#it’s not even the first one like this i see WHAT HAT

[scaryorganmusic]

what fucking hell dimension are y’all blogging from

[joecoolburrow]

Something Funnier Than 24

Summary: Reader and Joe fall in love over a lunch date and Spongebob references

Pairings: boyfriend!Joe Burrow x girlfriend!reader

Oneshot! Words: 1076

a/n: I don't have a masterlist because this is my first time writing for Joe! Please let me know if you enjoy it and want more. <3

It was going well. Your first two dates with Joe were romantic and you felt yourself falling. But, it was still so new you found yourself unable to relax around him, and you could tell Joe felt the same. So you felt like a bundle of nerves when Joe knocked on your door this afternoon.

It's just a casual matinee and lunch you told yourself to calm down.

"Hey." You greeted him with a shy smile.

Joe smiled brightly. Even in a t-shirt and jean he looked like a dream.

"Hey, you look great." He said as he admired you in your sundress. "Ready to go?"

"Hell yeah."

Joe laughed. Your eagerness was earnest but maybe not the most tactful. You felt a twinge of embarrassment, hoping Joe wasn't put off. He took your hand as you walked to the car.

Riding in a Porsche still felt foreign to you, but you tried not to let it show.

An awkward silence fell as the two of you drove off. Internally cursing your social skills (or lack-thereof), you hoped the movie and lunch would bring you closer together. You'd chosen some generic comedy that probably wouldn't be that good, but would likely give you a few laughs.

"Do you like Will Ferrell movies?" You asked.

"He's ok." Joe shrugged and didn't take his eyes off the rode. "My family watches Elf every Christmas."

"Mine too! It's a classic."

Joe smiled.

"I think comedy and action are my favorite movie genres. What about you?"

"Uh," Joe twisted his lips. "I like everything except horror movies."

"Really?" You said with surprise. "I love scary movies!"

"Not my thing."

Another awkward silence. Shit, you thought to yourself. Joe was such an amazing guy. You felt the spark. You dreamed of what loving him would be like. But moments like this made you worry you weren't compatible.

Joe reached for the radio and turned the volume up. "I love this song. Do you know it?"

You really wished you could say yes. But you had no idea what song was playing or who the artist was, so you shook your head.

The rest of the ride you and Joe made small talk. The movie was fine, nothing special, but you loved seeing Joe laugh. There were a few times you'd both burst out laughing and turn to look at each other. It felt like fireworks.

After the movie, you went to a local diner. It had an old school vibe. Joe helped you into the red booth in the back and picked up a menu.

"This is the perfect place for a cheeseburger." You said.

"Yeah," Joe agreed. "I started craving one when we were still in the parking lot."

"They have 30 different milkshakes to choose from." Joe said

"Mmm, I'm gonna have a hard time deciding." You said, even though you knew you'd probably go for strawberry like usual.

"Pick a good one, I'll split it with you."

Why did that suddenly feel like a lot of pressure? You carefully studied the list and weighed your options.

A waiter in a paper hat came up to your table and smiled, "What can I get the cute couple?"

Joe looked at you.

"Umm, could we please get the strawberry banana milkshake? Two straw please." You told the waiter. "And two cheeseburgers."

He winked. "A number 24, coming right up."

As the waiter walked away you smiled to yourself. 24. Joe looked at you curiously.

"24." You said, unsure if he would get it. "I thought of something funnier than 24...

"25!!!" Joe and you said at the same time. You erupted in laughter with him.

"I always think of that whenever I hear the numbers 24 or 25." You told him as you regained your composure. "I was hoping you would get that. A lot of people think I'm insane when I say it."

"I think of Spongebob quotes all the time." Joe said enthusiastically.

He moved his hands in a rainbow motion, "Imagination!"

You couldn't hold back your giggles.

You picked up one of the mayo packets on the table and quoted, "Is mayonnaise an instrument?"

Joe's whole face turned red from laughing. When he caught he breath, he said, "What about: The pioneers used to ride these babies for miles!"

"The Krusty Krab pizza is the pizza for you and me-he" You sang.

Your eyes met Joe's and something just clicked. There it was. The ease, the comfort, the friendship. You felt like you could be your true, quirky self with him and he would embrace it.

"I've never dated anyone who liked Spongebob as much as me." Joe admitted.

"Me either."

The milkshake came and you felt giddy as you and Joe both plopped your straws in. You leaned in for a sip, but Joe held up a finger signaling to wait. He suddenly grabbed his phone. You were a little confused, but a moment later, your phone dinged.

It was a text from Joe: "Is this the Krusty Krab?"

You tried to keep a straight face as you replied, "No, this is Patrick." but the laughter got the best of you.

You spent the rest of lunch talking about all your favorite Spongebob episodes, which lead to talking about your childhoods, which lead to talking about your favorite memories, which lead to more laughter. You felt like you knew Joe so much better than you had just a few hours ago.

On the ride home, you leaned your head onto his shoulder. You felt comfortable and at peace. When Joe pulled in to your driveway, he looked at you with a pout.

"This may be lame, but that was the most fun I've had on a date in....." Joe trailed off. "in forever."

"Me too."

He stroked your shoulder. You both leaned in for a kiss as if magnetized. His lips were so soft and sweet.

When you looked into each other's eyes again, you saw Joe's adoring eyes and wished the moment would last forever.

"Are you busy the rest of the day? Because I'd really like it if you wnated to come in." You asked, internally begging the gods of fate he would say yes, but unsure if he had other plans today.

"I can. But-" Joe smirked mischieviously. "Don't you have to be stupid somewhere else."

You kissed him again. He responded enthusiastically, but you broke it off to whisper in his ear.

"Not until four."

[wqlfstqr]

◟𖥻 loml : sirius black

▰▰ pairing(s): past sirius black x fem!reader, platonic remus lupin x fem!reader.

going back to his life after spending all those years in azkaban proves to be difficult for sirius when he has to look back on what he lost.

warnings: angst, hurt/no comfort, mentions of past relationship, mentions of war, lowkey dumbledore slander.

She has been on edge the entire meeting. Sirius knows it, because he still knows about her nervous habits even after all those years apart from her. He also knows it is most likely about Harry, being apart from him for so long had clearly taken a toll on her, but it had been Dumbledore's request that Harry spent the summer with her aunt to keep him away from everything.

As soon as the meeting comes to an end, Sirius sees how she almost jumps from her seat, Remus standing up a few seconds later. And since Sirius is also excited about seeing Harry again, he follows them.

He stops near the kitchen doorway just in time to catch a glimpse of dark, messy hair running down the stairs and then, Harry is throwing himself at her arms.

"I missed you so much!" she tells him, pulling back a little just to cup the teenager's face, her eyes examining it. "Are you okay? they better have treated you well! I won't let you go back to that house, Harry. I don't care what that senile bat has to say about it."

She starts rambling and Harry can only smile and nod, his eyes shining with amusement as he lets her fuss over him. He moves to Remus next, hugging him with the same excitement he used with y/n. "We missed having you around the house, Harry" Remus tells him, ruffling the young boy's already messy hair.

When he finally turns to Sirius, he looks so much like James that it takes everything in him not to break down crying right there. Thankfully, Harry doesn’t seem to notice because he's already hugging him. And it's exactly the kind of hug Sirius needed, comforting, grounding.

"Do you want me to prepare you something to eat? I'll cook whatever you want." y/n offers as soon as Harry pulls back from the hug, and when he nods, she takes him away immediately, leading him to the kitchen.

Remus and Sirius follow while Molly said her goodbyes and ushered her redhead twins out of the kitchen, muttering something about leaving harry some time to spend with his family. Family. That was a word Sirius has not heard in a long time.

Though as he sits on the table again, it doesn’t take him too long to realize that he doesn't feel like part of said family. it only takes one look at them to feel like he doesn’t belong the way he used to.

He watches as she fusses over Harry, hurrying to make enough food for him while she scolds him for being too thin, worry pouring out on her every action: the way she sets down the plate of food in front of him, the way she brushes Harry's hair out of his face and listens to him talking about his summer with so much attention.

And Remus— Remus fits in perfectly. He jokes with Harry about something from school, knows exactly what to say to stop y/n from worrying too much, makes them smile in a way Sirius doesn’t know how to anymore.

He knows, deep down, that there's nothing going on between Remus and her. They have always been close, but in a way that seems purely platonic. But still, he can't help but feel jealous of the way they seem to understand eachother in ways Sirius can't even begin to comprehend. It all feels so domestic. So easy. And Sirius? he can only sit back and watch.

Watch as y/n talks to Harry, her voice lighter than a few moments earlier, full of fondness, something Sirius recognizes but no longer belongs to. Remus smirks into his glass, adding something that makes Harry's laugh. And that laugh— it sounds so much like James, that Sirius is helplessly dragged into the past.

To what was taken from him.

He remembers Harry's first birthday: The smell of the cake James was baking, Lily chasing Remus around the Potter's living room, a birthday hat on her hat. "You have to wear this for the photo, everyone has one"

Sirius, sprawled on the couch, laughs as he points at the pointy hat on his head. "Come on, Moony."

In the middle of the room, y/n is laying on the floor, her own hat tilted as she tries to balance harry on her feet, holding his arms and making airplane noises for him. Harry is absolutely delighted, his laugh carefree. He loves her.

And, Merlin, Sirius is so in love with her. He loves the way she can make Harry laugh so easily, the way she treats him with so much care and love. He loves the way she fits here, in his life, in his future.

She catches him staring and smiles, her expression soft, fond. "What?"

Sirius grins at her, his heart beating fast against his chest. "Marry me"

She snorts, but her expression softens when she realizes he's not kidding. "One day, when this is all over—"

He knows. She doesn’t have to say more. That's enough for him. For now.

One day, when this war is over and they can go back to their lives— maybe he could have this too. A house filled with laughter, with warmth. A family with her. A child with her smile and his hair, something good after all the darkness.

Something he never got to have.

Because when Sirius blinks, he's back at the present. Where y/n is talking to teenage Harry about going to Diagon Alley soon to buy everything he needs for his new year at hogwarts. "And don't even worry about that ministry nonsense, I told Dumbledore he better fix that because it's his fault for sending you with those— those people for the summer."

"She was not very nice about it, let me tell you." Remus tells Harry. "Called him a walking library of bad ideas." and Harry's laughing again.

And Sirius' heart aches, looking at Harry so grown up and happy despite everything. Looking at her and knowing that she went on without him. They all did. And he can't even blame them. They had to. It was what was best for Harry.

Still, he has to clench his hands under the table because— fuck. This is what he had dreamed for, even all those years in azkaban, he had allowed himself to dream about her waiting for him. About a life outside those dementor infested walls. Those fantasies had kept him alive for so long.

And now here he was, looking at what once was his— what could've been his.

After dinner, Harry goes to sleep and Remus follows after he makes sure y/n doesn’t need help with anything. She ushers him out, but she stays behind cleaning up. And Sirius is still there, looking at her. He can't help it. He wants to ask her so many things but the words die on his mouth before he can even gather the courage to mutter them.

As she passes by him though, she probably sees the tension in his face because she pauses for a second and squeezes his shoulders. Sirius stiffens for a second, but then it's like muscle memory and he can only relax under her touch, that lingers a little more than expected.

Before he knows it, he's leaning against her touch. It's for just a second, he can't deny it to himself. It reminds him of what they used to be, of how easy everything seemed to fit between them back then. But then, it's also a reminder that this isn't his anymore. This warmth, this comfort—

He pulls away and she seems surprised but doesn’t comment on it, only gives him a small smile that doesn’t quite reach her tired eyes. He knows it's supposed to be comforting, but it only leaves his heart completely shattered while she's already moving on.

And he knew it then.

It was the loss of his life. She was the loss of his life. And he knew the what ifs would follow him until the day he died. Perhaps even beyond that.

[ttalgi]

missent letters pt.2

wanderer x gn! reader

part 1 || part 2

tags/cw: academic rivals to lovers, some cursing, mc is: a Vahumana student in the Akademiya, roommates with Alhaitham and Kaveh, and a pyro vision holder.

a/n: I finally finished the book a year later (lol) which made me want to make a part 2! Also, please don't mind any ooc or wrong plot details...it's been a while since I've actually played genshin.

wc: 2.1k

“It would do your remaining few brain cells some good to stop banging your head against the table. Plus this table was expensive. I can’t have the wood scratched already.”

You stop mid head bang to send Alhaitham an incredulous look. “Please!” you plead. “Have some sympathy for me at least once in your life. My life is over.” You slump your body across the living room bench.

Without missing a beat, he replies, ”I let you live here, don’t I?” Alhaitham turns to Kaveh with a raised eyebrow, “Care to fill me in on their latest tantrum?”

“It’s not a tantrum—!”

“Long story short, they asked me to send out some envelopes for them because of their busy schedule, so I told them to leave whatever they needed sent on top of their desk. Among the envelopes was one for Hat Guy, which apparently they didn’t want me to deliver.” He takes another bite of the shawarma wrap that Alhaitham brought home for dinner. 

Kaveh turns to look at your defeated form. “If you didn’t mean to send Hat Guy the letters, why were they mixed up with the other envelopes in the first place? What’s the big deal about those letters anyway?” he asks while chewing.

You perk up your head to look at him. “Huh? You didn’t read them?” you ask.

“You see, unlike some”—he sends Alhaitham a pointed look—”people, I have basic human decency.”

“Again, I let you guys live here—”

“Basically, everytime I feel anger or annoyance towards him, I just vent about it on paper pretending that he’s the recipient. Then I just stuff everything in the same envelope because it’s easy storage that way.”

“Wait!” Kaveh interrupts. “Just how many letters have you written about him? That envelope was like an inch thick. It even cost me extra postage!”

“...What can I say? I have lots of vendettas against him,” you shrug.

Alhaitham interposes, “I don’t think I understand. What’s the big deal? So what if you told him exactly how you feel about him? I didn’t take you for being a people pleaser.”

“This is why people think you’re such a machine at times, Alhaitham!” Kaveh throws his arms up in frustration. “Some people actually care about how they present themselves to others.”

“Actually!” You interject before another one of their infamous arguments breaks out full throttle. “Alhaitham’s kind of right. I did write exactly how I feel about him, and that’s the thing. I wrote everything that I felt about him..” you trail off.

Kaveh lets out a dramatic gasp. “No way! You finally confessed your feelings for him in those letters?!”

“Well, I wouldn’t exactly call it confessing. I just talked about how I think his eyes are kinda dreamy despite being cold at times and that he has a really pretty face and that”—you almost give yourself whiplash turning in his direction—”Wait, finally? What do you mean finally? There’s no way you could have known about my minuscule crush on Hat Guy!”

“Anyone with eyes and ears could tell that you have some romantic attraction towards him,” Kaveh sighs while shaking his head before gesturing to Alhaitham. “Even this guy is aware of it.”

“You two do know that I’m not socially inept, correct?”

Deciding to ignore Alhaitham, you slump back against the bench. “I’m doomed.”

You pop up with an idea. “Wait! Do you guys think Tighnari needs any more forest rangers? I can take a break until this whole thing tides over and just help him over at Avidya Forest—”

Alhaitham quenched your wishful thinking. “Knowing how substandard you are with your vision, you’d accidentally set the forest on fire.”

You stumble back as if an arrow pierced through your body. You mumble out, “Must you always humble me.” You turn to Kaveh with hopeful eyes.

“I thought I'd never say this, but I agree with Alhaitham. You trying to help Tighnari in the forest would do more harm than good. Plus, you'd end up a victim to his lectures again. Remember that one time you—”

Feeling your body riddling with piercing wounds, you slump against the bench once more. “Yeah, I’m doomed.” 

//

It's been five days since Kaveh accidentally sent out the envelope meant for Hat Guy and you aren’t sure how much longer you have until the letters would be in his possession. Unless they already were... 

If you were blessed by the Archons, then maybe the envelope was lost or better yet damaged beyond repair in delivery, but alas, you know better. The mail system in Sumeru City is known for its attentiveness, especially since many important Akademiya-based deliveries are sent and received daily.

You haven't seen Hat Guy around much these days, especially considering the fact that you’ve been actively avoiding him. Mandatory lectures that you both share? You now sit close to the exit, far from him. The library that you guys are known to basically reside in? You begged Alhaitham to let you study in his office instead, promising that you’d do his portion of the house chores for the next two weeks.

Deciding to go home early out of your own volition (Alhaitham kicked you out because of an important meeting), you carefully tread the halls of the Akademiya making sure to peek around each corner before continuing. As you start to believe that you're finally in the clear, you hear someone behind you clearing their throat. Taking a look down at the shadows decorating the floor, you see the silhouette of the man that you have been avoiding for your own peace of mind.

"How much longer are you going to rat around the Akademiya for? It's not like you can avoid me forever, you know."

Feeling offended by his choice of words, you abruptly turn around to tell him off; however, the sudden close proximity of your faces has you taking a step back. If you hadn’t been paying attention to his face, you would have thought that he was unaffected by the action, but the slight widening of his eyes before returning back to normal has you knowing otherwise.

You give Hat Guy a pointed glare. Wanting to defend yourself against his statement, you open your mouth to retaliate but the sight of the familiar envelope in his hand causes you to simply shut your mouth and grimace instead. 

As he notices your actions, Hat Guy lets an annoying smirk grace his face. "Come on, say what you were going to say. We both know that you have a lot to say to me," he says while lazily waving the envelope around.

To try and play this in your favor, you start to act nonchalant. “I don’t know what you mean by ‘avoiding you’. Also, what’s with the envelope? Never seen it before in my life.”

Hat Guy raises a brow. “What’s with this sudden stupid, chill guy persona? Anyways, it seems like you need a reminder. Not surprising considering our perspective rankings,” he subtly gloats.

“You little—”

”Let's see,”—he opens up the envelope and starts to smooth out the bottommost letter—”Maybe reading some of these letters will help jog your memory.” He makes a grand gesture of pretending to clear his throat before reading, and you can’t help but to cover your face with your hands to try and protect yourself from the upcoming embarrassing retelling.

“Again! Again, you received a higher score on an assigned research essay. It’s only been 2 months and 11 days since you’ve been enrolled into the Vahumana Darshan, so how is it that you’re the apparent “All-Knowing” about Time-Sensitive Commodities? Who do you think you are? The new Sumeru archon of wisdom? Oh, sorry. I shouldn’t be disrespecting our Lesser Lord Kusanali by comparing you to her—” he pauses and his eyes hurriedly shift to gauge your reaction. If anything, he should be thankful. If you hadn’t been so focused on not looking at him, you would have seen the crease in his brows mid-reading.

Hat Guy recomposes himself before continuing to read. “For Archon's sake. What’s more frustrating is your subtle boasting towards me. How could such a shitty personality even emit from a pretty face like yours? Though, I’ll begrudgingly admit that I actually look forward to these interactions that I have with you.”

“ST—!”

A coy smirk fills his face. “Oh? Why so embarrassed? Do you know these letters after all?”

“N-no…I was just clearing my throat.” At this point, you curse your pride for not being able to halt this interaction.

“Stubborn as always.”

This time he picks out a letter from the top of the stack..

“It's completely and utterly unfair how your resting face looks so serene. Why must you always be in the library at the same time as I? Your stupidly, bewitching face only serves as a major distraction, like how could I not stare! It's like your face was personally carved by a god. Also, how the hell do you make a simple fountain pen look so good? The way that your slender fingers grip the—”

“OK, that’s enough! Stop with the reciting! I admit it!” You feel your face heat up from embarrassment and your pyro vision only makes everything feel hotter. You raise your hands in frustration. “It was a whole mixup! Those letters weren’t even meant to be sent to you.” You dial back your volume towards the end.

He pointedly sighs. “Well that much I figured out. There’s no chance in Teyvat where you of all people would willingly subject themself to this. So, what are you going to do about it now?” he asks while crossing his arms.

It hurts to admit, but you felt stupid at this very second. “What do you mean?”

He tskd. “Do I need to explain every little thing to you? You’re ranked right below me, so I know that you’re not stupid. Are you going to own up to your letters and finally confess? Or are you going to just cowardly dismiss this like you’ve been doing?”

“CONFESS?” You almost give yourself whiplash from how fast you check to see if anyone’s heard you. You repeat yourself in a whispering tone. “Confess?”

“You talk about ‘looking forwards’ to our interactions, staring at my ‘bewitching face’ and ‘slender fingers’ and you think it’s absurd that I bring up confessing? Or would it be easier for you if I confess first?”

Without thinking you blurt out, “There’s no way that you actually like me back.”

“Do you ever see me bothering to interact with anyone as much as I do with you? I even surprised myself when I started to catch feelings for your stubborn self.”

You try to shake off the nerves before staring into his eyes. “Hat Guy, I like—”

“Wanderer.”

"What?"

"Call me Wanderer instead; it rolls off the tongue easier than Hat Guy. It’s a nickname that the traveler gave me. Hat Guy is a silly name that happened to stick around the Akademiya.”

“Lots of names you have there, huh?” you tease.

He lets out a sound that’s the mix between a chuckle and a scoff. “You don’t know the half of it.”

“Well, Wanderer. I like you. So…will you go out with me?”

“Obviously.” (Your eye roll at his matter-of-fact tone is instinctual) “I wouldn’t waste my time with anybody else. Anyways, let’s get out of here. You were on your way home before I caught you, weren't you?”

Your lips start to raise into a smile. “You’re going to walk me home?”

“Noo, I’m saying this so I can just go off on my own—”

“Oh, shut it. Let’s get out of here.”

As the both of you guys stroll out of the Akademiya, your hand closest to Wanderer suddenly can’t stop twitching every so often. Your head fills with thought pertaining to your new found relationship. 

‘Is it too early to be holding hands?…Maybe hand holding is too PDA for him on open streets—’

A cold hand suddenly embracing yours breaks you out of your stupor. You turn to Wanderer, clearly surprised by the action. Starting to feel embarrassed, you try to pry your hand out of his clutch, only for him to tighten his grip. “W-What are you doing?”

“What do you think I’m doing?” He pivots his head to the opposite side, hoping that you won’t catch his ears turning slightly pink. “Your thoughts are so loud that even Mondstadt can hear them,” he scoffs. “Just lead the way.”

You start to walk with a slight pep in your step. “As you say!”

bonus scene?:

“Hey, can I give you a nickname too? Or is it too soon..”

He turns with a raised eyebrow. “Depends. What do you have in mind?”

“XxAssMaster69xX”

He lets out the biggest sigh. “Not you too.”

“Jokes, jokes—” you pause. “Wait, me too?”

He continues to walk forwards without you.

“Me too?! Hello???”

[just-my-latest-hyperfixation]

Some sort of hive mind thing

Written for the Kissing Booth bonus card of the @steddiebingo

Prompt: Body Swap

Rated: T

Words: 975

Tags: POV Dustin Henderson; Body swap; Secret relationship; Coming out; Implied sexual content (very brief, very vague); Crack and humor

“Okay, the others are on their way.” 

Dustin puts the walkie back on his bedside table. The alarm clock tells him it's a little after four in the morning. When he tries to tug on his hat to ground himself, he realizes he isn't wearing one because he's still in his pajamas. Biting back a yawn, he snatches his Thinking Cap from its hook on the wall and puts it on. He feels like he's going to need it. 

“While we wait, walk me through this again,” he says, turning back to the two miserable figures sitting side by side on his bed. “Steve?” 

“Yeah?” says Eddie. 

Dustin blinks. He can practically feel his brain whirring in his skull as it recalibrates. Sweet mother of all that's logical, this must be the fourth-most bizarre thing that ever happened to him. 

“Oh, wait,” says Steve. “If you say Steve shouldn’t I answer? Wouldn't want half the town to find out about this. I've barely even shaken the satanist allegations. Better not add body snatching to the list.” 

“The fuck?” Eddie hisses. “First you steal my body and now you're taking my name, too?” 

Steve grins, wide and toothy, fluttering his lashes exaggeratedly. “Let's table the discussion about who's taking whose name for later, big boy. We've more important stuff to figure out right now.” 

Okay, make that the third-most bizarre thing. 

“You both went to bed as usual,” Dustin says over the ensuing string of bickering, wondering not for the first time who's babysitting who here. “Then, a few hours later, you woke up to discover that you're stuck in each other's bodies.” 

Eddie-who-looks-like-Steve snorts a laugh and Steve-who-looks-like-Eddie elbows him.

“Quit it! Be serious about this!” 

“I’m trying to, but he said stuck in-” 

“Did anything happen last night?” Dustin asks. 

They both flinch. Eddie attempts to pull a lock of hair in front of his face but grasps at thin air. 

“Did anything- … I have no idea what you- … Nothing happened! Nothing at all!”

Dustin raises an eyebrow at him. Eddie starts chewing on Steve’s knuckles.

“Really? You sure? Nothing strange or out of the ordinary? I need you to think real hard about this, it could be important.” 

Steve shrugs, raking a hand through Eddie’s hair and frowning when his fingers get stuck in the frizzy mess. “Dunno, man. Our life's pretty much an endless string of freak incidents, so it's kind of hard to say what qualifies as- Gross, dude, stop chewing on my nails.” 

“It helps with my anxiety, and you have mine,” Eddie grumbles, but he still stops chewing. 

“Which is why it's crucial,” Dustin shoulders on, “to look for patterns. There must've been something that caused this, and there must be a reason why it happened to the two of you. Oh, you think it has to do with the bats? You're the only ones who got bitten, so maybe that's the connection. Maybe it's some sort of hive mind thing.” 

He has started pacing up and down in front of the bed, but at the corner of his vision, he can see how Steve squints Eddie’s dark brown eyes at him. 

“But that was months ago,” he says. He’s still wearing Eddie’s rings, Dustin notices. Eddie has pulled their hands into his lap and started fiddling with them, muttering something about how they won't fit Steve’s stupid, giant saucer hands. “Why would it happen now?” 

Dustin snaps his fingers. “Something must've triggered it. There must've been some kind of dormant connection the entire time, and one or both of you must've done something to activate it.” 

He stops pacing and turns to them, only to find they’re not looking at him anymore. Instead, they’ve ducked their heads together and started muttering among themselves in hushed voices. Dustin catches the words oughta tell him, and wrinkles his brow. 

“Tell me what?”

“Okay!” Steve screws Eddie’s eyes shut and pinches Eddie’s nose. “You know how you asked me to drive you to the arcade last night?”

“And you told me no because you had this big, important date?” Dustin rolls his eyes. “Sure. What about it?”

“And how you called me after?” Eddie says. He has started pulling on the ends of Steve’s hair now, and it seems to be getting frizzier by the second. It looks a bit like regular Steve put his fingers in a socket. “And I said I’d love to chauffeur you, but I couldn’t because I had already made plans?”

“Yes,” Dustin deadpans. “You were both completely and utterly unhelpful and I had to cycle all the way there in the dark and the wind, thank you for reminding me. Now what does this have to do with any-”

“Dustin,” says Steve. He looks at Eddie, then down at their entwined hands. Pointedly. Dustin feels his jaw drop. 

“Oh,” he says. “You mean you were- … You both couldn’t make it because you were each other’s- … Oh! Oh my God, please don’t tell me- … Were you two making out?” 

Silence drops. Somewhere outside, bicycle tires crunch on gravel, heralding the arrival of the Party. 

“Sure,” says Eddie. “Let’s call it making out.”

Dustin groans, turning to open his window. 

“Let’s try to keep this between the three of us,” he hisses. “The others don’t need to know this.”

“What?” Steve grumbles. He’s always blushed easily, but now, with his newly acquired pale complexion, he looks like an Eddie-shaped lava lamp. “These kids have dealt with interdimensional monsters and telepathic wizards, you’d think they’d be able to stomach two guys kissing.”

“That’s not it,” Dustin says, and now it’s his turn to break into a smug grin. “But Max bet me twenty bucks you wouldn’t last until Christmas, and I'm broke, so I'd appreciate it if she wouldn't find out just yet.” 

More Steddie bingo

[justauthoring]

The is the Beginning [3/?]

Summary: You never thought you'd be able to escape Buggy, and yet, a boy with a straw hat, a man with three swords and a girl with orange hair somehow manage to free you. The journey that follows afterwards is your chance at freedom and maybe something more.

A One Piece Live Action Rewrite

Part One - Part Two - Part Three

Pairing: Live Action!Zoro Roronoa x F!Reader

TW for this chapter: canon typical violence, jealous!zoro, self-depricating talk, angst but fluff too! & Sanji content because I love him

Word Count: 10,710

A/N: I am so excited for this chapter. Literally so much happens in this chapter and AHHH I hope you all enjoy <3

Tag List: @emmaiscool22 - @bethleeham - @veryunoriginal - @sun-rae04 - @medievalfangirl

Chapter Three - Together

“Did you just call that guy grandpa?”

Mouth still left parted in shock, you stare at the back of Luffy’s head, waiting for him to answer Zoro’s question. Or, at the very least, clarify what exactly he meant by calling the Vice Admiral of the Marine Corps grandpa—because surely he was not actually related to your captain; your captain of a pirate crew.

Though, you’re at a loss to think of what else Luffy could have possibly meant.

Meeting Zoro’s gaze, the two of you stood directly behind Luffy, his expression matching your own.

“Hit the deck!”

You barely have time to register Usopp’s warning, only seeing something black and something very much like a cannon heading straight your way, before arms are grabbing you and pulling you down. You’re tucked into a chest, your own arms coming to protect yourself as you try to ignore the ache the sudden movement pulls on your stitches.

The rumble of the cannon hitting the ship fades, and slowly, you pull away, meeting Zoro’s gaze first, realizing then he’d been the one to pull you down (you don’t have time to think about how that makes you feel), before both of your gazes fall on the broken fence of your ship deck. 

Pressing a hand to your waist, you move to stand, Zoro shuffling back to give you room. He offers a hand, to which you take, letting him help pull you up to your own feet.

“Everybody okay?” Luffy calls, and your eye falls on him in front of you.

“I think so,” Nami calls back, breathless. Both her and Usopp were further back from the explosion, up on the helm deck.

“No,” Usopp cries, popping up beside her. “Not okay. Not even close to okay.”

You shake your head, trying to ignore your own panic that’s bubbling inside of you. “We need to do something,” you urge, facing back towards the marine ship. “They’re just gonna keep shooting at us until we sink.”

Meeting your gaze briefly, Luffy nods. “Usopp!” He calls, pointing directly at the marine ship and his grandpa. “Fire back at them!”

“Or how about we sail away as fast as we can?” Usopp offers.

Luffy turns to look at him, looking bewildered that he’d even offered the idea. But Nami only extends a hand towards Usopp, clearly in agreement.

“Run from the Marines?” Luffy breathes, “no. Never! Nami, trim the… the sail thing. Let’s sink their ship.”

Usopp, probably despite his own fear, comes to meet Luffy with the cannon ammo.

“You want to sink a marine ship?” You echo in disbelief. “That’s… insane.”

“Not to mention, we don’t have time!” Nami argues, “they’re stealing our wind. If they pull up alongside us, we’re finished.”

Luffy just ignores her. “You’re the navigator. Do something.”

Turning to her, she meets your gaze. You offer a helpless shrug.

Nami huffs. “Zoro,” she calls, shifting her gaze past you. “Sheet in and hard to port! Y/N, stay there and don’t get more hurt.”

Feeling useless, you huff, but listen to Nami regardless. You knew you’d only pay worse if you didn’t.

“You know how to load a cannon?” Luffy asks Usopp, who chuckles nonchalantly in return.

You seriously doubt that.

“Yeah, of course. I’ve loaded thousands of them.” Almost as soon as he says that, he hesitates with the cannon in hand. “Uh, this just must be a different model than I’m used to.”

Huffing, you shuffle forward. “Load the cannon in the barrel,” you explain, pointing at the barrel as he turns to look at you helplessly. “Light the fuse and then get out of the way.”

Nodding at you, he shuffles forward, moving to the front of the cannon. Only, before he can load the barrel, he drops all the cannons in his hands. 

“Usopp!”

Eyes widening, you rush forward to help, but Luffy holds a hand out to you, shaking his head as he moves to run after Usopp and the cannons which have gone down the stairs.

Pressing a hand to your forehead, you sigh.

“We’re so gonna die.”

-

Somehow, you don’t die.

After Luffy somehow manages to deflect a cannon with his belly, Nami quickly makes the five of you disappear into the thick of the fog. The second you’d gotten away, Luffy had crawled up to the bow and taken a seat. He hadn’t said a word since. 

Nami had taken to steering, and since she was probably the most qualified person, you’d left her to it. You instead decide to lean against the railing, letting your eyes stay focused on the back of Luffy.

It wasn’t like him to be quiet, and you had no doubt it had something to do with the fact that his grandpa had nearly just destroyed his ship and killed him and all his friends. With how Luffy was, you figured he probably hadn’t come to terms with that reality yet and he would probably continue to ignore it until forced to otherwise.

“How’s the ship looking?”

Inhaling sharply, you glance over your shoulder, eye falling on Zoro as he shakes his head at Nami. “Broken railing,” he answers, “minor damage. Could’ve been a lot worse.”

Nami rolls her eyes; “could’ve been better.”

“Can’t see the Marines anywhere,” Usopp assures.

“Can’t see anything in this soup,” Nami corrects. “What we need is a place to lay low, wait out any reinforcements they send after us. My charts are useless in this fog.”

Zoro nods. “What did Luffy say?”

You sigh; “he’s on the bow,” you point ahead of yourself. “He hasn’t said anything since we hightailed it. I’m…” Hesitating, you chance one glance at his back before turning back to the three. “I’m worried about him.”

“Somebody needs to talk to him,” Nami says. “About this and that other thing.”

Zoro frowns. “What other thing?”

“Oh gee, I wonder,” Nami says, obviously sarcastic.

The expression on Zoro’s face tells you he really doesn’t know what.

“The Vice-Admiral-of-the-Marines-is-my-grandfather-thing.” Nami explains, looking at you all like it’s obvious.

You offer a shrug; “I’m confused too… but it feels wrong to interrogate him about it. Especially after the guy tried to kill us.”

Nami just blinks over at you.

“Yeah…” Usopp drawls, “I don’t really know the guy that well, so…”

Zoro nods; “doesn’t seem like a big deal.”

“Well, I wouldn’t say that it isn’t a big deal…” You say tentatively, wary of Nami’s reaction and unable to deny the curiosity you feel. It did beg questions and it was a little wrong that Luffy had chosen not to tell any of you. “I just don’t know…”

Nami hesitates a moment, before shaking her head, turning to Zoro. “You’re his first mate,” he reminds, “kind of seems like that falls under your job description, hmm?”

He glances at you and Usopp, probably hoping one of you will do it instead of him. Usopp sends him a sheepish smile, holding the straps of his overalls and rocking on his feet, making his answer clear. When Zoro meets your gaze, you press a hand to your waist and smile nervously; “I’m injured?”

You were worried, but you also had no idea how to breach a conversation like that with Luffy of all people.

It’s obviously an excuse, but Zoro doesn’t argue. With a blink, he turns; “fine.”

You watch him leave, before meeting Nami’s gaze.

“You’re aware that Zoro is probably the worst person to check in on Luffy, right?” You raise a brow, “no way he’s actually gonna find anything out.”

Sighing dramatically, Nami presses her forehead to the helm.

Sure enough, a minute later Zoro comes back, shrugging; “seems fine to me.”

“Did you even ask him?”

Before Zoro can respond, if he even was going to, Luffy suddenly stands; “hey!” Pausing, he sniffs, raising his finger. “You guys smell that?”

Your brows furrow. “Smell what?”

Luffy’s quiet for a moment, taking in the air, before he breathes out; “there’s something on the breeze.” Sniffing again, his eyes widen. “Smells like butter. Soy sauce. And meat.”

He grins back at the four of you.

“I can’t smell anything,” Usopp frowns, moving towards Luffy. He seems almost disappointed he can’t smell anything.

“Think he has brain damage?” Zoro asks you and Nami.

Nami huffs, crossing her arms; “I think that every day.”

You let out a nervous laugh.

“Look, Luffy,” Usopp scratches his head. “Playing follow the smell is fun and all, but we really got to get out of this fog.”

“I know,” he calls back, “but I smell food, which means that there’s someone somewhere cooking.”

-

You’ll never doubt Luffy’s nose again.

Turns out what he was smelling was a whole restaurant, and without having anywhere else to go and needing food, you’d all decided to dock there and get something to eat. Luffy and Usopp had been roaring to go the second the ship docked, barely able to stand still, which made Nami eager to get off the boat just so she didn’t have to deal with two idiots. You’re pretty excited yourself, but just as the ship docked, you’d noticed a bit of red on your shirt. You very quickly deduced it was your wound and obviously, after the excitement of nearly being hit by a cannon, you’d aggravated your stitches.

“You sure you don’t need help?” Nami frowns, hesitating to follow Luffy and Usopp off the ship. Zoro was hanging by the plank too, you couldn’t help but notice. He wasn’t offering to stay, of course, but he seemed concerned.

Shaking your head from the thought, you smile at Nami. “Positive.” You assure, sending her a thumbs up. “I just gotta change the bandage and my shirt and I’ll meet you guys there. Just let the host know I’m coming.”

Hovering for only a moment longer, Nami nods. “You can borrow one of my shirts again,” she offers. “Remind me next time we’re on an island to get you some clothes. When we’re not being chased by Marines.”

You laugh, nodding at her and turning to head to your and Nami’s shared room. You pause, however, when your eye catches Zoros’ once again. He looks like he wants to say something, and for some reason you find you can’t offer anything in return. It takes Nami, who’d seen the rather obvious and embarrassing display, to grab Zoro by the arm and pull him with her to get either of you to move.

Cheeks burning, you rush down to the room, trying to ignore the flutter of your chest or the nerves flooding through your entire body.

Seriously, it was starting to get too much. Before, you’d at least be able to brush it off as being intimidated by Zoro since he was, well, a pretty intimidating guy. But since the whole Kuro incident and you getting hurt, every time Zoro’s eyes seemed to fall on you, that narrowed and heavy gaze lightened into something soft. It was hard to ignore or not let get to you when he’d already made you all hot and flustered before.

He was attentive in a way you hadn’t experienced or expected from him. Everyone had been worried when you’d gotten hurt. You distinctly remember being surprised by how bothered Nami had seemed by it and even Usopp, who you’d just met, had checked in on you. But Zoro? Zoro had been concerned in a whole other way. Rather than just asking you or checking in like Luffy had, he’d hovered. He stayed near when Kaya had cleaned and stitched your wound for you, helping you walk there and then back to the ship even when you assured you were fine.

You’d never had someone so worried about you, let alone a man you were clearly attracted to.

You didn’t know if Zoro had any idea of what he was doing to you, but he was killing you. Your heart was always racing when he was near, which was always, and he made you feel like a fumbling fool, mind short-circuiting to the point of silliness whenever his eyes fell on you.

You’d never forget what he’d said about your eye. How he’d made you feel about it. Luffy and Nami had been endearing too, you would never deny that, but Zoro had spoken up first. And the look on his face…

Pressing your hands to your cheeks, you try to cool the heat you feel and your racing mind. This was silly. You were being silly. Zoro was just being nice and he probably just saw what a helpless fool you were and felt pity. There was nothing more to it. 

Zoro was a strong swordsman, a renowned bounty hunter and Luffy’s first mate and you were… you.

Swallowing thickly, you sit down at the desk in your and Nami’s shared room, pulling up your shirt and glancing down. As expected, your wound has bled through your bandage. Momentarily, you worry that you’ve ripped your stitches, but the second you pull the bandage off, you’re assured that isn’t the case. You clearly just aggravated the wound and, pausing to clean the blood and apply the salve Kaya had given you, you place a new bandage on.

You take a moment more to find a shirt to wear, thankful Nami was being so generous with her clothing. You could tell the girl took her fashion seriously and you felt bad enough borrowing her clothes, but now you were ruining them with blood. You’d have to make it up to her somehow.

Cleaned with a new bandage on, you smile to yourself, feeling your stomach rumble almost as if reminding you.

Without a second more of hesitation, you make your way up and off the Going Merry. The Baratie is buzzing with people and you can’t help but let your gaze wander across the millions of different people going on with their lives, each in their own world. You continue to do so until you find the front entrance to the restaurant, and with a simple explanation to the host that you were here with friends and a small description of some friends, you’re led to the table.

You pause, however, when you realize the waiter is already taking your friends’ order.

The host leaves your side and with only a second more of hesitation, you make your way to the table, not having realized you’d taken so long.

“Do I still have time to place an order?”

Everyone's eyes fall on you at your question, and coming to a stop on the left of the waiter, right in front of Zoro. You frown when you notice the tense look on his face, concerned, but before you can ask, your captain is beaming at your arrival.

“Y/N!” Luffy calls, grinning. “You’re just in time! I ordered one of everything for us!”

You shouldn’t be surprised, but his words still pull a laugh from your lips. Of course Luffy would order the entire menu.

“I didn’t know I would be greeted by two beautiful maidens today. And one with such an infectious laugh.”

Freezing, it takes you a second to realize that the words had come from the waiter and that he was talking to you. Eyes widening, you turn to him, meeting his eyes with your left one, only to see him smiling at you. One hand is shoved into the pocket of his dress pants as he turns towards you with a certain suaveness.

Cheeks warming in embarrassment, your hands rise. “Oh, I—”

But before you can finish, the waiter is taking your left hand in his, pulling it up to his lips and pressing a kiss there. No longer just warm, your cheeks burn.

“Such beautiful eyes too, madam,” he grins, “I’ll never forget either of them.”

You’re hyper aware of the fact that your entire crew is watching this happen and that you’re standing there, gaping like a fish. You’ve never had anyone flirt with you, especially not someone so… persistent. 

The waiter continues to stare back at you, never once looking upset by your lack of response.

An achingly long minute passes.

“Y/N.”

You don’t even have time to turn to Zoro at him calling your name before you feel hands fall on your hips, tugging you forward. A small yelp leaves your lips in response, stunned stupid, as Zoro pulls you in front of him, practically on his lap for a brief second, your hand slipping from the waiter's grip. Zoro moves you so you’re sat next to him, in between him and Nami who sends you a knowing smirk as you try to ignore your racing heart and flaming cheeks.

“Oi,” the waiter calls before you can, again, say anything. “Don’t be so rough with her.”

Zoro glares right at him. “Don’t be so handsy,” he growls back, not missing a beat. “Y/N doesn’t even know you.”

“She can get to know me,” the waiter challenges, curling a brow at your swordsman before his eyes shift back to you. “I’m sorry our introduction got interrupted, my name is Sanji. It’s lovely to meet you, Y/N.”

You’re sure you look as stupid as you feel.

“N-Nice to meet you too, Sanji,” you echo back, voice small.

Sanji grins just as Zoro leans forward, cutting you off from view. “Shouldn’t you be getting our food and drinks? The ones we ordered, waiter?”

The smile on Sanji’s face tenses, but he holds back whatever he clearly wants to say to Zoro, side stepping to meet your eyes once again. “Certainly, but first… what would you like, madam? Water like your lovely friend or something else? A sweet wine, perhaps? I can recommend some to you.”

You meet Nami’s eyes who just scoffs, obviously having received similar attention as you were now.

“Water,” you squeak. “Like her.”

“Not sparkling? Mineral? Ice or no?”

“Just water,” you nod, noticing the tick in Zoro’s jaw.

“Coming right up, Y/N,” he winks at you, smirking, before he turns away.

Silence follows, thick and heavy.

“Don’t worry,” Nami is the first to break the ice, lightly nudging you. “He was the same with me.”

Usopp snickers next to her, meeting your eye; “looks like you and Nami have got a boyfriend.”

Rolling her eyes, Nami just laughs quietly to herself. “Yeah, well, I don’t think it’s me we should be worried about.” Her eyes shift to Zoro, as does everyones, even Luffy who looks a bit lost, and finally, you turn to look at him too.

Your cheeks are still warm with embarrassment, mainly from Sanji’s flirting, but also the way Zoro had grabbed you. It wasn’t that you minded, because really, you didn’t, but—what the hell was that?

Meeting her gaze, arms crossed over his chest, Zoro huffs; “I’m fine.”

“Sure,” Nami drawls, smirking. 

“I never seen you so angry, Zoro,” Usopp teases, grinning ear to ear. “Jealous?” He sings the word, wiggling his brows at the swordsman as you sink into your seat further.

“Of a waiter?” Zoro scoffs, careful not to glance your way. “Of course not.”

You don’t fail to notice the fact that he hadn’t denied he’d been jealous because of you.

With a little bit more laughter, the conversation drifts off as Luffy starts to ramble about the food. Once the attention is thoroughly off you and Zoro, you turn to him.

“Are you okay?” You ask in a soft voice, concerned and perhaps wanting to know more about why he’d done what he had.

Finally turning to look at you, you watch as Zoro swallows thickly. “Fine,” he says gruffly and you flinch, frowning. Seeing your reaction, Zoro sighs. “Just didn’t like the way he touched you…”

He says it with a grumble, and if you hadn’t been right next to him, you wouldn’t have heard it.

Lips parting, you blink; “oh.”

“No guy should touch you like that.” He adds.

You turn to him but he’s already looked away, clearly done with the conversation.

You can’t help but think to yourself, however, that he’d touched you like that.

And that you liked it.

- 

“So… how long do you think the owner will make Luffy work for him?”

You glance up at your friends at your own question, curious. Instead of mirrored curiosity staring back at you, you find blank faces instead.

Frowning, you huff. “Is no one concerned?” You ask, genuinely worried. “We all ate that food… and he’s the one working for it.”

“I didn’t eat,” Zoro shrugs, “I just drank some beer.”

You glower at him.

Turning to Usopp, you hope maybe he’ll say something. Of course, he doesn’t and instead, he continues to slurp up the fancy fruity cock-tail drink he’d ordered, promptly avoiding your eye. You already know that Nami won’t be any help since she seemed rather hurt by Luffy lying about his grandpa, and while you couldn’t fault her for being hurt, you were frustrated at all of their lack of concerns.

Sighing, you push yourself to a stand, taking a step forward. Zoro catches you by the wrist before you make it two full steps.

“Where are you going?”

You glance down at him. “To find Luffy,” you gesture forward, as if the answer should’ve been obvious. Which it should’ve. “I don’t feel like drinking or…” You let your eyes drag across the bustling crowd of the bar. “...dancing. Maybe I can talk the owner into going easy on him.”

You go to do that, except, Zoro still doesn’t let go of your wrist.

“We should probably stick together,” Zoro says, never taking his eyes off of you. “In case the Marines come.”

You shake your head, pulling at his grip. He lets go easy, but the frown on his face makes it clear he’s annoyed by your persistence. “I’ll be fine,” you brush off his concern. “The worst thing I’ll be doing is washing some dishes, I reckon.”

Zoro looks like he wants to argue, but it’s clear he isn’t sure how.

You just sigh; “stay and relax. I’ll be fine.”

And then you turn before he can say anything else.

Shifting your way past the crowd of the bar, you make your way back down the steps that lead out into the outdoor bar. It isn’t hard to get back into the restaurant, but you’re careful not to catch the attention of any of the chefs or staff. Instead, you carefully slink your way towards the employee section.

At the sight of a chef with blue hair coming towards you, you’re quick to duck behind a wall. You hesitate, hovering, trying to listen for his footsteps to grow distant. Except, your ears pick up on something else.

Luffy.

Turning in the direction of the noise, your gaze falls on the hallway in front of you, seeing a door at the far end. With one more glance behind you to make sure no one was there, you make your way down the hall, eyes brightening when you see the word ‘KITCHEN’ labelled at the top of the door. A glance through the small circular windows only confirms your suspicions, lips curling into a smile at the sight of Luffy.

You also make note of the waiter from before standing in front of him and… it looked like the two were talking to a man you didn’t recognize. Sanji is ushering the man out the back entrance of the kitchen, and you use that as your chance to sneak in.

Pushing open the door, you pop your head in.

“Luffy?”

He turns at the sound of your voice, face brightening at the sight of you.

“Y/N!”

You wince when he all but yells your name, confident you were definitely not supposed to be back here. With one last glance back, you slip inside, letting the doors swing shut behind you as you make your way over to your captain.

“What’re you doing here?” He grins, confused. “I thought you and the rest went up to the bar.”

“We did… but I left.” You explain, frowning slightly. Setting your hand on his arm, you glance up at him. “It was a little awkward, Luffy. Nami’s pretty upset about the grandpa thing.”

Luffy’s face wavers at that, the same way you noticed it had during dinner when Nami had brought it back up then. Frowning at the sight, you squeeze his arm reassuringly.

“But mainly I came because I was worried,” you smile. “I didn’t know how hard that owner guy was working you.”

Luffy instantly eases at that, and his lips curve into a genuine smile.

“I’m okay. He just has me doing dishes,” he juts his thumb behind him, and you eye the stack of dishes with a grimace. “Though, I think I found—”

“Y/N?”

Startled at the new voice, you glance over Luffy’s shoulder to see the waiter back from wherever he’d escorted that man you’d seen before. He seems baffled at the sight of you, while you freeze at the sight of him, worried he’ll be mad you snuck in.

“Hello, S-Sanji,” you greet, offering a small wave. “I know I’m not supposed to be here but I was worried about Luffy—”

“I’m not mad you’re here, love,” Sanji grins easily, making his way over to you and Luffy with a shake of his head. “I just hoped you were having fun upstairs in the bar.”

Still not used to his charm, you flush. “Oh, well…” Eye trailing, you turn to Luffy. “I was actually going to ask Luffy if he needed help with—”

“Absolutely not,” Sanji cuts you off for the third time, leaving your lips parted in bafflement. He’s crossing the distance in the kitchen over to you two in two seconds, and before you can even realize it, his hands are on your shoulders, gently turning you towards the door to the kitchen. The one you’d just come from. “A lady like yourself should not be getting her hands dirty at all.”

“B-But…” Words trailing in your bafflement, you glance back at Luffy who grins back at you, unbothered.

“The chore boy will be fine.”

“I should really…” You reach weakly towards Luffy who just raises his hand in an eager wave, completely unbothered by Sanji who is all but shoving you out of the kitchen.

Before you realize, the two of you are back out in the restaurant and Sanji, still with his hands on your shoulders, is easily maneuvering you up the stairs and out of the restaurant completely. In fact, he doesn’t stop until he’s outside the restaurant, far away from anyone.

When he lets go of you, you turn to him, nonplussed.

He grins down at you, sincere and wide.

“Do you always drag girls you just meet to secluded areas to get them alone?”

He seems momentarily stunned by your words, as if not even realizing where he’d lead you, before his face eases and he leans back against the wall of the restaurant. You watch as he reaches into the pocket of his dress pants, pulling out a pack of smokes. “Not usually, but I thought this was the perfect opportunity to get to know each other. Like I’d offered before.” He sends you a wink that has your cheeks warming, eye watching as he places a cigarette between his teeth, lighting it.

Crossing your arms over your chest, you curl a brow at him, ignoring your flush. “Very… forward of you.”

He just grins, taking a puff of his smoke. “You don’t seem to mind it.”

“Only because Luffy didn’t seem bothered by you leading me away like that,” you shrug, moving to lean against the wall next to him. “Anyone Luffy trusts, I do too.”

Sanji raises a brow. “You sure have faith in him.”

“He saved my life,” you explain, thinking back to that moment he’d offered you to join his crew. Even before that, in that pub… you had no idea then how much Luffy and the rest would change your mind. “They all have.”

Sanji’s smile turns more soft at that, and he turns his gaze up to the sky. “That’s sweet.” You turn to look at him, and sure enough, a moment later, he’s adding with a smirk; “just like you.”

You scoff. “It seems you can’t control yourself.”

“Not when I’m around you,” he laughs, taking another puff of his smoke.

“Sure,” you drawl, snorting.

A second of silence passes, before Sanji speaks up again. “So, what’s going on between you and that moss head?”

Almost instantly, the light flush you’d had before burns into something more intense, as you jump, facing Sanji as you wildly shake your hands in front of you. “No-Nothing!” You squeak, unable to control the pitch of your voice.

Sanji eyes you for a moment, then, he chuckles; “sure.” He drawls, matching your previous tone.

“Seriously,” you argue, trying to calm your voice to sound more sure. “There’s nothing going on between me and Zoro.”

“Beautiful, anyone who gets jealous like that over a little flirting doesn’t think there’s nothing going on.” Sanji shakes his head, nudging you lightly with his shoulder. “Or, he hasn’t man-upped enough to tell you the truth.”

You’re positive you’re on fire with how hot you are in embarrassment.

“Zoro does not like me.”

“Okay,” he pauses, “but do you like him?”

Lips left parted, you blink up at Sanji.

“I-I… It’s none of your business.”

Humming, Sanji takes another puff. “Seems like you want to get it off your chest, love.”

You pout. “You’re annoying.”

He leans towards you, smirking; “I’m right, beautiful.” 

Shoulders falling, you kick your leg out at a random pebble. “Fine,” you huff, glancing at your feet. “Maybe I like him… a little bit!”

You don’t see the way Sanji’s face softens down at you, and you almost think something’s wrong when he doesn’t say anything. But when you glance back up at him, he’s turned his gaze back up. “Shame,” he sighs, almost soulful. “You truly are enchanting.”

Eyes widening, you bite your lip. “Shut up.”

“It’s true,” he pushes, looking unbothered by your embarrassment. “You deserve far more than that moss head.”

“You don’t even know Zoro.”

He shrugs. “I can tell.”

“I—”

Whatever you’d been about to say falls silent on the tip of your tongue when you see a familiar Straw Hat run by in front of you. Stepping back Sanji, you glance past his shoulder, you watch as Luffy and Usopp run towards the Going Merry.

“Where’s Y/N?” You hear Luffy yell distantly.

“I thought she was with you!” Usopp calls back.

You frown.

“Something wrong?” Sanji asks, hand falling on your shoulder and your gaze turns up, realizing he’d seen the same thing.

“I don’t know…” You breathe, concerned. Stepping back from Sanji, you turn to him apologetically, lips parting to explain.

“Don’t worry about it, love,” he brushes your apology off. “You should go make sure everything’s okay.”

Face easing at his words, you smile; “thank you, Sanji.”

Cigarette in his lips, he glances at you out of the corner of his eye. You send him a genuine smile and a wave, before turning around to run off in the direction Usopp and Luffy had gone.

You’re quick to pick up the pace in your step, reaching the Going Merry in now time. You can hear the distinct voice of Nami and heart racing at how upset she sounds, you’re making your way down the stairs and towards them in seconds flat.

“But you are not better than him!”

Coming to a stop right at the bottom of the stairs, everyone’s eyes fall on you.

Nami instantly turns on you; “there you are!” Reaching you, she tugs you forward, and as she does, you see Usopp glance at you helplessly and Luffy softly smiling which gives you very mixed signals. 

Finally, you turn to Zoro, who is… getting his swords ready?

“What’s going on?” You ask, helpless.

Nami huffs next to you. “Will you talk some sense to him?”

Lips parting, you shake your head at Nami. “Sure… but for what?”

“He’s challenged Dracule Mihawk, one of the Seven Warlords, to a duel.”

It’s like you can hear your heart plummet to the pit of your stomach. Nami, who is too busy turning back to Zoro in frustration, doesn’t notice the way your eye shifts, something distant flooding in. Usopp and Luffy don’t see it either.

But Zoro, who’d chanced a glance up at you, nervous for your reaction, sees it. His face falls briefly, everything else fading as he watches you closely.

“Y/N,” Nami presses, voice pitching in distress. “Tell him how reckless he's being.”

Still stunned, your mind a reckless bout of realization and terror, your gaze finally shifts towards Zoro. He quickly turns away and the sight makes dread flood you. “Z-Zoro,” you breathe, feeling as if your voice sounds like an outside extension of yourself.

Distantly, you realize that you’re not helping Nami and most of all, acting suspiciously. Swallowing thickly, you lean forward on the table. “You cannot fight… h-him… fight Mihawk.”

“Yeah,” Nami nods. She looks relieved you agree with her and you figure, even in the midst of your racing mind, the boys hadn’t been much help. With a frown and a huff, she throws her hand in Zoro’s direction; “he wants to go through with it! Even though it’ll get him killed.”

Zoro turns to her, still avoiding your gaze, and asks bluntly; “why do you give a shit?”

Nami visibly blanches, head jerking back in hurt. Her lips part, twisting to say something, and then, blinking back the betrayal in her eyes, she breathes out; “because you’re my friend, you idiot.”

“You said it yourself. You don’t have any friends.”

You see it in her eyes. His words are harsh and even though you’re still reeling from the realization of what was happening and clearly having walked into the middle of something, you see as the walls she’d slowly let fall around you all come back up. Brick by brick.

She glances around the room, meeting your eye last and then, she leaves without another word.

All of you, except for Zoro, watch her leave.

No one says anything, and then, Usopp is following Nami out, meeting your eye with a nervous panic before slipping out. Luffy follows him a second later, patting your shoulder.

You stay standing there, as if glued to the spot. You can’t bring it in you to chase after Nami even if you were concerned, but you also can’t find the words to say something to Zoro. You want to tell him off for being cruel to Nami like that, you want to tell him he was being an idiot that was going to get himself killed and you want to tell him…—

It takes Zoro a minute to speak up. “Not going to try and convince me like Nami?”

Swallowing thickly, the lump in your throat remains despite. With your hands hanging helplessly at your sides, you try to blink back the tears that well in your eyes. It was all too much at once. Your heart was aching with this anchor that had been thrown at you and it was too much to bear.

Still, deep in your heart, you know; “it wouldn’t stop you,” you whisper, voice cracking at the end.

You could beg and plead, get on your hands and knees, and you know nothing could stop Zoro from doing this. The only thing that might… you weren’t sure if you were ready to admit.

Zoro pauses, hands hovering. Then, he agrees; “probably not.”

Your breath hitches. “You could die.”

He turns to look at you. You don’t meet his eyes. 

“He’s my goal.”

Fists clenching, you shake your head. “Zoro, please listen,” you cry, “you cannot fight Mihawk. He’s… He’s…”

But you can’t form the words.

“He’s what?” Zoro pushes, leaning towards you. “Say it, Y/N. I saw your face when Nami told you. Mihawk is what?”

You flinch, stepping back. You can’t look at him even as the guilt and panic tears you apart inside. You couldn’t.

Your mind races for something, something else, and then you remember your conversation with Sanji before. You remember your feelings. “W-What about me?”

“What about you?” Zoro’s tone is even, careful, but his blunt question hurts all the same.

Finally, you look up at him. His eyes are already on you, face flat and expressionless. 

You come to terms then it’s pointless. Zoro wasn’t going to cancel the duel and nothing you were willing to say would change his mind. Anything more, and you’d just get yourself hurt. You think once again, in that moment, back to your conversation with Sanji. 

You’d known of your feelings all along, just hadn’t been able to realize it. But you’d finally let yourself admit how you felt about Zoro. Finally let the truth out and the relief you’d felt in that moment, to a man you’d only met that day no less, had been imminent.

You’d gotten ahead of yourself then. Forgot that you were the only one who believed in Luffy’s wish to be a crew. Forgot that all the people you’d met had their own goals and you were someone just drifting alongside with them until it came time for them to leave.

You forgot that your life wasn’t just being a part of Luffy's crew.

You forgot that even if Zoro felt anything of what you felt for him, you were still just some girl he’d rescued from a pirate and nothing more than that. Zoro had his own goals and dreams, and you weren’t part of them.

What about you?

Answer made clear, you turn and walk without another word.

Zoro doesn’t see the way tears fall from your face the second you’re out of sight and you don’t see the way his leg kicks out in frustration at himself for being so stupid. 

-

It was clear Mihawk didn’t know who you were, despite being your father.

You couldn’t blame him, though. He’d never met you. He didn’t even know that the random woman he met that one day eighteen years ago and spent the night with, had ever gotten pregnant. It wasn’t like Dracule Mihawk to stick around places for long, after all.

And the only reason you even knew he was your father was because your mother had told you the day she died. In her deathbed, with your hand clutching hers, she’d whispered his name and told you if you ever needed help, to go to him.

Something told you he wouldn’t be helping you here.

You watch him best Zoro in every single one of his attacks. He dodges his attacks without even having to lift a finger. It’s a fight unlike anything you’ve ever seen before, and the reality of watching Zoro unable to land any attacks is cruel and unforgiving.

Everything about this is cruel.

With your heart racing and your palms sweaty, you visibly flinch when Mihawk stabs Zoro with the tiny sword he told Zoro was the best match for their duel. It hits him directly in the chest, and you watch the flicker of pain in Zoro’s eyes as he stares his goal down.

And as you listen to Zoro refuse to give up, you can feel your heart tear into two.

Mihawk brings out Yoru. You watch as he unsheathes it from his back, heart plummeting. And you watch as Zoro places the Wado Ichimonji in his mouth, bringing the two black-handle katanas into either of his hands. This is it, you realize. This is the final attack.

After watching Zoro be unable to land one hit, you know this final one won’t be different.

There’s a moment of stilled silence, no one moves. And then, Zoro is running forward and Mihawk watches his pace. They clash, the sound of metal hitting metal reverberates in your mind, rattling your insides.

Zoro slides on his knees across the deck in front of Baratie, stopping just a few feet in front of you. He’s breathless, silent, and you feel your friends around you as you all watch with bated breath.

The two black-handle swords shatter into pieces.

The sob that wretches from your throat is beyond your control. It rips out of you, body shuddering in the reality you’re forced to face, watching as Zoro stands to his feet and turns to face Mihawk.

“You’re defeated,” Mihawk shakes his head. “Why do you persist?”

Sheathing the Wado Ichimonji, Zoro says without hesitation; “wounds on the back are a swordsman’s greatest shame.” Raising his arms in defeat, he holds them to his sides, waiting for Mihawk to make his final move.

“Magnificent.”

Tears welling in your eyes, you feel a hand slip into your own.

Glancing down first and then following the arm, you find Nami’s similarly tearful eyes staring back at you, squeezing your hand. You don’t know if it’s to comfort you or herself, but you appreciate it nonetheless. You turn to your other friends, seeing that Nami is holding Usopp’s hand too and he’s looking at you with concern. The final person you turn to is Luffy.

He meets your eye, and your whole body trembles.

You turn your head back in Zoro’s direction, and the second Mihawk’s arm swings to attack Zoro, you turn away again.

Your head tucks into Nami who startles at your movement, but her hand slips from your own to wrap her arm around you. You can’t see, but you hear the slice of skin and the sound of Zoro’s body hit the ground a minute later. You feel Nami’s body jerk in response.

“Zoro!”

-

Hugging your knees to your chest, you stare at Zoro. You let your eye drag across his sleeping figure, every curve of his face, the dip of his nose, all the way down to his chest, where his wound is tightly bandaged.

It was thanks to Sanji and the Baratie owner, Zeff, that Zoro’s wounds had been cleaned, stitched and dressed. It was thanks to them that Zoro even had a chance of surviving.

Talk to him. That’s what Zeff had said. The only thing any of you could do for Zoro now was talk to him and hope that that was enough to pull him from the purgatory between life and death. 

You’d offered the first watch and no one had argued. Everyone was worried about Zoro in their own way, but the tears streaming down your cheeks and the visible mess you were in left no one willing to argue with you. One by one, everyone had left the room, with Luffy only glancing back at you one last time, before it was just you and Zoro.

You hadn’t moved from the spot since then.

That had been hours ago. Nami had come in at one point and asked if she could read to Zoro. you’d nodded without a word, sitting back but never leaving the room. Nami didn’t say anything and even if she had, you would’ve refused to leave. Luffy had followed her in shortly after and that had turned sour quickly when it was apparent that Nami felt Luffy held some responsibility for not telling Zoro to back out of the duel. You watched them argue, not saying a word. Then, Nami left.

“You should eat,” Luffy had said a minute after she walked out the door.

Never taking your eye off Zoro, you’d shaken your head. “I will when he wakes up.”

“Y/N, you—”

“When he wakes up.” The words had come out sharper than you intended and instantly, you’d felt guilt when you’d seen Luffy jerk at the sound. But you didn’t get up nor did you say anything else, and a minute later, Luffy left too.

That had been an hour ago. No one else had come in since.

You’d moved back to the chair next to Zoro, and let your hand slip into his and you hadn’t moved since.

Talk to him. How were you supposed to talk to him? What could you possibly say to him after everything that happened? 

Head falling, you let out a shaky sigh.

“This is all my fault,” you whisper, barely even registering you’d said the words aloud. And as you breathe the words into existion, you realize that that was the only thing you could say. 

Raising your head, you glance at Zoro’s face.

“I’m so sorry,” you say, squeezing his hand. “I should’ve… I should’ve told you the truth.”

Your chest feels tight, your body heavy. You know what you want to say, but you don’t know if you have the courage to speak the words. Mihawk was your father, it was true, but he meant nothing to you. That isn’t what made it hard to say. Not even seeing him in person for the first time today could make the feeling of indifference toward him fade. Mihawk didn’t even know who you were and he never would.

Today would’ve been your chance to tell him and it hadn’t even crossed your mind.

What you found hard to admit was that you’d been too scared to tell Zoro the truth and that cowardness is what got him hurt. If you had just been honest with him, maybe none of this wouldn’t have happened. Zoro wouldn’t have gotten hurt and nobody on the crew would be upset.

Why couldn’t you have just been honest?

“I was scared,” you tell Zoro. “Scared because there’s so much about my life I don’t know and the only thing I do know is so unimportant.” Breathing in sharply, you force the words out. “So what if Mihawk is my father? It hadn’t mattered before. But it mattered last night and I should’ve told you… If I told you, you wouldn’t be hurt and the crew wouldn’t have to be worried about you not waking up.”

Pressing your free hand to your forehead, you shake your head. “I’m so sorry, Zoro,” you sob, feeling your eyes water as curl into yourself. “I’m so sorry because you’re hurt and because I think I may love you… and my life is so utterly unimportant that you deserve better than someone like me… Someone who will just ruin your life.”

Your hand leaves his, pressing against your lips as you let yourself cry. You let yourself cry out the anguish in your chest that weighs you down and hurts. You cry and cry, stifling your sobs behind your hand, letting it all out.

Until, eventually, you fall asleep from the exhaustion.

The exhaustion of not sleeping the night before, of being tense and terrified for Zoro, for the guilt that feels like it might eat you alive.

You stay like that for a while, until soft hands gently shake you awake.

“Come on, love. Wake up.”

Letting out a soft groan, your eyes flutter at the voice, hands moving instinctively to rub at your eyes. It takes you a second to wake yourself up, confused as you slowly straighten out. You first see Zoro before your head turns, and your eye falls on Sanji who’s standing behind you.

“Sanji?”

“You need to eat,” Sanji says, ushering you. “Come on.”

You turn back to Zoro, licking your dry lips. “I shouldn’t leave him.”

Your eyes are puffy and your eyelids ache. The last thing you remember is crying, and it occurs to you you’d fallen asleep in the midst of your break down. 

“Luffy can watch him,” Sanji offers, gesturing behind him.

Turning towards the door, Luffy smiles at you warmly.

“I’ll watch Zoro for you, Y/N. I promise I’ll take good care of him.”

Dazed and still a little sleepy, you let Sanji pull you to your feet, not fighting his grip as he guides you towards the door. You glance back at Zoro one last time, feeling that crushing guilt stab at you, just as Luffy squeezes your shoulder.

“He’ll wake up, Y/N,” Luffy grins at you. “I promise.”

You nod at him, finding his words reassuring and comforting despite the doubt festering inside you.

“I’ll whip you up something tasty, Y/N.” Sanji smiles softly down at you, “okay?”

He’s incredibly gentle the entire time. You relish in it.

-

“Can I have a moment alone with him?”

Meeting Nami’s eyes, you nod, moving to stand. She sends you a smile, though it seems off, as you walk past her.

Letting the door fall shut behind you, you make your way into the kitchen. You bite your lip, trying to ignore the nerves rattling your body. After Nami had come running into the kitchen where you and Sanji were, you eating after he’d made you a meal like he promised, it was instantly clear something was wrong. She had been going on about some pirate named Arlong, calling for Luffy in between explaining to you. Most importantly, she looked terrified.

Turns out Arlong was attacking Baratie looking for Luffy and the Grand Line map.

Nami’s attempt at getting Luffy to take the Going Merry and run had been fruitless and he, Sanji and Usopp had gone to confront Arlong. Luffy had told Nami to stay behind to protect the map, before turning to you and telling you to watch over Zoro for him. When you’d tried to argue and say you could help, he’d just shaken his head and said you were still healing from your last fight and Zoro was more important.

So, for the last twenty or so minutes, you and Nami were in the Going Merry. She’d disappeared elsewhere on the ship the second the three left, so you assigned yourself back next to Zoro, opting to read to him like Nami had before in the hopes that maybe that’d get him to wake up. 

You had, at least, until Nami had popped her head into the room.

You hoped everything was going well. Honestly, you did want to go out and check on them, but you knew Luffy was right. Even if he hadn’t said it in that way, it was clear he didn’t want you coming because you didn’t know how to fight. You’d be more of a hindrance than any help and that reality left a sour taste in your mouth.

Hearing footsteps approach, you turn, face easing when you see Nami coming out of the room.

“Everything okay?” You ask, despite knowing in fact nothing was okay.

She nods, stepping out of the room and you smile at her as you walk past her, squeezing her shoulder in an attempt to comfort both her and yourself. You think nothing of the look on her face, chalking it up to everything that had and is happening just making her a little off.

At least, until you hear the door slam shut behind you.

Stilling right next to Zoro, your head snaps towards the door. You hesitate for a moment, baffled, before your feet instinctively carry you towards it, hand falling on the knob. Maybe she’d shut it by accident? Or maybe she wanted to give you privacy as you had for her?

Except, the door won’t open when you turn it.

“N-Nami?”

You know she’s by the door. You can see her shadow through the small opening at the bottom. You can hear her heavy breathing.

“Nami,” you call again, voice louder. “Why is the door locked?”

There’s a moment that passes before she answers.

“Sorry, Y/N. I can’t let you out.”

“What?” You breathe, bewildered. There’s something awful twisting in your chest. You try the door again, it doesn’t open. “Nami, what the hell is going on? What are you doing?”

“I’m doing what I always planned to do.”

Her voice is muffled through the door, but the low tone scares you all the same.

Using your left hand, you slam it against the door. “Let me out, Nami. Now.”

“You’ll be safe in there.”

You hear her take a step toward and your heart lurches, yanking on the door as you start to pound against it more aggressively. “Nami?”

“I’m sorry.”

You see her shadow disappear and soon, her footsteps are gone too. You stand there, stunned, before you start to yank on the door again. You pull at it, trying to twist it. But it’s clearly jammed shut.

Nami had made sure you weren’t going to be able to get out.

Minutes pass of you banging on the door, with no luck, until eventually you tire yourself out. 

Head hanging in your hands, you try to ignore the shake of your body as you sit there, forced to wait.

At the first sound of footsteps, you jump to your feet.

“Hey!” You call, banging on the door. “Luffy? Usopp?”

“Y/N?”

It’s Usopp.

Yanking on the door, you call out to him; “let me out!”

It takes him no more than a few seconds to open the door, yanking it open as you meet his eyes with relief.

“Usopp,” you breathe, “you have to listen to me. It’s Nami. She—”

You move to ramble out what had happened, but fall silent the second you see the look on Usopp’s face.

“Usopp?” You question, voice quiet. “Why are you…?”

Just then Sanji comes stumbling down the stairs of the kitchen, with Luffy in his arms, the latter looking beat up and hurt. Both of them are sopping wet.

Your eyes widen.

“Nami, she…” Usopp speaks up, looking nervous. “She betrayed us.”

-

“Y/N, seriously!”

Shaking your head, you stumble behind Usopp. “Seriously what, Usopp?”

You’re mildly annoyed, but you figure he has a good reason—whatever that reason is. He hasn’t elected to tell you yet. 

You’d been getting some sleep after Luffy had practically forced you to, letting you sleep in his and the rest of the guys’ cabin since Zoro was currently occupying yours and… Nami’s. After everything that has happened, it was clear you all needed some time to digest and recoup. Even though you’d been reluctant to leave Zoro’s side, you also knew you needed some sleep or you were going to make yourself sick.

And a twenty minute sob-induced cat nap hunched over a bed didn’t count.

Only, your sleep had been cut short but Usopp all but ran into your room, yelling your name with a wide grin on his face. You couldn’t even possibly begin to think what he could be smiling about given that everything was the worst it could be, but you didn’t get the chance to ask either before he was yanking you to your feet and dragging you with him.

“Usopp—”

Whatever you’d been about to say falls silent, however, when you realize where Usopp is leading you. Body freezing, you turn to him, him already grinning at you, letting the two of you come to a stop. You glance at him, then the room, and then realize you hear a very familiar voice speaking.

Your feet move before you can stop yourself.

All chatter stops the second you come running into the room, and sure enough, still on the bed, Zoro stares back at you, but awake.

“Y/N, look, Zoro’s—!”

You don’t let Luffy finish. You don’t even really hear him speak. You run over to the other side of the bed in seconds and practically fall onto Zoro. In your excitement, you forget about his wounds, to which Zoro groans in response to your hug. Your eyes widen, your first word to him about to be ‘sorry’, as you scramble to pull back. 

His arm falls around your waist before you can.

Stilling in his hold, and now careful to not let your weight fall on him, he holds you for a moment, the entire room distinctly quiet.

Then, his arm leaves and you pull back, staring down at him.

“Hey,” you breathe, unable to stop the curl of your lips. Despite everything, that short greeting is what feels right.

It’s all you can manage.

His lips curve into a soft smile; “hey.”

-

Raising your hand, you softly knock on the door.

Zoro’s head snaps towards you, easing when he realizes it’s you.

You step into the room with a gentle smile, and nod at him; “let me.” You offer, gesturing loosely to the bandages surrounding him. “I got pretty good at it after…” You let your voice trail, and Zoro huffs.

“I’d bet. You never let anyone help you.”

Sitting next to him, you shrug. “I could do it on my own.” Laughing quietly, you pick up the bandages that are wildly thrown about the bed. “Unlike you.”

Zoro scoffs but he doesn’t stop you as you start to unwrap the bandages he’d loosely wrapped around himself, redoing it.

Silence echoes for a moment, before Zoro speaks up.

“I can’t believe the waiter is joining us.”

Huffing a laugh, you roll your eye. “Sanji is nice,” you defend. “And a good fighter I hear from Luffy.”

Zoro frowns. “He’s a waiter.”

You just shake your head, snorting to yourself.

Then, you hesitate, hands hovering. You can't help but ask, since it’s been weighing on you since she’d left. “You think Nami meant it all? That she never actually cared about us?”

“Don’t know,” he shrugs. “Maybe.”

Biting your lip, you frown. You don’t want that to be the truth.

“Y/N.”

His voice is serious as he calls for you, and it makes you freeze.

“I heard you.”

Your muscles tense, and you refuse to let your gaze wander from your hands, fiddling with your fingers.

Zoro doesn’t let you. In the next second, his hand is falling over your own, pulling them away from what you’d been doing. Your lips part as he does, heart fluttering as he shifts his hand so his fingers threads through yours instead of just being wrapped around your wrist.

Your cheeks warm instantly.

“Y/N. Look at me.”

His voice is raspy from being asleep for so long. It sends shivers down your spine.

Still, you listen, raising your head and meeting his eyes.

“I didn’t think you could hear me,” you whisper.

“I could,” he nods. “About your father and…” His voice trails.

Swallowing thickly, you choose to focus on the first thing first. “I… Does it bother you?”

Zoro’s lips part, stunned at your forwardness and you realize your mistake.

“About… Mihawk.”

“Oh,” he breathes. “No.”

It’s not what you’re expecting. He says it so bluntly, so sure of himself.

“It… doesn’t?”

“You have your reasons,” he shrugs, still holding your hand. “And it wouldn’t have changed my mind. Defeating Mihawk is my goal, that won’t change.”

His words hurt you, but you also know that you have no right to argue otherwise.

“I’m still sorry you got hurt.”

Zoro shakes his head. “It wasn’t your fault.” Then, when you don’t respond, he squeezes your hand. “It wasn’t.” 

His voice is sharp and leaves no room for argument.

You nod. “Thank you,” you say, “I’m… so relieved you’re okay.”

Zoro breathes in sharply, and then he lowers his hand, taking yours with him.

There’s a beat of silence, then; “I think I love you too.”

It seems that Zoro is just full of surprises at that moment.

Body turning rigid, you blink at him.

His cheeks have a light flush and he’s now the one turned away. “I… You were wrong… I don’t deserve someone better than you. I… I want you.”

“Zoro…”

He turns back to you, quickly, as if the words are both hard to speak but leaving him before he can stop himself. “But I… I don’t know how to be… I don't know how to be with you,” he explains, the words awkward and forced. You can tell he’s trying, words stumbling off the tip of his tongue. “I’ve only had one friend in my life and she’s dead. Before you guys, I had no one. I don’t know how to be someone you can depend on.”

You let his words sink in and you take in the look on his face. He’s embarrassed, you can tell, but he’s waiting for you to respond, patiently. You realize he’s leaving the decision up to you.

You think of, once again, your conversation with Sanji. You think of how you felt when Zoro had been unconscious in that bed. You think of everything that’s happened.

“I…” You start, voice soft. “I don’t know how to either,” you explain, shoulders dropping with the weight of your confession. “I’ve been alone for so long too, Zoro. And at first I wasn’t going to say anything. I didn’t understand my feelings so I was just going to ignore them. But then… seeing you fight like that and get hurt… waiting for you to wake up… I know that it can happen again. To either of us. I know that neither of us will ever be completely safe. I know you will never give up on your goal.”

Zoro frowns, and there’s a flicker of disappointment in his gaze.

It’s you who squeezes his hand this time, pulling his attention back on you.

“But I don’t want to do any of that without you,” you finish. “I… want to do this all with you. I want to save Nami with you. I want to explore the Grand Line with you. I want to help you complete your goal. Not just as your friend but more.”

The second you finish, breathless, Zoro is pulling you towards him. His actions speak louder than words and it seems his instincts allow him to act without any fluster of embarrassment. It pulls a gasp from your lips but you don’t stop him, hands falling on his shoulders as you lean into his touch. You’re careful of his wounds as he tugs you into his lap, his hands settling on your hips as his forehead falls against yours, breathing heavily.

“Fuck,” he inhales sharply, before shuddering a breath. “Can I kiss you?”

You smile at his response, thinking it’s so very Zoro, and nod. “Please.”

His lips are on yours instantly, pulling you close to him as you cup his cheeks, letting your hands thread through his hair. Your stomach flutters at the kiss, feeling your insides turn to jelly at the sensation. His hands on your skin feel like fire in the best way possible, molding your lips against his as he tugs you closer and closer even when there’s nowhere else for you to go.

You let your nails drag across his scalp, his lips warm and soft against your own.

And then, just as your lips part to allow his tongue to slip inside, a voice calls out;

“Zoro!”

You both pull back, startled. Zoro groans softly as he twists his body wrong, agitating his wound while your head snaps round to see Luffy.

He pauses, hovering at the door, at the sight of you two, you on Zoro’s lap with the both of you looking thoroughly flushed. 

Luffy looks confused.

“Luffy,” Zoro huffs, pressing his hand to his forehead, one still gripping your hip, as you laugh quietly to yourself. “Leave.”

Oblivious as always, Luffy just nods; “sure thing, Zoro.”

You’re positive you’ll be getting an earful from Usopp later.

His footsteps fade and you turn back to Zoro, giggling.

“He never knocks,” Zoro groans, pulling at his hair.

You pull his hand away, moving instead to hold it. Zoro flushes at the action.

“That’s okay,” you shrug. “I imagine it’ll be like that a lot.”

Zoro only groans further at the thought, but he knows you’re right.

You move to stand, slipping off his lap and panicking when you realize you didn’t finish bandaging him properly. Zoro laughs as you fuss over him, moving when you tell him to and watching you with amused eyes.

Just as you sit down next to him, though, he whispers out;

“Together, then.”

You blink at his words, cheeks still a light flush, before you remember your earlier words. 

You smile; “together.”

-

End of Chapter Note: I know that I’ve made the reader Mihawk’s daughter who is canonically light-skinned. I have left the readers mother open to try and be as ambiguous and inclusive as possible. Apologies to anyone that finds this detail stops them from being able to “insert” themselves into the story.

[reno-writes]

Icy-Hot

[Image from Love & Deepspace]

Rating: +18

Word count: 2,984

Type: Smut

Characters: Zayne x Reader [Female Reader], Caleb 

Trigger warnings/content: Jealousy, a little bit possessive, childhood friends to lovers, genitalia.

❅*̩̩͙❆ ͙͛ ˚₊⋆⋆꙳•̩̩͙❅‧͙*̩̩͙❆ ͙͛ ˚₊⋆⋆꙳•̩̩͙❅*̩̩͙‧͙ ‧͙*̩̩͙❆ ͙͛ ˚₊⋆⋆꙳•̩̩͙❅*̩̩‧͙*̩̩͙❆ ͙͛ ₊⋆⋆꙳•̩̩͙❅*̩̩͙❆ ͙͛ ˚₊⋆⋆꙳•̩̩͙❅*̩̩͙‧͙    ‧͙*̩̩͙❆ ͙͛

The thrill of chasing her into the fields was something Zayne never really did as a child. Always observing from afar your joyous smile through the golden fields as your smile shines. That daisy flower print sundress that grandma made with that teal sun hat. Keeping the sun out of your young glimmering eyes.

“Zayne!” Your voice was so clear, so chipper. The sun always gives you this warm glow dancing on your skin. All he could do was sit, stare and admire. Until he saw another boy come out to call out your name. His smile made him angry. Maybe that was the first time he felt jealousy. Your cute sundress dancing as you chased the other boy named-

 “Zayne?” His fingers kept clicking away on his keyboard. Resting his scarred hands on his keyboard to glance at you through his frames.

“What is it? If I answer your question, will you let me get back to my work?” Though you have been friends since childhood; you still had that prying question that prodded his work time. Yet, everytime, he fell for your siren voice. Capturing his attention, pausing his work.

“Listen- I sprained my wrist and ankle,” you sat at his therapy chair, dangling the wrist from the grasp of the other hand. Legs crossed over at the knee, ankle clearly swollen. All he could do was sigh. You were like this all the time. No matter how many times you do this hunter job, you always get reckless. And no matter how many times you come to him with an injury, he was always expecting you to come in. Saying his name. Of course, no one else had the privilege of calling him by just his name. It was always Dr.Zayne for everyone else. He got up, a little annoyed but a little pleased that you relied on him this way. Grabbing a bottle of some icy-hot (a cream that cools on the skin, then feels hot to help ease the pain), he knelt down on a knee to apply it on that ankle.

“And I need you to listen when I tell you to be more careful,” carefully pulling the shoe off and the sock off in one pull. He could see your ankle definitely was sprained at least, if not broken. “What did you even do? Trip?” Bingo. Face turning into that cotton candy pink, he could read you like a picture book that he used to see you read as a kid. “Always clumsy. Always.”

“Hey! I couldn’t- ouch!” He intentionally applied a little pressure when he rubbed the cream into the skin. A little massage would help circulate the blood a bit. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the wad of bandages, all perfectly wrapped up. Snuggly, he bound it around the base of your foot, to the top of your ankle. “Watch it!” 

“You wouldn’t be injured if you had just listened to me like I always tell you,” as he cuts the end and clips it. Standing up onto his feet as he takes a hold of your injured wrist and starts the same process. His ice gray eyes only stared at your wrist when he subconsciously started to tighten his grip. Were your wrists this small? “Have you been eating?” Maybe it was his imagination that felt like he went through this before.

“Of course I have been since-”

“Well, hello, Zayne. Or shall I say, doctor?”

Zayne looked up and recognized the face that he knew all too well. The boy that chased you in the fields. The one that always danced with you. The one that always told you that you looked pretty. The one that took you away from his novels to play spot the i-spy books. Taking the words that Zayne said already but exclaiming it.

“Hello…Caleb. Colonel now I assume,” he could feel icicles forming in his blood. “I had heard you were back,” nearly snapped at him but he wanted to stay professional in case anyone came in and saw how he was acting. Caleb chuckled. Zayne clenched his fist. There was no way this man came back just now when things were just finally becoming great in his life. You, him and his job. 

“Well-” Caleb stated slyly, as he grabbed your uninjured wrist. Clearly trying to assert dominance despite being in Zayne’s office. “You know, she and I were just out, you know.”

“So you were the one that let her get injured. That makes more sense now.” Of course Zayne was not going to back down from Caleb. Not when he came into his office, with you injured on his couch. Caleb scoffed and clicked his tongue.

“Now that she is all bandaged up from the doctor. I am going to bring her home with me and make sure she is well taken care of. Thank you. Doctor.” Zayne raised his eyebrows. There was something off about Caleb. Granted, when Zayne and Caleb were young, there was a rivalry. Now, there was this weird aura.

“I am about to be done with my shift anyway. I can bring her home-” Zayne insisted, sensing some sort of eeriness from Caleb. As he stood in front of his desk to close his laptop, he felt a pull from Earth. Landing his ass onto his office chair.

This man had Evol. That means he-

Caleb shook his head and lifted you off the couch with ease. Casually smiling at you, then at Zayne. “Thank you for the offer. But you must have other patients. It’s unprofessional to only pay attention to someone you personally know.” As he used his dirty boots to kick open the door, there was a little tinge of flaring purple in Caleb’s eyes. “I appreciate you taking care of her. As she did fall pretty hard earlier.” He did this. Caleb definitely was the reason why you were hurt. After Caleb left, he felt all the gravity lift off of him. Nearly falling out of his chair, he had to take a moment to compose himself. He stood up, packed his laptop. Unhooking his trench coat and scarf to venture out in the cold. His smartphone buzzed to only see your name blinking on his screen.

“Zayne speaking,” he knew it was you. It was this game he liked to play to see what your reaction was going to be. There was a sigh on the other end. “I am sorry, Zayne. Caleb was being a bit of a brat. I demanded he take me home. I am almost there.” Zayne could tell you were fiddling with your fingers while being in the car with your childhood best friend. Caleb probably could hear the whole conversation, but clearly you did not care. “I can make some honey chamomile tea to make it up for you?” Your voice was as fresh and pure as the snow. Unlike that prick Caleb that-

“Hm, I was thinking about picking up some macarons. Did you want some?” Zayne was already about to walk into the dessert store to order a pack of twelve, before he heard a chuckle from you. “What?”

“You are already in the sweets store right?” You knew him too well. “I heard the bell that chimes whenever you go to that store”. You were his girl. Caleb could not catch up to Zayne’s status with the time that was lost.

“I’ll see you at your place then.”

 It was just like old times. Just you and him. The blanket on your lap as you sipped some hot tea, gently coasting it with the injured wrist. The snow was falling outside your window. It was times like these that he cherished. 

“Do you have work tomorrow?” Always asking that. Nonetheless, he savored every word and action, recording it into his brain.

“Of course I do,” your face clearly showed disappointment and you shook your head. 

“You never have time anymore. We used to hang out all the time-.”

“We used to. I am a doctor now. People need me.” “Well, I need you too, Zayne. As a friend.”

His finger clutched onto his cup of hot tea a little too hard. Those words cut deep. “You can always make an appointment-”

“That’s why I have been talking to Caleb about-” There you went, pouring salt into the wound and rubbing it in. As the cup he held shattered in his fingers. “Zayne! Are you hurt?” He could see you get up and grab a towel, wrapping it around his fingers. “Oh thank goodness the tea didn’t get on you.” Your voice was soft. Careful. Alluring. “You could have gotten hurt, doctor.” Seductive.

“Doctor? You have never called me that before.” Pulling his hand away from you, he looked at the cuts on his fingers and assessed it. If he got hurt, would you pay attention to him more than Caleb? No no. He can’t stoop as low as that colonel. He could never use Caleb’s dirty tricks to keep you around himself. Caleb would of course. That would be absurd. “I am fine.” There was a look on your face. One of concern. “What is it now? Are you okay? Does your wrist hurt?”

“This is what I mean, Zayne.” He was puzzled. He was just doing his job to make sure you were physically, mentally and emotionally okay. It was always his job. As a friend sure, but as your physician too.

“And what do you mean by that then?”

“You are always working. Why can’t it be how it used to be? Just not thinking about work all the damn time!” It hurts to see you hurt. It hurts to see you on the verge of tears. It hurts to see you apologize on the behalf of Caleb, that old friend of yours…and begrudgingly his as well. Maybe he was working too much. Every time you came in, injured or not, work felt like home again. “Sorry, forget what I just said. I am just stressed about Caleb.” There it was. His time to strike.

“Oh? What do you mean? I thought he was your friend?” Zayne says with clear curiosity as he gets up to fix another glass of tea. You sigh and plop down on the couch. “Not as a therapist. Not as a doctor. As a friend, and as someone that knows Caleb and how he is-”

“That is the thing. Something is off about him.” Pouring the hot water into his new cup, he came back around and sat next to you. “You saw it too, right?” He nods in agreement. Not just because he wanted to slightly win you over, but also he definitely noticed that stare. “I am not crazy! Thank god! I didn’t think Caleb was so possessive over me.” 

“But I get a little possessive too. Understandable when you keep getting hurt.” You shook your head, trying to convince Zayne that there was more to it.

“I swear when you do it, it's out of love and care. And it never bothers me when you do it.” He felt his heart race. The warmth of his blood flowing into his arms. “When he does it…I don’t know. Am I crazy Zayne?” He must have been so out of it, when he blinked and saw himself reflecting back in your eyes. His arm goes up and around your shoulder, bringing you close. Grasping your bandaged hand. Gently caressing the white fabric with his finger tips. Smiling. 

“So you don’t mind when I get a little possessive with you? That is a bit surprising.” Checking another thing that you mentioned into his mental notebook about you. He felt your temperature rising against his arm. He would know this with how much he has examined your body. He knew every little thing your body did. What it did. How it reacts. He turns and guides your injured hand to his face. What made him nuzzle into your palm was beyond him. Maybe it was those jealous feelings he felt before that made him like this.

“I mean…” your voice fell into a whisper. “I definitely don’t hate it.” He kissed your palm. Slowly letting go as your palm stayed in place. That hand never left contact as it slid across your shoulder, your neck line, then your other shoulder. Grasping it gently. It was like the time you smiled in that sunlight, but something else was there now. It wasn’t jealousy or admiration. It was beauty. It was love. Something he only heard of in novels. Of course he knew it existed. He just never cared to explore it.

“Then let me ask you a question,” leaning against you. He could feel you shaking in his grasp. “Do you hate it when I am this close?”

“I don’t hate it ever.” “Ever?” He faces closer. “What if I say you are the reason I have a fever right now?” You swallow, as your eyes look over his shoulder. He knew you were lying. And you knew you were lying too. “Then cure me.” Hovering his lips over your quivering ones. As he gently captures your lips with his. His arm slides back to where it once was, as he leaned over you. Your injured wrist on his chest. His heart was beating so loudly in his ears. The taste of tea lingered on his tongue. Sticky honey exchanged before he pulled away, caressing your cheek. “I think I need more. It’s not enough.” Panting as he dived in for another kiss, pinning her arm down. “Let me do everything. We can’t have your wrist injured any further.” His fingers rub small circles into your arm. “Hold onto me darling.” Releasing your arm, just to sling those arms around him. Gently grasping his hair to just release that extra tension. Unbuttoning those pants slowly, fumbling despite doing it so many times to tend your wounds near your hipline. As he kneels in between your legs. His long fingers hooking on the belt loops and pulling it off, as the panties come off with it. This was one of the few times you looked shy. You never were this shy in front of him when you needed something. Only he got to see this side. Doctor Zayne, was the only one seeing you in this state. Discarding your pants elsewhere in the room, as he yanks off his belt and unzips his dress pants. His bulge greeted the air. Slowly peeling off his pants, as he was about to take off his boxers; he looked at you. You needed him. Not how you said earlier. But it might as well mean the same thing. Zayne went down to capture your lips, this time nipping at your lips. As his own hand slipped onto the elastic band of his boxers, to slip it down his thighs. To kick it off behind him. 

“Doctor- I mean Zayne-” He craved more. He wanted more. The sinful want that fell from your wet lips made his breath get caught in his chest.

“What can I do for you darling?” His mouth breaks to fully hear your pleas. 

“I need you. Please”. His calloused fingers grasped his leaking member. Slowly pumped it before guiding it to your wet entrance. His mind was elsewhere. How he prayed he will be the first and only one to see you in this state. You are his patient. He was the one that will always be there for you. Slowly pushing into you, your face contorts into discomfort. Your nails racking down his sweating back as he grits his teeth.

“Breathe for me,” stating as if he knew exactly what he was doing. He only studied anatomy. The practice was never studied. As your breathing steadied, he pushed in inch-after-inch until he was fully inside. “It’s okay darling. Let me handle this like I always have.” Zayne’s fingers gently gripped the bed. As one hand held part of your hip, he started to slowly find its rhythm. Melodic moans filling the apartment, harmonizing with his moans. Until her phone started to buzz. 

Caleb

Zayne wanted Caleb to hear everything that he was hearing. To see every droplet of sweat trailing down your body that came from him. However, some things were kept a secret. Just like a patient and doctor. His pace went harder, more relentless without realizing as you finally gasped out.

“I’m cumming Zayne”. He was frantic for your touch. Your nails dug in as your orgasm coursed through. Zayne was not far behind, before he pulled out, nuzzling his face in the crook of your neck. His hand is adjusting so it’s near your hair. Tugging it oh so slightly.

“Me too darling-” his seed spewing out onto your bare stomach. His panting slowly subsided. “You finally listened to me.” A smile tugging on the corners of his lips, as he kisses your forehead. Getting up to grab a paper towel to clean up his mess he decided at that moment to put it on you. Discarding the paper towel, before grabbing the blanket you wrapped yourself up earlier to hug the both of you on the couch. You were slowly falling asleep as he tucks himself between the back of the couch and you, one arm pulling you close. 

“What about work?”

“I can call in.” “But what about the patients?”

“But you said you needed me darling” As your exhausted eyes closed, he tucks a hair sticking to your nose, behind your ear. Before picking up your phone and noticing a few missed calls from that childhood friend of yours. Unlocking it. Then merely texting a simple message.

[I am with her now. Doctor’s orders. She is in the utmost care. Talk to me anytime you need a talk (11:32pm - Doctor Zayne)]

[queerdeans]

Five Acres on an Unnamed Road

Summary:

Cas buys a five-acre lot on the outskirts of Lebanon. Dean builds a house. For @destielvalentineszine2025 organized by the lovely @disabled-dean and @butch--dean — there are still three days to submit your work for the zine! 💚💙

The bunker walls are too close and its darkness too absolute for Castiel to live there comfortably anymore. Everything reminds him of the Empty, though it’s been five months since Jack pulled him out. It’d only taken Jack a few days to decide he didn’t want to play the role of Absent God from some miserable corner of the universe, but instead, he wanted to let the universe keep trucking while he lived as normal a life as possible in Lebanon, Kansas, where his family was.

Five months since Dean had opened the bunker door to see Cas standing there. Five months since the bone-crushing hug that had threatened to break Cas’s body, newly sewn back together.

Four months and twenty-nine days since the first tentative, uncertain kiss.

But who needs to count when you have a lifetime at your fingertips?

Cas insists on driving to the store one bright and bitter-cold day, and Dean lets him take the wheel, which is one of the many ways Cas has learned that Dean Winchester says I love you. When Cas diverts from their well-trod route into town, Dean’s quiet; he likes when they do new things, even if it’s just driving on a road they haven’t been down before. He loves to stretch into their newfound free will, to explore the infinite paths forward that they have available to them now. But when Cas slows down next to a wooden sign, whose careful FOR SALE lettering has been plastered over with a SOLD sticker, Dean frowns.

The land is blanketed with heavy snow and is mostly flat. There’s a half-hearted, drooping wooden fence that travels the full perimeter of the five acre lot. Cas knows this because he’d walked the entire thing the week before, the snow soaking through his shoes, the cold whipping at his face. But he hadn’t needed to; he’d known from the second he saw the for sale sign that he would buy it.

Dean’s been pretty set on living an honest life lately, so Cas forewent asking Jack to work a small-scale miracle or getting Charlie, whose Apocalypse World counterpart is every bit as savvy as the Charlie Dean and Sam had met a decade earlier, to forge some loan documents. Instead, he made a few calls, spread the word about what he wanted to do, and the money came pouring into his newly-created checking account at the Kansas Federal Credit Union, courtesy of their network of friends both near and far.

Now, as Dean hesitantly gets out of the car, Cas pulls the title from the glove compartment. He rounds the Impala and hands it to him wordlessly. Dean peers at the paper and then up at the land in front of him, and slowly, a smile spreads on his face.

“Who’d you have to bribe?” he asks.

Cas shrugs. “A lot of people love you, Dean, and were happy to pitch in. All they ask is that we host a housewarming party.”

Dean laughs in half-shock. “A housewarming party? There’s no house here.”

“Not yet.”

The land stretches out in front of them, curving away with the horizon. The lot is quiet, settled beneath the wide prairie sky, and is nestled in between two family farms. The earth is fertile and ready for planting deep roots, ones that might stay awhile.

It takes a year for there to be a house. The earth is still mostly frozen when they break ground. Dean’s wearing a hard hat and grinning ear to ear, and when he digs the shovel into the dirt, he lets out a loud whoop of joy. Jack takes a picture and Sam shakes his head and Eileen consults yet again Dean’s questionably-sound building plans. Cas just watches Dean, hands shoved in the pockets of his winter coat, amazed to be alive, to be standing here, to be with his family on a cold day.

Used to be, the entire world was his to watch over, and he’d grown bored with the millennia. Now, entire centuries worth of joy pass between his eyes and Dean’s as they stand on the little patch of dirt that they call their own.

Over the next year, Dean insists that his brief experience working construction while living with Lisa is sufficient. And in the end, it proves to be, though the construction is not without significant hiccups. Dean nearly dies several times of perfectly normal, stupid, and preventable causes, which, after the danger has passed, seems to somewhat delight him. He falls from a ladder but only breaks his tibia; he nearly shoots himself in the head with a nail gun, but doesn’t; and there’s an incident involving a territorial opossum that he refuses to speak about.

Cas has never seen him so happy.

Dean won’t let Jack or Cas use any of their God-or-angel mojo on the house, and for awhile he doesn’t even want Sam helping out. But as summer begins to stretch itself out and Cas’s anxiety to get out of the bunker increases, Dean capitulates and lets Sam, Jack, Eileen, and Cas help out more frequently. Jack turns out to be a natural with power tools, though Cas catches him cheating with his God-powers every now and then when he thinks no one is looking. Eileen reveals herself to have roofing experience (“What? Can’t a woman have a life?”) which comes in handy. Sam and Dean bicker about stupid things that have nothing to do with Lucifer, Michael, Hell, or the world ending, but rather building codes, railing lengths, and types of wood — and they both enjoy it immensely.

When the year mark on the project approaches and the house is nearly ready, Dean starts to be secretive, telling Cas not to come over, that he wants to keep a few things a surprise. Cas takes to spending more time at the local farmer’s co-op, where he’s been picking up a few regular hours of work each week, learning everything there is to know about simple and beautiful things like fertilizer and chicken care and seeds. Everyone seems to like him, and though Dean’s nervous the first few times he drops by during one of Cas’s shifts, his new coworkers welcome him as Cas’s partner with open arms.

Finally, the place is ready, according to Dean, and he and Cas pack up the last of their belongings and load them into the back of Cas’s truck. Sam and Eileen have found a place in Topeka and will be moving there in a few weeks, though Sam’s still planning on coming back to the bunker regularly to check in on the hunters who will be moving in to take over the bunker’s care; Jack’s got some grand plans to backpack the world for a couple of months, after which who knows what he’ll do?

It feels more like a beginning than an end as Cas drives the loaded-up pickup down the unnamed dirt road that leads to their new house. When he pulls into the driveway and kills the engine, Dean peers at him sideways, nervous, and Cas squeezes his hand.

“As long as you didn’t paint a mural of Steven Tyler on our bedroom ceiling, I’ll love it,” he promises Dean before they get out of the car and approach the house.

It’s a craftsman with a wide front porch and is painted a soft yellow. There are two rocking chairs on the porch which they’d found at a flea market in Kansas City. Dean’s painted them up and applied some wood glue in key places to make them sturdier, and he made a little table to go between them, which he says is key — it’s where they’ll put their beer when they sit out here at night.

Inside, it’s warm, as Dean came by earlier that morning to load up the wood-burning furnace in the living room. The downstairs is made up of three large rooms: a living room with a worn, comfortable couch, a big mounted TV, and the two plaid armchairs from the ‘Dean Cave’; a dining room with a long wooden table and plenty of chairs; and a kitchen filled with natural light and a solid butcher’s block counter. Most of the elements that furnish the home were found at flea markets or thrift stores, all of them used and coming with a story, such as the couch, which had been loaded very precariously into Cas’s truck bed and most certainly would not have actually fit and remained steady for the long drive back to Lebanon without some divine intervention from Jack, who had denied his involvement.

Upstairs there are two rooms. First is the main bedroom with a walk-in closet and a large bathroom, complete with a detached tub big enough for both of them. The picture window behind their bed faces out onto the backyard and lets in plenty of natural light. Next to their room is what is technically the guest room, but is really Jack’s, for whenever he wishes to stay. Next to the bed is the IKEA bookshelf that Cas and Kelly had built in the days prior to Jack’s birth; it had been intended to hold baby books and stuffed animals, though now Jack has filled it with figurines of some of his favorite movie characters, along with books about dragons and sprawling histories of ancient civilizations.

Because Dean’s a hunter, and because they’ve lived the lives they’ve lived, the house has a few special qualities. First, there’s warding throughout the foundation and beneath the paint jobs in each room, done by Cas, checked by Sam, checked again by Eileen, and so on. There’s warding on the fence posts that ring the property, as well, newly built and sturdy. In the bedroom closet is a false door hiding the gun safe, though it holds far more weapons than just guns. Though both Dean and Cas have mostly retired from hunting since saving the world this last time, neither is naive enough to think that there may not be a time they’ll want to follow up on a strange newspaper headline or help out some fresh hunters with a difficult case. And Cas isn’t sure Dean would sleep as well without knowing the weapons are there, anyway.

Dean takes Cas’s hand now pulls him through the first level to the back door. “Don’t expect too much,” he says, and Cas wants to tell him that everything about this place already surpasses his wildest expectations, the most outlandish dreams he could have ever had.

When Dean opens the door, Cas sees that the backyard has been transformed. They had spoken briefly about putting a patio and a grill back here, but really, Dean has done far more than that. There is indeed a patio and grill, with string lights draped between poles all around it, making it perfect for entertaining whenever folks come through town and stay awhile. But beyond that, Dean’s built several long garden beds, next to which is a newly constructed chicken coop. There’s a freshly-painted shed, a wooden beehive box, and a fenced-in area with a small barn. Cas gapes at all of this, unsure what to say.

“Thought we might raise some chickens, bees, maybe some goats,” Dean says, his hands shoved into his pockets, rocking back and forth on his heels nervously.

This time, it’s Cas’s turn to smile, just as Dean had done when Cas gave him the land deed. “It’s perfect,” he says, taking Dean in his arms and kissing him. “Just perfect."

The guests arrive sporadically throughout the day, depending on their distance and how much they want to help Dean and Cas prepare for the party. Jody and Donna, for instance, arrive three hours before the start time, with Claire, Kaia, Patience, and Alex in tow. Dean makes fun of the minivan they all arrive in for a solid fifteen minutes. Charlie arrives an hour after that with Stevie, and Bobby and Rowena surprise each other by showing up at the same time, the former from where he’s been carving out a life in South Dakota and the latter from her throne in Hell. Garth arrives closer to on time with Bess, Gertie, Sam, and Castiel, which gives Dean something to grumble about for the twentieth time (“why wouldn’t he name him after me?”). A few other hunters join the mix, and when Cas gets a text from his new friends from the co-op that they’re on the way, he has to make an announcement to everyone to “act normal” and if they have to talk about monsters, to do it quietly.

In the entryway of the house, they’ve hung up a big poster board with progress photos tacked onto it, starting with the empty lot. 5 acres of nothing; trees dotted here and there and a little stream that ran through the northwest corner, wild grass growing untamed, the family of opossums which Dean conceded a half an acre to. There are progress photos, including one of Dean at the urgent care, grinning ear-to-ear, high on painkillers, arm in a splint after his fall from the ladder. The photo of Eileen leaning over the edge of the roof while Sam panics below gets a laugh from everyone, though Sam is less-than-amused by it.

The party is in full swing with Dean’s carefully-curated playlist cranking out through the speakers in the living room and the food dishes spread out on the table. Cas comes and finds Dean in the midst of an argument with Charlie over a video game character. He taps him on the shoulder and beckons with his finger; Dean, whipped until the very end, follows Cas upstairs obediently.

When they get to the bedroom, Cas closes the door and orders Dean to sit on the bed. Dean does so with a smirk and a “With all the guests around, you kinky bastard?”

But Cas doesn’t say anything, just lowers himself onto one knee and produces a small box from his pocket.

Dean’s struck dumb, staring at him with his mouth slightly open. “Are you…” he starts.

“Yes,” Cas says, opening the box and holding it out. The ring is silver, a thick band similar to the ring that Dean used to wear. “I think I’ve made enough… speeches for a lifetime,” he says, never eager to remember that moment of happiness he’d allowed himself before the Empty had swallowed him up. He’d assumed it was his last — and he’s been counting every happy moment since as a blessing.

“You know how I feel about you, Dean. About our life. It’s… it’s in everything around us.” He casts a glance about the room. One of his sweaters is tossed over a chair, a flannel shirt of Dean’s haphazardly laying on top of it. A book lies open on his pillow while Dean’s reading glasses — the ones he makes Cas swear to never tell anyone about — rest on the bedside table. It’s a life. A real life, a good one. Simple in all the ways they’d never thought they could have.

“I didn’t want to do this publicly,” Cas says, “but I want to use this moment, with everyone around us… all of the people we love… they’re all here, we’re here, because of you, Dean. And I’d be honored if you’d—”

Dean can’t wait anymore, and he’s on his knees too, pulling Cas in by the shoulders for a kiss. His hand tangles in Cas’s hair and he breathes into Cas’s mouth. “Yes. Fuck yes, I’ll marry you, Cas. Of course.”

“Do you think this is what your father would have pictured for you?” Cas asks that night as they sit on the porch. The party has wound down but many of the guests remain, lingering in the house or the yard. The crickets are loud tonight, scoring the evening. The living room’s warm glow is cast onto the porch, over the two of them, but the surroundings are still dark enough that the sky’s bounty is easily visible. Dean had gotten Cas a telescope for Christmas so that he could see all the cosmos, the infinite worlds that still existed, framing this one world, theirs. Cas can name most of what he sees in the sky tonight, and he cherishes the sight of it, the way infinity looks from this five acre patch of grass.

“No,” Dean says with a shake of his head. The ice in his whiskey clinks gently in his glass. “Yours?”

Cas lets out a low rumble of a laugh. “Thankfully, no.”

Some small part of him, the part that may never be able to forget the Empty and all that it had meant for so long in his life, hanging over his head for years before pulling him away from Dean, waits for himself to be swallowed up once more. But Dean reaches out a hand and finds Cas’s, and he squeezes it tight. From inside comes Jack’s voice, loudly recounting some story from his travels, and Claire’s laugh replies.

No darkness rushes forth to grab him. There is only this: a patch of grass; the bleating of goats; the clucking of chickens; and the sound of family, just inside.

[aheathen-conceivably]

Antoine had barely been home a week when he received a worryingly short letter from Abe. The local postman had delivered it from Hines Ranch directly to his door, but its brevity read like a telegram.

Trouble with horses. When home, could use help. 

If there was anyone he had never expected to hear the word “help” from, it was Abe. So the very next morning he put on his hat and made his way to the ranch. The anxious side of him spent every step imagining what could have gone wrong, fearing that the ranch itself was in trouble, or God help them, something had happened to one of Abe’s children. So when Antoine saw Will and his sister laughing childishly near the fence, he breathed a small sigh of relief. Will waved at him fondly, nodding his head toward the pen where he said his father could be found.

From ten paces away Antoine could see Abe staring stoically into the distance. Immediately, he found it odd that he wasn’t amongst the horses, fearlessly attempting to wrangle one or humming off key while he kept them clean. As Antoine walked nearer he realized that Abe was looking at not one, but two horses. The bigger of which he knew like the back of his hand, but the other a small foal he had never seen before.

Antoine let out a small whistle as he drew close, just loud enough to get Silver’s attention without spooking her. The horse looked up at him with calm recognition in her eyes, but she made no move away from the smaller horse she was shadowing like a hawk. Abe turned at the sound of his boots, gesturing behind him at the horses. “She’s a beaut, ain’t she?”

Antoine’s feet came to a stop next to Abe’s. “She is. She one of yours?”

“Not exactly.” His words grew quiet, self conscious, even, if Antoine were to guess. “I was out in the canyon riding Banjo when I saw her. She was alone by the river bank, seemed to have an injured leg even from afar. I looked far and wide but I couldn’t find her mother. I imagine they were set on by coyotes in the night, but God knows how she managed to get free.”

A silent shake of his head told Antoine that Abe must have fretted over the details more than once. “Anyhow. She was mighty afraid of me, but Lord knows she was hungry. So I went back with a handful of food and led her back here. Bandaged her up and nursed her back to health. Only a couple days later I find her in Silver’s enclosure, and now she won’t let me anywhere near the foal.”

Antoine looked back to the horse he knew well, her beady brown eyes watching them from afar. Usually she would have walked to him by now, immediately recognizing his scent as her ever-present anger abated to trust. “She’s been fierce, Antoine. I swear to you I thought she would attack me that first night I tried to get the foal back. She won’t leave her side now. And I hate to do it to her but - “

Abe’s eyes found his feet and his voice went low. “Listen. It’s not the most honest thing I’ve ever done. I’ll admit. But that there’s a purebred American Quarter Horse. Bred for racing hundreds of years back. She’ll sell for more than any one of my herding breeds even at this age. Thing is, you know, most of the cowboys are on the show circuit now, so this is what they’re after. Hell I know I’m not the one to train her, so I lined up a deal with a show ranch. Not before talking with the neighbors, I swear it. If I knew who she belonged to I wouldn’t take the money but - I mean you know times are tough - and you saw Lillie Mae. She’s getting older. I could pay for her schooling with one sale. I think I’ve got to…”

The whole time Abe spoke, talking himself back into the deal with one reason after another, Antoine watched the two horses in the sun. Every few seconds, Silver would bring her muzzle to the foal, gently nudging her as though to ensure she was still there. He didn’t need any other motivation. “I’ll match their offer.”

Abe looked up from his feet and let out an incredulous laugh. “Hell you can’t be serious. How much are they paying you out there?”

Antoine smiled and shrugged, no need to tell Abe that this contract had come at double the rate of the first one, or that Jo had leveled a competing offer to get even more for their third after the fact. Abe whistled approvingly and then shook his head. “Listen, I appreciate the offer but you don’t need to do anything of the sort. I just need help keeping Silver calm while I get the foal to the show ranch. She’ll be alright in time. She’s a tough girl. You know that.”

Antoine turned to face him, his face impressing just how serious he was. “Listen. I’ve got one stipulation. And I know she was your grandfather’s, so if you don’t want to let her go then you just say the word; but I’ll match their offer only for them both. The foal and Silver. I’ll clean out the farm’s old barn, let her spend the rest of her days resting there.”

Abe smiled, clearly trying not to let his emotions get the better of him. “Play her a couple songs on that guitar, will you?”

“Every night I’m home. That’s a promise. Write it in the contract if it seals the deal.”

They looked back out to the field together, both horses trotting through the grass at their feet. “I’ll bring them over tomorrow, if that’s okay with you? Or if you need a bit more time -“

Antoine shook his head, a wide smile starting to take over his face. “No. Tomorrow is perfect. Just give me the evening to get the barn ready, and we’ll have them waiting to surprise Violette after school.”

Previous / Next

[astermagnolia]

My Stalkers and Cryptids Soulmate Au headcanons

Weasley "Wes" Weston

• He has Two moms and Two older brother.

-His mom, Angela, is bisexual and has Dreams as her signifier

-His ma', Jessie also known as Jess, is a lesbian and has her soulmate's names on her wrists

(-If you want i can do a separate post about the Weston family backstory since i also gave them a third soulmate who acts as a uncle/father to the boys but is 100% platonic with Angela and Jess)

-Easton is the oldest and Kyle is the middle child (based on this post)

• he knows german. Why? Idk. I just wanted him to know a second language and german just seemed the most obvious for Wes.

• Wes went with danny and his friends to watch them get a piercing (by this point he started hanging out with them and slowly becoming friends). When Danny got his ear pierced, Wes passed out. Whether it's because of the blood, the needle, or the pain idk but he def passed out.

• Wes is Queer (in terms of sexuality) and cis

• he Majors in journalism and minors in photography

• he played basketball growing up and joined the team when he was in school

• Wes doesn't care about being the little spoon or big spoon. He just wants to be close to his partners

• Wes knows how to cook!! Not master levels like Bernard but far better than danny and tim. He often joins Bernard in helping to cook and they both cherish these moments even if they are common.

• he likes to play harmless little pranks on his partners. He makes sure he's not crossing any boundaries or harmful ones. There were a few hiccups in the beginning (bernard being in a cult for a while and tim being a vigilante) but he apologizes profusely and makes sure not to do those anymore.

• Wes shows his love by hanging out and physical touch (nonsexual). He has two older brothers and he's the youngest so they were constantly tackling each other and rough housing. His moms weren't afraid of affection and made sure to let their boys know it was okay to show it. He always has a hand on his partners whether it be around their shoulders, holding their hand, hugging them from behind etc.

-this was a little problem with Tim since, despite being touch starved, didn't like sudden physical affection or ones that lasted long. Early in their relationship, Wes thought Tim hated him. They eventually talked it out and worked it out

- Bernard was also confused at the sudden affection since he's an only child and his parents (particularly his father) didn't show much affection. He got over it quickly and loves Wes's hugs

• Wes has a relatively healthy sleep schedule but will stay up for days if he's got a huge theory cooking up. Tim 100% enables this mainly cause he's got hooked in too. Bernard will stop them and help them eat and go to sleep. Once theyre better, Bernard joins in the theory crafting

• Wes hates cars (will be explained in the fic) but what he hates even more are Tim's and Danny's motorcycles (danny gets a motorcycle when he's older :D). He always worries for them when they go on a drive even though Tim is a vigilante and Danny is half dead.

• Wes and Bernard have thought of uploading their superhero theories (especially the ones where they guess and present their evidence of who is in a relationship with who) for shits and giggles. Tim has convinced them of uploading the one where they think bruce/superman/batman/clark are in a poly relationship

• Wes has a blue hat similar to his brothers (it's their thing™) but doesn't wear it. But he does take care of it

• wes will take random pictures of the most random things and just hand it to whichever partner he finds first with no explanation. (the other three have procured a box and put these random pictures in it for safekeeping)

• for being a white boy, Wes can handle spice unlike Danny who just melts. Tim and Wes like to see who can handle spice better. Bernard can sort of handle it

• he loves his feral boyfriends and would absolutely help them in world domination. He is the one that would help them hide a body and help them get away with it

• Wes is not a "fix them" guy but a "i can make them worse" but also "whatever the fuck is wrong with them is funnier." Guy

[nickeverdeen]

Sunshine pt. 1 | Vi x fem!reader

Pairings: Vi x reader (crush), Vi x Caitlyn (platonic)

Type of fic: Comedy, Fluff

Warnings: None

Parts: 1 (this) ->

Summary: After heading to get a package for Caitlyn into a café and seeing you there… Vi is well suprised to say the least and a bit needy for your attention after the first time you met.

——————————

Piltover’s streets were buzzing with their usual mid-morning activity as Vi strolled down the clean, cobbled roads. She had one hand tucked into her jacket pocket and the other gripping a small piece of paper with an address scribbled on it.

“Pick up a package for me, will you?” Caitlyn had asked earlier, practically flying out the door with her enforcer’s hat in hand. “I’d go myself, but I have too much work.”

Vi had shrugged at the time. “Sure. What’s the address?”

“Some café on Harrow Street,” Caitlyn had said distractedly, jotting it down before running out.

And so here she was, squinting at the café sign ahead. The scent of coffee and freshly baked pastries hit her as she pushed the door open, and for a moment, Vi just stood there, taking in the cozy interior.

“Hi!”

Her attention snapped to the counter, where you stood with the brightest smile she’d ever seen. The warmth in your voice matched the sunshine spilling through the large windows, and Vi was suddenly, inexplicably rooted to the spot.

“Can I help you?” you asked, tilting your head slightly, a hint of amusement in your expression at her wide-eyed stare.

“Uh, yeah,” Vi stammered, pulling the paper out of her pocket and holding it up like a lifeline. “I’m here to pick up a package for Caitlyn.”

“Right, give me just a moment!” you chirped, disappearing into the back.

Vi let out a slow breath, rubbing the back of her neck. She wasn’t usually one to get flustered, but there was something about you—the way you seemed so effortlessly kind, so full of life—that had her completely off balance.

When you returned with the package, she muttered a quick thanks and practically fled the café, her heart pounding in a way she couldn’t explain.

That was the first time Vi saw you, and she knew it wouldn’t be the last.

A few days later, she found herself standing outside the café again, the same slip of paper in her hand, except this time she wasn’t running an errand. She told herself she was just curious, that the coffee here must be good if Caitlyn liked it.

Inside, you greeted her with that same dazzling smile, and she was gone all over again.

It became a habit.

Vi started making up excuses to visit the café. She’d grab a coffee for Caitlyn, or a snack for herself—anything to have a reason to talk to you, even for just a moment. She’d sit at a table near the counter, pretending to scroll through her communicator while sneaking glances your way.

And every time you smiled at her, asked her how her day was going, or joked about how much caffeine Caitlyn must need, Vi fell a little harder.

It wasn’t long before Caitlyn noticed something was up.

“Vi, why is my desk covered in coffee cups?” Caitlyn asked one morning, raising an eyebrow as she gestured to the growing collection of café receipts piling up in her workspace.

“Uh, I’m just trying to help out,” Vi said, leaning casually against the wall and avoiding Caitlyn’s scrutinizing gaze.

“Right,” Caitlyn said slowly, clearly unconvinced.

The truth came out one day when Caitlyn decided to stop by the café herself. She’d been in the area and figured she might as well grab something while she had a break.

The café was quiet, the morning rush over, and you greeted her with your usual cheer.

“Well, this is a surprise,” you said with a grin. “Not sending Vi today?”

Caitlyn frowned. “What do you mean? I’ve only sent her here once.”

Now it was your turn to look confused. “Really? She’s been coming here a lot, always saying it’s for you.”

Before Caitlyn could respond, the door swung open, and Vi walked in. She didn’t notice Caitlyn right away, her focus entirely on you.

“Hey,” Vi said, her tone a little softer than usual as she approached the counter. “Can I get, uh, a tea or something? Caitlyn sent me.”

You turned to prepare her drink, and that’s when Caitlyn caught the look on Vi’s face. The way her eyes softened, the faint smile tugging at her lips—it was like watching a lovesick teenager.

Caitlyn crossed her arms, a knowing smirk creeping onto her face. “Oh, did I?”

Vi flinched, spinning around to see Caitlyn standing there. “Shit, Cait—uh, hey!”

You turned back with Vi’s drink, oblivious to the tension. “Here you go!”

“Thanks,” Vi muttered, avoiding both your and Caitlyn’s gazes.

Caitlyn, ever the composed enforcer, stepped in smoothly. “Actually, Vi’s been picking these up under my name so I can grab drinks for the whole office. Isn’t that right, Vi?”

Vi’s eyes widened slightly, but she nodded quickly. “Uh, yeah. Totally.”

You seemed satisfied with the explanation, handing Caitlyn her drink with a smile. “Well, I guess I’ll see you both around!”

As soon as you were out of earshot, Caitlyn leaned closer to Vi, lowering her voice. “You’re hopeless.”

“Shut up,” Vi muttered, her cheeks burning as she shoved her hands in her pockets.

[eulaliasims]

Round 3, Shep 1 / 3

Believe it or not, I've actually played the whole autumn round in Veridia since I last posted. Unfortunately, some of that was two months ago, so caption quality may be questionable on some posts. Anyway, here we go, I'm not summarizing anything this time. You probably maybe remember who these guys are. Or not, I had to go check my tags a few times to make sure I was spelling names correctly.

Shep is having a pretty calm autumn. She checks on the bees (she's glad now her mothers insisted she bring that queen bee cell all this way to start a new hive, because the honey has been a nice little boon), chats up random passersby, and works a little bit on her weaving in the evening before it gets too dark for fine work.

When she's not weaving, she likes to spend time at the mead hall.

Xiang: Shep, you have bees, correct?

Shep: I do, in fact, have bees! I just finished a batch of honey, were you interested in buying?

Xiang: Actually, I was wondering if you would be willing to give Drustan a lesson or two about the bees. See, he's developed something of a phobia after an incident—

Shep: And you think learning about them will help?

Xiang: That's my theory. We can work out payment for you, of course, if you're interested in doing it.

Shep: Be paid to talk about bees? Sure! I could do that in my sleep.

(Reminder that Drustan actually got chased by bees three times in one round. On the other hand, I started playing Legend of Zelda: BotW for the first time and immediately got chased by bees, so maybe I am the problem.)

Elmet and Eisu are here too. Who's watching the kids, you ask? Eh, Mouse has got everything under control, I'm sure.

Helenet and Elmet's impending marriage has become the hot topic in town this week.

Helenet: What about you? Do you have your eye on anyone in particular, Shep? Oh, or if that's something you're not interested in, just ignore me, I'm a little tipsy I suppose.

Shep: I do, actually, but it's nothing serious yet.

Helenet: Well, just kissing is fun too! *giggle*

BIG NEWS! Selling off most of her honey meant Shep could finally afford that pottery wheel! She may only have 82 simoleons to her name now, but she can make plates!

That morning, Xiang brings Drustan by for his beekeeping lesson.

Shep: Rule number one about bees, bees mostly only get aggressive when they feel threatened, especially if their home is threatened. It's how they keep their hive safe from intruders trying to eat their honey and babies. Lots of beekeepers will use a smokey torch to make the bees sleepy when they collect honeycomb.

Drustan: Don't the bees get mad afterward that they don't have any honey?

Shep: You have to leave enough in the hive for them, otherwise you won't have bees anymore. It's what the baby bees eat. Anyway, my mother believes bees recognize their keepers and have people they prefer. I don't know, they do seem calmer after they've become acquainted with you.

Drustan: Hmm... does the silly hat make them bees like you more?

Shep: My hat isn't silly. I just burn easily. Do you want to look at the bees with me now?

Drustan: Maybe. From a safe distance.

[yanderes-galore]

(Overslept and missed the event :(, still going to write this in hopes it gets put in a backlog)

I really liked the “Yandere! Nami + Luffy with Darling resisting”, if I remember correctly in that prompt the rest of the Strawhats were also yandere, so I propose Yandere! Nico Robin + Chopper with Darling resisting. Robin has already lost one family and I think it would be interesting to see how she would react to a member of her new family trying to run away from them. Chopper because he’s as innocent and childish as luffy but with more impulse control and has pretty good synergy with robin (and I guess access to medicines to keep the Darling sedated).

Sure! Robin's part is general, but Chopper's STRICTLY platonic in this. For obvious reasons, of course.

Luffy + Nami with this scenario

Yandere! Nico Robin + Chopper with Darling Resisting

Pairing: Romantic (Robin)/Platonic (Robin, Chopper)

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Obsession, Manipulation, Delusional behavior, Overprotective behavior, Isolation, Drugging, Kidnapping, Stockholm syndrome, Forced companionship.

Nico Robin

Robin would probably try to be understanding.

She doesn't like what you're doing, but you have to be scared about something.

Robin is another member who views her crew as family.

The Straw Hats took her in when she had lost everything.

They saved her after defeating Crocodile.

For that, she'll never part from them.

She'll do anything for them.

Robin is welcoming when Luffy first brings you on board.

She's always been rather motherly to the crew and I imagine she'd want to be like that with you.

Or perhaps even romantic if she's obsessed enough.

Robin wouldn't understand why you aren't enjoying your time here with the Straw Hats.

Was it not what you thought it to be like?

It's like she isn't aware of the fact Luffy dragged you into his crew.

Her captain can be rather persistent with getting crew members.

Yet she probably doesn't suspect that he'd kidnap you until she sees your behavior.

Robin might be hurt if you aren't trying to connect with the crew.

Are you nervous? It's alright to be scared...

But Robin tries to reassure you the crew would never hurt you.

If anything, the crew is excited to meet you and see what you can do.

In a way I can see her as delusional.

Even when there's evidence you've been kidnapped into the crew, even when she knows about it...

She acts like nothing's wrong.

She wants you to be happy here.

Surely you'll see the Straw Hats can be a great family to you.

She can be great for you....

Robin may be both welcoming and disciplinary towards you.

She'll try to be understanding of your situation... yet also discipline you if you try to leave.

There's no leaving the Straw Hats for you.

She'd keep an eye on your behavior to see if you're trying to escape when they land on another island.

Honestly, she and Zoro tend to be the ones to have that disciplinary role.

Her Devil Fruit would help with that.

If you tried to run off the Sunny, she'd use an extra limb to grab the back of your shirt and hang you there.

She sees you as family...

While you might not see her the same way, she'll be patient.

Luffy trusts you'll be good for the crew, that you're a perfect addition to their family.

Robin's willing to help him get used to them if you won't do it on your own.

She understands you miss your home.

But she wants to make this your new home.

She's patient with you, even if it means keeping you in the ship with a limb hanging you from the wall so you can't move.

Eventually you'll realize this is your new home, right?

You'll be a great Straw Hat if you just get used to them.

Once the Stockholm Syndrome kicks in, she'll give you much more affection.

When you finally accept that you're part of their family, that you see her as family?

She hugs you tightly, praising you as she nuzzles into your hair.

Or if she loves you romantically, she'll pepper you in kisses and never leave your side.

Robin will be patient with the newest member of her family...

Even if she has to help with breaking them.

Chopper

Chopper is much more innocent with the entire thing.

He's childish and sees the Straw Hats as family too.

When Luffy brings you onto the crew, he no doubt sees you as a new playmate.

It's really hard to be upset at Chopper.

He doesn't understand your predicament much.

He's the crew's doctor who always wants to help and wants to view you as part of his family.

Yet you always push him away and resist what he does for you?

Naturally, as a doctor, Chopper checks in on you often in your quarters.

He peeks through the door to watch you and often wants to see your health.

He also wants to play... although when he often tries to, you push him away.

You aren't necessarily upset with him specifically.

You're more upset at Luffy and the rest rather than the young reindeer.

Nevertheless, Chopper still thinks you hate him.

Chopper's probably one of the only ones who can win you over.

He does it so much faster than the others.

If you snap at him or push him away, I can see him crying about it.

Which immediately makes you feel horrible despite your predicament.

You end up giving him affection faster than the others, mostly because now you feel you have to comfort the sobbing reindeer.

He may also be using this to his advantage.

Chopper tries to get you used to being part of the Straw Hats.

He sits around with you, offering books and even asking Sanji to make you a nutritional meal in hopes he can win your favor.

He's adorable... even though he's just as bad as the others for allowing you to be kidnapped.

Now in terms of what you said about drugging, I can definitely see it.

He wouldn't do it often, but if you were trying to escape he may slip something to you.

He'd feel so guilty about it though since he's such a kind soul.

He'd lie and say you're just coming down with something... then he'd lay you in bed to watch over you as his doctor.

He no doubt understands what he's doing is wrong... and hates it....

Yet at the same time, he doesn't want to give you up.

You get along with him the most out of everyone and he has so much fun playing with you.

You may not play with him, Usopp, and Luffy yet... but you will eventually, right?

He tries to be encouraging despite knowing what he and the crew are doing to you.

He's affectionate, even when he realizes he's helping you into Stockholm Syndrome.

Afterwards you're playing and cuddling though...

So... can he really be all that upset now?

He promises he'll take care of you, he's the doctor after all...

He just hopes you'll forgive him and the others for what they've done.

Together

Since you mentioned their synergy, there's an idea I want to explore.

Chopper definitely feels the most guilty out of all the Straw Hats.

I can see him going to Robin and admitting how he feels to her.

He feels bad for taking you from your island, for breaking you mentally.

Is it right for them to force their care onto you when you don't want it?

Robin probably comforts Chopper, trying to tell him that you'll forgive them.

They just want to give you a family, after all.

With them, you'll experience adventure and be cared for....

Robin tells Chopper you'll get used to this and be happy.

Essentially, she encourages him.

Chopper may still be hesitant, but Robin's words help him.

Yes... You should be much better off with them...

They just need to wait until you see that.

[yonahsienna]

There's a famous saying: "2 Jews, 3 opinions". And you just asked several questions to the entirety of Jewish Tumblr, so no doubt you'll get many different perspectives on this. I'm not Orthodox or Frum myself, but I can speak from my perspective as someone Jewish who knows many folks in that community, but also has some distance. More about me and my frame of reference at the end. 🙂

The first thing I'm curious about is how all of your questions ask about "Orthodox" Judaism rather than mainstream Judaism. There's a misconception in the wider community that old school, black hat, Orthodox Jews are the "real" Jews and everyone else is "Jewish lite". That is absolutely not the case. The vast majority of American Jews (around 90%) are non-Orthodox, mostly unaffiliated (~40%) and Reform (~30%). Now, don't get me wrong, the 10% of American Jews who are Orthodox are valid and deserve to get representation and to participate in these conversations, but I want people from outside the community to understand just how diverse the Jewish community is. Jews in other countries like Israel, Britain, and Canada have a higher percentage of Orthodoxy, but even there, they are a minority compared to unaffiliated and more liberal branches.

1. Who is a Jew? Before Judaism was considered a religion, it was considered a family. And in my opinion, that is still the best way of understanding it. Every family has their quirky traditions, their values and beliefs, and their understanding of relatedness to each other. There also are many ways you can join a family. You can be born into it, adopted into it, marry into it, or otherwise find yourself "choosing" and "chosen" in that family. The only thing you can't do is start identifying yourself as a member of a family, if the rest of the family doesn't see you that way.

Whether you'll be seen as part of the family, depends on the branch of Judaism. Orthodox Judaism recognizes you as Jewish if your mother was a Jew, or if you had a valid conversion. It doesn't matter if you observe Shabbat every week or never observe it. Doesn't matter if you're a "good" Jew, a "bad" Jew, or anything in between: a Jew is a Jew is a Jew.

Now, like everything in Judaism, this gets complicated when you zoom in on the details. What does it mean for someone's mother to be Jewish? Well, they have to have a Jewish mother or a valid Jewish conversion. How far back do you go? Oftentimes, documents from your maternal grandmother will suffice, but even that can be complicated depending on where your family is from and what kinds of records they kept there. There are cases of entire communities' Jewish status being questioned based on their origin and type of practice (eg the Ethiopian Beta Israel or immigrants from the Former Soviet Union).

And that's not even most common can of worms, which is that Orthodox communities do not consider non-Orthodox conversions to be valid. So if you or one of your maternal ancestors converted with a liberal Rabbi, an Orthodox community would likely require a conversion ceremony "just in case" at the least, or a full year or longer of Orthodox study, depending on your situation. In the USA and Canada, Reform, Conservative, and Reconstructionist communities accept each other's conversions, and will even sit together on a Beit Din ("court" of 3 Rabbis needed to perform a conversion) in smaller communities. Even between countries, "who is a Jew" is a complicated question. Almost every Reform Jewish community in the USA considers a child Jewish if either the mother or father is Jewish, but almost no Reform Jewish community in Canada does. This scrutiny can also be exacerbated by racism and xenophobia — with my dark, curly hair, light olive skin, and convex Semitic nose, I've never been asked to confirm my Jewish parentage; while blonds and Jews of color face more scrutiny.

Despite all this, Jews recognize each other all the time, irrespective of branch. We don't proselytize to non-Jews, but several branches of Judaism do Kiruv (in-reach) to encourage unaffiliated Jews to "return" to their Jewish roots and get involved in their community. Of course, what exactly that means will vary by community.

2. Is Gay Okay? I'll answer this one in two parts, first for Orthodox Judaism, second for liberal, non-Orthodox Judaism.

Orthodox: Remember "2 Jews, 3 opinions?" The Orthodox umbrella contains no less than six "flavors", many of which can be subdivided into smaller sects or dynasties. Even two Rabbis in the same community may disagree on the nuances of particular issues. In my opinion, this is a feature, not a bug. After all, humans are imperfect. If even Moses himself got it wrong at times, everyone since then must be taken with a grain of salt of various sizes.

The range of Orthodox opinions runs the gamut from the Orthodox Union's 2006 position that "To argue that same-sex marriage is consistent with the traditions of Judaism is intellectually dishonest at best and blasphemous at worst", to thrice ordained Orthodox Rabbi Mike Moskowitz saying "Being gay itself is not a toeiva [violation]. Forcing people to live a life of deception is." The average Orthodox person's opinion is somewhere in the middle of these extremes, and varies depending on which "flavor" of Orthodox they prescribe to, as well as if they have any LGBTQ+ friends or family.

Liberal: The Jewish mainstream is very accepting of LGBTQ+ people, with Reform, Conservative, Reconstructionist, and Renewal communities all officiating LGBTQ+ weddings and welcoming LGBTQ+ Jews to become Rabbis. The liberal movements have even supported new language and rituals that "queer" traditional Jewish practices and mark queer lifecycle events such as gender transition.

3. What about Abortion? All branches of Judaism are very clear that the life of the pregnant individual always takes precedence. Orthodox Judaism opposes any legislation that would unilaterally ban abortion at any stage of pregnancy, but does identify as "pro-life" and sees abortion as a "last resort" for physical or mental health reasons only. Reform Judaism is strongly pro-choice, seeing reproductive decisions as incredibly personal and situational, that families and doctors should make without any outside interference.

This is all my interpretation from my own frame of reference. I am non-denominational: I take a little bit from all the movements but don't limit myself to only one of them. Also, my mother is a Reform Rabbi in Canada, and my wife is a Reform Rabbi in the USA, and I've lived my entire life around Rabbis and Jewish educators and leaders of every denomination. So when I decide how to interpret the traditions in my own life, I do it from a very informed and intentional place.

If you want to learn more, all of the links above are a good place to start. I especially recommend the Jewish Virtual Library and My Jewish Learning as good starting points.

As the great Rabbi Hillel said: "The rest is commentary, now go and study it!"

So, I have a few questions to everyone and I mean this in good faith:1.Does Orthodox Judaism generally accept Reform and Conservative Jews or is there a "no-true scotsman" issue like in Christianity with the Unity branch vs Conservative Christianity, which is most Christian Branches. 2. What are the views on Homosexuality? I generally heard mainly Orthodox Jews don't support it, but some Orthodox Jews do. 3. Does the issue with Abortion that Christianity has also apply to Orthodox Jews? I know the fetus personhood™️ only seems to apply to Christians.

P.S I am ExChristian trying to get an understanding of Judaism so I can keep this whole Judaism=Christianity without Jesus behind me. I genuinely don't want to end up like those antisemetic Atheists who hate both.

Please state your frame of reference clearly when answering

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