#like i get it would be annoying if people were actually skimping off you and taking the piss but i know for a fact when i drive

[hella1975]

ok so here's the gossip. me and my two friends are going up to brum to see hozier in december, but one girl has been SO nasty to another one of her friends recently and its been pissing us all off. like ok so nasty one is Z, and the one she's being nasty is A. A lives two doors down from Z, and so a lot of the time Z offers lifts back and to from college because its just on the way. However they've never discussed petrol money because Z said there's no point since its on the way. But last week Z OFFERED to give A a lift home and then decided to skip class, and just messaged A being like "went home. Get the bus back" knowing A was in a driving lesson and wouldn't see that until they got back to campus, which is especially fucky because they live in the next town over so the bus is over two hours compared to a 30 minute car drive. then yesterday Z sent a text being like "you owe me this much for the 11 car rides ive given you. I want to be helpful and I enjoy helping people, but i don't like being a taxi." even though she OFFERED and just sprung this on A without ever discussing payment, despite the fact its not even like she's going out of her way because they live TWO DOORS AWAY. and like it isn't only this, Z treats A like a massive punching bag. so where the hozier thing comes in, Z is going with me. however if this bitch pisses me off too much, IM the one who has the tickets and i will literally just give her ticket to someone else. she's the only one who drives and will probably be like "oh you guys can't get down without me" try me bitch

gossip asks have got to be my favourite type of asks like idk how we even got to this point where people regularly tell me about their current personal gossip but i need you to picture me sat with you holding a glass of wine gasping and nodding at the appropriate moments

[theskyexists]

gundam ep 18, 19 20

didnt want to watch more gundam bc i was so pissed and i didnt think that the writers/narrative were going to treat what they had miorine do to suletta with enough weight.

i start episode 6 after waiting to let myself calm down.good call on my part. but

why the fuk does miorine feel beholden to prospera when prospera didnt do shit lol

miorine’sover the top anger is no longer adorable. it’s just childish and annoying. a sign of her being stupidly out of her depth. the politics are also so ridiculous. is shin sei now miorine’s subsidiary? when did that happen? WHAT IS OWNERSHIP EVEN IN THIS UNIVERSE. DID MIORINE INHERIT SHARES?????????

this was the ONLY way it could go yeah for suletta to think that i guess. but damn im glad i waited

‘ive no intention of fighting you you saved my life’BUT i will insult your friend.

what an idiot. starting to dislike how this is all about literal children

are we punching miorine. we doing this?

so martin got hurt by a mob and they’re like hey why dont u stay behind to protect the base from the mob. lol

miorine never rescinded earth house’s rights to the ship with which they can just dump suletta at her place? ????? god its so japanese

fuck. chuchu is NOT punching miorine? ‘talking things out’? what the fuck. why are we getting all these fun lil group dynamics after something so shit. why are they still working for gundarm at all. ‘WHEN the bullies come back, dont try anything crazy’  literally leaving the hurt member for the bullies to kill iguess. what the fuck

how is this elan so good at fighting he can stop a terrorist pilot witch from stabbing him in the eye

‘i did not expect him to team up with peil’ why the fuck ever not

wow that went fast. suletta didn’t even fight for aerial. god. the most doormat to ever doormat. not even AERIAL. did prospera arrange for suletta to find aerial because eri wanted to see her?

what the fuck dude i mean. why.... WHY.

ok so why didnt eri ever do this before though like - could have talked to her in this mindspace all along. ok so...uh. they dont need the key which is suletta anymore. and...wait. so there were a lot of children. but surely not so many. what with the timeline. but hold on. and score eight, thats when eri doesn’t need a pilot. you’re telling me there was no way of tweaking the software or hardware for the AI inside to take control of the suit. beyond a score 8 datastorm. why the fuck is eri being so nasty to suletta. i thought she cared about her

what the fuck. literally like. what the fck. why would eri do this to her right after miorine did this to her. what even goes on in their minds

simply ejects her into the vacuum of space with limited air supply. ok.....? i mean. and aerial cannot be steered by herself either we were just told so they’re both just in space i guess.

prospera and eri literally just told her: actually use you were also just a cog in a machine that we were using and we dont need anymore bye

???????????????????????????????????why the fuck would eri do that

‘suletta deserves to live freely’

are you fuckign serious. are you fucking serious. really. you’re fucking serious. you are telling me that. prospera and eri care about suletta as well but they just lied to her again and told her they don’t just to let her ‘live freely’.. all these people are completely insane and psychopaths and completely unforgivable. completely fucking insane and unforgivable. the writers just made it worse. i CANNOT forgive this. i literally cannot.

if suletta does not go apeshit i will kill somebody and that somebody will be the whole writing team

-----

ep 19

let me just say that i saw some ‘oh we all good now’ fanart and i am absolutely not about it. jezus christ.

wow they really skimped on the animation for miorine

suletta is going further and further into a depression spiral and earth house is jus like: hmmm sucks . and the people who love her are like: lol bye better off without us! fuck yoU!!!

this rando side character from a mid-level company who for some reason does the counselling at the school (???)  or hijacks it is like a total ......like. player. reallyjust playing around . its great

what IS benerit group’s jurisdiction? is miorine ever gonna see the terrible circumstances that her friends came from? too bad Nika and Chuchu aren’t along to point out: yeah i worked here as a nine year old 12 hours a day lol

who the hell is miorine negotiating with? and why is she going if she doesnt speak for the group. what can she even promise

this spacian and not-elan and nika have been in thisroom for what. a week? and somehow elan is capable of holding her TWICE. how theFUCK is he not dead. his superior male strength apparently. hate this part. its boring. it’s sexist. it’s stupid. but i guess its nice that theyre doing a fucked up emotional bond between the shitty spacian and the shitty earthian bc they’re both gundam pawns

miorine thinks she can get some goodwill for developing prosthetic limbs....(which by all accounts ALREADY EXIST LOL LOOK AT PROSPERA). wow that went surprisingly well. goodthing the guy’s a doctor. and recognised she means well. might be a way to change things etc.

general guy surely must have been responsible for the 1500 earthians disappeared and tortured huh....

god i cant stand the earth house-suletta dynamics. everybody is so annoying. suletta for being her same old self and earth house peeps for being like: oh but just have a meal with us we’re friends :):):):) shut the fuck up

it’s like these writers have never experienced grief at all

oh she just gotta have a nice soup and a cry and a meal with friends. shut the fuckup

‘even when you know it’s not the right way, sometimes it’s the only thing you can do’

uh. no. what? martin didn’t have to sell nika out just bc he was sure she was a terrorist. miorine and eri and prospera didnt have to stab suletta in all the worst places just to ‘set her free’. that like saying: oh i killed a couple of people but eh, meh, eh, so what?i just fucked around abit and now we’re finding out. so it goes!

seriously this kid actually reveals all this shit to guel??? lol!!!!what an idiot!!! these people almost killed you!!! guel doesnt even care enough to get a you a spot in the academy (’you should ask somebody else’WHO GUEL. WHO IS HE GONNA MEET)

this story went far off the rails

this kid just sold out his people’s best chance of becomign indpeendent and free from benerit group. what idiot adult never told this complete dumbass to keep his fucking mouth shut.

prospera. what the FUCK. how is THIS necessary for anything? Eri. Why are you doing this also. Im looking at all the fanart thats like ooooo we all good after ep 22 we a happy family.

Suletta is a psycho. Prospera is a way worse psycho. Miorine is a bitch. Guel is a total bastard. Even Eri is a total psycho.

oh ok it was an excuse to leave miorine behind with no guards at all. LOL. the guards all left and prospera was like byeeeeeeee

the high council (?) (who the fuck are they then) have been funding the earthian ochs earth corporation gundams....ok thats one mystery solved. so why did prospera attack the gundams there. and was there an implications that there are multiple sophies and noreas or were they simply associated in teh system. but also what. they corrupted GUND principles? you care about those prospera?

Miorine seriously has no direct control over her men or gundams? why is she so......DUMB. i know shes only seventeenbut like.

‘oh we didnt give orders’ that is no excuse. check your lines of command. get your goddamn intel directly. there are like three fucking robot pilots. you can speak to them DIRECTLY. now they’re blowing up shit because theyre getting shot at. soldiers and cops are such cowards. oh ill just laserblast everybody. instead of idk. listening to ORDERS and simply evading

‘guel, you’ve defiled her’

what. lol. shaddiq maybe you should have helped her. idk. always being such a stupid dick

‘prospera mercury was onto us.’ ok so he knows that shes destroyed the stored gundams.

aerial did NOT do the only thing she could. in fact, she could have just said: suletta, our mother is a total pschyo, shes going to fuck everyone over just so i can live again. you shouldnt be part of that. with her actual voice

literally.what is this japanese fucking bullshit. it’s like they literally have different neural pathways. like LITERALLY. every anime has this to some extent. where there’s these contrived mantras based on idiotic non-communciation. as though it is impossible to be truthful or straightforward about anything. its better to stab someone than be straightforward.

really hate the tempo, the futility, and most of all the heart of the emotional conflict. it’s fake. it’s extreme. there’s no payoff. and in the end it is unrelated to any of the earthian suffering. 

i predict: suletta is not going to go apeshit

chuchu did not punch miorine and will not

prospera and  eri will also not get any comeuppance

‘its all my fault. i did this’

uh yeah. because you didn’t prepare. you didn’t consider that everybody had their fingers on the triggers. you didnt control your soldiers. YOUR SOLDIERS. just let the commander fly off. didn’t intervene in communication. didn’t tell  the commander that THOSE robots also needed to be disarmed. yeah. people died because you’re an idiot. fuck you

AND MIORINE IS THE ONLY MORALLY INTELLIGENT CHARACTER IN THE WHOLE DAMN SHOW. THE ONLY ONE IN THE ENTIRE SHOW!!!!!!!!! EVERYBODY ELSE IS EITHER EXTREMELY DUMB SELFISH OR MORALLY CORRUPT. UNFORTUNATELY SHE’S ALSO AN IDIOT.

-----

ep 20

shaddiq is angry at guel for no reason. guel is angry at shaddiq for important reasons like he accidentally killed his dad at the plant quetta incident that shaddiq orchestrated

what is this ‘comedy’ low-stakes shit between martin and these two leftover student council idiots

‘our mobile suit wrecked havoc while we claim to be a  medical company’ maybe shouldnt have a mobile suit. ‘even lilique is angry’ WHY AREN’T THEY.

why is earth house so completely apathetic? Miorine kicked suletta to the curb like its nothing. they didnt much care. Miorine seems to have attacked a major Earth city. they dont much care. fucking hell dude lol

he really thinks guel (who is definitely a dumbass) was the one to taint miorine’s name and soul? he KNOWS prospera was behind it. jezus christ. can they just kill  each other already. fucking hell. how did the writing tank likethis.

shaddiq deliberaely wants to have the school demolished....

wow those cathedra guys are terrabad at responding to attacks and protecting civilians

how does shaddiq knowthat. right bc he has connections with. ok its a way to freak him out but cmong guel. SHADDIQ SET THAT UP ACCUSE HIM OF THAT RIGHT NOW. didnt

the weird thing about the gundam fights is why their conversations are always boosted from enemy to enemry to the entire fuckign public

comms just said: dont get involved leave it to security

house jeturk instantly sends out a student. who almost got killed last time. didnt even lift campus restrictions. SURELY thats a single fucking switch

Burion House doesnt have a single pilot with them in the bunker ?

chuchu really going for Nika right now? Martin the rat stopping her and asking Nika to help out? after ratting her out? my god

Nika: ‘this is all my fault’ what the ever living fuck are you talking about. what arrogance

shaddiq was hoping guel would protect miorine from all this shit but he didn’t i mean fair enough. guel is such a fail-man

shaddiq is for sure not. and his idea is pretty good. too bad he keeps having people murdered left and right. if he’d simply ordered his people in dawn of the fold to help miorine out but noooo

ah he wanted spacian losses at asticassia to poke the league....but....then why was he running for president. and also. surely he hasn’t been able to transfer many of the assets yet. just grassley’s

i like how norea’s grief is fuckin realhere alright

wow elan doing his: i hold your arms so you cant hit me move here again. even works in mobile suit form. lol

yap. norea too. i mean. who can care about suletta or miorine or fuckin guel when sophie and norea be imploding right here. the war oprhans, the exploited unprivileged drafted children.they’re mercilessly mowed down by the ‘good guys’ cathedra. who’ve been doing that shit for twenty years.

I HATE earth house lol

i also hate suletta. dont like her shounen shit anymore which isnt shounen shit anymore. thats because all of this is just so.....who cares.who cares. truly who cares.

thing is. this show really likes to do dramatic moments but all the dramaticmoments this past season have not been satisfying. they have been really frustrating narratively. shaddiq and prospera and miorine and the league all fucking shit up. miorine really SHOULD have chosen shaddiq it turns out. they might have actually made a good pair, if shaddiq had been truthful at all

suletta isnt gonna do shit about earth. she really doesnt give a fuck. miorine is too stupid to do anything about it. guel ABSOLUTELY is. and everybody else is infinitely dumb

to be honest, why did prospera destory earth ochs gundams when it destroyed miorine’s chances of becoming president. unless she didnt need quiet zero after all. but then why bother with her AT ALL

[belphies-cuhm-sluht]

If It Means That Much To You (Mammon x GN!Reader) Slight Angst -> Fluff

I realize now that if I had written this last night and Levi's tonight, I could have posted in the order of the brothers... but I goofed up on that... Whoops! It's slightly angsty, just the teeniest tiniest bit, but soft Mammon is so sweet. I don't write enough for him, feel kinda bad for skimping out on Mammon fics. So here's a Mammon fic!

Word Count : 1.7K Warnings : Slight angst;

The smile spread across your face as you swiped through the pictures that you had taken with your boyfriend. You both looked happy, and it wasn’t fake like those other couples that you had seen way too many times back in the human realm. This was the first time in what seemed like your entire life that you had been one hundred percent, without a doubt, happy. You had someone who loved you more than words would ever let him express, but he didn’t need words to tell you, he always showed you that he did, whether it be through the way he would hold you, or even just the way he looked at you. The way his lips would crash against yours whenever he saw you after being apart for five minutes or more. Even the way that he looked at you, you could see the emotion, so raw, you could feel it, you could almost hear it, just by looking into his eyes. His love, and his adoration for you was unmatched, other than by your own feelings towards him.

It was a perfect relationship, anyone would be able to tell just by looking at the two of you together. They would be able to see it through the multitude of pictures that you took together, pictures that he would never let you upload. Every picture was taken within the House of Lamentation, or somewhere deep in the garden behind the house, places where no one other than his brothers would ever find out that the two of you were together. It never really bothered you, not enough to bring it up to him at least. Lately though, it had been getting under your skin a little more than usual. It could have something to do with the fact that his latest modeling gig had garnered new fans for him, which should have been a good thing, but reading through their comments on his Devilgram posts had bugged you more than it should. He wasn’t the type to feed into their comments, whether they were raunchy or sweet, he would reply with a simple “Thank You” to as many as he could. You on the other hand, you weren’t allowed to comment on any of his posts, and while he hadn’t explained why that was, you just went along with it. At least you could still like them, and that was enough for you, at least up until now.

“Hey Mams, isn’t this picture cute?” You asked, idly flipping through the latest pictures you had taken together. They were taken in his bed after a long night of… fun… Both of you looked especially worn out, but the smiles on your faces were honest, sincere, and you loved waking up next to each other. His and your hair was completely messed up, and neither of you cared. It wasn’t a modeling shot, but it still looked perfect. You wanted to show him off, show the rest of the Devildom that he was yours and you were his, show them how lucky you were, and what better photo to use than one where you’ve woken up together. “I was thinking of uploading it to-”

Those words had caught his attention, drawing his eyes away from his own phone where he was scrolling through more comments and liking them, giving them the basic reply. The thought of you uploading anything like that though had made him stop, and now he was grabbing your phone from your hands and slipping it into his pocket. “Ya don’t haveta upload nothin’. I know we’re happy, so da you… nobody else needs ta know.” He smiled at you as if his words would actually make you feel better, and most of the time they did. It’s not that he was wrong, and maybe demons didn’t fully understand the concept of essentially showing the world that they were happy, that they had found love and being excited about that, but in the human realm it was a normal thing.

“Alright… I’m gonna go get myself some breakfast… you want anything?” You didn’t want to argue with him about it, you didn’t want to blow it up into something that it didn’t need to be, so changing the subject entirely was the best option. You pushed yourself up off the couch and started heading towards the door, grabbing your jacket off the edge of the bed on your way over. You turned back to face him, to see if he was going to answer your question, and he was turned completely around on the couch, pouting up at you. “You don’t have to worry, Mammon. I’m taking Beel with me.” Which was something you always did when you went to get breakfast… or really any food related item. Mammon was one who worried about your safety often, and since he didn’t like going out in public places with you, he would always tell you to have one of his brothers take you.

His pout only grew as his eyebrows lowered, crossing his arms over his chest. You weren’t really sure what he was trying to do or why he was even doing it, but you were hungry, and you really wanted to know if he wanted anything so you could get going. “Well… just remember who yer first demon was. Beel ain’t no better than me.” He huffed before turning back around and you were left in the doorway feeling nothing but confusion. You weren’t even sure what he meant by that, it made absolutely no sense to you. Obviously you thought Mammon was the better brother out of them all, you wouldn’t put up with so much of his crazy antics or try so hard to keep him out of trouble if he wasn’t your favorite. He also never had a problem with Beel taking you before, so you weren’t quite sure why it was a problem now. “Tell ya no and ya wanna go runnin’ off ta get food with Beel…”

“You know… I can still hear you.” He had whispered the last part, but his whispering sounded more like breathy screaming, especially when he was irritated by something… something that he shouldn’t even be irritated by. “I can go with Asmo or Satan… It doesn’t have to be Beel.” He groaned at the other two brother choices and now you were getting irritated. You didn’t know what he wanted, you were confused, and you were hungry, and he wasn’t explaining anything, and it was just really really annoying. “I don’t know what you want! You don’t want to be seen together, you don’t want me to leave the house by myself, and you don’t want me to leave the house with your brothers either. What do you want?”

His head whipped around so he could face you again, his eyebrows quivering slightly as he looked at you, his voice softer now. “I never said I didn’t wanna be seen with ya…” He sighed, shaking his head. “I just didn’t want anything ta happen…” You weren’t sure what he meant, or what could possibly happen if the two of you were seen together. Simple Devilgram photos couldn’t be enough to stir up problems, could they?

That’s when your brain, your already ticked off and, at this point, hangry brain started piecing together the puzzle, or at least, you thought you were piecing it together. “You mean you didn’t want your fans to get upset… If they saw a picture of you with someone they’d stop giving you likes and commenting on your posts.” His eyes narrowed as he listened to your assumption. He was shocked and even… hurt… that you’d think that that was why he didn’t want you to be seen with him. What was more upsetting was that he had apparently, at some point, given you reason to believe that he cared more about his fan base than he did about you.

He got up off the couch quickly, practically running to you and pulling you into his arms. You weren’t sure if you were just hearing things or if he was actually crying, or maybe he was coming down with a cold… but you could definitely hear him sniffling. “It ain’t about them… It’s about you…” He took a shaky breath, and that slightly verified your thoughts that he was crying, or at least on the verge of it. His hand held the back of your head, keeping your face buried in his chest so that you couldn’t see him, but you could still hear him, his voice vibrating his chest as he spoke. “I owe lotsa Grimm ta lotsa people… demons… witches… I dunno if they’d try ta snatch ya up… take ya away from me ta get their money back…” He finally took a step back, cupping your face lightly as you finally looked up at him. “I don’t want nothin’ ta happen to ya… I don’t wanna lose ya, Y/N…”

“Mammon… I-” You felt awful, terrible for even assuming that he would care more about his fans than your feelings. You had never once thought that he was doing it to look out for you, to take care of you because you meant that much to him… Because he loved you. Sometimes you fail to remember that he was greedy, and he did like to gamble, and usually that money came from other people's pockets. It was hard to remember because with you he was completely different, he never asked for your money and all of your dates were free, spent in his room or the living room or the gardens just enjoying your time together. Everything he did… he did it for you.

“It’s okay… If it means that much ta ya… Upload the pic… If it makes ya happy… I’ll even go out with ya… keep ya safe. No one messes with The Great Mammon’s human…” He smiled proudly, and you let out a small giggle as you shook your head. You didn’t want to worry him anymore than he already did about you, he didn’t need that.

“I know we’re happy… You know we’re happy… No one else needs to know… Right?” The words that he had said earlier made more sense now. You both were happy, and if anyone else knew, it could potentially ruin both of your happiness.

Things were perfect just the way they were. You had the perfect relationship, and it meant way more to you than a little picture being uploaded onto the internet.

[rosiehunterwolf]

CONGRATS ON 100 FOLLOWERS FREN 💖💖 you deserve it and so much more

If you're feeling up to it (DONT FEEL OBLIGATED DO U HEAR ME MY DEAR) movie verse Jay my beloved

asfljdlkj tysm Amour! I'm so glad to have you as part of my tumblr family, ur one of my best friends on here 💕✨

i really needed to write something movie!verse because I LOVE movie!verse and haven't written anything yet, so I was excited for this one

(@fabro-de-omres you've said in the past that you would love to read it if I wrote something movie!verse, so here's ✨content✨)

I'll chase you to the moon and back

Summary: When you’re in a secret ninja force and are your city’s primary protectors, pulling your weight is important.

Jay tries to be an asset to his team, but it’s difficult when he’s viewed as the scaredy-cat who cracks lame jokes. He loves his friends with all his heart, but sometimes it’s hard to know if they return those feelings.

Jay wouldn’t blame them if they didn’t.

Sometimes, Jay felt like he was a burden to the team.

He tried not to, he really did- he knew the others liked him and cared about him. But standing next to strong Cole, smart Zane, brave Kai, determined Nya, or warm-hearted Lloyd, it was difficult not to feel… inadequate.

It didn’t help that Cole hadn’t answered any of his recent texts.

It could be anything, Jay told himself as he stared down at the unread messages, resisting the urge to send another text. He could have an appointment he forgot to tell me about, or maybe he’s just not looking at his phone right now, or he simply doesn’t share my urgency to answer a text message so quickly. Cole had always been much more laid back about that, raising an eyebrow as Jay always scrambled to answer the text from his mom, or whoever had sent it this time.

But Cole was also Jay’s best friend. He knew he got anxious when someone left him unread for too long. Because of that, he had always been good about answering Jay’s texts quickly, even as the others still groaned about the earth ninja taking ages to respond to them.

For him to go an hour without responding was… concerning, to say the least.

Jay pushed the thoughts aside. He was probably just overthinking this, like he always was. Cole would get back to him soon. It wasn’t like he was ignoring him, or anything.

Maybe the others are up to something. He opened the group chat, but although there were usually a hundred notifications at any given time- he had learned that the hard way the first day he had joined, turning on his phone after school to a whopping 785 texts- it was empty now. The last text was from Lloyd, asking Kai to meet him at his locker before lunch.

Jay felt his heart rate spike. The lack of an argument between Kai and Nya in the last five minutes alone was worrying- because heaven forbid they actually talk things out in person, even if they literally lived one bedroom down from each other- and his mind quickly spiraled into possibilities. Had someone kidnapped them? Had their parents grounded them? Or maybe they had committed a crime and gotten thrown into jail. He wouldn’t put it past Kai and Nya to pull something dumb- Cole and Zane would go along with it, and Lloyd would never speak up enough to voice his disproval-

No, don’t be ridiculous, they wouldn’t commit a crime.

Well… Kai might. But the others would stop him.

What if they made a separate group chat without me?

No. His friends would never do that. They’d be more likely to commit that crime.

But the thought wouldn’t leave Jay’s brain, and before he knew it, he was sending a text in the group chat.

jaybird123: What r u guys up to? Wanna hang?

He immediately regretted it. What if he came off as too clingy? Too overbearing? They probably just wanted some time to themselves.

That didn’t sound quite right to Jay, but he stuffed his phone in his pocket, forcing the thought out of his mind.

He decided to go to the park- watching the people there always gave him good ideas for inventions. He was too late to catch a bus down there, but it wasn’t too far to walk.

His phone buzzed, and he glanced down.

thegreendragon: sorry jay, got plans 2nite. maybe tmrrw?

Jay tried to stop the pang of disappointment. Lloyd wouldn’t lie to him. The others probably were just busy. It was no big deal. Tomorrow, things would be back to normal.

A couple of blocks away, he caught the sounds of annoyed shouts, the kind that usually hinted towards the presence of-

He stopped, blinking, as a boy darted past the onlookers and into the shop.

Huh. Lloyd?

Starting towards the store his friend had vanished into, Jay peered through the window, looking for Lloyd-

Jay froze. Lloyd was standing with the others, animatedly babbling something to them as they watched him happily.

Jay shrunk back. They really had met up without him, and had lied about it, too. He wasn’t being paranoid- his friends just didn’t want him around.

For a moment, the shock left Jay floundering. He had no other friends. The other ninja were his entire livelihood. What was he meant to do now?

He quickly wiped at the tears pooling in his eyes. I’ll go home. My mom will know what to do.

He had the worst feeling that this was something that even his mom couldn’t fix, though.

About halfway home, a buzz in his pocket interrupted him from his stupor. Pulling out his phone, he saw there was a new message in the group chat.

rock’n’cole: hey jay, something just came up, can u meet us at the warehouse asap?

Jay just stared at his phone for a minute, debating whether to actually show up or not. After all, the others had ditched him, why shouldn’t he do the same? And he still felt hurt- he wasn’t sure if he was ready to talk to them yet. He really should just go home.

jaybird123: sure, i’ll be there in 20

Jay had never been good at holding grudges.

Thirty minutes later (he had ended up stalling a little bit just for the spite of it) he pushed through the doors of the warehouse. It was pitch black inside, and as he fumbled around for the lights, he couldn’t help but notice that no one else was there. It was stupid of me to come. They just abandoned me. Again.

Suddenly, the lights burst on, and the others were jumping out from behind the furniture, cheering and hugging him. Jay stumbled backward, taken aback. “What’s going on?”

Kai looked at him like he was crazy, gesturing widely at all the balloons and streamers that Jay could see now that the lights were on. “It’s a party, dumbass, what else do you think?”

“What for? It’s not my birthday!”

Nya scoffed, as if he had just told her that men lived on the moon. “Of course not, this is for your Ninja-versary!”

“My… what?”

“The anniversary of the day you first became a ninja, stupid!”

“Oh.” He blinked around at all the decor. “All this? Just for something as simple as that?”

Kai wasn’t the only one looking at him like he had sprouted a second head, now.

“Are you kidding?” Cole said. “We’re not going to skimp on celebrating the day one of our favorite people came into our lives.”

Jay blinked at him. “I…” I’m so sorry for ever doubting you. That’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.

“Now, what are we waiting around for?” Cole threw an arm around Jay’s shoulders. “Let’s go get some cake!”

As the ninja hurried over to the table, squabbling over who would get which slice, Jay squashed between the middle of his big, loud, bickering family, he couldn’t have felt more at home.

[wonderwomanfantasy]

Internet Hottie

I have no clue what made this fic pop off the way it did but here you go a part two 

part one

Enji Todoroki x Camgirl!Reader

warnings: smut, Sex work, cam show, masturbation, cum play, sugar daddy themes, black mail(ish), size kink, dd/lg, 

word count: 3,000 (about)

summary: Enji is more than willing to pay the price of a private show if it means he gets to see how cute you are when you moan his name again, little does he know having the real deal right in fornt of him is only a chace encounter away.  

“You know most people turn on their cameras for private shows, let me see you too,” you teased slowly running your hands over your arms feeling the fabric of the soft pink cardigin, raising it back up over your bare sholder. 

Normally you were a little more careful with accepting private shows, but this pertuclar intrested you. You saw his username pop up almost every show, and he paid a lot of money too, but he never commented, normally guys that finatical about your shows would at least comment hello, or something nasty to get your attention. Not him though. So you were a little curious what exactly he was into, besides, you knew this one wasn’t going to skimp on the payment. 

You had approved his request in just a few hours, even if you were still sore from the Endevour toy you’d ridden earler tonight, it wouldn’t kill you to do a little more tonight. You’d just have to makeup some excuse about pulling a muscule picking up heavy boxes or something to your day job.

what if I don’t want to show my face?

The message poped up on screen making you laugh. “ah you think I want to see your face handsome? I’m after something a little lower actually,” you teased. 

Suddenly the camera of the mistery man flashed on the cammera pointed at his  crotch. You gasped seeing him. He was naked, which wasn’t supprising. but his cock. good lord his cock was huge, bigger than any toy you had, thick around the base with a flushed head such a dark shade of red it was almost purple. his testicles were heavy-looking rested against his thighs wich were easily bigger than your head and coated with corse red hairs. 

Are you just going to gape at me? 

anouther message to distract you. You snapped your mouth shut and regained your compouser. you were the star here he was the fanboy you couldn’t let the dynamic shift. 

“I’ll have you know most guys have to pay good money for me to ogel at their cocks like that, I’m a pretty girl you should feel honored, Do you have like a horse quirk or something?”

I am paying good moeny

fuck. you were still to distracted to come up with anything good. “you can unmute yourself, I want to see if there is a pretty voice to match that goregous cock,” you purred changing the subject. Hopefully, his voice was high pitched or annoying so you could stop drooling over him

No

“you’re no fun,” you pouted. 

Are you always such a brat?

That made you smile, You were getting on his nerves. good. you batted your eye lashes and covered your face with your hand, pretending to be embaressed. “Sorry daddy, I didn’t mean to misbehave what was it you wanted me to do again?”

Enji fidgeted trying to get comfortable in his office chair, painfully aware you could see his smallest movements. your eyes trained on the computer screen, this was far too exposing for his tastes, he didn’t know how you could stoumach thousands of people looking at you like this. 

But it was thrilling knowing that it was his cock that made you go completley silent for a few moments. It was his cock that you couldn’t take your eyes off of, maybe that’s what spurred you on. Then againt the moeny didn’t hurt either. 

You were so pretty, and soft as ever in a too large pink sweater that kept slipping off one shoulder almost revealing your bare breasts but never doing so fully. 

you settled on your knees and lifted the sweater up for him to see the soft skin of your upper thighs and your soft gray cotton panties. They were much less flashy than what you would normally where for a show but they were making Enji go feral.

It felt almost real, like you really were his little girl showing off your honyed cunt just for him. he couldn’t help but wonder if those were the kind of panties you wore in your day to day life. God what he wouldn’t give to breath in the musk of your scent right now. 

“you’re cock is twitching so bad Daddy, why don’t you stroke it a little bit?” you prompted. It was true, his cock was painfully hard, begging to be touched, 

Are you trying to tell me what to do?

He snapped back and watched you flush and mess whith the hem of your sweater nervously.

“That’s not what I ment, I just wanted to see you touch yourself,” you mumbled. He decided to appease you, he reached down wrapping one large hand around the base of his cock squeezing and causing precum to oze out the top before dibbling down his inflamed head. Like a good girl you watched with wrapped attention as he bobed his hand up and down easing some of the tension in his gut.

“you’re cock is so big, I don’t know if I could fit both of my hands around it,” you breathed

Who’s camming for who here? he typed 

“Right! Sorry! what do you want me to do,” It was cute how egar you were to please

take out the Endevour toy and start jerking it off

Your eyes went wide “you aren’t going to make me ride it again are you?” He smiled to himself, where you scared of him? Scared about how much his cock was going to hurt as it ripped through you?

Just jerk it off for now and tell me how good it felt while it was inside of you. 

Obedently you centered the toy in front of you and wrapped both your hands around the length slowly working your hands up and down, matching his pace, your small hands could wrap around the tip just fine but parted towards the thicker middle. 

“It hurt a lot-” you admited. “-but it was so big it hit all the spots inside of me at once with out even trying, I’m supprised I didn’t squirt it kept hitting my G-spot over and over again. You can’t really see it but theres this vein right at the bottom that bumps my clit when I put it inside,” you described while Enji contuied to touch himself. 

From this angel he could see clear down your top, he didn’t know if it was intentional or not but he  could see your soft tits bounce and shift with each of your movements and it was hard to focus on anything else

Take off your panties

you pulled away from the toy and slid the soft gray fabric down your thighs. You crossed your legs blocking your soft pussy from veiw. He grunted with agrivation. 

show me

“show you what? can’t you see all of me?” you asked sweetly. 

show me your pussy or I’ll leave

“don’t leave,” you begged, your eyes went wide and instantly your legs spread showing him your drooling pussy.

“slut,” he mumbled to himself. “you didn’t even bother cleaning up your sopping pussy in between shows,” he growled his hand moving faster as you slid your figners over your lips parting your folds for him to get a close look

Pretty. 

“Thank you? should I keep touching the toy or...”

hump it

You laid the Dildo down and carefully straddled it nessling it between your peach fuzz lips. You rested your hands on the bed and slowly started rocking back and forth, your clit rutting against the silicone veins.

How does it feel?

“I bet your cock would feel a lot better, Your cock is warm and moves, and if I was on your cock I get the rest of you. It feels good but at the end of the day plastic is plastic,” you sighed making his cock jump in his hand. it was hard to keep his composure like this. The image of you, real and in his arms slowly rolling your hips against his groin while you looked up at him with those perfect glittery eyes wasn’t helping

And what wold you do with ‘the rest of me’?

“I like kissing,” you muttered, the innocent answer almost took him by surprise. 

“but I also think your hands are pretty big, I’d want you to finger me- or you know,”

I don’t know spell it out for me.

“choke me,” you admited. suddenly the fantasy in Enji’s mind dhifted, now you were grinding on his cock with tear filled eyes while he cut of your breathing, his tounge forcing it’s way into your mouth, fuck he wanted to taste you so bad. You had stated clearly and many times that you didn’t do in person meet ups, even if it was just for a date, but there was a chace you’d do it for the right price, and he was willing to pay any number you named right at that moment. 

He pulled away from his cock at the last moment to keep himself from cumming too soon. again. His prick flowndered for a moment, searching for friction. you whinned losing your own personal show, but you kept riding the toy like a good obedent little slut.

Cum for me. then show me the mess you make. 

You panted and started rutting your hips faster, your eyes glazing over as you chased your release, your mouth formed an O shape and a breathy moan fell from your parted lips as you came. you stayed there for a moment, gathering yourself agian before sitting back and puling up the sweater so he could see the transperent slick coating your thighs and sex. 

play with your clit. 

you whimpered and reached down between your legs stroking the sensitive bud causing your legs too twitch. must be hard on your poor pussy, going through three orgasums in one night. 

He leaned closer, so close his warm breath fogged the computer screen and started fisting his cock again. he really did feel like a teenager, one finding poor for the first time and revleing in that unique voyerisum. It wasn’t long until his own cum was splattering his chest, again. 

You watched as it happened with open facination. almost like you’d never seen someone cum so much before. Enji wouldn’t be supprised if he had a more semen than the average man, He was glad to have impressed you. 

Leaving was far more awkward than in a live show, you didn’t just decide to close the streem instead he told you he was finished, paid his tab and left the call. 

Enji grunted seeing the time. He had spent far to mch time toying with you tonight, there would be hell to pay tomorrow morning when he’d missed out on so much valuable sleep. 

It had been a week and he hadn’t tried contacting you again. Not becuase he hadn’t wanted to, he had just been too busy to even entertain the notion of anouther private show. 

But today was Wednesday which meant not only did he get off of work early today but also, you would be streaming tonight and he could blow off some steam. Just one more meeting with Hawks and he was free. 

Endevour turned the corner heading twards his office when he froze. A familiar frame caught his attention. He trailed his eyes over your form. completely different from what he was used to seeing you in, you were dressed smartly in a black suit and skirt ensemble with sensible black pumps. your hair neatly slicked back from your face. but there was no denying you were the same person. 

he watched your knock once on the door before entering. Through the widnow he saw you cross to where Hawks was sitting and hand him a cup of coffee. He had known Keigo was bringing his pa, a woman endevour had never met before, but he should have mentioned his personal assistant was a fucking cam girl. No wonder your schedual matched his so neetly, you were running on hero time. 

Enji squared his shoulders and marched in. there was no way you would recognize him. He would stay proffecinoal and do his best to imagine you with clothes on. 

“Here, keigo, four cream and seventeen sugars just how you like it,” you said handing your boss his redicoulous coffee order. he smiled and took a sip

“Thanks babe, perfect as always,” he cooed happily and you took a seat beside him waiting for Enedevour to arive. 

“those things are going to kill you some day,” you commented watching him take anouther sip of coffee.

“I highly doubt the sugar is going to kill me before the bad guys do,” he teased then the door slamed open and the man of the hour walked in. 

“Do you always barge into people’s offices like you own the place Hawks?” Endevour growled before sitting at his desk. You tried not to stare and be unprofessional but it was hard not to. He was just so big, his bulging muscles showed even under his clothes. You thought to last weeks live when you had used the toy themed after him and how sore you were after that. you were right, if you ever fucked him he’d brake you. 

“not my fault you were late,” hawks shrugged. The older man glared, he looked about ready to hit your boss. an understandable feeling.

“whatever, lets get started. The-” Just as endevour began to speak Hawks’s phone rang. His work phone. He jumped and answered. 

“sorry I have to run- (y/n) rescedual for me? maybe something tonight? yeah okay bye,” then he was gone. you sighed and turned to Endevour, who looked as pissed as ever. 

“I’m sorry about that, but I’m sure you understand duty calls,” you apologized bowing slightly. 

“Is he like this with everyone or does he enjoy annoying me particularly?” he asked making you laugh lightly. 

“I think he likes to get under your skin, you should feel speical,” He was supprisingly fun to tease, you wouldn’t dare needle him the way you did Keigo but it wouldn’t hurt to rib him a little bit. 

“A meeting later tonight won’t work for me,” he stated, knowing that you couldn’t make it either. If you had been planing on cancling the live he would have gotten the notifcation by now. you smiled polietly and nodded. 

“okay let me check when we’ll be avalable again,” you said relaxing in the chait, before he could ask what you were doing, your eyes turned completley white, the iris and the puple both clouding over with a milky film. 

“this friday at nine pm, does that work?” you asked, your eyes turning back to normal.  Could you really see hawks’s full scedual in your mind? what a useful quirk. He wondered if he could buy you out, although it was a dangerous game if you worked for him. neither of you would get much done that way. 

“is there anything else I can do for you, Sir?” you asked, standing and smoothing out your skirt. 

“yes atcually, I have a couple questions for you,”

“I’ll do my best to answer,” 

“Does Keigo know he hired a porn star?” 

Your breath caught in oyur throat and you almost choked. You’d been recognized in public before, but never by someone with status, no one who knew about your day job. 

“He does,” you answered supprised at how calm you sonded. you just had to breath and remeber. You were star here, Endevour was just another creep who watched you. The thought of Endevour watching you while you made yourself cum sent a jolt through your body.

“if I’m not mistaken, he’s even watched a few of my shows,” you added just to gage his reaction. It had been legally required of you to disclose any other sorces of income you had, Hawks had just laughed it off and assured you that it wasn’t a big deal, after threatening to subscribe to your OnlyFans that was. A threat he’d never followed through on. 

“did he see the show where you screamed my name while fucking yourself?” Endevour asked standing casually and crossing over to the office door. one by one he drew the shudderes. Meaning no one could see into the office. your heart was hammering now, as you guessed where this was going. 

“And what if the public knew that the woman behind the number two hero was secretly showing off her pussy for the whole world to see? what then?”

then you would lose your job you thought but instead you called his bluff. 

“It would be a scandel I’m sure but it would be easily smoothed over, Hawks fans are younger more progressive, he’d probably get a lot of praise if he openly supported sex work and gave an interview where he talked about how he respects my bodly autonimy and my intlect.” you said with false confidence. in reality you knew the commision would rather throw you to the wolves than let you keep your job, but maybe Endevour didn’t know how disposable you really where. 

“it would be another sotry if say, your fans found out you were watching my videos.” you said. he raised an eyebrow at you

“how so?”

“You’re audience is a lot older, more consrvative the’d be horifed at the thought,” you explained. 

“To me it sounds like you’re lying,” Endevour said crossing over to you He lifted you up by the waist seting you down on his desk his harge arms caging you in. 

“it souds to me like we both have pretty good reasons to keep quiet, the only question is what are you willing to give to buy my silence?” he purred reaching out and undoing the butons of your blazer, slipping the jacket off of your shoulders. His skin was so warm, his breath was beating down your neck. His eyes freezing you in place. you could barley speak he was so close. 

“how about a private show?”

[pepperful-qt]

Hi there! Can I request hcs of kuroo, kita and semi with a big brain s/o? It doesn't just apply to s/o academically, but more so about life in general (like having ~streetsmarts~) thank you!

you said street smarts my mind went to jj bittenbinder. ngl i kinda used the wisdom proficiencies from d&d as reference for this hahaha nerd i hope it’s what you want! also i just want to thank you for requesting my not-so-secret fav semi semi

Kuroo, Kita, & Semi with a big brain s/o

* * * * *

Kuroo Tetsuro

oh this man appreciates it. he’s so entertained

you know that drinking game that Tyrion does with Shae where he guesses something about your past and if he’s right you have to drink, if not he does? that’s what you do minus the drinking part obv,, unless

as a person with high charisma himself, you make it a game to see who can bluff out and/or fool the other (you almost always win)

any time there’s a game night and you’re playing a social deception game you always win. no one can get a lie past you

if it’s a teamwork one, you and Kuroo crush everyone else

you find ways to skimp on your hw but still come out fine. he has no idea how, and it both annoys and impresses him

“i thought you stayed up watching buzzfeed unsolved instead of studying last night??”

“yeah so what?”

“but you got a 96%”

he knows that intelligence isn’t just defined by what you’re able to memorize out of a book, and you’re a perfect example of that. he respects you a lot

you’re the type of person that reads random articles and therefore has the most random bits of trivia that you throw in conversation

he can have an intellectual conversation with you, since you always come up with unique perspectives. he loves asking your opinion on things, bc who tf knows what’ll come out of your mouth

you don’t know what a derivative is to save your life but you know the location of every 7/11 in a ten mile radius, and if they carry a specific type of onigiri or cup noodle flavor

but fr you give the best advice and are always there to lend an ear

you watch murder mystery movies together and try to figure out the culprit, sometimes actually arguing over it

other times you’ll watch a drama and make bets on who’s gonna do what or end up with who

rip Kenma in the corner just trying to live his life

it’s hilarious seeing you interact with someone who is not “big brain” or street smart

let’s just use Lev as an example for no particular reason, just bc

you quickly learned that Lev would believe almost anything you said, he was that fascinated by your apparent wisdom

so you and Kuroo will sometimes join forces and see what you can get him to believe. you once convinced him that if you kill an insect you’d become that insect in your next life and die the same way, and for a solid month he would start crying if he ever stepped on an ant

chaos couple™

you have this whole atmosphere about you that is just “do not fuck with me” bamf if i do say so myself

which tbh is one of the things he finds most attractive about you. you knew exactly what he was up to the first time he started flirting with you, but you weren’t intimidated one bit. you became a challenge~

10/10 best looking couple of the three

* * * 

Kita Shinsuke

the two voices of reason, bless you both. you’re very similar, but also very different

he’s the definition of high intelligence & high wisdom with low charisma cleric kita omg, while you have both high wisdom and high charisma with an intelligence stat you barely use (high or low lol)

he’s the kind of guy who always thinks things through with logic, and he’s always sure of his decisions

you on the other hand, have an intuition based logic

freaks him out when you rely on your gut instinct but somehow it always pays off

“why?” 

“just because” 

“but why??”

you’re adaptable in almost every situation, always know what to say, and have an uncanny ability to read people

which actually comes in handy in your relationship

he’s not the best at expressing himself but you always seem to know his emotional state and thought process, something no one else except his granny has really cracked yet and you do it so easily. sometimes he wonders if you’re a mind reader

you knew he liked you before he did & you asked him out first ~

“Shin-kun, you look happy today!” 

“Ah, I was able to clean all the volleyballs after practice and still had time to fold and organize the scrimmige vests by color.”

meanwhile Atsumu: “hE litERALLY?? looks the sAME??!”

speaking of the twins, you’re great at handling them

Atsumu tried to scare you away the first time you showed up at practice before you and Kita announced your relationship, but you were calm and polite

which tbh put him off more than if you’d clammed up or gotten angry. he almost felt bad for being rude. almost.

imagine how bad he felt when Kita found out

the both of you are both feared and respected by the team 

you’ll help Kita out with his self-assigned chores sometimes, figuring out new ways to be efficient and not lose quality

he also loves how he can trust you to take care of yourself, whether it’s walking home alone or losing you in a crowd or just looking after your health. he still worries and dotes on you but it’s out of love, not because he’s concerned you’ll hurt yourself unintentionally 

he loves a person with common sense @ inarizaki

you’re both really good at getting gifts for each other, since you’re both very perceptive

one time you guessed his favorite flavor of ice cream and it made the butterflies a’flutter

there’s this silent competition between you two of who can give the better gifts

wishes you would study more though ngl. he knows you’re smart you just don’t always dedicate that intelligence to your schoolwork

he finds it charming how you’re always looking at things from different angles rather than the straightforward path. he thinks it’s a very good quality

that “yeah but what if...” kind of mentality

we already know he appreciates that attitude if he doesn’t really take it on himself

you’re both able to appreciate the nuances of life and enjoy the moment together

your relationship is one of the most balanced and strong out there tbh,,

* * *

Semi Eita

you’ve got this charm that makes people respect you. a certain type of confidence, if you will, that made him first notice you

lots of students were intimidated by the members of the volleyball team, for their height and reputation etc, but you never showed any reservation, not even with Ushijima

as well as your conviction, you have take no shit attitude that comes in great handy with certain members of the team it’s also hot af

you can banter with Tendou and you provoke Goshiki all day long but never Shirabu bc you know what’s up

you do however irritate him with mind games, bc you know he’s a little shit who stole your bf’s spot and needs to be taken down a peg sometimes

you: *describing the quantum wave trolley problem”

Shirabu: *screams*

all the while Semi is trying and failing to hide the smug little smirk on his face

with Semi though, you’re able to just talk

he enjoys conversation with you bc he’s never bored. you make him think and you make him laugh, both good things

sometimes you’ll point something out that just makes him go “oh” bc it seems so obvious when you point it out

other times it’s something so outlandish that he can’t help but crack a smile or let out a laugh 

sometimes it’s the connect the dots meme “you didn’t connect shit” lmao

again, solid advice giver with no holds barred. anyone who needs to be straight up told what they need to hear comes to you, bc you're usually right

and Semi himself can get lost in his own head so it's nice to have you to ground him

you’re decent in your classes sure, but where you really impress is your strategy in game. any game

once you were invited to play laser tag with the team and you whipped out a battle plan that annihilated the other team

alternatively, you show no mercy in monopoly or uno, damn your relationships

it’s actually very annoying how quickly you pick up the rules and nuances to games and use them to your advantage

if you’re both very competitive, it’s usually better for everyone if you’re both on the same team

but he likes a challenge heh

okay, we know he’s bad at dressing himself when it comes to casual outfits. no common sense. you notice this too

“Eita, sweetie, if you go out like that you will get mugged,, even in Miyagi.”

you’ll walk down the street hand in hand and you make random guesses or stories about the people you see 

“that guy is totally a scammer” or “bet that lady looking at the papaya is trying to start a diet for the third time, look at her face” and he’ll chuckle

he knows there’s always something going on inside your mind and he wants to know

when you’re lost in thought he’ll tap your forehead

“hey what’s going on in there?”

he enjoys listening to your musings and thoughts and opinions. you either have a crazy gut instinct or have some unique thought you’ve internally debated over for months

gets inspiration from you actually, even if he doesn’t realize it

likewise, you realize he has a lot on his mind he doesn’t say, but you have a way of making him say it, even if he is hesitant and abrasive at first

you’ll call him at 3am with a random thought and he’ll grumble a bit but actually will listen to you with the smallest smile on his face

* * * * * 

i hope??? this was good??? also lmk if this is too long without a read more i’m not sure :P

[joezworld]

More Sodor Shenanigans

Not every prank on Sodor involves strategically used F-bombs. Sometimes your appearance is enough...

2015

“No! An’ that’s final! I hate paper mache an’ you know it!” Douglas said finally as Henry rolled into the shed. 

“What is it now you two?” He asked  - hoping he wouldn’t be involved in yet another daft argument about some intricate Scottish custom.

“The daft basterd over here disnae’ like my idea of a halloween costume!” Grumbled Siobhan. She’d been driving Donald and Douglas since the early 90′s, and the trio were so used to each other that they acted like they were fathers and daughter rather than engines and driver. Including the arguments.

“What costume?” Henry asked, wearily - he really didn’t want to be the replacement for Donald in tonight’s bickering. 

“I wan’ to do this wit’ him or Donnie and they both think it’s daft!” Siobhan stuck her ‘smart-phone’ in front of Henry’s face. A looping video was playing, showing an engine dressed up as a “ghost train”. The costume was quite frightening, and looked like it would scare children and adults alike. 

Henry told Siobhan this and she threw up her hands in irritation. “It’s a halloween costume ya great green wedge! O' course it’s supposed to be scary! People are supposed to get the piss scared out o’ themselves!”

“Well, I don’t think that sounds very fun.” Henry said finally. 

“Lands sake! You’re all a bunch o’ sissies!” Siobhan finally gave up and went home, grumbling the whole way. 

Douglas chuckled as she left, and went to speak to Henry. Before he could so,  he was rudely interrupted by the arrival of James and Gordon, who had decided that ‘waiting until they got into the shed to start an argument’ was out of date, and were therefore already bickering as they pulled in. 

-

The details of their argument were so mind-numbingly stupid that they don’t bear repeating, but they managed to keep going all through the night. 

Douglas and the other engines managed to eventually tune them out, and fell asleep around midnight. 

Henry, on the other wheel, was a very light sleeper on a good day, and was acutely aware of exactly when the Dynamic Duo stopped arguing. 

It was at 2:30 in the morning.

The Flying Kipper left at 3:15. 

As Henry blearily backed down onto his train at the docks, he began to plot an idea for revenge. 

-

Later that morning, Henry cracked open an eyelid as Siobhan wandered in to raise Douglas’ fire. 

“Siobhan - about that Halloween costume...”

-

October 30th

A good prank was not done alone, and Henry made sure to rope in Bear to ensure maximum efficacy. 

He chose the diesel hydraulic because unlike Edward and BoCo, who both had massive reserves of Tact and would therefore skimp on the truly messed up scary stories, Bear had no opposition to scaring the unprepared into a frightened, whimpering, traumatized stupor. 

It was actually a quite horrifying story that Bear ended up telling - about an (hopefully fictional) engine that was caught in a chemical spill, and was forcibly mutated into a ghostly monster as result - and Henry had to school his expression so as to not appear like a psychopath when he gleefully realized exactly how scared James and Gordon were. 

-

Halloween

On the night in question, everything was ready. Siobhan and her husband had spent most of the last week manufacturing a large amount of decorations that could be mounted to Henry’s boiler and tender, along with a giant, skull shaped mask that fit over Henry’s smoke box. It had red lights in the ‘eyes’ and belched ‘smoke’ from a fog machine under the jawbone. Henry saw himself in a reflection and agreed with the stationmaster’s assessment that he looked like he’d escaped from the bowels of hell.

A whistle had been sourced from America - a loud, deep, “hooter whistle” that the ‘ebay listing’ had said could be heard for miles.  

Finally, as the sun fell, Henry was ready. 

Siobhan had managed to get Henry on an empty stock train from the Crovan's Gate Works all the way to Arlesburgh, meaning that they’d pass through Tidmouth just as the other engines were returning for the night. (Dulcie and Isobel were thrilled to take part, and assured the pranksters that they knew how to scream and wail like they were being eaten - much to Siobhan’s delight!)

Just as the sun set, the signal dropped, and train 666 left the works, bound for Arlesburgh via all 7 Circles of Hell.

-

Their first “victim” came much sooner than they’d planned - roaring around the blind curve near Kellsthorpe Road station in a whoosh of steam, a high-pitched scream could be heard from the ‘up’ line. As his vision cleared, Henry could see a line of High-Speed coaches roll by, and realized that he must have given Pip or Emma a huge fright. 

“Sorry!” He whistled to the other power car - he thought it was Emma - as he went by. 

Of course, Henry hadn’t realized exactly how frightening his new whistle was, and proceeded to scare Emma just as much as he had Pip. 

“HOLY FUCKING SHIT LET’S GET OUT OF HERE!” Was the only response he got as the HST sped up and raced out of sight. 

Henry felt a little bad - he had no quarrel with the HST - but Siobhan, who could barely see through her laughter-induced tears, thought it was hilarious. 

-

Next up was Wendell, the works diesel. 

He had been hauling a rake of hoppers back to the works, and saw something coming towards him on the ‘down’ line. 

It whistled hello at him in a deep, demonic pitch, looked at him with beady red eyes, and whooshed smoke at him as it rolled by. 

Wendell stopped where he was - and neither he, nor his trucks, nor his crew, said much of anything for the rest of the night. The rescue engine sent out for them tried to get answers out of them, and only got: “I saw the devil, and he greeted me like a friend...”

-

At Knapford, Daisy was taking part in the station’s annual trick or treat festivities, when The Train roared past. 

The children were delighted to see an engine taking part in the costume competition, and immediately decided to award the ‘scariest costume award’ to the mystery engine. 

Nobody noticed until much later that Daisy had been so frightened that she’d burst an oil line. 

-

Tidmouth

The station’s annual Halloween celebrations were in full swing, and the humans were enjoying themselves. 

The engines? Not so much. 

“What a bunch of hoopla over nothing!” Grumbled Gordon. “Why would anyone ever admit to being scared?” 

“And why would anyone ever want to hide what they look like?” James said, clearly more horrified at the thought of people being unable to see his shiny red paint and dashing facial structure. 

“Because not all of us are emotionally bereft sticks-in-the-mud like you two.” Said Bear thinly. He had dressed up - in full British Rail Diesel Locomotive Green with the Double Arrow logo - and was very annoyed that none of his coworkers had noticed. 

“Aye.” Said Donald, who was eying the festivities with suspicion. Siobhan hadn’t made an appearance yet, meaning that she either wasn’t showing up - a statistical improbability - or she’d found someone to rope into her daft ‘ghost train’ idea. 

“I will say, Gordon,” Put in Duck. “For someone who speaks so definitively on not being scared, you seemed very frightened last night.” 

“Stow it.” The blue engine snapped. “You were scared too!”

“Yes I was, and I admitted it.” Duck said. “Although I believe you just admitted it as well...”

“Why you!” Gordon wheeshed and dissapeared in a cloud of steam. 

-

On the platform, The Fat Controller (the third) stared at the engine yards. 

“I do wish that more of the engines would get into the spirit of things.” He said to his wife, who was struggling to contain her mirth at the clash between her husband’s dour face and his absurd clown costume. 

“Just leave them Stephen,” She said. “Halloween isn’t for everyone.”

“Yes, I suppose you’re r- what the dickens?!”

He was cut off as a very loud whistle sounded in the distance.

It was long, it was low, it was loud, and it was ghostly. 

It stole the attention away from everything else in the area, and drew eyes to the station throat. 

In the yard, most of the engines began babbling to each other about something - they were inaudible over the confused murmuring of the crowd. Stephen noted that the only ones who didn’t seem frightened were Bear and the Scottish twins, who seemed eager and disbelieving, respectively. 

-

As they passed through the final signal before the station, Siobhan couldn’t help but keep a smile on her face. “Ready Henry?!” She said as she pulled down her skeleton face mask.

“Let’s do this!”

“Atta boy!” She crowed as she hauled back on the whistle cord, allowing the American whistle to bellow its haunting note across Tidmouth. 

Her fireman grabbed the paint-pot full of sawdust and chucked it into Henry’s firebox, while Dulcie and Isobel began screaming like banshees.

Henry, overcome with the absurdity of the situation, began cackling like an engine possessed as he rolled into sight of the platforms. 

-

It was a train. Right?

Right?

Stephen Hatt couldn’t be sure as the demonic, skull-faced, fire spouting monster rolled through Tidmouth. It was cackling madly, and hauling a train of the damned that squealed and shrieked as it went by. The monster, crewed by skeletal beings, rolled through the freight platforms without stopping, its glowing red eyes casting odd shadows on the terrified partygoers. 

He was sure that people were screaming, but the beastly whistle emanating from the ‘train’ was so loud that he couldn’t be sure. 

When it finally passed, disappearing into the distance like the Flying Dutchman of old, dead silence reigned over the platform. 

Then, a child somewhere on platform two spoke up: “That was bloody amazing!” 

The platform broke out in cheers, and Stephen collapsed onto a bench. 

“Did you plan that?” His wife whispered in his ear. 

“No!” He said at last. 

-

The shed

Gordon and James eventually stopped screaming around midnight, falling into a whimpering fugue state before finally passing out. 

Duck was paralyzed with fear, and the next morning he had to be hauled out of the shed and pushed onto his train before he started moving again. 

BoCo - who had been sleeping in the back of the shed, woke the next morning and told his co-workers about the horrible nightmare he’d had that night. When he was informed that it was no mere nightmare, he left the shed a wide-eyed, quiet, and subdued engine. 

A visiting diesel from a mainland freight company who had been parked by the diesel pumps said nothing for the remainder of his time on the island. When his story was confirmed by an equally frightened Pip and Emma in Barrow the next morning, he left the island, never to return. His tale of the ‘Ghost Train of Sodor’ spread far and wide across the British Isles.

Donald and Douglas, who noticed that the ‘demon train’ looked a lot like Henry, said nothing that night. The next day they privately told Henry that it was the greatest prank they’d ever seen, and never turned down one of Siobhan’s Halloween ideas again.

Bear was amazed to see one of his scary stories come to life, and was practically beside himself with pride at a job well done.

-

Arriving at Arlesburgh about half an hour later, Henry was greeted by horrified screams from Oliver - before he passed out in fright - and astonished looks from the small railway engines, who immediately knew it was Henry and demanded to know how he did it. 

Siobhan showed their controller the video she’d based the costume on, swore the small engines to secrecy, and was able to remove most of Henry’s decorations before Oliver woke back up. 

Isobel and Dulcie laughed themselves silly at a prank well pulled, and all parties settled down for a well-deserved sleep. 

-

The next day

“I can’t help but feel like I’m forgetting something...” Henry said to Siobhan as she drove him down to Tidmouth the next morning. 

“Me too.” She said as they pulled into the passing loop at Haultraugh. 

A very pale looking Duck rolled in with the morning’s train. He whistled a weak hello to Henry, and practically jumped off the rails when Henry’s ‘hooter’ whistle replied. 

“WHERE Did yOU geT ThAT?!” He demanded shakily. 

Henry now knew exactly what they’d forgotten. “I found it on the ground.” He said quickly. 

Duck looked more horrified than before. “It was REAL!” He said, scuttling away in terror. 

Fin.

--

Henry’s appearance is based off of the following ideas: 

https://youtu.be/8grHpQAB1jA?t=205

https://youtu.be/zBm-ONvNhS4

https://youtu.be/ZB1rTgUesDc?t=64

[pi-cat000]

FMA:B/BNHA Crossover (1)

Summary: Ed gets stuck in the BNHA world after the end of brotherhood. He starts trying to find a way home and ends up inadvertently working for the league of villains.  

(fic I started writing a while back. I just like the image of Ed getting increasingly frustrated with how illogical quirks are)

Part 2: here

.

Edward notices tall, dark and suspicious the moment he enters through the rickety front door into his poor excuse of an office. It wasn’t just the way his entire head was covered in a low hood, though that was mighty suspicious, no, this dude gave off some of those dangerous vibes that he would usually associate with a homunculus. The stranger's movements were slightly off, as if not quite human. Only, there was no such thing as a homunculus in this weird word. Well, not that he knew of.

  “Brat! Are you listening to me!”

   Ed begrudgingly turns his attention back to his irate landlord. The older man is leaning over Ed’s desk, close enough that Ed can see the numerous wrinkles pulling down his face. “You better not be skimping on our arrangement.”

  “Hey,” Ed taps a finger against the wood, leaning forward so the old man is forced back at the risk of butting heads, “This whole building needs new wires …do I look like an electrician?”

  That enlists an expression of acute irritation and more annoyed huffing, “Don’t get smart with me. I’ll evict your freeloading ass so fast that…”

  “Oi! Our deal was that I fix the roof, get rid of that mould up on the third floor, and you set me up for the next month.”

  “The deal was that you handle the building’s upkeep and I put a roof over your ungrateful head.”

  “Just because I can fix up some rotting floorboards doesn’t mean I’m an expert electrician… how about you go hire a person with qualifications while I get on with my day job.” He smacks his hand on the table for emphasis, motioning at tall, dark, and mysterious waiting a few steps behind the older man. Technically, he could probably figure out how to fix the building’s faulty wiring with alchemy but there was no way he was getting suckered into helping his grumpy scam artists of a landlord any more than was promised.

  To his credit, the old coot takes one look at the shadowy figure and decides to put any further complaints on hold.  

  “I’ll be back. This ain't over,” is grumbled at Ed as the man makes his exit, skirting around the larger stranger with a healthy amount of apprehension.

  “Don’t do me any favours!” Ed snaps after him, rubbing his forehead before eyeing his potential customer. The location where he has set up shop isn’t the most affluent or safe so, for all he knew, this weirdo was about to rob him. Not that he had much to steal. He had arrived in this world with nothing and, four months later, he still has barely enough to feed himself on the regular.  Not when he is pumping any money he earns into his search to get home.

  “Ah…sorry about that,” He squints, trying to see under the stranger’s hood and is met with only darkness. It almost looks like the other man is made of purple smoke. It’s unsettling. No doubt the by-product of some more weird quirk bullshit. Ed tries to keep his tone as polite as possible. “You came to get something fixed right?”

  “It has been reported that you can repair anything?” The question is asked with little inflection. Almost toneless. Hopefully, this is a customer and not a cop trying to bust him for illegal quirk usage…great.

  “Sure,” He puts on his fakest of smiles, channels his inner Ling, and launches into his best sales pitch, “I have a reconstruction quirk…as long as most of the pieces are present, I can put it back together.”

  “…and does that extend to construction and building work?”

   “Ah,” The stranger didn’t appear to be carrying anything substantial on him so the object in need of fixing was probably located elsewhere, “what the hell do you need fixed?”

  There’s no response to his question and Ed crosses his arms, “I can’t do anything high-tech, too many intricate moving parts, but building construction is fine as long as the materials are all there and I have time to plan. Might take me a few goes depending on the scale. It will cost you extra as well. I’ll have to see it to be sure of the exact price.” He rattles off his fake quirk limitations with practised ease. In a world filled with nonsensical abilities, his alchemy fit right in. 

  The tall man thinks for a moment, leaving Ed to ponder the strange nature of the request. This is the first time he has been asked to do building work, usually, people wanted more mundane repairs like fixing furniture or jewellery.

   “Acceptable,” comes the abrupt response, “My employer requires some discrete building installation and repair, basic reconstruction, shelving, wall-fittings, construction. All onsite work.”

  “That’ll be pretty expensive….” Ed answers slowly, “and time-consuming.”

  “All materials will be provided. The price will not be an issue.”

  “Okay…” Ed narrows his eyes, examining the figure, but the shadows give nothing away. “Where exactly is this job?”

  “Transport to the site will be arranged.”

  As if to emphasis the statement, Tall-Dark-And-Smokey raises a hand and an inky black circle appears on the wall. The sudden action has Ed half rising from his seat, preparing to attack or defend. A beat passes and nothing happens.

  “The mode of transport,” Tall-Dark-And-Smokey explains, motioning to the black circle. It is a quirk effect, obviously something to do with travel. Ed relaxes but remains standing.  Is it just him or does the guy sound partly amused as his obvious unease? He carefully extracts himself from behind his crowded desk to step around and take a closer look.

  “So I just step in that and hope you’re not about to screw me over.” He folds his arms, more irritated now.

  “Your caution is understandable,” The purple circle fluctuates, undulating, and Tall-Dark-And-Smokey puts a hand inside his jacket pocket. Ed tenses again, ready to clap his hands together, relaxing only when he sees the stranger produce a white envelope. In a deliberately slow movement, the envelope is placed atop the uneven stack of books Ed has piled near the door. Ed once again gets the sense that the other man is amused.

  “Consider this a sign of goodwill and proof of our willingness to pay whatever needed,” The man tugs his hood, so it further hides his non-existent face. “Think it over. I will come by later for a response.”

  Tall-Dark-And-Smokey steps into the swirling circle which shrinks, disappearing completely.

  “Later? When the hell is later supposed to be?” Ed snaps at the empty room.

  “Tch,” He glares at the wall and its peeling white paint. What a weird unsettling guy. Suspicious as all hell.

  So far Ed’s stay in this universe hadn’t exactly been smooth. He had arrived in a building collapsing around him, later revealed to be a fight between one of this world's 'heroes’ and ‘villains,’ mentally and physically exhausted from his sudden trip through the Truth’s Gate. From there it had been touch and go as he tried to find his footing, not get accidentally killed for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, and avoid getting himself arrested for not having identification or a quirk licence which was apparently a pretty big deal in this word. With his poor track record, he is tempted to just pack up and not get involved with Tall-Dark-And-Smokey.  

  Only…

  “A teleportation quirk…” He mutters, examining the wall more thoroughly and finding nothing out of place. It is the first time he has come across an ability like this. Against his better judgment, curiosity takes root. How far could it teleport? What were the conditions? Did it consume energy? What sort of energy and how much? What were the limitations? A lot of these weird abilities, quirks, had just as weird limitations.

  Maybe this was the breakthrough he needed.

  Ed’s alchemical research into escaping this world had long been stalled upon the realisation that the only way back to Amestris would be the same way he had left. Through the Gate of Truth. It would require an alchemy array the size of a small city and a sacrifice akin to a thousand human souls…possibly more…He hadn’t had the heart to make the exact calculations. There was no point in calculating the exact number of deaths required for him see his brother again. It wasn’t an option so he wasn't entertaining it. However, if he could somehow bypass the Gate, maybe by using some sort of quirk, then perhaps there was still hope for him. Teleportation had been one of the ones he had been on the lookout for.

  Ed clenches his metal fist, reaching for the envelope with the other, hoping for a distraction. He almost expects it to be some sort of scam. Instead, he is meant with a stack of the place’s currency, neatly bound together.

  It is a lot of money.

  He stares in disbelief, slowly pulling out the bills and running his finger over them. It is more money than all his repair jobs and his periodic pawning of ‘family heirlooms’ have made him since coming here. With this, he would be able to pay actual rent and any other bills for the next month and then the month after. Heck, he’d be able to buy himself some decent meals, a new computer and a better phone on top of that.

  Ed shoves the money back in the envelope and lets out a long, frustrated breath. There had to be a catch. No one just gave away this sort of money without reason. Not in the shithole of an area he’d set himself up in. Who the hell was willing to just throw money at someone to build goodwill? It sounded like the sort of suspicious behaviour that, had he encountered it on one of his missions, he would have reported it back to Mustang for further investigation. Not like he can just report stuff here, not without bringing unwanted scrutiny.

  Ordinarily, Ed would have scoffed and refused the obviously illegal work. However, a quirk was one of his best chances of getting home. Maybe, if he accepted this work, he could bargain for information on the guy's teleportation ability. Not like he hadn’t done other illegal things since arriving here.

  What would Alphonse say? Al was always better at reading people. Maybe he would tell him not to get involved with shady types? Or maybe he would say that Ed was too paranoid and he should give them a chance. Then again, his brother might caution him against it and tell him it was his duty to send in an anonymous tip to the nearest police station. Probably the last one. God damnit he misses Al. Ed stuffs the envelope into his shoulder bag, the one containing a portable automail maintenance kit and encoded alchemy notebooks.

  Next, he is pulling on his signature coat, coloured grey instead of bright red because red stood out and as much as he hated it, he needed to keep a low profile. Ed shuffles out of his makeshift shop, turning to lock the door. He needed more information and his four months in this world hadn’t left him entirely without contacts.

Part 2: here

[yadds]

Who wants another episode 6 fix-it fic??

When Geralt sees Jaskier a year after that bitter day on the mountain, Jaskier is surprisingly unenthusiastic about their reunion. Suddenly, he doesn’t seem to need (or want) Geralt anymore. Good. That’s exactly how he’s always wanted it. This is fine.

.

So, as is my nature, my oneshot has become longer than anticipated. I’m impatient with myself and decided to go ahead and post the first part. So enjoy part 1!

.

“Witcher,” a man hissed disdainfully, face hidden behind his collar aside from his eyes, which were spitting sparks of hate.

Geralt rolled his own eyes as he continued trudging through the village, covered in yet another creature’s guts. People got brave once he’d dispatched whatever monster they’d wanted gone.

He threw open the door to the inn where Roach was currently stabled, uncaring when the door slammed into the wall with a crash. He ignored the resulting silence that followed his entrance, stalking to the innkeeper standing behind the bar.

“It’s done,” he grunted.

“You got proof?” the innkeeper asked, lip curling as he was assaulted by the foul odor emanating from the witcher.

“Outside. Unless you’d like me to bring it in?” he asked with a cold smile.

“No, no, that’s quite alright,” the innkeeper hurried to say.

“Payment.” Geralt extended his hand expectantly.

The innkeeper eyed it for a long moment before ducking behind the bar to withdraw a small purse, tossing it onto the countertop and quickly pulling back, lest he accidentally come into contact with the witcher.

Snatching it and pulling it open, he plunged his hand in and felt the coin inside. “This is only half of what we agreed upon,” he growled.

“Well, I assumed you’d be wanting a room for the night. That, a meal, and lodging for your horse will all add up to the difference, I assure you,” the innkeeper said smugly. “But don’t worry, I’ll throw in a bath free of charge.”

The accompanying smirk slipped as Geralt glared in his direction, the loathing in his glowing yellow gaze palpable. “Now, sir,” the innkeeper prattled, realizing the potential danger and feeling trapped.

He snarled, unsurprised but already in a piss poor mood. His fists clenched, itching to slam the man’s head into the counter, but he refrained, instead turning sharply and heading for the stairs. “I’ll have that bath now,” he bit out, low voice carrying through the stillness that had fallen in the room once more.

He paused, one foot extended to the first step. Everyone in the crowded room was unmoving, an instinctual reaction like prey before a predator. All but one, who was shuffling quietly near the hearth. His eyes narrowed on the anomaly, noting the bright doublet and shaggy brown hair. He blew out a breath. “You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me.”

He pushed his way through the crowd towards the man. Noticing the familiar lute leaning against the wall by the hearth, he grabbed it by the neck.

The waves of tension that rippled with each step Geralt took finally reached the fleeing man. He froze, stumbling before he turned slowly, eyes wide and wary as he remained silent.

“Jaskier,” Geralt grunted.

“Geralt,” Jaskier returned curtly.

Somewhat surprised by the lack of response, Geralt’s brows furrowed. “Forget something?” he asked wryly, holding up the lute.

Jaskier snatched it, cradling it protectively against his chest. “I was going to return for it,” he said, a stiff facsimile of a smile on his face as his eyes focused on the fire crackling behind the witcher. “As soon as you’d lumbered your way upstairs,” he continued, one hand flailing in the direction of the staircase. “Thank you for saving me the trouble.”

“Avoiding me, bard?” he asked.

“Yes,” Jaskier said bluntly. “I thought that was the expectation. Also, you smell absolutely terrible.”

“It’s always been the expectation. Doesn’t mean you’ve ever done it before,” Geralt quipped, ignoring the last comment.

He watched the muscle in Jaskier’s cheek jump as he clenched his jaw tight. “Yes, well, my apologies for not obliging you sooner,” he said with an attempt at a casual shrug. “And now I will bid you aideu, dear witcher.” Jaskier sketched a flourished bow before turning on his heel and marching out the door.

Geralt stood for another moment before turning as well and heading for the stairs again. He made it back to his room uninterrupted to find a steaming tub waiting for him.

He stripped quickly, letting his armor fall with a thump before sinking into the water with a sigh. He grabbed the small bucket near the tub and poured water over his sodden hair, fingers scratching through the muck.

He gazed into the murky water, loathe to admit that he’d been looking forward to Jaskier’s assistance when he’d sighted him in the tavern. Jaskier was always insistent on overseeing his bath after a particularly gruesome hunt, not allowing Geralt to skimp on cleanliness when Jaskier would have to smell his stench.

He’d stupidly come to expect Jaskier’s company as a certainty any time their paths crossed. It went against all his natural instincts; everyone left, he knew that all too well. Why would Jaskier be any different?

He grunted to himself as he sank deeper into the small tub, knees breaching the surface of the water as his head fell back against the edge. Despite the lukewarm water now engulfing his torso, the strange tightness in his chest wasn’t eased.

.

Geralt left the inn early the next day, glowering at the innkeeper on the way out before scanning the tavern.

Seeing a man he’d noticed nursing an ale the night before, Geralt stopped by his table. “Where’s the bard?” he questioned.

The man turned his head where it rested on the table, eyes rolling slowly up to meet Geralt’s. He blinked slowly before turning his head back down and grumbling, “‘the fuck would I know? Didn’t come back after you chased him off, least not that I saw.”

Huffing, Geralt made his way to the door but stopped when a man at the table in the corner said, “He left.”

Geralt stopped, turning his head to the man who’d spoken. “Where?”

The man shrugged, shoulders rustling his black curls. “Pretty sure he didn’t want you knowing, sir witcher,” he said mildly.

“Then why the fuck did you say anything at all?” Geralt snapped.

The man smiled in a way that made Geralt want to punch him. “What do you want with him?”

Good fucking question. “None of your damn business,” Geralt growled.

“Well, then I guess I can’t help you,” the man said with another shrug.

Geralt gave into the growing urge for violence and kicked a chair in the man’s direction. He found himself even more pissed off when the man did nothing but dodge slightly, seeming unconcerned by the wood splintering right behind his head.

Geralt’s lip curled before he jerked around and stormed out the door.

.

He paced through the roads, tense and restless with pent up energy.

He stopped at the apothecary to restock on ingredients for some of his potions, but it was a small affair, as was expected in a village of this size, and didn’t have much to offer. He refused to admit that he was looking for excuses to continue searching the village.

Annoyed with himself, he abruptly stopped and made his way back to the inn to retrieve Roach.

He’d spent the last ten years trying to get rid of Jaskier when he’d been sticking like an obnoxious burr in his blanket, with intermittent success. It had been nearly a year since he’d last seen Jaskier, not since that ill-fated day in the mountains where his life had taken a shittier turn than even he’d expected. That in itself wasn’t noteworthy; they’d gone longer without crossing paths in the past. What was new, however, was the lack of enthusiasm from Jaskier and his willingness to actually leave him be. And it aggravated Geralt to an absurd degree.

He saddled Roach, consciously gentling his hands so as not to take out his frustration on his one faithful companion. She huffed and butted his chest when he was done. He spared her a tight smile and a pat on her neck before turning and leading her out of town, concentrating his gaze only on the road in front of him.

Fuck Jaskier. He always knew one day he’d leave for good for one reason or another. And fuck his own cold, black heart for making him think he cared.

.

Two months later, Geralt was entering Redania when he noticed the gentle waving of the surrounding maize stalks wasn’t quite as gentle to his right. He reined Roach to a stop, hearing a muffled disturbance following the irregular motions.

He dismounted and left Roach at the road, creeping swiftly but silently into the field, sword drawn. Perhaps he’d lucked upon something that would get him some coin in the nearby town.

He slowed as he approached the creatures, which appeared to have stopped. He edged forward and was almost in view when he smelled the familiar notes of lavender and heard, “Come now, fellows, have mercy on a poor bard.”

Geralt dropped his stance, standing up straight and eyes rolling skyward. Of course. He shook his head and pushed forward to see the situation. There were three men surrounding Jaskier, burly farmhands by the look of them. Jaskier’s hands were spread in front of him, looking as unthreatening as possible.

“Don’t look so poor to me,” one man grunted, fingering Jaskier’s stupidly fine clothing carelessly.

“Well I wasn’t always poor,” Jaskier allowed, still managing to preen slightly. “But-but I assure you I am now!” he babbled quickly when the men advanced. “Seriously, look!” he said, fumbling at his belt.

The men tensed but Jaskier simply pulled out a worn coin purse and tossed it at their feet. One of the men picked it up and looked inside before snorting. “Boy, you ain’t lying. You got less than I do.”

“Right? You’d think with all this tension with Nilfgaard that people would want some good entertainment! But nooooo, no one wants to hear my new songs, which are frankly amazing if I do say so myself. Would you like to hear what I’ve been working on?” Jaskier asked eagerly, reaching for the case on his back.

The men backed up, the one holding the purse tossing it back to Jaskier, apparently uninterested in robbing someone less fortunate than themselves. Of course Jaskier would find the only decent would-be muggers on the Continent. “No. Now scram.”

Jaskier didn’t need to be told twice. He fumbled for his purse and didn’t bother resettling it on his belt before bolting right past where Geralt was lurking.

He followed behind, making sure the idiot got to the road in one piece, still undecided whether he was inclined to show his presence or not.

He watched Jaskier burst out of the field, hands on his knees as he heaved for breath before straightening, returning the coin purse to his belt, and moving on down the path, grumbling under his breath.

Geralt remained motionless, adrenaline still pumping but nothing to do with it. He couldn’t recall a single moment where Jaskier had been in trouble that he hadn’t had to intervene in some way. He felt strangely at a loss.

He shook it off, sheathing his sword and walking back up the road in the opposite direction to retrieve Roach.

.

The next altercation Geralt witnessed was decidedly more violent.

It was only weeks later when he’d been returning to an inn after eradicating a pack of wargs that had been attacking the town’s livestock. The pay wouldn’t be great, but this innkeeper at least allowed him a free night with a meal and a bath, which he’d not had in...too long.

The creatures only approached the town deep into the night and no one had been sure where they came from, so it was nearer to dawn than he’d like when he was through.

He heard a scuffle to his left and glanced to the side indifferently, having no interest in interfering in drunken squabbles. As he turned his head, the scent of lavender and fresh blood hit his nose and he was moving before he’d registered the connection, running soundlessly down the narrow, twisting alleyway.

He rounded the final turn just in time to see Jaskier thrusting a dagger into the hand of a man before spinning around and piercing a stiletto under the arm of another man that had been rushing him from behind, sword raised high.

Jaskier’s eyes jumped to Geralt as he appeared, flitting back to the scene before double-taking back to him and widening. “Go!” he hissed before turning back. But the distraction was already bearing consequence as a third man swung his heavy broadsword at Jaskier’s belly. He jumped back, twisting away, but was unable to avoid the blow completely, the glancing blow easily slicing through the thin doublet and scoring over his ribs and down to his hip.

Geralt rushed forward, plunging his own sword into the third man’s chest. The rattling gurgle as the man’s lungs filled with blood was strangely gratifying.

“Fuck!” Jaskier cursed. “You big oaf! If you were going to interrupt the least you could have done was finish the job properly,” he burst, gesturing angrily at the mouth of the alley where the first man had just fled, cradling his maimed hand.

“Job?” Geralt questioned, brows furrowed. “You an assassin now?” He asked scathingly, completely bewildered by what had just happened and irritated by his bewilderment.

“What? No! What?” Jaskier said incredulously. “No,” he said again, “I definitely did not start that. Seriously? But you let that bastard get away! And you just made my life a whole hell of a lot harder since he saw you. Fuck,” he swore again, gritting his teeth and holding his side.

Geralt kicked aside the corpse of the second man, kneeling down to remove the stiletto from between his ribs and pocketing it before approaching Jaskier cautiously, unsure of his welcome.

“I’m not sure why you’re here, but I’ve been working damn hard to stay out of your way so it’s not my fault. Now can you kindly return my dagger before you fuck off?”

“Jaskier. Don’t be an idiot. You need help,” Geralt rumbled.

A bitter laugh tore its way out of Jaskier’s throat. “Oh, that’s rich, Geralt. And I suppose you’re offering? I’m not sure why - what better guarantee could you have to not see my face again? Maybe destiny likes you a bit after all,” he grunted as he slumped against the wall behind him, blood pumping sluggishly between his fingers.

Rattled by the scent of Jaskier’s blood still fresh in the air, Geralt bent to grab Jaskier’s arm and throw it over his shoulder. Jaskier hissed in pain as the skin around his wound stretched to accommodate the movement. “Yeah, that’s not really gonna help, you giant behemoth. You’re way too tall for this to work.”

“Hm. Not my fault you’re so short,” Geralt replied lowly, falling easily back into their usual banter. “Now suck it up,” he growled, even as he stooped further to ease the strain, shuffling Jaskier out of the alley.

He waited for the inevitable overdramatic response from Jaskier but it never came. He glanced over to make sure he was still conscious. Jaskier’s face was slightly pale and drawn, but his gaze was focused furiously on the road in front of them, alert and astutely avoiding Geralt.

Geralt gritted his own teeth at the wave of irrational displeasure that swept over him. But if there was one thing that he was good at, it was shoving his phantom emotions deep, deep into the bowels of hell.

Finally to the inn, Geralt’s eyes automatically swept the room, noting no obvious threats in the few patrons still lingering at this early hour. A young girl was dozing with her head on her hand behind the bar. “Healer,” he barked in her direction.

She startled, head jerking up suddenly. “Wh-what?”

“Healer,” Geralt repeated impatiently. “I assume this godforsaken town has one?” When she nodded spastically, gaze edging away from him, he had to restrain a growl. “Send for him,” he ordered.

“If you would use a little tact, maybe you wouldn’t scare the poor girl into uselessness. Seriously, Geralt, you’re only getting in your own way. Or my way, since, you know, I’m the one bleeding out over here,” Jaskier rasped before lifting his gaze to the girl and offering her a pained smile. “I do apologize for his brutishness, but if you really could send for the healer, I would be,” he stopped and drew a sharp intake of breath as another wave of pain wracked him, leaving him limp and trembling, “oh gods, eternally grateful. Please, for the love of all that is holy, woman!”

The girl shook herself and rushed out the back.

Geralt lowered Jaskier into a nearby chair, supporting him with a hand on the nape of his neck. He was tense, on high alert for any possible threat.

“Why?” Geralt grunted.

Jaskier looked up at him before hanging his head again. “More than one word would be helpful. Why is the sky blue? I don’t know Geralt, maybe it’s Melitele’s favorite color,” he said caustically.

Geralt sent him a withering glare. “For fuck’s sake - you’ll be a pain in my ass until your very last breath.”

“What can I say? It’s a gift,” he wheezed, hands clenching the edge of the table white-knuckle tight. His eyes suddenly flew open. “W-wait a minute? Am I really dying? Geralt, I-I don’t want to die, please, I’m sorry,” he babbled, shifting listlessly.

Geralt knelt down and settled his hand on the side of Jaskier’s head, his thumb under one eye and fingers sifting through his hair. “Jaskier,” he said lowly. “Look at me Jaskier,” he ordered, grip tightening, anchoring him.

Jaskier’s eyes slowly rolled to meet his, glazed, breath hitching. “Hey, you’re going to be fine. I won’t let you die, you hear me?” Geralt insisted intently.

Jaskier’s lids fluttered shut, lips pressed tightly together as he finally nodded. He slumped further as the tension slowly bled from him.

“Hey!” Geralt barked. “No, stay awake, keep talking.”

He felt the stirrings of what he imagined to be panic simmering in his gut as he glanced down again at the wound. It was still bleeding, although the flow was intermittent and sluggish. But he had no idea how much blood Jaskier had already lost, or the likelihood of extensive internal damage. He may have promised Jaskier that he wouldn’t die, but Geralt wasn’t a fucking healer.

“Thought you wanted me to shut up,” Jaskier mumbled.

“Why were those men after you? You fuck one of their wives again?” he asked, partially to keep him talking but also because he wanted to know. Those weren’t your average village folk.

Jaskier choked out a short laugh that ended in a cough. “If only that were so - then I’d at least have a warm, fond memory to hold onto as I got cut down.”

When that seemed to be the end of what he had to say, Geralt rolled his eyes before prompting again, “Why, Jaskier?”

Jaskier was quiet for a long moment before he said reluctantly. “You.”

Geralt recoiled then returned his grip to the back of Jaskier’s neck, grasp tight but careful. “What the fuck does that mean?”

Jaskier’s eyes were darting restlessly and he couldn’t tell if it was because Jaskier was dizzy on the verge of unconsciousness or if he just wanted so desperately to avoid looking at Geralt. He refrained from shaking him when no further explanation was forthcoming, but it was a near thing.

“It’s not exactly a secret that we’re pretty closely associated. Or were,” Jaskier said with a trace of bitterness. “And you can be a bit of an ass,” he emphasized pointedly, cutting a sideways glance at Geralt, “so you’ve got more than your share of enemies.”

Geralt grunted in agreement. But when he simply continued staring expectantly at him, Jaskier scoffed. “Do I really need to spell this out for you? So they come after me looking for you. Gods above Geralt, I know people mistake you for a brainless baboon but I always gave you the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps wrongly so, I’m finding now.”

Geralt didn’t hear Jaskier’s derisive comments over the rushing noise filling his ears. “Who?” he choked out, tongue feeling heavy and clumsy in his mouth.

“I don’t know, I didn’t quite get that far before they tried to kill me. Believe it or not, real life isn’t like the stories where the villians wax poetic about their life story and grand plans! I found that out a long time ago, to my everlasting disappointment.” Jaskier’s voice was steady but growing weaker.

“I know,” Geralt replied softly, at a loss for what else to say.

Then his brain caught up to the conversation and his brows snapped down, eyes narrowed. “You speak as though this has happened before, Jaskier,” he growled.

Jaskier’s responding bark of laughter was almost too faint to hear. He held a hand up, palm out toward Geralt. “Aren’t I the victim here? Please, can the interrogation wait?” he pleaded softly.

Geralt took in the fine trembling of Jaskier’s outstretched hand, the beads of sweat gathering on his hairline, and nodded. “Fine,” he relented before looking hastily around the room as if the healer could have entered in the last few minutes without him having noticed. He clenched his jaw, tempted to tear through the town and drag the man here himself. But he looked again at Jaskier, noting how he swayed as he struggled to hold himself upright, breathing rapid and shallow. He couldn’t leave him alone.

Jaskier’s eyelids were drooping heavily when the door finally opened. Geralt immediately reached for his sword before he saw the girl from before. His hand slowly returned to Jaskier’s shoulder as she was followed by not a healer, but a mage. Triss. Of course. Despite how he didn’t wish to see her at the moment, he knew that Jaskier was in good hands.

“Geralt,” she greeted with a crooked smile. “And this must be Jaskier,” she guessed, eyes traveling to take in the bard under his hands.

“Heal him,” Geralt ordered.

Triss shot him an unimpressed look and lingered across the room.

“I’ll pay,” he continued. “Whatever it is you’re wanting, I’ll give it to you.”

“Well, I was just wanting a properly polite request, but now I may have to rethink my demands,” she mused, lips quirking.

“Triss, please,” he said beseechingly.

Her expression softened as she finally approached. She laid a hand on his forearm and assured him, “He’ll be fine, Geralt, I promise.”

She knelt in front of Jaskier, hand brushing gently across his cheek as his eyes fluttered open. “Hello, Jaskier. I’m Triss. I’m going to fix you up, alright? So just hang on a bit longer and you’ll be right as rain.”

“Geralt?” Jaskier croaked. Geralt squeezed his shoulder to let him know he was still there. “Are you sure I haven’t died? I’m pretty sure there’s an exquisite angel here.”

Triss chuckled as she straightened. “Why don’t you bring him upstairs and lay him down - he’s near unconscious already and my potions will only exacerbate his exhaustion.”

Geralt gathered Jaskier in his arms. Even he wasn’t cruel enough to toss him over his shoulder as he’d normally do in his current state. Jaskier groaned, curling in on himself despite Geralt’s attempts to not jostle his wounded side. “Shh,” he murmured. “You’re fine.”

Jaskier muttered something unintelligible in response. Geralt looked back up and locked eyes with Triss, who had a somewhat pinched expression. She turned away and gestured to Geralt to lead the way upstairs.

In Geralt’s room, he settled Jaskier gently on the sheets before withdrawing and leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, averting his eyes to watch the shadows on the wall move slowly with the rising sun.

Triss sifted through her potions before selecting a small green bottle. She held it to Jaskier’s lips. “Come on now, little bard, drink up,” she coaxed. “This will stop any internal bleeding.”

It was only a matter of minutes after Jaskier finished his dose that he was fully unconscious, his soft breathing and rapid pattering of his heart still too fast but steadier than before.

Triss pulled aside Jaskier’s tunic to close the wound. Geralt’s gaze now drawn and refusing to be moved from Triss’s hands on Jaskier’s flesh, his own skin buzzed with tension, fingers flexing against his biceps.

As she finished, Triss stood and faced Geralt, lips pursing as she took in his agitation. “He’s fine, Geralt,” she said yet again. “He lost a bit of blood but this was really quite minor to have you so worked up. He may sleep for the next 24 hours so don’t be alarmed,” she said briskly as she gathered her things.

“Thank you,” he said, gruff but sincere. “What do I owe you?”

She paused and looked at him again before shaking her head. “Nothing. I had hoped that we could perhaps reconnect after I’d heard that you and Yennefer had...parted ways. But I see that it appears I may have already missed my chance,” she said wistfully.

“There must be something,” he insisted, ignoring her other statement. She was right that they would not be ‘reconnecting,’ but how could she possibly know that?

“No,” she said as she closed her bag and turned to the door. “Just helping an old friend.”

Geralt grabbed her shoulder gently to stop her. “Triss. Really, thank you. I am in your debt,” he said intently.

He watched her eyes dart down to his lips and was prepared for a renewed proposition. He wouldn’t refuse again; it was an easy way to repay a debt that would sit heavy on the shreds of his conscience that remained.

But she simply smiled once again, with a soft, “Goodbye, Geralt. Take care.”

He watched her leave then settled on the floor at the side of the bed, removing his swords from his back and slinging them across his lap

[not-a-christmas-tree]

i watched the dallas theater company les mis and here are my observations part TWO

i recently watched a modern adaptation of les mis from 2014! i took hella notes bc les mis being set in modern day has a LOT MORE than you would think! i just posted my act one notes, so here are the ones from act two. enjoy! :D

ACT TWO

(Building The Barricade)

oh javert,,,you and your red beret-scarf combo

everyone shakes hands the same way?? they all like. half bro hug. young people ig 🤷‍♀️ 

oh on my own is gonna hurt me huh

éponine has her hands up when she goes to take the letter to cosette that’s an interesting take

jvj looks so done lmao “really bruh just give me the letter i’ll give it to cosette it’s FINE”

omg first time i’ve ever seen éponine not take the money after the letter!! that actually makes so much sense bc she doesn’t take marius’ money when he asks her to find cosette’s house either. that,,,yes that’s good

the modern era begs the question... why didn’t marius just ask for cosette’s number?? i’d assume it’s just a thing that jvj doesn’t allow her to have a phone bc The Cops, but. maybe marius and cosette are the straight version of cottagecore lesbians they just write letters for ~The Aesthetic~

(On My Own)

i was right on my own was gonna hurt me

first time i’ve ever seen an éponine disguise where she actually passes as a boy lmao 

FINALLY A VERSION OF OMO WHERE ITS NOT JUST FORLORN SELF-CARESSING THANK YOU

surprisingly i have less notes here that’s fun i thought i’d have more

(Javert at the Barricades)

WOAHHHHH THEY DID NOT SKIMP ON BARRICADE SET PIECES THAT SHIT IS COOOOOL

oh the barricade scenes are already hitting too hard 

cops are in riot gear cops. are in. riot gear.

oh the javert spy thing that also hits funny because obviously

gavroche is armed with a bat i love you son

FULL VERSION OF LITTLE PEOPLE AT THE BARRICADE AYEEEEE

(A Little Fall Of Rain)

wait hold on why is marius not,,,singing to éponine on “why have you come back here?” he’s like. scolding someone,,, huh??

oh enj goes to help marius with ép!! and he calls over who i assume would be joly i STAN

MARIUS CRIES AFTER ÉP DIES KILL MEEEE

(The First Attack)

i like how jvj does the second confrontation here. he looks less angry and more like,,,compassionate and that MAKES SENSE bc yk. he’s telling javert he’s wrong but he’s not doing it out of spite he’s doing it bc this guy NEEDS to know what he does as a cop and realize that being a cop isn’t just enforcing rules, and it never was just that. 

i do love the exasperated “gO” from jvj that’s kinda great ngl

(Drink With Me)

i’m very sad that there won’t be any exr from these boys

v e r y sad here

i do see grantaire looking PRETTY sad though

bold of y’all to assume that the modern day amis would all be straight

okay i can tell that grantaire really is going hard on the Existential Singing like,,,sure he’s just standing there but like. damn bro

SO THERE A R E LADIES ON THE BARRICADE WHY TF ARENT THEY FIGHTING

BETTER SEE SOME CHANGE THERE

i just realized that the cockades are buttons that is the BEST

(Bring Him Home)

jvj actually looks kinda happy in BHH and tbh i kinda like it?? it’s only on the “he’s like the son i might have known” line but i like it

oh those vowels oh boy they TALL

(The Final Battle)

enjolras is for some reason, still angry...why...why bro....

the staging for gavroche’s death is INTERESTING bc he’s reaching up at the sniper on the tower. hm. i dont hate it

OH SOMEONE ON THE BARRICADE IS RECORDING I THINK!!! GOOD ADDITION!!

i can’t imagine how many blood packs they went through 

oh enjolras’s death okay so. he’s in a like. No Man’s Land almost, and the riot cops come in after him. it’s an interesting take because it almost mirrors the scene in the book, except obvs grantaire isn’t here. they also have an added scene after he dies where cops are checking out and using radios that is. that is EERIE.

jvj walks over to enjolras’s body 🥺

HE ALSO FUCKIN S C R E A M S WHEN HE SEES MARIUS ON THE GROUND GODDAMN MAN O U C H

thenardier steals combeferre’s glasses wow thanks for that added pain

thenardier and jvj have a mini fight oh that’s kinda cool hm

(Javert’s Soliliquy)

javert opens his soliloquy with some SPICY SADNESS OH B O Y he sounds broken already!! start strong!!

emotions go broken - anger - confusion? - mAJOR confusion - hopelessness 

javert can FLY! no legit he’s on ropes

(Turning)

turning is. turning is almost a funeral. 

OH THEYRE N U N S !

nuns are visiting the barricade 🥺 

OH DAMN “what’s the use of praying if there’s nobody who hears?” THAT CERTAINLY HAS WEIGHT NOW THAT THEY ARE N U N S

it has just occurred to me that people have been dead on the floor for like. a solid five minutes 

(Empty Chairs At Empty Tables)

“now my friends. are dead. and gone” he pauses like he’s realizing it just then oh OUCHIE

wait is marius,,,at the barricades? is he legit singing to his friends dead bodies? oh shit oh NO

OH N O OH NONONO THIS IS WORSE

THE BARRICADE BOYS RISE UP FROM THE FLOOR OH N O OUCH OUCH

they group up and salute him and wALK OFF NO OWWWW

*cosette and marius kiss* jvj: *COUGH COUGH*

marius and valjean’s lil conversation is interesting in the way valjean seems to ask marius “who am i?” rather than ask himself. he phrases it in a way that makes me think he’s like. quizzing marius lmao 

(The Wedding)

omg i think baby cosette and éponine are flower girls 🥺🥺

“go away thenardier” *madame mouths ‘dammit!’*

thenardier your boat shoes hurt me

madame: “get up! get up!” thenardier: “stop—STOP IT!” 

TWO GUYS ARE DANCING TOGETHER AND WAVE AT THENARDIER ON “this ones a queer, but what can you do”

yeah i think i found my new favorite thenardiers thank you dallas theater company

fantine sits on the bench when cosette comes by, cosette sits on bench next to her, and fantine tries to touch her but can’t 🥺

jvj just gave a hand-over-heart head nod to cosette but fantine gave it back i,,,ouch

ENJOLRAS AND GAVROCHE ARE WITH FANTINE AND ÉPONINE FOR JVJ’S DEATH

the chain gang is in the epilogue i repeat the cHAIN GANG IS IN THE EPILOGUE

the orchestra rests on the last “say do you hear the distant drums” and that was the coolest thing i’ve ever heard

that final harmony is MONEYYYY and i want to cry

OVERALL NOTES:

this javert has the most interesting interpretation because up until his FINAL SCENE he is the stone cold police officer, and he plays it SO WELL. like i have never been truly angry at a javert up until this guy, and whether that was because it was modern and resonates A LOT in 2020 or he just looks like a cop i want to punch, I DON’T KNOW but he plays it SO WELL and i love it so much!!

these thenardiers are the fucking BEST NGL they are the perfect mix of funny and cruel. madame t is also funny as HELL and i wish i had her talent lmao

i said it before but the police costumes in this show are. woosh. kudos to the costumer i took one look at those guys and was like “haha, no!.” vaguely related to that, i think this was the first time i nearly cried at Look Down like. the first song at the show, simply because of the convict getting the SHIT beat out of him on the floor. that hurt me and i hate that it is completely accurate to what happens in prisons today.

lovely ladies was,,,a LOT and tbh, i feel like it didn’t need to be. obviously it does show how horrible it is for sex workers, but that is why the music is there. the music and lyrics is there to tell what you don’t show visually. (though i do love the male prostitute lmao he took no shit)

i also said this before but the fact that there wasn’t bigger of a relationship between enjolras and grantaire kind of annoys me simply because they are revolutionaries in the present day. you can’t tell me that ALL OF THEM WERE STRAIGHT. with how many people i know now that identify under the queer and trans umbrella, and also how queer they are (to me) in the brick, the absence of any exr in a modern interpretation hurts a little.

in conclusion, this show was fucking FANTASTIC and even though i’m six years late, it still resonates hard given the time we live in today. i think i nearly screamed when i saw the cops in riot gear on the barricade because that is LITERALLY HAPPENING RIGHT NOW. this just reminds me how timeless the story of les mis is because you had to change LITERALLY NOTHING from the story to make it make sense in the modern age, and that is really the lesson you should learn from les mis; these things happen everywhere, and they need to be fixed. 

thank you for listening to my rambling, i am sure i forgot something because there was just so damn much but i hope you enjoyed otherwise! not-a christmas-tree out! :)

[joonsmagicstudio]

➢ One Five-Zero (m) : PJM

⇁ synopsis: You make a deal with a devil for a wild time in the middle of classes.

or 

the time when you were bored in the class and drew 150 pentagrams exactly in your notebook before a devilishly handsome man in a red suit breaks down the door of your class room and yells “wHAT the fUCK do you wANT?”

⇁ female reader x jimin

⇁ smut, jimin devil!au

⇁ general smut ig? oral sex (both lmao), slight derogatory language, creampie, unsafe sex (pls get a condom or some contraceptive before you do it kiddos), blowjob etc the list goes on.

⇁ lol a short PWP( 3.8k) . I saw a post somewhere on insta and wanted to write it at 1 am. Pls if you find that post because it gave me a reason to right, lemme know! I lost it sadly,

⇁ A/N: I had actually been busy writing 5 long ass story for my own joy but suddenly a small idea came to my mind after seeing a post and I really wanted to post it for y’all to enjoy. Hope you like it. PS: English is not my first language and this hasn’t been edited. I will edit it soon, but please do let me know if there is any mistakes! Also I am having issues with keep reading, let me know if you are facing some issues with it too! I don’t want to annoy some people by making them have to scroll through the entire fic. Also this is like my first fix, forgive me.

You sat in the back of the lecture hall as usual with your hoodie pulled over and your face resting in your left palm as you couldn’t be bothered to pay attention to the American History your professor was droning on about. You had a lot of regrets, one of them was choosing history but then it was your fault anyways and no one but you was to blame. 

As the professor went on, you had zoned out and doodled lethargically in your notebook with a dull red pencil that you found somewhere on the in the hallway that you pulled out to at least look like your were taking some notes in case the professor decided to look at you. However, the chances of the professor looking at you in far back of the hall were infinitesimally small since the good students that were actually engaging with the lecture content and asking questions were in the front row. You had an absolutely great respect for people like them, it was because of these people you were able to skimp out on paying attention and keeping a low radar in the classroom.

Out of all the doodles, you had taken a keen liking drawing circles and then a star in it to complete a pentagram. It was easy, no effort and quick for you to keep mindlessly doing it until the classroom ended sometimes you would shade in boxes on your notebook if it was a block paper, unfortunately it was the good ol’ lined paper, hence the pentagram. You had finished up a total of one hundred and 50 small pentagram in your notebook with that red pencil when a rather loud cracking of the door was heard, effectively pulling all of the class attention, including you, on the the door that had flown off the hinges and landed across the class room, at the windows in just splinters and large pieces of wood chunk.

However, your attention was on the devilishly handsome man in velvety crimson suit, unfortunately his beautiful face was contorted in an expression of pure anger and frustration, his fist seemed to be clenching and his eyes were dead set on you in a piercing glare, who dares to upset and making his screw up his handsome face? However your thoughts were interrupted by him “wHAT the fUCK do you wANT?”, he yelled, his loud voice reverberating your ear like a clap of a thunder and you swear you felt chills down your spine but moreover you were terribly confused. You were just admiring a masterpiece of an artwork.

You had no idea who he was other than the fact that he was extremely handsome, his hair felt like the kind you could run your hands through, his lips were plushy and kissable. But still you had no idea what you had done to constitute a rather handsome man to be yelling at you in the middle of the classroom after breaking a door with a kick. Was he that powerful?

The classroom had followed his line of vision which lead to you and now everyone had their eyes on you, including the professor, which offended you a little bit. Generally, a professor should get the intruder out but instead it seemed that the professor was invested in the drama that was unfolding right now. You weakly pointed at yourself and mouthed ‘me?’ to clarify if it really was you he was yelling at or maybe someone behind you or in front of you? Idiot, your back was to a wall and nobody was at least within few seats in front of you.

The handsome man rolled his eyes aggressively and ran his hand through his hair as he let out a sigh of frustration. Then he took large and quick strides to stand in front of you, now you were getting a strong aura from him, up close he was intimidating and there a sparkle of something unusual in his eyes. Maybe it was because he standing and you were seated and that he was actually leaning into you. You had shifted backwards until you were close to falling off the chair. Also, if you must add, he had a really nice smell of cologne coming from him and you couldn’t help but enjoy the cologne a little but until the man in front of you slammed his hand of you desk and seethed, “You. Me. Copier room now.” and with that he stormed off, leaving you with your jaw hanging wide open and your eyes blown to the size of the saucer. The professor suddenly cleared his throat and tilted his head to the direction that the man had left, signalling you to take your and go after him.

Embarrassment creeped up the back of your neck as you scrambled to pack everything, including the shitty red pencil you found and speed walked your way out into the hallways. You were utterly confused as to why were the two of you meeting in the copier room for. You would expect the conversation to be held in a cafe or hallway or even in an empty classroom as a matter of fact. You distractedly made your way to the entrance of the copier room which it was closed. You stood there, readjusting your bag strap on one shoulder and to give yourself a moment to prepare yourself to facing him again. Unfortunately, that was cut shot when the door swung open wildly and the man in front of you grabbed your wrist to pull you inside and slamming the door shut behind you. Now you were sandwiched between him, the door behind you and caged between his arms.

A small click was hear and you glanced to the source of the sound, he had locked the door from the inside- what, was that even possible? Locking a door from inside, it would make more sense to lock it from outside. Your train of thoughts were again interrupted when the man in front of you took a step back, standing directly underneath white light that hung from the ceiling. He truly was breathtaking, the red suit complimented his fair skin and his dark brown hair made him look irresistible. 

“Listen up, Y/N right?” he spoke, looking at you with his one eyebrow raised up to clarify if he had got the right person. You nodded immediately and he proceeded to talk, “You-you little-annoying piece of shit summoned me 150 times. What the fuck do you want?”

“Uhm, who are you? I’m positive that I never called you.” You spoked softly, genuinely unsure of what on earth was going on for you to receive swear words from this man’s mouth, not that it was bad at all, in fact it was fucking hot to hear that.

“Damn woman. I’m Park Jimin, the devil you were summoning with your fucking 150 pentagrams. You know just a few would have been fine, but nah you decided to go for a full fucking 150 pentagrams. Do you have any idea how annoying it is?”  The man, now Jimin scoffed, blinking several times to grasp the foolishness of this situation. Not only he had come after being called 150 times, the person who called him had no clue either.

“oh-OH.”, the realization dawned upon you when you remembered that you had indeed drawn many pentagrams in your notebook, but you didn’t actually know it was 150 times you had doodled it and you definitely had absolutely no fucking idea that it would summon an actual devil. It’s kinda nice that the devil was an eye candy though, “Right, uh sorry. Um you could go back I guess? I won’t do it anymore. Sorry for the trouble Jimin.” You mumbled apologetically, sticking out a hand for a handshake and thinking that it would magically resolve how irritating you were according to Jimin.

Jimin stared at your handshake in disbelief, most people would jump at the opportunity to get something granted or scream in fear and run away. Instead, you just stuck out a hand for a handshake and told him to go back. Instead of shaking your hand, he scrunched his eyebrows tightly and pinched the bridge of his nose, wondering what he should do with you now that you had called him 150 times for no reason. He didn’t want to go back for nothing, at least something should be done. Then he opened his eyes, and this time you swear your saw lust in his eyes.

Jimin realized that if you weren’t scared and had nothing to ask for, he could at least ask you for a favour, “Hmm, kitten how long has it been since you had your release?” he purred softly, the side of his lip slowly stretching into a smirk as he dropped the tension from his shoulder and tilted his head slightly while keeping his eyes trained on you.

You knew how this was going to play out, you gulped slightly and thoughts were whirling around in your mind. You honestly were actually considering what he was insinuating and after all it had been a while since you got some action.

“It’s been 6 months.” You replied honestly, and Jimin chuckled at the response, “That’s too long kitten, aren’t you craving for some now?”

Jimin took a step closer to you, hungrily eyeing up your body before he closes the space between the two of you. He then brings one hand to cup your face and bring it closer to his lips, the other hand snakes around your waist and pulls you closer so that his crotch was pressing tightly against you. His lips against yours were opening up the primal desires you had deep within in you and almost instantly you brought your hands around the back of his neck to play with his hair and pull him deeper into the kiss, giving into his his kiss because you honestly needed some action. Jimin grunted at your pull and pull back a little to see your face, he saw you with your eyes half-lidded and a small smile gracing your lips, with that he swooped down to capture you lips in another heated kiss. This time his hands both of his hand had move to the bottom of your shirt and tugged it upwards so that you could move back and stick you arms up while he rid of that article from your upper body.

Upon discarding your shirt, he was in awe of your breast that was still covered by your bra and he went to knead is softly over the bra, stimulating a small sight of relief from your mouth. Hearing the small sigh, he couldn’t help but get turned on slightly and that went unnoticed by you. You brought on of you hand to cup his hard on knead it gently to help him, the tent beneath his crimson pant got noticeably harder and in no time you had gotten on your knees to unbuckle his pant. You removed the belt and guided his waist backward, slightly to the left so that he could lean on the printing machine supports. You nimble fingers unbuttoned his pant, pulled the zipper down before reaching to the sides to pull down his pant completely to reveal the black boxer that had been stained slightly in a darker colour from the wetness of the pre-cum. Before you could do anything, Jimin put a hand on your shoulder, causing you to look up.

“Remove your bra sweetheart.” He played around with the strap, waiting for you to slip of the strap and unclasp it from your chest, allowing your nipple to be exposed and harden in the cool air of the copier room. Jimin gulped at the sight and then pushed your head slightly towards his crotch to get you continuing. AT first you stroked it through his black boxer before Jimin grunted, urging you to take it out. You obeyed easily and pulled down his boxer, letting it pool around his ankle, where his pants had fallen previously. His hard on finally was revealed and its length stood out impressively against his abdomen. Without further hesitation you licked a long stripe from his balls all the way to the tip. You cautiously looked up to see how would Jimin react, he had his head tipped backward, clearly he was enjoying it. You took his length in your hand, giving it a few strokes before engulfing the head of his length in your mouth. You swirled your tongue around his head, earning a small groan from his throat and then pushed in deeper.

Jimin was deep in your mouth, enjoying the warm wetness that brought pleasure in his abdomen. He could feel that he was halfway close to a release however he didn’t want it to be in your mouth. He had other plans to deal with you. Gripping roughly on your hair, he pulled you away from his and a thin trail of saliva stretched out from his head of his length to your mouth. That sight alone would have made him nut right then and there. He tilted you head upward to see your face, a rosy blush was present on your cheeks and you looked awfully fuckable. He let go of you hair and gently brought you up by holding your chin and pulling you up.

“Why? Don’t you want me to finish it off for you?” You asked, licking your lips to moisten it up. Jimin replied, trailing off slightly as he watched you lick your lips, “No… let me prepare you kitten.”

He leaned into the crook of your neck, peppering it with soft kissed before biting to create hickeys while he twirled you around so that your back was facing the copier instead of him.You gave in under his ministration and ran up your hands in the back of neck. Jimin slotted himself between your leg and pulled away to lift you onto the printer. He unbuckled your pants and roughly pulled them down and tossed it to the floor. He was thankful that you were wearing a simple slip on van that was easy to remove. Now you were nearly undressed except for the underwear that seemed to have been soaked slightly.

Seeing that Jimin was more dressed that you were, you whined lightly, “Jimin, you have your blazer and shirt on. Can’t you at least remove that for me?” You toyed lightly at the buttons of his black button up shirt. His hand coming up to hold your and and pull it away, “Kitten, are you that desperate hmm?” 

First he took of his crimson blazer and then unbutton his shirt rapidly, yanking the shirt of his upper body before tossing it somewhere in the copier room. Now you could admire how well built his body was. He indeed has abs and striking black nevermind tattoo on his ribcage, you couldn’t help but lightly glide your fingers along the words. Jimin chuckled softly at your admiration of his body, he pressed his fingers at the wet underwear of yours, causing you to shudder.

“Seems like you got wet at just sucking me off and admiring my body. Aren’t a little bit of a slut?” he continued to pressed it before deeming it wet enough to yank it down your legs to let it join the floor, his once soft words were turning filthy now and that had you yearning for mow. He now had a full view of your wet mound, he dragged to fingers across the slit before pressing softly on your clit causing you to feel pleasure to begin in your abdomen. However, it wasn’t enough to satiate you, “Jimin?”

“Yes?” He he whispered, looking up to meet your eyes, “what is it, kitten?”

“Could you just fuck me already?” You asked in you sweetest voice, however Jimin did not reel to it. Instead he slipped his finger into your wetness, enjoying the hot tightness of it as you felt it enter and stretch you a little. He pulled it out, admiring how your wet juice had coated his digit completely. Then he added the second digit, stretching you out again and feeling you twitch around his finger. His erection was growing much harder and painful for him to ignore. He was going to have to put it inside you real soon. After a few pumps he added the third digit and had his thumb circling your clit.

“Jimin-ngh please.” You bit your bottom lip hard when he started circling around your clit, the pleasure wave coming undeniably close. Jimin seemed to sense that you were close by your twitching around his digit, so he pulled it out, licking his digit clean off your juice. You couldn’t help but whimper at the empty feeling but that was quickly recovered by his mouth on you. Now he had you moaning out softly under his control. His tongue licking long stripe across your wetness and stopping at the clit to play with it. Occasionally he would push his tongue deep into you as of he was devouring his last meal. That alone brought you to the edge, moaning his name softly under breath as you tried your best to keep your legs open whilst your hand were gripping his hair. Jimin kept slurping and licking, riding out your high for as long as possible. When he came up, you could see a sheen of shiny layer of your juice coating his lip and some on his chin to which he collected with his thumb and rested it against your lip for you to suck it off cleanly.

“Now that your pussy is slick wet, you wouldn’t mind if I pounded it hard right slut?” Jimin cooed as he slipped his length with more stretch than you could handle, not allowing you to say anything as the words died in your throat due to the sensation of the stretch and him filling you up nicely.

“Fuck, look at that body of yours.” Jimin complimented you as your hard arched your back, your elbows pressing hard into the copier for some support. When he noticed that, a small idea came to his mind.

“Slut, I’m going to need to get off for a moment. Could you do that?” He smirked at you and your mind was too clouded with lust and desire to wonder what next he had up in his sleeve. All you needed was him to dick you to hell and back. Without much hesitation, you scooted off the copier with the help of Jimin holding onto your waist and then he reached out behind you lift up the scanning lid of the copier. The machine gruntled to life as the white shot shone out from the scanning glass. Jimin then turns your around and forced you to bend over, your bare breast pressing against the cool glass of the copier. Then it clicked to you what he was planning to do. It unfortunately, turned you very on as Jimin smashed the scan and print button before he rammed into you, hard this time which got you groaning contently with him filling and stretching your every time he pushed in.

The tightness of your slick brought him closer each time he thrusted in, he was now finding hard to keep up the ruthless pace he had. He was slowing down, trying to enjoy each and every thrust into you, “Fuck, look at you taking me in so well darling. I ought to fill you up nicely.” Jimin muttered in your ears to which you could only response with a weak nod.

“Uh uh, that’s not the right response slut. I can’t hear you.” Jimin slowed to an extremely agonizingly slow place to get you to respond to his needs. His panting was heaving, the skin contact between the two of you was getting slightly sticky due to the sweat. You couldn’t look back to see Jimin’s face but you could definitely imagine strands of his hair sticking to his forehead from sweat.

“Yes, please fill me up.” You gritted, somehow sounding comprehensible through all the dicking, the pleasure taking over your senses and Jimin heard it well, “Since you said it so sweetly darling.” He cooed, resuming to a slightly faster pace. His hands gripped around your waist tightly that it was starting to leave red imprints, his near was coming close and with a sharp stutter in his pace and pushing deep inside you, he finally cummed. You swear you could feel his cum painting and fill up your walls.

He simply slowed down, coming to a full stop with his dick deep inside you as he pressed both of his hands on the waist, hunching over you body slightly to catch his breath. He had to admit that it was a good fuck he had quite in a long time and looking at your heavy breathing and fucked out state, he was sure you also a good one. He slowly pulled out, watching the cum leak out your wet slick, but before it could spill out, he cupped it gently as if he was trying to contain it whilst he grabbed you underwear with his other hand and slipped it on you, “Keep in inside of you slut. If you don’t I sweat to god I will make you beg.” He whispered in your ears while he pulled up the under wear a little higher to make you yelp at the sensitivity of your clit being pressed by the fabric.

The two of you got dressed up in silence, the copier room definitely smelled strongly of sex and the two of chuckled when you both looked at each other after smelling it a bit. It was the first time you saw Jimin smile naturally and you had to admit that it was a good look on him. As you slipped on the shirt, Jimin went to the copier and picked out a bunch of paper from the tray, you had a pretty good idea of what the scanned documents were but you still were shocked when Jimin took one and flipped it around to show you how your breast on display looked like.

“I’m keeping them as a keepsake.” He winked before folding it and tucking it away in his is pants.

“Sure, take it as an apology for me summoning you 150 times Jimin.” You teased lightly, picking up your school bag and swinging it over your shoulder.

“Jesus, don’t remind me of that. Quit summoning me 100 times, just a few times will be enough whenever you need another release because darling, I am sure I do it better than anyone else you’ve had.” He leaned in and gave you a small peck before opening the door to leave. You were stunned at the fact that you were permitted to summon him anytime you desired, you wanted to ask him if there was any other ways to contact other than pentagram doodlings but by the time you ran out into the hallways to catch him, he seemed to have disappeared into the thin air. 

Looks like you’ll have to doodle pentagrams to get him to come.

[jarofrebuke-transcripts]

Jar of Rebuke Episode 3 Unofficial Transcript

Season 1 Episode 3: Cherry Tobacco

INTRO

The following audio recording is classified documentation for Case [audio distortion] with the Enclosure. Unauthorized access to this information will lead to immediate intervention. Progress further if proper clearance has been given.

JARED

I really need to get into the habit of doing this more often. Dr. Daman keeps asking how this is going, but I rarely have anything to tell her that she seems to want to hear. She really wants me to do this regularly, but sitting at my desk with a sore back didn't sound too appealing, especially if I didn't have to. Even though my back is feeling a bit better after the snipe hunt tournament incident, I'm actually recording this from a bed and breakfast. And I'm tired. Not even a vacation, it's more of a work trip. Not terribly much has happened since my last update. Darius's birthday was recently. He had a little get-together with some friends and he even invited me along, which was really nice. I made sure to get there a little early especially since it was a day off of work for me. We met up at Waytooth, a restaurant that his dads and him frequent often. I got there and just sat outside for a bit fiddling on my phone, then Darius showed up. He was so excited for the party, I could tell. He smiled the second we made eye contact. He jogged over to me and we talked for a bit. The weather is still pretty nice, it's finally starting to get chillier, which is actually nicer, I prefer the layers. So we sat outside and enjoyed the weather as we talked until his other friends showed up. They were all nice, but I kind of stuck by Darius most of the day since he was the only one that I really knew.

After lunch, we all went to a drive-in theater that they've got set up here in town, which is mostly just a projector and a large painted brick wall, but it was still a nice time. His friends all sat in different cars as we watched the movie, but Darius and I sat in the bed of his truck and ate snacks that he had packed. Darius is a really good cook. He's learning a lot of cool stuff from that class he's taking. I gave him a little gift, of course. Well, two things. I got him a new wrench set since he'd been saying that he needed a new one, his old one's been a bit worn down for a while. Uh, gifts to give him in front of his friends, since he really plays up the whole inheriting the family farm shtick around them. But we, when we were in his truck, just the two of us, I gave him his second gift. He said he had really gotten into cross stitching recently and he seemed a little embarrassed about it. But I wanted him to know that I thought that was interesting, so I got him a little pack of stitching patterns and some thread organizers. I wasn't sure what kind of patterns he'd like, so I just got him a couple of different kinds. He was quiet for a few moments after he opened that gift and I kind of panicked for a moment honestly. But he then gave me a really big smile and put his hand on my shoulder. He gave me a really soft thank you and I told him it was my pleasure, as long as he made me something. It was an obvious joke, at least I hoped it was obvious. But he asked what I'd want. I told him I like birds. Birds have so much freedom to just fly around and always sing such pretty songs. Besides geese, I don't like geese. He asked me if I had any favorites. I said I like blue jays. Major assholes, but beautiful. He laughed and he said he'd give it his best shot, but I told him that I’d hang up anything he made me. And that was about it. We barely watched the movie, we spent most of the time quietly talking actually.

What else have I done? Well, Dr. Castillo and I went and investigated the energy signatures from the cornfields after Todd told us to do so and you know what we found? Corn. That's it. Oh, and more corn! No energy spikes, no signs of tomfoolery of the natural or supernatural kind, nothing. It was almost strange how untouched by supernatural energies it seemed. We investigated during the day and at night. No changes. So we've been keeping tabs on the fields but nothing that's been too notable has happened when we're out there. We've been passing a lot of our time in the labs reorganizing files going over the energy spikes that have been recorded and theorizing what we could possibly be dealing with there. But until we can further examine it, there is not much we can do. Ever since they replaced my old lab partner my workload has been much lighter. I actually prefer to be busy than bored, and I think Dr. Castillo isn't used to having idle hands either. They only ever give me small menial tasks and it's becoming more annoying than anything else. But I did recently see my old lab partner, Dr. Lomax in the hall this morning. I've seen them in passing a few times but we haven't been able to catch up much since the sudden change. Dr. Lomax also has no idea why they got suddenly switched to a different lab. Seems that none of us know why the change was made. All Todd said was “just had to rearrange some staff, don't worry about it!”

Speaking of, before I left work today, I got another email from Todd. Typically his emails are him asking us to do something and then him talking himself up for multiple paragraphs and making it seem like it should be a privilege to do what he's asking you to do. But this email was him actually giving me lodging information for the local inn, and explaining that I had to pack up a bag and go. They apparently planned to do renovations or something on my house due to a concern of faulty plumbing. I'd mentioned to Dr. Daman about the less-than-stellar heating system when I wanted to take a bath or do dishes, but I didn't expect anyone to actually do anything about it. But a night without weird tapping on my door sounded nice, and even though I replied to the email basically saying “oh no, you really don't have to, I can live with it”, Todd insisted. I could just see his smug smile on the other side of the screen. He'll subtly hold it over my head for later, but the rule of one denial for good polite measure then acceptance of an offer had been met and I was off home to pack a bag. And here I am now.

The Chronicle Inn bed and breakfast is run by an older married couple, Ester and Laura. I'd met them a few times before my stay here but I hadn't spent much time with them. This place is mostly a restaurant and homemade goods store rather than an inn, considering we don't get many outsiders who stay here any longer than to grab a bite to eat and get gas. But for times like these it's nice to have an inn available. Even if it's only a few rooms, it's much better than staying at the facilities that the enclosure has on site. Work would have likely put me into a temporary on-site lodging space if the inn wasn't available. To be honest I'm surprised they actually put me in the end instead of just tossing me into some temp lodging room for a night. Maybe they remembered how much I hate that place. It's nearly impossible to sleep with the buzzing lights and the beds really aren't made for comfort and the bathrooms are all so claustrophobic. I swear, they make that place as uncomfortable as possible so people want to leave. That, or they just skimped on the prices for a comfortable setup to focus the money elsewhere at the Enclosure. I'd believe that. Though maybe they booked me at this place to have me investigate something while I'm here. Can't even enjoy this nice little one-night getaway, huh? They expect me to work? Do they plan to pay me for looking into things overnight? Probably not, not like they ever pay me for the full work I do anyways.

The room I’m in is kinda known for weird happenings. The whole town knows but there's not a huge fuss over it. No one's died from it, so why be too concerned? Ester warned me about these weird happenings while I was checking in. There's word of a spirit that haunts the upper floor of the building. Been here for as long as anyone can recall. She explained it all to me with a smile and a jovial tone, so she doesn't seem concerned. After the literal run-in with the deer a few weeks ago, I really just wanted some rest. Her wife Laura told me that they serve breakfast at 7 am but they'll be at the desk to take my key as early as 6. Thankfully tomorrow my shift starts at 8 instead of the usual 6 so I might be able to actually get some real food in me before work.

Didn't take me too long to get up here and settled in. I decided to just relax today instead of going out into town. So I did some reading in bed. Not that I could really focus much, the bed here is nice and cozy, but there's definitely a vibe about it. The room, not the bed. The rest of the inn is very homey, lived in, but in a good way. But the second I got to the top of the stairs it was like the air got barely but still noticeably cooler. When I came into the room I saw a little baggie of homemade beef jerky that Ester made and gave me. She's known around town for her jerkies and her woodwork. She's always so hands-on with everything she makes, whether it's snacks or a new set of chairs. She may have actually made the chair I'm sitting in right now, actually. I sat outside for a bit. There's a nice balcony that looks over some gardens and in the far distance I can see the vast fields. The evening felt so nice and I could see the little lightning bugs flying around as I got darker. I've always liked watching their dances. I often watch kids running around catching them in jars and then letting them all go just minutes later, but I prefer to watch them do their own thing out in nature. I watched the stars and the flicking lights of the lightning bugs for a bit, sipped on some sweet tea that Laura had brewed and offered me, ate some of the jerky that Ester made, and relaxed. I let my mind wander to wherever it went off to which as usual was all over the place. But no tapping on the doors, no weird deer staring at me, it was nice. But I keep feeling like something, or someone, is watching me. I feel that pretty often but this is different. It feels closer, if that makes sense. Like right now I'm sitting in a plush chair by the window in the room looking over the nice herb garden out back. The stars are still twinkling, the wind is just slightly blowing, and I've been able to crack the window open for some breeze. But I feel like something is watching me from the doorway. I swear to gods if I turn around and someone is standing there... (deep inhale) nope, nothing.

When Ester was telling me about what I could possibly expect, she said that a spirit had been wandering around in the room I'm staying in. Sometimes the spirit watches people. Sometimes the spirit just walks around and ignores the tenants. Must depend on her mood. But apparently something about the blue lamp by the bedside table really draws her out. Considering my line of work, and that my boss sent me here, I'm obviously going to turn on the light. Even if she's not rumored to be particularly dangerous, if they're just wanting to keep me busy then I could see Todd throwing me here to look into it a bit more. Okay. Hold on, give me a sec, let me see what happens. [lamp clicks on] It's a pretty light. I don't think I've seen a light this shade of blue outside of some of the lights they put up around town in the winter. It's nice. Oh, uh... hello? I don't know if she can hear me but I do see someone standing by the door, on the other side of the room, and um, [sniffs] tobacco?

THE BLUE LADY

I can hear you just fine.

JARED

[startled] Ah! Sorry about that. how are you?

THE BLUE LADY

Why do you ask?

JARED

Manners, I guess? Should I ask- who are you?

THE BLUE LADY

I don't think it really matters now. Besides, it's better I ask who you are.

JARED

Oh, uh, Dr. Jared Hel. I'm a scientist with the Enclosure on the edge of town. I…

THE BLUE LADY

WHO you are, not what you are. I know what you are.

JARED

...What I am is a person who would like to get some rest.

THE BLUE LADY

No, what you are is different. At least different from what I remember.

JARED

From what you remember? Have we met before?

THE BLUE LADY

Not exactly. “Met” isn't the word I would use. But we've interacted.

JARED

How so..?

THE BLUE LADY

I've watched you from afar, I've seen what you do. I guess our paths have more indirectly crossed.

JARED

I've never studied you before. You're not exactly the kind of thing that the enclosure typically sends me to study.

THE BLUE LADY

Then why are you here?

JARED

Well, work decided to fix the plumbing in my house so they put me up here. To get some rest.

THE BLUE LADY

And yet you're not here to study me?

JARED

Well that's actually unclear, I guess. I mean, if they're going to book me in the most haunted room at an inn, I guess they're having me investigate. Or Todd's just messing with me. That seems like something he'd pull.

THE BLUE LADY

Messing with you? [scoffs] When did you start putting up with the antics of people like that?

JARED

Okay, I'm gonna be upfront- if we met more than two years ago I have zero memory of any of that time. So this vague, cryptic talk is going to get you nowhere.

THE BLUE LADY

What are you doing with that thing?

JARED

[rustling sound] This it's an audio journal. It takes less focus and energy than writing. Are you just gonna keep staring at me or..?

THE BLUE LADY

People don't usually understand me this well for full conversations, so it has been quite a while. It isn't as if Ester and Laura can clearly understand me, even if they have tried.

JARED

How long have you been here?

THE BLUE LADY

Longer than I can remember. The rumor is that I've been here since the establishment of this town, whenever that may have been.

JARED

And when did we meet? I mean interact indirectly.

THE BLUE LADY

For the first time? It was many, many years ago. But again, you've certainly changed.

JARED

But again, I don't remember. You keep saying that and, [winces in pain] oh god my head!

THE BLUE LADY

We won't be getting very far right now.

JARED

No wait wait wait no hold on hold on.... and she's gone. [slams fist on table] Damn it! Why won't anyone just tell me anything outright? Oh my head... it's always like this. They disappear for a while and then come back so suddenly. Oh I hate this flesh prison! I'm done recording for now I need to try and nurse this headache now and recover from whatever the hell… oh it seems she left a little gift. Some blue ribbon? It's maybe four or five inches long, a little frayed at the ends. It's the same color as the lamp. There's something written on it. The handwriting's a bit hard to read but it looks like “you need to remember”. Remember what? How am I supposed to remember if no one ever tells me anything? Everyone always pushes me to try and remember but there's nothing to remember if they're making me grasp at thin air! They say they support me, they say they want to help, but what do they do to help, huh? All of this performative support is getting me nowhere. [facing away from recorder] And how is this ribbon supposed to help? You couldn't have given me something a little less vague? [groans] Why is everyone always so damn vague? Are they scared to just say something concrete? Why can't anyone ever give me a straight answer! No, it's fine. It's fine. I'm just… I'm going to go to bed. Right. I'm going to get some sleep. No tapping, no knocking, just sleep. I'm gonna go turn off the lamp and get some rest. Right. Ugh. Whatever. This is Dr. Jared Hel, signing off, I guess.

OUTRO

Jar of Rebuke is written and produced by Casper Oliver, who is also the voice of Dr. Jared Hel. Voice of The Blue Lady provided by Misha Bakshi. The intro is read by Vanessa Rosengrant, and credits are read by Ashley Craft, who has created the podcast official graphics. Music was created by Luke Menniss, spelled m-e-n-n-i-s-s, who you can find and support on Bandcamp, Spotify and Twitch. Find us on Twitter, Instagram and anywhere else you get your podcast fix for more Jar of Rebuke and also to get updates on upcoming official merch for our show. Support projects by this crew on Patreon to further other queer-lead projects and get neat perks. All donations are appreciated and will grant further clearance to special Jar of Rebuke content. You can also make one-time donations on Ko-fi. And special thanks to our patreon supporters Becky Thompson, Perry Bruns, and Tristan Fraud.

[mitchmarnier]

i took too many hits off this memory (i need to come down)

pairing: eddie kaspbrak/richie tozier [reddie]  rating: teen audiences and up chapter warnings: mentions of past drug abuse, mentions of past child abuse in terms of s*nia kaspbrak, mentions of minor character death/near death word count: 3,515 chapter count: 4 of ? summary: Eddie Kaspbrak doesn’t remember much from his childhood. He doesn’t really know he doesn’t remember. He also doesn’t know why he’s so drawn this terrible comedian on tv, but when Eddie runs into him in a bar, and they spend the night together, Eddie’s life is changed forever. It’s finally back on track- and he doesn’t know anything about it

read on ao3. moodboard by @isaacslaheys​​

perma taglist: @jwilliambyers​, @stebbins​, @isaacslaheys​, @s-s-georgie​, @transrich​@eddiefuckinkaspbrak​, @edstozler​, @emgays​, @anellope​, @thorn-harvester-ven​, @wheezyeds​, @vipertooth​, @tozierking​​, @billdenbrough​​, @starrystoziers​​, @trashmouthtozierr​​, @willelbyers​​  @loserslibrary​​ (let me know if you want added!)

June 5 2009

Richie wasn’t sure how to tell his manager that he didn’t want to do stand up anymore. That maybe he’d never really wanted to do stand up. He liked making people laugh, and he vaguely remembered wanting to be a vanquilist when he was a kid but he’d never been able to stop his mouth from moving with the words. It was fitting that now, Richie’s job was almost just exclusively moving his mouth. Richie had gotten terrifyingly good at walking on stage, flicking off his brain and transforming into Trashmouth™. That had long since stopped bothering him, but as his career took off, Richie found himself having to be Trashmouth™ more and more and Richie less and less. He was suddenly surrounded by people who only really saw him as the foul mouthed, sex crazed misogynist his ghost writers had him portrayed as on stage. They’d promised him that kind of shit sold, and they’d been right, but suddenly all his friends actually thought and spoke like Trashmouth™ and it made him queasy. He could only handle sitting through so many homophobic and sexist conversations before he felt Richie would melt right out of him and Trashmouth™ would be all that was left of him. He couldn’t let that happen… he just didn’t know how to tell anybody. 

He was doing a string of shows in Georgia, because Richie’s shows always sold better the further south he went. Richie hated the South, and not just because of his whole bisexuality thing, but because the weather sucked, the accents annoyed him and Richie Tozier did not belong anywhere where the potential of rodeo or circus existed. (Richie Tozier didn’t know anything about the Southern United States). 

Richie had been born in Maine, one of the coldest states in this god forsaken country, and in 1992 his family had moved up north of the border. Richie had come back to the United States after university, because everybody told him that he would be better off getting a job in show business in America rather than Canada. He hadn’t been totally sure that was true, but he’d gotten successful pretty quickly after moving back down here so he wasn’t about to argue it. 

“I don’t know what you’re upset about.” Audra Phillips, one of Richie’s few true friends, was saying to him while packing up Richie’s hotel room. He was so ready to leave the Devil behind, and get started on his break. He was fully debating on going to Canada to see his parents, it had been too long and every phone conversation with his mom felt like a guilty knife to the chest, but Richie had things he needed to take care of.

“You’ve been doing this for years, Rich.” Audra carried on, scowling at one Richie’s ratty overshirts before tossing it directly into the hotel bedside garbage. “You’re good at it, you’re making great money, you get to stay in the nicest hotels and see the country. What else could you possibly want? You’re doing things most people dream of.”

Richie huffed out an aggravated breath. “You’re telling me you never think of leaving all this behind? Not even when paparazzi follow you around the grocery store or TMZ leaks half truths that destroy your relationships.” 

Audra crossed her arms over her chest. “First of all, no, I don’t. I’m living my dreams, Richie, that’s more than most people can say! And when was the last time Paparazzi followed you anywhere? Never? What’s really bugging you out, Richie?”

“I don’t know,” Richie said, only half-lying. “It’s like… sure, I’m doing great financially, and it’s nice that people want to see my shows but it’s not like they actually like me. The person they’re coming to see is basically the anti Richie. If I come out, I will lose all my fans because they’re a bunch of homophobic asstwats because that’s the audience I have to cater to.”

“Are you thinking of coming out?” Audra asked.

“Not like… tomorrow, but someday, yeah.” Richie said quietly. “I’m not going to live my life in the closet. It’s not like it’s the 1980s anymore. Honestly, if it wasn’t for my shows and how coming out would basically make all my content unuseable, I probably would have come out already. Or at least not been so hard on sneaking around.”

Audra dropped down on the hotel bed and smiled sadly up at him. “You shouldn’t have to live a lie forever, Richie, but you’ve got to be reasonable about this, too. You can’t just up and quit, you know that. You’re on a contract, Steve will not hesitate to sue the fuck out of you if you try to skimp out-” 

“My contract ends with this tour,” Richie said. “That’s why I’ve been thinking about it so much, they’re trying to get me to sign  on for another three years and I just… I’m 30, Auds. I don’t want to spend another three years of my life touring around to states to hate, telling jokes I don’t relate to and letting people think I can for things that I don’t. I hate that people can use my acts to justify their bullshit, you know? Three more years of that would literally make me want to kill myself.”

Audra froze for a moment, then shook her head. “If you’re having thoughts again then we can-”

“No.” Richie snapped. “It’s not like that, and before you ask- no, I’m not using anymore. I’m not going down any sort of self destructive path. I’m just… tired. I’m 30, and I’m in the closet and I’m tired.” 

Audra nodded slowly. “Okay, then here’s what you’ve got to do, then. Go to talk to somebody at your bank today before you head out, just see what you’re looking at financially. Figure out how long you can bank on your ass without working while you figure out what you want to do. Then go home and see your momma, because she probably misses you, and tell Steve that you will give them an answer to resigning when you get back.”

“And what if I don’t want to come back?” Richie asked quietly.

“Then you don’t have to.” Audra said simply. “But Steve the bullshit excuse anyway. It’ll get you across the border way easier then if you tell him that you tell him to go fuck himself and that his biggest profit client is leaving him.”

There was only one branch of Richie’s bank in Atlanta, and Richie took a moment to appreciate Steve’s power as he was ushered through the bank and immediately back to meet with one of their accountants. The man on the other side of the desk wore a simple grey suit with the jacket draped over the back of his chair. His white button up shirt was rolled up to his elbows, and his hair was in tight, proper brown curls around his head. He was, in short, somebody who usually made Richie’s mouth water just at the sight but for some reason, he wasn’t attracted to the man despite how his energy put Richie immediately at ease.

STANLEY URIS, according to the sign on his desk, gave Richie a polite smile. “So, Mr. Tozier, what can we help you with today?”

Richie let out a long, slow sigh. “I’m gonna be honest with you. I’m here because I wanna quit my job, but my best friend told me that I should make sure that isn’t the world’s worst idea ever.”

Stanley Uris chuckled, and clicked on a few things on his computer. “I’m not usually prone to telling people to quit their jobs, but based on your accounts here, you’d be able to make due for at least a year if not more on your savings only. Permitting you don’t go around making any outrageous and sentrous purchases. Basic costs of living wouldn’t be a concern for a while.”

Richie had already known that, mostly. He’d only agreed to come here to soothe Audra’s nerves. Money hadn’t been a concern of Richie’s in many years, but it was nice to know he’d be okay for a while while he figured out what it was he wanted from life. What he could do. 

Stanley turned in his chair and met Richie’s gaze with a wiry look. “I’m not prone to getting involved with my consults personal lives, but I have to ask Mr Tozier- why are you thinking of quitting your job? I won’t pretend your particular brand of comedy is up my alley, but you seem to have made a name for yourself in the business. Is it wise of you to walk away now?”

Richie blinked. “I don’t know anything about what’s wise or what isn’t, I never have. But I do know that this name I’ve made for myself, like you said, isn’t the name I want to carry forever. It isn’t me, and I guess I want the world to see me for who I am now.” 

“Well.” Stanley’s lips twitched up in a hint of smile. “As you inquired, you’d certainly be able to make due for a quite a while figuring out what it is you want your name to be, Mr. Tozier. And a piece of advice, if I may?” Richie nodded. “There’s nothing wrong with trying to find yourself, Richie. I went through most of my life mocked for who I was, or who I hung around, or what my religious beliefs were. And it stung for a long time, but I’m glad that I stuck it out. I’m a loser and I always fucking will be. It’s often not worth it to put on a mask and pretend all the time. Be who you want to be, be proud.” 

Richie definitely was not tearing up in the middle of a bank office. This strange accountant had somehow struck something deep within Richie that not even his trained therapist or NA sponsors had ever been able to reach. Almost like he knew… but that wasn’t possible.

“Yeah.” Richie said through a voice crack. “Thanks, Stan the Man. I’ll do that.”

Richie made a quick exit from the bank, truly worried for a moment that he might begin to cry in the middle of this poor man’s office. He made a rushed phone call to Steve, just Audra had advised, telling him that he needed some time to clear his head and he was going back to Canada for the short while between legs of his stand up tour. That he’d have an answer for Steve regarding his contract when he got back. Steve hadn’t been thrilled with the whole thing, but Richie supposed he was thankful that it wasn’t a straight up no. Previous attempts at negotiation hadn’t looked good, and Richie knew that. 

As Richie was getting onto the plane, his phone buzzed. He pulled it out, ready to turn the device off as he boarded and he frowned at the notification. Steve had said he was going to give Richie the space he’d requested and he usually waited a couple days before he broke those promises.

Hey Richie. I know you said you needed time but SNL is interested in signing you as a full time cast member when your tour is over. Call me when you land. -Steve. 

“Aren’t you worried about the cold?” Eddie Kaspbrak asked, legs draped over Richie’s in the front steps of the Tozier house. It was nearly completely packed up, the family only waiting for the school year to finish out before they took off. They wouldn’t even be staying for the summer. Eddie wished he’d known that last summer was truly going to be their last summer. 

“Why would I be worried about the cold?” Richie replied with a snort. “We live in Maine, Eddie boy! I’m used to the cold by now.”

Eddie wrinkled his nose and smacked Richie in the shoulder. “In the winter, sure! But Canada- That’s winter all year ‘round, isn’t it? Won’t you miss swimming and shorts? How are people supposed to know that you have terrible fashion sense if you have to dress in parkas all year long?”

Richie laughed, and it made Eddie’s heart flutter in his chest. “Canada has four seasons just like every other country, Eds! My momma says that their summers can even get pretty hot. It’s not a land of make belief, or anything. Why are you hating on it so bad?”

“I’m not hating on anything.” But Eddie thought maybe he did hate Canada, a little bit. He hated that Richie was moving to Canada, a whole other country. It was hard enough when Beverly moved to Portland and Ben moved to another state. Another country might as well be an entire other world. Mike believed that the further people got away from Derry, the more they forgot and Eddie was having a particularly hard time thinking about Richie forgetting him while possibly living in a snowbank.

“Stop.” Richie suddenly groaned. He reached out and shook Eddie’s shoulders. “Stop thinking so damn hard, you’re making my head hurt. I don’t wanna think about it, and I don’t want you thinking about it! We can’t stop it, so can we please just spend the next month having fun and being us and NOT thinking about it?”

Eddie sighed and in a moment of weakness, dropped his head down to rest on Richie’s shoulders. He knew they were out in the open, that anybody could walk past and just… see them like this. It wasn’t safe, but for the moment, Eddie didn’t care. Derry was already hell, and nothing could make it worse than Richie leaving. 

“I’m not trying to dwell on it.” Eddie said quietly, curling up into Richie’s side fully. “I’m not, it’s just…”

“Nah, yeah, I get it.” Richie wrapped an arm around Eddie’s shoulder and jostled him slightly. “But there’s no sense stressing about the things we can’t control, you know? Life in the moment, Eddie my love!” 

Eddie exhaled hard. “Richie… I need to tell you something.” 

August 10 2009

Eddie Kaspbrak hated airports. There was something about the energy in the place that just made Eddie feel wild and horrible. He always drove himself, always. No matter how many times people told him that flying was safer than driving, that it was stupid to drive across country when flying could get him somewhere within a day. Eddie Kaspbrak hadn’t flown since 1999 on a forced family vacation with his mother and aunts. Until today. 

Eddie would much rather be making the drive to Derry rather than getting on a plane at JFK but his aunt Darlene had insisted that Eddie fly out to Bangor, that six hours was much too long. His mother might not last that long, and Eddie would so regret it if he wasn’t there with her when she passed. Eddie wasn’t sure if that was true, but he’d bought the last minute plane ticket anyway. He wasn’t too sure what a difference five hours would make, but it was never worth it arguing with his mother or his aunts. 

From what Aunt Darlene had told him, Sonia Kaspbrak was as good as gone already. A stroke, late last night. The doctors weren’t hopeful for any recovery, or even for the woman to regain consciousness. It left a sick feeling in Eddie’s stomach, thinking of his mother in a hospital bed, as good as gone and being kept alive by machines. It made him feel even sicker to know that it was exactly how she’d want to go, holding onto life and sucking up resources and doctor’s time right up until the very end. Eddie had kept his mother at a distance as much as possible since leaving home for college, and in the last two years he hadn’t spoken to her at all. He’d felt no desire to. She’d made his life hard, so much harder than it had ever needed to be. He was certain that if it hadn’t been for her, he would have come out long before he did. Myra would never have happened. To this day, at 30 years old, Eddie was still trying to figure out what things are true and what are lies from her influence. He wasn’t sure he ever wasn’t going to fuck up from her, and maybe she didn’t deserve him by her bedside at all. Kay had told him that she didn’t, that Eddie shouldn’t put himself through it. He didn’t owe her a goddamn thing, and Eddie knew she was right.

Eddie Kaspbrak hated airports, he hated flying, he hated goddamn Maine and he fucking hated his mother. His plane was going to start to board any minute and Eddie was still sitting in the waiting area with his emergency overnight bag tightly in his grip. He was rapidly running out of time to make good on this plane ticket that he’d bought on his messley cab driver salary. 

“Well, I’ll be damned.” A familiar voice carried over to Eddie through the waiting room. “Is that Eddie fucking Kaspbrak?”

Eddie turned in his seat, and grinned when he noticed none other than Richie Tozier walking towards him. His clothes were rumbled and he had a five o’clock shadow around his jaw that made Eddie’s stomach tighten. It was almost weird how little Richie Tozier crossed his mind, despite how intense his reaction was every time he saw him or even thought about him for too long. 

“Richie Tozier,” Eddie said slowly, face breaking into a grin. He stood and walked over to Richie, with his overnight slung over his shoulder. “Back in the world of the living I see. I think your fans were starting to think you died somewhere.”

“Awe, Eds. You been keeping tabs on lil ol’ me?” Richie chuckled, reaching out to pinch at Eddie’s cheeks. “No need to worry, Eddie boy. I was merely taking some me time in the great white North. My parents live in Canada, I went to visit them and clear my head.” 

Eddie’s chest twinged. “Well, welcome back to civilization then, I guess.”

“You’ve always been Canadianphobic huh, Eds?” Richie laughed but Eddie frowned deeply.

“What do you mean always?” 

Eddie and Richie looked at each other for a long moment, before Richie shook his head. “I don’t know, you just strike me as the type, I guess. What are you doing here? You don’t really strike me as the flying type.”

Eddie shuddered. “God, I’m not.” He said honestly. “But my mom is dying or some shit, and my aunt is pitching some drama fit about how a six hour car drive is too long so I have to take the plane.” 

Richie froze for a moment, mouth half open and eyes wide. Eddie braced himself for the evitable awkward apologies and sympathies that always came with the whole dead parent card. 

“That sucks man.” Richie said finally, with a shrug. “You going back to Derry all by yourself?”

Eddie had given up on trying to figure out how Richie just seemed to know things about him. It wasn’t even that weird anymore. “Yeah.” He answered with a sigh. “If I get my shit together and actually catch my plane. I’m cutting it pretty close.”

“Well…” Richie gave Eddie a soft smile. “If you didn’t want to take the trip alone, I’m not doing anything interesting. I’m supposed to be settling into my new apartment but that’s boring and I think it would be way more to go back to Derry with you and wreak havoc on your aunts.” 

“You’re moving to New York?” Eddie asked with wide eyes. He tried not to think about how a big reason he and Richie had never really been together was the constant distance and Richie’s travelling. He wasn’t sure Richie had even had a home before. 

“Yeah.” Richie suddenly seemed embarrassed. “I was trying to get out of the whole stand up game, and my manager got me a steady gig on Saturday Night Live.” 

“SNL?” Eddie gasped. “Richie! That’s huge! Congratulations!”

Richie’s cheeks reddened. “Thanks, man. But I’m serious about the offer. It’s no skin off my back at all. We can go see if they have tickets left, how many people could possibly be going to fucking Maine?”

Eddie should say no. It couldn’t bring Richie home with him, to his crazy aunts and his dead mother. To Derry at all. Eddie barely remembered Derry, outside of spending almost all his time locked up in his bedroom. But he remembered enough to know that it was a horrible place, almost like it was permanently stuck in the 1950s and there was something… evil about that place. Just thinking of it made Eddie’s palms sweat and knees shake. But on the other hand…

“It wouldn’t be good for our friendship for me to reject you twice at this stupid airport.” Eddie said, forcing his voice to be light. “Let’s go.” 

[acrobaticcatfeline]

Of Books, Brothers, and Broadway (Creativitwins College AU) Chapter Three!!!

Word Count: 6875

TW: Remus, Janus, cursing, ocean critters, think that’s it

Pairings: dukeceit, logince, I think mentioned moxiety, familial creativitwins, platonic everyone else with everyone else, a nice bit of parental Remus and Thomas.

Notes: It gets gay!!!!! Finally!!!! Also skirts!!!! We learn more about Thomas, who is baby TBH hes just like, Remus good boy and I agree. these two have a very close mentorship, Remus has been there for for several years and Thomas has pretty much adopted him. They have one of my favorite dynamics in this. A lot of angst comes shortly after this so enjoy the soft gays while you can.

Summary: Remus is gay and smitten. Roman is as well. The two battle to woo their brothers best friend and both succeed. Soft boys going on dates and being in love. Remus rants a bit.

By the time that they all finish dinner, Remus is more than a little excited to show Janus his lizard friends. Janus is so nice and cute and he has an interest in reptiles, and the book he wrote for the musical in progress, and god he's in love. Roman gives him permission to run off without him while he and Patton engage in ‘civilized’ conversation. So he shows Janus his room, and heck he's bringing a cute boy into his room god this is filthy, disgusting worse than the worst most cuddly pornos that he's ever sat through, this is intimate and Remus feels like his blood is going to boil. He smiles instead though, because Janus is squealing and bouncing and looking at all the little guys in the tanks and he so desperately looks like he wants to hold one but he bounces in place while sounding like a balloon with a leak.

“You want to hold one?”

“More than anything!”

Remus walks over to the tank and tries to pull out a small gecko, but his only snake slithers out and coils his arm before he could. He laughs at it, petting its little head softly and he's almost knocked unconscious by the pure joy on Janus’ face. His eyes are damn near sparkling, his bouncing has stilled as his jaw dropped.

“This little guy is a Kenyan sand boa, he's actually the only scaly friend I've ever gotten from a rescue, the rest of these guys are just local pals. His name is Amadeus. Wanna hold him?”

“Yessssssss!!!!”

Remus guided Amadeus to slither up Janus’ arm. He ended iup coiling around his neck loosely and Remus could see the effort Janus was exerting to not get too excited. He petted the snake gently, stars in his eyes as the snake seemed to lick him.

“I love him!”

“He seems to like you too”

“I’m sorry I’m being so childish heh, I just, I lose my composure with animals I guess. And theater. I suck at keeping up this uh, facade I guess I can call it”

“Why would you? You're cute like this”

Janus froze and Remus nearly backpedaled on his words before Janus broke out in a huge blush with a matching grin. He swept the bangs that were sticking out from his beanie to the side of his face as he looked back at Remus.

“Do you want to go get coffee at some point? I mean uh, we can, we can talk about the musical some more and uh, maybe I can convince you to strike up a deal of some sort?”

Remus blinked and smiled back at him. He pulled out his phone and looked at something before changing it and handing it over to jay.

“I've got a class tomorrow and then work, and I'm bringing home an octopus so I probably can't do coffee tomorrow, but how does dinner sound?”

Janus took the phone and saw a new contact page pulled up. He smiled as he entered the information and sent a standard text and handed it back.

“That sounds even better! I'm free after 4 tomorrow!”

“How does 7 sound? I'm technically back at 5:30 but I want to be here for a bit in case shit goes sideways with Cephy”

“Sounds like a date! Er, um, a plan! Sounds like... a plan..!”

“God you're gonna have to stop being so adorable before I turn myself in to the police preemptively. Anyways, Roman might be getting annoyed from having you stolen for so long, so hows about we put back Dee and pick up this convo later?”

“Great idea!”

By the time that they leave the room, Patton is ready to leave, and as jay was his ride, he had to leave as well. The four said their goodbyes, and when he thought Roman wasn't looking, Janus mimed a little ‘call me’ motion to Remus and he nearly melted as the two left. Remus flopped onto the couch, and subsequently Roman, when the door closed with a sigh.

“You've already stolen him haven't you?”

“Were going to dinner tomorrow”

“Of course you are. I'm going to have to help you get ready aren't i?”

“Yup. and I'll make dinner on Saturday and Sunday as a thank you”

“And as payment for skimping on your original day”

“Yeah sure”

~

Remus wasn’t panicking, of course not, he was totally chill. It's just that he was bringing home an octopus at the end of his shift and then he was going on a date with a cute boy and he just wasn't used to so much happening in one day. He refocused however. He was wearing his lab coat and was sitting next to the institute's recreation of the coastal ocean with pen and paper in hand. He was recording some behaviors in the dolphin they just got, and its differences in behavior compared to their other inhabitants. It was moving slower, and did not seem to like getting close to the walls. He had many questions as he continued to note its peculiarities. Thomas walked in and squatted next to him with a smile.

“You have your inquisitive look on, whats up kid?”

Remus continued to watch the dolphin intently.

“Why is she so scared of the walls?”

“Oh, she was abused by her human caretakers, she's afraid of us still. She also doesn't like our feeding rods, or when we get in to do maintenance. She's just people shy, which isn't too terrible for her or us for the time being. She hasn't lashed out, and it's only a mild inconvenience during feeding times. The longer she's here with the others, the easier it will be, animals are great at encouraging trust in others, its key for survival. But isn't she just so beautiful?”

“Definitely! Hey, weird question, do you ever get transfers from different parts of the world?”

“Sometimes, not often though, they only transfer out of country or state if its a true emergency for the most part, and we aren't really in the hierarchy for those things”

“Hmm. I really want to see an amazon river dolphin. They're so fricken cool!”

“Well, if that's something you want to see about, and you're serious about it, I have some connections with the dolphin research center as well as Clearwater, and I think they both have some that were serious rescue cases. I might be able to set you up for a summer stint if you want?”

“Oh no, no that's fine I just, it's just one of the things that made me want to pursue marine biology. It was an episode of Go Diego Go if you can believe that. They were just, so magical, and I learned more about the ocean and like, the ocean is filled with magic that we don't even know about, and it's just, I dunno. Its a bucket list thing I guess”

“Fair. mine was jellyfish and sea turtles. Finding Nemo”

Remus chuckled at the image of the doctor as a child getting starry eyed at Finding Nemo. He nodded distantly and Thomas fully sat, giving Remus a nudge on the arm.

“What's eating at you kid? You're acting distant today, is something up?”

Remus finally looks at Dr. Sanders at this, a little shocked and confused. He looks back at the water and curls his legs up close to him and lays his head on them.

“A lot is happening and I’m scared I’m going to mess something up”

“Talk to me Re”

“Well, ok so my brother is real into theater, always has been, and he asked me when we were younger to write a musical with him. And, and it's fun, don't get me wrong, but I hate hate hate showing people my writing. And now I'm showing him it regularly, on top of my writing assignments for my creative writing minor. And like, I don't know how to feel about it. But like, it's not just that. Like, I'm a full time worker here now, not an intern, but I'm not even working full time hours, and I feel like I have to prove to you and everyone else that it was worth it but I don’t have the time to put in more hours and it makes me feel so guilty because you're losing money by upping my pay and I don't know, I feel like I'm not doing enough but I know I can't do any more. And then! I'm getting Cephy and like, I know she's gonna be a lot of work, and I'm so ok with that but I’m worried I’m gonna mess up and hurt her or something! And I've got a date with a cute guy tonight and he's my brother's friend and he's so cute and we mesh so well, but I could ruin it, like I always ruin my relationships, and then what if he holds it against Roman? He’ll hate me forever and I don't know what I would do if I lost my brother too, I drive him crazy but I know he still loves me but it makes me want to die thinking about how conditional it could be, even though he's never shown me that that would ever happen it still eats at me and god I'm a mess. God I talked too much I’m sorry boss, I'll shut up now, you didn't need to hear all of that”

Thomas hides the shock and concern on his face, choosing to nod as he rubs a gentle circle in Remus’ back. The two were very very close, they were basically family at this point, Thomas having chosen to be his mentor the moment he met him. He waits a moment to choose his words before speaking.

“I can't pretend that I totally understand your problems, but I'm aware that that isn't what you're looking for. So lets start with something easy. Cephy will not get hurt with you. There is not a single doubt in my mind that you won't be able to, while you were the only applicant, if we didn't know you were responsible enough to care for her with complete certainty and confidence, we would have sent her home with one of our older scientists. This was a long discussion and I know that you will do exactly what you have to to keep her safe. Two, you were not promoted because we needed you to work more. As I've said since you've started here, your studies come first. You were promoted because you did amazing work with what little you are allowed to do as an intern, and we could see that you would do even better with less restrictions. This was meant to give you the ability to learn more and aid in your work ethic. We don't need you to spread yourself too thin so you can work more, we have enough people for you to only work part time”

Remus nodded, he was trying to believe him, he really was, but his head kept turning them around with what ifs. He stayed silent as Thomas paused again.

“Your writing is personal, creative work always is, it is a bearing of your soul and its reasonable to be hesitant in sharing it. Even more so when it's to an overly creative person. But if I know anything about your brother, it's that he is a kind and uncritical person. You don't seem to have any reason to distrust him with it. I know that sometimes your head makes you nervous and casts doubt over others intentions, but it isn't healthy for you to be unable to trust even someone as close as your brother. And, if you let him know your feelings on it all, I'm sure he would be willing to work on it with you. This ties in with the other bit. If you have no reason to believe that something like a break up would cause your brother to hate you, then it's likely not the case. Trust that he values his relationship with you enough to endure the small likelihood of a break up between you and his friend. His friend is a bit of a wild card to you right now but just, give it a shot. It might go better than you can imagine”

Remus felt like he was about to cry. He pressed the palms of his hands into his eyes and took deep breaths. He pulled his hands away and looked at Thomas as he leaned slowly into a hug with the older man. Thomas smiled and wrapped his arms around the other and they sat there a moment in silence.

“Thank you Dr. Sanders”

“This is an emotional moment, call me Thomas”

“... thank you Thomas”

Remus had calmed down and felt far better after his conversation with Thomas, he was pretty zen as he drove home with Cephy on his passenger side. He parked outside he and Roman’s house and dialed Roman’s number. Roman picked up on the second ring.

“You back?”

“Yup. can you get the door for me, I don't want to set Ceph down on the ground”

“On it”

Remus got out of his car, opening the passenger door and lifting the rather small tank carefully in his arms. He felt bad for her getting stuck in such a small carrier tank. He got to the door and saw Roman in the doorway. Roman held out his arms.

“I imagine if I hold the tank I won't have to transfer her into the big one? So hand her over.

Remus chuckled and did so. He slid past then, opening the door to his room and lifting the cover on the big tank. He pulled on plastic gloves and did the same to the carrier. He laughed as Cephy’s arms immediately swung over the side of it. Roman nearly screamed and dropped the thing when one of her tentacles stuck onto him. Luckily he just hummed loudly and squeezed his eyes shut. Remus carefully picked Ceph up, placing her oh so delicately on the little rock shelf near the top before he released her and she dove to the depths of it quickly, swimming around happily, likely glad to have room again. Roman rushed to the bathroom, shouting as he went.

“REMUS CAN I DUMP THIS???”

“GO AHEAD! IF SHE NEEDS TO TRANSFER AGAIN I’LL JUST PUT HER IN IT WHEN ITS EMPTY, SHE CAN SURVIVE OUT OF WATER FOR A BIT”

“WHY IS SHE SO FUCKING SLIMY???”

“SHE'S AN OCTOPUS WHAT DID YOU EXPECT???”

Remus pulled off the gloves and tossed them, placing the tank lid on again before going back to the car to get the rest of her supplies. When he finished unloading, Roman was back out of the bathroom with the tank now placed under the other one in the living room. His hair, which was about shoulder length, was tied up in a hair tie, his bangs pinned up and he was wearing a black crop top with golden print of a crown and shorts. He had a makeup bag in one hand and a hair brush in the other. He had the most sinister smirk on his face.

“K, go take a shower and change into shitty clothes so we can try some faces. Go on! Its 5:45 and I need an hour to get you in order”

Remus opened his mouth and shut it, knowing that Roman was right. He sulked to his room, grabbing some pjs and heading to the bathroom.

“Roman I’m going to look like a clown with all this makeup, why are we even doing this?”

“Because you want to look nice, and you'll look better if you do a little bit of makeup to accentuate your features. And also because you suck at shaving so I'm hiding the welts you gave yourself. He won't want to kiss you if you look like you've been eating out a beehive. Now sit still! We still have to choose your outfit and deal with your hair!”

Remus did as told, pouting as he did so. Roman finally, finally put down the makeup brush. He pulled up a mirror and Remus gasped at his reflection. His face looked clear and smooth, and his cheeks had color. But his eyes were stunning. They were black on the lid, but it faded into a sparkly green shade and gosh Remus loved it.

“I’ll put some lipstick on you when you're done changing. Don’t want to accidentally stain anything”

“Ro I love it!!!!”

“Good. ok clothes next. Where are you guys going?”

Remus blinked and felt himself flush and Roman rolled his eyes. He walked into Remus’ closet with a sigh.

“Typical. Ugh, men. Jay likes anything, he's pretty basic on that, I'd say go to olive garden. Mid Range price but nice aesthetic. Plus he eats bread sticks like an actual snake. He’ll love it. Maybe plan your next date a little more though”

Remus nodded, eternally grateful for the suggestion. He followed Roman as he flipped through his clothes. Roman sighed again.

“You're so lucky I saw his outfit and know it isn't too regal, otherwise I would make you push it to later and buy you new clothes. Here, how about this?”

He pulled out his skull shirt, some ripped jeans, his leather jacket, and his fingerless gloves. Remus smiled.

“He's not against punk?”

“Of fucking course not, did you not see his outfit yesterday? He's a baby pastel punk. He thought you looked good yesterday, he’ll think you’re the sexiest mother fucker tonight if I do this right so get changed”

Remus did so, not caring enough to be modest as he changed in front of his brother. They'd seen each other in less, it didn't matter. He grabbed some socks as well for the outfit, pulling them up before tugging on his jeans. He carefully pulled his shirt over his head, keeping it from hitting his face. He was swinging his arms through his jacket when Roman grabbed his arm and dragged him back to the proper part of his room. He sat down and Roman ruffled his hair before grabbing his hairbrush. 

“Ok so we’re making this look decent. Ok so you’ve got the fucking fade done, so how about the nice swoop?”

“I have no idea what language you're speaking”

“Okay it was a rhetorical question anyways. Lemme grab my gel”

Roman poured a decent heap of gel into his hands, rubbing them together before raking them through Remus’ hair. He then took his comb and moved his hair all over to the right. He pulled a few strands free to fall in his face then pulled away and smiled as he wiped the excess gel off with some wipes. He gestured to the mirror next to Remus and once he looked at it, Remus was once again astounded.

“Roman what the fuck kind of sorcery?”

“I'm a theatre major, I dabble in makeup and hair”

“Dabble???”

“Oh honey you should see Patton at work”

“Roman, grab my docs”

“Which ones?”

Remus knew that while a valid question, it was also meant to tease and he narrowed his eyes at him. He pointed at the ones still on his shelf that had skulls. He rarely wore them, and was ecstatic at having the chance to. Roman brought them to him and he slipped them on with practiced ease.

“I think you owe me for this”

“If I give you Logan's number will we be even?”

Roman sputtered and blushed but nodded shyly. Remus grinned. He texted Logan to get his ok, which he got instantly, then sent the number to Roman.

“There you go! Now, I have a date to get to!”

“You have his address?”

“Of course not”

“You fucking spoon. I’ll text it to you”

“At least I’m not gaysexual”

“What the absolute fuck did you just say?”

“Spoonsexual?”

“Leave before I break your fucking neck”

“Fair, have a nice day”

Remus pulled up to Janus’ dorm room expecting many things. None of which he got. Janus was dressed in a black crop top with a turtleneck, a high waisted pastel yellow skirt that reached his mid thighs, and soft yellow thigh high socks. He was wearing bright yellow converse and had a golden flower headband. Remus thinks he might’ve died and gone to heaven. When Janus gets in his car he finally tears his eyes away as he goes to start driving again.

“You look nice Jan”

“As do you”

Remus avoids speaking, hoping that Janus will start talking and getting more anxious as he doesn't. Janus is playing with his skirt wait, his? Is his still a thing?

“Might I ask if you're still using he him pronouns?”

Janus looks up suddenly and smiles as a blush forms on their? Face.

“Oh, yeah, he/him all around, they them is good as well, but yeah”

“Ok cool”

“...I’m sorry I’m being so awkward, I'm a little on edge”

“Want to talk about it?”

“Not in the slightest actually. Um, where are we going?”

“My two brain cells fucked off and didn't think of that until about an hour ago, but Roman told me you liked olive garden so we’re going to olive garden”

Janus giggled and god if Remus wasn’t already gay, he wouldve been the ambassador of queerland to hear that again. He smiled and sent him a quick look, feeling his cheeks darken as he saw Janus looking at him.

“That sounds great! So um, how's the musical going?”

“Hm? Oh, it's going well. Uh, sort of. I've gotten a bit stuck on the script, and Roman’s hit a roadblock in the songs. I'm a little uh, let's say bad, at writing things like this. It's uh, it's far more tame than my usual stuff, but Roman isn't one for my more graphic shit, you know how it is. He's all unicorns and rainbows and im blood and porn, so writing something he would like is tricky to say the least. It's far easier to just translate all my night terrors and intrusive thoughts to paper than to actually be creative”

“Well, your night terrors and intrusive thoughts may be you know, normal or whatever to you, but I'm sure your writings about them are just as good! Creativity takes many forms and seeks different inspiration! I would love to see more of your writing, if it's ok with you?”

“Oh, no they're, they're shitty, you don't want to see them. They're about eldritch monsters and serial killers and they're really bad, I don't want to subject you to that”

“Nonsense! Like I said, I'm sure they’re amazing! But if you're uncomfortable showing me, then that's ok too”

Remus shuts up, avoiding the end of this conversation. Except he digs absently in the back seat and pulls out a notebook, handing it to Janus.

“It's filled with them. It's my last notebook, I suggest you just borrow it and not try and read them over dinner. Some of them make me a little sick to read. But uh, yeah. Go ahead”

Janus looks at it, the little doodles that are sprawled over the cover, and then looks at Remus with his eyes filled with stars. And Remus almost crashes, he’ll admit it, but that is a look that no one has ever given him before and he might actually die this time. They're at olive garden though, so he gets out and rushes to the other side to open the door for Janus who giggles again.

“So where'd you come up with the idea for the musical?”

Remus looked up from his food at Janus. Janus had his hands pressed together and he looked insatiable for answers. He smiled, licking his lips before explaining.

“When me and Roman were kids one of our favorite movies was the nutcracker. Around the same time that he said he wanted to write a musical, our uncle took us to the ballet of the Nutcracker live, it was our Christmas present from him. It was, well it was magical. So that was part of it. But like, as a kid I always loved reading. I found that I had loved some characters more than I had loved anyone outside my family. I had crushes throughout my life, but none of them really worked out, so I ran back to stories, it gave me something permanent and I dunno, I had a recurring dream where I would wake up and the hero or villain of my favorite books would be there and would love me. It's uh, it's a bit pathetic now that I say it out loud”

“No! Its, cute”

Janus was leaning on his hand as he stared and listened to Remus, moving to be more attentive in his posture, both arms on the table, with an insistent look on his face at Remus’ last words.

“It's not pathetic to want to be loved! It's hard to feel like you aren’t. I used theater as my escape from my shitty situation, and now I'm in college spending more money than I will ever use on anything else to pursue my escape as my reality. Sometimes it seems silly, but it makes me happy, so it's not useless. I mean, what other group would look at some guy with scars enough to play Deadpool who wears frilly skirts for fun and accept him? Definitely not any group from my home”

Remus frowns a bit.

“Anyone with half a brain”

Janus smiles at him.

Remus was dropping Janus off. He did not want to be dropping him off, he wanted to be taking him home and talking mindlessly for hours about nothing and everything, but Janus had to go, he had a shift in the morning. And Remus did as well, but all he could think of was how wonderful the night had been, and he didn't want it to end. They were standing outside, had been for a while, both of them trying to drag this out. Janus shivered and Remus immediately toar off his jacket and wrapped it around his shoulders. Janus was blushing again.

“You don't have to do that, I'm right outside my door!”

“Yeah, but this way I have an excuse to see you again”

Janus smiled and shuffled slightly. He mumbled something incoherent and Remus’ eyebrow rose.

“What was that?”

“I would really like to kiss you, if that's alright?”

Remus felt his skin burning at the question. He nodded, leaning down to kiss him. It wasn't fireworks. It was a chocolate fountain, soft and sweet and smooth, and they were pulling away and Janus looked completely blissed out. Remus felt the same way as he leaned back against the car again. He smirked and gestured to the dorm.

“You should probably head in, it's getting late”

“Yeah. yeah I should. I don't want to but I should. Um, I'll see you again?”

“That jacket is too expensive to leave with someone I don't plan on seeing again”

Janus smiled and nodded. He finally turned to go inside, and Remus waited until the door shut behind him to get back in his car and drive home. He starts the ignition as his phone rings.

“Roman holy shit Roman I’m in love help”

“Of course you are”

“Roman he wanted to read my stories”

“Well yeah, he's already shown interest in your writing-”

“No but the dark shit Roman, the nightmare fuel the terrors and murderers and the dark gritty shit I never show anyone”

“Yeah, he's really into that kinda thing. He's a fan of that genre”

“But he's, he's so soft!”

“Yeah, you only just got to his second layer of that, he's got a bunch of soft covering up the gritty fucked up interior. His words not mine. He's got some shit buried, Patton knows a bit more than me, but he really tries to keep that hidden. I knew you two would hit it off, you're very similar”

“I want to know it all Ro. I want to know everything about him, I want to know what he's afraid of and what his parents told him before bed and what dreams he has and what makes him tick and god I want to kiss him forever and never stop”

“That is the sappiest thing you've ever said. Want some coffee?”

“It's almost midnight”

“Did I stutter?”

~

Roman was distracted. He was at work, so he really shouldn't be, he didn't really have the time, but he and Logan had been texting since Remus sent him his number, and Roman had caught feelings hard. He was super hot honestly, which was unfair Roman thought, he's half his size he shouldn't be allowed to be so attractive. But they had been sending selfies back and forth, mostly because they were both too occupied with their hands and Roman fucking adored it. There was one of Logan in a tie that was slightly loosened and he was giving the camera some sort of smoulder. Roman had decided after that to explain that he was working and turn off his phone. He went to the back of the shop to grab some replacement baked goods to bring up front and he thanks his years in dance that he didn't fall when he saw Logan at the counter. He was still in his polo and tie, but the tie had been tightened and he looks significantly more innocent than he did in the photo. Roman set down the boxes and moved to greet him.

“Howdy hot stuff, haven't seen you around here, what are you craving?”

Logan smirked back. Suddenly Roman was grateful the shop was in a lull, and he's sure Logan was too as he looked him up and down.

“Well, if we’re honest I'm in the mood for a tall cup of sexy, but it doesn't seem like you're on the menu, so I'll go with a salted caramel mocha. I think its a close second in sweetness”

Roman is completely red, very unprepared for any of what was said. Logan's smirk breaks into a smile and he laughs. And Roman quickly gets to preparing his drink before he combusts. He mutters the price quietly as he makes it.

“Aren't you supposed to have me pay first? Or am I being treated by a knight in shining armor?”

“You're going to give me a heart attack, I hope you know”

“You can't expect to tease me and get away without consequence can you? You'd have to take me to dinner first to get away with that”

“I did not tease you, if anything, you were teasing me, you foul beast!”

“Oh so me sending a picture of me in full clothes is teasing, but you in your gym outfit is just the norm?”

“Of course!”

“Mhmm. keep telling yourself that hot stuff. I suppose if I did the same, you would find no problem then?”

“Wha, you go to the gym?”

“Yes, it is healthy and I attempt to keep a healthy lifestyle. In a word… duh”

Roman felt warm all over again, far more attracted to the idea than he was consciously ok with. The two had been flirting incessantly, and Roman may have teased the poor nerd a bit, but he still didn't deserve this!

“So then if the price of free teasing is dinner, then how about dinner tonight?”

“Hmm, irresponsible to wait until the day of to ask someone to dinner, but I am free tonight, so consider yourself lucky. 7 work?”

“Absolutely. I’ll be waiting for your fine ass at 7”

“Oh dear, how have you ever wooed a woman? How dare you objectify me like I'm a hunk of meat?”

“You're definitely a hunk, that's for sure. A true himbo”

“Falsehood, I have a functioning brain, you are the himbo between the two of us”

Logan grinned at him as he finished paying and took his drink. He waved as he walked away.

“Seeya tonight sweetcheeks!”

Roman didn't know what he signed up for but he was so in.

“Yeah so you don't have to worry about dinner tonight, I've managed to seduce Logan into dinner with me”

“Is that how it happened? Logan told a very different story”

“Ok no, but don't let the truth get in the way of a good story!”

“Yeah sure whatever, I guess that means I'm getting the house to myself?”

“Yup! If jay comes over please try to remember our agreement and dont fuck in the common areas?”

“What? One, of course not, I’m not a heathen, and two, we’ve been on one date, I’m a gentleman, no sex until at least the third date!”

“Mhmm. likely story”

“Oh, and one last request, if shit happens with you two, don't tell me anything you wouldn't say in a pg13 movie. If it's worse I don't want to know, I still have to go to class with him on Monday”

“Deal”

“What's cooking good looking?”

Logan was stepping in the car and rolled his eyes at the line.

“No idea, you're the one in charge of food if I can recall”

Roman thinks it's very rude how easily the nerd can manage to take his breath away. He pouts a little.

“Why were you so shy when I first met you, cuz you obviously aren't”

“Nerves. I wasn't expecting to meet someone attractive when dropping off Remus’ belongings and I startle easily”

“Attractive huh?”

“Don't get too excited, if there's nothing else other than good looks I don't imagine this will go anywhere”

“Fair, I could say the same to you”

Logan sent him a sideways glance. He was also ungodly attractive. He was wearing a black v neck shirt, black jeans, and a blazer and Roman didn't think anyone could pull off a nerd look and be hot but counter evidence was sitting in his passenger seat. Roman was wearing white jeans, a simple gryffindor t-shirt, and his letterman jacket from his high school that was a nice red and gold. He also had simple makeup done, as well as his hair being tied back, leaving his bangs to frame his face purposefully. He was really hoping this went somewhere.

“So, where are we going, might I ask?”

“Depends, do you like Japanese cuisine?”

“Yes, I'm a fan of it, why?”

“Well it was between cheesecake factory and Benihana, and we have now decided”

“Benihana? Roman, that's really expensive, we don't have to go there, I know I joked about you buying the ability to tease, but you don't have to pour a fortune into a first date!”

“Nonsense! As you said, I teased you unfairly, consider it an apology and a bribe”

“...I can already tell that you're even more stubborn than your brother”

“We came by it honestly!”

“So you're a theater major right? So you do the big three, acting, singing, and dancing? I imagine you aren't a fan of writing considering Remus is writing for your musical, but do you do any traditional arts?”

Roman was mid bite of sushi when the question came. He set down his chopsticks and grabbed his napkin to cover his mouth as he finished chewing. He finally set it down and smiled.

“I am and I do, but I do enjoy writing, but it's garbage compared to what Remus writes. As much as I'm not a fan of his subject matters, his writing is undeniably amazing. My writing is very ah, fluffy. Not much sustenance. And like, fanfiction, but that isn't like, real writing-”

“Fanfiction is real writing. Every idea is based and influenced by countless things, sometimes without realizing it. Besides, it takes a lot of the most menial and boring part of the storytelling process out. Exposition is just as difficult to write as it is to read, in fanfictions you get to start right where the interesting part starts, no boring history that means nothing to the plot other than for throwaway lines. Sorry for interrupting I just have uh, I have strong opinions on the subject. Continue, please”

Roman might’ve gone red again but he was shocked at Logan's response. It felt… nice to have the validation in the writing he enjoys. He did however, go back to the original question.

“Um, and uh, yeah I do traditional art, I don't really get? Digital art? It's just confusing to me so I just do the bare sketchbook. I think I have some pictures of them on my phone if you'd like to see them?”

“I'm actually quite intrigued. May i?”

Roman grabbed his phone and pulled up his gallery, choosing his art folder and handed Logan the phone. He went back to eating as Logan scrolled through.

“You and Remus have such similar styles in art, I'm surprised. Definitely different tastes in what you draw, but the style itself is almost indistinguishable. Did you learn together?”

“Hmm? I mean, yeah sort of. We both drew a lot when we were little, but other than the little doodles in his musical notebook I haven't seen any of his art in years”

“Hmm. I suppose that makes sense, he's very secretive and protective of his creative works. I wasn’t ever allowed to see his writing until we were paired for a writing project. Creativity is incredibly personal, and while many seek validation and approval, he seems to fit the other type that fears rejection. I can assure you, his art looks a lot like yours but far more ah, violent. And usually a fair amount of tentacles”

Roman smiled softly, he was happy to know that Remus hadn’t stopped drawing. Logan was still swiping through, eating rather absentmindedly. Suddenly Logan sat up and Roman swore that his eyes glittered.

“Is this the Marquis de Carabas???”

Roman looked at the phone and indeed it was an image of his version of the character. He nodded and smiled as Logan smiled back.

“Yeah, I was messing with plague doctor masks, and I had just finished the book. He was always very birdlike to me, so I thought it fit”

“Roman this is incredible! His coat is perfect and, and his hat? Goodness, this is so pretty!!!”

“Meh, it's not my best. I drew Door as well, I think she's a better piece personally”

“I didn't take you as someone who would like Gaiman”

“Remus loves him and he's another talented author. Besides, Terry Pratchet was one of my favorite authors and I fucking love Good Omens. Oh and I grew up on Doctor Who so that also helped”

“You like Doctor Who?”

“Hell yeah! It's probably in my top favorite TV shows I've ever watched”

Roman was walking Logan to his door and they were still chatting when they reached it.

“This was nice Roman. Thanks for taking me out”

“My pleasure. I got to spend a nice night with a radiant man”

He smirked and was ready to watch Logan step inside when Logan grabbed his jacket and yanked him down into a kiss. He stood there with his arms awkwardly floating for a moment before he wrapped them around Logan's waist. It was quick, Logan pulled away.

“I’m sorry, I should have asked first I-”

Roman leaned back in, crashing his lips against Logan’s,and it felt like a forest fire. Logan wrapped his arms around Roman’s neck and smiled into it. It was passionate and wild and warm and Roman felt like every inch of his skin was burning and he never wanted to let go. They did though, and Roman stared a moment at Logan's face, admiring the blush that colored it. He knew he wasn't any better. They stayed there until Logan finally spoke.

“Do you um, do you want to come inside?”

Roman released him, and had to hold back a chuckle at the sad whine that left Logan when he did so. He leaned back in, placing a small kiss on his nose before stepping back.

“Sorry doll, not on the first date. ‘Sides, I have work in the morning. Maybe next time though. Text me”

Logan nodded and watched longingly as Roman got in his car and drove away. He sighed softly before stepping inside of his home, reminding himself to get another date with Roman, and soon.

Roman was about to shout about how his date went when he walked in, but he saw the lights in the house were all off. He walked to the living room and cooed at the scene he was greeted by. Remus was sprawled over the couch, one leg on the floor and one arm over the back of the couch, and Janus laying on top of him, curled up small with his head over Remus’ chest and Remus’ other arm wrapped protectively around him. The two were both passed out and Roman chuckled. He went to his room and came back with a blanket to cover them with before going to his room to sleep as well.

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Fandom: The Witcher Pairings: Geralt/Jaskier  Words: 16,147 Chapter: 1/5 Summary: After a job goes wrong, Geralt must rely on Jaskier as he is left blind and deaf. As they attempt to navigate the curse and find out how to lift it, Geralt comes to realize that his feelings for the bard have grown deeper - but how can he know if Jaskier returns those feelings if Geralt can't see or hear him?

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your skin carries echoes of me

Winter in Temeria was a hell of a thing. The entire country was, broadly speaking, a damp and slightly rancid place. From the time of the first thaw until the Velen equinox, it was redeemable by virtue of the sweeping golden fields in the countryside and the lush, vibrant forests in the west. Come winter, however, the forests became gray, fractured matchsticks scratching at the sky, the golden fields rotting away into mud and gravel. Even when it wasn’t cold enough to set your teeth on edge it was wet, slimy and miserable. Humans and monsters alike tended to burrow into their respective hovels until the warm rays of the spring sun graced the region once again.

Which is why Geralt, finding himself deep in the south as autumn began turning the landscape around them a fetching red-gold hue, was in desperate need of some quick and easy work. Wintering in Kaer Morhen would be out of the question. There was no way that he could make it to the pass through the Kestrel Mountains before the winter snows claimed the valley. And besides that, he had a particularly aggressive tag-along that he suspected wouldn’t fare nearly as well as Roach might along the steep mountain trails.

Said tag-along was standing besides Geralt at a notice board in the ramshackle town they’d stopped at for supplies, a pout on his youthful face. He crossed his arms over his chest, the deep navy of his current ensemble stained near black in places from the muck of their travels. “I just think,” he continued, resolutely ignoring the fact that Geralt was ignoring him, “that she cheated us of well-earned income. I mean, ‘a fearsome beast tearing apart the garden and scaring off the sheep.’ Those were her words! ‘Kill the beastie that’s ate my poor Bella.’ That was the job! It’s not our fault the culprit was a wild dog and not a bloody griffin.”

Geralt pulled a flyer down from the board, looking it over before turning it in Jaskier’s direction. “Caravan escort?”

The other man sniffed, eyeing the paper with a distrustful look. “The last one of those ended poorly. If they want entertainment that’s one thing.”

“Hmm. Roadside protection is asking too much?” He stuck the flyer back in its place, looking over the others again. Nothing too promising - someone asking for help with autumn logging, the herbalist looking for fool’s parsley, a dog gone missing. Not exactly witchers’ work, though he supposed he was reasonably skilled enough in alchemy to dig around for roots and plants if it came to that.

“It’s not that it’s not a reasonable request,” Jaskier said. “They just always seem to want it for a very particular reason that they aren’t at all ready to discuss with the hired help. It’s just. Well. It’s one thing to prepare oneself for the inevitability of bandits on the road. Quite another to wake in the middle of the night with an assassin’s blade at your throat in nothing but your drawers.” Geralt shot him an amused look. “A situation that you handled admirably. Still. We wouldn’t be in these circumstances if that hag hadn’t skimped on us.”

“Hmm.” People rarely, if ever, paid what they said they would in Geralt’s experience. Once their fear of the monster was assuaged, their distaste for mutants resurfaced with a vengeance. They seemed to have little remorse about trying to weasel their way out of their agreements, though it happened with less and less frequency the longer Jaskier kept his company.

Geralt glanced back at the bard as he turned away from the unhelpful notice board and back towards Roach. The man had been traveling off and on with him for some time now, though this latest stint had been longer than typical. They crossed paths often enough, but usually Jaskier would only spend a few weeks trekking after the witcher before disappearing back into civilization once again. He would spend his time on the road singing snippets of ballads, humming seemingly thoughtless tunes and plucking the strings of his lute absentmindedly. The witcher would have said that the bard used his time with Geralt to freeload if he didn’t inevitably hear the same snatches of song on the lips of strangers, even in the most remote parts of the land. And he had to admit, his purse had been significantly heavier, the eyes of strangers less accusatory, in the last few years than they had been in decades.

Jaskier continued, unaware as ever of Geralt's internal musings. “She hired a witcher, and that’s what she should have paid for. I don’t think -” Jaskier was suddenly interrupted by a hand reaching out to snatch at the sleeve of his embroidered doublet. He made a small noise of surprise, likely in reaction both to the hand and to Geralt’s sudden move into his space as he faced the newcomer. “Excuse me!” the bard exclaimed, and Geralt was unsure whether it was directed at him or the assailant.

Who, fortunately, turned out to be a pleasant looking middle aged woman, who quickly let go of Jaskier’s tunic when Geralt stepped forward. She backed away, shoulders drawn in fear. “F-forgive me, sirah, but if you please, I have a request for you?”

She phrased the statement as a question, and Geralt attempted to relax his posture invitingly before he realized that her eyes were unfocused and clouded. She was blind. He cleared his throat. “Go on then.”

“Well, sir, um. I heard your companion -” she gestured vaguely in Jaskier’s direction, leaning around Geralt’s shoulder - “mention you work as a witcher? If that’s for true, I would ask for your help. We’ve not much by way of coin, but we’ll find some way to gather a nice pouch for you if you care to help us. We’ve been plagued for too long now, and I’m not sure how much more we can take.” Her hands twisted in her stained apron, which smelled faintly of flour and cloves. A baker, or a baker’s wife.

“What’s the problem?” he asked, cutting to the chase.

“A witch,” she said, her voice pitched slightly lower, as if she feared said witch was listening in. “It began with the chickens. She was takin’ em at night, to use in some foul ritual, and then a pig. And the animals in the wood have all run off, it seems. Samuel, our hunter, hasn’t found more than a few pheasants in weeks, and with the snows comin’ we’ll need meat to dry. A few of our men tried to confront her, and when they came back they were all foul tempered, mean spirited to a one whereas before they were gentle souls. I went to confront the wench myself, and she…” Here the woman grew quiet, drawing herself inwards as she reached up a hand to hesitantly touch below one of her sightless eyes. After a moment she shook herself and stood again, shoulders back in defiance of her plight. “Please, master witcher, help rid us of this scourge and we will find a way to repay you.”

Geralt opened his mouth to speak and found himself cut off by Jaskier, who was already pushing his way forward to gently take the woman’s hand in his own. “My lady, I give you my word that we will do everything in our power to help you with your plight. Consider it done.”

The woman looked near tears. “Oh, bless you both. Bless you.”

Geralt huffed, annoyed at Jaskier accepting his job for him despite the fact that he’d planned to say the same himself, though in significantly less words. “Fine.” Jaskier turned towards him with a bright grin. “Where can we find her?”

* * *

On the plus side, despite the fact that this witch seemed like, well, a bitch, they were typically easier to deal with than monsters. They usually wanted something, or were trying to get something, but they weren’t nearly as difficult to manage as a kikimora or, gods forbid, a sorceress. Most weren’t actually capable of going up against a professional witcher; their magics were more indirect in nature, a glimpse into the future here or slew of bad fortune there. Very few had anything approaching the battle magics wielded by true mages, or even the alchemical knowledge of a witcher. Most could be reasoned with, forced into moving on or, if necessary, put down with a bit of steel. Geralt was sincerely hoping that it wouldn’t come to the later in this case.

Which was why Jaskier had been allowed to tag along, much to Geralt’s chagrin.

The bard, for his part, seemed happy to have been allowed to come. Despite his detailed and often blatantly exaggerated retellings of Geralt’s exploits, Jaskier was rarely allowed to actually come along for the battles themselves. He had, at this point, utterly perfected the art of sneaking after the witcher on hunts, staying far enough away that Geralt’s heightened senses wouldn’t pick up his presence and closing in when Geralt was distracted by his quarry. It had, to the witcher’s extreme annoyance, actually proved useful once or twice. It wasn’t that his life was typically in danger when he was injured in a fight, but. Well. Having someone around to help patch up his wounds and haul him back to an inn was an improvement on lying in the mud throwing back potions until he could stand again.

This time, Jaskier was traipsing along by the witcher’s side, after he had - again, much to Geralt’s annoyance - convinced the witcher that he would actually be an asset on this particular hunt. Geralt anticipated that this job would involve a lot more talking than fighting, and even he could admit where his skill set ended and Jaskier’s began. In spite of his frequent bouts of oversharing and his tendency towards nervous chatter, the bard was profoundly charismatic. Geralt was made keenly aware of this every time he found himself searching for Jaskier in a crowd or buying the man another round at the bar in spite of his own oft-light coin purse. It wasn’t his fault; Jaskier just did that to people.

He hoped it would come in handy this time around. He really didn’t want to have to kill this witch.

“So, what do you think she’ll want?” Jaskier said, his eyes on his boots as he unsubtly moved through the underbrush. He’d recently been convinced to finally purchase a pair suitable for traveling, and had immediately had them dyed an aggressive shade of mauve. “New dress? Pearl earrings? Our first born sons?”

“Witchers can’t have children,” Geralt corrected absentmindedly, holding a branch back so that Jaskier could pass. “And I’m assuming you’ve already fathered many.”

The bard spluttered indignantly at him, and Geralt turned around to hide his smirk. He paused suddenly, holding a hand out towards Jaskier to stop both his squawks of protest and his forward momentum. It said much about Jaskier’s character and his time with Geralt that he halted immediately. “I think we’re here.”

The cottage was small, almost cozy, with smoke curling lazily out of the chimney and ivy clutching the west facing wall. It looked more like a place that someone’s elderly relative might retire to than a witch’s hovel.

“Looks like a nice place to settle down,” Jaskier pipped, echoing Geralt’s thoughts uncannily. “Should we knock?”

Geralt held up a finger and Jaskier quieted, allowing the witcher to listen. He closed his eyes, breathing slowly through his nose as he peeled away the layers of noise around them. A witcher’s senses were sharp, but often finding specific information in the cacophony of life was like searching for a needle in a haystack. It took years of training to learn how to turn the blunt instrument of their broad senses into a finely honed scalpel. Geralt fell into that place as he had so many times before, concentrating on the house and everything in it. The thick smell of honeysuckle from the plants growing against the side of the cabin, the sweet scent of cedar and pine, the faint rust of old blood. Rustling leaves, the muffled snap of wood burning. No shuffling footsteps, no soft sighs. No heartbeat, fluttering quickly away in comparison to the slow rush in his own ears.

“She’s not here,” he said a moment later, satisfied that the witch was nowhere in the immediate vicinity. “Stay put. I’ll see if I can find out where she went.”

“Tch,” Jaskier said, for once following directions as he leaned against a nearby tree. “Out looking for babies to gobble up, perhaps?”

“You’re thinking of witchers,” Geralt quipped, already checking for footprints around the stoop. Jaskier barked a laugh behind him.

“I had no idea your diet was so restrictive,” the bard replied, mirth coloring his tone. “It’s an honest mixup, you see, witches and witchers.”

It was novel, still, having someone to jest with while in moments like these. Geralt looked up to find Jaskier watching him with an amused expression, something soft in his gaze that Geralt had seen before. It always lingered with him when Jaskier inevitably moved on. He could say with absolute certainty that no one else had ever looked at him like that - with an utter lack of fear and pure, open affection. Feeling off balance, Geralt tried to focus back on what he was doing, away from Jaskier’s too-blue eyes.

This, too, was part of the reason Jaskier wasn’t invited on hunts.

The man was… distracting. Geralt wasn’t sure exactly why. He was loud, and annoying, and occasionally disarmingly funny. And sometimes, when Geralt brushed a leaf out of his hair and Jaskier turned to him with a grateful smile that was devoid of nervousness and the sunlight through the trees made his skin honeyed gold, he was very… something. Something distracting.

It wasn’t great for Geralt’s concentration.

That’s what he would blame it on, later, when he was cursing himself for not noticing her approach. Jaskier was too busy thinking of something else snappy to say about witchers kidnapping children, and Geralt was too busy not-thinking about the way Jaskier’s eyes shone when he laughed, and the witch walked up already fuming.

She was tall, almost as tall as Geralt, with brown hair woven through with silver cord and viney tattoos winding up her arms. At first they looked to be flower designs, but Geralt’s keen eyes could make out small, detailed runes etched out between the artwork. The witch’s bright blue eyes, cold as chips of Yuletide frost, bore into him intensely. “You are trespassing,” she said sharply, sliding her hand into a woven bag she had draped over one shoulder. “I told you all not to return here.”

Geralt stood slowly, resisting the urge to look towards Jaskier. From where she was standing, it was possible that the witch could not see him, hidden as he was in the shadows of the forest. She had emerged from another path that came around the backside of the house. Based on her equipment, it looked like she’d been hunting for herbs, possibly near the river to the north of the town. “Folks from the village sent us to discuss the… situation,” he said slowly. “W- I don’t want any trouble.”

The witch gave him a disbelieving glare. “Trouble is all I get these days, witcher. Don’t look surprised, I’ve heard the songs. I’m not a complete recluse. I know the White Wolf, as they call you, or the Butcher of Blaviken. I suppose I should be honored that you’ve graced my small corner of the world.” She spat the words at him, sneering. “Tell those simpering peasants that if they want to burn me at the stake they’ll have to come and light the tinder themselves.”

Geralt sighed. This was more antagonism than he’d hoped to start out with. “Haven’t heard anything about stakes. They just want you to stop stealing chickens.”

“The blood was for protection rites, to protect my home from the whoresons that have given me no rest since I arrived. They came a fortnight back with accusations on their tongues and cleavers in their hands, and I turned their fury back towards those they love.” She smirked. “I thought it was poetic.”

“People are always spiteful,” Geralt said, annoyed. “You can’t pay them back in kind.” He wasn’t unsympathetic, of course. Throughout his life he had more often than not been spat on and cursed at whenever he showed his face around humans. They knew that he was other, sensed how dangerous he could be if he decided to turn his skills on the ones who fed him. In his experience, this did not make them more cautious in his presence. People reacted to fear with violence in most cases. But the only appropriate response was to turn the other cheek. He could cleave through an angry mob without a second thought, destroy an entire village if it struck his fancy, but it was not what he had been made for. He had refused to let himself be molded into a monster for decades. The least this woman could do was try the same.

The witch broke him from his frustrated thoughts with a snort. “Easy for you to say. Always moving, never in one place for long. People call you a hero. ‘Friend of humanity.’” She scoffed. “They call me a devil. I could help them, and instead they cast stones my way. No,” she said, eyeing him coldly. “I will not bow to them.”

“I can’t let you continue to do them harm.” He felt tired. This wasn’t how he’d wanted this to go. Against his will, he found himself looking in Jaskier’s direction, and found the bard looking back at him with wide eyes. He seemed conflicted, his hands wringing the strap of his lute case nervously as he looked between Geralt and the source of the witch’s voice. Debating whether to try and step in, solve things diplomatically, Geralt realized. He shook his head slightly, and Jaskier nodded, though his brow furrowed in distress. When Geralt looked back to the witch she was watching him with an expression of disgust.

“You’re just like them,” she said, her voice angry and filled with grief. “No one understands. No one sees .” She drew herself up, pulling her hand from her bag. In it she clutched a handful of items - herbs, some kind of stone, and what looked like a human ear. “Very well. If you can hear no foul lies and see no bright pyres, you’ll do less harm to me and mine.” She raised her hand.

Several things happened in rapid succession. Geralt drew his silver sword, and ring of metal on metal echoing through the clearing as the witch tossed the objects into the air. He rushed towards her, raising his hand to begin etching the sign of quen . From his left there was a burst of noise, and he had time to think, ah, Jaskier just as the bard tackled the witch to the ground. She landed with a cry and quickly elbowed him in the jaw, a surprising move from someone so slight. Jaskier tumbled off of her from the force of it, and she turned back towards Geralt. Her eyes were full of fury as she opened her mouth and shouted a word.

Geralt’s sword swung down towards her neck, and the world went dark.

Part Two

[lopithecusfanfiction]

Take it All Away: Chapter One

Author: Lopithecus Pairing: Aaron Dingle/Robert Sugden Rating: Mature Word Count: 4548 Alternate: AO3 Summary: When Robert goes out to a club, he doesn’t expect what happens. He should have been more careful, should have paid more attention. Now his life is flipped upside down all because of one stupid mistake. Warnings:

Rape/Non-Con

Non-Consensual Drug Use

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD

Blackouts

Memory Loss

Implied/Referenced Self-Harm

Self-Harm

Panic Attacks

Other Additional Tags to Be Added (I will update this post when more are added)

Author’s Note: This is a “what happens if Robert is the one to get assaulted instead of Victoria” fic. I wrote this mainly because I wanted more hurt Robert (because I’m cruel and I like to see characters I love suffer.) I wasn’t planning on posting this until I was done with it but I wanted to post it before Ryan leaves the show and that is, unfortunately, coming up fast. I do have Chapter 2 and 3 done but that’s it. Updates will most likely be slow but I never abandon a story, so I’ve got that going for you. Also, my brother’s name is Aron so I’m not used to writing the name with two A’s (I actually often times forget that most people do spell it with two) so if you see at any time during the story I’ve spelt the name with one A, just let me know so I can fix it. This is my first fic in the Emmerdale fandom. I also live in America so I might get the slang they use on the show/things that are called differently here than in the UK, wrong. Hopefully I’ve obsessively watched the storyline enough times to pick up a few things, lol! I’m also not going to be able to remember to change the spelling of words that are spelt differently here than in the UK nor would I know all the words that are spelt differently (i.e. z vs s) so I’m probably going to just use the American spelling. I’m sorry if this bothers you. This is set around the time Robert, Aaron, Ellis, and Victoria go to that club except it doesn’t play out in this like it did on the show. Please enjoy!

Robert saunters down the stairs, fixing his tie around his neck. He can smell the toast Aaron has made and it makes his mouth water, stomach growling with hunger. Once at the bottom, he approaches Aaron and Liv, where they are sat at the kitchen table, eating cereal for breakfast.

“Good morning,” he says, leaning down to kiss the top of Aaron’s head. He sits down and takes a piece of toast, taking a big bite out of it.

“Mornin’,” Aaron replies, mouth full of food. Liv gives him a smile but says nothing.

“I have a bunch of meetings today and then I have that late dinner celebration I told you about with a few of the new investors,” Robert comments.

Aaron nods. “Yeah, I remember.”

“So you’ll be home extra late then?” Liv asks, getting up from the table and grabbing her school bag.

“Probably,” Robert answers.

“Well maybe, Aaron, you could have tea with Chas then.” Liv shrugs on her bag. “Then I can have Gabby over without my annoying older brother hovering over us the whole time.”

“Aren’t you going to be late for college?” Aaron quips, giving Liv a playful look.

Liv laughs. “I’m just saying.”

Robert watches the scene play out in front of him, his own smile of amusement on his face. He’s always loved seeing the playful banter between Aaron and his sister. It often reminds him of how he and Victoria are sometimes. There’s just something gratifying about picking on your younger sibling.

Liv says her goodbyes and leaves The Mill. Aaron watches after her, a wistful smile playing at his lips. “What?” Robert asks him.

Aaron takes a deep breath and finally goes back to eating his cereal. “I’m just glad to see she seems to be moving on from that whole Jacob stuff.” He slurps his cereal as he drinks the milk from the bowl.

Robert makes a face at the sound. “She’s a strong kid. She can get through almost anything.”

“Well, she does have the perfect role models when it comes to getting through tough times,” Aaron says with a small, playful smile.

Robert chuckles. “If you say so.” He stands then, leaning over to give Aaron another kiss on the top of his head, grabbing a couple pieces of toast on his way. “I’ll see you later, yeah?”

“Yeah.”

*~~~*

Robert sits in a booth in the back of the Woolpack. He isn’t really looking forward to this dinner. He would rather be at home, curled up on the sofa with Aaron while they watch some corny film Liv picked out. He really hopes this doesn’t take long and comes up with a plan on how to make this whole thing go by as fast as possible while he waits. All he really has to do is eat a small meal while he schmoozes the guests of honor and buy them a few drinks. It should be easy.

That’s why Robert isn’t sure what to think when the children of the investors arrive instead of the men themselves. Two men and a woman who are probably about nine years younger than he is, approach him with wide smiles. He looks back at them in confusion, eyebrows knitting together. One of the men holds out his hand for a shake and Robert takes it. “Nice to meet you Mister Sugden-Dingle. I’m Lucas.”

The other man shakes Robert’s hand next. “Name’s Trevor.”

“And I’m Meghan,” the woman says, not offering her hand.

“Please, call me Robert.” Robert looks from one to the other. “Sorry, but I thought I was meeting-”

Lucas cuts him off. “Our fathers?” He chuckles. “Yeah, they thought we would have more fun instead.”

“But they’re the ones who made the deal,” Robert comments, incredulous. He’s starting to feel a little frustrated now. He didn’t come out tonight to entertain a bunch of young adults and if he’s being quite honest, it’s really unprofessional of the investors to send these three in place of them. “Sorry but,” Robert stands, “they really should have come out themselves.” He scoots out of the booth, grabbing his jacket. “It was nice meeting you but I think I’ll be off.”

“Woah, hold it.” Lucas steps in front of him. “We were promised a good time tonight; food, drink, the lot.” He smirks. “You wouldn’t want us to tell our dads that you skimped out on us, would ya?”

Robert isn’t sure what to say. He can’t lose these business deals, not if he wants the money from them. He and Aaron are trying to have a baby and they can’t do that if the new haulage company doesn’t work out. They’re desperate to make money, even if it means Robert has to entertain a bunch of children.

He sighs. “No, I wouldn’t.”

Lucas’ smile grows bigger. “Good! C’mon, let’s go.”

Robert stops them. “I thought we were only going to have a few drinks and some food?”

Trevor scoffs and looks around the Woolpack. “Not here.”

At that, the three of them turn and begin leaving the pub. Robert sighs again, heavier this time, and shakes his head, following behind.

*~~~*

Robert gets even more confused when the taxi pulls up next to a club. He gets out and turns to the group, asking, “Weren’t we just going to another pub or a bar?”

Meghan walks up to him and runs her hand over his shoulder. “And where’s the fun in that?”

Trevor smirks at him, wrapping an arm around Meghan’s middle. “Come on, Rob, lighten up a little. It’ll be fun.”

Robert bites his tongue, deciding that snapping at the little git wouldn’t do him any favors. Instead he says, “It’s Robert and this isn’t what I had in mind when I agreed to this.”

Trevor and Meghan laugh at him and start walking away to the queue while Lucas pats him on the back, leaving his hand at the nape of his neck. “It’s what our fathers want, Rob; for you to show us a good time and this is how it’s going to happen.”

He shrugs the man’s hand off. “I don’t really care what your fathers want. This is unprofessional to send you instead of coming themselves.” He looks the kid up and down in bewilderment. “I don’t really understand why they thought this would be okay.”

Lucas laughs, loud and obnoxious. “Because they’re too good for you, Rob. You’re some poor little pillock while our fathers are rich and powerful. Don’t you see, mate, they’re having fun at your expense.”

“They’re winding me up then?”

Lucas shrugs, walking away. “And the best part is, is you’re going to deal with it because you can’t lose this deal from what I’ve heard.”

Robert takes a deep breath in, trying to calm himself. This whole thing is ridiculous but he knows Lucas is right. He is going to deal with it. He has to. His and Aaron’s future depends on it. So with another quick, calming breath, he follows along and joins the queue at the entrance to the club. It’s quick moving, so it doesn’t take them long to get in, the three of his companions being ID’d. Robert heads straight for the bar and groans when he feels Trevor’s hand on his shoulder.

“You’re buying us all drinks, mate, and trust me, Meghan can put them back like you wouldn’t believe.” Trevor laughs and orders the three of them drinks. Robert pays reluctantly, glaring at them the whole time, and sighs in relief when they decide to leave him alone for a while to head out onto the dance floor, drinks in hand.

Robert turns back to the bartender and orders himself a beer, pulling out his mobile. He quickly navigates to Aaron’s name and starts typing out a text, wishing he could call him just to hear his voice which he knows will instantly calm him down, but the music is too loud to do such a thing.

To Aaron: sent 19:24

Save me

From Aaron: received 19:25

Sorry, can’t. Got Liv and Gabby drama to deal with. I’ll tell you later. What happened?

Robert sighs to himself again and begins explaining to Aaron what is going on. He finishes his beer by the time he’s done typing it all out and sending it, finding himself ordering another one. He tacks on one last message, wanting to get across just how irritated he is.

To Aaron: sent 19:36

It’s frustrating and unprofessional. They’re treating me as if I’m some chav who doesn’t know what he’s doing

From Aaron: received 19:37

I don’t get it, if it’s that bad then why don’t you just drop ‘em

To Aaron: sent 19:37

Because we need this money, Aaron. It’s for our baby

From Aaron: received 19:39

But is it really worth it?

To Aaron: sent 19:40

Yes it is. Anything is for our baby

From Aaron: received 19:41

Anything? Because we’ve been there before, Rob, and look where it’s gotten you

Robert rolls his eyes at that, annoyance building up in him for Aaron’s use of his past to have a go at him again.

To Aaron: sent 19:42

This isn’t like last time. This is legit

Robert can practically hear Aaron’s scoff as he waits for a reply.

From Aaron: received 19:42

Yeah okay. All I’m saying is don’t do too many things you’re uncomfortable with just for this

To Aaron: sent 19:43

I won’t. Promise

From Aaron: received 19:43

I’ve got to go. Try to have at least a little fun, yeah?

To Aaron: sent 19:43

Impossible without you

Robert smirks as he puts his phone back in his pocket, knowing Aaron scoffs again as he shakes his head, chuckling slightly at Robert’s comment. He turns around and leans against the bar, watching the crowd as they dance wildly to the music that is playing. He shakes his head in amusement. There are so many people that are willing to make fools of themselves once a little bit of drink is in them.

Within fifteen minutes, Robert is well and truly bored. He hasn’t left the bar and he finished his second beer ages ago. He debates getting another but he’s not really fancying the idea of getting plastered tonight so decides to forgo it. The problem is, now, he’s stood by the bar with nothing to do but people watching and he doesn’t even have anything to occupy his hands with. Robert scans the crowd for Trevor, Lucas, and Meghan and spots them in a frenzied dance, looking as if they are having a brilliant time.

Rubbing at his eyes, Robert turns back around to face the bar and orders another drink, relenting to the fact that he needs to do something to get through this night. He wonders how long he has to stay for it to be appropriate to leave, and figures he’ll probably have to buy his “mates” for the night a couple more rounds. As if in answer, Meghan comes up to him and leans in close to his ear, speaking loudly to be heard over the music, and hand snaking its way around his waist. “‘Nother round on you, aye?”

Robert nods with an eye roll and waits for the bartender to come his way before getting his attention. He orders them a couple more drinks, handing over a few more quid than necessary to pay for any future drinks they might get. She walks away with a flirtatious smirk and wink and Robert feels his face turn into a grimace before he can stop himself. Megan throws her head back and laughs, the sound lost in the noise of the music.

He’s stood there for another thirty minutes before he decides enough is enough. This whole night was a waste of time and he’s tired, agitated, and just wants to go home to Aaron where he can snuggle up next to him in bed. Robert sets his beer bottle down on the bar and pushes off it, ready to go tell Lucas that he’s leaving when someone bumps into him, spilling half their drink on his shirt. Robert has to bite his tongue to stop the retort that wants to come out, his mood becoming even more sour. He likes this shirt.

“So sorry, mate!” Robert looks up from his soaked shirt to a bloke who is about his age. The man reaches out to wipe at the liquid staining Robert’s shirt before realizing that he doesn’t actually have anything to wipe it up with. He pulls his hand back, frowning. “Shit, I didn’t see you there.”

Robert has to take a deep breath before speaking. “It’s alright.” He turns in the direction of the toilets.

“Oi, let me help you,” the man says, walking beside Robert.

Robert holds his hands out, dismissing him. “I’ve got it, thanks.”

“Look, it’s my fault. Just,” the man puts a hand on his shoulder, stopping Robert from walking away, “I want to help.”

Robert resists the urge to roll his eyes. “Fine.”

They both head into the toilets where the music quiets to a low thump, Robert’s ears ringing slightly. He grabs a handful of paper towels and starts to dab at his shirt. “You’ve got to get the towel wet first.” Robert’s eyes snap up to the mysterious bloke who spilled his drink on him.

“Look, I’m just trying to dry it. I was on my way home.”

“But you don’t want it to stain,” the man says as he grabs more paper towels and wets them under the tap. “Here.” He reaches over and starts to wipe at Robert’s shirt.

Robert stands there, not really knowing what to do. He can feel the heat beginning to crawl up his neck at the other man invading his space, getting uncomfortable at the proximity. The only person who isn’t blood related to him (besides Diane, of course, but she’s like blood) who has been this close to him recently is Aaron. He grabs a hold of the man’s hand. “I can do it.”

The man shrugs, taking a step back and handing over the paper towel. “Suit yourself.”

Robert eyes him before looking back down at his shirt. It couldn’t have just been a beer that was spilt on him. No, it had to be some fancy, colorful drink that is surely going to leave a blotch of red on his shirt. He sighs in defeat, throwing the paper towel in the bin. “It’s no use.” When Robert looks back up, the man is biting his bottom lip and Robert has to roll his eyes at the sight. “Don’t worry ‘bout it.”

“Well, at least let me buy you a drink to make up for it.”

Robert’s shaking his head before the bloke even finishes his sentence. “No need. I was going home.”

“Just one drink.” The man is smiling at him.

“I’m married,” Robert says, pointedly.

The man chuckles. “I noticed, I saw the ring.” His smile grows, playful like. “Come on, it’s a harmless drink. Just to say sorry.”

Robert stares at him, debating. One drink won’t hurt, will it? It’ll please this man and it’ll give his shirt a little time to dry before going home. Sure he’ll still smell like a boozer but at least he won’t have to ride home in a taxi with a sopping wet shirt. “Alright, go on then.”

The man’s smile grows impossibly wide and he leads the way back out into the club. They push their way over to the bar where Robert leans down on it, arms crossed, and waiting for the bartender to make his way to them. “Name’s Theo.” The man, Theo , says, leaning a little closer to be heard.

Robert gives him a nod in acknowledgement. “Robert.”

Theo purses his lips, nods in approval, and turns back to the bar, the bartender asking for their order. Theo orders for the both of them and Robert quirks one of his eyebrows in question. “What?”

Robert shakes his head. “Nothin’. Just don’t want one of those fancy drinks.”

“You mean the ones with lots of colors and weird names?” Theo teases, laughing at him. “Don’t worry, it’s not.”

They don’t have to wait long before Robert spots the bartender coming over with their drinks. He’s about to reach out for his when he hears his name being called. He’s never rolled his eyes so many times in one night. Turning around, he faces Lucas who is perfectly bladdered. “Mate!” He wraps an arm around Robert’s shoulders, leaning into him. Robert suspects if he moved, Lucas would collapse to the floor by how much he was holding himself up on him. “We thought you had left.”

“Yeah, mate , I was just having one more drink then leaving.” Robert tries to push him off but he holds on firmly.

“You haven’t danced with us yet,” Lucas slurs, resting his head on Robert’s shoulder.

Robert groans in annoyance, pushing harder. Lucas stumbles back off him. “I’ll pass, thanks.”

Lucas waves him off, sticking his tongue out at Robert, and Robert stares after him in uncontained disbelief. “Friends of yours?”

Robert turns back to Theo who is holding out his drink. It’s some blue liquid with one of those mini umbrellas in it and an olive, all contained in a cocktail glass. Robert hesitantly grabs for it, frowning. “No, thank God. I was just someone who could pay out on their drinks.”

Theo chuckles. “Then it’s a good thing I bought you yours.”

Robert’s eyes travel back down to his drink. “What in hell is it?”

“Just try it,” Theo says, smile playing at his mouth in amusement. “If you don’t like it then I’ll buy you a beer instead.”

“Didn’t I tell you I was going home?” Robert brings the glass to his lips.

He doesn’t miss the way Theo’s eyes travel the length of his body. “You did and that you’re also married.”

Robert licks his lips. “I don’t cheat.”

“I never asked you too.” Theo gives him a quick nod, directed at the glass still by Robert’s mouth. “Drink.”

Robert shakes his head and sips at the liquid, swallowing thoughtfully. He gives it a second, dragging it out just to annoy Theo who looks at him expectantly. Finally, he shrugs. “It’s not bad.”

Theo nudges him. “See, I told you you’d like it.” The man takes a sip from his own drink, another one of those colorful ones.

“This,” Robert gestures between the two of them, “me drinking this thing, stays between us, yeah?”

“Mate, I’m probably never going to see you again after tonight. Your secret is safe.”

Robert huffs, shaking his head, and drinking more of the blue liquid. Theo watches him from the corners of his eyes, smiling flirtatiously at Robert every once in a while. By the time Robert is done with the whole thing, he’s a little more than just tipsy. He carefully sets the glass down with shaking hands. “How… how much alcohol was in that thing?” Theo shrugs and Robert frowns at him.

“You alright, mate?” Theo asks him, hand landing on Robert’s shoulder.

Robert almost falls to the ground, losing his balance as the room starts to spin. “I…”

He hears Theo laugh beside him, the sound almost distant. “You’re completely pissed.” He puts one of Robert’s arms over his own shoulder, helping Robert keep balance. “Let me help you to a taxi.”

Robert stumbles along as the room continues to spin out of control, leaning onto Theo. His stomach is doing flips and he seriously starts to think he’s going to be sick all over himself when the next thing he knows, he’s in a taxi sat next to Theo. His eyebrows furrow in confusion as his body starts to relax into the seat. “Did I tell you where I live?”

Theo watches him but Robert can’t focus. “Of course, you did. That’s where we’re headed.”

Robert shakes his head, his movement feeling sluggish. “I don’t… I don’t remember telling you.”

When he blinks next, he’s in some kind of lobby, sitting in a chair. He looks around, confused, sweat covering his entire body as he shakes uncontrollably. He’s having a hard time focusing on things, his vision blurry and unfocused. Every once in a while the room will sway and it’ll make his stomach feel like it’s doing somersaults. Robert looks around the room for a bin he can be sick into just in case, but can’t find one.

Theo strides up next to him, lifts his arm, slinging it over his shoulder once more, and helping Robert out of the chair. “Come on.”

He’s cold, that’s why he’s shivering. He’s naked and he’s cold and where is he? Robert looks around again, limbs feeling heavy, and he’s in a room, a hotel room by the looks of it - he doesn’t remember how he got there - with Theo sitting on the edge of the bed, back towards him and fumbling with his… his trainers?

“Wasn’t I going home?” He’s confused. Robert meant to go home. Why is he here? Did Robert tell the taxi driver to bring them here? No, no Robert wouldn’t cheat on Aaron. Not again. Not ever again.

Right?

“Theo…”

Theo turns to him, pulling his shirt over his head. He leans over, kissing Robert softly. “Shh, it’s fine.”

Robert blinks and groans as his heart pounds in his ears. His head feels like there is a hammer inside of it and his body is sticky with sweat. He’s lying on his stomach and Robert groans, the light overhead making his eyes hurt. He tries to bury his face into the pillow but grimaces when his face is met with wetness and the stench of vomit. Turning his head back to the side, his eyes roam over the room. He was expecting to see his bedroom, Aaron next to him, but is confused when he sees unfamiliar wallpaper. Where the hell is he?

Swallowing, he makes to get up, arms feeling weak as he tries to push up. When he bends his right leg to get leverage, fiery hot pain shoots up from his back. He hisses and immediately lies back down, breathing hard. That’s when he realizes it doesn’t just feel like sweat that has made his body sticky. There’s another semi-dry substance on his back and between his cheeks. His stomach churns and Robert has to swallow multiple times to try and keep from being sick, something he has obviously already done but can’t remember doing so.

Did he really get drunk and bring a stranger to a hotel room? No… no, he only had a few drinks. Definitely not enough to get shit faced. No, something else… Theo, Theo had gotten him a drink. Did he get drunk from that one? He couldn’t have. It didn’t taste very strong and besides, he wouldn’t have slept with some random bloke. He doesn’t do that anymore. He knows he doesn’t. Then… then the only explanation is…

Robert groans again, feels the bile rise up his throat, and jumps out of bed to try and make it to the toilet in time. He doesn’t and he ends up vomiting on the floor, pain shooting throughout his entire body. His legs shake with the effort of keeping himself up, one hand supporting his weight on the nightstand. He can feel something dripping down the inside of his thighs and Robert really needs to get out of there.

Frantically, he searches the room for his clothes and when he finds them, he pulls them back on with great effort, trying to ignore the pain his body is in. When fully clothed, he stumbles out of the room and makes his way slowly to the front desk where he tries not to show his discomfort. “Hi, checking out.”

“Name?” the receptionist asks him.

Robert hesitates, not knowing what name Theo put the room under. “Uh, I don’t know what it’s under.”

The receptionist frowns at him and Robert feels his face grow hot in embarrassment. “What room number was it?”

Robert shakes his head. “I-I don’t know.”

Her frown grows more prominent. “Do you have the card key? I can’t check you out if-”

Robert’s stomach flips again. “Just never mind.” He pushes off the counter and heads to the front doors, ignoring the woman’s calls. They’ll just have to figure it out themselves.

When he exits the building, he isn’t expecting it to be pitch black out. Screwing up his eyebrows, he looks at the time on his watch and groans in dismay. It’s half past one in the morning. Aaron is going to be freaking out. Robert quickly gets a taxi and tells the driver where to go, wishing he would drive faster as Robert pulls out his mobile. He has a few texts from Aaron.

From Aaron: received 23:02

Where are you?

From Aaron: received 00:24

When I said to have fun, I didn’t mean stay out this late, Robert

From Aaron: received 01:13

If you think I’m waiting up for you any longer, then you’re wrong

Shit. How is he going to explain this to Aaron? When he said he was going to be home late earlier, he had meant ten maybe eleven at the latest. Not almost two in the morning. Aaron is going to kill him and then when he finds out why Robert was so late, he’s going to resurrect him just to kill him again . Robert has to come up with an excuse and it has to be one that Aaron will believe. Aaron can never know he cheated again.

No, wait, he didn’t cheat. He… he can’t remember but he knows he didn’t cheat. That’s right, he already came to that conclusion earlier in the hotel room. Robert lays his aching head on the window, getting confused again. No, Theo… Theo gave him a drink. That’s when he started to feel weird, after he had drank it. So something… the drink. The drink had something to do with what happened. He can’t remember.

With a pain filled moan, he rubs at his face tiredly. The taxi driver is saying something to him, something about getting out and paying him. Robert lifts his head and looks out the window, eyebrows furrowing. He can’t be home yet. He doesn’t even remember half the drive there.

The drink must not be entirely out of his system yet.

Whatever was in the drink must not be out of his system yet.

Robert struggles out of the taxi and pulls out his wallet and pays the taxi driver. He stumbles up the drive, to The Mill, and fumbles with the keys for almost two minutes before he finally gets his coordination correct to unlock the door. When he enters, everything is quiet and Aaron is nowhere in sight. Glancing at the stairs, he contemplates attempting to climb them but his legs are shaky again and the room is spinning once more.

He barely makes it to the sofa before he collapses on top of it and passes back out.

———————————————————————————————————–

A/N: I haven’t written in months and I feel like the beginning of this chapter shows it, but hopefully it got better as it went.

I have so many British Slang/words links saved that it’s ridiculous.

Also, yes, I know how unrealistic it is for investors to send their kids to the dinner celebration. That’s the wonderful thing about writing. I can have anything happen even though in reality it would probably never happen, lol!

Thank you for reading! I hope you stick around even though I know nothing about the UK and how you all talk. If you want to give me any pointers, please feel free. Am I using too much slang? Should I use arse instead of ass? Let me know! I’m always willing to learn. ^_^