#its so sketchy but i didn't want to draw over it

[ohno-the-sun]

Oh uh forgot to ask in the previous ask (the one with the digital piece of candy and scurrying and stuff)

How do you draw art so good

Like

Is there a method you use or is that just the style you've gotten over time?

you've activated my trap card

I'm just gonna preface that this tutorial is from someone who was not professionally trained and didn't have a lot of free time for art, so a lot of the tips I have is short cuts I use to get the best results quickly

If you genuinely want to get better at art then please look at references and practice that is always the best

However if you are like me and only really do art for fun but want to go faster then these are for you pfppt

Overall I'd say my style is influenced by speedpaints I would watch when I was younger, I like analyzing how people do things and what makes something look "good" to me

I always recommend watching them because they will often have techniques you've never seen before or do things a certain way that you can try out yourself

I consume good art, it feeds me

but seriously it can be super helpful when developing your own methodology, or just generally trying something new

Usually it starts with me pulling some references from artists I really admire and sort of sketching out how they do the things I like

For example 8um8le has like super good anatomy and poses so I focused on trying to replicate how they do that

venemous-qwille is super good at color and pulling focus so that's what I focused on in my study of them

In general I'd say my process is sketch -> silhouette -> color -> shading -> render

I really don't like doing lineart lol

I'd say for the sketch the most important part is using references and just kind of fudging it until it looks correct anatomically/physically

General rule of thumb is spend time on areas of interest, and keep non important areas light (like the stitching on his pants)

I don't do lineart because I think its unnecessary for most paintings I do

I naturally tend to put more time and focus on areas of interest (like hands and feet) and if you use a brush with opacity for the sketch, those areas are naturally going to be darker in the final sketch

Of course this is gonna be different for everyone but it's what works for me

Sometimes I do a really really sketchy layer underneath my sketch/lineart, just so I know where everything is going

Use thumbnails! They are great to help figure out the general layout of things and what pose I wanna do

Next is what I call the "silhouette" layer

This is super important for me cause it helps me refine the figure and make sure the pose/anatomy looks correct, also depending on what color I choose for the silhouette helps guide what colors I'm going to use on top

This piece is a good example of how it works. The silhouette shows me how the figure interacts with the background, how the pose looks and if its any good

The silhouette layer doesn't have to be super clean, as long as it follows the sketch decently well and shows where the figure is then its fine

I also sometimes make the silhouette layer multiple colors to help guide shading and vibe

Next is the coloring layer. I usually make this a clipping layer on top of the silhouette layer, or I change the silhouette layer to alpha lock, either way it saves me time on coloring everything in

Sometimes I am super rough with the coloring too, using like an airbrush or my fav watercolor brush just to generically block in color where I want it

Works out cause most objects have like a bounce light to them from surrounding objects, so this is sort of a cheat I use to get that effect without all the work lol

Also don't be afraid to have the lower silhouette layer shining through, having multiple colors sort of subtly shining through the piece helps lots

Next is the shading layer, this is usually another clipping layer, usually set to "multiply"

The colors I pick here is usually within this range, any color works, just depends on the piece and vibes.

Since this piece is set in a sunset forest I choose a more desaturated orange for the shading layer

I know there's a whole thing about multiply layer being a crutch (and it kind of it) but it is a useful tool when you just want some darker values across the piece but don't want to go through the process of color picking every single darker shade

Also in my opinion it looks better than picking a darker color and setting it to a lower opacity, idk I just think the color has more "depth"

Next is the hardest to explain, sort of the vibes layer

Usually its just a layer of more concentrated color on top of the normal color and I fudge with the settings and values until I get a result I like

Next is the longest step, is the "extra" or the render stage.

Usually I add a background before this step so that if I need to merge the figure better with the background I can

If I render with a white background but he's supposed to be in a dark forest, its going to mess with the lighting severely

Also this is when I add more "vibe" layers on top to get the figure to match the background better

Backgrounds in general I recommend checking out @/derekdomnicdsouza on instagram he's got lots of great tutorials for breaking down backgrounds simply

I'd say general rule for the rendering layer is to focus on the areas of interest and spend less time on areas you don't care about

I even blur stuff out on the edges I don't want people to see, partially to save time on fixing mistakes in areas I dont care about (oop), but mainly to help draw the eye to the areas I do want people to focus on

Theoretically parts of the background should like mesh with the characters, parrallel lines are a no no unless they are directing a viewer to look somewhere, things that are perpendicular help bring things together

tbh I'm still not the best at layout and probably need more practice, but overall this is what I like doing

Overall this is what my layer set up ends up being

Sort of a sandwich with the lineart/sketch as the "meat" lol

Color and basic shading below the sketch, clean-up and rendering on top

I like this method cause it's super flexible if I ever want to try something different or try to replicate someone's style

I can make each step less or more messy depending on the end result and can add a lineart layer if need be. Also if there's a part that is straight up not working or needs to be removed its super easy to do cause I can just paint over it on the "extras" layer, color picking from the surrounding area to get the same vibe

Generally rule of thumb for my style is: get the initial layout of colors, form and shading to look good, then the rendering should be smooth sailing

Really the best advice I can give to get better at art is to enjoy what you're doing and become very very obsessed with drawing a silly little guy

You'll eventually get very good at drawing them pfptpf

[nyao-mi]

NOT MY ASTARION BRAIN ROT CONTINUING CUS LIKE i just got the scene where he literally says he misses seeing his face and that like he wishes he knew what he looked like and i??? WANTED SO BADLY FOR IT TO BE AN OPTION TO DRAW HIM

LIKE IMAGINE STARING AT HIM ACROSS THE BONFIRE, watching the way the light dances across his pale skin. youve been through hard times and one of the things you've learned to get through it was to draw

at first, you loathed the fact that you had to paint rich people for mere couple pieces of gold when you knew your art was worth more than that. you loathed even more that they'd upturn their posh noses at you and scoff when, truly, they knew what a treasure your art was.

now, seeing astarion, the way his white hair seemed to almost form a halo around his head, reflecting the moonbeams that graced his body, watching as he crossed his legs and meditated; you knew that you didn't regret a single second of the trials and tribulations that led you to this point.

you could finally put this agonizing skill to use. you could draw him.

and so you scrounged up some paper, an ink well, a quill; all things you'd pocketed during your adventures with the rather willful vampire.

you sat there, nib of the quill scratching against the parchment.

your art was nothing compared to the paintings you'd done before; these were mere lines and ink blots. you wished you could truly show him how beautiful he was through water color or pastels. instead, trapped in a land you barely knew, all you could do for him was this.

he had his eyes closed, of course, so you drew them from memory. strikingly red, like rubies, like blood. you didn't forget his crow's feet; you loved the way they wrinkled when he laughed. you shaped his lips, soft but rough from years of bite and chew, and formed it into his infamous mischievous grin.

his hair always seemed unruly but, drawing it now, it felt like drawing gorgeous chaos; there was an order to it, the way the bangs fell across his forehead, the way the sides feathered in front of his ears and curled behind them.

when you stopped, you realised you'd drawn him over and over, across several pieces of parchment.

the way he frowned and his fangs would glance across his lips. the way he'd look confused and his eyebrows would furrow. the way he'd look longingly at the stars, mind distant and eyes almost empty, like he'd made so many wishes that were never granted by the cosmos.

you never liked tooting your own horn but you felt like you truly captured him.

so, you took your pieces of paper, all drawings of him, dozens of them, small and sketchy; you took it all and you sat beside him and spread them out in front of you.

it took him a second to realise you were there. he'd been letting his guard down recently, especially when you were on watch duty, and it took you laying your head across his shoulder for his eyes to flutter open.

he opened his mouth, like there had almost been a retort slipping off his tongue, but the sight of your drawings stopped him.

he let out a ragged breath, eyes flickering across all of them. his clawed hands hovered in the air, trembling, as if taking a hold of the drawings would make them crumble under his touch.

and perhaps, in his head, he really believed they would.

'darling,' he'd call you, his voice wet with unshed tears 'what's all of this?'

of course he'd still joke. it was how he coped with things. he joked to hide how he truly felt and, of course, you were always there to understand.

'it's you,' you answered a matter-of-factly, as if you hadn't just turned this vampires world upside down 'its you the way i see you.'

and that's what makes him crack. because maybe, since you were the one that drew all of it, you hadn't noticed. but he noticed.

he noticed all the love and devotion you spilled across the page. every single detail, every single stroke, it was all from love.

and as someone who had never been on the receiving end of it, astarion cracked and he hid his face into your neck and he cried.

they were soft sobs, almost unnoticeable. but he cried nonetheless.

he cried for his past that he'd lost under his sadistic master, he cried for his difficult present that seemed impossible to escape, and he cried for this hopeful future you seemed to lay out in front of him.

he cried because he didn't realise that he had this much hope left inside of him. because he didn't know what else to do in the face of your devotion.

you just sat there, humming and rubbing his back, ignoring the way his arm wrapped around your waist, claws digging into your skin as if you'd disappear in front of him if he didn't hold on to you as tightly as possible.

[saguette]

What do you think Johnny's art looked like before he was stripped of his powers? This is something that bugs me a lot, and I'm curious about what you think.

ok i needed to draw a few shitty pictures to demonstrate cuz i wanted to talk about more than just his previous art but his art journey in general IDC if there's some canon tweet that proves something i said wrong or out of timeline these are my headcanons and projections so you either like it or not.. anyways I think his style pre-pre-JTHM (lets say 15-18) depicted many things, He was good at realism and fluctuated just fine between stylized art and big hefty works with a lot of detail. His stylized works looking similar to Jhonens and the whole 2000's artstyle cuz its fitting.

Of course he's like, a late teenager around this time so its GOOD but not perfect. If you pulled up a few of his drawings from this time he would probably be embarrassed by all the disproportionate limbs and goth girls he sketched and thought were badass. He probably has old sketches of friends in his style regardless if they asked to be drawn or not since his art was something he was proud of and people around him made him feel proud of. His old art also feels like it'd have anime elements unintentionally to add to that amateur artist swag. Johnny doesn't like anime copies but stuff he rips inspo from was anime inspired so it rubbed off on his work too. Moving onto PRE-JTHM (18-20) Is when his art started to get more serious and complex. In his happy era he took to drawing lovecraftian horror sometimes but it was always the secondary focus of any drawing.

Moving out and growing up was around the time his mental state started to worsen and he started using art to cope with emotions rather than just use it for fun, drawing complex monsters was a subconscious way to depict underlying mental illness that's out of his hands. He cant depict what he doesn't know he has, he can only scribble things that feel someone close to him because there is no physical appearance to emotions. He never liked his art around this time because it always felt unfinished or wrong or like it just didn't interpret what he wanted right. Overtime his art lost coherent appearance, quality, and meaning which made it feel worthless. It wouldn't be all that bad but it reached a point not even he knew what it was trying to be and it was frustrating. How can your own art not make sense to you? Its weird to let your hands go and do their own and you not recognize what they're trying to say. Which leads to SHORTLY BEFORE JTHM-and later.. Johnnys NEW preferred method for art currently is a little abstract, it became two extremes of the same thing; nothing. his art lost alot of what it used to be so he says he cant draw anymore.

Johnnys lovecraftian horror art slowly engulfed itself over time and always becomes an abstract mess. Its purposely made to be incomprehensible by having too much, regardless if its creation is poetic, an outside view not being able to tell what it is or how much work went into it is on purpose. its metaphorical or whatever.. Johnnys fucked up or something.. Whereas Noodleboy i imagine was made by him drawing a stickfigure one day to see if he can still "draw" and overtime gave him his features like angry eyes and that big hair, creating his own sort of vent sona to replace the sketchy abstract art he used before. Noodleboys chaoticness is too sporadic to rip any meaning off of, he also purposely represents nothing. His existence uses up paper the same way, just without all the extra effort. SORRRYYYY long tangent thats probably super messy i just winged it. but i cant help myself ive thought about this for a while ik i didnt strictly answer the question but i had so much more to say

[sopebubbles]

Master List

Twelve

Synopsis: in a world where alphas, betas, and omegas live along side modern humans as second class citizens, you've fallen through the cracks of a society that wants to take everything wonderful from you. Luckily a timely encounter with the boys just might save your life.

Chapter summary: Yoongi takes you on a date

Warnings: slight angst (mostly talking about her past), mentions of past abuse, homelessness, fear of abandonment

Honestly yall its a lot of yoongi and oc being freakin soft 😩

Yoongi was only slightly disappointed to find you awake and making breakfast with Hobi in the kitchen when he came in after eight in the morning. He'd kind of been hoping to be able to take a peek at you in your nest, just to see for himself that you were as safe and cozy as his other omega had promised (many times) that you were last night. Although he hadn't been gripped by the same agonizing fear he had known for the month you were gone, he still hated being away from you so long last night, and he'd texted both Jimin and Hoseok multiple times last to assuage his anxiety (and his guilt). They'd promised him that you had nested just fine, had eaten well and seemed perfectly happy with Jimin's company before peacefully going to sleep. It was cute just how much he worried about the details. 

"Yoongi!" You said his name brightly when you saw him and rushed over to give him a hug. You were too energized from a good night's sleep and the cup of fresh squeezed orange juice Taehyung gave you to be self conscious about it. You didn't seem to notice the flour on your cheek until Yoongi brushed it off with a smile. "Oh sorry. I'm probably getting you dirty," you said as you tried to pull away. He held you close. 

"I don't mind. Good morning," he hummed as he rubbed his chin over the top of your head. 

"M-morning." Yoongi's arms tightening around you turned to jelly when you'd been solid only moments ago. 

How can he be so warm? He must be tired and hungry.

"Can I get you some pancakes?" You offered, and he finally loosened his hold.

"Only if you eat some with me. Have you eaten yet?" 

You shook your head. "But I need to help Hobi."

The omega waved a hand at you without looking back. "I can handle it. If your alpha says eat, then it's time to eat. Which you know. She kept saying she didn't want to eat until you got here," he added just to make you squirm. A small whine escaped your throat, drawing the attention of all the men, whether they intended to look your way or not. "Careful, girl. Your whines have power here," Hobi smirked as he set two plates in front of you and Yoongi on the counter. 

You sat down and ate quietly for a few minutes while Yoongi tried and failed to pretend he was paying more attention to the food than to you. Jin and Jungkook were laying on the couch, nearly falling back asleep after stuffing themselves before anyone else got up. Jimin had gotten up to take your place helping Hobi while Taehyung and Namjoon sat at the table sharing the newspaper. 

"What do you want to do today?" Yoongi asked after several minutes. 

You swallowed and cleared your throat. "I have to work later."

Yoongi's fork froze halfway to his mouth. "What? why?"

You shrugged. "I work Saturdays."

"You work six hours a day, six days a week?" You nodded. "That's too much."

"I-I thought you d-didn't mind me working…"

Screwed it up already. Now you'll see how he really feels. The pancakes in your stomach turned to lead. 

Yoongi could see you getting nervous, watched you grow even smaller. "No. No, I don't," he managed, forcing his voice to be calm. "I don't mind you working if it's what you want.  But that's a lot. Thirty-six hours is almost full time but no benefits. That just seems…sketchy."

You tilted your head at him. "What do you mean?"

"Just that it seems like your employer is taking advantage of you. Do you get any benefits?"

"Well, I get heat leave."

"But what about health insurance? Vacation? Extended sick leave? What if you get pregnant?" Yoongi could feel all the air leave the room and wished he could take the words back.

You shook you head and spoke softly, "Yoongi, I'm not–"

"I know. I didn't mean that. I'm an idiot. I swear I didn't mean it like that. I'm just saying, those are things you'd expect in a full-time job."

You shrugged. "It's not like I have a lot of options, Yoongi."

"I know," he sighed. "I just want you to be treated fairly."

You stood from your stool and walked toward the stairs. "People like me don't get treated fairly."

Yoongi got up and followed you, catching your arm as gently as he could. "I'm sorry. For what I said and how I said it. I know that you've been doing the best you could, and I have no right to judge that. Everything is okay." His hand laid hot against your neck, thumb stroking just the bottom edge of your scent gland. When he felt your shoulders relax, so did his. "Come finish your breakfast, and when you're ready I'll take you to work."

You turned worried eyes up at him. "You worked so hard, alpha. You must be tired. I'll finish, but then you need to go to sleep. Jimin and Tae will take me."

The corners of Yoongi's mouth turned up in a placating smile. "Okay."

He watched you walk back to your seat at the counter and pick up your fork, ignoring the eyes of the others as he joined you. He wanted to talk it through with you more, but he wasn't going to make you do it in front of everyone, and he didn't want to get into an argument before you went to work all day. Instead, he asked you how your night was and what you did the day before, and you plastered on a smile that slowly became more natural while you told him all about nesting and your newfound love of pillows.

When you'd both finished eating, you took your plates and washed them along with the others, no matter what Hobi said. You couldn't sit down and relax now. Doing so would only create nervous energy you wouldn't be able to dispel. You'd have to spend the rest of your day in motion. Yoongi followed you again when you went up the stairs to change for work, and you'd be lying if you said it wasn't a little annoying.

At the top of the stairs you turned to look at him. "Are you going to follow me around all day?" You snapped. 

Yoongi took a step back. He honestly didn't even realize how close he was. "I'm sorry. I wasn't intending to." He rubbed a hand over his eyes and you could see how tired he was. 

You crossed your arms over your chest. "What are you doing?"

He sighed. "I was going to sleep like you'd suggested. I think I was following you because…"

He wants to sleep in my nest. 

The realization dawned on both of you. "It's not time yet," you said softly, but eased your defensive stance. 

Yoongi met your eyes with equal tenderness and smiled a little. "Yet?"

"Yet," you confirmed.

Somehow the idea that there was a future nest he would be invited into was enough for him. "That's alright."

You turned on your heel to walk to your room, but he called you back. "Would you like to go on a date with me tonight?"

"A date?"

"Yeah. If you don't have any plans."

You raised an eyebrow at him. "Why?"

He chuckled. "Well, I told you we could date as part of our courtship, and I would like to get to know you better."

"But…" you looked at him with an expression of such utter confusion that he wished he had a camera to document it. 

"But what?"

"I just…I don't want you to force yourself to take me on a date if you aren't attracted to me."

It was Yoongi's turn to be utterly lost. "Whatever gave you the idea that I'm not attracted to you? I'm your alpha."

"Yeah, I know, but I feel like you're just doing this, taking me in because you want to protect me, because I'm so helpless and pathetic. And you were so cool about not breeding me. Plus you have all the guys, and so I just guessed you weren't thinking of me that way." You wilted under Yoongi's amused gaze. 

He snorted. "Princess, I do want to protect you because you are incredibly vulnerable, but that doesn't change my attraction to you one bit. And there's a whole world of intimacy between protecting you and breeding you. It's vast and we should go slow, but a date is a good start. That is, unless you aren't attracted to me."

Blood rushed to your face as you felt put on the spot. What kind of omega wouldn't be attracted to the alpha he was? What person wouldn't fall for his gentle, caring demeanor? But you couldn't possibly admit to it.

Yoongi stepped closer to mark the top of your head with his scent. The embrace only lasted a few seconds before he pulled away, but it still left you weak in the knees.

"I don't have anything to wear."

Yoongi shrugged. "It will be very casual. No one will see you but me. You can wear pajamas for all I care. Bonus points if you wear one of my hoodies."

You smiled at that thought. "Okay then."

"Good. Then I'll see you tonight," he told you before he turned and went into the pack bedroom to sleep. 

Yoongi was pleasantly surprised to find an apple-scented pillow in his usual spot and let himself enjoy it for a few minutes before his memory from last night came back to him. 

He had brought a patient to the emergency room of the hospital he had brought your ex-alpha to a few nights ago. After they filled out some paperwork, Yoongi and his partner took a break. His motivation was unclear, even at the time, but he found out what room the alpha was staying in from a nurse that liked to talk to him whenever she got the chance. She told him that he was still in the ICU, but that he was in a coma, and hadn't woken up since the night he was brought in. When he found the room, there was a woman inside. A tall redhead, an alpha as well, if Yoongi wasn't mistaken, so he steered clear, but it had stuck with him the rest of the night.

When he heard you, Jimin and Taehyung leave the house, Yoongi got out of bed and went to the living room where Jin and Jungkook were still on the couch.

"Is everything okay, Yoongi?" Jin asked when the alpha only stood over them without saying a word. 

"I need to ask you some questions. Legal questions," he clarified and sat on the coffee table opposite them. 

"What's on your mind, hyung?" Jungkook sat up to give him his full attention. 

"I found out last night that her ex-alpha–"

"His name is Sebastián," Jungkook added. 

Yoongi growled. "He's in a coma. And I just need to know what's going to happen to her if he never wakes up. And I guess, what happens if he does?"

Jin sat up and shared a look with Jungkook before he spoke. "If he doesn't wake up, there would most likely be a grand jury investigation, which would determine who, if anyone, was responsible for his death."

"In that case, the blame would likely fall on the driver, since she has already been charged with drunk driving. It would be manslaughter," Jungkook added. 

"But she said she pushed him, in her statement. That won't matter?"

Jin shook his head doubtfully. "She could get charged, but in my experience, if you put that girl in front of any judge or jury, there's no way they wouldn't chalk it up to self defense. If he does survive, it wouldn't even make sense to press charges for assault. He wouldn't look very sympathetic. But whether or not she's charged criminally, if he dies, his family could bring a wrongful death suit to civil court. But again, it will be hard to make her look like a perpetrator, especially since they're both Lykos."

"You seem confident that she'll be okay?"

"I am," Jin assured him. 

"But what if she had a motive?" Yoongi worried. 

"You mean because they knew each other?" Yoongi nodded. Jin thought it over, rubbing his finger along his lower lip. "The prosecution would have to prove she meant to push him into traffic and not just to get him off of her. In that case, she'd just need to be coached not to take the bait."

"Could you do it? Would you take the case? If it came to that, I mean." Yoongi didn't know any other lawyers, and he certainly didn't know any he thought he could trust with something like this more than Jin. 

He must have been able to read that emotion in Yoongi's eyes because Jin nodded. He wouldn't take that trust for granted again. "If she needs me to, of course, Yoongi. I'll do anything for you."

You were surprised when Yoongi said he was taking you to a drive in theater. You'd hardly been to any movie theaters at all in your life, and never a drive-in, but you liked the idea of it. There were lots of benefits to it. You got to go out to a public place, but sitting in his car was relatively private. The movie removed the pressure to make conversation, but on the other hand, if the movie wasn't very interesting, you could talk through it without disturbing anyone else. It was really a perfect idea for a first date. 

He'd urged you to take a nap when you got home since the movie wouldn't start until later, and you were glad you'd taken his advice. You didn't have much to choose from when it came to clothing options, so you simply put on a clean pair of jeans and the mustard yellow hoodie he had loaned you a few days ago. Yoongi seemed pleased enough with your ensemble, repeating his compliment of how nice you looked in that color. He wasn't dressed up at all either, wearing a pair of ordinary jeans and a baggy long sleeve shirt. You wouldn't know it because he wouldn't say such a thing, but there wasn't anything you could wear that would look more appealing to him than his own clothes, because they made you look like you were his. He beamed at you when you came down the stairs to leave with him. 

"Do I look okay?" You whispered to Hoseok. 

He pinched your cheek. "You look adorable. He loves it. Believe me." He winked at Yoongi over your head and the alpha held out his hand to take you to the car. "Don't come home too early," he instructed as you went out the door together. 

Once you got settled in the front seat, Yoongi cleared his throat before he started the engine. "This is for you," he said as he handed you a brand new Samsung phone.

"Oh, I–"

"Before you say you don't need it, just consider that it's for me. I want you to make sure that you have it with you and it's on all the time. I told you that it's important for me to know where you are, so I can keep you safe, so you need a phone. And don't worry, it's not like the newest model or anything. Besides, remember you're agreed to let me provide for you. So just accept it. It has all of the pack's numbers saved already, in case you ever need one of them, and they all have your number already. I'm your emergency contact," he rambled.

Instead of offering any protest you smiled softly and unbuckled your seat belt to lean over and kiss him on the cheek. "Thank you, alpha," you said before you leaned back into your spot. You may have wanted to refuse, but he was right, it was for him and not you, not really. If he needed you to carry this thing around in order to feel more secure, that shouldn't be hard for you. 

You weren't prepared for more gifts when you got to the drive-in. When you found a spot to park, Yoongi told you to wait while he got out of the car and went to the trunk. You looked anxiously through the back window, but couldn't see anything that gave away what he was doing. Eventually he pushed a large gift bag and picnic basket through his open car door before he joined you again. 

"What's all this?" You wondered, looking at the tissue paper sticking out of the huge bag at your eye level.

"Why don't you open it and see?" He teased. 

You narrowed your eyes at him as you got up on your knees to be able to look over the bag, but your scrutiny only made him smile. Pulling out the paper piece by piece revealed two soft round pillows inside, one lavender and one orange.

"I figured you needed some pillows for your nest. I thought these could remind you of me and Jiminie."

Your cheeks and your eyes burned as you pulled out the two pillows, almost ball-like except for how plush they were. They squeezed nicely in your arms when you held them to your chest.

"Do you think they'll be okay?" Yoongi asked, beginning to feel nervous when you didn't say anything. 

You buried your head in them to hide your wet eyes. "They're perfect." Your words were muffled, but they still warmed Yoongi's heart. When you collected yourself, you placed the pillows safely back in the bag and set it aside. "What's in the basket?"

"Oh, I asked Hobi to put together some snacks for us. But if there are any other treats you want, I'll go get something from the concession stand." Yoongi opened the top of the basket and you both reached for the box of raisinets at the same time. You whispered an apology while Yoongi plucked them out. He opened the box and handed it to you. "I'm going to go get some popcorn. Do you have a drink preference?" 

You shook your head and he got out once again to go get more snacks. You shoved a few raisinets into your mouth and put the rest away. Then you pulled out the soft orange pillow from the gift bag at your feet and held it close again. You wondered if he'd already scented it, or if it was your imagination that applied the orange aroma. 

The longer he was gone, your mind began to wander. It was hard not to think about all the first things you were experiencing lately. Your very first completely safe, self- made nest, your first drive-in movie, your first date. It had felt like you'd been living for years, in the most raw way possible, but maybe all you'd done was survive, and only barely. These new things seemed so small and insignificant to you when they were only abstract ideas, things you would live without because you didn't need them to survive, but now they felt monumentally important as each one carved a memory in your heart. And each one was available to you only because of Yoongi.

The man at the center of your thoughts broke through them when he returned several minutes later carrying a large bucket of popcorn, which he handed to you, and a large coke that he balanced on the dashboard. 

"Is everything okay?" He asked, taking in your expression, which remained pensive as he settled into his seat. 

You forced a smile, not because you weren't feeling it, but because it wasn't a thing you were accustomed to showing. "I'm fine. I…" you searched for something to say that would take you away from your thoughts. "I didn't even ask what we were seeing."

Yoongi chuckled at himself. "Oh. Yeah. It's actually a horror movie. I was actually hoping we could see the comedy that's playing on the other screen, but it was sold out, so this one was left. But if you don't like horror movies, I was thinking we could just sit and talk. Or we could leave. Or if we're really bored we could turn on the radio station for the comedy and watch it with the horror scenes."

You laughed at his ridiculous idea, but thought it actually sounded kind of fun. "Well, I do like horror movies, but option three also sounds interesting," you admitted with a smile that almost stopped his heart. 

Yoongi cleared his throat as he looked out the window. "There's still like twenty or thirty minutes before the sun sets and the movie starts. Maybe we can still talk?" 

You began to get the feeling that this was what he actually wanted to begin with. He had said he wanted to get to know you, and you supposed he had a right to know the person he was taking in, but at the same time you didn't want to overwhelm him with all of your baggage, at least not in one night. 

"What do you want to talk about?" You hedged, shoving a kernel of popcorn past your lips. 

"Well, I just really want to know more about you, but I don't want to be unfair, so you can ask me anything you want to," he offered, turning in his seat to look at you. 

"I don't know what I could tell you that Jungkook hasn't already. I mean, he must have run a background check on me, right? And he would have told you before he let you take me home?"

Yoongi shook his head. "Jungkook hasn't really said much, actually. I mean, yeah, we do know about, um, where you were before you came to the city," he said diplomatically. 

"You mean jail?" You asked provocatively. "You can say it. Unless it makes you uncomfortable, which I understand." You knew you shouldn't be getting your hackles up with him. He approached the subject gently and here you were, striking back with your claws out like the alley cat that you were. You closed your eyes to try to calm your racing heart.

He placed a hand on your shoulder. "Y/N, it's okay. I'm not judging you. No one in the pack is, either. You're not the only person to get arrested, you know."

You opened your eyes and looked at him incredulously. "Have you been arrested?"

Yoongi nodded his head. "When I was sixteen. A friend and I stole his uncle's car and went for a joy ride. I was just a passenger, and I hadn't presented yet. They dropped the charges."

"Wow, grand theft auto," you chuckled and he did too.

"My point is, we all have a past. I mean, some of us more than others, but you're not the only one."

You eyed him uncertainly. "Did he tell you what I was arrested for? I wasn't just arrested Yoongi. I spent six months in county."

Yoongi nodded. "I know, but I'm not judging you for what you had to do."

You shook your head with a wry laugh. "That's the thing. I didn't do it. I mean yeah, she made me go out there, but I promise you I didn't sell my body. Honest. That was my first night. I may have been naive, but I'm not an idiot. The first guy I talked to was a cop, and I knew it. I could spot him easy, so I offered myself up and I let him arrest me. And when they charged me, I pleaded guilty. Do you know why?" Yoongi shook his head, dark eyes locked on yours. "Because going to jail was better than going back to my alphas."

Yoongi kept his face neutral despite the anger he felt bubbling below the surface of his skin. He'd never ever question your decision, but he would always feel angry that your situation was so bad that jail seemed like a viable alternative for you. 

"You said alphas?" He questioned when he managed to speak. 

"Two of them," you said with a nod.

"And one of them was female?"

"Yeah, they were husband and wife."

"How did you meet them? I mean…he's so much older."

You grabbed the coke from the dashboard and took a long drink to clear the lump in your throat. Yoongi's eyes never left you, but you tried to ignore him. "I met her first. I was on the streets. I was almost seventeen by then, but I'd been on my own for months. She just started talking to me one day when she was volunteering at a soup kitchen…offered me a place to stay. And I was desperate enough to not question it."

"So she just…took you in off the streets?" You nodded. "And then what?" He asked as if your story was the one he had bought a ticket for tonight.

"And then…and then everything seemed normal for like a week. They just seemed like a regular couple. They had a spare room and they needed help around the house, so I would clean and take care of the house in exchange for living there. It was several days before I realized they actually wouldn't let me leave. I hadn't really been on heat suppressants yet, and when that time came around I found out that the real reason they wanted me was because they wanted babies. They couldn't have any on their own, so they would use me. Like some fucked up puppy mill," you choked out.

Yoongi reached over to pat your back, but you flinched away from him, and he could understand that you wanted your space after such a revelation. He took his hand back and tried to think of something to say when all he wanted to do was rage on your behalf.  But he knew it wouldn't do you any good. "It makes sense that you were so frightened when two other strangers took you off the street. You must have been very scared."

You looked him straight in the eyes. "It's only been a few days. Shouldn't I still be scared?"

It wounded Yoongi deeply that you felt that way, but he could hardly blame you. He knew it wasn't about him exactly. "I'm sorry. I know there isn't really anything I could say to reassure you that you're safe with me but–"

"It's okay, Yoongi. I do feel safe with you. It's different. The way I feel when I think about you. When I'm near you…I feel safe but…" you looked out at the narrowing strip of pink sky to your left. 

"But what?"

"I've been taken in so many times when I think I'm at my lowest. When I was abandoned as a baby, when I met those other alphas, when Eli came to play big brother. And never, never has any of it actually made me safe."

"I hope–" Yoongi could feel the tears at his water line, but they would stay there. He bit his lip and looked away as well. "I hope you'll stay long enough to know that you will be safe in our home."

You looked back at him finally and noticed the collar of his unbuttoned button-down shirt was crooked. Reaching over to straighten it, you assured him, "as long as you keep it safe for me, I won't have anywhere else to go."

Yoongi took your wrist gently before you had the chance to pull away from him. With his fingertips against your pulse point, he could feel the strong, steady beat of your heart, not high enough to be panicking, but still a little anxious. "I will do everything I can to make you feel safe," he promised.

Before you could make any kind of response, the lights over the parking lot shut off and images began to play on the screen in front of you. Without another word, Yoongi released you in order to fiddle with the radio, tuning it to the right station for your movie. You both settled back into the seat, facing the screen, with a mountain of snacks in between you. You each tried your best to focus on the movie, but you could feel it every time his eyes slid toward you as he watched your profile instead of the characters on screen. Every time you turned to look at him he recentered his attention, but he was fooling no one. Several times your hands brushed when you both reached into the popcorn for a salty snack, and he would chuckle awkwardly before pulling away. 

You both tried to focus on the movie, but the truth was that it did nothing to hold your attention, not with Yoongi right beside you.

"There's something I don't understand," you said abruptly, causing Yoongi to look quickly between you and the huge screen. The movie had been pretty straight forward, to the point of being pretty boring. 

"What?"

"Why do you like me? Why me?" Yoongi laughed openly while you pouted. You pulled your feet under you and turned to face him straight on, giving up any pretense of watching the movie. "Don't laugh. I'm serious. I mean. I don't know. I guess I'm trying to understand your intentions because I want to believe that this won't be like before but I…I'm scrawny and dumb and there's nothing interesting about me. I'm not even pretty enough to make up for it all. And there are plenty of needy omegas in this city. So what could you possibly want me for?"

Yoongi's humor subsided, and he turned the radio down before moving to face you as well. His expression was serious but his eyes still held light. He reached over to brush back your hair so he could see your face in the scattered light from the projector. 

"I don't think attraction is ever really about those things. Not how someone looks or what they have to say, but how those things resonate with you. It's an elemental, a chemical thing. I just like you. Maybe that's why Hobi and Jin think we're fated mates."

"Fated mates?"

"I don't know. It's kind of…lykos folklore. Sort of what saps think of as soulmates. Like, it just feels right with someone, like you're linked to them even though there's no real reason. There's no proof that it's real. It's just a feeling I guess. But they say it only happens with alphas and omegas. And I don't think I believe it. I don't know if you feel that. But I do feel drawn to you in a way that I never have with anyone else. I don't even think attraction is the right word. I just feel like…I need to be with you."

Yoongi's eyes never left your face while he talked and you didn't realize you were holding your breath until he stopped and you inhaled so you could answer him. "Maybe that's why my omega wants me to trust you even though everything else tells me not to. Like, I should be terrified of you, but I'm just not. I just want to be good so that I can stay."

You didn't know you were leaning toward him, nor were you fully aware of the words you spoke or how they made Yoongi's heart race, but when he brushed his fingers along your cheekbone you suddenly leaned back, blinking rapidly to regain your composure.

Yoongi coughed and pulled his hand away, reaching for candy to occupy his fingers. "I guess I should be honest with you about my intentions," he said with a shrug. "Because I know they aren't entirely altruistic."

You swallowed, but kept your eyes on him. His words made you nervous, but you'd hardly call it fear. "What do you mean?"

"Maybe it's a little dark. Or maybe all alphas feel this way. I always knew I was an alpha before presentation, because I always wanted people to depend on me. I always wanted to be in charge, to be a provider, to have the people in my life need me even more than they wanted me. In a way, the attraction I have, the love I have for the others, that's the unbelievable thing. With Jimin, with you, I felt from the first time I met each of you that you needed me. You wouldn't survive without me. And I liked that. Do you think that's kind of sick?" He wondered. You couldn't tell if he wanted an answer, or if he wanted you to be a little bit scared. But still you didn't feel it.

I don't think I will survive without you, your inner self echoed. 

You reached out to him, let your fingers graze the back of his hand. "I'm not sure. I'm not the best judge of what's normal and what's not. But it sounds right to me. I think to myself sometimes, I don't know how I've survived this long. I should be dead. Omegas…we aren't built to make it on our own. Sometimes it seemed like my death was right around the corner, but I don't feel that way anymore. The last two days have felt like the safest days of my whole life," you admitted. 

Yoongi's chest felt tight, like his heart would burst through his ribs if you kept talking. He turned his palm up so he could slot his fingers through yours. You sat in silence for a moment, letting him hold your hand while he tried to keep his breathing steady. 

"I don't understand why you're not pack alpha. Is it because Seokjin makes more money?" You wondered after a minute as you brushed back his chin length hair with your fingers. 

Yoongi chuckled. "If we're getting technical, Taehyung makes the most money in the pack."

Your eyes bulged in surprise. "But I thought Tae didn't work."

"He doesn't have a job in the strictest sense, but reclusive artists are often the most sought after. His paintings sell for a high price tag to collectors."

You hummed thoughtfully. "Maybe I picked the wrong alpha." 

Yoongi tugged on your hand playfully, making you giggle. "I always wanted to be a pack alpha. When I was younger I tried to establish my own pack but…it just wasn't right. I didn't have a lot to offer back then. I've never had Jin's resources. And then I met his pack, and I felt very comfortable with them. It was easy to fall in love with each of them so quickly. But they were already complete before me. I felt surprised they even wanted me. So I let go of that dream. It's been over five years now."

"But then you met Jimin, right? Did you think about starting a pack with him? On your own, I mean?"

Yoongi shrugged. "An alpha and a beta isn't much of a pack. You can make a pack without a beta, but without an omega? What's the point?" He looked at you through his eyelashes, but then quickly away. "Besides, Jimin and I both always wanted a big pack, and he clicked with Jungkook and Taehyung right away. It would have been selfish to take him away just because I wanted to be in charge."

"You're my pack alpha though," you murmured, sending a shiver down Yoongi's spine. He could only nod. "Good."

He lets his eyes close and for a minute you just watch him breathe steadily, happy that he seems content with you. But as seconds slip by you begin to feel that it might not be enough. Maybe it was silly, but you felt so much closer to him after all you'd both said, and holding his hand wasn't physically close enough anymore.

"I'm kind of cold," you told him quietly, taking him from his thoughts. 

"I can turn on the heat," he offered, letting go of your hand and reaching for the ignition. 

"Or maybe you could just hold me?"

The corner of his mouth tugged into a smile. He helped you move all the snacks to the backseat of the impala and moved closer so you met in the middle. You huddled into his side as he wrapped his arm around your shoulders and pulled you legs over his. You let out a quiet, happy sigh you hoped he didn't notice. 

"If you wanted to cuddle all you had to do was say so," he whispered to the top of your head. 

You turned your face into his shoulder. "I'm working on it," you mumbled. 

He smiled and ran his fingers through your hair, dragging his fingernails gently against your scalp. "You're doing great, princess."

You made a noise Yoongi wouldn't only describe as grumpy and turned your face up at him. "Why do you call me that?"

"Because that's what I want you to feel like. Because princesses have everything they need provided for. And because you're special just because you're you. But if you don't like it, I can call you something else."

You nestled into him again. "Well, when you put it like that."

Once again, Yoongi turned up the volume on the radio and you both at least pretended to pay attention. Although the movie in general was pretty innocuous, you took advantage of one lame jump scare to bury your face into his neck. Yoongi held his breath as you nosed at his scent gland, causing his light, happy scent to fill the car around you. He let you stay in his arms until the end of the movie, and although you didn't fall asleep, it was an easy mistake for him to make. He scratched teasingly at your side to rouse you when the screen went dark. 

"Are you ready to go home, princess?"

You tilted your head up to see his features illuminated by the lights of other cars as they made their exits. You'd practically forgotten that there was anyone else there. Your head nodded sleepily, and Yoongi reluctantly moved you over to your side of the seat. When he moved behind the steering wheel you moved back to the center seat and strapped in the seatbelt there so you could stay close to his warmth.

No matter how old you get, the urge to stay up on a Saturday night always remains. Yoongi could tell by the soft footsteps moving about the second floor that the pack are just settling in for the night, brushing their teeth and for the most part discarding unnecessary items of clothing before staking their claim to their spots in the nest. Everyone was home for once, and they'd all sleep soundly. Even you. Even Yoongi, although he knew that it still wasn't time for you and him to share space for that activity. You climbed the stairs sleepily with Yoongi a few steps behind you, making sure you didn't slip as you swayed precariously. His hand went quickly to your hip, grabbing hold of the fabric there when you tripped over the top step. The noise brought Hoseok to the bedroom door.

"You didn't get her drunk, did you, alpha?" Hobi asked from the half open door. Yoongi rolled his eyes, because the omega knew that wasn't the plan.

"No, just sleepy," you yawned as you rubbed your eyes. 

Jimin squeezed past Hoseok to give you a goodnight hug. "You smell like you crawled out of an orange." He giggled, "apples and oranges."

Yoongi blushed while the two of you said your goodnights. 

"Do you need any help getting ready for bed?" Hobi asked softly. He'd helped you take apart your nest earlier today so that you could keep practicing. 

"No, I think I got it. And I have new pillows," you whispered happily.

"Okay then," he smiled back. "Yoongi, I'll see you in a minute," he said, and the instruction to your alpha was clear, just in case he didn't already know where he would be sleeping tonight. He closed the door and the two of you were cloaked in darkness except for a sliver of light from a lamp Hoseok left on for you in your room. 

"Are you going to tell them what I told you earlier?" You asked after a moment passed with nothing but the sound of your breathing. 

"I won't, if you don't want me too. But no one is going to judge you if you're–"

"No. I was just thinking it would be better if you did. That way I don't have to tell it six more times."

Yoongi nodded. It was a vulnerable thing you had shared, and it couldn't be easy to talk about with others. "I read once that if you talk about your trauma repeatedly, like you're telling a story, it can start to feel more like a thing that happened and not something that's still happening to you."

You cringed at the thought. "I think I'd still rather have you explain it. If you don't mind."

"Of course," he agreed easily, anything to make you more comfortable. 

"I had a good time tonight," you admitted after another quiet moment where neither of you seemed to want to leave. 

Yoongi's smile was becoming semi permanent. "I'm glad. Get some rest. I'll see you in the morning."

He took one step closer to you and leaned down to kiss your cheek, but you turned your head up in such a way that you caught his lips with your own. You froze in surprise, and even more shockingly, he didn't move away. Yoongi took another step into you, so your chests were just touching. His hand went around your back to keep you steady despite intensifying the angle of your kiss. Still, it remained chaste even as it went on. His lips were hot and soft and just slightly moist, but he seemed content to press his mouth just gently to yours for another moment longer. Then his lips finally left yours, he whispered his goodnight and disappeared into the pack bedroom. 

😃😃 they kissed! Who wants to scream about it?

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[hantheheart]

im having Lancelot thoughts so.

Headcanon list for my Purse chihuahua (yes hes stuck with that moniker now)

He's good at styling hair. Won't do shit to his own hair, but if he's left sitting idle for too long, the person nearest to him is going to wind up with a new hair style for the day. He learned from helping do his mom's hair when he was young and Jericho's here and there.

He actually collects knives. not just for using his magic with, but because he likes seeing what cool and wild designs people make. He'd like to try his hand at making one someday, he's got a couple of sketches of designs.

He's fairly good at drawing. It's very sketchy looking, but he only draws landscapes of the places he's been to.

His fox form's fur is actually pretty coarse. This is intentional on his part.

I need this boy to have some not so "cool mature and untouchable" vibes

His parents held on to all his old toys and things from before he and Jericho vanished and when he finally returned home, he buried himself in stuffed animals and toys he genuinely thought he'd never be able to see again.

He has a stuffed rabbit he used to carry with him as a kid that, after it got to worn out to be fixed, he turned into a little bag he keeps on his belt with things he considers precious to him.

He and Tristan made up a secret code so they could write each other letters no one else could understand and they still use it when they're older. They teach Percy and Gawain so it becomes "The Four Knights Secret Code". It mostly gets used for dumb stuff like planning to sneak out in the middle of the night with friends or late night snack runs

he does actually have pretty sharp canines even in human form so he will bite if necessary. He just doesn't cause he knows it makes him look feral.

He's more a cat guy, honestly. Dogs can be a bit too high strung for him and he's more cat like himself anyways. Man can, will, and has napped in weird places just because "the sun hit just right" and will make eye contact before knocking shit over just because. He thinks he's hilarious for this. Tristan and Anne do not.

Jericho used to tell him "little white lie" stories for stuff he'd ask that she either didn't have an actual answer for or didn't want to explain to him and he still believes some of them. This leads to many hilarious moments of Lance vehemently telling people something and the rest of the gang explaining the truth to him.

Donny can and has agreed with Lancelot only because its kind of funny to see everyone look at him like he's lost his shit for saying he also believes an old wives tale or a children's story too.

It's a personal goal of his to be able to beat Meliodas in a fight, not for any particular reason, but just because it feels like a good goal to have since Meliodas is technically the strongest person in Britannia.

[dowhatteverer]

OKAY FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS THEN: how does showfall get its hands on mind control tech? How does it work and who gets controlled first? How do the others react when they see it? C:

Those last two questions are too spoiler-y to answer, but here's a sort of prologue comic to answer the first two. (I hope you enjoy the sketchy style, I wanted to answer this ask asap but it still took all day lol.)

Tumblr ate my image quality so you're gonna have to click.

I'll probably be answering any other questions you have in text because this comic took all day to make and I kind of had a breakdown over it in the last stretch because of burn out I think? I love these questions and I love talking about this AU! I just think I'll wait until I have a planned Ask comic ready or something to mentally prepare myself for drawing so much. Thank you for your patience!

(For clarity's sake in case the comic didn't explain it well enough, Ranboo found tapes in the wood that Hetch listened to, found out they had some brain altering abilities, he took them to the Showfall founder and he began trying to figure out how to use them to their advantage, including studying their strange effects and figuring out how to use them to keep their business afloat.)

[ceasarslegion]

My advice regarding tattoos or any kind of body mods:

-don't shirk the expense. It's a labour intensive job, so what you're paying for is the effort and time and attention to detail. It's going to be on your body forever, so you want to make sure you have the best you can get.

-if your pain tolerance is very low, reconsider any tattoos that are super big or in bony places. I'm not trying to yuck your yum, but I am saying that if you can't handle the pain of it for multiple hours over multiple settings then you should reconsider redesigning it to something you can handle. You can build up your pain tolerance over time, but never push yourself past your limit for it or you run the risk of associating a permanent mark on your body with physical trauma.

-don't get tattoos from your kinda sketchy friend who bought a tattoo gun and says they want to practice on you for free. They aren't a licensed artist and they don't know proper sanitation and health and safety procedures. That is an infection waiting to happen, not to mention it's probably gonna look like shit

-tip the artist. Budget a few hundred for them, they do an extremely hard job where one fuck up is permanently embedded into people. A good tip will be greatly appreciated and they'll be more than happy to welcome you back for any future work and put even more effort into you if you show yourself to be a good client who treats them well. A good rapport makes for better art.

-its gonna be uncomfortable. It just is, that can't be avoided. Think of it on the same level of pain as a cat scratch but spread out for a really long time, so it won't like, kill you or make you regret being born, but it will hurt. If you get it all done at once, it'll be easier but you'll be pushing your body more than if you take breaks and come back. Talk to your artist about how you want it done and let them know what your plans are. That way if you like, wanna take a break to get coffee and lunch across the street and come back they both know you didn't like, dine and dash and they'll know what to tell you to do to take care not to damage it during your breaks. If you're getting a multi session tattoo, expect it to be spread out over a long time, so it's not gonna look great the first few times. But letting it heal and recover a few times will be essential for the final product. Make sure you're willing to go through that before you decide on like, a giant dragon with spread wings across your entire back.

-just... don't get face tattoos man. You're not Post Malone who has famous public figure status, you're some guy who has to be able to get and hold down a job. Every other part of your body can be covered in professional settings and piercings can be taken out, but unless you wear a face covering of some kind, your face is always on display. This isn't a moral or a judgemental statement, it's just the reality of the world we live in. Face tattoos make your life a lot harder than it has to be and you just dont have to go through that. Before anyone pisses on the poor about this one, I am obviously not talking about cultural face tattoos like the ones the moari people have

-do not get tattoos on an impulse, especially not tattoos of media properties. I'm not telling you NOT to altogether, I actually plan on getting tattoos of the truman show and back to the future at some point because those films really shaped me as a person in ways others haven't. That's what you have to think about though: do you just really like it right now, or has this media shaped you in some way regardless of your current enjoyment of it? Because the last thing you want to do to yourself is permanently draw something into your body that in a few months you just don't care about or even dislike anymore.

-do not get tattoos to make you feel better when you're sad. See above, but with an added dollop of regret. Get them in a completely sober and level-headed state of mind so you can be objective about them and if they will bring you joy for the rest of your life, not in the moment as a response to something negative.

-LISTEN TO YOUR ARTIST WHEN THEY TELL YOU WHAT YOUR RECOVERY WILL LOOK LIKE!!! If you throw out everything else on this list but one thing make this the one thing you keep. If they say you can't put it in water, don't put it in water, they'll tell you how to bathe. If they tell you it can't be exposed to sunlight, do not expose it to sunlight. If they tell you you have to apply a certain skin disinfectant or something to it every day, I don't care if it stings, you have to apply it. If they tell you not to scratch it, suck it up if it gets itchy. You have a massive open wound on your skin that is a breeding ground for bacteria and viruses and dirt and filth and is incredibly sensitive to everything. You can do everything from ruin your tattoo to contracting flesh-eating bacteria from shirking your recovery process, the latter of which is not that uncommon, but almost always happens to people who don't listen. Do not fucking do that.

[malacandrax]

hi sry this is a lil long but i just felt like giving my own comments about ur post re: feeling left out/regarding more detailed work, and wanted to say that your work singlehandedly has inspired me SO much to the point that because of your more simplistic coloring/shading and focus on movement/body language, i was finally able to find a coloring/rendering style that i actually like aesthecially and enjoy doing! i've struggled w replicating color in a way i like digitally for over 6 years but your work, and especially so your sketchbook scans on patreon have been so useful for inspiration and for my own understanding of anatomy and what not. we're always our own worst critics with comparison and whatnot, but please know that your work and your style are a huge accomplishment and skill in their own right, and your comics inspire me to keep studying so i can one day make my own!!! i'm so thankful you share your work with us and to have come across it and be able to draw inspiration off it! your colors, expressions, and the palpable intimacy and dynamic character interactions are so amazing and specifically unique to your work, never doubt the impact it has just because of other's having a different style or approach or something <3

This is so extremely nice I don't even know what to say!!! I honestly feel so hyped that my style inspired someone else, I feel like it's not something I expected and its SO COOL. I sometimes feel like my style isn't particularly STYLISH you know, I often admire really strong punchy styles, so it's nice to hear my own kind of chiller style is inspiring! And that the things I enjoy come across as strengths, too! Also I am so happy to hear someone enjoys my sketchbooks haha, they're really precious to me but I also try not to be too fussy about my art in them which means it's not 'beautiful'*- they're for studying and/or chilling out, so it's SO nice that it's inspiring nonetheless! Wishing you the best in your art journey and also I think if you want to make comics you should just give it a go! Make teeny tiny comics! [it does not have to be good] [tangent oh my god] I feel very hypocritical because for the longest time comics were something my friends made and I didn't know how to, and I felt like my style didn't work for comics, but honestly when I eventually sat down and started a long comic the style happened out of necessity, I Had to simplify or I wouldn't be able to keep up. And you can see from the links that I just did sketchy comics before and that was fine! I think it was just as valuable as making polished pages. I actually probably ended up making comics For Real because I made a silly fandom ask blog, where I kept wanting to say more than I could do in one image, and that gave me the confidence to try something longer with OC's.

ANYWAY thank you so much!

*I find polished sketchbooks so inspiring, but its so limiting imo to try to make a beautiful sketchbook HAHAHAH

[rtxler]

breathe

Summary: After a run-in with her ex she calls the last person she should have.

Pairing: JJ Maybank x Kook!Reader, Rafe Cameron x OC (EX/implied)

Word count: 3.1k

in the same universe as mistake but both part of my JJ Maybank fic WHY NOT? on wattpad, which would mean a lot if you check out

-

Closing her bedroom door she lets out a tired sigh of release as she leans back against it slowly removing her shoes and kicking them to the side, then stumbles over to her en suite, removing her earrings with a groan and dumping them into a bowl, taking a minute to look at herself in the mirror her finger travelling and assessing over every line or crease visible with even after the meal she just had her thoughts keep bouncing back to a particular pogue specifically the night they had together. "Fuck, you need to get shit together," stalking back into her room towards her chest or draws, "and start working out again but one day at a time."

She changes out of her dress leaving her just in her underwear, reaching towards to draw but then jumping at the sound of a knock against her bay window. Groaning she throws on a silk nightie, "What the fuck, i swear Maddy if you forgot your jacket or something again," Quickly going over to the window to pull back the heavy curtain ready to fully go off on her best friend but stopping in her tracks as instead of seeing a girl with a shit eating grin she's greeted with literally the last person she wanted to see. Ever.

"Rafe? What the fuck."

Liliya stood shocked staring at her ex-boyfriend precariously crouching on the ledge outside her window.

"OPEN THE WINDOW" he mouths aggressively while pointing towards the lock.

She begins to slowly nod in understanding, "Oh okay.... NO. You perv, go away."

"Liliya i'm not joking i will stay here until let me in so unless you want to explain to your parents why a boy is climbing to your room," at that the blonde girl rolled her eyes at his muffled voice and turned away beginning to walk back to her bed, "or maybe even having to explain to your new friends why i was here all night." At that she stopped, looking back over her shoulder to be greeted with the smug smile of Rafe Cameron. "Yeah i know about that, god I've heard about girls lowering there standards after a break up but Jesus have some dignity."

As a flurry of annoyance casts through her body she storms back to aggressively open her window. "Are you stalking me?" Her question is momentarily ignored as the boy decides to quickly take the opening clambering into the girls bedroom.

"God your self obsessed i happened to be taking a walk and saw you with some peculiar company" Dusting himself as he met the unimpressed glare of his ex. "Well, that and you still have me on find your friends."

"Oh my god, your such a prick." She scoffs looking up to her ceiling in disbelief.

"Well that's why you loved me."

"Did i?"

"Yeah because just 'cuz you've got everyone else fooled that your this impenetrable force which nothing can break," he emphasis with a wide gesture ending his spiel with his hands on his hips. "you've got a tell."

"Really and what's that." She nods condescendingly walking forward with her head up.

He meets her in the middle till their faces were inches apart, making Liliya flinch inwardly while trying to maintain her outward facade.

Ducking down till his lips graze her ear "Your eyes," he voice rasps sending a shiver down her spine, "you can never hide your eyes." brushing his nose against hers. "especially from me." lifting a singular finger down her cheek.

At that Liliya snaps out of it grabbing his hand pushing it away dodging around him, creating a good couple of metres between them.

"Aw come on, what you didn't want to have a walk down memory lane babe?"

She trudges past him, shoulder checking him in the process, leaning against the open window scoffing. "Please with you Rafe its more of a sketchy dark alley. And do not call me that, i mean even when we were dating it was crossing a line, now please, get. The hell. Out."

"Okay, okay," raising his hands up in defense as he strolls over. " but ah nice to see nothing changed." looking across her room, as he's crouched half-way out the window, landing on her under wear hanging half out of her draw, earning him, unsurprisingly, a hard shove fully out the room, the window slamming shut and the blinds pulled behind him.

Liliya rests against the window closing her eyes as she releases a big sigh, wrapping her arms 'round herself, lightly hitting her head repeatedly against the glass. "God i'm so glad i dumped that piece of shit."

Pulling out her phone with shaky hands ready to message Maddy for support when she notices an unread text sent earlier from an unknown number.

'Im looking at u right now not having a clue Ive swiped your phone for a bit which is bit concerning u need to smarten up if you wanna catch a stalker.

J'

"God he has awful grammar." Liliya muses, but still not managing to move the small smile from her features.

She stands there for a couple minutes her fingers ghosting over the keyboard thinking through all the reasons was what she was thinking was a bad a idea, and that no matter what she wanted now she would be kicking herself in the morning. But even with those thoughts swimming around her head she still somehow typed out a response.

'You still wanna come in?'

Sucking in a breathe she waits impatiently as the response bubble pops up and down, and then back up again, Jesus this boy needs to make up his mind, until finally.

'what food do u have'

'oh my god' -----------

"Why the hell are you calling me, where are you?" The kook answers laying down on her bed, regretting all past life decisions leading to this exact moment where she was nervous about meeting a freaking pogue in her own home.

"Oh hi JJ, how are you doing? Oh thanks Liliya i'm doing great after climbing a TEN FOOT GATE!......... I'm outside by the way." An out of breathe voice echos around her room.

She sits up at that, pulling down her shirt as she re-adjusts herself. "Oh shit hi, just knock on the front door weirdo."

"What about your parents?"

"What about them? They don't bite." She pushes herself off the bed moving to her vanity table, placing her phone on a stack of books off on the side.

"Well they made you so i doubt that." He snarks back.

"Big words from the guy standing outside the house." And with that she hangs up as she checks out her reflection smoothing down her hair and re-applying lip gloss, reasoning that she has an image to maintain for everyone to see not just specifically the blonde boy currently at her doorstep.

She rushes down stairs then breaks into a calm walk to the front door preparing herself by giving her look a second glance over in the hallway mirror.

"You okay sweetheart?" Her dads voice breaking out of her panic.

"What?" She responds quickly facing her father's head that was sticking out of the kitchen. "Yeah just a friends coming to hang out for a bit."

"A friend? Maddy?" He start to lean on the doorway. "Am i going mad or wasn't she just here."

"No it's not Maddy."

"Sarah?"

"No."

"Then-"

"Just a new friend okay, he's hungry so we'll just snack for a bit." She spits wondering what the hell was taking JJ so long to walk from one end of a driveway to another.

"He?" Peaking her dads attention. "Wow, moving on from Cameron quick." He mutters as he heads back into the kitchen.

"Dad, no it's not like that." Liliya whines her fingers starting to rub circles on her temple.

"Oh i didn't mean it as a bad thing sweetheart, i mean i never liked that boy anyway y'know and you're young..."

Thankfully before David Woods could finish that sentence a knock from the front door saved Liliya death by embarrassment.

"Oh thank god." She jumps at the chance to exit her situation yanking the door open to meet the smiling face of JJ Maybank. "Where were you walking from Germany?" Yanking him through the door.

"Heads up." Were the only words JJ heard as he was pulled into the grand foyer before he was smacked by a packet of popcorn.

"Ow."

Liliya let out a short laugh at the shock on the boys face before facing her dad who was moving across to the teens. "Is mom around?"

"Oh sorry kid, Lily said you were hungry and nah don't worry it, you moms already deep into her desperate housewives binge, ugh y'know." throwing his hands up in fake exasperation.

"You really want to go watch it with her huh." She muses crossing her arms.

"Yeah, yes i do, so i'm just gonna grab this thank you" snatching the bag from the floor but halfway up the stairs he suddenly stops to turn around to face the two teens "Right um young lady, stay downstairs okay? But if not y'know door open and six feet apart at all times, okay." He says putting a stern face on before rushing back up stairs, leaving the pogue and the kook alone at last.

JJ kisses teeth a couple times. "Soooo food?"

"God, you're like a stray, come on this way". Walking past him to the entrance of the kitchen. "Do want anything or just gonna look around like a lost soul?" She says as she notices JJs gaze scanning his surroundings.

"Sorry just that your foyer is like my entire house and this kitchen, i mean are you housing an orphanage why is there so much?"

"Well as cute as this whole finding civilisation bit is i'm already bored so" She muses, starting to rummage through a couple cupboards

"You think i'm cute?"

"Pushing your luck stalker, okay here we go I've got sweet chilli peanuts, enough chips to choke an army and some ice cream in the freezer i think."

"Oooh yes please let me just get this," leaning over her shoulder to reach the aforementioned bags. "and definitely grab the ice cream."

"Are you actually starving, like should i be concerned?" she asks open the freezer door.

"No just i'm always hungry and," quickly pulling out a small bag from his back pocket with his free hand. "especially after i smoke."

"No charge?" Her face pokes ups as she leans on the freezer door back slightly arched causing the boy in front of her to swallow harshly.

"Aw for you baby? Never."

"And you ruined it." She slams the door shut swiftly grabbing a couple spoons and heading towards the exit. "Come on follow me, do not wonder." She remarks without even looking at him.

"Yes ma'am."

_____________

Heading into the Liliya Wood's bedroom was an extremely surreal moment for the pogue, for so many years this had been seen as untouchable but now he's following after her and her ice cream like a lost puppy, watching as she dumps the carton and spoons on her bed, along with taking the packets out of JJ's hands.

He takes that time to have a tiny glance around her room noticing first what he would of expected from the kook queen, a large King sized bed, a vanity mirror with lightbulbs surrounded that looked like they could blind both of them, a large walk in wardrobe and a pristine white tiled en-suite. But what also caught the blond boys attention was other little details the managed to slip through the cracks of her spotless facade, like the old stickers of Moshi monsters that were failed to be scraped off her bed frame or the stack of fantasy books piled precariously on the edge of her table.

"JJ?" Liliya questions from her seat against the broad fabric headboard.

"Yeah right let me just," throwing her the bag and lighter. "Ta da, for you madame."

"Why thank you kind sir, rolled and ready to go already eh."

"Well i aim to please." He smirks, adding a little wink.

"Hm okay big guy." She takes out a joint placing it haphazardly in between her lips as she fumbled for the cheap lighter. "Lets see how you do tonight."

"How i'll do?" He smirks watching Liliya strike the lighter in frustration. "Is this some kinda roleplay, 'cuz let me tell you from real experience i am a very bad student." Ending the sentence with a flourish as he pops open a packet of chips, not waiting a second to start piling them into his mouth.

"No? Really? Well colour me surprised." She mumbled finally getting a light. "Ah yes." As she took her first hit she let her posture go slack, sinking in to the mattress, flinching as the boy jumps next to her also reaching for the joint in her hand.

"Come on, unless you're keeping it all to yourself huh, miss greedy guts." Making her huff and reluctantly pass it over to him.

"Oh i'm sorry but you already looked so relaxed," Looking the pogue up and down, scanning his scruffy clothing. "almost too relaxed."

"Really, well if your sorry then i'm expecting some reparation" He suggests as he takes a breathe.

She takes the beat of silence to look over him, not like before with a forced critical eye to make a snarky remark, but with only the intent to see him.

"Hmmm well of course i'll share with you, what do take me for." Watching the shadows dance over his face, forcing the words out as a breathe gets caught in her throat.

"From what I've seen a perfect little kook angel." He repositions himself to get more comfy, while also subtly moving himself closer to her, looking up to her.

"Oh shut up, and just," she moves in one fast motion, placing her hands on his shoulders, lifting herself over him to land in a straddling position. "breathe." She doesn't know what came over her, a fog was covering her normal reasoning, only picking up on the boy, a very attractive one at that, in front of her.

Smoke slowly passes between their mouths, their eye-contact never breaking as even though they were only a couple inches or so away from each other, they moved slowly forward gravitating towards each other.

JJ couldn't take his eyes of the image in front of him, her hair cascading down framing the soft features of her face, the light reflecting off of it, creating a halo effect above her. Her plump lips remaining open when the smoke had passed, seeming only remain open to continue to entrance him.

"You are so beautiful." He didn't even realise he vocalised his thoughts till he watched the girl on top of him finally blink and break out of their shared trance.

"Um," Looking down it seems as she just noticed how they were positioned , extracting herself while making minimal contact with him beneath her.

"Why'd you invite me over?" He figures if the mood is already gone, he might as well get some answers.

"You practically begged me to, remember?" She scoffed, turning a complete 180 from her behaviour just a few moments ago.

"Yeah and you're Liliya Woods, iv'e seen you brutally turn down a guy in a wheelchair."

"And why wouldn't i treat him like everyone else?" Looking offended at the remark.

"Exactly, when i dropped you off it seemed like i was the last person you would let in your house and now, here we are." Staring at her, gesturing to the room around them, but only receiving a blank stare in return. "Come on, look what i got you." He gestures the joint currently sitting in her hand.

"Are you forgetting the mountain of my snacks sitting around us?"

"...Liliya."

"I got a surprise visit." She mutters, unconsciously wrapping her arms around herself, carefully positioning the joint away from her clothes.

"Oh," He looks down awkwardly. "Like a monthly thing?"

At that comment she hits him firmly in the shoulder. "No you moron, Rafe."

"Ow," Cradling his arm but then admits with a quick nod. "Well that is much worse."

"Yeah." She scoffs. "He is."

Leaning closer to the girl, he tries to make eye contact as she stares off into space. "Are you okay?"

Sniffs, and sits up noticing how close the pair become again, cursing the fact she thought this was a good idea, trying to pull herself back into some idea of decency not understanding how he managed to get her guard down so easily. "Yeah just needed to calm down from seeing my ex with anger issues pop up in my window. like a delusional meerkat"

"Window? That window." Pointing to one across the room.

"Yes. Why are you smiling like that?."

"Well it's nice to know i'm not the only one resigned to climbing for an entrance."

"You chose to do that, literally just could've texted me to open the gate." She gasps in a state of exasperation.

Her face scrunches in frustration as she stares at him, he brushes his finger down her cheek, gently as if he was touching the most precious thing imaginable to him.

"What the hell are you doing." Although it was meant as a threat, with the light whisper it came out as, it could only been seen as a look of shock.

"You get a little crease in your brow when your worked up." Dropping his hand to her arm. "Did you know that."

"Shut up." She lifts his hand off, siting forward to wrap her arms around herself again.

"You say that a lot." He says trying to hide his disappointment.

"Yet you're still talking."

"Hmm, and will i ever stop? We may never know."

With the bubble they had created popped Liliya knew that the smart thing to do was to make sure that no lapse of judgement would occur. Again. "Well it's late so..."

"Yeah of course right." He sits up off the bed pulling his shirt from where it had ridden up. "Um next time you get some late night critter," pointing to the window with his head. "Just let me know

"And what would you do... what exactly." Rolling her eyes not believing the peacocking happening in front of her.

"Hey i'm like a 90% sure i could take him."

"Sure sweetie." She teased, watching him walk to the door.

"Get a good night sleep, you'll need it." He shouts over his shoulder.

"For what?"

"For when i pick you up tomorrow."

"Excuse me?"

"Hey don't get your panties in a twist, sounds like you don't wanna find some gold."

"Right, the gold and why do you want me to be there? I thought this was some sad little pogue fantasy." Nodding out the window as if were all beneath her.

"Two reasons, one 'cuz i want to see your reaction when your realise it's not a fairy tale." He grins opening the door to exit.

"Hey?" The pogues head pop round the door with a questioning look. "Whats number two?

"Well... i like.." He cuts off at that, seeming to catch himself while starting at the tussled hair girl, "I like.. watching stuck up kooks see the real world."

[billwasnot]

hi bill !

i was just wondering if you could offer some tips about how you made your alnst oc ? ( like transferring it onto para’s base and such )

im trying to draw my own oc out, but im heavily struggling with how to actually start and execute what i want to be on the profile

guidance from you would be very helpful ! your own profile looks like that of an actual character !

thank you if you answer this ! have a wonderful rest of your day bill <3

Hiii Apri

Sorry for the late reply!

So. The thing is, I didn't... really use Para's base. However I thought about it, and since Para's bases offer a general silhouette without facial features, I could offer some help in analyzing the general style of ALNST portrait designs, thus creating guidelines

So. Here I stretched every ALNST character's face (the ones that have portraits, I mean) over a basic oval shape to create some standard that can be later modified to fit any other facial shape you'd like.

Here, you can see some common traits already:

The features are situated pretty low on the face, with the eyebrows, as the highest part, being located roughly at the mid-point vertically

There's 3 basic nose shapes: line (Mizi, Acorn), teardrop (Sua, Hyuna, Tiya, Durian) and side triangle (Till, Ivan Luka)

Nose and lips are located close to the center of bottom-middle quadrant

There's a ton of variation in eye shape and size (Ivan's are the smallest and Mizi's the largest. Holy shit her eyes are huge.) All of them are located either at the very bottom of the middle row, or simultaneously in middle and bottom rows

There's at least one eyelid line right under the eyebrows, but some characters have too, the second one being right over the eyelahes. Mono- vs. double-lid differentiation?

Ears are located at approximately the same level as eyes, and heavily vary in size as well

All mouths (except Durian's) are drawn with a break in the line. Here I depicted them all in the middle, but that's bc I used mirror tool. In general, these breaks can be off to the side as well

(By the way, I applied the same process to my sona and found out that its eyes are too high. I planned to redo it a bit regardless, bht now I have a good reason to! So thanks for giving me a reason to study this artyle!)

And here are some thoughts on the style in general:

The lines are very free floving, varied in veight, sketchy even. The brush was probably textured, too. That's what was putting me off about my own profile, btw, the lines felt way too clean.

Shadows are done a bit darker and brighter than the base color. They're mostly located around neck and hair, though some characters (Hyuna in particular) have sgading on their faces to indicate prominent features

Portraits used in profiles have a light-blue filter applied over them. Probably an addition layer at partial opacity, or something.

But, tbh, when in doubt, just slap an existing character portrait under your own and tweak your drawing until it looks right

Hope this helps at least a little!

[askfallenroyalty]

Conflict between Sans and Toriel - A discussion for Chapter 3

ok so like the misunderstanding thing IS still an element but it's not much of a plot point until the end. after the chapter's big events, Sans goes to apologize-but-not-really-apologizing-properly-you-know-how-he-is

He'd confess that there was a common rumor that monsters believed Toriel was involved with the humans (Cause some random humans showing up so soon after the barrier? suspicious af.)

Toriel would be like "...damn ok that sucks that people would think of me like that..."

and then sans would admit that toriel on the phone sounded so sketchy and dodgey that he also came to believe the rumor.

like damn. toriel would feel hurt by that.

and in hindsight, having this small scene works best like this cause its only focused and resolved when the situation is over. so you're not going "AUGH JUST TALK IT OUT ALREADY" cause like! they ARE now! and man its so much more personal when its sans having done the betrayal. he's the reason she even trusts monsters at all! he was the one to draw her out of her shell and be open to trusting monsters.

it goes even deeper than that- her having sans promise to take care of Frisk and ensure they live is proof that a monster can defy Asgore and protect children. he really is the reason she can move on and trust. full stop. sans means everything to her in regards to leaving the Ruins and trusting Frisk can be safe with a kingdom that once wanted them dead.

so him believing her to be against her beliefs and being a liar would dig DEEP. But in his defense, she didn't explain "Oh sorry sans I've been busy cause my frickin kids came back from the dead" so her dodgy behavior could be explained.

but in HER defense saying so would sound literally delusional. I've already established her mental health is shakey and her trust in reality is rocky. She still fears she's been delusional. cause what if sans asks to hear from her now revived children and then tells her there's no one on the phone but her? She can't face that. She can't even risk the chance that she's delusional. it's not a matter of trust that Sans would spill the beans early and hurt monsterkind's trust in the family for keeping secrets, it's her own personal hell she's dealing with.

the whole situation happened because sans was too on edge and scared over his brother's kidnapping to trust Toriel when she was playfully lying about something. he made the assumption of her being guilty and was too hurt to confront her properly about it. he's so... cowardly. he'll own u and diss you severely when he thinks he's made the right judgment but god forbid he actually owns up to his OWN mistakes. and I think this is the first real-time Toriel will see this side of him.

Obviously, with the whole situation being so messy, I see Toriel being understanding and burying her hurt because like, yeah, Papyrus was in danger. She did lie to him. It's not really Sans' fault for being distrustful and scared. but this whole thing has planted the seeds of her distrust of Monsterkind again + her friendship issues with Sans.

[ickynights]

Sketchy Seafood

"Doyun, are you sure about this place? I mean, it looks a bit sketchy," Daniel hesitated, peering through the restaurant's dimly lit entrance. He couldn't help but feel a wave of uncertainty wash over him as he watched the worn-out sign and flickering neon lights.

  Doyun couldn't help but roll his eyes at his boyfriend's overdramatic response. "Can you just trust me for once?" he retorted, as he grabbed Daniel's hand and began to pull him toward the entrance. "I know it might look a bit dingy, but the Yelp reviews are incredible, and my cousin said it's the best Korean food in town. You shouldn't judge a book by its cover, babe."

  Daniel nodded reluctantly but he knew Doyun was right. Perhaps the owners just used all their resources on the quality of the food instead of their restaurants aesthetics. It didn't really matter to him how the decor was set up, as long as the food was authentic and tasted well, he could ignore just about anything.

  As they settled into their seats, Doyun couldn't help but notice the lingering fishy aroma in the restaurant. It wasn't entirely unexpected, given that a majority of the dishes listed on the menu were seafood-based. Still, the pungent scent had an unsettling effect on his stomach, making it churn with a hint of discomfort.

  But he wasn't going to let some scent get in the way of his date. So what if the scent was bad, the neighboring tables seemed to be devouring their dishes just fine.

  The food arrived at their table surprisingly quickly. Daniel chose to stick with his go-to favorite, Galbi-jjim (braised short ribs), not wanting to take any risks in a place he still considered somewhat suspicious.

  Doyun, on the other hand, decided to step out of his comfort zone and ordered Nakji Bokkeum, a spicy stir-fried squid dish he had never tried before. Normally, he was quite cautious about trying new things considering his testy stomach, but he loved eating squid plain and it had never been a source of concern for him, so he figured it was a safe bet.

  As Doyun took the first bite of his meal, he couldn't help but notice that something didn't taste right. The squid, while tender and cooked to perfection, carried an unfavorable flavor that made his taste buds cringe. It was a unusual flavor that he couldn't quite place. He was no stranger to plain squid but perhaps the sauce was making it taste bad? Whatever it was, it surely didn't taste well at all.

  He glanced over at Daniel, who was thoroughly enjoying his food, and hesitated for a moment, debating whether to voice his concerns or not. Maybe he just let his boyfriend's words get to his head. It wasn't fair to consider something off tasting if he hadn't actually tried it before.

  "You were right, baby, this stuff is amazing," Daniel said with a warm smile, taking another bite of his Galbi-jjim. "How's your food? The spice isn't upsetting your stomach, is it?" Daniel asked, noticing the younger had barely touched his plate.

  "My food is good too, I think I'm still a little full from lunch though." Doyun awkwardly replied, trying to lie his way out of being wrong.

Daniel noticed a hint of discomfort on the younger's face but decided to ignore it for now. "Your mom really did make a lot of food earlier. I'm surprised she even let us eat out tonight; I thought she was gonna cook for us this whole trip. Honestly I wouldn't mind if she-"

Doyun struggled to concentrate on Daniel's

conversation as the all-too-familiar unsettling sensation continued to bubble in his belly. The

combination of the unfamiliar dish and the rice porridge he ate earlier churned uncomfortably within him. Despite having eaten only a quarter of his meal, Doyun feared that if he took another bite, his stomach might not be able to hold back, and an unpleasant outcome might be inevitable.

Doyun discreetly pushed his plate aside, his appetite vanishing under the weight of his discomfort. He didn't want to draw attention to his growing nausea, especially not in a place he had chosen for their date night. Instead, he focused on listening to Daniel's blabbering, hoping that the queasy feeling in his stomach would eventually subside soon enough.

The night went on for what felt like forever in Doyun's opinion. Daniel insisted on getting desert, even somehow coaxing Doyun into trying some. The banana flavored ice cream was delicious but even just a spoonful was enough to set his stomach off.

As they settled into the backseat of the taxi, Daniel couldn't help but notice how bloated Doyun's stomach had become. Even though he was wearing Daniel's oversized hoodie, a subtle curve was unmistakably poking through the fabric. A pang of guilt washed over him as he realized that he should have paid more attention to the warning signs earlier in the evening.

"Are you feeling alright, love?" Daniel asked, his voice a gentle whisper, not wanting to draw attention towards themselves.

Doyun replied in a hushed and somewhat uneasy tone, "Not really, I don't think my food was made right. I thought it was just the spice, but I'm feeling pretty nauseous now."

Daniel frowned and reached out to hold Doyun's hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Just try to relax for now, love. When we get back to your mom's place, I'll make you some tea." he murmured, his thumb gently caressing Doyun's hand. "Hopefully that'll help settle whatever's going on in there."

Doyun offered a weak but appreciative smile. "Thank you, babe," he whispered, leaning his head on Daniel's shoulder as they continued their way home.

The moment they arrived home, Daniel took charge, gently guiding Doyun to the guest room. He gave him a reassuring smile and said, "Why don't you put on your comfiest PJs, and pick whatever tv show you want to binge-watch tonight? I'll make that tea for you, and you can just relax and take it easy."

  Doyun nodded and wasted no time in getting ready for bed. He threw on the first pair of pajamas he could find, and settled into the bed, putting on a random variety show that he knew him and Daniel loved watching.

  Daniel returned to the guest room with a mug of tea and a pack of pills. He sat them down on the bedside table and explained, "Your mom says these pills should help calm your stomach if you aren't already feeling super sick." Careful not to jostle Doyun's stomach, he gently climbed onto the bed, sitting close to his partner.  "She also said the restaurant we went to is known for bad seafood so you probably have some form of food poisoning. I guess your cousin must have gotten lucky when she went."

  Doyun wanted to puke at the mention of bad seafood, "Never let me pick a restaurant again." Doyun groaned and curled into himself; the memory of the unsettling dinner was still too fresh in his mind, and he wished he could erase the experience entirely.

  "Just make sure to do more research next time," he teased, before wrapping his arms around Doyun's waist and pulling him closer. He planted a soft kiss on Doyun's forehead and continued, "Don't dwell too much on it, baby. We still have a week left here, and I'm sure we'll find much better places to eat. Besides, it's the time we spend together that matters most, even if that time is me making sure you don't fall asleep on the toilet again."

    As the night wore on, Doyun and Daniel found themselves growing drowsy in each other's arms. The soothing embrace and the comforting ambiance of the Doyun's childhood room made it easy to for the two to succumb to sleep. They drifted off together, tangled in each other's warmth.

  Doyun, however, was growing increasingly restless as the night progressed. His stomach seemed to have a mind of its own, gurgling loudly, and the cramps he experienced became more frequent and painful with each passing moment. The few sips of tea he had managed to drink earlier offered no relief, and only upset his tummy further.

  The constant turning and the increasingly loud noises coming from Doyun's direction, eventually stirred the older out of his sleep. He blinked his eyes open and, with a concerned frown, noticed Doyun's discomfort, "Love, are you okay? Your stomach sounds really upset." he asked, gently reaching his hand out to touch Doyun's shoulder.

  Doyun turned to face Daniel, eyes welling up with tears, "Feels like I'm gonna puke." Doyun whined, digging his head into the crook of Daniel's neck.

"My poor baby," Daniel whispered, he slid his hand under Doyun's shirt, fingers lightly tracing circles on his belly in a soothing, caressing motion. "You wanna try going to the bathroom, love?" Daniel suggested, "Maybe getting it all up will bring you some relief."

  Doyun nodded weakly and slowly sat up, allowing Daniel to guide him towards the hallway bathroom. With each step he took, Doyun could feel the contents of his stomach slosh dangerously, as if it was threatening to come up any second.

The moment they entered the bathroom, Doyun's stomach had reached its breaking point. As he sat in front of the toilet, a loud belch escaped him, a precursor to the discomfort that was about to unfold. Then, without warning, a thick stream of vomit erupted from Doyun's mouth, splashing into the bowl below. He barely had a second to catch his breath before a second wave of nausea overtook him, sending him retching into the toilet once more.

  "It's okay, love. I'm right here," Daniel murmured, his voice a steady and calming presence. He was used to taking care of Doyun but something about the unfamiliar surroundings was making him feel uncomfortable. He had no time to feel uncomfortable, as his boyfriend was seconds away from collapsing into the toilet.

  After what felt like hours, Doyun's belly finally decided to give him a break. Completely exhausted and drained, Doyun allowed himself to fall back into Daniel's embrace, "I think m' done." Doyun mumbled, snuggling into Daniel's shoulder.

   Daniel held Doyun even closer, his arms wrapping protectively around him as he whispered soothingly, "It's okay, love. You're done for now." He pressed a gentle kiss to Doyun's forehead.

   With Doyun nestled in his embrace, Daniel gently stroked his partner's tummy. Doyun's shallow breaths gradually deepened as he started to relax, his body beginning to recover from the physical strain.

  "You think you're ready to go back to bed, baby."

  Doyun nodded weakly still too exhausted to form any real response. Daniel scooped Doyun into his arms and carried them to their room, making sure not to jostle the younger's stomach. 

  Once they were back in the comfort of their room, Daniel gently settled Doyun onto the bed, making sure his partner was comfortable. They cuddled closely together, and Daniel's touch became a soothing presence as he rubbed gentle circles onto Doyun's lower belly.

  "Try to get some sleep, love." Daniel whispered softly, his voice filled with tenderness. With his free hand, he gently stroked Doyun's hair, a comforting gesture that had always had a calming effect on him.

[the-whumpening]

Meet the Character Monday #4

Evius - Tigerverse

[Image ID: A digital drawing done in a simple, sketchy style. On the left is Evius, a tiefling with dark skin and light hair, sitting cross-legged and reaching his left arm to grab Ash's face. Ash, a tiger-man, is also seated and leans into Evius. Both have happy expressions, and Evius is kissing Ash's cheek. The drawing is done in shades of blue and green. /End ID]

Basic Info:

Name: Evius Euphoria Chamillet de Malbolge

Age: Chronologically 29, physically around 19 at the moment (de-aging magic is a bitch)

Birthday: August (Leo)

Height: 5' 11" (180 cm) [currently closer to 5’ 8”/175cm due to de-aging]

Hair: White (light brown in human disguise)

Eyes: Gold (green in human disguise)

Favorite Color: Blue

Gender ID and Orientation: Cis male, bi/pansexual (not sure how his player wants to specify between those two). Evius leans more polyamorous and is comfortable having multiple partners, though he does get a little jealous/possessive over Ash.

Pronouns: He/him

Other: Evius is a Wild Magic sorcerer/warlock and a talented dancer/acrobat/performer

What's Evius’ role in the story? Evius is the heavy-hitting magic user of the party, and Ash’s love interest in the Tigerverse stories. He had a long term, on-again/off-again relationship with Ozmund that started all the way back when he apprenticed under Oz as a teenager. Ozmund sees him as both “a traitorous whore” and “the one who got away.”

Fun Facts about Evius:

Evius has unpredictable wild magic surges, which can cause an array of effects. A common one he experiences is age fluctuation; although he’s nearly 30, he is currently stuck in his 19-year-old body—and limited by his 19-year-old impulsivity.

His name is a mouthful, but its parts are important. Chamillet is his family name, and “de Malbolge” refers to the devil his family worships (Glasya of Malbolge). Glasya blessed his family with his tiefling nature as a reward for their servitude and loyalty. His mom Dahlia is a human, and his father Gilbrand is a half-orc (I believe there’s also some Elf in there as well but I can’t remember how).

Evius has two younger sisters: Andrea, the youngest, is a half-elf who is following in the family footsteps and training to be an acolyte of Glasya. Mika, the middle child, is a human who eschewed the religious practice to instead take up martial arts. She is the first student of the Way of the Broken Skull, a monk path created by Andromeda, a tiefling friend of the party. (It involves a lot of headbutts.)

Evius has always been flamboyant and dramatic, and he joined Barnum’s traveling carnival for a time as an acrobat. There, he met an air djinn named Marishna; they conceived a son (Zephyrus) one drunken night, and she didn’t tell him about it until years later.

Before Ozmund’s betrayal, Evius had made a warlock pact with Oberon (King of the Faeries, son of Aunt Marjorie). Their pact was “mutually beneficial,” if you catch my drift. Ultimately, Evius ended things when he realized Oberon only ever came around when it was convenient rather than actually helping him when he needed him. He was also realizing his attraction to Ash at the time and wanted to focus his attention there. Oberon, to his credit, wasn’t overly bothered by the change and never revoked the powers he’d given Evius.

Biggest Secret: Despite his outward confidence and carefree attitude, Evius is deeply insecure and self-loathing. His rash and impulsive decisions are his way of maintaining control—even at the expense of his safety or long-term goals. Despite having two extremely important people in his life (Ash and Zephyr), he still falls prey to self-destructive impulses, which are only made worse by his de-aging issue impairing his judgment.

[I didn't like the drawing I had of Evius in this originally, so I replaced it with a different one. This one is more accurate, though it does include Ash as well.]

[memes-in-a-half-shell]

Villain AU - Deadlock, Part 2

Part 1 ||

I'm trying not to linger for too long with the chapters. I know where I want to head with this, and doing too much exposition might branch me into other sub-plots and I don't have the energy for thaaaaat.

So far I'm having fun with this AU :]

Quick note that this AU is set years after the events of the two movies. Characters are mid 20's to early 30's.

Also, goddamn, never thought I'd be researching things about collecting evidence and its naming convention for a court case 😂 writing does indeed make me learn a bunch of stuff~

The card was safe. All scans indicated that no trackers were attached, to which Donnie couldn't help laughing at, in a sense. What a lost opportunity. Yet again, maybe that woman had no need to track anyone .... for the moment.

It was with a long sigh that Donatello finally sat at his desk, staring at anywhere his eyes would fall. Leo had chewed him up a little after this failure of a mission. How could he have predicted this, anyway? It's not as if they're to expect random people at every missions they go out to! Donnie pinched in-between his eyes, right under his glasses, trying to clear his thoughts. He next nonchalantly got the woman's card out of his pocket, taking a moment to look over the drawing once again. What a clown, he thought.

Leaving it on his desk, he next lunged towards a toolbox nearby, retrieving an utility knife. Then hunching over the small piece, he proceeded to careful cut around the felt chip inside. Getting the prize out of its prison, Donnie then went for a USB key into which he could insert the hardware into a designed slot. He paused before plugging the device into his computer, opting first to open a secured session - to avoid any infiltraton nor leaks.

Plugging the USB key, he didn't have to wait long before a file opened, revealing two documents. The first one contained code, which he knew must have been what was used to confuse his tracking. The other was a single textfile:

Congratulations! To anyone reading this, you're not a complete idiot :) If I took anything from you, I am not sorry. Learn to keep your information under better security, you fucking scrub. If you found this randomly, or you're a fan of my work, consider paying me for my good broker's work. Follow the white rabbit and you'll find your way ;) With love, smooth_criminal

"Follow the white rabbit?" pondered Donnie to himself.

Opening back the code file, he started to search for keywords. "Smooth_criminal" found several instances, hinting that it was her username, or rather administrator name, on her computer. Curious, he then searched for "white rabbit". There were indeed some instances, and starting from the top always had the text followed by a "go lower" mention. Donnie couldn't help the light smirk on his lips. She was clearly referencing Alice in Wonderland, following the rabbit down its hole. The last mention was found next to a website address, one Donnie had already seen before. It was one of those sketchy places on the dark web that often dealt in information brokering, doxxing, questionable freelance contracts, you name it! Personally he was not a fan, but it did prove an interesting starting point whenever he needed to start his searches somewhere.

Knowing he'd have some ways to go before finding any of her traces, he paused his work and instead went to prepare some coffee. I'll sleep when I'm dead.

***

Unsurprisingly enough, Donnie did find a user by the name of "smooth_criminal". How original.

Was it her, though? There was always a possibility that she could have set breadcrumbs towards a dummy account, or simply some random person on that website. But now knowing that she was an information broker, if she were to build herself a brand, she simply couldn't lead any potential clients away.

Retrieving an account Donatello had created ages ago, he first poked around the forums to first get a grasp of how she was operating around. Well-versed in internet speak, yet remaining professional, the woman appeared to always wanting to get straight to the point. Time was money, and if she had to poke often in order to get simple information, she was quick to dismiss anybody.

Many users were leaving good reviews about her work; impartial and efficient were the major key words. She didn't give a fuck about your background or what you were doing with the information. In the end it was only a job waiting to be done.

Who wanted the Foot investors' list then, wondered Donnie as he opened a window to send her a direct message. He had to make sure it was really her.

HookedOnCoffee: What are your prices?

He sat back in his chair, patiently looking at the screen. It surprisingly didn't take long to spot the usual three dots in the chat, indicating that she was typing.

smooth_criminal: Depends on the type of information you want and the equipment I have to use. Can range from 700 to 1K+. What's your need?

Goddamn. Donnie was quick to open his bank account information (something he always kept hidden from his brothers, but definitely not from his father). It's been a while since he last did some freelance work, so his funds were starting to get low, but he could still afford something - relunctantly. Yet he also wanted to test her skills...

HookedOnCoffee: I need you to retrieve lost information about Sacks Group Ltd. smooth_criminal: You realize that company was disbanded years ago with the arrestation of Eric Sacks, yes?

Donnie smirked. He already knew where to get the information.

HookedOnCoffee: Are you comfortable with reaching into police classified documentation? They have digital records that may prove difficult to access... Only if you feel up to the challenge.

He felt like a smartass - and he liked it.

smooth_criminal: Just 'cause you're assuming I'd be a coward about it, I'll charge you 2K. Half of it before, second half when I have the info. You want it when?

Now Donatello wasn't smiling anymore... He glanced at his finances another time, sighing. He'd definitely need to refill his account after this. Welp, no sleep for me in the upcoming weeks.

HookedOnCoffee: The sooner, the better. Start tomorrow night. The information is at the Police Department at 1 Police Plaza Path, Lower Manhattan. Near the City Hall.

smooth_criminal: Send me the money and you got yourself a deal.

"A deal I could've done myself," mumbled the terrapin, sourly giving away the first part of the sum.

***

Of course it had to rain on that night. The end of winter and early signs of spring always brought this weird shift in the weather that always froze Donnie straight to his bones. Perched on a tall building near the given spot, he lowered his googles onto his glasses, shifting the lenses for a night vision. He knew the best point of entrance would be by the building's roof, especially through the large vent openings. Would the woman need to make her way to the actual hardware, or could she hack herself from a distance? The terrapin couldn't help feeling curious about her course of action - as outlawed it may be.

He spotted a form making its way on top of the police's building. Was that a grappling hook? He was starting to get a little impressed...

It indeed looked like the woman he saw back at that Foot stronghold, recognizing parts of her gear and those flashing green googles.

"Gotcha," smiled the turtle to himself, noticing her get into a vent.

He sprung to action, calculating his jump and fall to land straight onto the police building. Setting up a remote tracker into the vent she went into, he opted for another entry point - one he knew would converge with hers at some point.

One advantage of being the slimmest out of his brothers was that he could easily make his way through the tunnels. His weight was still a concern, mostly due to his techm but Donnie felt no rush to make his way completely to the woman, prefering to get a screen out and take control of the remote tracker he sent. He wouldn't lie about the fact that he did prepare for this coup. He already had a layout of the vents and knew where the information was stored. Did that smooth criminal do the same? Donnie stopped his tracker around a corner, soon getting a view of the woman now looking down through a grid. She first got a device out of one of her bags, turning it on and slightly slapping its side with a grunt. The antenna on it brought Donatello to guess that it might be a sort of camera jammer. Tapping some instructions in, the woman switched her device for a sort of screwdriver, then taking care of the grid. She first started diagonally, then holding a loose part of the grid and unscrewing the remaining corners. It allowed her to hold the grid and attach it to her grappling hook, then gently lowering it into the room below.

She graciously made her way down, Donnie's tracker following suit as careful as he could. The next room was filled with computer towers and only two screens in one corner. The terrapin smirked when he got a look through his screen. Of course there wasn't going to be a server to tap into for easy access. Which computer had the right information? That could take hours to find out...

The intruder appeared defeated for moment, patiently making her way around the room and trying to find any potential revelation as to which information was stored where. She brought her left wrist up, a hologram screen appearing and she was then scrolling through different windows and texts. Tapping to the side of her facemask, she then proceeded to launch a call, to Donnie's great confusion. As soon as it picked up, the other end of the line announcing itself to be NYPD's bureau of investigations, the woman started to talk, but her voice was now mimicking another.

"Chief Rebecca Vincent speaking," said the woman - and her tone was indeed modified to resemble Vincent's. "There is a request pending for disclosing evidence of the Sacks Group Ltd case. I have a team that must access their digital files for a classified investigation."

"We can have the hardware delivered to any desired precinct-"

"The team will be going directly to the department in order to avoid unecessary dispatch of the evidence. I only need the serial number of the machine on which the information is stored, and my investigators will reach into it first thing tomorrow morning."

"Appendix FAP.SGL-14-TRN-1318.LAN"

"Thank you, that is all."

The call ended, leaving Donnie slightly impressed. Not bad... not bad at all! If she had been smarter, she would've researched the court case and found that information beforehand - but his request of acquiring the evidence in the briefest delays might have pushed her to accelerate her processes.

The criminal was next on the move, easily finding the labeled computer and whipping out an external drive to plug it into. Tapping onto the devices with her left wrist's hologram, she completed the transfer in no time.

"Easy peasy," came out the woman's voice in its flanged tone, disconnecting her device.

She got one of her calling cards out, placing it on the computer tower before turning heels and proceeding to climb back up the vent and seal it shut. What a goddamn fool, thought Donnie, already moving his tracking device towards the card. You don't leave evidence after such a flawless performance... Collecting it, the mutant then steered the tracker through a hole in the grid, after making sure that the woman was no longer in sight. He finally got on the move as well, ordering his device to track back to him automatically. If he was quick enough, maybe he'd get to see where the other would head next. The downpour was hitting harder now, instantly souring Donnie's mood. Collecting his tracker and the card, he didn't wait to scan the perimeters, hoping to catch any traces of the human. The rain was making it harder to catch anything, his sensors mostly picking activity from nearby cars and some daring pedestrians out in this weather. Unwillingly forfeiting, the terrapin shook some water off before deciding to head back to the Lair...

***

The first thing Vee needed was a hot shower.

As she got into her small apartment, she instantly dropped her gear onto the nearest table, then stripping down and throwing her soaked clothes into a corner.

Standing beneath the hot stream, she closed her eyes, letting any and all stress wash down the drain. Her mind did wander back to the information she was tasked to gather. Usually her clients would request data that was fresh or of a high value ... so for her to collect documents from Eric Sacks' company seemed to be completely out of the blue.

Curiosity killed the cat. Stepping out of the shower and quickly putting out panties and a large hoodie, she grabbed the external drive and plugged it into her computer. Her initial search through the files mostly revealed budgets, employee files, so on and so forth. But her eyes did catch something about the project 'Renaissance', the simple mention of turtle subjects grabbing her interest.

Her thoughts brought her back to that night at the Foot's stronghold. She truly did wonder if she would ever see one of them again, although it might not be in her best interests. Maybe her commissioner wanted information as well regarding those mutants? With a shrug, Vee first copied the documents to herself, then zipping the rest for her client.

Logging onto the usual website, she first pinged her investor:

smooth_criminal: Here is a shot of the file, showing you that I have it. Send me the rest of the decided price and I will send it your way right away.

She couldn't help yawning, hoping her client wouldn't answer late so she could go to sleep next... After what felt like an eternity (frankly, it was more like 5 minutes), she saw the usual three dots pop up in the conversation.

HookedOnCoffee: I hope it wasn't too much of a hassle for you.

And with that, they sent the rest of the money, Vee already accepting and then starting the transfer.

smooth_criminal: I do not disclose any details of the operation. You have your information, that's what matters. HookedOnCoffee: Aight. Business is business, I get it.

Vee did lightly fiddle her fingers above her keyboard, debating if it was a good idea to poke about the data...

smooth_criminal: ... I'm curious though, why Sacks? Forgive my intrusion, but that company was mostly dealing in the medical sphere. The only interesting document I can think of would be in regards to the project Renaissance.

She hoped she wasn't shooting herself in the foot. Vee usually wanted to avoid digging into her client's affairs, but with her recent meeting with the turtles, she only wanted to connect some dots. The other's answer took some time before being delivered.

HookedOnCoffee: Some components of that project need to be revisited for personal matter. I will only leave it at that.

Fair. Vee kept a mental note to dig more into the files. Maybe there was indeed something in there that could be worth selling for...

***

Donnie could't have wished for a more ideal situation. Getting that file transfer from her gave the terrapin all the information he needed in order to tap into her system, plus the discreet session hijack he could launch alongside the last money payment. He didn't want to log into her hardware right away, fearing that it would raise an instant suspicion on the woman's part. Instead he prefered to be entertained by her random inquiry about project Renaissance. Aren't you supposed to be impartial or something?

He didn't really need the information - in fact he already had most of the files thanks to April and the police department. There wasn't much to be found in those documents, except the mention of the green ooze that was classified as alien. Most, if not all of it had been lost in the lab fire, which resulted in the substance never being really studied other than the initial tests. There were traces in his family's blood and it could be tested ... but they did really need to?

Donatello saved the woman's system information with a satisfied tap on his keyboard. As he leaned back into his chair with a relieved sigh, Raphael was walking nearby the workstation, having just finished a training session.

"What's up, nerd?" asked the red banded one.

"Oh I just love when things go according to plan," smiled the bespectacled mutant.

He vaguely gestured his screen, looking over at his brother with a smug expression.

"Remember that woman that stole the information from that Foot stronghold?"

"... I mean, I didn't see her, but yes."

"I've tracked her and I might be able to hack into her system."

Raph was now intrigued, coming closer and soon a smirk creeping on his features.

"Can you get a view from her webcam? Is she hot?"

"I, uh-"

That's right, he could see how she looked like! But was it wise to risk it now?...

"If she's smart, she either doesn't have a cam, or the view is blocked when not in use."

"Ay, come on, let's try anyway," nudged the large terrapin.

Here goes nothing... Using the ID he gathered, he was able to bypass firewalls by disgusing his connection as a simple operating system check. Entering some commands on his side, he soon had a list of accessible devices; one being indeed a webcam. He glanced at Raph before hovering and clicking the option with his cursor.

"If she notices and blocks my connection, you're a dead man."

"Good luck trying to beat me, twig."

With a double-click, a new window popped onto the screen, first giving out a black screen. After a quick loading, a video feed now appeared, allowing the two turtles to witness a view into the woman's apartment; and her form as well. She was up and about, collecting some of her gear she had scattered on her arrival.

"Bro, is she only wearin' a hoodie?" started Raph.

Donnie pointed at the screen when the woman bent forward.

"She has panties on."

Both brothers looked at eachother, smirking.

"Nice," they said in unison.

Looking back at the screen, Donatello took notes of her appearance. Colored hair, glasses, some visible tattoos on her legs and one at the top of her right hand. He knew she also had one on her chest, but did she have more? She wasn't bad looking - in fact he'd be a liar to say she was anything else but pretty. Her apartment appeared small, but quite enough for her needs. Various tech and scraps were laying around, the woman obviously working on some new gadgets of her own.

"Watchu gonna do now that you found her?" questionned the red clad mutant.

Donnie's finger tapped on his desk, pondering the question himself.

"... I'm quite not sure, to be honest. My first instinct would be to retrieve the information she took from us, but at the same time I want to know more about her. She seems quite capable with technology, and from what I've found she's also a competent information broker. ... I'm worried she's using all that talent for the wrong reasons."

"Ya think she could become an asset for the team?"

The purple clad mutant's gaze remained on the woman on screen, weighing what his brother said.

"... High risk, high reward. She could be useful, but there could be a potential danger that she'd out us out to anyone offering a large amount of money."

"Not if you intimidate her out of the idea," shrugged Raph.

Donnie frowned: "I won't do that!"

"I will then."

"No, just- Stop! Let me think over this."

Still frowning, he continued to look over at the woman, the gears of his mind turning. Frankly, he wanted to meet her again.

***

Living a normal life always paled so much compared to the thrills of seeking out information around the city. Her day job was more of an alibi. Getting employeed at a coffee shop that was opened 24/7 only offerred the greatest opportunity to alter a payroll and, bam!, yes I was working on that night.

Sighing as she closed the entrance door behind her, Vee's steps lingered out of fatigue, first making her way towards the small kitchen and grab a glass of water. She had been sollicited a lot lately from various contractors, offerring her very little to no sleep over the last few days.

As she walked past her computer, she halted after a few steps - and mid-drink - and frowned as she looked over her screens. Is she really that tired? Is the mouse cursor moving on its own??

She watched for some minutes as she saw windows getting opened and closed, all on their own. Annoyed, she took a seat and forcefully grabbed the control back on the cursor. Opening a notepad document, she instantly wrote:

Hello??? Who the fuck do you think you are???

Some lines were skipped, a simple word being added:

Hi :)

"Esti d'criss," she swore in French before rushing out of her seat.

She made a beeline to her router, knocking stuff over in her hurry. First unplugging the box, she looked back over her screen like a deer facing headlights, almost expecting an entity to jump out of there for some reason...

Finally walking back to her desk, she first saw that the internet connection had successfully been cut. When glancing back at the previously opened notepad, she saw another line written:

Don't worry, I just wanted to know more about you. I got what I needed. We'll meet one day.

That sent a shiver down Vee's spine - not the good kind. She tried to go over the list of people she last dealt with. Did she provoke anyone without really wanting to? Or maybe it was a weirdo that was too enamored with her work? Freaked out for the evening, Vee decided to turn off her machine, prefering to focus on anything else.

((Part 3))

[eternalwritess]

Heya! I’m not sure if you still do matchups, but I thought I’d send one out in case :)

My name is Ace (which sounds like it should be short for something but weirdly enough it’s not) I go by he/they pronouns and am aromantic and asexual, and I’m on the side of the spectrum which would get married to spend more time with my best friend, (and for tax benefits ) I just don’t like physical contact in general to be honest. I don’t have a preference as to what gender I’d want a QPR with though.

I really like animating and animation, though I also am a music fan as well. Personality wise I’ve been told that I’m “crafty” which according to my friend is just a nicer way of saying that I’m a “[beeping] sketchy con-man” which is fair, though I prefer the term “seizing the opportunity.” I’d never hurt anyone, of course. I can be smart-ish (or so I’ve been told once or twice) though only on really specific topics. Basically whatever I’m interested on at the time.

I’m a little shorter than average height, have black jaw length hair, hazel eyes and wear glasses. I have dark almond-ish skin, though I do have very noticeable vitiligo. I have scars down one arm, and my other has been replaced with a prosthetic for maybe seven years now, though I don't always wear it.

Regarding aesthetics, I've always been a huge dream core/ weirdcore fan. I just love the aesthetic. I also really like kid core and vintage styles, which are polar opposites, but I just really love them.

As for other details about me, I speak English, French, Spanish, ASL (well I could, but my prosthetic isn't fully articulate, so now I can just understand it) and Latin (well not speaking, but writing and reading)

Have a great day :)

𝕐𝕠𝕦 𝕙𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕓𝕖𝕖𝕟 𝕞𝕒𝕥𝕔𝕙𝕖𝕕 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙…

𝓡𝓸𝓼𝓲𝓮!

She most likely found you after someone found out you conned them and protected you

She took you to cannibal town and started asking you a few questions

"Well what are you in for darling?" "Are you doing well?" "He didn't hurt you did he?"

You decided to stay in cannibal town because you didn't have anywhere else to go and when you told Rosie this she insisted that you stay a while

When it comes to conning people its usually that she just brings you to deals with her so that you can help her get the best outcome over the other overlords

"What do you think?"

She's not a huge fun of the weird core but she absolutely adores your more vintage styles and loves coming up with new clothes for your to wear

She loves hearing you speak new languages even if she can't understand them

She tries to help and take care of your other arm since its now a prosthetic and will help repair it if needed

"Is that damn thing broken again?"

She loves seeing your drawings and loves watching your animate things and she will always praise your work on such

She also loves listening to music with you and will sometimes turn on a song just for you two to dance to nothing touchy touchy just small little dances if you like that

You two are very much in a qpr although Rosie doesn't really know what that means

Over all you both have a very sweet friendship :)

[bitacrytic]

Overheat [36 & 37]

Read Previous Chapter Here

-

“I’m so sorry,” Pete repeated.

Vegas didn’t know what to do, so he pulled Pete into his arms, rocking him slowly as Kinn shrugged.

“It’s fine.” He scoffed. “When this is all over, I’ll get my lick back. Don’t worry about me.”

-

-

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

-

Someone was watching him.

Pete didn't know for sure. But ever since his meeting with Porsche, Vegas and Kinn, he got the sense that someone was following him, watching him, cataloging his every move. His mind kept going back to the day he was kidnapped. That was when it had all started.

With Wan and his video. It would have been so easy to draw a line from Tawan to Wan, seeing as their names sounded alike. Pete wanted this to be over so badly that he was slowly beginning to convince himself that that was enough proof. But then he'd remember that the man they'd let go of, had run to Tod. And then another voice in his head would remind him that both of them were probably in it together.

And if they were in it together, Tawan’s father had the resources to put a tail on Pete and Tod had the resources to hack into public cameras to spy on Pete. In which case, they must already have known that Pete had flipped and was feeding them fucked information. Which meant that, any day now, his video was going to be released.

He woke up every morning, checking social media for the video. And with each morning that he found nothing, the eye on his back seemed to grow stronger and stronger. A whole week after their meeting in Kinn’s hospital room, Pete hadn’t heard anything. He wondered if he should allow himself to breathe. If he should calm down and let Vegas and Kinn solve it, just Porsche had said.

Or if he ought to do something, himself. After all, he’d learned pretty quickly in life to depend on no one but himself. And Kinn. He’d grown to depend on Kinn. But Kinn was angry with him. There was a chance that Kinn wasn’t doing things in Pete’s best interest.

Not that Pete didn’t deserve it.

After dinner, that evening, as he was on his way back to his room, Vegas called.

“Are you busy?”

“No, not really.”

“I’m following a lead. Would you like to come?”

In twenty minutes, they were stationed outside an abandoned warehouse, perched on the roof, across the street from the main entrance. Vegas came, armed with a camera and a pair of binoculars.

“You take this,” he said, handing the binoculars to Pete. “If you see anything sketchy, let me know.”

While Vegas took pictures of cars that were coming and going, and also pictures of anyone entering or exiting the warehouse, Pete surveyed the area, extending the binoculars as far as it could go.

“What are we doing here?” Pete asked.

“Nop heard chatter from two different gangs that were meeting here. Which was strange, on its own. But the further he looked into it, it wasn’t really the whole gang. It was just one person or a couple of people from most gangs.” He sat up, dropping the camera for a moment. “Gambit is a new company. I’ve known from the beginning that we’re dealing with new people. But maybe I was half right.”

“What do you mean?”

“I monitored Tod this whole week and I’ve got nothing on him and Tawan. They’ve never met. They don’t do business together and Tawan doesn’t even fit Tod’s type.”

“Right,” Pete agreed. “Alpha business man. Which, Tawan is not.”

“Exactly.”

“But we saw the prisoner go straight to him.”

“Probably the same way the gang members from other gangs are meeting here.”

“You think someone is picking members that already belong to existing gangs?” Pete asked.

“Sounds like it to me,” Vegas replied, holding up his camera and taking more pictures as more people arrived. “With these pictures, we can know which gangs have been compromised.”

“Wait, so does that mean Tawan is doing this all alone?”

Vegas sighed. “Kinn seems to think Tawan has nothing to do with it. Maybe he doesn’t. Maybe Kinn is right. But right now, I’m not trusting anybody. Even Tod, for all I know. I mean, he doesn’t have to meet his partner to get the job done.”

True, Pete thought. They could be following the right leads. Or they could have missed the real mastermind, just because they were following the obvious.

Beside him, Vegas pulled out a packet of suppressants, popped one tablet out and swallowed it. Pete cringed inwardly, wondering if he should shut the fuck up and mind his business. He knew he should. He really ought. But before he could get a proper hold on his tongue-

"You had one of those at breakfast," Pete said.

"Yeah, so?" Vegas asked, returning the packet to his pocket as he picked his camera again.

Pete reached over and pressed the camera back down. "You had one during break and one during lunch. It's barely past dinnertime and you're having another. That's four doses in less than fifteen hours, Vegas. What's going on?"

"It's nothing."

They'd only known each other for a few months, and in that time, they hadn't always shared the heaviest of secrets with each other. Pete had been careful not to ask for too much that would set off warning bells in Vegas' head. But the few times he'd asked, Vegas had been forthcoming. He'd spoken to Pete in honesty, opening up like he couldn't wait to share his world with Pete. Like he couldn't wait to have Pete understand whatever it was he was asking about.

"I know you have no reason to trust me-"

"It's not that."

"Then what's going on? Suppressants are three times a day. The rate at which you're taking them, you'll take at least two more doses before the day runs out."

Vegas' lips trembled as he bit them, a frown appearing on his face. He looked at Pete and for a second, Pete was sure he saw the same tenderness that used to be in Vegas' eyes when he looked at Pete, before.

"It's stupid. Ken thinks I'm stupid."

"What is it?"

Vegas sighed. "I was..." he pinched the bridge of his nose. "I was waiting for the cycle break that’s coming up soon."

"Why?" Pete asked. "You're not in the production. You can have your cycle whenever you want."

Vegas gave Pete a tired, exasperated look. “I was waiting for you, dumbass.”

The insult didn’t stick. If anything, it came out soft and indulgent, almost like a term of endearment, in the way his eyes lighted, looking right into Pete’s. Too many things were happening all at once. He was sure Vegas had just said he was postponing his rut, so it could coincide with Pete’s heat. He had just said… while looking at Pete like that. He’d just said…

Pete’s mouth went dry as his throat nearly clogged up from his heart shooting up from his chest. Considering what they’d just been through, the fact that Vegas wanted… Vegas was putting himself through the discomfort of extending his rut, just so they could spend their cycles together. Pete’s head swarmed with possibilities as they sat there, in the shadow of the boulder, staring into each other’s eyes.

He wanted to kiss Vegas, but he didn’t know how appropriate that would be. They were in a shaky place and Pete was being careful. But there Vegas was, offering a kind of permanence that Pete had never had in his life. He’d never even thought he’d want to mate with someone, let alone, do it with a member of the mafia. With a man he’d only known a few months.

And yet, here he was, contemplating spending the rest of his life with this man. Giving up all other possibilities for love by accepting and giving the bite. The bite, oh god, he thought, feeling giddy and confused at the idea of wanting it. It was such a silly idea. Pete was an omega and a career-driven actor with a bright future. He’d always shied away from shared cycles because people didn’t know he was an omega. That was a secret he was going to take to his grave.

He never imagined meeting someone who knew what he was, but wasn’t threatened by the fact that he was an omega who was also working. Someone who was romantically interested in Pete, but didn’t treat him as less. Because that was when they acted differently. Pete was a human being. Pete was a person. Until someone wanted to fuck him and suddenly, he had to know his place. Even when they thought he was a beta.

None of that had happened with Vegas. Pete couldn’t even look back on their interactions and pinpoint the moment when Vegas had found out that he was an omega. Because Vegas’ behavior never changed. Pete was Pete before Vegas knew. Pete was still Pete after.

“Say something,” Vegas said, as worry etched into his face.

“Oh,” Pete said, snapping out of it. “You wanted us to… to mate?”

“What?” Vegas asked, sounding confused. “No. No, we were going to use mouth guards. I just wanted us to spend the cycle together. Get to know each other and clear the air between us, you know?”

Mouth guards. Right, Pete thought. The things that alphas and omegas put in their mouths to keep from mistakenly biting each other. Pete nearly choked as his heart went tumbling down in his chest. How stupid was he to think that someone like Vegas would want to mate him? A lying, dishonest, untrustworthy piece of shit like Pete. Of course. He should have known. Vegas just wanted cycle sex. He wanted a wanton omega in heat who could give him unimaginable pleasure.

He didn’t want forever with Pete.

Pete shivered, feeling like someone had just doused him with cold water.

“You think I’m stupid, too,” Vegas said.

“What? No. Of course not.” He tried to laugh to dislodge the heaviness in his chest. He wished he could rewind the time to two minutes ago. Before he’d overestimated his value and started planning a life with a man who didn’t trust him. “You’re not stupid,” he said. “But, you should know though. I’m not having my cycle during the cycle break.”

“Why not?”

“I’m supposed to be a beta, Vegas. Remember?” he asked. “Wan may have forced me into a heat, two weeks before camp, but I was going to do it myself, regardless. I can’t have a cycle break while others are on break. I have to be visible. I have to go to meetings and show my face around other beta actors and employees. People have to see me moving around during the cycle break or else they’d start asking questions about me. I’ll get my next heat after the production is done.”

Vegas’ mouth fell open as he smacked his own forehead. “Ken was right. I am stupid. I should have known.”

“Hey,” Pete laughed, grabbing Vegas’ hands. “Don’t hit yourself.”

“I just thought-”

“I know what you thought. It’s okay.” And without meaning to, his treacherous mouth opened and said, “If you want, I can visit though. I can come see you during your rut.”

“Yeah,” Vegas said with a little nod. “I’d like that.”

Yeah, Pete thought, smiling even though dread filled his stomach. How could Vegas think himself to be stupid, when Pete had just committed himself to spending time with a rutting alpha? How couldn’t he see that Pete was the fool willing to put his life and career on the line for a man who didn’t trust him?

Spending time alone with Vegas in a rut? What on earth could go wrong?

-

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

-

They waited till the meeting was over and took more pictures. Vegas was sure he’d gotten everyone who entered the building through this entrance. He just wanted to be thorough. He hoped Kinn and Porsche were just as thorough, at the other entrance. Because they would be totally fucked if they missed even one person.

Two hours and almost a hundred pictures later, they packed up and started heading back to the hotel, where they met at Pete and Porsche’s room.

“Did you see any familiar faces?” Vegas asked as soon as they entered the room.

Kinn shook his head. “Maybe we’ll see better now we’re here. The screen was too tiny.”

“Tiny, how? Do you need glasses?”

“Memory card,” Kinn said, holding out his hand as Vegas gave it to him.

The room was dark and Porsche had already set up a projector on his bed that was screened against the wall. On Pete’s bed, Kinn’s laptop sat, waiting for Kinn to return.

“What…” Pete began. “What’s going on?”

“We’re making notes of the faces we recognize and cataloging the pictures as evidence for their gang leaders.”

“What makes you think the leaders didn’t send those people to represent them?” Porsche asked. “I mean, maybe they’re all planning to join up.”

“We’re not the only ones who’ve been hit in the past year. Nop said a lot of lower gangs have been losing territory, and a lot of the high prestige ones have been losing business deals. Leaders aren’t happy. They want to know where their leaks are.”

“Come. Sit,” Porsche offered Vegas.

Picture after picture, they marked the number, the face in the picture and the gang they belonged to. Seeing as Kinn had put in his card first, it was going to take a while to get to Vegas’ card. But that was okay. They had all night anyway. With Vegas offering commentary, while Porsche controlled the projector and Kinn took notes, Vegas couldn’t help wondering why Pete was so quiet.

Took him a moment to remember that Kinn and Pete were still in a weird place. And Kinn was sitting at the foot of Pete’s bed, while Pete had curled into himself at the head of the bed, placing his pillows between himself and Kinn like it was some worthy barrier. Wanting to comfort him, Vegas took off his shoes and slipped behind the barrier with Pete as Pete looked at him, startled.

“Shhh,” he said to Pete before turning back to the projector.

“Don’t do anything funky, over there,” Porsche said. “I know the room is dark and all, but we can still hear that shit.”

Vegas rolled his eyes as Kinn turned back to look at them with disgust in his face.

“Oh, for fuck sake,” Kinn said, grabbing his laptop and moving to Porsche’s bed. “Seriously, I’m in the room.”

“Don’t be weird. We’re not doing anything. Pete, were we doing anything?”

“No,” Pete answered, honestly.

“Yeah right,” Porsche said with a scoff.

“Can we get back to the business at hand?” Vegas asked, gesturing at the screen.

Porsche flicked to the next picture and Kinn sat up.

“Wait.”

“What?” Vegas asked.

“I can’t really see the face on that person, but I recognize that green and blue coat. Go back.”

Porsche went to the previous picture, but the person in the green and blue coat was still backing the camera. So Porsche went back about three more pictures before they found one where the man was facing the camera, but he wasn’t at the center of the picture.

“Can you zoom in?”

Porsche shifted the focus to the corner where the man was and zoomed in on the picture to reveal the face.

“Oh wow,” Vegas said, not even bothering to be surprised by what he was seeing.

“Who’s that?” Pete asked.

“It’s-” Vegas began to say as Kinn beat him to it.

“It’s Tawan. I recognized the coat because he was wearing it when I saw him a few hours ago.”

“You saw him today?” Porsche asked, a frown etched in his face.

“It-it wasn’t like that. I wanted to find out what he knows about his father’s activities.”

“I hope you didn’t tell him too much about what we know, given that he’s the fucking mastermind.”

“Porsche-”

“Please don’t defend him right now.”

“I’m not,” Kinn said, almost sounding like he was pleading. “We know who it is now. We have a face to put on the issue. I’m not going to defend him.”

“What did he tell you?” Porsche asked. “What did he want?”

“I don’t know. He’s never really asked me for anything.”

“Are you sure?” Vegas asked. “Because if he’s the mastermind, then I get why he sent Pete into my business.”

“You do?” Pete asked.

“He’s going after gangs. He didn’t need to send someone into the main family because he plans to marry into it. But he sent you to me.” Vegas turned to Kinn. “We’re family, but we don’t operate like it.”

“You’re right,” Kinn agreed. “Your father has been adamant about keeping the minor family’s accounts separate from the main family.”

“We run our own deals, our own territories. Even our allies aren’t always main family allies.”

“You’re like two different gangs with the same name,” Porsche said.

“Exactly. Even if Tawan knew he was going to become Kinn’s omega, there was no guarantee his power would extend to the minor family.”

“We know what he wanted me to do with you,” Pete said. “But what’s his plan with Kinn been? He’s been all over the place.”

“Kinn, please try to remember,” Porsche said. “What is the one thing he keeps talking about?”

Kinn shook his head, as his brows furrowed in concentration.

“He asked me to keep his father locked up.”

“What?” Vegas asked, sitting up.

“Yeah,” Kinn said with a shrug. “The councilman is in my basement.”

As Vegas laughed at the absurdity of it all, Pete said, “Is he going to try and frame you for kidnapping?”

“That won’t help him if he wants Kinn to marry him into the family,” Porsche offered.

“So what’s he been asking for?”

“I think…” he said, still looking unsure. “He’s mentioned my father a few times.”

“How?”

“When we were locked up, he pointed out that Papa knew where I was but did nothing about it. Then when we had drinks earlier today, he asked me to cut Papa off and take control of the entire family business.”

Vegas wasn’t sure whether to be pissed or impressed, so he settled on being both. Because Tawan was a fucking genius.

“He wanted you to cut out the most important person in your life,” Vegas said.

“What?” Kinn asked.

“Think about it. You don’t cough unless you discuss it with your father.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“He’s right,” Porsche said. “You’re an obedient son. You’ve always been an obedient son.”

“If I wanted to marry you and rule alongside you, I wouldn’t want your controlling father anywhere near our empire,” Vegas said.

“Wait,” Kinn said, turning from the projector to face all of them. “You’re saying he did all that… abducted me and kept me for a week, only to release me just because he wanted me to hate my father?”

“It worked, Kinn,” Porsche said. “That day I came to see you at the hospital, right after we got you back, I heard you speaking to your father in a way I’ve never heard you speaking to him before in my entire life.”

That was news to Vegas.

“You raised your voice at Uncle Korn?”

“It was a conversation.”

“Your father asked you to take an omega as a mate and you told him no.”

“Fuck, you heard that?” Kinn asked, looking distraught.

“You really told him no,” Vegas asked, wondering where the boldness had come from. Because it was an unspoken rule. Theerapanyakuls didn’t talk back to their fathers. Ever.

“He was being unreasonable.”

Vegas couldn’t stop his eyes from widening in shock because since when did Kinn talk about his father like that?

“See?” Porsche said. “Tawan already got what he wanted.”

“He made valid points.”

“I’m not disputing that,” Porsche said. “But if his goal was to sever ties between you and your father, he’s done well.”

“Why though?” Pete asked.

“Why what?” Vegas asked.

“He’s an omega,” Pete explained. “He had Phi-Kinn tied up and at his mercy. Why didn’t he just bite him instead of letting him go? Seems a bit convoluted for an omega who could control his alpha with a single bite.”

Once again, they were back at the same question that had plagued them since that first day at the hospital. Why hadn’t Tawan bitten Kinn?

Porsche smacked his bed as he sat up with a smile on his face.

“He’s not an omega.”

“What?” Vegas and Pete asked as Kinn looked at Porsche with worried confusion.

“That’s it,” Porsche said.

“That’s a pretty big leap.”

“It never made sense. He was in heat. He couldn’t control himself. Kinn, that’s what you said. If he had no control, then why didn’t he just bite you? At least, by mistake.”

“Why would he claim to be an omega and lose his job?”

“Because he was coming after you and we all know that Kinn only fucks with omegas.” Porsche jumped up from his bed. “I’m smart. Look at me,” he said, pointing at himself.

Considering the things they’d figured out about Tawan, it wasn’t so far-fetched to imagine that he’d hatched such a plan more than a year ago. Because Korn had started putting out feelers for Kinn’s mate, two years ago. The timeline matched up. He’d planned this whole thing and waited. If this went off without a hitch, Tawan Apinya would be the king of the Thailand underworld with a Theerapanyakul alpha on his arm.

“What about his pheromones?” Kinn asked. “He was feverish. He looked dead on his feet. He…” Kinn hesitated. “How come he was… open… down there? I never saw him prep himself. Not once.”

“Did he ever go out of sight?” Pete asked. “For more than a few minutes? Because you can prep yourself and use omega-treated lubricants to trigger an alpha, but also to keep it loose down there.”

Kinn sat, blinking steadily as a look of devastated horror crept into his face.

“What is it?”

“He locked himself in the bathroom for hours.” His voice trembled as he spoke. “He pretended that he was protecting himself from me and hid in there. The next time the door was opened, he was smelling like he was in heat, looking like he was in heat.” He looked at Porsche like he wanted to cry. “He… felt… like he was in heat.”

“Oh Kinn,” Porsche said, getting back on the bed and crawling to Kinn, just as Kinn got up from the bed.

“It’s not like I’m…” he rubbed his hand over his face. “I know where you’re about to go with this conversation, Porsche. Let’s not do that, right now. Please. I c-I can’t-”

“Okay,” Porsche agreed, nodding. “Alright. We don’t have to.”

Vegas could see that his cousin was a few seconds from breaking, but they had to push on. They’d made progress and none of them could leave that room without a proper plane, or else someone would go and do something to ruin everything.

“You have to play along, Phi-Kinn,” Vegas said.

“The fuck?” Porsche replied, eyes snapping to Vegas with anger. “He’s not going anywhere near that fucking snake.”

“I have to,” Kinn said, slowly sitting back on the bed.

“Listen to me-” Porsche said.

“He has Pete’s video,” Kinn said.

Porsche’s mouth shut, immediately.

“Phi-Kinn has to stay away from his father and meet with Tawan whenever he calls until we can find a way to get rid of that video and every single copy of it.”

“Until then, Kinn has to… he has to be around his… he has to talk to Tawan like nothing happened?” Porsche asked, horrified.

“It sounds bad, Porsche. But it’s what we’ve got.”

“I’m so sorry, Phi-Kinn,” Pete said, his eyes glistening with tears as he looked at Kinn. “Because of me-”

“Don’t even say that,” Kinn said. “You’re my prized jewel, remember?” Kinn tried to sound lighthearted, but it came out dry and pained.

“I’m so sorry,” Pete repeated.

Vegas didn’t know what to do, so he pulled Pete into his arms, rocking him slowly as Kinn shrugged.

“It’s fine.” He scoffed. “When this is all over, I’ll get my lick back. Don’t worry about me.”

Vegas was utterly relieved to hear that. Because if they were going into battle, he didn’t want a traumatized alpha at the helm. He wanted a pissed one that was out for vengeance. And judging by the look in Kinn’s eyes, Vegas was grateful that he was going to get the latter.