? You could've really made the pain worse..." You whisper as you carefully lay him back on a pile of pillows to hopefully help him rest.

"This was supposed to be your vacation..." He whispers and you sigh deeply. "If you weren't already hurt, I'd hurt you for being so dumb. This was our vacation. And it's not a good one if you're in pain. Marriage is a give and take game, Yoongi." You say.

"Yeah, 50/50..." He mutters and you roll your eyes. "No. Not 50/50. Sometimes it's 70/30. Sometimes it's 40/60. But the whole point of this arrangement is we take turns. You're always all in. Give me a chance to show I can be the 80 in this relationship and go down to 20." You say as you stroke his hair out of his face. He shuts his eyes at that.

"I don't want you getting tired of carrying me around..." He whispers and you stroke his soft skin before leaning in. "These shoulders can carry whatever your shoulders can't. Gladly. Any day of the week..." You whisper as you gently nudge your nose with his.

He looks into your eyes, his eyes teary. "You're not there anymore..." You whisper, knowing where his mind was. He closes his eyes, saying nothing, but nodding along.

You play with his hair a bit more and watch as he slowly starts to relax. "Rest, baby. I've got it from here..." You promise gently as he drifts off to sleep.

*****************************************

Hope you liked it!

[lizzychanstuffss]

Remembrance: Love and Deepspace AU 4

Au premise: So, what if mc actually remembered everytime she's reincarnated, and what if she regrets the choices she's made in every single reincarnation and is finally using this timeline to try and fix it once she realizes this might be her only chance. But she is entirely unsure if the boys remember their past lives with her, so she must navigate all these feelings along with judging if they remember too. AN: Okay this one is a little different cause I am sorta following the main plot but also not in these lol. But I think with Sylus I can do something kinda interesting here. so enjoy what happens in this one. Also yes I am a Sylus girlie so yes I am biased sorry guys >w<

Sylus x mc | Sylus x Y/N | Angst | Route: Sylus | Other Routes

Chapter 4: Sylus Prologue

You didn't think guilt could eat at you more than it already was. First the guilt of killing him in your past and now the guilt of not being able to protect your family. And now the information of possibly being experimented on as a child was all coming together in a concoction of emotions and feelings. Your childhood was fairly blurry even if your past lives were not. But you knew you had to find out who did this to them, and if it was the Onychinus leader then you had to confront whoever it was.

You walked into the dance floor, music pounding in your ears. The bait was set and you already had a catch as a mechanical eye took in your form. It left you quickly enough as a spotlight shined on you and the rest of the people's eyes watching you, looking around the room unsure of what to do next you stood there. Someone then quickly approached and your hunter's instincts took over and you fended them off, and then another came at you with the same vigor. Until someone got you from behind the sting of something being injected into was soon overridden by the sudden wash of fatigue as the drug worked through your system.

Falling to your knees as your vision began to darken you looked up to see a man holding the syringe in front of your face his words quickly turning to nothing as you passed out.

Soon enough you woke up groggy in the back of a car unsure of your location or where you were. You looked to the front seat and saw the man driving so for the moment you figured it was better to just pretend you were still asleep. Although with the drug running through your system you just fell back to sleep entirely.

When you wake again you fine yourself in what seems to be a graveyard the man dumping you in the middle of it, your still groggy still not entirely processing the situation as you look at the man his words slowly coming into focus.

"So then you have the aether core huh?" He looked you over as you barely sat up your hands bound and body weak. He took your face examining it before taking out a pocketknife. Your eyes widened as you tried to speak but his grip was to tight.

"Seems like I should ge-" A black tendril of energy wrapped around the man's hand as he dropped the knife in pain. Soon enough he was lifted into the air as you watched him a slightly sadisitic smile made it's way over your lips as you recognized who this power belonged to instantly. Now why the person with this said power was here you didn't exactly question with as out of it as you were at the moment.

"KIdnapping Onychinus's prey without letting us know....that's not exactly polite" A voice you didn't recognize spoke out from somewhere. The man was already struggling as a man gently stepped by your side giving you a playful wave.

"She's ours by the way. We called dibs a long time ago" Another man appearing by your side with a slight giggle. It made you raise a brow in confusion as one of them headed over to the kidnapper who was now on the ground doubled over.

"You know you were pretty bold releasing the info about the aether core like that in the nest, and drinking from the black glass you sure you aren't just needlessly reckless." The words had a strange fuzziness to them as the drugged still swirled in your system. You weren't really processing what they were saying and the two men must have caught on fairly quickly to it. They looked at each other and then up to something.

Slowly you turned to see what they were seeing and upon the cathedral stood a man. And from his hand black tendrils of energy began to swoop down and then dispatched the man who had kidnapped you before he jumped down himself. You watched him step closer the details finally something you could make out and without thinking as the drug clouded your judgement you called out to him because you know exactly who he was.

"Sylus? Why are you here?" Your words were weak as you called out to him. It made him freeze in place a moment as if you had shot him.

Why is he so shocked? I know him.

You tilted your head still confused by his reaction before he finally composed himself and then kneeling down to your side you looked into his eyes and smiled a warmth overcoming you as you looked at him.

"Why are we here? I want to go home." Your words were somewhat slurred from the drug. Sylus gave a small chuckle before looked over to the two men he brought with him.

"Get the care ready." Was all he said before he scooped up your weakened body in his arms. He was very warm, he always had been when you hugged him in your arms. A soft smile drifted over your features as you began to fall back into sleep as his steady steps rocked you into a comfortable lull.

Soon enough you wake up in someone's bed, silk sheets surrounding you and a pair of red silk pajamas perfectly fit to your size on your body. You looked over to your right and Sylus was right beside you. You had no memory of last night as much as you wanted to so at the moment this entire situation was just incredibly confusing to you.

Slowly you tried to exit the bed before you felt the soft grip of a still-groggy Sylus pull you back. "Where do you think you're going?"

Slowly you looked back at him starting to figure that whatever happened last night landed you in this situation.

"Uhhhh good question...but first my question, what happened last night?" You questioned him as you sat up in the bed and instantly he let go of your wrist a look of concern on his face.

"First, what do you remember from last night?" He questioned.

"Well, I remember going to the nest and then I got drugged...I think and then....nothing" As you spoke, his face fell a sadness overtaking it and then something crossed your mind.

I told him didn't I....

"Sylus...." He perked up a bit hearing you call his name "You know I remember don't you?" You asked simply biting the bullet as it was the only way this was going to go.

"Yes...." His own words trailed off as he looked at you waiting to see your reaction.

You looked down at the bed sighing a bit as emotions didn't quite hit you yet and still. The tears started to fall, and you tried to wipe them away from your eyes as you kept crying. You were confused at still trying to wipe it away "Why..." Was all you could utter before you felt the soft embrace of the man beside you gently petting your hair. He didn't ask questions he was giving you all the time you needed to process this.

"Why don't you hate me?" Was all you could utter. There was several ways you pictured your first meeting to take place and well it was never like this. You couldn't understand though why he wasn't mad, you killed him. He should be furious with you and yet, he just held you so gently so kindly.

Slowly he moved you so he properly faced you, a warm hand cupping your cheek. "Sweetie, why would I hate you? Is it because you killed me?" He said it almost like a joke.

"Yes! You should be angry! You should hate me for it!" You tried to explain but he just shook his head giving you a soft expression.

"We were put in an impossible situation...you aren't to blame for that" His words were soft and comforting as he gently brushed hair from your face. You looked down at his chest gently reaching out to touch the visible skin unhidden from his robe. He simply watched you as you traced over where the wound would have been.

"Y-you r-really don't h-hate me?" You looked at his eyes which were soft with a kindness you had craved to see again for so long, he nodded slowly.

"Something tells me you've been holding this in a long time haven't you sweetie?" The question was more of a confirmation as you slowly nodded before he pulled you in for another soft hug holding you close.

"You don't have to anymore" He whispered into your ear prompting another round of tears out of you as you cried into his shoulder. Your body shook with each sob as you finally could let out the pain you had been hiding for so long from everyone.

[toastedjeans]

Anyway, here's my new AU!

Dungeon of Pizza

The premise is basically the same as og Pizza Tower, but with elements of Pokemon Mystery Dungeon, and almost all characters have elemental magic. Imagine they use their magic sort of like pokemon moves. I don't have any of the designs ready, but they will be fantasy themed at least. Also some characters are in teams, some are alone, and some join an existing team later.

Now for the plot!

It begins like we expect, Pizzahead threatens Peppino with the destruction of his restaurant (he'll probably have a tavern), and then retreats to his tower. In order to get to the tower, Peppino and Gustavo have to traverse several dungeons, and at the end of each group of dungeons there is a boss fight. Peppino can recruit each boss after he defeats them, and they will then travel alongside him.

During their travels they meet Gerome, who is forced to work for Pizzahead. If he doesn't obey him, PH will kill his brother, John. Gerome helps the party gather all the treasures, as they are the key to free John. Oh and John has very strong magic, but he is trapped in a machine that absorbs all his magical power and feeds it to Pizzahead. If PH is defeated, but John isn't freed, he will gather his strength again and come back to torment Peppino once more.

At the final fight, it's revealed that the bosses followed Pep and Gus to ambush them, but uh. Idk lore dump makes them realize that PH is insane or they feel betrayed or something so then they turn on PH and fight against him with Peppino and Gustavo.

And now the characters (under the cut)!

Team #1

Peppino

Owner of a small tavern, works alongside Gustavo. He has electricity magic, so he can summon lightning bolts, shoot balls of lightning, or power up his body to deal more damage. Can also create an electric shield to tank a hit.

Gustavo

Works at the tavern with Peppino. He has nature magic, plant manipulation, and maybe even minor control of the weather? Like, he can summon vines or tree roots to trap enemies, and can make rain appear to make Peppino's attacks stronger. He can talk to animals, and either already has Brick to ride on, or he'll befriend her during the course of the adventure, not sure yet. Him and Peppino are already in a relationship btw :)

Team #2

Mr Stick

Has wind/storm magic, and can fly via his propeller hat. He's physically not very strong (his magic isn't either), but he is very strategic. He explores dungeons mostly for the loot or rewards, or just straight up steals treasure he comes across (if Burton doesn't notice and makes him return it).

Burton

Burton has ground magic, he can make earthquakes and terraform as needed. He can't hurt Stick with his magic, and Stick can't really do much to Burton either (even if his magic was stronger). Also him and Stick are husbands. Because i said so.

Team #3

Noise

Can summon explosions, but also has sound based magic (high and low frequency stuff, demonic screeching, etc). Mostly uses his sound magic for distraction or immobilization, or if he wants to annoy someone.

Noisette

Hear me out. She has poison magic. Cause i think it's funny to have the sweet girl be poison. She can summon poison spikes that make others queasy, or distract with poisoned food. Only few are immune to her poison (Pizzahead, Fake Peppino, Burton). She'd like to cook something edible for once but everyone who tries her food gets nauseous.

Teamless

Pepperman

This guy has water magic, including other liquids (paint, oil, acid, blood...). He can't do the thing like in ATLA where he can bend other people's blood, but he can summon it. He also uses his magic abilities to experiment with different forms of art, or rather paints i guess. He hasn't painted with blood yet but who knows...... Develops a slight crush on Vigilante because yes.

Vigilante

He has fire magic, and can either shoot fireballs or use it like a flamethrower. His gloves are fire resistant. He can also do the same thing Peppino can, where he powers up his body (think like, he tackles or punches you, but he or his fist is on fire).

Fake Peppino

A shapeshifter whose magic depends on who he shapes into. So if he shapes into the form of Peppino, he'll have Peppino's powers. His true form is unknown, but mostly he's seen in the form of Peppino. However, no matter which form he takes on he's immune to poison, like he absorbs it, or because his body isn't stable it doesn't affect him. He becomes friends with Noisette because he's able to eat her food and she is so happy to finally have someone who can eat it without problems. He later joins any of the teams however he likes it, one time he'll go with Noise and Noisette, other times he'll go with Pep and Gus, etc.

Doise

Can summon rocks to throw, or make a wall around him, or lay traps (idk spiky rocks and stuff). His backstory is similar to how it is regularly (in my hc at least), he used to explore the dungeons together with Peddito, until they were defeated by some extremely powerful monster and needed to escape. Doise froze up when he wanted to go back to save Peddito, but he was too afraid and left him behind to die. Now Doise blames himself for Peddito's death, and falls into severe depression. He doesn't have anyone else, now that his best and only friend was dead. Sometimes Peddito's spirit haunts him when he's especially weak and vulnerable, almost like he's waiting for the perfect opportunity to get revenge. And because it's my latest obsession, he joins Peppino and Gustavo's team and starts crushing on both of them. Oh and when he's in a group setting he's like a smug bastard to hide his depression.

Maurice

He has no magic, and is secretly bitter about it. But he keeps saying stuff like "magic is just a cheap trick to make weaklings stronger". Yes, he's basically Jasper SU. He probably won't help Peppino with Pizzahead, but i thought I'd mention him anyway.

Pizzahead

Due to John's power being fed into him, he somehow has control over all magic. He can counter everything the gang throws at him, be it explosions, or fire, or lightning. He's almost invincible, HOWEVER, he is vulnerable to non magical physical attacks. Peppino needs to kick the crap out of him in order to defeat him, but he needs to figure that out first.

John

Has rock and ground magic. Obviously lol. He's one of the most powerful characters, but was somehow tricked by Pizzahead and is now trapped inside the tower. Him and Gerome used to be another team before being separated.

Gerome

He has rock and water magic, and was hired by Pizzahead, basically if he doesn't do what he says, John will suffer even more or he'll kill him. He helps guide the others to the treasures but doesn't let himself be seen. Looks like he doesn't care about anything, but just wants his brother back.

Yeah that's the new AU! I hope you enjoy, and if not. Uh. That's cool too i guess.

[shroudedwoods]

I do see your vision. Increased healing? Greater durability? Faster reflexes than Sonic’s potentially? Closer to Shadow’s skills of chaos powers? Fuck yeah I see that for him! In another post far away, I discussed a bit of exactly this! Though for entirely different reasons, but still I’ll share a part of my premise here. When it comes to the chaos energy within the archie universe, it’s actually insane with its powers and abilities. I mean look at entities like Perfect Chaos, Enerjak, Feist exists???, and the documented super forms. From having increased speed, strength, invulnerability, simple feats such as that. To granting various complex wishes. Immortality. Remove life from the host. Seal away a god. Sacrifice. Fuse an ancient spirit with Chaos [Tikahaos]. Warping time and space to the point of rewriting reality entirely. 

…And Scourge has Master Emerald energy perma-trapped inside him. Ain’t no way it just turned him green with a slight boost. 

Now now, he is the Evil Sonic, if they wrote him like that, it’ll be almost impossible for the FF to get around the problem. After all, they eventually won against Scourge by tricking him to power down while the other option was an attempted gang-up on him. Though it can be argued in-universe that he’s ignorant with what he is capable of. He’s never been pushed to his limits the same way his Prime counterpart was. In every instance where he grabs power from a source, besides the added boost, he doesn’t consider the capabilities/consequences until it’s spelled out to him. 

Something that’s driven me crazy is how this mutation according to Zonic has made him a wildcard in the cosmic scheme of things. And proceeds to never elaborate what that exactly means in later issues, sighs.  

I could see him having a deeper connection to the Master Emerald than anyone else, should he pay attention. Hmm…which leads me to another question….

Do you see any negative consequences he could suffer down the line from having that much energy inside him considering…that’s not supposed to happen? 

Seen some people headcanon it’s probably why he had such a mentality switch post Master Emerald. Why he seems extra hateful. I say yeah to this too, the chaos energy might’ve drove him a little mad. Maybe even because he is originally made of anarchy energy.

Or how that energy could potentially tear him apart physically should he abuse his powers. 

What do you think? 

Okay, first, love your takes. Second,

Yeah, I agree that Scourge would be THAT much of a dumbass not to notice or even consider his new found powers. Although, he didn’t have much of a timeframe to think about it, from conquering his world to attempting to take over sonic’s to having his powers restricted in prison. The only person that (saw the power boost AND is currently still with him) is Fiona, she’s possibly the only one who would consider those options. Scourge would possibly figure them out in a accidental situation, in a fight and got a wound, suddenly it heals and it gets him thinking.

No, I haven’t previously thought about the negatives of the chaos energy, but I am interested in the idea. I guess both energies are fighting, causing problems in his body, or maybe the chaos energy slightly enhanced the obvious negatives of the Anarchy Beryll, causing scourge to be more violent and angry.

The only CANON instance in which I can see the Chaos Energy actively helping Scourge was in 191/192 where he turned super, but once he turned back, he fell to his knees and more energy than just the Anarchy Beryll was drained out of him. He later was passed out — some might say he was acting (though I disagree as I don’t see Scourge being able to put up with being carried by SONIC) — but he quickly regained consciousness, and I’ve always thought that was when the chaos energy was actively trying to restore his lost power. Which is why he was able to act quick in a fight, even if he drained of nothing literally minutes ago.

[sirtrashfire]

Shattered Prime

A shattered glass / transformers prime fic made in collaboration with @paxspassages

Basic Premise of prologue: A ground bridge malfunction connects two universes TFP, and sgTFP, causing Ratchet and Senator to end up universe-swapped.

Prologue: The Malfunction

The ground bridge had been unoperational for hours now, and Ratchet could tell Wheeljack was getting impatient to leave, after all, he never stayed very long.

“Wheeljack,” Ratchet caught the attention of the fidgety bot, “do you see the lever to activate the ground bridge?”

“Yes.” Ratchet could hear Wheeljack move toward the control panel.

“You need to push the button to the right of it in order to reset the bridge.” Ratchet said, connecting some final wires.

“Scrap” Ratchet looked up to see Wheeljack had already pulled the lever to activate the ground bridge. Before Ratchet could yell at him, the ground bridge sputtered to life and the room was filled with a blinding white light.

The blinding light slowly dissipated, and Ratchet blinked as his eyes adjusted.

“WHEELJACK!” he scolded, furious at the wrecker’s inability to follow basic instructions. As he glanced around the base he realized Wheeljack wasn’t standing beside the control panel, but another, smaller, red and white bot was.

“Ratchet??” the bot gasped, it sounded like Starscream. A feeling of confusion and slight dread washed over Ratchet’s spark, but he had no time to figure out what happened as the Starscream-sounding bot lunged towards him. Ratchet was not a warrior, and he spent most of his time at base, but he did know how to handle himself in combat, in his own, unique way. He slyly scanned the bot tackling him, and with a well-placed strike-

THWACK!

He hit his attacker in the t-cog. He pushed the groaning plane off of him and was on his feet before the bot transformed back into his base mode, still curled on the ground in pain. Ratchet was about to move  towards the control panel when he heard approaching footsteps and paused.

“Starscream, what on earth is all that racket?” It was Knockout, entering the room with Breakdown. But their colours were slightly off- Knockout was a shade of teal, and breakdown, though the same colour as Ratchet remembered, had some white plating, as well as some asymmetrical white stripes down his front. Both froze when they entered the room.

“Starscream! What happened?!” Knockout’s shoulder plating flared in surprise

“How’d an autobot get in here?” Breakdown stepped protectively in front of Knockout, and Ratchet took a defensive stance- he might have to fight his way out of here.

“Urgghh,” Starscream pushed himself upright, still clutching his side, “Don’t just stand there, grab him!” There wasn’t much Ratchet could do in a three on one fight, even if Starscream was slightly crippled, so he resorted to glaring at each of the decepticons as Breakdown put a firm hand on Ratchet’s shoulder.

“What do we do with him?” Knockout eyed Ratchet cautiously, “Can we just lock him in a room until Megatron gets back?” Ratchet did not like the sound of that. Something was definitely wrong, and he had to figure out what.

The decepticons did put Ratchet in a mostly empty storage room. He could just barely hear them arguing about someone they called “senator”. From what he saw of the base it was, in fact, Autobot Outpost Omega-1, but if it was, then why were the decepticons there? He pulled up the scan he had taken during his scuffle with Starscream. Something was off. Sure, the scan was of Starscream, but pulling up a previous scan, from when he had provided treatment for Starscream in the past, the Starscream he just saw was more colourful and less scrawny than the Starscream he knew. They were undoubtedly simultaneously the same and different…somehow.

Starscream had definitely done something wrong when restarting the ground bridge. When the bright flash subsided, Senator took note of his surroundings and was taken aback when he saw Slicer standing where Starscream should have been. At least, he was pretty sure it was Slicer.

“What are you doing here?” He inquired cautiously, knowing it was better to never truly trust the mercenary before him

“What?” Slicer blinked, “Where’s Ratchet?”

“He’s not- what? Wait, where did-” Senator was so confused, but his questions were cut short when the approaching footsteps stopped in the doorway, and he locked eyes with two autobots- a large green bot and a smaller yellow one.

“Stay back!” Senator brandished the wrench in his hand, it was the only weapon he had on him, and was far less intimidating than his regular gun, but it would have to do.

“Woah, hold on a minute, where did he come from?” The larger bot approached him, undeterred by the wrench

“What are you doing in the base?!” Senator looked over at Slicer, “Did you bring them here?!”

The smaller yellow bot produced numerous beeping noises that Senator didn’t quite understand at first, but he thought that he was questioning Slicer.

“How should I know where Ratchet is? He was right next to the bridge, then next thing I know this guy is here” Slicer didn’t seem to recognize him, in fact, none of the autobots were addressing him. Maybe he could sneak away while they were arguing? It was incredibly risky, but what else was he supposed to do when the base was filled with autobots? A stupid plan was better than no plan, he thought.

A new level of terror hit Senator’s spark when Optimus walked into the room. He had a red paintjob, but Senator was certain this was the autobot leader, and he was incredibly imposing. By the time he had a chance to think, without realizing how dangerous this stunt would be, his wrench left his hand and bounced off the side of Optimus’ head with a TING.

Optimus barely flinched as the wrench impacted, then it fell to the ground, having done nothing but probably anger the autobot leader.

“Scrap” Senator squeaked to himself; he was most certainly going to die here.

Ratchet stood in the corner of the room, so he could hear fragments of the conversations taking place loudly elsewhere in the base. A small amount of energon was trickling down his arm, part of his plating removed to reach his communicator. Ratchet had to contact his team, and his communicator wasn’t working. He wasn’t sure how to fix it yet, but he had the start of a plan.

He heard footsteps approaching and had just tucked his communicator out of sight right before the door opened. He was now face-to-face with Megatron. Megatron glanced down at Ratchet’s arm and looked rather concerned to see it partially dissected.

“KNOCKOUT!” Megatron called as he strode forward, Ratchet had no time to retreat before Megatron grabbed each of Ratchet’s hands in his own.

“What are you doing?” Megatron looked worriedly into Ratchet’s eyes, “Please don’t do that.” Megatron spoke softly to him

“WHAT, I’M A LITTLE BUSY.” Knockout finally called back, his voice filled with enough sass to get him killed, if this was the Megatron Ratchet knew.

“JUST GET IN HERE, KNOCKOUT!” Megatron’s voice was loud, but it was concern, not anger.

“Yes?” Knockout said, sliding into view.

“Take a look at this, is it fixable? Can you fix this?” Ratchet had never heard such kindness from Megatron, even when they were friends long ago.

“Eeugh” Knockout squirmed, “Did he do that to himself?”

Megatron looked at Knockout with a pleading look, but said nothing more.

“Yes, I think I can fix it.” Knockout looked closer at the wound and Ratchet tried, to no avail, to pull his arm free from Megatron’s grasp, “But he will have to stop wiggling.”

Knockout fixed Ratchet’s arm, at least, he tried to. Ratchet looked at Knockout’s “finished” work and made a note to himself that he would have to fix it later. Once Knockout and Megatron left, he could overhear some discussions between Megatron and Starscream

“Someone needs to keep an eye on him” Megatron said

“You can’t be suggesting we put someone in there with him after what he did to me” Starscream complained, “He’s mad.”

“Please don’t say things like that” Megatron sounded rather offended on Ratchet’s behalf.

The conversation faded out like they had walked further away, so Ratchet continued to plan. He turned his communicator around in his hand a few times. It was not damaged at all, but wouldn’t connect to any frequency. Maybe if he could boost the signal somehow…

Ratchet pried a panel off the wall to reveal some wires. Careful not to cut any necessary wires, he removed some parts and began affixing them to his communicator. Suddenly, the door opened, he didn’t hear anyone approach, Ratchet thought he may have pulled the wrong wire, but when he glanced over at the doorway, where a small feline beastformer stood growling.

“Cease!” the feline hissed, looking at the panel Ratchet had taken off the wall, “Where is he?” the cat stalked forwards.

“Where is who?” Ratchet didn’t recognize this bot, though they were certainly a decepticon, judging by the badge on their shoulder.

“Senator.” They glared at Ratchet

“I don’t know who that is.” Ratchet shrugged and began ignoring the cat’s further interrogation before asking, “Where is Optimus?”

“Useless!” the cat grumbled as their tail flicked in anger, “You’re useless!”

“Ravage?” A familiar voice carried down the hall as Raf appeared, “Ravage, Soundwave is looking for you.”

Of course, Ratchet thought, Soundwave had more than one cassette bot at one point, Ravage was well known for being annoyingly good at sneaking past autoboot guards on cybertron, but cassette bots usually didn’t talk.

“Um,” Raf placed a hand on Ravage’s side, “Soundwave wanted to talk to you. I can watch him while you go.” Ravage pondered for a moment, gaze shifting between Ratchet and Raf.

“You touch him,” Ravage growled, “You die.” Before scampering off to the main area of the base.

“Rafael,” Ratchet said, caught off guard by the boy’s presence.

“How do you know my name?” Raf looked up at him, confused.

“It’s… hard to explain and sounds rather unreasonable.” Ratchet

“Well, everyone already thinks you’re kind of crazy,” Raf chuckled, “Try to explain it. I can withhold judgement.” Ratchet had to admit that Raf not recognizing him did hurt a little, but only solidified his theory.

“I am not from here, primus this sounds stupid out loud, I think the ground bridge malfunctioned while I was fixing it, and,” Ratchet sighed at the absurdity, “And it sent me to another dimension.”

 “Like the shadow zone?” Raf tilted his head to the side.

“Similar, but different. Where the shadow zone is a plane within one universe, somehow a single ground bridge malfunction connected the two universes briefly…” Ratchet was still puzzled at that part- events like the shadow zone occur when ground bridges interact with each other, so what was the significance of this dimension?

“We had a ground bridge malfunction, too.” Raf explained, “Starscream said he activated the ground bridge rather than resetting it, and then Senator disappeared.”

“That is… eerily similar to what occurred before I came here.” Ratchet paused briefly, “Who is Senator?” Ratchet finally had someone he felt like he could trust to give him answers.

“Senator is one of the decepticons here, protecting earth” Raf then added, sadly “And he is my friend,”

“I think I may have a way to reach him,” Ratchet saw the hope brighten Raf’s eyes, “If you dial the ground bridge to the previous coordinates, the ones that connected the universes, you may be able to use this to send a message.” Ratchet passed his modified communicator to Raf.

“How do I convince the others to trust you?” Raf said, holding the device

“I don’t know,” Ratchet said, “But I have faith in you. The Raf that I know is my friend, I don’t see why I should trust you any less.” Raf nodded and walked off own the hall, leaving Ratchet unguarded. He heard Raf talking in the distance, but he couldn’t make out what he was saying. Ratchet hoped that his modified communicator, when paired with the ground bridge, would be able to boost the signal enough so that, if this was another universe, he could reconnect with his own.

Senator hadn’t moved for a long time, cautiously watching as more autobots joined in conversation, wondering how he got here, but they barely addressed him. It’s not like he wanted to answer their questions, so he was very brief. At least Optimus seemed to forgive him for tossing a wrench at him. He still had no idea why he was in a base filled with autobots, a base that looked exactly like the decepticon base. Then his eyes caught something across the room, on the balcony, the kids were there. He carefully and stealthily made his way across the base, never straying far from the wall to keep the most distance between him and the autobots.

“Raf!” Senator said in a cautious whisper, “What are you doing here?”

“…What are you doing here?” Raf peeked over the edge of the balcony to look at Senator

“How do you know his name?” Jack narrowed his eyes at Senator

“I know all of you, Jack.” Senator couldn’t explain what he couldn’t understand

“Woah” Miko leaned precariously over the edge of the balcony to look at him, “Do you know my name?” At this point, the yellow autobot had noticed their conversation and made his way over, and Senator felt himself tense at the bot’s presence.

The bot whirred and beeped, asking something of Raf.

“He doesn’t seem dangerous, Bee.” Raf shrugged, “I don’t think he’s going to hurt us.”

“Hurt you?” Senator was floored by the blatant remark, “I would never! We vowed to protect earth’s inhabitants!” This definitely got the attention of the autobots who looked rather confused at his statement

“But you’re a decepticon,” Miko gave him a puzzled look, “Evil an everything?”

“I’m a decepticon,” Senator returned Miko puzzled expression, “But it is the decepticons that are allied with the humans, not the autobots.” The confusion continued to spread around the room

“What universe are you from, that’s completely backwards!” joked a bot that Senator didn’t recognize, “The autobots are the good guys.” Something was certainly wrong here, Senator felt confused and out of place. The autobots being good? That doesn’t sound possible, he thought, but then again, none of this seemed normal.

WHOOSH

The entire base grew silent as the ground bridge sparked to life with no explanation. Senator and Raf were the first to look over to the main screen, lit up with an incoming transmission. Senator held out a hand to Raf, and the boy hopped on with little hesitation. Senator placed him on the keyboard so he could answer the call. The screen glitched slightly as the call connected. On the screen was Raf and Soundwave.

“Soundwave!” Senator exclaimed, breaking the silence

“Senator!” Raf’s voice came from the other side of the call, his eyes widened as he locked eyes with Raf and he added, “Wow, Ratchet was right.” This caught the attention of the autobots, and Optimus came over to stand next to Senator.

“Senator, are you okay?!” Ravage had hopped up onto Soundwave’s shoulders, “Shock, I was worried you were gone for good!” Ravage shook their head in relief. Senator chuckled to himself, there was no way Ravage would let him out of their sight ever again.

“My spark hasn’t given out yet, which is saying something, considering I am in a base full of autobots.” The autobots seemed to pose no threat, but Senator still tensed a little as Optimus leaned in beside him.

“Ratchet,” Optimus said, peering at the screen, “Are you okay?” The three on the call looked behind them to see Ratchet approaching, and Ravage let out a low snarl.

“I’m fine Optimus,” Ratchet ignored the cassette bot’s posturing as he came to stand next to Soundwave.

The rest of Senator’s team was slowly filtering into the main area, each teammate voicing their relief in his being alive. It was interesting to see how similar each team was, each side of the call had an overwhelming air of relief, but there was still some anxiety in their situation.

“How are you going to get back, Senator?” Megatron’s presence made the team of autobots bristle, not so different from the decepticons’ reaction to Optimus

“I had nothing to do with this,” Senator began, “but I’ll take a guess and say that the ground bridge doesn’t look stable enough for travel.” The ground bridge, at least on their end, was flickering and popping with unstable energy

“It’s not,” Ratchet said through the feed, “It’s unlikely the connection will last very long.”

In perfect timing, their conversation was suddenly interrupted by the beeping of an alert. At first, Senator thought that it was only coming through the call, before realizing that each base had a simultaneous alert.

A proximity alert.

“Decepticons.” “Autobots.” Both teams called the blame on their greatest enemies, realizing that the alert was due to the approaching enemy ship.

The entire base shook as the Nemesis roared overhead, and the entire team was looking to Optimus for a plan. But what could they do? The ground bridge wasn’t closing, still active across the dimensional rift, completely blocking their only exit. Smokescreen braced for the impact of the decepticons’ cannons, but the base became deafeningly silent. Smokescreen looked around at his friends, whose forms flickered and warped before disappearing, one by one. Smokescreen looked down at his hands flickering and fading. He looked up as the base was filled with bright colours emanating from the ground bridge, then the entire room went dark.

(end of prologue)

[petite-siren06]

My I please gets some etaled x spouse reader before he died?

It would also be cool if thay reunited

Sorry this one took so long.. I’ve been have terrible writers block. But I hope you like it - Rose 🥀

CW: electrocution of character [Aka Henry’s death mention], Slight mention of Austin’s death.

ᯓ★ You and Henry met way before he started working at Nintendo. You actually met him while going to the store. You happened to bump into each other. You apologized while just kinda stared at you.

ᯓ★ You asked him if something was wrong and waved it off saying he wasn’t used to people apologizing to him which confused to say the least. You brushed it off and decided to head to your interview

ᯓ★ The last thing you expected was for him to be working at the same Nintendo company as you. At-least you get to see him more often now whether that be a good thing or not was totally up to you to decide.

ᯓ★ Over time you two become very close. He treated you with respect and vice versa. You shared your experiences of being treated differently. You because of your appearance and him for appearance and mannerisms. You noticed how people would make rumors about him but you ignored them because Henry was your friend. You weren’t going to let a few rumors separate the two of you.

ᯓ★ Slowly as the two of you spend more time together. Your feelings for each other grew and blossomed into love. Afterwhile You two decided to have a small little wedding in your backyard. You invited a few family members and some friends. Everything was great.

ᯓ★ Expect you noticed a change in him once the new employee Austin Sanders stepped into the picture. He seemed more agitated and cold not towards you but towards his other co-workers. He would ramble on how supposedly great and amazing Austin was. You tried your best to help your husband as best as you could but it seemed like your efforts were in vain.

ᯓ★ Then one day all the anger and resentment to Austin stopped but that was also cause Austin supposedly quit his job. You were a bit suspicious of Henry having something to do with it. You tried to question him but he would always reassure you he had no part in it. Oh.. how you were so right but you chose to believe your husband.

ᯓ★ One day you had to enter the server room for something when you stumbled upon the papers that had Austin’s game called Reclamation. You looked through the papers and thought that the game was really good and decided to show it to Mike. Oh if you only looked a bit deeper you would’ve found Austin’s body that your husband had convinced you that he had no part in..

ᯓ★ You and Henry worked on this new project called project Wii. Todd said that it was going to be the next big phenomenon. Decided to go along with it, you and Henry began to work. Couldn’t help but feel off around Henry. He seemed way happier and at peace that Austin was gone. Almost too happy and beside the fact that he picked up an alcohol problem. He started drinking a lot and it worried you but everytime you try to talk about it he’d brush you off and tell you everything was fine.

ᯓ★ One day you noticed that Henry didn’t come home. You thought it was odd because he always came back home after work. So you decided he might have pulled an all-nighter at work but then again that wasn’t like him either. So you got up and got ready for work like usual hoping to see him at work.

ᯓ★ Oh boy were you in for a surprise.. You got into work and saw there was a huge assembly. Thinking nothing of it you walked around and sat with Jonathan and Mike waiting for what was about to be announced. Todd soon came out and told everyone that another death had occurred on the premises. This confused and concerned you. Two deaths who could’ve possibly died? Todd of course refused to tell us who the first body was but then he told everyone that Henry Morris had died.

ᯓ★ Your heart dropped at his statement. Your husband died.. Your Henry had died?! You felt crying but you refused to shed any tears right now. As you watched the recording of his death you couldn’t help wanting to throw up at the sight of his sizzled body. You could only imagine how much pain he went through being electrocuted like that. Mike sensing your slight distress wrapped his arms around you hoping to ease the pain a bit.

ᯓ★ A few years pass and you're going to see your niece Samantha. [😏] you two were very close with each other. You and her mother decided to set up a day where you two could hang out. The look on her face when she saw you was pure shock and happiness. She immediately took you to her room and you two started chatting.

ᯓ★ Sam and you are having fun chatting and stuff. Until her TV turns on and you see a bald mii with all black clothing on. [I hc that Eteled can turn on the Wii by himself.] You asked Sam what was going on and she just nervously looked between you and Eteled debating on whether to tell you about him.

ᯓ★ For Eteled the moment he heard your voice enter Sam’s room. He felt his heart stop. What were you doing here? How did find him? Would you remember him? A million questions swirled in his head. He decided to take a risk and turned on the wii to see you.

ᯓ★ When he finally lays his eyes upon you he can feel his heart flutter. He doesn’t remember a whole lot about but he remembers important things like your wedding, your guy’s anniversary, your birthday, etc. He wishes he was able to touch and hold you.

ᯓ★ You even look the same, you have the same chubby cheeks he loves, your soft tummy that he used to lay on and pepper kisses when he was stressed, your pillowy arms that would wrap around him when he needed comfort. Your soft eyes that always held a gentle look to them. You even still had your wedding ring on. That made his heart swell with happiness.

ᯓ★ After a long explanation you and Eteled became reacquainted with each other. You both seemed happier after seeing each other, both of you missing each other’s presence after so long.

[stardomyx]

“PROMARE” Theory -Burnout Burnish: The strange case of Governor Kray Foresight.

Originally from my Wordpress site: DISCLAIMER: I would like to establish that nobody has to agree with or even like my theories, especially since this particular post is on a Canon character. These are purely my headcanons and my thoughts on this character, I am not about to force these ideas/headcanons onto anyone.

It’s no secret that Studio Trigger’s 2019 animated movie ‘Promare’ is a fun, emotional ride from start to finish, and is more than likely to leave you with both a headache and a lot of questions, for it’s also no secret that this fiery fun fest is filled with more plot holes than a fine Swiss cheese. But some – including myself – would argue that this presents an opportunity to theorise and fill in the gaps for ourselves.

So that’s what I’m going to do.

Throughout the film, we see various characters succumbing and becoming hosts to the vibrant, alien fire life forms known as the Promare and as a result, this group of people go on to become known as the Burnish. The biggest montage of this occurrence happens right at the very beginning of the film, as the audience is introduced to the basic premise of the story. Throughout this bright, colourful, yet pretty grim series of shots, the majority of the newly awakened Burnish all appear to manifest their new powers in very much the same way, it’s almost worth calling it a pattern. 

The film shows us that a Burnish’s awakening is often intense, sudden, and destructive to the people and property that are unlucky enough to get into its way. The Promare manifesting in this manner is undoubtedly a big part of what caused the Great World Blaze to be as devastating as it was, with half of the human population being reportedly wiped out. However, after I’d watched the film through a few times, I started to realise that most of the people who became Burnish throughout the story follow this pattern. The pattern being that the colourful fire would come bursting out from either their eyes or mouth, sometimes both; but most of these awakenings are generally centred around the facial area, as seen below. 

The only, tiny anomaly to this strange pattern appears to be poor Thyma – who in “Galo Hen/Side: Galo” is seen to have Burnish flames rise up from directly beneath her while she’s lying on the ground. However, this first burst of flame does still appear to have manifested in her upper body, and upon closer inspection; her eyes are blank and her mouth is open. I would count her as a slight oddity, and perhaps that this is all owing to the fact that she was on the ground when the Promare manifested, but in the grand scheme of things, her awakening doesn’t stand out terribly alongside every other Burnish in the film.

As for what causes the Promare to manifest in these specific areas the most – I’m honestly not sure – my best guess is that it’s a metaphor for their minds and possibly also their wills merging together with their hosts; as human and Promare. Professor Deus Prometh is heard to claim that the Promare sync with the humans it resonates with, so perhaps the brain is where this resonance happens the most. Lastly, it’s worth noting that Lio himself says that the Burnish can clearly hear the Promare, as they urge their human hosts to let them burn, the Promare are in their heads. So with all things considered, the fire life forms manifesting in this way makes sense.

However, like most things in the world, there’s always an exception, and that exception just might take the form of one character.

That being the villain of the film: Kray Foresight.

Kray’s awakening is drastically different from any other we see. Not only is his first ‘spasm’ – as he so delicately describes it – concentrated into his arm rather than his eyes or mouth, but the resulting blaze also amputates that arm completely, burning it away to nothing but ashes.

So what happened here?

My best guess is that – canonically at least – this is all metaphorical; simply put, Kray’s bitter resistance to the Promare messed up his own awakening. Most of the Burnish we see in the film are proud of the fact that they are Burnish in defiance of the oppression they face. This rings particularly and especially true for Lio and the rest of Mad Burnish, but Kray very obviously doesn’t share that sentiment. His disdain towards the Burnish has lead to him shunning this part of himself, which is most likely why his awakening was depicted in such a way. There’s also the fact that he’s the antagonist, and this radically different awakening was most likely done to portray that fact. But I like overthinking things, and I quite like the idea that this is beyond just being metaphorical, and that there’s something seriously, scarily wrong with the way Kray synced up with his Promare. To the point that I’d argue that they didn’t actually sync up at all.

I’d go further than just saying that Kray’s Burnish awakening got off to a rocky start, I would say that he never received the immunity to the Promare’s power in the first place. The protection that the rest of the Burnish obviously have against the heat of their flames is very much absent here, and his big reveal towards the end of the film just solidifies the theory – to me – that his flames actually hurt him as a result of this imperfect awakening. Actively using his flames cause him pain as a result of his resistance to becoming a host for the fire life forms, which would no doubt result in strengthening his hatred of the Burnish and of the Promare. Lets dive in.

-

I’ll start with the most obvious point; Kray wants and perhaps needs to keep his Promare subdued to the best of his ability, not just because he’s the Governor actively campaigning against the Burnish, but also possibly because slipping up has a painful price tag attached to it. Thanks to the technology he has at his disposal however, he has been able to keep it under wraps.

There are a few scenes in the film which suggest that his uniform is infused with freezing tech of some kind; maybe even the same kind used in the anti-burnish cuffs. Of course, there’s the scene atop the Foresight Foundation building where Lio’s destruction of Promepolis almost leads to Kray using his powers, but thanks to Galo, there ends up being no need for it. The scene ends without there being a Burnish reveal on Kray’s part, but not before we’re treated to a tiny wisp of steam rising up from his palm. Besides that, there’s the more obvious and yet somehow simultaneously more inconspicuous scene where his flames – now well and truly free – have to blast through what’s quite clearly a coating of ice to get to their target. It really puts me in mind of – again – the anti-Burnish handcuffs, as well as the weapons used by both Burning Rescue and Freeze Force. This kind of icy shield would keep his Promare locked in and deactivated, thus decreasing the risk of injury.

This either implies that Kray wilfully deactivated the cooling tech in his uniform because he knew it was Crunch Time, or his Promare simply burnt through the safety features he’d installed. I prefer to go with the latter option, just… Because it’s kind of scary to think about. 

Towards the end of the film – where we see the most of Kray wielding his Burnish powers – he appears to prefer the use of his prosthetic arm throughout his fight with Lio and Galo. This could just be because he’s a lefty and he never truly got used to losing his dominant arm, but the fact that the majority of his attacks all come from his prosthetic arm, does point towards the theory that his flames cause him discomfort. Sending the flames down through this prosthetic limb would probably divert some of the pain, and judging by the way the arm is seen to warp and swell up in size – more so than the swelling in the rest of his body – tells me that this is where he’s concentrating most of his Burnish power in an attempt to keep his body safe. Though, considering what happened to the rest of his body anyway, it looks to me as if his efforts are mostly in vain; more on that later.

However, there is an instance of him using his organic arm for his powers – while his prosthetic is busy treating Lio like a squeaky toy. The flames from his organic arm are actually the ones seen blasting through the freezing tech in his uniform, pictured further above. Once burnt through that protective, cold layer though, he visibly strains and almost flinches before sending his flames to attack Galo for a second time, like he’s bracing himself for the pain, and this is the only part of the film where we see him using his Burnish powers with his remaining arm.

Even before his Burnish reveal, it’s clear that his body is slowly gearing up to let it all out, the choice of sound design used for Kray straining against his Promare after Heris overloads the Prometech engine is absolutely terrifying and uncomfortable to listen to. But the situation is dire, and with Starship Parnassus’ engine destroyed, Kray might not even be in a clear enough state of mind to fully process the fact that it’s going to hurt. The fact that it takes him this long to consider letting loose and using what is clearly his last resort to get what he wants, just puts across how desperate a situation has to be before he even entertains the idea of using his Promare. The same can be said with how he reacted to Lio’s rampage on Promepolis, he was ready to resort to using his own powers then, only after all of the anti-Burnish technology on the outside of the Foresight Foundation building had failed to stop the fiery dragon.

At the risk of sounding like I’m siding with him – I can’t really blame him for going this far to suppress it all, if using his Promare is going to do… This to him.

I’ve made the argument before about how Lio’s “Kakusei” form and whatever happened to Kray differ in a few ways. Lio’s overall physique stays the same while he’s laying waste to Promepolis – despite the drastic change in colours and the ‘horns’ he grows. To me it looks as if he’s merely adopted the appearance of his Mad Burnish mech in an attempt to make himself look more threatening, though he uses his great, flaming dragon to deal out most of the destruction. Kray meanwhile looks as if he’s properly going through it, just to allow his Promare to burn, his skin takes on a strange, pink hue almost like that of a first degree burn, and the less said about those fangs he sprouts, the better. (Though Kakusei Lio also grew his own set of chompers.)

The dark circles around Kray’s eyes also don’t sit right with me – while they’re almost definitely just there as a design choice to make him look more threatening and more unhinged – I can’t help but think back to the fact that the Promare often manifests itself in humans by rocketing out of their eyes and mouths. If we are to assume that this is the first time Kray has properly used his flames since his initial awakening, it could be that – out of a desperation to burn after being denied that for so long – his Promare once again attempted to sync up with him properly, to perhaps start anew. But of course, it’s too little too late, as Kray’s pent up flames ultimately do their host more harm than good; blistering his flesh, singeing the skin around his eyes and causing his whole body to swell up to the point where his epaulettes buckle and the metal insignia on his left breast splits apart. Whether his constant suppression of his own Promare has lead to the fire corrupting in some way or not, is a topic I’m hoping to touch on in a little more detail in the near future; because a few things could theoretically happen when you keep fire simmering away without release for a long period of time, and none of them bode well for Kray.

And I could understand such over the top measures on Kray’s part; like the freezing tech in his uniform, if his Promare were completely out of control, or corrupted in some way. Lio, Gueira, Meis and the rest of the Burnish in the film all appear to have a degree of control over when and where they use their flames. The Promare want to burn hotter and brighter, the Burnish hear them and as a result they fulfil their wishes, but – far from simply spewing out fire all of the time – the Burnish decide when and where to use their flames, often calling upon them to aid them in battle. After seeing the film through multiple times and watching how most of the Burnish use their powers, I certainly wouldn’t call them “controlled by the Promare” as Kray describes it. There’s an understanding between a Burnish and their flames, there is – certainly in Lio’s case – a trust and almost a love, but if Kray’s awakening was so botched, it’s possible that he may not be able to hear the Promare as well as the rest of the Burnish, and therefore he might not actually know how to get it to stop. 

From his big reveal right up until Lio and Galo go off to save the world (with love!) he’s burning constantly. His hair is ablaze, his prosthetic is repeatedly warped into various shapes and sizes with the heat of the flames, it’s around his eyes, it’s there simmering away beneath his skin, still resolutely kept cooped up by the remaining cooling tech in his uniform. The uniform that – despite the various scraps and fights he gets himself into – stays stubbornly and completely in tact throughout all of his time on screen, in tact and doggedly doing its job of keeping those devastating flames at bay, even when its wearer is actively using them. The Burnish themselves may not be controlled by the Promare – but to an extent – Kray just might be. It’s only after he’s brought back to reality with a bang that it finally stops, and when it does stop, the disgraced Governor is incredibly subdued. Once the Promare leave, we see a very, very different character to the one we’ve seen throughout the film, even his faux charm and charisma as the beloved authority figure is gone, everything about him in those final scenes is muted and dulled.

I will say that isn’t just him, the very last scenes of the film use a slightly less saturated colour palette for everyone, but Kray takes looking pitiful to a whole other level. Now a far cry from the bright, in your face colours he had just minutes before, at the very end of the film, he looks nothing short of drained. If you’ve ever seen the gorgeously animated ‘Firebird’ short from Disney’s ‘Fantasia’ you’ll probably know where I’m going with this, the animation there puts me in mind of what we’re seeing here; the man truly does look like he’s about to be swept away, carried off on the wind like ash. He’s burnt out, a Burnout Burnish who refused to let his flames burn – so they burnt him up instead – and whether there are other Burnish in the world who took resisting their powers to the same extremes as he did, I doubt we’ll ever know. Though there does certainly seem to be a link between a person’s mindset and how well they’re able to control their flames, and yes – Thyma could certainly be a candidate for this.

On a final note; as I write, I’m thinking back to something Professor Deus Prometh was quoted as saying right at the start of the film: “The oppression of the Burnish may lead to concurrent blazes worldwide.” 

In other words, the longer you keep it down, the longer you resist, the longer the destruction will continue and the bigger and more serious the consequences will be. This is most likely in reference to the magma at the centre of the Earth slowly growing hotter in response to the oppression of the Burnish, but it can absolutely be applied to Kray’s Burnish awakening too. Perhaps if he had listened to the late Professor, things may have turned out a little better for him, he still would have become a burnish, yes, but his flames would’ve been untainted, perhaps he’d still have his arm, and perhaps he wouldn’t have come as totally undone as he did at the end of the film.

But, even with Trigger’s messy timeline, it’s safe to assume that Kray was a child when the Great World Blaze first swept across the earth, and when half of the population was wiped out. And as uncomfortable as this may be to acknowledge, it’s quite hard for me to imagine someone who witnessed that level of destruction at such a young age, being particularly happy about then being advised against resisting should they ever feel a Burnish spasm. That they should just give in to it, let it sync, let themselves become one with the Promare.

Let it burn.

[ecargmura]

A Sign of Affection Episode 1 Review - Love Under The Silent Snow

This is actually a really good premise for a romance show! I really like it! It’s unique in that it’s a shoujo set in a college environment when the genre usually prefers high school love stories. The fact that it’s a love story between a hearing-impaired girl and her upperclassman who is a globetrotting backpacker is also interesting! I really liked what I saw in this first episode!

I know that there’s going to be a lot of comparisons to A Silent Voice, but A Sign Of Affection actually differs a lot despite sharing similar premises. Unlike A Silent Voice, being deaf isn’t all of Yuki Itose’s shtick as she has so much personality despite being reserved. While she cannot hear, she still loves cute things like clothes and objects; heck, the story starts with Yuki happy that she got a very cute dress for a good price. She’s not bullied for being deaf, nor is she treated as lesser for her disability. She’s an ordinary college student who just happens to be deaf. She communicates well with her friends and her schoolmates. She has a good relationship with her mom. She’s never seen as pitiful, which is a good thing as stories about disabilities shouldn’t be seen as pity-parties all the time; those with disadvantages can still live happy lives. While it defines her, it’s not who she is all the time. She’s not a poor girl who needs to be constantly saved by an able-bodied knight in shining armor; in fact, he only helped her once and she becomes infatuated that she’s the one going out of her way to get his deets. Yeah, get your man, Yuki! I do like that while her life is peaceful, she still has some ups and downs that aren’t dramatic like how her friend Rin had to explain to Kyouya, the cafe owner about Yuki’s disability, which Yuki catches on about, but doesn’t say anything. She knows that her disadvantages will always have these little minor aspects, and listening to her thoughts really makes me want to give her a hug.

I know that some people might question why Yuki has hearing aids, but cannot hear very well. Hearing aids don’t give deaf people complete hearing, just partial. Maybe Yuki is wearing them just so she can show people that she’s deaf and that it wouldn’t cause misunderstandings. Who knows? Like how people like carrying around devices that give them convenience and comfort, Yuki most likely does the same. Maybe she wears them because she’s comfortable doing so and it’s more of a habit than than anything. I hope this does get explained a bit in future chapters so that viewers won’t have to ask questions constantly.

Itsuomi Nagi is quite interesting as the male lead. He’s a globetrotting backpacker, meaning that he doesn’t like to stay at one place all the time. While he’s a college student, he likes going to foreign countries. Because of that, he’s familiar with different languages. His voice actor, Yu Miyazaki is actually proficient in English and it shows! The way he asked the guy on the train if he needed any help was actually good English, albeit a tad accent on the “need” part. Still, an English speaker like me approves of it! I do wonder if his wanderlust will be a source of conflict or if it’ll be a source of bonding between our leads. Personality-wise, Itsuomi doesn’t seem like a scumbag. However, he is a bit too touchy when it comes to Yuki and that does bother me a bit. Maybe because I don’t really like skinship and I value my personal space. I feel like this guy’s only flaw is that he’s too touchy and doesn’t respect Yuki’s personal boundaries. Other than that, I just hope he’s a nice guy. Please don’t make him turn out to be a red flag. Please…

Rin is actually a really good friend. She doesn’t pity Yuki and treats her like an equal. However, there is still a slight border between her and Yuki at times. She has a huge crush on Kyouya Nagi, the cafe owner and Itsuomi’s cousin. I want to see more of her; maybe her and Kyouya are the side couple that helps Yuki and Itsuomi get together?

However, that Oushi guy though… He gives off weird vibes. He saw Yuki running along all happily and he was like “What’s wrong with her?” I just hope he’s not that one jerk who treats Yuki as lesser due to her disability. He’s gonna be on my shit list if that happens. I can’t wait to see other characters too.

I really love the implementation of snow used in this episode. Yes, the ‘snow means love’ trope is a cliche, but damn it, it works. Heck, the kanji in Yuki’s name literally means snow. She’s her own ‘snow means love’ trope. I do love the symbolism of snow in a way. Snow falls down and it is a silent weather condition, much like how Yuki’s world is a silent one. Snow is also white and blank, meaning that Yuki’s white world can finally be full of color now that she met Itsuomi. Maybe I’m looking into this a bit too much.

The voice actors are so good. Sumire Morohoshi is finally a lead in a shoujo anime. She has a soft voice that works well for the reserved shoujo leads; she suits Yuki so well. Yu Miyazaki is actually a voice actor I’m not too familiar with, but I do like his voice. It sounds perfect for someone like him. Like, he doesn’t sound too young or too old. I also love that he can speak English too. I hope he can speak more later on! Other voice actors in this show are Kaede Hondo, who plays Rin—good choice for a rising star; Ryota Ohsaka voices Kyouya—he always has a nice voice that suits ikemen characters; Takeo Otsuka voices Oushi—I need to see more to evaluate more; Tasuku Hatanaka voices the hair salon guy—wait, what? I never knew Hatanaka could produce a voice like that. I usually associate him with his rather gravelly, gruff voice. That’s so cool. Anyways, I do wonder who else will be in the voice cast of this anime. I’m satisfied with the results.

Overall, I think this has the potential to be a great romance. I can’t wait to see what it has in store. If I really enjoy it once it finishes airing, I’ll definitely buy the manga! What are your thoughts on the first episode?

[caffemochachoco]

mikoto and orekoto - sun and moon dynamic?

In this post I'll be sharing my views on why these two feel like they would have a sun and moon dynamic (literally and figuratively!!)

Blocking of sun's rays VS Shifting the blame

The moon blocks the sun's rays at night in a way that still allows a dimmer amount of sunlight to pass through. In the same way (as I think a few other tumblr users have pointed out, thought I don't really remember their users), Orekoto is trying to shoulder the blame for Mikoto's murder, though he ends up bringing up loopholes in his argument (the murder becomes more unclear when they're on the train, baseball bat could not have been a non-premeditated murder), which is like the sun's rays (evidence of Mikoto committing the murder) passing through the moon and giving it its light (Orekoto's purpose- protecting Mikoto)

2. Tarot Cards and Reversible Campaign (the first idea I had, basically)

Using the reversed version of the Moon and Sun cards actually reveals a lot about their personalities as a whole (also a nice touch with Reversible Campaign being the cover song for Mikoto's trial two!)

Reversed Sun (for Mikoto): Blocked happiness, pessimism, and unrealistic expectations. This can all be strung together in a way that describes him: His happiness is blocked and his stress is created by the unrealistic expectations of his boss (his overworking ways) and the unrealistic expectations he casts upon himself (his people-pleasing tendencies)

Reversed Moon (for Orekoto): Fear, deception, misunderstanding, and clarity, which can also be strung together- Orekoto being the only one aware about the clarity of the situation (Mikoto's whole murder, basically) but tries to deceive and cause Es to misunderstand the premise of the murder (saying he did it and not Mikoto) in his fear of not being able to protect his host.

3. Personality Traits (one of the important parts of a sun and moon dynamic)

Traits associated with the moon (from Google): Mental and emotional power (Orekoto's power over Mikoto's mind and/or body- plus his emotional state), loneliness (he knows about Mikoto, but the same thing cannot be said for Mikoto until the birthday conversation), different phases of the moon are considered auspicious or inauspicious depending on which one (we consider one of them a 'murderer' and the other 'not', but which one are we talking about?)

Traits associated with the sun as a ruling planet (from Google): Creativity (Mikoto's a designer), willpower (he works hard to please people despite being overworked and tired), slight aggression when provoked (passive-aggression mostly, Ore's the more aggressive one actually)

Adding onto the whole personality switch from MeMe's thumbnail to Double's- it's a 180 difference, a day and night change.

[subskz]

warning: a very chaotic essay about bb below

from the beginning, reading butterfly bandage made me feel like i’ve been transported into a bubble universe of sorts. there were so many different threads running through the story that i was curious about, and with the last part, you wrapped them all up into a neat little bow. it was such a well-rounded, intricately-written story !! ✩

a big thank you to seo changbin for showing up to his lecture woefully unprepared and picking to use the reader’s sanrio pencil that day, as it would ultimately end up setting off the chain of events that caused chan & the reader to find each other; truly the backbone of this entire fic 🙌😭💕 when you described his shy smile as, “unexpected, coming from someone who looked like he bent iron bars for fun” 💀💀 binnie’s antics were completely on-point. i loved the dynamic between him & the reader so much. they gave us the perfect comedic relief (which was much-needed at some points in the story 😭)

i love the premise of university aus so much, i am truly so simple

this is a super minute thing, but i always loved seeing the ʚïɞ symbols at the start and in the dividing lines when reading bb; it’s just so cute 😭

also do not think that their apartment being numbered 8-325 slipped past us!! i noticed a lot of parallels hidden throughout, and to me, they are a testament to just how much thought went into writing this~! ♡ the continuous occurrences of inexplicable heat like when they first met, or the random burning feeling in the reader’s thumb without even knowing chan got cut there too; the metaphor of them being akin to binary stars; their discussions about twin flames… i loved all the themes you wove into the story, everything fell together so beautifully. chan and the reader really are twin flames, mirror souls, bound together by the red string of fate to reveal the other’s true reflection to them for the first time.

also, i think you hit quite a few of us in our soft spots with the reader’s self-effacing temperament and her history of broken relationships :,) the amount of parallels i found between chan, the reader and myself… she just like me fr. it made me think what you might’ve went through in order to be able to depict the gravity and nuances of those sorts of emotions so well ㅠ_ㅠ when the reader merges paths with chan who, for once, wants to be her equal, it feels so deserved. also, the overflowing fondness that the reader has for all the channie-isms is so sweet n accurate 😭💞 you crafted such a beautiful universe, and you did such an excellent job characterising everyone.

i still can’t get over how plainly obvious you were about your true feelings in your initial introduction of lino 💀 taking a whole paragraph just to describe his ethereal beauty (i would do the same thing)

i loved 3racha’s performance too — i’m paboracha-biased (although seungmo and innie have been making me act up recently) with the biggest weakness ever for hannie, so the brief cameo part with him where he was described as shamelessly reading his own lyrics off his phone sent me 😭😭😭 the little details like those were another display of how much care was put into the fic and made it even more special to read ♡

the making out in the bathroom at the party afterwards as well was so vkvjjxifxutsdut the slight possessiveness was so hot… ♡

and when channie and the reader had their first time, the reader being like, “oh. he was loud.” 💀💀💀 so real, he is so cute hhhhvknvvcj, and his praise kink but simultaneous extreme inability to take compliments wounds my heart. you write him so well 😭 how much i wanna build up channie’s self-esteem until he realises how others see him !!

also i’ve gotta say, as others have pointed out already too, you were seriously out for blood with the scene where chan cries while eating the reader out… i’ve never felt so conflicted 😭 the timing to be a dacryphiliac has truly never been worse LMAOOO because my heart was shattering at all the terrifyingly sad things he was repeating fo himself and i just wanted to scoop the lil channie mash potato boy up and be like “no baby, it’s okay, don’t cry”, but ALSO at the same time, that was so hot wtf </3

then to follow that up with THE BATHING SCENE… you are crazy (affectionate). i have never felt so soft omg… he is so infuriatingly lovable and it’s crazy he can’t see it. i’m glad he finally got someone like the reader who he can gradually learn how to release some of his burdens with. 🥺

“…as if he was afraid that now that you’d discovered a side to him that dared to be anything less than accommodating—anything less than convenient for you—you’d pack up and leave without a second thought.” OUCH

you wrote so many beautiful and heart-wrenching lines throughout this 😭

and LEE MINHO… ㅡㅡ why is he like this. the feminine urge to rail the brat out of him, my god. he is a lil meow meow fucking menace, that’s for sure. as much as he singlehandedly destroyed everything, he was only acting the way he did out of the (misguided) instinct to protect chan… :( the way he begrudgingly made amends with the reader at the end 😭 in my imagination, they patched up their relationship over time despite his enormous fuck-up and became friends again

i read part 4 as soon as it was posted, and i was genuinely reeling afterwards, questioning why you were doing this to us 😭 but it felt strangely cathartic, to watch the house of cards they had stacked up out of fear of ever leaning on each other, finally crumbling apart, because now, they can restart and build their relationship with a secure foundation that allows for a balanced exchange of emotions between them, and protects the wellbeing of them both ♡

anyway i’m so sorry that this ask is longer than the reader’s physics textbook 😭 this story broke me apart in the best way possible, and then put me right back together again. it’s such a well-rounded work, n i hope you’re proud of yourself 🫶

— 🌸

oh my god 😭😭😭😭 when you said to expect an essay abt bb from you i had no idea just how much u meant it…i can’t believe all the thought and care you’ve put into this, thank you so much for taking the time to write out such a detailed, heartfelt message!

as i was mapping out the story, i found myself wondering at times if i’d be able to tie up all the loose ends bc there was just so much going on in so many different places…so to hear you say that it was wrapped up nicely means so much to me!! the fact that u even took notice of all those threads and kept track of them throughout the series is also very touching to me! thank u for being invested enough to do so, it’s sincerely the best feeling <3

SEO CHANGBIN!!! our dear leo boy…he is absolutely the backbone of this entire fic u are so correct. where would we be without his questionable academic decisions n his accidental matchmaking skills…even when he’s not the main character he is always the star of the show!! 🥰 i’m delighted u liked that line abt him LOL binnie’s softness n silliness in contrast to his tough appearance is the most endearing thing on earth to me, so i hoped to capture a bit of that lovable personality of his! i think i had such a blast writing his scenes for exactly the reason you mentioned…it was really nice to write his lighthearted antics w the reader amidst the heavier parts of the story, so i couldn’t be happier that his role brought the same relief for you!! ^_^

i’m such a sucker for university aus as well…so simple but so many things to love abt them! and it’s very sweet of u to point out the butterfly symbols! i figured i should take the theme and run w it hehe i’m glad u found it to be a cute detail ♡

there was no way i couldn’t sprinkle in those skz easter eggs here n there…like a lil secret we’re all in on 😽 yes! many details in bb are kinda meant to parallel aspects of skz in reality, esp channie’s struggles in predebut (im going off on a tangent here but that’s also why i chose 3racha’s placebo as the song chan was working on! i feel like it gives so much insight on his state of mind at the time) it’s really meaningful to me that u caught on to all those recurring themes and connected them w ease in the story! and the binary stars…when i learned abt them n how they orbit each other so closely and rapidly, to the point where they can even exchange materials through tidal interactions and influence each other’s evolution…i just couldn’t resist adding it into the story hehe it felt too fitting for how channie n the reader take on parts of each other and change for the better! you are so incredibly kind and observant thank u so much, you’ve really read this w a keen eye and i’m so grateful!

in sharing bb i was hoping there might be someone out there who could relate to its central conflict, but i was taken aback by just how many ppl’s experiences it seemed to align w ㅠ knowing it resonated w you as well both fills my heart and tugs at it…i know i said this before but this series was kinda like a love letter to everyone who is like channie n the reader, so i really hope u found some solace in its message 💗 “chan, who, for once, wants to be her equal” u really got me w this…that’s exactly it isnt it ㅠㅠ the balanced, endless cycle of love that they both deserve!! and the channieisms…it’s only right that the reader adores him and all his cute lil habits just as much as we do!! characterization is always the most important thing to me above all, so thank u so much for saying that it's the highest compliment!

HELPP LMAO i will never be free from that paragraph describing lino’s first appearance huh…if there’s any moment in the story where tumblr user rin subskz is speaking instead of the reader…it’s definitely that 😭 very embarrassing for me but seeing that u are paboracha biased i feel a lil better at least…u know firsthand what it’s like to be bewitched body and soul by lee minho

i’m so thrilled u liked the section abt 3racha’s performance! i debated even describing it in detail for a while bc i wasnt sure if it was necessary…but i ultimately decided it wouldn’t be right to skip over since it led into what happens later! HANNIE <3 it makes me happy that moment got a giggle out of u lol i really wish i could’ve included more scenes w him…applying the scatterbrained genius energy of trainee jisung to the context of an exhausted uni student wouldve been very fun! and once again, the fact that u paid attention to lil things like that is so fulfilling to me <33

the idea of the bathroom scene w the reader feeling a lil possessive was actually what initially sparked the plot point of the party in my head 😭 and YES w the way chan sounds like he’s getting the soul sucked out of him UNPROVOKED on a daily basis…i just had to make him the loudest most vocal most reactive baby on earth there was no other way!! it makes me so happy that u felt he was written well, thank you so much ♡ praise kink and channie just go hand in hand dont they…u described it perfectly that combo of being so desperate for approval but so easily flustered is just irresistible

hehehe channie crying while giving head was truly my equivalent of sending out a bat signal to all fellow dacryphiliacs 🙏 the little channie mash potato boy…..please ㅠㅠㅠㅠ i’m very sorry for the conflicting emotions that scene sparked in u it was a lil evil of me…i even gave myself some psychic dmg while writing it but at least u know u werent alone in that internal battle!! n i’m happy it had the desired effect~ <3 the bathing scene!! truly just a fraction of the love n care he deserves…and as u said it’s crazy he cant see it!!! he just needs to be shaken lovingly and violently by the shoulders until the idea gets through his beautiful head -_-;

i feel like the sentence u pointed out really describes bb chan’s mindset in a nutshell, how he sees himself as someone to be used rather than to be loved ㅠㅠ my apologies again for the misery haha but i’m glad to know there were lines that could touch ur heart!

LEE MINHO!!! he took his role of meow meow menace very seriously as u can see…though i personally think he had a good reason for being so cold to the reader (maybe leeknowism plagues me even fictionally) he definitely put those defensive walls up far too quickly without knowing the full story…though can we blame him after he’s seen the same cycle repeat time n time again (yes actually) in an alternate alternate universe, the brat was railed out of him n everyone lived happily every after <3 but yes, i hope him realizing he had to be the one to round up these lovesick losers made him a lil less insufferable for u at the end haha! that’s so sweet to think abt as well…i’d also like to believe that the reader is forgiving enough to give him a second chance and they eventually became genuine friends! bound by their mutual love for channie ♡ maybe she can finally tell him what she thought of that anime he recced her…

hehe i really wish i didnt have to split bb4 up and leave u guys hanging for a bit like that…but the hand of god (tumblr text block limit) interfered 💔 describing chan and the reader’s relationship as a house of cards is absolutely perfect!! very tentatively built and full of care and attention to detail, but ultimately very fragile bc their idea of love wasn’t sustainable. a balanced exchange of emotions!! you’ve worded it so beautifully, it makes me very giddy that you got the core message through and through

please don’t apologize!! if anything i’m so honored and grateful that you immersed urself in the story and had such lovely, thoughtful things to say abt it. i must’ve thanked u a million times in this response but again, thank you so much!i it means the world to me that you entered this lil bb universe and that u enjoyed it 💗💗💗

[anon-sect]

Pete and Ronny wanted to get special pictures of Liam Hemsworth to sell to his fans. They had done this before with a lot of celebrities as a form of making money on the side. Many fans had paid them a good amount of money for the pictures they take of their favorite celebrities. This job was no different from any other they have done before. They knew he was staring in another movie. All they needed to do was sneak on set and take some pictures. Then leave before getting escorted out by security.

Both had successfully got to the set using the fake identifications. It seemed like they would be successful just like all the other jobs they did in getting special pictures. "But they were shocked when security approached them. They followed security to another part of the set, thinking security would just escort them completely off the premises.

"Gentlemen, you two are the first to experience our new way of dealing with trespassers at the studio." The head of security spoke with them. 'In times past, we would simply escort you out, but we were given authority to handle trespassers in our own way." He paused again as one of the other security guys produced a strange device.

"To further protect the set, we make use of trespassers in a unique way, that the celebrities aren't aware of." The head of security continued. "One of you will be turned into a pair of socks and the other into a pair of shoes. You will then be gifted to Mr. Hemsworth completely unaware of your living existence." He paused again. "In this effort we punish those who sneak in the studio to take advantage of our clients and make you useful at the same time. Any question before we proceed?" He finished as the other security guy was adjusting the settings in the strange device.

Pete and Ronny didn't know if they were actually telling the truth or lying. Either way, they didn't want to find out. "Just let us leave. We promise never to come back." Ronny quickly spoke, hoping to dissuade them from doing what they were planning. "Yes, you would never see us back on the property ever again, I promise." Pete added to Ronny's plea.

One of the security guys flashed a light from the device at Ronny. He was instantly reduced to a pair of white ankle socks on the floor. Pete saw the guy make another adjustment in the device. Seeing that they were telling the truth, Pete pleaded to let them both go free or even get arrested. He would have preferred they called the cops and they be taken to jail. The security guy fired a flash from the device at him. Pete instantly found himself completely immobile. He must have been turned in shoes if Ronny was socks, he figured. Still, this was not something he wanted done to him nor Ronny. He had no way of screaming out for help. He was simply alone with his thoughts as he was picked up off the floor can carried somewhere. Sadly, he knew where they both were going.

Ronny heard staff talking to Liam as they handed him over to the actor. They claimed that special durable socks and shoes were created just for him and his to keep. The actor greatly appreciated and accepted the two gifts. Liam wanted to try out his new socks right away. He felt himself get filled up with Liam's feet. The actor's feet had a slight odor to them, but not terribly bad. But it was the situation that made it bad. Ronny wasn't fond of feet in any way, but to literally be wrapped around another guy's feet was a nightmare. The fact that the actor was completely unaware of how his feet was torturing a person caused him mental anguish. Simply being walked on was painful. The weight of the actor bearing down on him was beyond imagination. Not to mention, feeling the ground beneath the actor's feet made it even worse. Step after step was a constant wave of pain upon pain. He begged for death in any form to take him from this nightmare. At least Pete was somewhat lucky, the actor decided he would try his durable shoes on later while he continued to walk to his vehicle on just the durable socks alone.

Pete knew how much Ronny hated feet. He couldn't even imagine the torment his friend was going through. Yet his turn would come soon enough. The actor would soon try him on as well. He mentally tried to reach out to Liam for help, but being shoes, he didn't have a voice or any way to stop the actor from wearing him. He just had to await the same fate that Ronny was experiencing.

Liam like the way the socks felt as he got into his vehicle. They definitely had a different feel about them. He looked forward to seeing how durable the sock and shoes really were. He might have to wear them both for a week straight to find out. He was slightly curious as to what material they used to make them durable, but then he did love free gifts from the studios. No need complaining about them or trying to find out what they are made out of. May as well just enjoy them. These shoes and socks, he would wear for solid week straight at first or maybe even longer.

[inklore]

premise: being in an arranged marriage was complicated enough, but catching feelings for your betrothed? now that was just ridiculous.

pairing: royal!namor x (f)reader

word count: 1.9k

warnings: reader comes from royalty as well, therefore this is an au, arranged marriage, light angst as well as very light fluff, mutual pining, alcohol mention.

note: shoutout to @rae-gar-targaryen for sending in this little mistletoe request!! i may or may not write for these two again since i think their relationship would be hella angsty and interesting. but ya girl already has too many wips so lmaooo who knows.

You have lost track of how many minutes—possibly hours—have ticked by since you departed from the lavish holiday party your parents had thrown in honor of your new engagement. The clinks of glasses, orchestrated music, and laughter hitting nerve endings you didn’t think were possible to reach in such a manner that would cause you to bolt down the halls of your childhood mansion.

You had loved parties growing up. Had adored being the center of the ball room's attention. But sometimes you think you had no choice but to adore and love the two. After all, you were your parents' only child. Only heir. Their pride and joy to the point of suffocation.

If the circumstances were different would you be out enjoying yourself? Taking part in the festivities like everyone else? Eating your weight in macaroons and dancing.

Perhaps if you were given a choice in any of this you would be.

Wouldn’t find yourself with a death grip on your third glass of champagne and pacing in your fathers library.

If you had gotten a say in who you were to marry—or given the choice of at least picking someone less…cold, intimidating. Maybe then you’d be just as happy as everyone else at this god forsaking party.

Namor—or K’uk’ulkan, he had emphasized you call him, insisting on it by your tenth meeting. “We are to be married” he had said, giving you a gentle expression that showed neither disappointment or joy in the fact. But still made you feel woozy all the same.

He wasn’t a bad man. Reserved. Cruel to some. Cold to most.

Your first meeting had done little to dampen down your anxiety over the whole arrangement. He hadn’t shown disinterest, or anger. In fact you could barely read his expression at all. The only show of emotion was in the tick of his jaw, the slight crease in his forehead when you spoke about yourself—whether it was from surprise of the many facts you were forced to spew out, sounding almost robotic—or if he just didn’t care. You didn’t know.

But a week later when the two of you had met outside of your home and went on, what could be considered, your first date: he had acted differently.

“Now that your puppeteer strings have been severed,” his tone filled with amusement. “Tell me your actual hobbies. What you like to do, not what you’ve been taught to like.”

You couldn’t help the small smile that had spread across your mouth. You should have felt insulted or scolded him on the insinuation on your parents behalf. But you were not that far up their asses, and as much as it had seemed face-value to people who were only spectators, your parents had left you to your own devices years ago. Your life was your own.

Until this.

Until being their only child came in handy for a business deal.

And when you had shared your love for the opera, classic books, writing poetry, finding yourself lost in your own joy of talking about the things you actually loved: that’s when you saw real emotion on his face. When you say a glint of something in his eyes. A cough in his hand covering up the traces of a smile.

A smile that made him look even more regal and beautiful, if that were possible.

It didn’t take the two of you long to warm up. For you to see that smile un-hidden, to learn more of his homeland and people.

That should have eased your nerves and mind on this marriage arrangement. Should have made you happy to know that you weren’t really marrying the coldest-man-alive like you had thought that first day.

K’uk’ulkan was a man with many layers, layers that you would have years to pull back. You had no choice in the matter.

But even now, after growing to like his company, to think of him as a great man—your dress already bought, venue booked, flowers picked—your nerves refused to settle. Stomach refused to let you rest, to enjoy all of this as much as the rest of your family was.

You just…couldn’t.

Not even with the beautiful golden ring on your finger. Or a lavish party. Or reassuring words from your betrothed. Or the many more glasses of champagne you could see yourself downing in the very near future as you take the last gulp of the one in your hand.

Already turning on your heels to poke your head out of the library to see if a waiter was passing—hoping, praying, for this one miracle tonight.

But your movements halt when you start for the door and the door is blocked by your betrothed himself. The breath caught in the back of your throat almost making you choke, your heart finding itself in your stomach.

“K’uk’ulkan,” you attempt at a smile. Don’t know why you feel the inclination in you to run a hand along your black gown, making sure every crease is straight—every curve accentuated. His eyes following the motion of your hands, and then trailing back up your frame to your eyes; your nerves could not catch a break tonight could they?!

“I see we both had the same idea,” his hands are in his front pockets, the corner of his mouth pulling up slightly.

“You’re telling me outlandish parties are not your thing? I don’t think I would have ever guessed that.” You distract your anxious thoughts with a joke. A joke that lands and has him chuckling under his breath. A sound you’re growing to enjoy..too much.

“The celebrations we throw in Talokan are quite different. Less…flashy,” he waves a hand in front of his velvet emerald suit. A suit that fits him so well you don’t think any other man living—or dead—could wear it better.

The mention of his country makes you smile. The country that was soon to become your home. The country you had only visited a handful of times over these past eight months, but had quickly grown to love nonetheless.

“Oh gosh, yes.” You groan dramatically, “I’m counting down the hours until I can rid my feet of these death traps.” You point a manicured, stiletto adorned, foot out from beneath your dress for emphasis.

He chuckles again, “you look beautiful.” He says it so casually, so simply and with adoration that it almost knocks you on your backside. It hadn’t been the first time he had complimented you. Had said how nice you looked in something, had spent too long focusing on your face, looking in your eyes, or having things sent to your house with a note attached “Thought of you - K”—before this.

And yet your nerves still had you ready to run.

If you took a second—a single damn minute—to let yourself dive into those nerves. To stop looking at it at surface level. Coming up with excuses; you only see K’uk’ulkan and that half-smile he was currently giving you. The way it made you feel. The fondness that had grown between the two of you, that left room for more to grow—more feelings, more…other things one felt for their husband. Normal. Feelings.

What they lacked was ease. Feelings were not easy. Love was not easy. And while you had been so hung up on not marrying a stranger another fear had set in, knocked you off your feet and made you want to run from it.

Arrangements were easy.

Love wasn’t.

And that scared you more than the arrangement itself.

“I can have Namora send for-”

“No.” You blurt out. Harsh, fast, and surprising him. The expression on his face grew into something stone-like and worrisome. Making an embarrassed flush burn in your cheeks. You try to recover with a pressed smile, “sorry. Just need some air. This is all just…a lot.” Your eyes downcast to the floor.

You needed that drink. Needed to escape once again. Maybe this time outside in the gardens where no one could find you.

Where the party goers couldn’t be heard.

Where your soon to be husband couldn’t make your blood heat from his beautiful stare.

“I’m going to get another drink,” you state as you try to push past him in the doorway—try to ignore the heat you feel from his body as your body brushes against his.

But then he’s stopping you again.

His fingers curling around your bicep, your side now pressed to his chest. The fabric of his suit making your body feel close to sweating. The heat from everything bound to crack, break, tear at something that would have you perspire through the silk of your dress, leaving your knees even more wobbly.

You don’t try and free yourself though. Don’t even attempt at disingaging the situation, removing his searing palm from your bare arm. Because it’s the first time he’s touched you. Really touched you.

It was laughable.

The first touch from your soon to be husband happening in what seems to be—when you finally look up at him—in frustration, if the lowering of his brows is anything to go by. His dark eyes become so onyx you’re almost frightened of what they are holding back, what he’s holding back from the already tight grip he has on you.

“Stay.”

The words are simple and not at all what you expect from him.

“Why?”

He doesn’t say anything for a beat. The silence growing so deafening you feel yourself tremble when his thumb presses into your skin and starts a light back and forth motion—soft, soothing. “You know why,” and you think—know—those three words alone hold more meaning than any others could. In this situation. With this man; a chunk of ice melted somewhere deep in his chest. For you. From you.

Your lips shake when you part them to say something, what you don’t know. Anything. Everything. Whatever you have to make this moment drag on for centuries. To keep his hand on your body. To finally let yourself breathe for him, because of him.

But then an “ooh” is breaking the spell.

Both of your attentions turn to see two older women in the hall grinning widely at the two of you. Feeble fingers pointed to the ceiling, your brows coming together in confusion until your eyes follow theirs and you see it. Your heart no longer hammering in the pits of your abdomen, but leaving your body all together you’re convinced.

Mistletoe.

The look of worry fades quickly from your face when you see the amused heat that’s on K’uk’ulkan’s.

And while you’re still spiraling from his first touch, you feel completely floored by his next. With the hand at your bicep keeping you glued to him, his other cups your cheek. The pad of his thumb pressed just below your bottom lip. His eyes flashing from your mouth to your eyes, your brain going cloudy—legs barely keeping you stationary.

“May I kiss my wife?” There’s a ghost of a smile at the corners of his mouth.

A puff of air filled with something saccharine, heedy, and something on the cusps of insanity that makes your body turn into a forest fire—leaves you before you’re giving a slow nod and murmuring “yes.”

And when he leans in, excruciatingly slow. When his lips press to yours; full, warm, soft, breathtaking in the way they move against yours. Like he was made to kiss; to kiss you.

You know you’re absolutely screwed.

[hexofvex]

Sleepless Night || Kamisato Ayato x Gender Neutral! Reader

Premise: Concerned by your husband's horrendous schedule, you have a late night talk with him.

CW: angst with comfort (bcs can I write anything else)

Total WC: 801 words

A/N: dropping in with some Ayato simp material before I go missing bcs of college again </3. Also I can't title my works for shit lmao

──────────────────

You'd lost count of the hours.

Two? Three? Four? You'd been tossing and turning all night, practicing different exercises to fall asleep, all in vain. The emptiness next to you was awfully heavy, together with the silence caused by the sound of only your breathing in the room.

Of course, falling asleep by yourself wasn't uncommon. And It's not as if it ever bothered you; you understood the burden of being the Yashiro Commissioner and knew why Ayato was working so hard. And yet every night, you would be awoken by the the shuffling of your husband as he laid down next to you, before falling back asleep.

Tonight was the third night in a row when that wasn't the case.

You haven't had the time to speak with him about it. Even worse, you barely saw him around these days.

With a heavy sigh, you threw your blanket aside and stepped out of bed. Slowly and as silently as you could, you made your way to Ayato's office, attempting to not alert any servants. You opened the sliding door, silghtly cringing at the loud sound of it.

"You're not sleeping?" You heard your husband's voice greeting you.

"You're not either, darling." You retorted. "I know you're not sleeping too well usually but this is a bit too much isn't it?" As you stepped closer to him, you noticed his tired eyes and disheveled hair. Small details, unnoticeable from afar, but details that told you he wasn't in his element. Despite his hectic work schedule, Ayato would never fail in looking perfectly composed. It made his current condition all the more worrying.

You sat down at the other side of his desk, throwing a stray look over his papers. As always, the wooden surface was so covered in documents and letters you could barely even see spots of it anymore. "Are you alright? Has anything happened that requires these extra hours?"

"You know, I've heard some very interesting things."

You blinked with a slight furrow of your brow. It was an obvious change of subject, a bit sloppy (which you would blame on his sleep deprived state), but you took the bait, curious of what he was referring to.

"What things exactly?"

"Certain rumours," came the reply. "About you and Thoma."

You scoffed. Of course, why were you surprised? You, a member of a less wealthy and influent clan. Thoma, a percieved outsider, because of his heritage. The more closed minded people had made their dislike for the two of you crystal clear, so something of that nature was to be expected. "Our enemies will say anything to discredit us. But you haven't payed attention to any of that nonsense, I trust?"

"Certainly." Ayato put down his brush, finally looking you in the eye. "You are among my most trusted people. A measly piece of gossip isn't enough to shake my faith in the two of you. But it has made me think."

You placed an elbow on the desk, inching closer. "I'm not sure I follow."

"Perhaps it has been my own neglect of you that has weakened our image and allowed for these rumours to come into being."

Oh you could see it now.

"You're working now so you could free up time? No, no-"

"I have a duty to this family, [Name]."

"So do I!" You reached over the desk and held his hands. "I can help you."

Ayato sighed. "The work I do is far more dangerous than what you and Ayaka do, [Name]."

"I know. But, my love, ever since we got married I only took over the cultural affairs with Ayaka. Your burden is the same. That's not how it should be, and you know that."

"And it is yours, and her safety that I must preserve. And not just the two of you, but every person that is in my care. It's a heavy burden, but it must be done."

"It must," you said, gently brushing your thumbs over his hands. "But you're not alone anymore. You're no longer young, alone, having to protect your family and stabilise a declining clan. You're allowed to let us help."

You husband closed his eyes and looked away, tightning his grip around your fingers. "I wished you'd never have to see me in a situation like this, my dear."

You left out a soft laugh. "You've seen much worse from me. If I'm allowed to be vulnerable then so are you. Lean on me, plese."

Silence.

"Ayato."

"Alright. I can attempt to."

You grinned. "Good."

Perhaps it'll turn out to be harder than you expected. But looking in your husband's lavander eyes, obscured by stray strands of light blue hair, you found it impossible to resists the incentive to do anything in your power to protect him.