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bitterseaproduction · 5 months

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An Indispensable Silver Lining | The Hobbit Ref Dump

So, I can’t (see: don’t want to) go on with An Indispensable Silver-Lining until I can sit down and rewatch some Desolation of Smaug to pin down some character locations, and I really wanna decide if I’m going full movie-verse or embracing a specific fanedit or book+movie mix and what timeline I want to hold myself to for Thorin—

Can you believe I started this fic thinking ‘I’m not going to get bogged down by canon or details this time. I just wanna write for the fun’? 😂 That went well.

Point is, just because I want to gather some canon facts? It hasn’t stopped me from writing up 1500 words of a chapter 2+ plan, or over 6 THOUSAND WORDS of long-term storyboarding in less than THREE DAYS covering Smaug and the men/dwarves/elves factions and the orcs and some of the bagginshield progression and the ‘act 1’ climax and like three ways ‘act 2’ could break bad, and— well, you can tell it’s a true passion project when I keep stepping away, think of another thing, and scramble back to my phone to jot down a few hundred more words in whatever moments I can steal. And, more pertinent to this post, I can’t stop devouring a ton of resources and inspiration.

So, with that in mind, I thought I’d just share something of those sources! For fun, for later reference for myself as I write, for practical use if you’d like it yourself, or maybe you just want something else to read and these are great fics/lore bits to choose!

Updated May 15th, 2024. Additions marked with a *

The Hobbit Trilogy Fan Edit Sources

A Comprehensive Guide to Fan Edits of the Hobbit Trilogy An older list, but viable for what it covers

Help on choosing Hobbit fan edit? Which is the best? A second reddit list, a bit more modern.

FanEdit.org: Lord of the Rings franchise A comprehensive list of options for The Hobbit + other LotR works

* Specific Fan Edits

I still need to watch all of the edits I've found properly from beginning to end, but after skimming through a number of options, looking for specific wants and do-not-wants in each and reading/watching a few things on how each version was created, I think I have narrowed my interest down to these three fan edits:

Chris Hartwell's Hobbit Trilogy A very comprehensive cut that keeps pretty much all of the movie beats intact, just trims down the trilogy's more clunky spots to create a more polished film experience. (i.e. a reduced Radagast, Alfrid, older Bilbo, some of the action scenes, etc.) Generally prioritizes Bilbo as the MC and his dynamic with Thorin as the through-line of the story and includes some of the extended scenes that highlight both, which I really appreciate.

The Hobbit, or There and Back Again An edit that more fully cuts some of the less loved factors of the movies like the Tauriel romance, but not nearly as cut-heavy as a lot of the more well-known fan edits.

The Compromise Cut Very similar to 'or There and Back Again' but more ambitious in rearranging footage to create new beats to cover cuts vs 'or There and Back Again' being more of a clean 'straight from the source' cut.

For my purposes, Hartwell's will probably be my go-to for full lore and plot inclusion & the most 'bang for my buck' while being a cleaner watch than the OG, while There and Back Again or The Compromise Cut are what I would share with friends who despise some of the film-only content, but are willing to give the trilogy another try.

I know there are a number of other great edits of there, M4 and MapleFilms being especially loved, ~but~ I set a rule for myself that any edit that cut the carrock hug was instantly out, so these were the three I landed on.

Resource Websites

The Encyclopedia of Arda Tolkien Gateway LotR Online

Specific Details

TEoA: A Viewer’s Companion (AUJ) TEoA: A Viewer’s Companion (DoS) TEoA: A Viewer’s Companion (TBoFA) TEoA: Longbeards + The Other Clans

TG: Quest Motivations Generally good overview of the point of the quest and what happened.

TG: Smaug Role / Gandalf motivation "Following the sack of Erebor, Gandalf felt that Sauron would take advantage of Middle-earth's weakened state and attack Rivendell and Lothlórien or try regain Angmar; he also feared that Sauron "might use" Smaug "with terrible effect". [...The White Council] attacked Dol Guldur in TA 2941, while Sauron and Smaug could not "help one another". [...] his adversaries were able to drive him from the fortress with relative ease. [...] Sauron abandoned Dol Guldur willingly, and returned secretly to Mordor, where he would openly declare himself in TA 2951, and began preparations for his final war to dominate Middle-earth."

TG: The Arkenstone Arkenstone info from book and adaptations

* Khuzdul Words for Fanfiction Writers A resource for Khuzdul words for - as the name says - fanfic writers!

Durin's Line Tapestry from DoS Shows the family connections with original book birth dates for all. Even though it was presumably made pre-sacking in 2770, and 3 of the company depicted were born after Erebor fell. That... is curious.

The Line of Dwarves A more thorough (and intriguing) look at the dwarf lines and relevant dates, all book-based.

Comprehensive Genealogy Chart of all the Hobbits from J.R.R. Tolkien's Legendarium My gosh is this expansive... and hard to load up on a screen, but if you don't want to miss something, check this!

HOBBIT FAMILY TREE: How are Bilbo, Frodo, Pippin, Merry, and Sam related? The less brain-breaking hobbit tree that focuses on the main 5 from the books.

Lord of the Rings Hobbit Family Tree More of a middle-ground on the 2 above options.

* Prominent Hobbit Families and Individuals A lovely breakdown of the hobbit families as a group, what they are like and who are the crucial members of those families.

Bag-End PJ Hobbit Map Crucial for Bilbo background & any Shire scenes if they come!

* Untangling Middle-Earth's many routes to evil A map of where all of the characters traveled in The Hobbit and The Lord of the RIngs! I found this handy when I was trying to track Gandalf in particular.

A chronology of The Hobbit A day-by-day breakdown of the journey in The Hobbit, great for what-ifs and assessing likely travel times!

Suggested Alternative Timeline For The Hobbit by @avelera A very nice older post on a potential timeline alternative for The Hobbit films. As said above, the films do use the original dates in places, but as this post says, they don't always make sense about it. This is a nice option to consider instead.

Major Inspiration Fics

Backs To The Wall by @conkers-thecosy My current top TH/LotR read, a great active WIP, definitely a direct inspiration to me with the failure to get into Erebor leading things off course! And I'll likely have a parallel Laketown focus for a bit, though nothing as detailed and lived-in as Conkers' fic. And, aside from great writing and general motivation to write TH/Bagginshield, I love the portrayals of the characters (BILBO, Thorin, Gandalf, Dwalin, Nori, Bard and the Bardlings--) and pairings. Definitely tempting me towards Dwalin/Nori here!

And I'm Your Lionheart by Lee_Whimsy There always seems to be a fic in every fandom of mine that draws me in very early, becomes and instant fave, and then hangs there unfinished but perpetually on my mind. The 'one that got away' fic. This is it, and I shall forever love it, and you can just bet it will bleed into my takes somewhere, especially with Gandalf and Legolas and Bard and Fíli, if I recall correctly. I should totally reread this, or at least sections of it. Reading to the 'end' is... painful.

The Most Precious of Treasures by @sapphireshelle91 Another long untouched WIP, but a VERY different one, as it is a) post-TBoFA, and b) features a female Bilbo and parentshield with dwobbit!Frodo. I include this one because a) I love a number of the characterizations, b) if 'And I'm Your Lionheart' gives me the infrastructure and maintenance inspiration for Erebor, THIS fic delivers on the politics and intrigue, and c) I am a HUGE sucker for parentshield, be it biological or adoptive, so naturally I'm contemplating it for my own fic. Still iffy on which way I'll take it, but I've fallen down some intriguing rabbit holes in regards to Shire culture and Bilbo's background while considering the biological option, and I'd be loathe to abandon those ideas now. But either way, this fic deserves a definite nod for motivating me to come up with ideas.

Home Behind and Home Ahead by Etharei Love the characterizations in this one, and anything that gives me a tap into Bilbo's character is appreciated. And I don't know if I'll draw much on it for this fic in particular, but I love all forms of parentshield and this is a lovely dynamic between the three characters, so I'd happily draw from it in the abstract.

* Planting a Hobbit by @northerntrash I adore the vibe of this! A sweet 'Bilbo in Erebor' AU focused on the dwarves (Thorin especially) being so silly and endearing in their efforts to make Bilbo happy, and featuring some nice world and dynamic building in the process.

* Bad Blood by @conkers-thecosy Yo~ give me a nice what-if any day, and having it feature a protective!Bilbo + ardent!Thorin + gremlin!elvenking in the process, with a side of dwarven culture and royal politics? For it.

* [explicit!] Safe and Distant by Lindzzz I ADORE a Bilbo like this. A Bilbo who isn't oblivious about his feelings or denying them, but whose self-image/image of Thorin makes him unable to Comprehend anything not one-sided could come of those feelings. Who celebrates Thorin's good regard with joy and accepts it as 'enough' and 'more than he could ask for'. Who would probably just combust at the idea Thorin might want more, might want something beyond what their adventure can provide, just as Bilbo does... or just as Bilbo would, if he would allow himself to even accept that as a possibility. A Bilbo who finds the idea of Thorin wanting him back terrifying, because to hope for that and be wrong? It would shatter him. ...Yeah, I am very, very for this Bilbo. (And that doesn't even touch on the Thorin or the last chapter, omg-)

* [explicit] Canoodling by @avelera This fic is sweet. This fic is funny. This fic touches on differences between the Tolkien cultures and misunderstandings and the unique ways that could affect intimacy with a couple, and you know that bagginshield is a gold mine opportunity for all of that. I love any explicit work that plays with experience levels and expectations and lets the couple mess up and then swing it back around to lovely afterwards, because that's realistic and relatable and thus, when done right, all the more attractive a read! And this one does it well, a good foundation read.

#bagginshield #the hobbit #an indispensable silver lining #aisl reference #reference post #fic recommendations #the hobbit fan edits #If I don't get to watch DoS or at least a fanedit this weekend I will riot

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tikay21 · 1 day

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🐺How to use hashtags on tumblr to organize a story!

It was like paddling in an open sea .... Ok, it really took me 4 years to figure out the thing with the internal hashtags on Tumblr and realize that there is an advantageous sense in them initially only working within your own blog. If you don’t really need them, the benefit isn’t immediately obvious.

Plus, the display of the most commonly used hashtags leads you to assume they are more universally intended. The advantage of internal blog hashtags didn’t click for me - until the moment I actually needed them to bring order to my blog chaos and understood that you can easily sort everything with them, especially when it comes to storytelling.

I originally thought: “I'll make sideblogs for the stories, so I can have everything neatly gathered, with matching colors and background images." However, the hashtags from the main blog don’t work in the sideblogs anymore unless I link them and unless I’ve missed something again. Now I’m wondering if I even need the sideblogs anymore. Probably not. So, new plan:

I’ll post everything on my main blog

tag it with both specific and general tags

using intern unique tags for different supposes

and that’s pretty much it. At the top of a pinned post, I’ll provide an overview of what you can find under which hashtag, and they’ll automatically function as a sorter for an entire internal storyline. Done.

Btw, thanks for the right hints, which made me take a closer look, test things out, and understand how it works by answering my question on it here ...

@figure-it-out-later and @tenyrasims - which made me think about it and especially @satureja13 for the needed key to my head to unlock this blind point🥰. from @satureja13 : ... I just make sure to tag every post properly so I can add new stuff to my pinned post. You can also keep your pinned post clean by making sub posts, like I do for my chapters, for example. ... I can find every event, character, location… within seconds. That’s what I really love about tumblr.

So, what can I do now to satisfy my need for beeing over organization🙈? Technically, I could delete the sideblogs, but I can also use them in parallel, reblogging the respective content there, and thus have everything in a separate place, visually appealing with the story-appropriate colors - for my own peace of mind or for anyone who prefers to read there. But I’ll only reblog, not post the original, so following the sideblogs isn’t really necessary - though of course, you can if you prefer the color-coordinated layout there. If I ever decide it’s all too much, I can delete the sideblogs without losing my original content, as long as I only reblog from the mainblog to the sideblogs.

Is anyone still following? Probably not,😂 but I think this works for me.

Long story short: I’m going to rearrange things once more and adjust the pinned post accordingly... and bring any duplicate content back to the main blog. My old stuff from before the long break will stay here, and maybe I’ll update broken links if I ever get bored - not that I know the meaning of the word, lol. Otherwise, it’ll just stay as it is, since there’s barely anything left in my EA gallery, except for the stuff that can’t be deleted.

Ok, here we go ...

#how to organize a storyline via hastags #tikays #sims story

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1moreff-creator · 2 days

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Not related to DRDT, But I saw in your pinned post you like FNAF. If you haven't answered this before, which FNAF game is your favorite? Or who is your favorite animatronic/character? I like fnaf1 foxy :)

Yee FNAF! I might not talk about it here much, but it is the fixation that Always Comes Back for me, so I’m glad to have an excuse to ramble about it :D

Favorite game is a bit complicated because I haven’t played all of them (my computer couldn’t handle the FLAF demo it is not running Security Breach), but depending on the day, it’s one of FNAF 1, Sister Location or Help Wanted.

FNAF 1 gets a ton of nostalgia points, the atmosphere is immaculate, and the little story it has is fantastic, though without as much complexity as later entries.

Sister Location is horrible on the replayability department… except I count the Custom Night DLC as part of the game, and that’s pretty fun. The game itself is fine on a first play through, has pretty good atmosphere, and (in my opinion) beats FNAF 1 in terms of self-contained story, themes and narrative weight, wider lore and character building. Night 5 is (in my opinion) one of the best written segments of any FNAF game, both Real and Fake ending.

Help Wanted also beats FNAF 1 in terms of self-contained story (those tapes are genuinely an awesome evolution of the Phone Guy concept), and the introduction of Vanny is genuinely captivating (regardless of how much they fumbled her in later entries), but it also added certain elements to the overall plot that I don’t quite like the ramifications of (even if I tend to ignore the “in-universe games” debacle, I dislike what it represents for theorizing). In gameplay it’s generally better than SL, but it’s not as charming as FNAF 1. Though I feel my opinion of it would change if I could actually play it in VR, but alas, that is not my situation.

It’s hard for me to pick between those, frankly. Probably Sister Location though, I just like the characters too much…

What shit I forgot Into the Pit. Yeah no it’s Into the Pit probably. Even accounting for recency bias the game’s insanely peak lol. Still gonna leave those other three there, for posterity xD

Speaking of liking SL characters; Baby and Puppet are my favorite animatronics, though admittedly that’s more of an extension of my favorite characters being Charlie and Elizabeth (that order). Btw, FNAF 1 Foxy is a very good and solid pick, I respect it :D

I genuinely think Baby in Sister Location has an argument for best written character of the entire franchise bar maybe Movie Mike, and I am willing to defend that take. A ruthless killer born of horrible circumstances, yet compassionate at heart (see: the very fact she chose to form Ennard instead of leaving with Michael’s body on her own, “the scooper only hurts for a moment” line), in her eyes betrayed by those she saved because of being… well, a child.

Shame her character got absolutely assassinated in FFPS. Unless she was trying to manipulate William. I know it’s not ever even remotely suggested, but I genuinely would have no (serious) complaints about Baby’s character if that’s what she was going for in the “I will make you proud” speech.

As for Puppet, old fan favorite for a reason. It was always a standout of the cast, which obviously meant I loved them, and the exploration of its personality in UCN in particular is pretty cool. To be clear, my enjoyment of Charlie as a character is based on highly specific interpretations of certain lines, but when literally 90% of the story is up to interpretation, I feel that’s not too surprising.

In particular, taking Charlie as a deeply regretful person, who realized how badly she fucked up by reviving the children only after dozens of night guards had been killed and they’d already been trapped for years, with possibly hundreds of deaths on her hands, just trying to make things right again. And, just, so, fucking, tired, by the time Lefty happens (see: Lefty UCN lines). And don’t even get me started on the angst potential of being tortured by her supposedly loving father in the Bear Torture Contraption, the mistakes of her past haunting her because Henry sees her as the bloodthirsty night guard killer that no longer exists (see: she doesn’t attack Michael in FNAF 3), and hearing that he wants to “save her now” as she burns half-alive. Etcetera.

Again, hyperspecific. But I like it, so.

For the sake of completionism:

My favorite Silver Eyes character is probably Elizabeth/Adult Charlie/Baby (why is this character so hard to refer to).

Favorite Frights character is probably Eleanor. She’s just so sassy and girlfailure and somewhat intriguing she’s fantastic (or, at least, better than other Frights characters in my books).

Favorite Steel Wool Era character is Gregory if he dropped the elevator and probably Vanessa if he didn’t (I wonder what that says about me lol).

Favorite Mega Cat games character is Oswald (not that many to pick from tbf).

Favorite movie character is Mike. Just a really amazing spin on the already solid basis of Michael Afton.

Favorite Interactive Novels character is Ralph (is it cheating if I mainly like him cuz he’s Phone Guy?).

And… do I really not like any character from Tales? I don’t remember almost any of the stories very well, but I guess if I’d liked the characters enough, I’d remember them.

Since I don’t care about Edwin for now, I guess the Mimic is the only real option, but I’m not the biggest fan. I have hope Secret of the Mimic will sway me to actually caring about the guy, though! I’m already enjoying what we have of Jackie, because in case it wasn’t obvious by the fact I picked Eleanor over Jake or Larson, I kinda enjoy the fucked up clown women quite a bit! Mimic will never be Ennard, but he can get close, and there’s worse things to be than worse-Ennard.

Thanks a lot for the ask! I might have been wanting to write about FNAF more than I’d realized lol.

#fnaf #ask #reminder to ask me about any interest listed on my intro post if you want!#i have to update that lol

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psshaw · 2 years

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Got some interesting anons while I was hiking on vaycay. I've been thinking about how to answer these for awhile.

Content warn for detransitioner coping. Also me rambling at varying levels of tact. Obvs I'd appreciate any trans or detrans people who have something to correct or add to help this person.

Hi. So. 2 things you’re doing here that I think both cis and trans people mess up at all the time, especially when they're stressed.

One: Listening to other people more than yourself. Two: Looking for other things to blame in a way that stops you from learning from your own choices.

I think I understand some of what you experienced, but the conclusions you’re drawing feel distorted and self-serving. It feels like you jumped from one prescriptive view (girls have to be boys in order to like certain things or talk to certain people) to another prescriptive view (masculinity is something you have to earn and perform in a certain way).

Anyone who critiques what you do or how you present yourself for not fitting a certain term has more in common with a 50s martini dad than they do with a walk-the-walk humanitarian. Personally, I am not interested in defining masculinity (or femininity, which I notice you didn’t claim to also have prereqs for)— I know some soft-ass bitch men who are still men. Standards for gender are arbitrary location- and time-specific rules. They’re also weapons we use to fuck with each other. Imo calling someone un-[gender] is kinda like telling a western teen with an ED that they’re not skinny enough: it's not helping anyone's health or peace of mind. The only point is to feel superior somehow.

I don’t see a point in setting hurdles for gender expression when I can instead worry about demanding unisex reasonable and rational interpersonal behavior.

(I also just find gender extremely boring. I was not raised to care much about who's doing what as what. Gender should matter in sociology, pronouns, fucking, and... that's probably it. Focusing on whether someone is performing something correctly or whether you should buy an enamel pin that says "spacegender" on it are both addictive navel-gazing activities that could be replaced with more demonstrative self-actualizing like making art, joining a hobby/activism community, or reading something you normally wouldn't.)

I don’t think I need to tell you that taking hormones in order to make friends is a very strange thing to do, no matter how young or lonely you are. I think you should check in with yourself ASAP to figure out why you sought out voluntary medical assistance to impress other people. (People who you assumed would only talk to you if you were trans…? So, possibly bad people.) This would never have occurred to me. (I am scared of needles.) This sounds like a tendency that will kick your ass more than just this once.

The nice thing about people is that you can walk away from one and find a better fit. If you're a weird chick, I hope you take pride in being a weird chick. I hope you make yourself hard to replace or replicate. I hope you learn to love unnerving or impressing people as you flip through them looking for the ones who "get" your wavelength. I would personally rather have no friends than to try to please someone who doesn't like who I actually am. That sounds exhausting.

If someone actually told you you can't use "she" pronouns while taking T, that person's a dorky little snot. "Uhhh, the Gender Bible says this is a violation of the Gender Commandments... I'm telling Gender God"— big deal. Gender Spankings and Gender Hell only exist if you believe in them. Fuck the system.

But yeah— you tried something, it was a mistake, and now you have to navigate life with it, like an impulse tattoo or juvenile leg-lengthening surgery. You are not a “mutant”, you just slid around the human secondary sex characteristics scale. My condolences on the beard and stuff. I think the best you can do now is to find a way to embrace it and let it make you an extra quirky gal. You have a dark past now! That means experience! You can use this flub to make yourself into a cooler, smarter person that future kids can admire and learn from, not someone obnoxiously bitter who they won’t even wanna talk to.

The way you describe your experiences/projections, I assume you were born after 9/11. The millennial trans people I talk to don’t talk about gender the way you’re describing. They grew up in the “no homo” and “I’m not like other girls” era, and I think it made most of them pretty "none of my business" about how people present overall. They just wanna be able to go out and be respected and loved.

I’ve noticed that Zoomers have perfected identity-based consumerism and putting yourselves(?) in boxes. I have traced a vague progression: GNC/queer people existing forever while being maligned -> “no homo” shit -> Tumblr wave feminism -> greater LGBT acceptance leading to freer expression (but still mainly via buying clothes and makeup) -> more people realizing you can fuck with gender and see if it solves your problems -> genderfuckery becoming a half-joking recommendation (I've experienced this directly) -> half-joking rehashes of gender essentialism without realizing it -> The Present, where I’m watching the early 20-somethings I know fret every few months about what gender/sexuality/mental health labels they should use, as if there’s going to be a quiz at the gates of Heaven.

Obviously I don’t get that last half. Part of that is because I’m cishet, and I’ve checked in with myself enough to know that there’s no other label that will solve any of my problems. I know that every time I acknowledge an autism semi-diagnosis, it makes me content with my flaws instead of trying to fix them. I would much rather be on thin ice and have to be alert to how my actions affect others than to be implicitly accepted because I called myself something. Again, what in you craves that kind of effortless belonging, even at the cost of your sincerest wants? Do you crave unconditional love, or would you prefer deep understanding? What can you feed to that need instead?

I'm friends with trans people because we share the same hobbies and worldviews. My friends do not seem to care that I'm cis as long as I'm respectful. I like that I can fuck with gender stuff around them and they won't judge. If someone jokes that I'm wrong about my own identity, I do get kinda embarrassed for them, but I also choose to take it as a compliment that they see themselves in me. Nobody can control what I do. I love being a good example and reminding people of all groups not to assume!

I also don't list identity stuff in my bios, so everyone has to give me a chance and guess based on how I act. Then... they find out they like me. >:)

Anyway. I hope you feel better! I hope you make some friends who aren't freaky-obsessed with gender, "critical" or not. I wouldn't mind hearing more from you, but also: I will not debate the validity of transness with you, because I think there are way more important things people do that we need to whine about. Also it puts me in a weird position cos I don't like to yell at anons.

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kadavernagh · 1 year

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TIMING: Current LOCATION: In the woods PARTIES: Regan and Metzli SUMMARY: Metzli found a dead raccoon and has just the right thing in mind for it: a little art and necropsy sesh with Regan. But Regan has something else in mind, and decides it's necessary to address the dead elephant in the room -- that Metzli doesn't feel quite right. Or alive.

Regan hoped coordinates would suffice. It was always difficult giving qualitative directions for locations in the woods, especially those off the beaten path. But this was one of Regan’s favorite streams, only a couple of miles from her cabin, and she decided, after much deliberation, that she was willing to share it with Metzli today. Them offering a raccoon carcass was a kind gesture, one Regan didn’t think she deserved, and she would do her best to be accommodating in return.

She could feel it, or them, roving through the forest. A nucleus of death inching closer to the coordinates she provided. Even when Metzli had stood away from that dead gull, Regan could feel the waves of death rolling off them. Like they’d stepped on a mouse and it clung to the bottom of their shoes, or they covered themselves in decompositional fluids instead of cologne. Regan was never wrong, not when it came to death. It just didn’t make sense. So as Metzli emerged from the trees, exactly where Regan felt they would, she kept a curious eye on them and the raccoon. Perhaps she could do some more experimenting today.

“Metzli. Welcome.” She nodded, absent a smile or excitement in her tone, but seeing Metzli was not bad. “I come here sometimes. Look for fish and frog bones among the pebbles.” Regan sat down on a river-battered rock by the stream and stuck her fingertips into the water. It helped the pins and needles die down a little. “Why don’t you find a location for the raccoon? One suitable for the art you wish to produce.” And one, Regan hoped, far enough away to provide some answers.

Just as before, Regan had provided specific coordinates, making it easy to find where she stood comfortably. She looked in her element, almost at home, in a way. Metzli stood just out of sight for a few beats, watching Regan watch the area they were standing in. They knew she couldn’t see them yet, they were a master of stealth, but her eyes bore into them anyway. It was almost hypnotic, and Metzli had to blink away the unfocus to bring their legs to move again.

“Regan.” They bowed their head, eyes devoid of emotion and lips barely giving a discernible smile. If the last time Metzli and Regan were together was any indication of her version of fun, they were excited to see her in her element. Last time was for them. This was for her. “Yes, ma’am.” Metzli replied, sliding off their bag of materials while keeping the trash bag containing the carcass in their hand.

Metzli hadn’t processed an animal in years, and never in a medical way, but they figured the two of them would need a dryer location. Something away from the stream. Their intense gaze hovered over the landscape, stone and shrubbery decorating it. “Hmm…” Metzli strode toward a particular flat stone. It had a slight incline and a few ridges, but with Regan’s expertise, they didn’t think it would cause her any problems. “How is this?” They pointed, delicately placing the bag on the rock.“Will this work?”

Carrying the raccoon’s remains around in a trash bag seemed a little disrespectful, but Regan understood that it might have been a necessity. Especially if wet decomposition was happening. And by the smell that hit her when the bag was open, that was precisely the case. Being in Metzli’s presence once again was also a worthwhile tradeoff, even if it confused her. The first time they met left Regan feeling wrong, too human, longing for something she had long discarded as an option. She had attempted to drown it out of her. Right here in this river, actually, down the way where the water grew dark and deep and no one could hear her gasping for air.

“Yes, that will work nicely. You have an eye for this, which is not surprising.” She followed Metzli over to the rock and helped fish the limp racoon from the bag. Well, it mostly just kind of slid out, slick with purge fluid. She touched the animal’s tiny fingers and appreciated every little bone inside of them. While they were here to examine the animal, and Regan came equipped with a full set of dissection tools, she figured Metzli might have wanted to capture the animal’s likeness first. “Did you bring anything for your art?” She hesitated a moment, feeling a little guilty about asking what she asked next. Metzli had the right to enjoy being near the racoon, too. But… “I’d like to ask you to step away from it now. Go, um, over there.” Regan pointed in the other direction, right next to the stream. It would be far enough away from the remains for her to be certain of the source of her prickling skin.

Looking back at the art bag closer by the river, Metzli raised a brow, turning back to Regan and nodding. “I did bring things. But painting take too long. Mostly bring sketch materials.” They looked at the corpse reverently, musing internally about how the use of graphite would give the remaining patches of fur life. It took a certain kind of finesse with pressure to get things like hair to feel correct. Something Metzli had mastered over the course of their life.

Excitement began to brew, and with a blank face, they began to happily stim as they stared at the raccoon. A small thing that had developed not long ago. Metzli rolled their wrist over and over again, stopping immediately as they registered Regan had requested something of them. “Oh.” Their shoulders drooped bashfully, and Metzli looked back towards where they left their bag by the river. “Yes. Sorry. Will get bag too.” They turned on their heel and retrieved their materials, shouldering the bag as they stared back at Regan.

“Do I stay here?”

When Metzli turned back to collect their bag, Regan stood on her toes, alert, like it would help her better triangulate exactly what she was detecting. “Yes, um… stay there.” As they split off from the raccoon, that one nucleus of death divided in two, and Metzli walked away with the bigger piece. A shiver jumped down Regan’s vertebrae when she looked at Metzli. What on earth did it mean? Why did they feel so similar to that lovely, pulsing raccoon? But below the familiar buzz of death, there was a dark, sinister edge, that feeling of wrongness she’d picked up on them – and others – before.

“You’re sure the entire raccoon is over there?” Regan pointed toward the inert lump of fur, which, short of some patches of fur, looked to be complete. “None, um, in your pockets?” She knew better than that. What she was picking up from Metzli’s direction was far larger than a misplaced dead raccoon’s tooth or toe. As part of her training, Regan had been blindfolded numerous times, dropped in the middle of the woods, and told not to return until she located the desired remains. Had Regan not been able to see Metzli, she would have gone right up to them, mistaking them for something as substantial as a deer, albeit one with some pathology she could feel in her bones.

She didn’t understand, and she didn’t like that. She was above fear, like any force of nature should be, but the unknown still filled her with a dread that she couldn’t excise no matter how deep she cut. Regan stiffened. She had allowed some small part of her to hope that she was wrong, that it wasn’t something wrong with Metzli. But there was something profoundly wrong. She had spent time around next of kin who also happened to be guilty of homicide, was familiar with the way death clung to them, mixing with their guilt or fear. She didn’t think this was that.

“Metzli. I am unsure about proceeding. We have something to address.” She looked over at the raccoon, all the more certain that the waves of death she felt against her skin weren’t just coming from there. “There is death on you, and I need to know why.”

Oh. Regan no longer wanted to continue, and a small inkling of something crept up into Metzli’s stomach. They thought the two of them were making great headway, becoming friends. There weren’t many people like them, and while it wasn’t bad, there was something comforting in knowing someone who matched their stoic disposition. It didn’t make any sense, though. Rejection was all too common for someone like Metzli. When were they last rejected? Had it really been so long that it now presented a negative effect?

“Did I do something wrong?” The happiness that rolled their wrists was gone, replaced by a need to fix whatever they had broken. “Can fix.” Metzli stared off into the ground, wide-eyed and distant. “Very good at f-fixing.” They blinked, finally. Words were beginning to fail, but Metzli needed to understand, needed to do something.

“Or is this requiring punishment? You can—” She could sense death. Was she like Siobhan? Was she like one of the banshees Honey had mentioned? The ones who thought people like Metzli to be abominations needing to make their death final? “You sense me.” They droned, brows stitching together like their thoughts. “Are you—I can tell you why.” Rocking back and forth on their feet, Metzli began to pace in a small circle. Nervous energy was still energy. They needed to use it. “Can you tell me why you sense? Think I know why but it is your truth to say. Not mine.”

“No punishment. No one gets to punish you, Metzli – never again. Úsáideann tú do scian féin anois. You wield your own knife now.” They were nervous, flustered, maybe even hurt, and Regan felt a pang of remorse. It was all she would permit herself. She strangled back the rest. She would be strong enough not to wield her own knife today. Strong and honest. But there was no one to make proud.

“Yes. I sense you. I sensed you last time, on the beach, and I sensed your presence today before I even laid eyes on you. But… it should have been the raccoon I was sensing. Only the raccoon.” Did they understand, somehow? As on edge as Metzli seemed, they had drawn the right conclusion. Why? Why had they expected this? “Why I sense…” Regan sucked in a breath of air and exhaled it through her teeth. It was a good question, and one that had eluded her for six years now – despite all of her own questions, all of her frantically leafing through old pages, all of her autopsies. She knew the answer Metzli was probably searching for; they wanted to know why she had such an ability. I’m a banshee was a terrible answer on several levels. It offered no satisfying biochemical explanation. It was also, as far as Regan was concerned, horse feces. A convenient name for some undescribed syndrome and inescapable duty, offering more questions than answers.

“You can stop pacing. I told you, no punishment. Not from me, or from yourself. I don’t– can’t. I can’t tell you.” It was true enough. She didn’t know what to make of Metzli’s insistence that they thought they knew, or the tormented look on their face she’d noticed more than once. Were they still thinking of punishment, of their “master” and troubled past? “What I can tell you is that I’m never wrong about this. You can understand why this conflicts with what I know of people, of you, and the fact that you’re very obviously alive and well.”

Regan was right. Regardless of the way they’d always carried a knife, Metzli never seemed to have control. They held the knife, but never did they truly wield it. Killing Eloy, plunging the very knife he’d made them into him repeatedly, was the first time Metzli had ever felt like they had control. Ripping his head away, though? Well, that was their symbol of freedom. No one else could do the same. Eloy was gone, and no one would punish Metzli. Regan was right. They wield their own knife now.

“Okay.” Metzli swallowed, “Okay.” They didn’t stop pacing, but they did stop the idea of punishment. “Need to pace. If I do not, head is all…wrong. Big jumble.” They hoped Regan would understand, just like they understood why she couldn’t give them a full answer. Revealing one’s nature not only took a lot of trust and bravery, but sometimes, Metzli learned, there was a certain obligation to keep it a secret. They wouldn’t force any answer out of her. If she ever felt safe enough, or was allowed to tell them, then that had to come later. For the time being, it seemed like she was struggling with her knowledge as a medical examiner and the fact that she inherently knew Metzli was dead.

“Not know why I am like this. Or how. Wake up like this.” Looking toward Regan, Metzli slowed their pacing, avoiding eye contact. “It was long time ago and will sound like lie, but I do not lie. Hate lying.”

“Pace, then. If it helps.” She was familiar. Although Regan found herself pacing less and less, the longer she was in Saol Eile. Her anxiety had dissolved substantially, as had everything else along with it. Since coming here, though, the urge occasionally resurfaced, only to be denied.

Metzli knew something was unusual about them, something wrong, but they didn’t understand. Waking up in such a way… Regan’s fingers curled around the pendant of her necklace, but she stopped herself from squeezing. Pushed her hand and the ghosts away. “I believe I’ve heard enough. All there is to know. Right? You said it yourself – you don’t understand why you’re like this, or how.” Maybe there was more. Some kind of syndrome like her own, some flavor of horror story that this town was so fond of. Or maybe Metzli was just some unfortunate victim to strange circumstances, normal one moment and feeling dead the next. Such brushing off of the situation directly contradicted how being around Metzli felt in Regan’s bones, the certainty in her marrow, but what was there to do? Deceased was deceased and alive was alive, and all but one piece of evidence pointed to Metzli being very much alive.

She waved her hand, inviting Metzli back toward the raccoon, and herself. She had proven her hypothesis, even if she didn’t explicitly know how it was possible. They might as well do what they came here to do. But there was one other thing, something that had bothered Regan on multiple occasions, even making her question if she was adding to her long list of failures. “There are others.” She looked at Metzli with her brow bunched together. “You’re not the only one I’ve been around who has felt… dead.” There was the child in the cabin. Leila from the thrift store. Others around town who made Regan’s head whip in every direction trying to understand where the body was. “Are they aware, too?”

Regan was trying to find some sort of answer hidden in the composition of the undead. Metzli knew, deep down, that they were unnatural. An aberration in what Regan knew as true from her line of work. She dove into the dead, picked apart their pieces to understand what they were in life, and what ultimately led them to succumb to the inevitable. To their obligation bestowed upon them at birth.

With their rebirth—as Honey called it—what was Metzli’s new obligation then, they wondered? They’d already fulfilled death and returned, served an elder vampire to his every need, killed him, and now they were free. Everything came at a cost, but with their pockets and heart empty, Metzli couldn’t do much else but stare at the debt. Search for themself in every paint stroke, in every conversation, and yes, even in the carcass of a raccoon. Their hesitation before their freedom would never fall to a full stop in their independence. Metzli didn’t want to come up with an excuse that death has heard a million times before—that Regan had obviously heard herself too. She’d met others, it seemed.

“If they are close, they know. I have girlfriend. And best friend. They know. They is—I mean, are…like me.” Metzli stopped pacing and wiped their hand repeatedly on their corduroy jeans. The hope was that the texture alleviated more of their anxiety as they stepped closer. It did, for the most part. Metzli managed to make eye contact with Regan again, voice back to its natural state of monotone. “Can tell you story when you want to hear it. Something happen before I wake up, but I want to learn about raccoon instead. I like how you explain things. Is this okay?”

So Metzli knew there were others out there who shared their same affliction. Regan’s thoughts turned to Leila and all of the others. Was it a coincidence, maybe something actually dead nearby, or did they have more in common with Metzli than Regan had thought? She wasn’t sure she wanted to know.

“It’s… okay. I think.” She wished she could say it with more certainty. But the plain truth was that Metzli didn’t feel right. Being around death was like the stars aligning, her skin singing, a breeze running through her hair on the most beautiful, sunniest day of the year. Being around Metzli was blowflies crawling down her arms and a death rattle in her throat. In short durations, she could tolerate it, only because Metzli was – as she’d said before – acceptable company. But the air of wrongness nagged at her senses and was not, so far, something she’d acclimated to. She wasn’t sure what Metzli had experienced before this “wake up,” but whatever it was, she doubted it made them deserving of being pariah’d for something they couldn’t help. So Regan would try. She approached the raccoon and Metzli, and shifted the weight between her legs to help shake out some of those pins and needles.

“Me too. I – what I mean to say is, something happened. Something sudden. That’s how I… sense.” And she could say little more than that, even if she wanted to. The details of a banshee’s dúiseacht were closely guarded. Cliodhna insisted upon it. Outsiders could not know what triggered such a transformation. They ought to not even know there was a metamorphosis, though she had less binding words in place to protect that particular aspect of it. Regan swallowed, tongue tied, and gave the raccoon’s musty head a quick stroke. It helped. “I’ll teach you. We can open it. I will name and share each organ, and you will repeat after me and get each one just right.” She pulled out the dissection kit, giving the lid a nervous tap with her fingertips, and setting it on her lap. There were several scalpels in there. Metzli would not be expecting it, and she thought it would be a pleasant surprise. Once they were ready. Once she was used to Metzli’s presence. “But first, I think… I’d like to watch you draw, Metzli.”

There was a change with Regan too, and there was a comfort to be found in that fact despite the obvious pain with it. It could only take something traumatic to create people like them. Anomalies that could take something damaged, dead, and decomposed, and call it beautiful. Metzli didn’t mind being that way. They didn’t mind being different. There was a solitude that was granted to them. A silence that made it so much easier to think.

Metzli supposed that was why being around Regan was so pleasant. There were comfortable silences in between each spark of conversation. Even then, the two of them delved into matters that few could understand, in a manner that even less enjoyed. Because of this—and the fact that Regan wanted to see them draw—it was easy to let a hint of a smile tug at Metzli’s lips. Though, to anyone who didn’t know them, it’d go unnoticed.

“Yes.” They gave Regan a single nod. “I can draw. Do you want the drawing after? It will only be of the raccoon.” Metzli began to gather their materials and sat themself down, placing everything neatly on the ground. “You can sit next to me and watch page, but please do not get too close. I am bad at touch.” They sat with rigid posture, waiting for what Regan would do next.

“I couldn’t ask for your work, Metzli. I don’t– it doesn’t belong to me. It’s yours to do with as you see fit.” Though Regan would cherish it. There was space on the raccoon shelf. There would always be space.

Right. Watching Metzli draw would mean getting close. They lacked a big easel like last time, which meant… Regan wanted to kick herself for essentially asking to get closer. It made Metzli happy, she could tell, but her skin was already complaining. She needed to move past it. Her skin had seen far worse. She had seen far worse. So Regan took a deep breath and approached Metzli, taking a cautious seat beside them. The pins and needles bit in deep, but only for a moment, before they subsided into a sensation that was simply uncomfortable, but not entirely unpleasant. “No touching,” she confirmed, “I’m also not – I mean I don’t think–” It was stupid. She cut herself off. Her decision to deny herself physical contact for the last six years was neither here nor there.

For at least a couple of hours, she wouldn’t think about it. She wouldn’t think about how dead her companion felt, and she wouldn’t think about how dead she felt. The only death she wanted on her mind was that of the raccoon, beautifully rendered in Metzli’s sketchbook with the most adoring of detail, as everything outside of the page felt so insignificant in contrast.

#writing #c metzli

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scmg11 · 2 years

Text

KATE BISHOP x READER

7 MINUTES IN HEAVEN

A/N: HELLO PEOPLE! ANOTHER UPDATE IN LESS THAN 24 HOURS?! YES, YES IT IS!

ENJOY! ❤️

Sending love ❤️

Summary: during a college themed party at the Compound, the Avengers decides to play a classic college party game. This results in Y/N and Kate stuck in a closet.

Warnings: smut 😉.

Word count: 8045 words.

The party was in full swing when Y/N entered the lobby of the Avengers Compound, laughing under her breath at Tony Stark’s always perfectly organized parties. Her eyes swept over the detailed decorations scattered around the room, making her feel like she was a college kid in a movie. Tonight the theme of the party was college parties, so the living room was decorated like it was a frat house living room and the guests were wearing proper outfits for the party. Tony’s parties always shared the same characteristic feature: they were always thoroughly organized. He not only paid a working team to transform completely their living room but he specifically asked on the invitation to ‘dress to impress just like the theme requested’. So here Y/N was, wearing a pair of baggy worn out jeans, a white t-shirt tucked in her pants, a denim jacket and a baseball hat pulled backwards.

"I don’t know why, but I knew you would have dressed like the cliché lesbian that you are." Y/N snorted under her breath and let a small smile appear on her lips at the approaching voice.

"What can I say? This suits me." Y/N waved her hands around her front and shrugged softly, before turning around and asking for a strong drink. When Y/N turned back around she let her eyes roam up and down the redhead’s body and smirked mockingly, "well it seams that someone here took the ‘dress to impress’ on the invitation too seriously." Y/N pointed out as she took a sip of the cocktail the bartender just left on the counter she was leaning with her back and arms on, watching the girl beside her asking for the same.

"What?" Wanda asked innocently, looking down at her red dress like she didn’t know what Y/N was talking about - she totally knew what she was talking about-. "I just put on the first thing that I saw in my closet." Wanda explained nonchalantly, thanking the bartender and taking a big gulp of her drink to calm her nerves.

"C’mon Wan, I know you too well. Your hair are more styled than usual, I can clearly see you took a lot of time for your makeup, your boobs look ready to pop out of this dress and red? Really?" Y/N pointed out the obvious to tease her best friend a bit more, before wiggling her eyebrows at her and watched the girl blush wildly at her implications. "I must say you look really hot tonight and showing the twins here will give you a few good points in your conquest. Natasha loves boobs." Y/N continued with nonchalance as she sipped calmly on her drink while Wanda’s eyes widened comically at the words, asking herself how Y/N could say things like that and look like it was the most normal thing to say.

"Y/N!" Wanda reprimanded with a gentle swap of her hand on her shoulder and the girl merely lifted her shoulders up in defense.

"What?!"

"You can’t say things like that so loud! She could have walked by!" Wanda murmured and moved her green eyes around the room to locate the redhead, who was speaking to Bruce and Tony about something they couldn’t make out of.

"She is on the other side of the room. Unless she has an enhanced hearing, I doubt she heard us. But she definitely noticed you." Y/N pointed out with her eyes towards Natasha, "well it looks more like she noticed the twins." Y/N smirked proudly when Wanda blushed hard at that and looked down at her wringing hands, instinctively puffing her chest out. "Okay Wan, listen to me-" Y/N started when she saw Natasha excusing herself from Bruce and Tony and walking towards them, "I’ve watched you pin over Natasha for months now. I’ve had to endure your lovesick glances and shy smiles. She likes you Wan, I know that. Well I pretty much think everyone knows that. Make your move and get your girl. Tonight."

"You know I’m too scared to ruin what we have. I don’t want to lose her."

"You won’t, I promise."

"How can you be so sure?" Wanda sighed dejectedly, watching Natasha cross the room and swimming through the people dancing with the EDM song that started playing.

"Because she looks at you just like you look at her." Y/N explained, smiling encouragingly at the still not convinced, fidgety redhead so Y/N kept on, "because she looks at you like-" Y/N sighed out gently before continuing, "just like I look at Kate. Completely enamored." Y/N watched realization shift into Wanda’s eyes so she kept quiet for a few seconds, letting Wanda understand what she was saying then adding one last thing right before Natasha could walk within their earshot, "make your move Wan." Wanda met Y/N’s Y/E/C irises and found in them honesty and affection, something that warmed Wanda’s heart and gave her the courage to do what she was trying to do since she met Natasha. "I’ll be your wingwoman." Y/N added to lighten up the mood and reveled in the loud, heartfelt laugh Wanda emitted at her joke.

"Only if I can be yours. It’s time to make your move too Y/N." Wanda countered back earnestly and grasped the girl’s forearm to squeeze it softly, the two of them gazing into one other’s eyes a couple of seconds before nodding, agreeing to help each other out with their crushes.

"Lovely to find you here too ladies." Natasha approached them with a flirty smirk before pulling Y/N into a quick hug and then doing the same with Wanda. Y/N noticed the hug lasted longer than a normal, friendly hug should and watched the two grip onto each other almost desperately as one breathed the other’s perfume in and Y/N smirked widely at the cute gesture.

"We live in the same facility you dork." Y/N teased Natasha, that punched her lightly on her shoulder in lieu of a counter back, before skidding her eyes up and down Y/N’s outfit and shook her head in amusement.

"You chose the lesbian outfit for tonight. How cliché." Natasha mocked Y/N, who grunted out at the joke and rolled her eyes when Wanda laughed loudly at Natasha’s words.

"It’s what I told her!" The two shared a laugh and met their hands in a high-five right on top of an unamused Y/N’s head, while Y/N rolled her eyes at the two mocking her, before the world stopped. It was like in those movies when the main character sees the person they are in love with and watches them walk in slow motion.

"Oh no, what’s wrong with her." Natasha furrowed her brows when she noticed sudden change in Y/N’s expression and eyed the girl in worry, snapping her fingers in front of her to let her focus back on them.

"Nothing’s wrong. I think Kate just arrived." Wanda explained with an amused grin before sipping her drink and following Y/N’s gaze, finding Kate hugging Scott and Sam with her signature smile. She eyed the girl’s outfit and smirked mischievously. When she turned around she found Natasha sporting the same wicked expression on her face and the two shared a knowing look. "Well it seems we have two lesbian tropes here tonight."

"Three if we count America." Natasha interjected and snorted when Y/N jostled her shoulder.

"Right." Wanda hesitantly nodded as she met Y/N’s knowing gaze.

"Four if we count your gay crush on Nat." Wanda heard Y/N’s voice echo into her mind and smiled in appreciation when her best friend decided to not make a fool out of herself in front of Natasha.

"Anyway, black ripped jeans, white tee-" Wanda started off by listing Kate’s garments.

"Combat boots, red flannel. I think she beat you on who’s wearing the most trope-y outfit." Natasha concluded with a snort and patted Y/N on her shoulder, who rolled her eyes good-naturedly at the two redheads making fun of her and her crush.

"Guys, can you not make me look like a fool in front of Kate tonight? Please." Y/N whined pitifully but chocked on her saliva when Kate’s eyes found hers from the other side of the room and waved enthusiastically at her before starting her walk towards the three girls still in front of the bar counter.

"Oh honey, we don’t need to do that." Natasha started with a too sweet tone.

"You already do that on your own." Wanda finished just before a loud laugh left her lips at the annoyed look Y/N threw at her, before the two side hugged Y/N still laughing their assess off.

"You know, if I wasn’t so busy plotting ways to have my revenge with you, I would have found really cute how you two complete each other sentences."

"We do not do that." Wanda countered in her mind, trying with all herself to fight against the butterflies invading her stomach, to no avail, when Natasha’s hand brushed hers behind Y/N’s back when they pulled away from the hug.

"Oh but you do. Tonight I’m gonna play Cupid and make you two happen."

"No Y/N! Don-"

"Hey guys!" Wanda was interrupted by Kate walking over them and hugging them in greeting. "Holy shit this place is already full of people and in full swing!"

"Yeah well, you know Tony. He likes to go big with these parties." Y/N shrugged to play it cool, a gesture that made both Wanda and Natasha snort in amusement while Y/N rolled her eyes inwardly, "do you want anything?"

"Whatever you’re having it’s good." Y/N nodded and waved the barista over to ask for a new drink, now both Y/N and Kate leaning with their forearms on the counter while Wanda and Natasha shared a knowing look and a wide smirk behind them.

It was by now past 2 a.m. and the party was coming to an end, guests starting to walk out of the compound to go home and half an hour later everyone else besides the Avengers left. Everyone was a bit intoxicated by the alcohol that was consumed and from loud music played, but they had still so much adrenaline in their system that they were far from calling the night quits. These were the reasons for the words that Tony spoke, looking around at the Avengers scattered on the couches and on the floor with mischief swirling in his sparkling, intoxicated eyes, "for a college theme party that is worthy of its name, we should play a few rounds of the traditional college parties games!" Tony clapped his hands enthusiastically before chugging down the last bits of his whiskey.

"Oh yes! Jane told me about these games." Thor nodded in agreement as he sipped his umpteenth beer of the night, followed by Steve and Sam drunkly cheering at the proposal.

"I haven’t gone to college yet, but I’m in!" America clapped her hands excitedly, receiving an happy nod from Tony.

Wanda eyed Natasha warily when the redhead nodded alongside her sister, before meeting Y/N’s gaze and finding her just as much guarded as she was. "Do you think this is a good idea?"

"No. But it could be good for you and Nat."

"Are you crazy?! I’m not going to embarrass myself in front of my crush, that’s your job."

Y/N rolled her eyes at her best friend’s teasing words but agreed out loud to play, "I’m in!" After her words, she was followed then by Wanda, Kate and a few more, "I will purposefully ignore what you just said. But, don’t worry. You have your wingwoman here. It’ll be great." The Y/H/C girl focused her attention back on her friends that were currently debating on what game they should play.

"Truth or dare?" Steve suggested, receiving a few ‘yes’ in return.

"Seven minutes in heaven." Tony added enthusiastically and looked at everyone expectantly when a few more agreeing hollers rolled around the room.

"Why not both?" Their bickering stopped and everyone’s eyes settled on Y/N at her suggestion.

"What?" Tony asked confused but the intrigued eyebrow arched up told Y/N she had his attention alongside with the other Avengers’ one.

"It seems we can’t choose only one game, so why not mix the two up?" When everyone stayed silent, Y/N knew she piqued their interest with her idea, so she kept with her proposition, "we can do… like-" Y/N paused a few seconds to think, "truth or 7 minutes in heaven? Like truth or dare but instead of choosing a dare, you have to pay up with 7 minutes in the closet with someone."

"I knew this was a smart one!" Tony sat up and walked towards her to lay a loud kiss on the top of her head before walking over Natasha and grabbing her by now empty beer bottle to use it for their game. "Shall we start?"

"Why are you going first Stark?" Natasha spoke up teasingly with a wide smirk and Tony rolled his eyes good-naturedly.

"I’m not going first Romanoff. The bottle will choose it."

Y/N held her breath in anticipation as she watched Tony spin the bottle and sighed out of relief when it landed on Thor. To be completely honest Y/N tried to play it cool by suggesting to mix up the two games, when in fact she was completely freaking out. She mainly proposed her idea to help Wanda finally find the courage to make a move on Natasha, but she considered Kate was going to partake in the game too only after she explained her idea. She hoped with all herself that if the bottle lands on her the girl would choose truth because she’s not sure if she can endure Kate walking into the closet to make out with whoever the bottle lands on. On the other hand she wasn’t completely sure she wanted to be that person the bottle landed on if the archer had to pick 7 minutes in heaven. Don’t get her wrong, she hoped she would be that person but she was sure that as soon as the door closes, she would faint in front of Kate instead of make out with her.

"Well, it seems I’m the first to spin the bottle." The Asgardian smiled widely and spun the bottle, watching it land on Steve. The crowd erupted in loud ‘boo’s when Steve without blinking choose truth.

"Boring, Rogers." Tony grunted as he sat up to go grab a bottle of scotch from the bar, hopping over the counter effortlessly, asking if someone wanted something before returning to his seat with a few bottles. "Thor, think of something spicy!" Tony laughed loudly when Steve grunted an annoyed ‘no’, followed by everyone else’s gentle snorts.

"Oh c’mon Steve. These kind of games are played mainly because it involves juicy activities and revelations." Natasha wiggled her eyebrows suggestively and the blond grunted in frustration, hanging his head while shaking it in amusement.

"Okay- I think I got a spicy one." Thor rubbed his hands mischievously as he stared Steve down with determination in his eyes and the blond prepared himself for the dreaded question, "have you ever had a sex dream about someone in this room?"

Steve became beet red in the span of two seconds and he covered his blushing face with his two hands and groaning into them. He took a deep, grounding breath before pulling his hands away from his face - hoping his skin color came back to normal - and answered shortly, "yes."

A choir of gasps of shock and enthusiasm followed at the blond’s revelation, "that’s the tea people! Who is it?" Tony asked impatiently as he hollered and took a big gulp of his scotch.

"Ah-" Steve smirked slyly while lifting his pointer finger up, "he only asked if I had an explicit dream about someone in this room. This question requires only a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer. And my turn is over, so I don’t have to answer your extra question."

Tony accepted his defeat with a small chuckle and his hands lifted up in surrender as her watched Steve spin the bottle. Y/N watched the bottle roll with bated breath, before exhaling a sigh of relief when it landed on Natasha. Her eyes immediately met Wanda’s anxious green ones and smiled at her warmly, "don’t worry Wan, relax."

"What if she chooses 7 minutes in heaven and the bottle doesn’t land on me? I couldn’t stand the thought knowing she is kissing someone but I’m not the one who’s kissing her."

"Yeah I know, I feel the same." Y/N sighed out almost imperceptibly, but due to the fact that a slightly tipsy Kate was leaning her body on Y/N’s one and she was leaning her head on her shoulder, she heard her, so she lifted her head up just a bit to ask softly in Y/N’s left ear, triggering goosebumps that travelled from her ear throughout her entire body when her lips traced the shell of her ear and her hot breath came in contact with her skin.

"What’s wrong?" Kate started playing with Y/N’s left hand as she waited for Y/N to answer, her intoxicating blue eyes scanning over Y/N’s gentle features, skidding from her cute forehead, to her perfect nose, to her soft cheeks - now a bit red due to their proximity-, to her kissable plump lips before focusing back on a pair of breathtaking Y/E/C eyes with a small smile.

"Nothing. I’m just-" Y/N started but couldn’t find the perfect words without spilling Wanda’s secret.

"Doing your amazing job as Wanda’s best friend and trying to calm her down." Y/N stared at Kate like she grew two heads at the accurate answer the black haired girl used to finish her sentence, before a questioning eyebrow lifted up when she noticed Kate knew exactly what was going on. "It’s pretty obvious Y/N/N. I totally ship it." Kate explained further and giggled when Y/N kept eyeing her in shock.

"You are always full of surprises Bishop."

Kate laughed at Y/N’s declaration and nodded with a flirty wink, noticing how her gesture immediately made Y/N’s cheeks flush beet red and smirked gently, "I will help you with setting them up." The two shared a mischievous gaze and focused their attention again back in the room with their friends, right before Natasha answered the question.

"Truth." Natasha answer surprised everyone around the room, causing the Avengers to stare at Natasha with their flabbergasted eyes wide open. "Oh don’t look at me like that."

"Well you are always the one to never back away from a challenge, so we are a bit shocked from your choice." Sam was the first to speak up, his words pulling everyone else out of their shocked haze and nodded in agreement.

"I’m just letting the game warm up a bit, don’t worry." Natasha clarified and waited patiently for Steve’s question. "Make it super spicy Rogers." The redhead mocked his friend and chuckled when he was clearly fake annoyed by her teasing.

"Okay give me just a second to think about a good question." Steve hummed in thought as he scratched his chin gently. "What is your biggest turn on?"

"Damn Steve, good one." Y/N watched Thor nod and high-five the blond in pride while Natasha snorted and shook her head with an amused smile. Y/N was really good in reading human body and by Natasha’s almost imperceptible fidgeting and her smile not reaching her eyes Y/N knew those were clear signals that made Y/N believe Natasha was trying to play it cool when in fact-

"She is nervous." Kate whispered into Y/N’s ear again, making the girl jump up in fright when the archer pulled her out of her thoughts.

"Damn Kate, are you sure you don’t have powers? You are reading my mind today." Y/N regretted her movement right after she noticed the aftermath. She almost combusted when their noses brushed together due to their faces leaning close to not be heard by anyone else.

"I’m willing to leave this ability to Wanda." Kate chuckled amused, "even though it would be so cool reading minds." Y/N shook her head at the archer’s sly sparkle in her intoxicating blue irises and her wiggling eyebrows, jostling her shoulder gently.

"My biggest turn on is a bit contradictory. Power but also vulnerability. I love someone that could keep up with me. I love being in control but if my partner knows how to gain control instead, I would definitely surrender to them. But I also love someone who I can be vulnerable with and viceversa."

Natasha tried to move her eyes all around their group to speak to no one in particular but Y/N and Kate noticed how her eyes tried to meet Wanda’s gaze every two seconds and both shared a look of understanding. "Wan did you notice it too? She was literally trying to meet your gaze!" Y/N’s voice echoed around Wanda’s mind, causing the girl to flush furiously making the Y/H/C girl and Kate realize the young redhead noticed Natasha’s gestures too.

"Do you think Wanda is gonna choose 7 minutes in heaven when it’ll be her turn?" Kate whispered gently into Y/N’s ear, spreading goosebumps throughout Y/N’s body.

The Y/E/C girl opened her mouth to answer Kate’s question, but she was interrupted by Natasha’s voice when she spoke up after the ‘aw’s coming from the other heroes stopped, "Y/N truth or 7 minutes in heaven?"

The smirk on Natasha’s face told Y/N the girl was merely helping her out with Kate and with Wanda’s nod and the small amount of alcohol she consumed, she found enough courage to speak up with determination in her Y/E/C hues, "7 minutes in heaven."

"Finally! The game is starting to heat up!" Tony clapped his hands enthusiastically and laughed loudly in excitement, followed by a few hollers and whistles coming from Thor, Sam and Bucky.

Natasha grinned triumphantly at the girl and nodded proudly, "good choice Y/L/N. The bottle will choose the lucky one you’re going to make out with."

Y/N rolled her eyes to cover up her nervousness and just now noticed Kate wasn’t leaning on her body anymore but she was sitting up straight looking down at Natasha’s left hand ready to spin the bottle. Y/N held her breath in anticipation, hoping with all her heart the bottle will land on Kate. When the bottle slowed to a stop Y/N was ready to faint but came back to her senses when she noticed the bottle landed on Clint sat on Kate’s right. The world crumbled all around Y/N, she sighed dejectedly under her breath while putting on a poker face to prevent everyone to see her disappointment at her shattered hopes, even though she wasn’t sure she was doing a great job.

"Oh hell naw. No offense Y/N, but A you’re like a daughter to me and B I’m happily married. So that’s a big no." Hope sparked once again in the pit of Y/N’s stomach, who played along with Clint with a ‘yeah’ of agreement and a snort.

"Okay well, should we spin the bottle again or choose the person to his right following clockwise positions?" Natasha asked with her perfect styled left eyebrow up in question as she eyed everyone to make a decision. A choir of ‘clockwise’ and ‘spin the bottle’ followed by the next second, clashing together without a purpose. "Okay that was pointless. Hands up for spinning the bottle - Y/N and Kate you’re obviously not voting." Y/N sighed out in frustration, she knew what Natasha was doing. She was trying to set her up with Kate, she was helping her doing something about her crush on Kate. And for that Y/N will be forever grateful. Five hands lifted after the Russian’s request and Y/N noticed Kate fidgeting on her spot, making her wonder if she was nervous in case she was going to be the chosen one or if she was hoping she wasn’t going to be paired up with Y/N for 7 minutes in heaven - she hope with all her heart it wasn’t the latter. "Hands up for clockwise." 6 hands lifted up in the air and Y/N was so happy she was sure she was floating but she tried to keep her smile at bay to prevent everyone to notice. "Kate this means you are going to spend 7 minutes in heaven with Y/N." Natasha clapped her hands enthusiastically as the two girls shared a shy gaze with sheepish smiles.

"You don’t have to say yes, y’know. I won’t be offended if-"

"Oh no she can’t say no. We accept only excuses like ‘I’m married’ and shit like that. Kate are you married?" Natasha sat up and urged the two girl on to do the same, looking at Kate expectantly with an eager expression.

"Hm- no?" Kate asked more than stated, not really trusting her tongue with forming comprensibile words while her brain spun out of control. Holy shit, am I really going to spend 7 minutes in a closet with Y/N?! Are we going to kiss? Will it be awkward if we don’t?

All these questions clouded the black haired beauty’s brain but Natasha wasn’t exactly paying attention to her state as she grabbed the two girl’s arms once they sat up from the couch and pushed them towards the closest closet and opened the door, "okay, I think we all know how the rules works, so enjoy the ride. I’ll keep track of the time." Natasha winked one last time before slamming the door quickly after shoving them ungracefully into the closet.

The two grunted in pain when Kate’s back met the wooden wall and Y/N fell ungraciously on her body, "sorry, she can be a lot sometimes." Y/N chuckled as she tried to stand up and stop crushing Kate’s body but the dimly lit, small room was proving it to be a difficult task to accomplish.

"She was just still nervous about her confession, so she coped up with it with our ‘dare’." Air quoting the word dare after she helped Y/N stabilize her body with her hands laid on her hips and maneuvering her to help her prevent from hitting a shelf and getting hurt.

"I’m pretty sure she was pairing us up above anything else." Y/N murmured in fatigue as she avoided stepping on Kate’s feet, thinking she only thought those words to avoid being heard by the archer, but the Y/E/C girl’s hopes crumbled for the second time that night when Kate asked her curiously with widened, curious eyes.

"What? Are you serious?"

"Shit, did I say that out loud?" Y/N asked alarmed, putting as much distance between them as the small closet allowed to, looking at those clear, breathtaking blue eyes for just a fraction of second before looking at anywhere but the archer.

"You did." Kate simply stated with a humming tone. Y/N could hear a smug smirk from the girl’s tone, but she couldn’t be exactly sure since she was completely interested in a few household products instead of her beautiful face.

"Well, let’s just forget about it. We still have like 6 minutes and 30 seconds in here. So how is Lucky?" Y/N grimaced inwardly at her awkward rambling but she couldn’t come up with anything at all when those blue eyes were fixated on her. She just hoped asking about the girl’s beloved one-eyed golden retriever would distract her enough to forget about her slip up.

"He is doing good at Clint's farm. Now, don’t avoid the matter. What did you mean with ‘Natasha was trying to pair us up’?"

"Hm- I- I-"

"Hey, you can tell me anything. You know that." Kate lifted her hand up to caress the girl’s arm softly, trying to convey as much calmness to help the girl relax and explain the words that ignited hope into the pitch of the black haired girl’s stomach.

"I- I meant- well- it meant just what I said. She was pairing us up at all costs. The bottle landed on Clint but when he refused due to obvious reasons she quickly attempted to ensure you would be the one to be here in the closet with me."

"But she made everyone choose between spinning the bottle and me." Kate countered back with furrowed eyebrow, still not getting Y/N’s previous affirmation.

"She was trying to be subtle. But think about it, what did she choose?"

"Clockwise." Kate answered in an hushed tone, now starting to understand Y/N’s point as her stomach knotted over itself in anticipation and excitement.

"And who else did choose the same thing? Clint - he is Nat best friend and he has a soft spot for her. America, Yelena, Scott and Maria and Wanda - she clearly does anything Natasha asked her to but they all know the truth, so of course they choose clockwise -. Everyone else voted spin the bottle because it seemed the obvious choice."

"What truth?" Kate spoke up a few moments later after letting everything sink in, biting her bottom lip when she noticed Y/N’s face fall and her cheeks immediately tinted with a crimson color.

"Oh- yeah, that. Hm-" Kate was getting impatient, she pretty much already knew what truth Y/N was talking about so she tried to speed up the process of Y/N opening up to her with a convincing point.

"Y/N. We have only 5 minutes left in here."

That was the courage boost Y/N needed to finally confess her feelings she stashed inside of her for too long to the archer. Natasha, Wanda, America, Yelena, Scott and Maria gave her a chance to be happy with Kate and she will be damned if she wasn’t going to take this great opportunity and take advantage of it. "That I have a crush on you. And since I’ve been feeling about this for a while and I’m not that good at hiding them, our friends noticed and they used this game to give me the chance to confess my feelings to you."

Kate kept quiet, not really believing this was really happening so she deliberately pinched her side to be sure she wasn’t dreaming this moment like she had many times before, "ouch."

"What?" Y/N asked with her eyebrows furrowed together, her heart falling on the ground and shattering at the completely unexpected reaction. During their small interaction, Kate pushing her to explain her words, caressing her arm so softly and looking at her with that tender look in her eyes gave Y/N hope that maybe the girl liked her back, but she wasn’t expecting that.

"No no no. Sorry, it came out wrong." Kate quickly assured when she noticed that sparkle of hope leave Y/N’s inebriating Y/E/C hues and cupped the girl’s neck right under her jaw and caressed the tense muscles there with her thumbs, "I- I pinched myself to be sure this was really happening and I wasn’t dreaming it."

"Why?" Y/N asked uncertainty, eyeing the girl warily while keeping her stomach at bay, not wanting to get her hopes up to have them shattered again, so she waited the blue eyed girl to explain herself first.

"Because those words are what I’m hoping to hear from you since we met." Kate answered truthfully with a million dollar smile, before looking down shyly at her thumbs’ movement on the girl’s skin to focus on something else but those eyes staring holes into her soul. When she felt the girl taking a tentative step closer to her and invading her personal space, Kate lifted her eyes up to find Y/N’s Y/E/C irises a darker shade and full of determination.

"We have just over 4 minutes left in here. Let’s make this time worth the while." Y/N stated boldly, smirking when Kate swallowed loudly while her eyes darkened instantly. No words were needed anymore, so Kate used her hands still placed on the girl’s neck to grasp it harshly and crash their lips together in a passionate kiss.

They started slowly, their lips slotting together like two piece of puzzle while their chests filled with warmth and their stomaches started doing somersaults for finally doing what they dreamed of for months now. Y/N’s hands stayed still by her side for half a minute, not really trusting her body to move as her mind was still reeling at the feeling of soft, plump, delicious lips kissing her fervently, but when she felt Kate’s hands grip her neck tightly and her tongue sweeping along the seam of her lips, she finally regained control of her body. She immediately granted Kate access, letting that unexpectedly skillful tongue enter her mouth and explore every crevice of her mouth, as her hands grasped the archer’s hips and flushed their bodies together greedily. "Fuck, that was amazing." Kate panted when they pulled away to take some needed breath, both their burning lungs screaming from lack of air, her chest heaving hard, her pupils blown out, her lips a bit bruised and slightly red as she eyed the girl fondly.

"Fuck yeah." Y/N agreed while leaning herself on Kate, her wobbly legs finding it difficult to support her body after that breathtaking kiss. "Shit, you are an amazing kisser."

Kate grinned proudly and wiggled her eyebrows seductively, "you’re the one talking."

"Shit, that thing you did with your tongue- holy fuck it made me dizzy."

"Do you want me to do it again?"

Y/N didn’t answer, she plainly grunted out and clashed their mouths together again, wasting no time this time and slipping her tongue in, licking and sucking on Kate’s tongue greedily as her hands instinctively slipped down from her hips and grasped the archer’s supple ass.

"Fuck." Kate moaned lowly into Y/N’s mouth, feeling her knees give out for just a second, but Y/N’s body pushing her hard on the closet wall prevented her to fall and caused her panties so soak through in an instant.

"You’re so beautiful." Y/N whispered on the girl’s lips, biting down on that inviting bottom lip and pulling on it slowly, eliciting another low, raspy moan from the blue eyed girl.

"C’mere." Kate grunted out right before she grasped an handful of Y/N’s hair and joined their lips again, her tongue sweeping all over Y/N’s mouth and smirked into the kiss when she felt Y/N lean more into her body while whining softly into her mouth.

"Only one minute and 30 seconds left lovebirds." Wanda’s voice echoed around both girls’ minds, causing them to broke apart confused and unfocused.

"Shit- okay, I really wanna keep doing this- shit Kate." Y/N tried to reason with Kate but this was proved to be a difficult task when Kate’s lips decided to attack her neck with open mouthed kisses and little love bites. "Everyone is drunk but they are all still here." Y/N’s point was proven with loud hollers and whistles coming from the other side of the door.

"We can go in one of our rooms." Kate reasoned with an hoarse tone, slipping her tongue out to trace the entire length of Y/N’s neck before nipping gently at the girl’s jaw, smirking mischievously when she felt Y/N’s body give out and the girl gripping on her ass harshly to stabilize herself.

"We won’t hear the end of it. We just need to wait till the party is over. Then I’m all yours." Y/N whispered seductively on Kate’s lips when the archer stopped her delightful torture on her neck and coming up face to face to her, before laying an hard kiss on her lips.

"Well-" Kate started, one hand leaving the girl’s nape to grab Y/N’s right wrist slowly, never breaking their eye contact. Y/N’s curious eyes widened in surprise when Kate slipped her hand into her pants and underwear and her fingers were immediately coated with slick arousal, "do you think I can wait till the party is over?" Kate whispered sultrily, biting down on Y/N’s bottom lip and pushing her hips down on Y/N’s hand when she felt the girl’s fingers move slowly over her slits.

"Holy fucking shit Kate." Y/N whined pitifully, feeling her own pair of panties getting completely drenched as she circled the black haired beauty’s clit and felt her moan on her mouth. "I-"

"Please, I need you now."

Y/N’s mind started to spin wildly out of control as she considered her options here. Those now dark blue eyes staring deeply into her own Y/E/C irises, white teeth sinking seductively on a plump, red bottom lip and hips rotating on her fingers to gain some friction were making doing the responsible thing really hard to choose. The responsible thing to do would be promising Kate to make her come as soon as the party was over, but it seemed like Y/N’s fingers had a mind of its own when one of them pushed into the girl’s drenched core and started a low rhythm. Kate moaned lowly at the craved invasion and dropped her forehead on Y/N’s one as she moved her hips along Y/N’s hand. "Fuck, you feel so good Y/N/N."

"I- wait- let me-" Y/N didn’t finish her line but she never stopped her movements, "we need Wanda’s help."

"What?"

"Wanda, can you hear me?"

"Yeah. 30 seconds left." Y/N was trying really hard to focus on talking telepathically with Wanda when delicious sounds were leaving Kate’s mouth as her center swallowed her finger delightfully.

"I have a favor to ask you."

"What is it?"

"Can we stay here 5 more minutes? Please."

"What? Why?" Y/N groaned in delight when Kate grabbed her other hand still grasping her ass and pushed it under her shirt and on her bra-clad left breast. Y/N boldly slipped her hand under the bra and moaned in deep, raw arousal when she felt a pebbled nipple stand up and hit her palm at her hand’s attention before entering Kate with another finger and speeding up her pace. "How do I do that?"

"I don’t know, ask Nat to help you. Please."

"Yeah bu-"

"Wan I’m begging you. I’m two fingers in Kate. I need only 5 more minutes. I’ll do whatever you want." Kate interrupted Y/N’s focus on her conversation with Wanda with a guttural whine leaving her throat.

"Holy shit! You go girl! Okay say no more. 5 more minutes."

Y/N smirked widely when no one knocked on the closet door to let them out and thanked Wanda for helping her. She owed her big time. "I bought us 5 more minutes." Y/N whispered on Kate’s lips before engulfing them in another, slow, languid kiss while keeping her unrelenting movements into Kate's core.

"Really?"

"Yeah, I owe her big time. Now where were we?" Y/N hummed pensively, before smirking devilishly at Kate, "oh yeah, I was about to make you come."

"Holy shit." Kate moaned when Y/N’s thumb joined her fingers and started rotating her pulsating clit, spreading shivers all over her body and causing her knees to give out from too much pleasure all at once.

Y/N reluctantly pushed her hand away from Kate’s supple breast and slid it down to pop open the girl’s pants and slipping the zipper down before grabbing her left leg and hooking it around her hip to have more room for her hand to push in deeper. "Fuck Kate, you are so wet for me."

"Just for you babe. Fuck-" Y/N curled her fingers into Kate’s center in a way that made Kate see stars as she chased down her building orgasm. "Are you wet for me too Y/N/N?"

Y/N swallowed loudly at those words whispered seductively and nodded, "yeah, so so much. You clenching on my fingers is making me so wet." Kate moaned at Y/N’s truthful admission and with just a bit of clear mind she moved her hand still gripping the girl’s neck down to slip into Y/N’s pants and feel the girl’s arousal herself. "Holy fucking shit- KATE!" Y/N yelled in a loud moan at the sudden invasion and almost came undone at the bold gesture.

"Look at you, so needy for me."

"I can say the same thing about you Bishop." Y/N countered back with her lips curled over a smirk, that changed into an O shape when Kate tapped hard on her clit and her hips pushed down to silently ask Kate to start fucking her.

"Shit, your fingers feels amazing." Kate moaned pitifully when Y/N added a third digit and pushed in deeper.

"I wish I could say the same about yours." Y/N replied with a mischievous smirk that instantly fell when fire burned into those now black irises, stilling her fingers for just a moment before she kept on.

"Ready to scream my name?" Kate asked rhetorically before slipping her digits down to the girl’s entrance and slipping two of them in without warning.

"Kate!" Y/N moaned at the intrusion, glad about the loud chatter coming from the living room so no one knew what they were doing, and silently started moving her hips to the girl’s pace, stilling her fingers’ movements again for just a fraction of second to let the fullness Kate’s digits was providing in before starting back up with a faster rhythm.

"See? Told you." Kate smiled smugly at the girl’s loud moan slipping past her throat and licking her lips sensually, rolling her eyes back when Y/N’s new speed caused her palm to hit her clit deliciously. She added a third finger in and matched the girl’s pace as both panted and wailed into each other mouth, too much focused on chasing their approaching orgasms to keep kissing.

"I wanna taste you so bad." Y/N admitted hazily as she sped up her movements when she felt the girl’s walls clench on her fingers, her eyes focusing only on those dark blue pools full of love and arousal staring back at her and Kate shivered wildly as images of what is to come (no pun intended) after the party.

"I want to taste you too babe. So fucking bADLY." Kate wailed loudly when Y/N pushed impossibly hard into her core and felt herself tipping over the edge, not noticing in her coital state she curled her own fingers into Y/N’s core before stilling her movements when her body stiffened and juices spilled out of her core.

Watching Kate come undone because of her on her fingers and the archer’s digits curling in her own core, pushed Y/N over the edge too, her center spurting out her release and soaking Kate’s hand deliciously. "That was- shit."

"Yeah. I never came so hand and so fast." Kate admitted with a blush adorning her cheeks, as they both slowed their fingers to a stop and reluctantly pulled them out of their cores, both whining at the lack of fullness brought by their digits buried into each other. They shared a soft, languid peck, before taking advantage of the little time left to fix each other up to not look like they just fucked into the closet with everyone else still in the next room. Y/N with a shy smile lifted Kate’s shirt up to readjust Kate’s bra that she pushed up when she was touching her chest, only to blush furiously when Kate’s right boob was right in front of her eyes, her nipple looking at her and begging for her touch. "You know it’s rude to stare." Kate teased and watched Y/N’s blush intensify.

"Oh I’m planning to do much more than just staring." Y/N boldly replied and smirked inwardly when she watched Kate’s smug face fall and her her throat bob gently when she swallowed. She leaned over resolutely and wrapped her lips around Kate’s still erected nipple and sucked on it hard, feeling Kate’s fingers thread through her locks and push her face more into her chest. Y/N slipped the archer’s nipple out of her mouth and sucked hard just on the nipple’s left on Kate’s breast for a few seconds, before pushing away and admiring her work. Kate looked down too and felt a flush of fresh arousal leaving her still drenched core at the big hickey Y/N just left on her breast. "A little gift to remind you what’s to come. Hopefully you again." Y/N added jokingly but her Cheshire Cat smile and her seductive tone told her she purposefully added that last part.

"You’re so fucking hot." Kate murmured as she grasped Y/N’s neck and connected their lips into an hard kiss, slipping her tongue right past Y/N’s open mouth and sliding it over Y/N in a sensual dance.

They pulled away a few moments later to go back to fixing each other’s clothes, Y/N closing Kate’s pants as the archer did the same with hers, then Y/N laid another soft peck on the girl’s breast before readjusting the blue eyed girl’s bra and pulling her shirt down.

"Okay horndogs. In a minute I’m going to open the door, so please be fully clothed by then." The two girls laughed gently at Wanda’s words echoing into their minds, spending the little time left sharing soft pecks while cuddling on the closet wall and nuzzling their noses together with big, door smiles etched on their features. "I’m about to open the door."

The two girls squinted their eyes at the bright light entering the dimly lit closet and smiled in appreciation at Wanda and Natasha, whom stared at them with big, proud smirks on their faces. "Oh no! Guys 7 minutes in heaven’s rules are that you need to kiss, not talk!" Thor complained with a disappointed look on his features and everyone nodded in agreement when he noticed the two girls looked like they had been just talking in the closest and not fucking each other’s brain out. Y/N and Kate share a subtle look, silently congratulating each other for the amazing work they did in fixing their appearances before walking out of the closet.

"We even let you stay in more than necessary because we got distracted by few more rounds of truths! You girls disappointed me!" Tony joked with a fake serious face on and shook his head before taking another drink of his scotch.

"And you guys are too drunk." Y/N spoke up with an amused smile and received a round of loud enthusiastic ‘yeah’s that made her laugh hard, hearing Kate giggle alongside her.

"Okay now move. It’s our turn." Wanda pushed them to the side and walked into the closet with Natasha on her tail before closing the door behind them. "I’m expecting you two to give us 5 more minutes like I did."

Y/N and Kate shared a look of understanding before smirking at the implications behind Wanda’s words. "Don’t worry Wanda, we got you two covered." Kate whispered, Y/N grateful that Wanda let her hear what Kate told her, before the two walked further into the room with everyone now cheering Thor on chugging a full bottle of tequila, the Asgardian yelling loudly in victory when he drank the last drop of tequila before slamming the bottle on the floor and shattering it, while everyone else cheered at his achievement.

"Okay I think it’s time for everyone to call it quits." Y/N spoke up loudly to be heard by everyone and even if she received a bunch of ‘boo’s everyone got up and left, leaving only Y/N and Kate in the room. Y/N waited a few more seconds to be sure the coast was clear before knocking gently on the closet door, "everyone left. You guys have all the time you need. My advice is, go to one of your rooms. This closet it unpractical." When Y/N received a faint, whined ‘okay’ in return, not sure if it was Wanda or Natasha answering her, she chuckled softly under her breath before grabbing Kate’s hand and intertwining their fingers together as they walked towards the elevator. "I haven’t had the chance to say it but, nice outfit by the way."

"Thank you." Kate blushed slightly at the compliment and looked at her just a bit wrinkled and disheveled clothes before leaning over and pecking Y/N’s lips gently.

"It will look definitely better on my bedroom floor."

337 notes · View notes

leoluved · 2 years

Note

Could you do headcannons for Steven with a reader who maybe just got dumped? Please? I could use some fluff :(

steven + comforting a heartbreak

summary: a postcard with a location you and ex have been to brings you to tears, alerting the cute gift shop clerk nearby. warnings: mentions of a breakup, language, no pronouns, no use of y/n, one mention of reader wearing makeup, i never proofread as always, n i think thats it other than steven being adorable word count: 755

࿓

- Your partner had decided that for some reason it would make perfect sense to dump you where you had your first date. How ironic.

- That wasn’t the problem, you supposed the relationship took it’s course and it wasn’t the end of the world. The worst was that they had left you in your favorite exhibit. Now the exhibit would be forever tainted.

- You were pretty stable, emotionally, or so you thought. It wasn’t until you were walking out and reached the gift shop that you stumbled upon a standing display of postcards, one of which being a location you and your partner had visited together.

- Ouch. As you were failing to hold back the tears that you were furiously trying to blink away before they ran down your cheeks, a gentle voice was the one thing that brought you back to your senses.

- “Sorry.. Miss? Are you alright?” The soft british accent landing on your ears makes your eyes meet his. He instantly shrinks away from you the moment he notices your blotched face and puffy eyes.

- “Oh I’m awfully sorry.. You ok?” He asks again as you instantly start rubbing away your tears, probably rubbing your makeup everywhere but not that it mattered. your tears already ruined it. “Yes. Yes I’m fine, sorry i look crazy right no—“ “Not at all. You look fine, beautiful, even. Sorry if that’s forward” he points to the name tag across the right side of his chest. “I’m Steven. I work at the.. gift shop.. You might have heard of it. You’re standing in it.”

- You found his rambling cute, his compliment brings a blazing heat to your face. Even though you know he’s probably saying it to be nice.

- Steven tells you the end of his shift is coming up and he’d like to cheer you up, so he offers to take you around the museum and show you his favorite pieces. You try to decline, telling him you wouldn’t want him to waste time and he must be tired. Only for him to hit you with–

- “Talking to someone as lovely as you? Doesn’t quite seem like a waste to me at all.” His beaming smile makes you falter. And you wonder if you should feel guilty at all the extra attention he’s showing you. But there’s no need to. You just do.

- You shrug off his flirting as simply being playful and by the end of the hour you’ve completely forgotten why you were upset in the first place.

- Steven’s wonderful company, he tells you facts with wide eyes and excited smiles, It starts to bring life to the very exhibits you’re visiting. of course you’re bound to hit your favorite.. Where you just got dumped.

- You stood in the threshold of the room prior to the exhibit. and when steven turns around you could only blurt out to him in panic.

- “Can we see something else..? I’m just.. feeling a bit tired.”

- He notices your unease and tilts his head to the side slightly in confusion. “Yes, of course we can. Is there a specific area or..?” You can tell he wants to ask, but you think it’s sweet of him trying not to pry. You let out a deep sigh and place your hand on his shoulder. “

- “I know this is probably a tmi. But I just got dumped here.. So it’s a little fresh.” His look of surprise causes you to mirror it on your own face. You take a step back, trying to figure out what he’s thinking. You don’t have to think long before he’s speaking again.

- “What a twat. Who dumps someone in a fun museum?” You laugh at the scrunched annoyed expression he now has pinned to his face. You shrug alongside him and start to walk towards the front entrance.

- “I really appreciate you doing this for me, my brains gonna hurt later with all the information you fed at me.” Your attempt at flirting didn’t seem all too flirtatious. But you don’t think Steven minded with the way his face lit up.

- “I could always show you more! If, that’s what you want.” He placed his hands into his pockets and walked around you. “I could give you my number?” he said out in a whisper.

- His tone caused you to let out a small chuckle as you handed him your phone. “Yeah. I’d like that.”

#hope u feel better anon #hes so cute #steven grant #steven grant x reader #steven grant imagine #moon knight #moon knight x reader #moon knight imagine #˚ . ☆ ⋆。˚ — my writing.

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demonsandco · 3 years

Text

Smut Alphabet - Lucifer

All the letters for Luci have been answered now, so here's a post compiling them all together!

A = Aftercare (what they’re like after sex)

When he’s the one in charge, Luci acts like the king of aftercare. As much as he loves seeing his partner fall apart, he always makes sure to put them back together in the end. His go to thing is running a hot bath for his partner, letting him clean them up while also giving him a reason to hold them close and relax for once. After the bath, he’s pretty much at their beck and call, willing to run out and get them anything they need until they're ready to go to bed. It’s one of the only times when Luci won’t put up a fight about going to bed at a decent hour, instead opting to snuggle under the covers and pulling his partner close to his chest.

B = Body part (their favorite body part of theirs and also their partner’s)

For a long while, Lucifer’s favorite parts of him were his wings, but now they carry too many memories for him to view them with the same light. Now, his favorite body part would be his hands. He has long fingers and a firm grip, perfect for grabbing his partner’s wrists with one hand and pinning them down.

When it comes to his partner, Lucifer’s favorite body part of theirs is their neck. It’s such a vulnerable part of their body and it’s his favorite place to leave marks. It’s a trust thing for him, as well as something that makes him feel powerful. Knowing that he could kill them in a second with his sharp teeth pressed to their throat, yet they trust him not to hurt them excites him to no end.

(cont under the cut)

C = Cum (anything to do with cum, basically)

Lucifer cums a pretty average amount, but he can do so quite a few times in a row. His favorite place to cum is in his S/O’s mouth or on their face. Marking them in such a way feeds into his pride, and he can’t help but admire how wonderful they look covered on his seed. He would never force them to swallow it when he does this, but if they choose to, he is left feeling awed and even hornier than before.

D = Dirty secret (pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)

Lucifer is more than prepared to take this secret to his grave, but he has, on more than one occasion, fantasised about having a pact master use their pact with him during sex, with consent of course. It’s the idea of trusting his partner to the point where he puts his life in their hands and gives them complete control that gets to him. He’d be able to just lay back and stop thinking for once, while they use him however they see fit, without him needing to make a single decision. If his actual S/O ever suggests something like that, he’d be overjoyed internally, but he plays it off as simply playing along with their idea. He refuses to let anyone know how much he enjoys the thought because of how embarrassing he finds it.

E = Experience (how experienced are they? do they know what they’re doing?)

Lucifer has quite a bit of experience, but only when it comes to sex involving BDSM dynamics. He doesn’t mind hooking up with someone if he has the option to have complete control for the night. The type of sex he’s used to is very much lacking in emotional connection. He’s left feeling a bit unsure of himself when it comes to more vanilla sex, being the submissive one, or just sex that involves emotions. He knows what he likes and he’s very skilled in the physical aspect, it just takes him a bit of time to get into the flow of things with a partner that he actually cares about. Especially when emotions are involved. He desperately wants his partner to know how much they mean to him, but he’s not quite sure how to translate his emotions into actions from the very start.

F = Favorite position (this goes without saying)

Lucifer’s favorite position is surprisingly vanilla in nature. Call him old fashioned or cliché, but he’s very fond of the missionary position. It doesn’t matter to him who’s on the top and who’s on the bottom, he’s fine with filling either role. He enjoys the closeness that it offers, pressing his chest against his partner’s and feeling each time they take a breath. Plus it offers so much versatility! He’s in the perfect place to kiss his partner as much as he wants, but he can also bury his face in their neck, leaving kisses and love bites, while also muffling his moans.

G = Goofy (are they more serious in the moment? are they humorous? etc.)

Lucifer very much prefers to take things seriously. He likes keeping the mood sensual and heated, and goofiness gets in the way of that. Some playfulness or teasing is perfectly fine, and even encouraged by him, but outright humor or jokes is something he’d rather avoid. If his partner insists on being humorous, he’d see it as them being bratty, and won’t hesitate to gag or punish them if they don’t listen to his warnings. It makes for a very easy way to rile him up, if that’s what they’re looking to do. His only focus in the moment is their pleasure (or pain) and his behavior reflects that.

H = Hair (how well groomed are they? does the carpet match the drapes? etc.)

As with anything to do with his appearance, Lucifer takes meticulous care of his body hair. He constantly keeps it trimmed and short, even if he doesn’t have a partner who would be seeing it at the time. He’s prideful of how he looks and puts a lot of time into looking well put together in all aspects, even if no one will see it. He has a nice amount of body hair in general, though, his pubes leading up into a thin happy trail and a light dusting of hair over his chest. It’s all black in colour, just like the base of his hair.

I = Intimacy (how are they during the moment? the romantic aspect)

Surprisingly, Lucifer is very intimate in the moment. He considers sex itself to be an intimate and romantic activity. He needs to trust his partner quite a bit to feel comfortable letting them see him in such a potentially vulnerable position and that really shows. Even if he’s acting rough and dominating, he still can’t help but let a bit of softness and love seep into his words and actions. It’s one of the only times where he can voice his emotions easily, without his pride getting in the way.

J = Jack off (masturbation headcanon)

Despite having a very high libido, Lucifer rarely takes the time to take care of his needs. He usually puts it off in favor of working, until he suddenly realises just how long it's been, and how needy he feels. It leaves him feeling so pent up and tense, not to mention unbearably sensitive, but getting himself off just doesn’t leave him feeling satisfied enough to be worth the time. He would much rather get off with a partner than on his own, and he’s willing to stay all worked up until then.

K = Kink (one or more of their kinks)

This comes as a surprise to no one, but Lucifer loves bondage. Having his partner tied, watching them wiggle helplessly, unable to escape his touch, never fails to excite him and make his heart race. However, not only does Lucifer enjoy tying up his partner, he also loves to be the one getting tied up. The feel of tight ropes biting into his skin as he squirms under their gaze sends blood rushing straight to his dick. Especially when he thinks about how much trust he’s putting in them. He’s leaving himself open and helpless, yet he knows that they’ll never do anything he genuinely dislikes, just as he would never do that to them

On a similar note, Lucifer is also very fond of temperature play, especially when combined with bondage or even sensory deprivation. He likes the subtle blend of pain and pleasure that comes with it, alongside the anticipation of not knowing which will come next. He could spend hours teasing his partner like this, watching their reactions and listening to their cries. Of course, he’ll also let them return the favor, tying him up and teasing his senses with ice cubes and hot wax. He’ll hold in his reactions for as long as possible, and it’s hard to break him, but if they know where to target, they’ll have him begging soon enough. The span of his back, as well as his thighs are extra sensitive and dripping wax across his spine while sliding some ice over his inner thighs will leave him desperate and begging in no time.

Unsurprisingly, the Avatar of Pride has a huge praise kink. Lucifer craves praise from his partner, enjoying the feeling of pride coursing through his body when his partner tells him how good he feels and how well behaved he is. He strives to please them as much as he can, and the validation that he’s a good boy sends pleasure coursing through him. Of course, Lucifer also gets pleasure out of giving his partner praise, too, when he’s the one in charge. He wants them to know how proud he is of them when they’re being good.

On the opposite hand, Lucifer gets a weird amount of pleasure out of being humiliated. He isn’t fond of humiliating his S/O, being humiliated? Having a mere human exert that much power over him? It excites him to no end and he can’t explain why. If they treat him like he’s a lesser being, spit in his mouth, step on his cock, anything like that, Lucifer finds himself cumming so embarrassingly quick. He has to be in a specific headspace to enjoy it, but when he is, having his pride crushed in such a way feels like such a thrill.

L = Location (favorite places to do the do)

Lucifer is a very private man and refuses to risk being caught in the act. The riskiest he’ll get is his office, but more often than not, it’s going to take place in his room. He prefers to take his time with his partner anyway, and that's much easier to accomplish on a comfortable bed, rather than somewhere else. He has more than enough self control to avoid doing anything too sensual outside of his room, where he feels safe.

M = Motivation (what turns them on, gets them going)

He’ll never admit it, but seeing his s/o acting bold or taking charge never fails to excite him. It makes his mind wander and Lucifer can’t help but imagine them acting that way towards him, disregarding his rank and power and taking control of him. He’s almost ashamed of having such fantasies, but that just serves to excite him further.

N = No (something they wouldn’t do, turn offs)

Exhibitionism of any level is a big no for Lucifer. He has a hard enough time showing regular affection in public, and anything even remotely sexual in nature crosses his limits. He considers what he shares with his partner to be very personal and vulnerable and he refuses to have anyone else see him in such a state. He’s also not fond of anyone having a chance to see his partner in a disheveled state. In his mind, their body and reactions are for his eyes only. No one else even comes close to deserving to see them like that.

O = Oral (preference in giving or receiving, skill, etc.)

Lucifer very much prefers giving oral over receiving, and he’s damn good at it, too. He loves the amount of power it gives him, allowing him to control exactly how much pleasure he’s giving his partner. He knows exactly how to use his mouth to get specific responses from them. He’s also a quick learner and adapts to his partner’s preferences very fast.

While Lucifer doesn’t hate being on the receiving end, it takes some time for him to be open to the idea. Letting his partner have so much control over his pleasure leaves him feeling vulnerable and he has a harder time controlling his reactions. It takes every ounce of control he has not to grab the back of their head and set the pace himself, but he finds that it’s more worth it in the end to give them complete control.

P = Pace (are they fast and rough? slow and sensual? etc.)

Lucifer’s pace heavily depends on the mood of the night. If both he and his partner are stressed and need some relief, he’s more than happy to go hard and rough. He does enjoy taking his time, though, and if his schedule allows it, he’d much rather keep things sensual and slow. Intimacy is a very important part of sex for him, and a fast pace feels like it brings things to an end too quickly for him to fully enjoy it all the time, but he still likes the roughness of it. Regardless of who’s in control of the pace, he enjoys it best when there’s a healthy balance, starting out hard and fast, before gradually slowing down and letting some romance seep in, only to speed up once again as he and his partner get close to finishing.

Q = Quickie (their opinions on quickies, how often, etc.)

Lucifer is a very busy demon, meaning that sometimes all he has time for is a quickie, but that doesn’t mean he likes them. When he’s with his partner, he wants to be able to take his time with them, keep a slow and sensual pace, but he often can’t find the time for it. He always thinks a quickie would be better than nothing, but they often just leave him feeling even more pent up and desperate.

R = Risk (are they game to experiment? do they take risks? etc.)

Lucifer isn’t the most open person when it comes to experimentation. Mostly because he’s already had experience with many kinks throughout his long life, and he feels that he’s got a very good idea of what he’s into. There are very few things his partner could suggest that he either isn’t completely against or that he hasn’t already tried. If they do manage to find something that he’s unsure of yet, he’s more than happy to try it out for them, as long as it’s in a controlled environment. His partner has a much higher chance of getting him to experience something new if he’s the submissive one for the night. Chances are he’ll end up enjoying it, even if he was a bit unsure at first. He thrives off of pleasing his s/o and they’ll quickly find that he has very few limits.

Lucifer is very fond of everything being safe and controlled, regardless of who is in charge for the night. He outright refuses to do anything he’d consider obscene anywhere that someone else could walk into. He wants anything that happens to stay between him and his partner, and his not a fan of risking that in any way.

S = Stamina (how many rounds can they go for? how long do they last?)

Lucifer has quite a lot of stamina, when he's not exhausted and overworked, at least. He's not exaggerating when he says he'll keep his partner busy all night long. He can take a few more rounds than the average human, but they last for ages. He's skilled at holding off his own orgasms, capable of making his partner cum on his cock a couple times at least, before finally letting go himself. He uses this to his advantage often, wanting to make sure he completely satisfies them before reaching his own peak.

T = Toys (do they own toys? do they use them? on a partner or themselves?)

Lucifer has a rather impressive collection of toys, or perhaps tools would be more accurate. He doesn't own anything like dildos or vibrators, but he has everything from different styles of restraints, to paddles, to whips. He has no qualms using some of the… less extreme tools in his collection on his partner, and he's not opposed to adding some more commonly seen sex toys to the mix, as well. If they show interest, he's more than happy to switch roles and lend them his tools, but he greatly prefers the feel of his partner's body, rather than a plastic toy.

U = Unfair (how much they like to tease)

Lucifer is a huge fan of teasing his partner, but he’s very easily swayed by begging. He could genuinely spend hours teasing them and finding new ways to make them react, but as soon as they beg him for more, he loses all semblance of patience and control. Hearing his partner beg feeds straight into his pride, and he’s always weak when it comes to their wants and needs.

Lucifer himself is rather fun to tease as well. It may not be his favorite thing, but he enjoys it from time to time. It takes a lot of practice and patience to actually break him, though, but it’s more than worth it in the end. What’s better than seeing the Avatar of Pride crying and groveling, pleading for his partner to let him cum?

V = Volume (how loud they are, what sounds they make, etc.)

Lucifer purposefully keeps himself quiet, doing his best to avoid making any sort of embarrassing noises. It works pretty well for him at first, the most that’s coming out of his mouth being soft gasps or groans from behind his clenched teeth, but the closer he gets, the less controlled his voice becomes, letting sweet, delicate moans slip out. He’s still not the type of person to be extra loud or talkative, but it’s not uncommon to hear soft words of praise in between the whiny noises he can’t seem to silence anymore.

W = Wild card (a random headcanon for the character)

Despite the sadistic and domineering persona he puts on, most of the time, Lucifer actually prefers to be the submissive one. He spends every waking moment of his life feeling like he needs to be in control and trying to take care of everything, that what he really craves is to just lay back and have someone else take the reins. It takes a huge amount of trust for Lucifer to admit this, but once he does, he’s willing to let his partner do whatever they want to him.

X = X-ray (let’s see what’s going on under those clothes)

Lucifer's dick is an impressive sight, but isn't too intimidating. He has a lot of length, more than the average human, and just enough girth to provide a stretch, without requiring extensive prepping. His skin flushes easily, making his a cock a pretty pink colour when he's hard. The thing that stands out the most, though, is that he has piercings down there. There's three to be exact, all lined up on the underside of his cock, forming a Jacob's ladder. They match the nipple piercings that he also keeps hidden under his clothes.

Y = Yearning (how high is their sex drive?)

Lucifer’s sex drive is pretty high compared to the average human, but it really isn’t very high for a demon. He’s always so pent up, however, that you’d never be able to tell that. He’s always busy, and when he does have time to spend with his S/O, he wants to do something romantic with them first, constantly pushing aside his need in favor of something else. By the time he’s finally alone and in the mood with them, he's so desperate and sensitive that he comes across as constantly horny, when he’s actually just denying himself until he can’t handle it anymore.

Z = Zzz (how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)

Lucifer has a horrible sleep schedule and struggles to get some rest even when he’s tired. The chances of him falling asleep before his partner are extremely low, even if they wore him out. Even if he doesn’t have any work he feels pressured to finish, chances are that once he finishes taking care of his partner, he’s still going to stay up. He’ll stay in bed if they ask him to, but he’ll find something to read or put on some soft music to keep him busy for a few hours, until he finally feels like he can rest.

#obey me #obey me shall we date #obey me smut #obey me lucifer #obey me headcanons #smut alphabet #lime time #some of these were answered a long time ago #and looking back on them was painful hhhh #i still agree with the headcanons themselves #but fuck i hate how i wrote it #so some of these are edited a bit

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sslow-dancer · 3 years

Note

Hello!! I just found your blog and I've literally fallen in love with your writing <3 you're very talented! Can't wait to see what you post in the future!

Could I get something (bullet point headcanons are good) for Avdol, Polnareff and Jotaro reacting to the reader leaning against them and shivering because of the cold? Sorry if this is weirdly specific Haha. (Preferably it's a mutual pining type of situation, but it's completely up to you if you have a different idea!)

If you'd rather just do one character or change the format that's okay! I'd be happy with anything you write^^

Oh and they/them pronouns for the reader pls! 💛💛💛

A/N: Yay! My first request ever! First of all, thank you love, I appreciate all the kind words. I strive to publish out quality content for you all, I take criticism seriously and hope for my writings to get even better! Being specific with your request is always appreciated, makes it easier for me to know what you want but anyway enough of me talking, let’s get on to your scenario! :)

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Jotaro, Polnareff and Avdol reacting to reader leaning against them while shivering in the cold

Warnings: none!

tags: jotaro kujo, jean pierre polnareff, muhammad avdol, mutual pinning, gender-inclusive, gender-neutral, cold, winter

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Jotaro:

At first, he’s a bit annoyed that you leaned against him

But once he feels you trembling, he doesn’t care too much a little after

He has felt he had been developing a crush on you, though he did not want to admit it

He hesitates to put an arm around you, grumbling as he lowers his hand down near the small of your back

To not make things too awkward, he grabs a blanket from his bag and hands it over to you

His eyes glued to the fireplace his grandfather and the others are setting up

“Yare Yare, just take this. It’ll calm down your shivering.”

He can’t help but let a tiny smile form on his face when he sees you immediately cuddle up to it

Your small “thank you” making that smile bigger

He hopes you like him too and that that small gesture made you think of him as a nice guy, not the stern guy you and many are used to

Polnareff:

Forget leaning against him, he instantly blushes the moment you sit by him

“Uh- pretty nice out here, huh?”

He cringes at his attempt at starting a conversation, he often gets nervous around you

In fact he did not think their location was nice in the least, he just needed a conversation starter

The familiar pink tint showing up on his face again when he hears your giggle, watching as you nod as a response

He laughs, scratching the back of his neck as a way to appear less nervous

He likes you a lot and hearing your laugh makes him hope that you like him in the way he does

Though he begins to frown when he sees you hugging yourself, realizing that the fire hasn’t been set up and it was beginning to get a bit cold

He then feels a weight on his shoulder, that weight being your head

He’s quick to put an arm around you in hopes that he warms you up a bit, he’s surprised to see that his instincts were that quick but he’s then happy to feel your shivering calm down a bit

Avdol:

Is rather surprised yet happy when you lean into him

He turns to look at you, his face heating up when you look away

He sighs, thinking that he made you uncomfortable which is the complete opposite of what he wanted

Whilst meeting you on this journey, he had begun to have feelings for you, your beauty always managing to fascinate him

He clears his throat, taking off his robes and placing them over your shoulders

He uses his stand to start a fire in front of you both, hoping that the warmth will prevent you from shivering further

“Don’t worry about me, as long as you’re not cold.”

The smile on your face warming up his heart instantly

He is then able to gain up the courage to wrap an arm around you as well, why not right?

It’s cold after all, the last thing he wants is you shivering the whole night

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madswonders · 3 years

Text

A Lesson In Romance #10: Thoughts

Spencer Reid x Fem!BAU!Reader

Genre: Hurt/Comfort

Warnings: Implied anxiety, Mentions of canon-typical violence

Word Count: 2.5k

Plot: Reader keeps getting caught in rom-com situations with Spencer Reid. This time, they're paired together on a case.

A/N: I know that the BAU's conference room has big-ass glass windows but just imagine that the blinds are closed for the entirety of this chapter aha. Also this chapter is a doozy... like 1k words longer than usual, so enjoy!

Masterlist | All chapters here!

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As Peter Gizzi once described the phenomena of love, "About you there is nothing I wouldn’t want to know / With you nothing is simple yet nothing is simpler."

In high school, your reputation always preceded you. The cynic that never had a boyfriend, much less a drunken one-night stand; a prude who waited over ten dates to have her first kiss; or the "ice queen" who kept her emotions locked up and threw away the key.

If they saw you now, you wondered if they would laugh at how you've changed; because these days, you looked like you were keeping the best secret in the world, one that threatened to burst from your lips every time you smiled.

What you didn’t know, is that you didn't need to be a profiler to see it. From the bubbling laughter and whispered conversations, to the not-so-secret longing glances. You and Spencer disappeared into your own world when you were together, and everybody knew it.

And for the first few weeks, that was enough. You found it easier than usual to ignore the thoughts that lurked in the back of your mind. That is, until you couldn't.

"... I want you and Spencer to work on the geographic profile." Hotch had announced, and you remembered the feeling of your blood running cold.

There were two reasons for this. First was the fact that this case linked twenty homicides across three years to a single unsub. If there was any case that required the two nerdiest members of the BAU to team up, this was it.

Unfortunately, that fact was closely followed by an overwhelming fear — and you wanted to preface this by saying that you were usually a woman of logic and science — but, somehow, you couldn't shake the thought that something bad was going to happen to you and Spencer, and you weren't ready for it.

Leaning against the cool conference room wall, you tapped your toes in an impatient rhythm against the carpeted floor. You were trying to recite what you learned from your PhD; that your mind was jumping to conclusions and that it was normal to be nervous. It was normal to feel this way. You were normal.

"Are you okay?" Spencer asked, jolting you out of your mantra.

You realised your boyfriend had been talking to you for awhile now, but clearly, you weren't listening. You shook your head apologetically.

"Sorry, I was just thinking. Could you say that again?"

"I was just saying, you can start by pinning the names and locations of the victims, and I'll put up the crime scene photos... but are you sure you're okay?" He asked again, this time shooting you those puppy dog eyes that made you weak.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine. Let's get to work." You said firmly, grabbing the box of push pins. You felt his gaze linger on you for a second, before he began picking up his own stack of pictures.

The first hour sped by quickly as you and Spencer listed out all of the unsub’s possible motives and next victims. At the half hour mark, Hotch dropped in to check on your progress, bringing takeaway coffee and leaving with a rare smile.

At the second hour, the rest of the team returned with some new leads, and unfortunately, new bodies, but nothing that helped solidify the profile any further than what you already had.

At the fifth hour, there was no denying it. The team had hit a wall. While the rest of them were back in the field investigating more leads, you sipped on your second cup of coffee while staring at the evidence board. Spencer paced the room behind you.

"The messy dump sites. The carvings onto the victims' chests. One points to the unsub being disorganised and inexperienced, but the other is a clear, almost narcissistic ritual." The doctor thought aloud.

"Usually that means the unsub is trying to make a statement, but he killed his first ten victims before the police found out, then killed another seven and three right under their noses before going dormant. If he wanted to make a statement, why wouldn't he tip off the police or media sooner?" He grumbled.

"Are we sure it's not a taunt to the local police’s competency? Many of his first victims were found in secluded areas with limited police support." You pointed out, tapping the edge of your cup in thought.

"No, the victimology and locations are too wide spread. A taunt would present a clearer message." He said.

You turned around suddenly, causing him to halt in his steps. "Here's something completely off the wall — but what if the unsub was trying to achieve a specific pattern with his kills?" You said, gesturing with your cup.

Tap, tap-tap, tap, you created the rhythm with your finger.

"That would explain why he isn't acting like a narcissist. Maybe he's suffering a mental condition that compels him to complete a certain pattern, and subsequently, ritual with his kills. Could be rhythmical, musical, numerical..." You explained.

"Numerical. That's it!" Spencer squeaked, rushing to the board with a marker. "I thought these numbers seemed familiar earlier, that's because they make up prime numbers!"

He backed away from the board to reveal what he wrote. The numbers 2, 3, 5, 7, and 11. A lightbulb turned on in your head.

"2, 3 and 5 make up the first ten kills. 7 is the next, which he managed to complete perfectly, but something happened to the unsub at 11." Spencer voiced your thoughts.

"He might have been incarcerated, or injured. But we can't rule out the possibility that he might have moved out of town and resumed the pattern elsewhere. So either we can expect 8 more victims here, or the unsub has already moved onto the next number: 13." You quickly finished the train of thought.

"Love, you're a genius!" Spencer rushed over to pick you up by the waist, twirling you as you laughed in relief. But the relief turned to surprise when he kissed you deeply.

God, he was good at this. Even when your feet touched the ground, it felt like you were seeing stars. Though it was only when your lips parted that he had the decency to blush.

"Love?" You breathed.

Spencer's cheeks turned crimson in embarrassment, but he didn't back away. Instead, he leaned forward, bumping your foreheads together gently.

"I didn't know you had that in you, doctor." You teased.

"Well, my mother did school me in classic romance literature from a young age. Not to mention, I happen to be a genius at most things..." You could hear the smile in his voice, and you giggled.

The doctor pulled away then, an adoring smile still plastered across his face. "Are you fee—" He began, but his voice died in his throat as his gaze fixated on something behind you.

"Ooooh, am I interrupting something?" You turned around to see none other than Penelope smiling coyly from the doorway, and the two of you jumped apart.

"N-no, nothing!" Spencer blurted out.

"All fine and dandy here." You added on, blushing furiously.

The tech analyst smiled deviously. "Well, I thought I'd come and check on my two favourite lovebirds. Anything else from the case for me to chew on? Except whatever that was earlier." She teased.

"Actually, there is." You cleared your throat awkwardly, while the good doctor looked like he wanted to melt into the carpet.

"We need you to search up murders in neighbouring cities that match the mutilation by our unsub, then cross-reference the time frame with any new residents. We suspect he might be trying to complete a pattern, and that he may have done it somewhere other than here." You said.

"On it, future-Mrs-Genius. I will get back to you so fast that you won't even have time to get down and dirty." She half-yelled that last bit, heels clicking as she walked back to her office. Before you could even formulate a response, she was gone.

You felt your boyfriend wrap his arms around you from the back. "Now, where were we?" He whispered.

You giggled, leaning back into the doctor's chest while he rocked your bodies side to side. "Are you feeling better now?" He asked.

"Next time someone says it's not as intense in here as it is out there, I'm going to give them a stern talking to." You joked.

"You know what I mean, love." Spencer reiterated gently, the pet name falling from his lips like it was the most natural thing in the world. "If you tell me about it, I can help you. You know I'm always here for you."

You sighed softly, blinking back tears that threatened to spill.

"It's something stupid. I-I'm fine."

He turned you around, brows furrowing in concern when a tear rolled down your cheek. "What's wrong?" He asked, wiping it away tenderly.

"I— I was worried about us working together." You admitted. "And it's not because I don't like working with you, but I just— I just couldn't—"

"Take a deep breath, love. Slowly." He held your shoulders as you breathed in and out, once, twice.

"I've been afraid this whole day — no, for awhile now — that something was going to happen to our relationship." You confessed shakily. "And it's not about our jobs — although I worry about that too — but I'm scared that one day you'll wake up and realise that I'm not worth the trouble."

You looked up at the ceiling, trying to stop the next wave of tears.

"A-and it's only gotten worse because I've never been so h-happy with another person before. Only you've made me feel this way, and I'm t-terrified that I'll lose what we have."

There was a brief silence as Spencer pulled you close to his chest, one hand stroking your hair carefully. You could hear his heart beating fast.

"Do you remember when the team tricked us into sharing a bed?" He whispered, a hint of a smile trickling into his voice. "I think about it every single time we're about to go into the field. Because you said you'd never leave me, and now, whenever we're out there, I know I'm not alone."

He breathed in deeply, your head gently rising and falling together with his chest.

"You've given me someone to come home to, love. What we have, you'll never lose it, okay?" He whispered.

"Baby, I—" Your voice halted. Crap.

"Wait. Baby?" Spencer repeated back to you, a teasing lilt in his voice. Your face flushed, and you unwinded your arms from your boyfriend to cover your face.

"Oh god, can we pretend that didn't just happen?"

"I have an eidetic memory." He pointed out. You let out a watery laugh, knowing when you had lost.

"Alright, alright. But I do have another ide—"

Then, the conference room phone rang. It was Emily. "Hey guys, Garcia managed to narrow down the unsub and we're 10 out, but we'll need some back-up."

"Be there in 15." You replied, while Spencer shot you an amused look, Luckily, he waited for the call to end before saying the next words.

"Let's go, baby." He wiggled his eyebrows.

You rolled your eyes and laughed, already strapping on your kevlar. "That's it. You're not driving."

"Aww!"

---------

After the major breakthrough in the case — all thanks to Nerd 1 and Nerd 2, as Derek fondly called the two of you — the case managed to wrap up neatly and the BAU found themselves in a rare position. Ready to end the work day, on time.

Not that anybody was packing up to leave just yet, although you wished they would, because Penelope had decided to start enthusiastically retelling how she found the BAU's resident lovebirds in the conference room, unable to keep their hands off each other.

"Last I heard, pet names aren't a crime — and how long were you standing there anyway?" You accused, blushing.

"Firstly, they are. Criminally cute, that is!" Penelope squealed, while the rest were in fits of laughter. "And secondly, you should never underestimate my awesome ninja abilities, because I heard everything that I needed to hear."

"Do I even want to know?" Spencers winced.

"I don't think you do, pretty boy." Derek laughed, clapping the genius on the back.

"Wait, wait, wait. Can we go back to how Spencer's pet name of choice is love?" Emily gasped in laughter.

"You've got to admit it's kind of cute, Emily." JJ smiled.

"Sure. If you're courting Mr. Darcy and attending cotillions."

"C'mon, Prentiss. All that means is that our boy's got style." Derek added to laughter, while Spencer whined in protest.

The door to Hotch's office opened suddenly, both him and Rossi stepping out with expressions of urgency on their faces.

“Sorry to break up the fun, kiddos. But there's been an update to the case.” Rossi announced, following right behind Hotch to the conference room.

The laughs were wiped off everybody's faces as you traded concerned looks. As you filed into the room, Hotch had already begun speaking.

“Another body was found half an hour ago. Same MO, same random victimology, and same kind of dumpsite. And the unsub just told us where to find his copycat.”

“Wait, we never profiled a second unsub.” Derek interjected.

"It doesn't makes sense — the first unsub is a control freak. He didn't like the idea of anybody messing with his sequence. Wouldn't he have done something if he knew somebody else was copying his pattern?" You asked.

"We profiled that he wouldn't be able to deviate from his pattern. What if he had to continue, even when somebody else was committing some of the crimes for him?" Spencer countered.

“Hold on, you said the unsub gave us a location?” Emily asked.

"And a time." Rossi voiced up. “8pm tonight at The Basil. The first unsub claims that's where the copycat finds his next targets."

"How do we know if we can trust him?" Derek asked.

"We don't. But he didn't display any telltale signs of doubt when he told us, and this is the only lead we have." Hotch's frown deepened. You had a feeling he didn't like the idea of this either, but the team didn't have a choice.

"Okay, if we're doing this, he can't know we're onto him," Emily thought aloud, "and we'll need precautions in case it's a trap. That means..."

"Undercover agents... and the bait." Hotch said with finality.

“And who did you have in mind for that?” You piped up, and everyone turned their eyes to you.

“You and Reid.” He stated the obvious.

“B-b-but, I’ve never gone—"

“You’ve more than proven your abilities in the field since you joined us, and having natural chemistry will make it less suspicious to the unsub.”

You opened your mouth, but no words fell from it. Hotch was right. Of course he was right.

As if hearing your thoughts, Spencer took your hand in his and squeezed, and you felt a little calmer already. “Ok, I’ll do it.” You said determinedly, while the doctor echoed your sentiment.

Hotch nodded, beginning to assign roles to the rest of the team while you squeezed your boyfriend's hand tighter, a new mantra forming in your head.

Everything is going to be okay. Everything will be okay.

----------

Tag List:

@blue-space-porgs @nobutalsoyes @lady-loves-a-lot @queen-flower @agentcarterisgay @totalmess191 @sapphic-prentiss @oops-all-ajs @spottedzebrasinpartyhats @mellowalieneggsknight @kenny-0909 || @averyhotchner @amesandpineapples @willowrose99

#mads fics #spencer reid x reader: a lesson in romance #spencer reid x reader #dr spencer reid x reader #spencer reid x y/n #spencer reid x you #spencer reid #dr spencer reid #spencer reid x reader fluff #criminal minds fanfiction #criminal minds fanfic #criminal minds fic #cm fanfiction #cm fanfic #cm fic #criminal minds #cm #criminal minds self insert #spencer reid x reader hurt/comfort

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hermitcraftheadcanons · 3 years

Text

Hermitopia AU Masterpost 1 [COMPLETE]

This is a gathering place for the events of the Hermitopia AU, as well as art and writing resulting from it (art and writing listed at the bottom). Please read the AU introduction and rules here before submitting! Feel free to join the discussions on the HCHC discord server!

(Disclaimer/PSA: All points are asks contributed by the community, the mods take no credit for the ideas within them)

If you would like specific credit in the masterpost, please sign within the text of the ask! (A dash and a signature at the end should do.) Asks not signed will be treated as anonymous.

Summary posts:

Not all elements of plot and character will be summarized, but here are a few basic things you may want to be familiar with before submitting an ask! (Unless you are purposely aiming to create an [ALTERNATE] idea for a Hermit)

1 - Starting positions and each Hermit's powers (based on the submissions from Day 1)

Summary post 2 - Interpersonal connections (based on Day 1 and 2 submissions)

Make sure to check out the second masterpost here for more up to date information, including newer art and writing!

Asks:

- (copied ask) [summarized mod comment]

- Hermitopia | Scar was experimented on by Cub. He gained dangerous powers and wings that resemble a dragon’s, but he keeps both hidden. Unless someone makes him angry. He has no idea who gave him his powers. Eventually he and Cub decided that they wanted to control things beyond their corporation, so Scar ran for mayor. (there are things to fill in but im lazy) [Scar assumes he got the powers in an accident during research. He enjoys having them but has no idea that they were intentional.]

- Hermitopia AU team ZIT is a superpowered crime-fighting trio!

- owing to a very particular set of guidelines he put in place, Joe can now copy powers if he sees them in use and can reverse-engineer how those powers are used. needless to say, this is massively overpowered in the right hands.but it got worse. at some point, there was an... incident... on ConCorp grounds, something to do with a mass amount of entities causing time dilation -- and Joe was caught in the thick of it, unable to be rescued for a while.the problem is, he got out by piecing together how the time dilation worked.needless to say, Joe... has a ridiculous powerset. so he chooses largely not to use his powers anymore unless it's absolutely dire or petty enough to shrug off as a random occurrence. nobody needs to know that one of the most powerful Unaffiliated in the city is standing right in front of them... especially not ConCorp.

- doc was a former high ranking employee of concorp before he volunteered for an experiment and it went horribly wrong. since then, the company has tried to erase any evidence of his existence. doc is now seeking revenge for all that the company did to him and is determined to tear it apart

- HI ok follow up asks will be sent later when my thoughts are coherent but concept: cleo has like super messed up healing powers where she can make healing go Too Far. also i pin her as unbound, considering, like, everything - shovel-shuffle

- So, his power was meant to be super-regen, right? except things don't always quite go to plan. Someone volunteered for the powers surgeries and is arguably dead. Etho is a name shared by the many many clones that developed themselves out of the leftovers. They're not quite individuals, not quite a hivemind. Any one of them has no fear of death because the others will continue, but they all act independently around their overarching goal. (which I won't snitch about) - DragonKay

- Bdubs was a hero. Key word? Was. He climbed the ranks through the government, he was a loyal and dutiful member of society, and he used his plant manipulation powers to subdue evil-doers without hurting them. But he’s always been a friendly guy, and he couldn’t help himself—talking to the Unrestrained, especially those in custody, was interesting! ...but it’s a slippery slope to walk, being friendly with the enemy and not sympathizing to their cause. Nobody knows where he is now, but there are rumours of a vigilante with similar abilities, and his three compatriots, two of whom he helped escape from ConCorp... They call themselves the nHo. - slimetek [Bdubs deserted Concorp while helping Doc escape after his experiment went wrong]

- Concorp managed to make a device that allows animals to speak or translate their thoughts into writing. This means that the good old mayor Scar has a certain cat giving some advice on how to run the city.

- Iskall is an assasin/mercenary against their own volition. An accident they'd rather forget almost killed them, and in exchange for their freedom and free will they got to live as a cyborg. Though its hard to forget with the implant that covers their eye and the limb of cool metal hanging at their side - @ghastly-ghostie [Iskall works for Concorp off-books, bound by the debt owed to them for the life saving experimental modifications]

- so I think grians original powers could be like cloning, but something goes wrong and the clones are different people. as a result of the duplication process, some funky magic rocks are made. the clones decide to take most of the funky rocks and run off, leaving grian with one rock that gives him some new abilities and the clones' rocks give him others. also uhh mechanical wings bc yes. so grians plot is him trying to find them while also causing problems on purpose. infinity stones. update to my grian ask from earlier, I had better ideas: the rocks are old like magic things that grian finds before the cloning and ends up collecting, but his clones snatch them - simplyskipper [some of the alternate Grians are aligned with different factions in Hermitopia, while the locations of others are farther or unknown]

- Hermitopia- Impulse has solid-light powers. He has golden crystals implanted in his hands, which he can reflect light through to solidify it into all sorts of shapes. This can be used to make barriers, projectiles, and much more, though more detailed constructs take more time.- @mleemwyvern

- Hermitopia AU Poultry man is a well-known chaotic neutral leaning towards good, as a one of the unrestrained.

- I think Team ZIT should be a little be wild card-y, that's how they act after all! [they are employed by the government for standard crimefighting, but they don't always take Scar's word at its intended meaning and often play a bit on the chaotic side when given instructions]

- [Hermitopia AU] False is an antihero/vigilante type who's specialty is not defined by powers or the such, but just... the absolute skill of being able to dual wield two (more sci-fi era) short swords. Maybe someone upgrades them to be "enchanted" (electrical, fire, etc. something that tech could do well probably). She's willing to be paid-for-hire, but if you go past her moral line she's also willin' to backstab you. -- @cheshire-vex [she's a free agent who sort of drifts between Concorp, the government, and whoever else will pay her on a job-by-job basis]

- Hermitopia impulse has more connections then one may think. He has ties to people pretty much everywhere, for reasons unknown. There is a 100% someone will come and greet him wherever he goes. [the greetings are usually friendly]

- Hermitopia Au! Keralis is a hero who most people wouldn't expect to be too skilled at fighting. His power is similar to hypnosis so he has no need to get very physical. Yeah, that changed when some bastard villain decided to attack his friends shop. [that incident caused his employer Scar to realize his untapped potential for protecting people and assign him to a few more high-stakes jobs]

- Hermittopia!TFC was one of ConCorp’s first experiments and as such his powers are a bit less...refined then the others. He has geokinetic powers, allowing him to psychically control rocks and other earthen materials. He used to be one of the VEX programs top graduates, but has since parted ways with them for unknown reasons and now operates his own plans of keep crime in Hermitopia under control. -lechairpourriedegrianri [he is considered Unaffiliated and both Concorp and the government largely leave him to his own devices, since he is helping to keep the city together]

-Wels doesn't have powers. He does have a super-suit made of fire and heat resistant carbon fibre (like the material used for the space shuttle) and has a built in hologram projector. One time, he used the hologram projector to project an image of himself, which everyone thought was a clone. He didn't have the heart to tell them otherwise. (AKA everyone thinks Wels has powers but he doesn't) -Silverwolf53 [he got the suit in Project VEX]

- To follow up on the Impulse ask- Team ZIT are a space-themed superhero team. Government-aligned, at least for now.Tango has meteor-like powers, he can shoot fire from his hands and feet and often uses this to propel himself at high speeds. Zed has gravity powers! He can increase or decrease the density of any object, to the point of making small black holes. They all have space-themed costumes, and it was probably Zed's idea. - @mleemwyvern

- TFC was the first participant in project VEX

- Grian was an attempted success. It fixed some problems with Etho's unintended cloning, but at the same time created some problems of its own, seeing as the clones appeared to have a life of their own.It's fine, though. It's probably fine

- I would say Grian is unrestrained, a bit like Etho, Chaotic in his own way. Does not activily Try to hurt people, but does mostly what he wants for fun.-Ciara

- Xisuma is a civilian- he has hero friends, but despite all their teasing he’s never wanted to go through VEX training. But in the night, the unrestrained Void walks the streets [Void is a symbiotic creature made of nothingness that uses Xisuma's body as a substitute physical form]

- Bdubs was such a good man... he could be trusted to look after Doc, couldn’t he? Somebody had to oversee him, somebody who was reliable and would never, ever consider betraying the mayor and ConCorp...They let their guard down, and Bdubs got curious. Bdubs made a friend.And then they lost him.- Slimetek

- The hels hermits are considered evil by default. How do you spot these clones, how could you protect yourself? Well in the past it was a lot easier, just look for their red eyesNowadays contacts exist but that doesn't stop people trying to call the police on tango, calling him a hels. Hes netherian, they have unnatural eye colours and their iris fills the entire eye, hes not evil but if people keep doing this hes gonna be!

- Beef woke up from his brain surgery to receive telepathy powers, took one look into the mind of the overseer, and noped put of there as fast as he could go.He's on very public record. After all, the mind control he may be capable of is a very convenient explanation for anyone who turns against concorp... ~DragonKay

- Hypno can’t control minds.They say he does. It’s why he’s named Hypno, after all.In reality, he can’t control people like that... but he can control what they see.Your best friend might look like your greatest enemy. A pit of lava might look like solid ground. A 100-foot drop might look like a step down.It’s a good thing he’s a hero, and a good thing he keeps his true powers hidden beneath a guise of low-level hypnotism. There’s no telling what he could do if they let him go. [he works for Concorp, helping to protect VEX trainees from people trying to harm them before they get a chance to finish the program, as well as keeping other resources safe]

- The 9th Street Incident [referring to an earlier Impulse comment] was a friendly greeting. That particular version of Etho just thought that drawing weapons would be a friendly greeting for Impulse, but Tango and Zed seem to disagree

- They still don’t trust Bdubs. He was with the government for a long time, and things are hard out there on the run. Besides, they don’t know what he got up to there. ConCorp could have any sort of information on him, something that might scare him back.Bdubs understands this. He doesn’t want to go back. He’d hate to go back....but they think he will, and maybe there’s something he’s not telling them. An ace that ConCorp has yet to play.- Slimetek

- Mumbo works for concorp as an engineer specialising in robotics, most recently taking on the task of maintaining Iskall's cybernetics that somehow they just keep damaging. Iskall assures him they're just.. very clumsy. So far Mumbo hasn't caught on.

- Ren's power is that hes a werewolf, but he only found out when he was in his late teens with his childhood friend Iskall. He still feels guilty about it, he did kill his best friend afterall. Or so he thinks.He's lived off grid ever since, too overwhelmed with grief and guilt to rejoin society. Most assume he's dead too - @ghastly-ghostie [Ren dropped Iskall off to Concorp as a last ditch effort, running away before he could see whether they took his friend in or not. They did, starting Iskall's plotline. Iskall told Concorp about Ren's abilities, triggering a panic in the Concorp ranks at the fact that Ren is a superhuman being created by some force other than their own project]

- Where does Void come from? The same place all powers come from.Little did they know, something survived the crash and has taken a human host. Maybe it's not the only one...No, that place is not Concorp. Concorp's original goal was to develop technology by reverse-engineering from a crashed alien spaceship. These aliens did gene-editing the way some people do nose jobs, so they adapted that technology, too.~DragonKay

- i've already said a bit about it in the discord but i have hermitopia cleo brainrot. joe being there was able to save her by giving her the regen powers along with her puppeteering telekinesis power. anyways cleo is presumed dead, sent by concorp into a mission as fodder basically until zit could arrive. but now there's is one (1) bitter undead vigilante against concorp that is presumed dead

- Stress’s name has a few meanings in relation to her. Whenever she gets too angry or /stressed/, she transforms into the StressMonster, a monster that feeds off of other people’s stress to become more powerful. Luckily, the monster is rarely seen, but does terrible things when she is. She’s one of the most feared creatures in Hermitopia. Stress hates her and tries her best to hide her from her friends, but it can backfire sometimes. - @guster-animations

- to follow-up on Joe being presumed dead: remember the time dilation incident he was stuck in? ConCorp figured it was best to cut their losses and not try to send anyone in to rescue him -- it would be a pointless mission. so they abandoned him, quietly announced that he had died in the line of duty, and put the affected area under high security clearance in order to prevent any future accidents. they figured he was already dead. and Joe figures, given that they up and abandoned him, maybe it's for the best that they continue to figure just that. he changed his last name to "Hills" -- a joke about the biome containing the time anomaly -- and otherwise proceeded to stay under the radar. he still uses the time dilation area as a base of operations, sometimes; it's very useful to have a hideout that people physically cannot get into/out of without his direct assistance. is he nursing a grudge, coming up with some convoluted scheme to get back at the paramilitary group for abandoning him? or does he just want to live a relatively normal life off the grid? who knows. that's the Joe [REDACTED] Hills difference. -@betweenlands

- False has some big scary power that is almost Eldritch she just happens to prefer a sword and doesn’t really care for who she works for as long as they’re paying... (they don’t need to know of the power that had harmed the ones she loves the most)

- Keralis once encountered Void sulking around where Xisuma worked. So fearful for his friend’s safety, he used his power on Void and told him to go away. Apparently the charm is still active, because if Void spots Keralis anywhere, he’ll turn tail and run. No, it’s not because he’s scared. Absolutely not.

- Grumbot serves as a sentient supercomputer created by Mumbo for Grian. Grian is using Grumbot for... various activities, all of which harmless, but a certain evil clone [Helsknight] has reverse engineered the technology. Concorp would like for Mumbo to give them the tech, but mumbo stuck some eyes to the computer, got emotionally attached, and refuses to give up his baby boy.

- When Impulse hears his friend/colleague Bdubs has been "taken over" by the mind-controller [Beef], he wants to go on an off-the-books mission to rescue him! Just giving up like they were told to isn't in his nature.Of course the rest of ZIT are with him. Heroes save people! It's what they do!~DragonKay

- Hermitopia is a mixture of sleek futuristic and cyberpunk in terms of style. It really depends on where you live and work (ik this doesnt include any hermits but whatever) - @ghastly-ghostie

- I wonder if Cleo's overactive healing powers affect herself and if any injuries she receives immediately heal over like wolverine or deadpool

- Ren used to be friends with Cleo too, but then she died. Strangely enough, she died on the same day that Ren killed Iskall. Ren’s lost all his friends. It’s hard living in isolation when there’s no one left that even cares about you. (Unless— no, that’s impossible.)

- I was thinking about Biffa, like you do. And Biffa would totally be some robot that was created by Project VEX in its early stages, however they realised fast that it was easier to use humans and give them powers, maybe its not their strong suit with robots. But Biff went sentient and glitched and was scrapped so hes just out there doing his thing. Hes a wildcard and plays for which side he wants at the time, sometimes he'll help or sometimes hes the one causing trouble. He looks pretty similar to a android like in Detroit:Become human but hes a bit uncanny and eerie, maybe its the eyes or the blood red armour. Powerwise, he's got more strength than a human does, mainly because he isn't limited like others are. try not to get punched by him, it'll hurt! [He's convinced Concorp will destroy him if they find out he's alive and Unaffiliated] -lucodak

- Going off of my thing about hermotopia impulse having friends everywhere....this may include the nho. Okay, they beat him to a pulp on one of his solo patrols once, but theey felt bad n patched him up! He has to keep it a secret. He brings them dinner alot. And checks in on them.

- Beef is the perfect cover-up for Bdubs’ desertion. ConCorp doesn’t want any other employees getting bright ideas, now, do they? Nor do they want employees getting nosy and trying to figure out where Bdubs went. They don’t have to tell people what Beef’s powers are. They just release that he developed powers after brain surgery, and a rumour that he was spotted lurking around before Bdubs suddenly betrayed ConCorp... and people draw their own conclusions. -Slimetek

- xB is pretty sure he’s supposed to be evil.I mean, that’s what sentient AIs usually end up being, according to a quick internet search. And yet he’s... not. Or maybe he’s just on the wrong side. - Slimetek

- Yes impulse is friends with the nho....what he doesn't know? He's....easily susceptible to hypnosis. Very easily.......Of course, after impulse is basically a very tired n warm cuddle bug, so, cuddle piles tend to happen after all information is spilled. He must've fallen asleep at their apartment again! Whoops! But it's okay.....they take good care of him if he does! [Beef is using his mind reading ability on Impulse without his knowledge, to make sure that he hasn't spilled their location and to predict the government's next moves. He feels slightly bad about it but feels that it is necessary for the nHo's survival.]

- So far, Grian has only ever encountered two of his clones, NPC Grian and Robot Grian. Technically three, if one were to count Ariana Griande. Grian doesn't really, but some do. [Ariana Griande is a popular musician in Hermitopia who is building a career using the magical stone of voice enhancement she recieved through the cloning process]

- To handle the two Grumbot issue: the one working with Helsknight can be Jrumbot, a legion of robot drones meant to work as Grumbot’s physical form that ended up being hijacked by Helsknight and turned against ConCorp

- There...aren’t a lot of “normal” animals left in Hermittopia. ConCorp took one look at the animals populating the city and decided that, hey, they could make some improvements. Species after species, they modified their behavior, appearance, internal structure, whatever they could fix, tweak, or add. They were just improving their lives and the lives of the citizens of Hermittopia, after all, but the new animals quickly outcompeted the old for resources and habitats. And if it makes it easier for ConCorp to stick a camera in one or two of them, or set up robotic animals to keep a better eye on the city, no harm, no foul, right?(Bonus: there is one (1) singular cat left in Hermittopia, resulting in a spy movie-style heist where two teams of Hermits attempt to “rescue” the cat simultaneously. The cat keeps wandering away from both teams. Shenanigans ensue)- Adonis [the cat is Jellie, who orchestrated the competition between Team ZIT and Cleo and Joe for her own entertainment, getting away from both parties in the end]

- The Leak:Not all mutations are the result of controlled experiments! If some alien tech got away from the crash site, concorp never would have picked it up. It might have got into nature, not as refined as they made it in the labs but causing little changes here and there. Ren may have become a werewolf from being bitten by a mutant wolf~DragonKay

- Impulse is able to use his powers to create illusions or male things appear invisible! Sort of. After all, light dictates what we see. It takes a lot of focus, though, so it's not that practical. -@rayveewrites

- The one thing Hels wasn't able to steal was the cloning technology, hence his hostility with Concorp -- he needs the cloning device, because how else is the void going to get a body of their own? - SilverWolf53

- *glances at the hermitopia werewolf ask* okay but what if the same mystery people who made ren into a werewolf also created jevin, and maybe Etho? idk if either of them have been given any hermitopia headcanons yet lol. but im sure the same people who made a werewolf could make a sentient slime (or perhaps rescue one) or make... whatever etho is. [Since the "second organization" is an incorrect assumption believed by Concorp, Jevin was created when he came in contact with a waterway contaminated by The Leak. Concorp assumes he was created by an opposing organization and not by accident, and therefore would like to bring him in along with Ren.]

- hermitopia - mumbo and grian were friends back when cloning experiments were still happening (or . as friendly as you can be with someone who's treating you like a lab rat), but after everything went wrong and grian escaped, mumbo has his memories wiped nd thats why he's trusted w iskall's stuff? bc he inherently remembers working on high-level things without knowing where he learnt it - muscle memory, yk?anyway massive angst with grian maybe recognising mumbo, but not the other way round, and trying to rekindle their friendship? and that's where grumbot comes in? -gin [Mumbo's memory was wiped so that he would forget the deadly purpose of Iskall's cybernetics, which he was working on at the same time as the Grian project in the background. Mumbo does not remember creating Grian's mechanical wings or Iskall's arm and eye, and he has no memory of either individual previous to "meeting" Iskall as the person assigned to his repair and upkeep.]

- Etho doesn't so much have powers as he is powers. All the powers the ‘original’ had went into creating him; now he just exists, as whatever sort of being he is. Not a human one, that much is obvious. ~DragonKay [Etho has no powers beyond the hivemind and his training, due to the error in the experiment that caused the clones]

- Mumbo started the button as a joke. A nonsense social expirement to see how much people want worthless signs of status. Unfortunately things got out of hand, and violent too. But hey! It's not his fault that the five special anomalous stones were misplaced into the prize dispenser! It was just chance that they fell into the hands of the clone of the worst gremlin in the city! Don't fire him! [He was not fired, but Cub was Decidedly Unhappy with him for a good long while]

- Void mostly trashes ConCorp facilities- trying to figure out if any of his siblings survived the spaceship crash, but occasionally he’ll pilfer from a bakery, because X is a health nut and Void just wants a gods damned cookie [Void very much dislikes unseasoned chicken]

- If the Stress Monster gets too big, too dangerous, Cleo is sworn under oath to Stress to zap her with her healing powers. Cleo doesn’t like to do it, overhealing a stressed Stress makes her so calm she gets knocked out for a couple of days, but Stress can take a small comfort in the fact that at least one person out there can stop her

- Ooh with the self healing Cleo she'd be able to develop a small amount of super strength, with how the mind keeps from going full throttle because it would destroy the body once she gets over it it's hysterical strength whenever she wants [it is quite painful, but a good backup plan]

- Being a hive mind of disposable clones that can spawn new copies at will, it can sometimes be hard for the Etho Entity to remember that it is indeed a big deal for other people when they get hurt. This can make him come off as callous to those around him, placing him firmly in the "villain" category in most citizen's books, but he really doesn't intend any harm!

- Grian used to be tall, but then the cloning happened. With each clone they stole a little bit of his height making him the short man he is today. He needs to capture those clones and get his height back. [Grian isn't entirely sure how to accomplish this, but he's dead set on trying! He misses being tall!]

- While Grian was perfectly fine with Ariana Griande living her own life, he did insist on one thing.Her "older brother" getting backstage access whenever she was on tour. He's very proud and supportive of her and her music career.

- Mumbo is perfectly content working in tech, watching the other hermits get up to crazy shenanigans. Except of course, there was that one time he was out testing some new gear and accidentally saved a crowd from some villains... and there were all those times after too...But hey! It’s not his fault that people like him, and he certainly isn’t going to get caught by Concorp during his after hours activities. [Mumbo considers himself an accidental hobbyist, not thinking he has the nerve or the skill for proper hero work. Time will tell if he's right about that or not...but unfortunately, he probably is. This should be fun.]

- There’s still some people overseeing VEX, even over Cub. They’re the ones that push Cub to do certain experiments or to scrap one. They’re the ones to give Cub the decision for Iskall’s life debt. Scar was under them too for the longest time, but eventually he wanted out. Cub still wanted in. They were still in the right, right? That’s what they tell him. He’s starting to doubt it. [Cub is way too invested in everything he's built to even think about going rogue now, but he does resent and occasionally question the judgement of his superiors increasingly as his project begins to fail more and more often. He also fears that Scar's shift in career will be seen as a betrayal, rather than as a tactical attempt to gain the company influence in the government.]

- Been thinking about the impulse + nho asks and just,,, what would happen if concorp/the government found out? It cant be good with interrogation/hypnosis on both sides (incase you cant tell,, the brainrot got me as well) (apologies if this is a mess im excited) [Hypno is assigned to set up an illusionary conversation to make Impulse reveal nHo location to Concorp and government agents while thinking that he's actually talking to the nHo in a random encounter]

- The one mind Beef can't read is Etho's. Their hivemind is just too weird for him to comprehend. If he ever tries to listen in, it sounds like just a bunch of static from an old TV.

- for hermitopia au!: Out of most of the heros, the most reckless may be team zit. sure they tell themselves they'll plan out missions but it's hard when they share a braincell and tango just runs in. impulse and zed share a look everytime and have to run after him to make sure he doesn't get too hurt or overwhelmed by the enemy. in their defence its hard to plan ahead against an enemy when you dont know what they are thinking.-lucodak ["You might not have known what they were thinking, Tango, but we'd generally like you to know what you're thinking!"]

- i bet ConCorp really wants to make it out like theres some secret shady organization creating all these people with mutations, rather than their own operatives deserting and their own failure to contain dangerous chemicals... whether its malicious coverups or just ignorance to the fact they messed up, wonder what would happen if that sort of thing came to light...? [If they found out that the unintentional superhumans were a result of the poorly-contained crash site? Cub would lose his job...maybe worse. If Cub found out (and he hasn't, yet) he would do everything in his power to keep that information from his superiors.]

- (paraphrased) Impulse accidentally walks in on heroes and agents breaking down the doors of the nHo's hideout and confronting them. Scar claims that they did so on information Impulse himself provided and thanks him for his service. Impulse, feeling confused and betrayed, resists Hypno's attempts to illusion him back to Scar's side and flees the scene with the nHo, knowing very little other than the fact that he doesn't want to be manipulated by the government any more (and still not knowing that Beef has been reading his mind)

- Impulse may have been labeled a traitor. But do you really think that Impulse, secret rebel, starting to learn how dangerous and corrupted Concorp really is, wouldn't let his best friends know about the danger they might be in? I think Team ZIT is more loyal to each other than to the government. - @mleemwyvern [ Impulse's first stop after escaping with the nHo is to find a place to secretly meet Tango and Zedaph and tell them about the way he was tricked. It takes a lot of explaining and a lot of trust, but they eventually decide to believe his claims and are left with a choice: will they openly go rogue and become a target along with Impulse and the rest of the nHo, or are they better off using their established image and reputation to keep an eye on the government heros' movements from the inside?]

- (two asks combined, paraphrased) Ren runs out of supplies and decides to head back into the city, confident in his ability to stay off the grid after so many years of experience and such a long time away. Once there, he runs into Doc, and they hit it off quite quickly. However, the more Ren talks the more Doc realizes - with his ex-Concorp knowledge - that Ren matches the description of Iskall's main target exactly. He warns Ren, who is then faced with the knowledge that Iskall is alive and assigned to kill him...so many questions and so many tears to follow...

- Why did Hermitopia start needing heroes? When the Unrestrained started to appear, if course. Why did the Unrestrained start to appear? A question asked a little less. When did the VEX program start? When did they start taking more risks? When did they stop caring about certainty and safety and shift towards trying to push boundaries they weren't ready to? People can be so enamoured with the concept of superhuman abilities, something bright and glorious and good- and perhaps they could have that too- they don't ask all the right questions. It's all an elaborate game of damage control, don't let the flashy heroics fool you, they've made mistakes, terrible, terrible mistakes, and now there are villains running loose with powers they fooled ConCorp into giving them. Are they villains? Are they victims? Does it matter? They're causing problems. [Project VEX has developed into a solution to its own problems, a self perpetuating cycle...one that Cub, as a businessman, is very familiar with. It's what keeps the wheels of industry turning. It's what keeps innovation creeping forward. It wasn't intentional, not this time...but if it keeps his project alive, he'll take it.]

- One time, Jevin had narrowly dodged being captured by Concorp. He was laying low in the forest out of town, when he had a run-in with some sort of wolf creature. Thankfully, claws and teeth couldn't exactly hurt him anymore, so he just played dead until it gave up.When the moon set, the wolf-thing slowly transformed into a human being. Ren was horrified at the thought he'd lost control and hurt someone- again- but Jevin assured him he was fine. Jevin got the feeling that the werewolf needed a friend, and Jevin himself needed a place to stay for a while... -RayveeWrites [Ren and Jevin are not currently in the same location, but they each have a means of contacting each other for help if needed]

- Worm Man wasn't a well- known super, but plenty of people have noticed that he seemed to vanish at the same time Team ZIT first started active duty. Those people have also noticed that one of the members has a very similar power set to WM.Officially, that's just a coincidence. Officially.-RayveeWrites [Zedaph was trying to get some unofficial practice while still in training in the VEX program]

- A common misconception is that Bdubs conjures up his vines from nowhere. He can't.Like any plant, his vines grow from seeds. They grow unnaturally fast, when Bdubs wills it, but they have to come from seeds. Where do these seeds come from, you may ask?Well, a long time ago, Bdubs ingested some strange fruits. Somehow, in wild defiance of human biology, the seeds contained in those fruits worked their way into his muscles and germinated. Some of the roots worked their way into his brain and fused into it; the rest spread through his muscles, grew beneath his skin, coiled around his bones. Thanks to the way the vines connected to his brain, Bdubs is able to command the vines, and their magic, at will.The vines produce seeds; some stay in his body to replace the old ones when they die, and most work their way into a pair of 'seed pods' in his wrists. Bdubs provides the nutrients, the energy; the vines provide the seeds, the magic. As an extra bonus: if the vines were to be totally removed from Bdubs' body, he would be at best extremely weak, and at worst dead. The vines have grown into his muscles, to the point where they've essentially replaced them in some areas. It's fortunate that they connected with his mind so early on, otherwise he'd be dead. -RayveeWrites [Concorp developed the fruit, and the fact that Bdubs is evidence of the unlikely success of that experiment makes them all the more angry at his betrayal]

- A lot of excellent xB information (it's too long to copy but please read it it's very good)

- Iskall has exactly one (1) failed assignment. That assignment? The kill or capture of Stress. Stress and Iskall have been, or should it be were now, friends for a very long time, since before Iskall even met Ren. So one can imagine the stress this causes Iskall, to be told to kill his one remaining friend that he knows is alive. Of course, this stress is quite enough to to Stress's Stress Monster into one it's strongest yet seen forms, allowing for Stress to then get away. (1/2)(2/2) Of course, Con Corp doesn't- and can never- know the true reason that Iskall cannot kill or capture Stress. If they knew, if they subjected Stress to the same hell he's in- no, that cannot happen. So Iskall hires False to protect Stress, to interfere whenever they send him on a mission for her. Luckily, False is good at keeping secrets when she wants to, and this one she'll keep. But as far as Con Corp knows, Iskall has severe stress and trauma from being a cyborg, and that's why he fails. [This all adds up to a monumental waste of Concorp's time and money, which also results in False getting payed, so all parties involved are happy except for Concorp >:)]

- Impulse would take a bullet for his teammates, and he knows they might be about to take one for him, keeping him updated on what's going on government side of this... slander. Still, Tango and Zed are great actors, and if he didn't know better, he might be a little worried they would *actually* be hunting him down in the name of justice [Tango and Zed are now being sent on missions to retrieve Impulse, which they must pretend to lose believably. They occasionally overestimate their friend's abilities and give him a few more close calls than he'd like, but overall the ruse is holding up.]

Writing:

- Wels, Hels, TFC, and Grumbot

- Bdubs Concorp promotion and desertion

- Joe Hills in his time dilation hideout

- Etho clones, ZIT, and the nHo

- Keralis and Void

- [ALTERNATE] Reveal of Impulse's situation with the nHo

Art:

- Impulse suit design

#hermitcraft #hermitblr #hcraft #Hermitopia AU #masterpost #long post #mod Shade

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paperpocalypse · 4 years

Text

seam.

50 Wordless Ways to Say “I Love You”: 34. Mending an item of their clothing that was ripped.

Pairing: Five Hargreeves x Reader

Word Count: 1,331 words

Warning: Swearing

[A/N: Takes place sometime before blink of an eye.]

You have a favorite hoodie. Five – and everyone else – knows it’s your favorite because you wear it every night and any other time you don’t have to wear the uniform; you had been wearing it when you first set foot into the academy, and you still wear it now, no matter how worn out it’s gotten. And it’s worn. The Eiffel Tower printed onto the front is cracked and faded, the elbows patched up because the fabric there had been scuffed thin.

By all accounts, you should probably get a new one. But Five knows that you won’t because you’re a sentimental person, and that ancient article of clothing has some sentimental value that he will probably never understand.

With this in mind, it’s no wonder that tragedy should befall your precious hoodie at some point, that point being today.

“It ripped.”

Your tone is sullen as you hold your hoodie out, showing Five where the top seam of the front pocket had torn. The flap of fabric hangs on by an inch of intact stitching.

Glancing down at the damage and then back up at your forlorn expression, Five wonders why you had specifically gone to him about this. “How’d that happen?” he questions.

You twist your mouth, rocking back on your heels. “… I pull on the pocket sometimes,” you admit. “And I guess I pulled too hard this time.”

Five nods slowly. It would be a lie to say that he’s surprised, but he finds himself unwilling to give you shit over it. “Our mom can fix it for you,” he points out, uncrossing his legs.

“I know, but she’s recharging,” you murmur, lowering your arms until the sleeves of your hoodie touch the floor. “And my mom’s gonna be here soon.”

Which means …?

“You want me to hold onto it,” Five guesses, “and give it to my mom so she can fix it over the weekend.”

Your expression lights up, though you seem apologetic as well. “Yeah. If that’s okay with you? I asked Klaus, but he told me to ask you instead because he’ll probably forget.”

Good idea. “Sounds about right,” he responds wryly. Standing up, Five holds out his hands, and you carefully place your hoodie in them. “I’ll take it to her.”

Based on the blinding smile on your face, one would think that he just agreed to babysit your firstborn child. “You’re a lifesaver, Five. Thank you.”

He nods again. From the stairs, Klaus shouts your name, and after one last fervent ‘thank you,’ you turn on your heel and run out of the living room to rejoin him. Five listens as the two of you race up the stairs, loud as usual, then looks down at the bundle of cloth now in his possession.

The fabric is soft and light against his fingers – nothing like the starched stiffness of the academy uniform. He scrutinizes the torn pocket again, pressing it back into place. Mom could fix this easily …

—

As soon as noon hits the next day, Five takes your hoodie and blinks to the mezzanine where Mom is.

“Mom.”

She looks up from her work – it’s a cross stitch of a bundle of roses, all sunny yellow with pink edges – and smiles at him, unstartled by his sudden appearance. (She never is.) “Five!” she chirps, tilting her head. “What is it?”

He shows Mom the pocket. Her beam immediately turns into a worried frown, and she sets down her cross stitch to lift up the drooping fabric.

“Oh, dear.” She runs her thumb along the torn edge. “This is [Y/n]’s favorite sweatshirt, isn’t it?”

“You can fix it, right?”

She takes the hoodie from him, inspecting everything. A hum leaves her throat, and then she smiles again, nodding happily. “Of course,” she assures him. “It’ll be as good as new! Oh, and I could clean it properly, too.”

You’d appreciate that. The edges of the cuffs could use a proper cleaning, given that they’re supposed to be yellow, not grey. “Thanks.”

“You’re very welcome, Five,” Mom says warmly, standing up.

She waltzes past him, heading down the stairs and towards the sewing room; and although Five knows that he should very well get going with his own business, he follows her, having an inexplicable need to keep track of what you had entrusted him with. (Well, not completely inexplicable. He’s responsible.)

There’s nothing extraordinary about the sewing room because it doesn’t have to be. He’s only been here a handful of times in the past, each of them for measurements so Mom and a tailor could make new uniforms and pajamas as he grew out of his old ones; upon glancing around, he sees that it hasn’t changed since then. Aside from the general organized array of sewing materials and tools, there are two large tables and two sewing machines, as well as eight mannequins, the shapes of which resemble himself, his siblings, and you.

Seating herself at one of the tables, Mom lays your hoodie down and smooths out the folds and wrinkles. “Five,” she calls him from the doorway, picking up a small, lumpy green pincushion that looks suspiciously handmade, “Could you be a dear and look for the yellow thread in that bin?”

Five silently obliges, then grabs a chair to sit near the sewing machine.

He watches as Mom makes careful but prompt work of pinning the pocket back on. Then she moves to set up the sewing machine, threading it and choosing the right stitch length and all of those things that Five hadn’t cared to know about before; now, however, he sees why someone might find this appealing. It’s methodical and practical, this sewing machine. Subconsciously, he leans in further to see how it works.

Mom lifts up the little metal foot below the needle, sliding your hoodie underneath until the pocket’s lined up just so. She presses the foot pedal, and the machine hums as she begins to sew the fabric back into place.

However, once she gets about halfway through, she stops.

When Five looks at her to see why, Mom smiles at him. “Would you like to try, Five?” she asks.

Hm. Well, it doesn’t seem difficult.

He shrugs. “Okay.”

—

“Five!”

Five looks up from his book as you bound into the living room, swathed in your newly repaired hoodie. You come to a stop in front of the sofa and tug at the bottom of the sweatshirt to show him the attached pocket.

“Look, she fixed it!” you exclaim. “And it’s so clean.”

“I can see that.”

You grin broadly as you stuff your hands into the kangaroo pocket, seeming to revel in the soft fabric. Your strange enthusiasm is almost palpable, and as it sinks in that you’re pleased with the result, Five feels a sense of satisfaction.

And that doesn’t make complete sense to him, because of course you’d be pleased. It’s ridiculously hard to disappoint you.

“You’re lucky to have such a cool mom, Five,” you continue. “She can do everything. And she’s nice, like, all the time.”

There’s a reason for that. “She’s a robot,” Five reminds you.

You pout. “Well – yeah, I know, but that doesn’t make her any less cool. It makes her even cooler, actually …”

Trailing off, you tilt your head at him, seemingly lost in thought. Five is slightly unsettled by the pensive look in your eyes, but he holds your gaze, unwilling to be the one to break contact. It’s a hidden relief when you shake your head.

“Ugh. Sorry, I spaced out. Thanks for looking after it for me, Five.”

“You’re welcome.”

You hug him briefly and bid him good night, then saunter off in your hoodie, humming some off-key tune of which he doesn’t know the origin. Five settles back and opens his book once more, locating his half-finished note in the margins.

For some reason, your smile sticks in his mind for the rest of the night.

#wordless ways to say i love you #source: @50-item-writing-prompts #five hargreeves #five hargreeves x reader #five hargreeves imagine #the umbrella academy five #the umbrella academy #tua #five x reader #five imagine #tua fanfic #fanfic #reader insert #fluff #tua grace #i've used a sewing machine like once in my life and that was years ago lol #blarrrgh this is ooc i know but five n grace having mother-son time made me soft #anyway #magneticverse

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tiny-maus-boots · 3 years

Text

Queen of Hearts pt 14

A/N: thank you as always to @chloes-yellow-cup for being my bestie and still doing all the things i hate to do. and a big thanks to @kimmania for your constant encouragement and supply of Legos. i love you awesome nerds.

14.

“Hit me with your best shot…”

Aubrey’s long arm stretched out along the back of the dark leather of the modern style sofa she was settled on. For the most part she could tune out the dry croak from the desk, but…

“Why don’t you hit me with your best shot.”

This was the sixth time in an hour that she was hearing the song. She was going to have to remind Lilly to remove it from the jukebox after tonight.

“Hit me with your best shot…”

The rough warble across from her died down and she thought for a moment that the singer had finally drifted off asleep. Aubrey’s head turned to the screen that showed a live feed of the cameras around The Dirty Bird. Movement flickered though them as Stacie and the Doc walked between the tables and around the bar toward the back office. She turned her head to check on the figure standing but slumped over her desk only to find dark blue eyes watching and waiting for her attention. The small woman raised herself to her elbows from her slouch and belted out just as the door opened.

“FIRE AWAAAAYYYYY!!! Pew pew pew.”

Aubrey sighed as Detective Mitchell’s finger guns gave out on the click of her tongue and she collapsed back over the desk to cradle a half empty bottle of grappa, ass up where she stood. Stacie’s wide eyes panned slowly toward her, body bouncing lightly with barely restrained glee.

“Oh my God….” Chloe took one look at the Detective and pinned Aubrey with a glare. “How drunk is she?”

The blonde raised a shoulder as she considered. “She’s been worse.”

“Doc. Doooooocccc….I hurt. Right. Here.” Beca raised a hand and brought it back to point at her butt. Her finger wavered as she tried to locate the exact spot which caused the most pain and then pointed for emphasis with a little too much enthusiasm. “Right. OW. Here. OWIE.”

Stacie eased onto the sofa and settled in comfortably in Aubrey’s lap to watch Doc Beale work. The redhead moved behind Beca and settled her bag on the desk. She took a great steadying breath before wrestling away the grappa from the prone detective and snapping on a pair of gloves. Aubrey admired the way Doc Beale efficiently and deftly managed to get Beca’s jeans over her hips and halfway down her legs with practiced ease. Beca seemed to admire it too because she stirred enough to look blearily over her shoulder with a smile.

“If you wanted to check out my assetsssss Doc, you didn’t have to wait til I got stabbeded in it. Right. There. Ow.”

“Yes, I see. Please stop poking the wound in your ass cheek. How even….?”

“I was tailing my guy. My big fish. Fishy fishy fishy. That’s a fun word to say.” Chloe muttered something Aubrey couldn’t hear over Stacie’s soft chuckling. “I heard that! Plenty of people would be DE-FUCKING-lighted to spend their date night starin’ at a little of this action.”

Aubrey bit her lip to keep the laugh from breaking free as the detective wiggled her ass unmindful of the tight skinny jeans trapping her legs and toppled into a slide nearly off the desk before Chloe managed to grab and right her teetering form.

“Head down, ass up. Now tell me again how you managed to get stabbed in the butt cheek with glass?”

“You said that like you’re used to giving that order. I might be down for that, just be gentle with me.”

Beca gave her a leer that the doctor promptly ignored as she prepped her tools.

“Detective, remember that I have some very sharp instruments here that I am excellent with.”

Beca gave her a dubious look but obediently turned and bent over the desk again so the other woman could examine the wound. Chloe was utterly focused on the task of cleaning and debriding the punctures in a circular pattern. Aubrey had been sure it was going to require at least a few stitches from what she saw before she called for real medical help.

“I told you. I was following the big fish.”

“And you followed him into a bar I’m guessing.”

“Right, rule numero dos of detectivering. Don’t stick out like a sore thumb.”

Chloe blinked and looked up from her work to focus on Beca. “What’s numero uno?”

“That’s not a real number, Doc.”

“Solid rebuttal.”

“Did…did you just make pun of my rump? Oh my God I’m in love. I’d get down on one knee right now and propose. Except you’re feeling up my butt right now and that’s kinda nice.”

The doctor’s bright blue eyes narrowed and she jabbed the needle into the hunk of flesh she had just grabbed in preparation for the injection. She depressed the plunger quickly as her patient yelped and attempted to squirm away.

“HEATHEN! Oh God. I’m dying. Help. I’m dying, Dr. Kevorkian is killing me….my vision…I can’t see.”

“Open your eyes, idiot. That was just an antibiotic booster. Have you had a tetanus shot recently?”

“Pretend I said whatever answer will prevent you from being a literal pain in my ass.”

It was too much for Stacie and she turned her head to bury her laughter in Aubrey’s neck. The blonde tightened her grip on her fiancée and enjoyed a satisfying laugh at the detective’s expense. She hadn’t known what she’d find when she had gotten Beca’s distress call. They had all been on high alert since coming back to Los Angeles, trying to close ranks as best they could without being obvious about it. She had been waiting for an attack to come and her first thought when she had gotten the call was that it had finally begun. Each moment waiting in her office while Lilly retrieved the Detective from her hiding place in an abandoned warehouse building down at the port had been like a stone on her chest. She had needed this humor to ease the cold grip of fear on her heart.

Aubrey’s line of business didn’t lend itself to close relationships with members of law enforcement, at least not for long. What she and the Detective had was something altogether different than any of the other criminal-cop business agreements she had formed during her career. Beca was someone she trusted at her side, more…trusted at her back. The idea that someone would try to take her out was sobering and her laughter faded. Stacie sensed the change in her and cupped Aubrey’s face gently to bring their foreheads together. Words weren’t necessary for Stacie to understand what she was thinking and feeling. The blonde took a deep breath and straightened her spine. One hand came up to adjust and smooth her tie. If it had started…she wanted to know who was coming for her people.

“So, who’s the fish?”

Beca lifted her head from the desk and struggled to focus on Aubrey. It took her a few seconds to process the question. She seemed to have forgotten the conversation while Chloe worked silently to finish working on her wound.

“A security guard. He’s got bad taste in bars and also what I would loosely refer to as ladies.”

She couldn’t imagine where a security guard would fit in with Alice’s plans and frowned. Maybe this wasn’t about her. Beca had other cases she was working, maybe this was just another Tuesday night for the cop.

“A security guard? Sounds kind of small time for you.”

Denim blue eyes flashed to hers, some of the haze of alcohol burned away by intensity of her drive. The small brunette’s lips quirked into a smirk. Aubrey was suddenly very sure that nothing Beca did was small time or without a very good reason.

“It only takes a small stone in the right place to make a rockslide.”

Chloe slowed her movements as she finished her work. Something about what Beca said must have been interesting to the doctor because she kept her attention on the detective while she cleaned up the trash and peeled her gloves off to toss in the black plastic trash bag left there for that purpose. Aubrey guessed she was re-evaluating her previous estimations of the foul mouthed, perpetually smug, woman.

“You’re not wrong, Bec. So, what’s this small stone guarding?”

“Not what. Where. Dude works at the port.” She grunted and stood gingerly with a backward glance at her own butt. “Hm. Nice, think chicks will dig the scar?”

If Chloe had been considering there may be more to Beca than outrageous flirtation it was only a brief passing fantasy. She sighed and rolled her eyes then glared at Aubrey.

“18, Aubrey.” It was almost enough to make her face split into a grin and she had to turn her chuckle into a soft cough. Chloe tied up the bag and dropped it in the trashcan sure that it would be disposed of carefully. It wasn’t the first time she’d had to patch one of them up, they knew the drill by now. “You owe me so big.”

“I’m good for it. So, Detective, what about this dock rat?”

Beca stopped checking herself out long enough to pull her pants up and wink at Chloe before answering. Doc pretended not to notice but Aubrey could see her watching Beca from the corner of her eye while she played around with the tools in her bag.

“When I figure how he connects to Richie Rich, I’ll let you know.”

Stacie’s body tensed in her arms and Aubrey glanced at her curiously. Her girl chewed her lower lip in thought, a habit that Aubrey found adorable. “Something on your mind, Stace?”

“It’s probably nothing. Just something Edith said about someone I went to prom with. His dad got him a job down at the docks.” Stacie shrugged it off but Aubrey could tell she was still chewing on it. “Probably just coincidence.”

Aubrey and Beca exchanged a look. After a lifetime of double crosses and plot twists, neither of them believed in coincidences. The detective dug around in her pocket for her phone. She wasn’t quite sober yet but a hell of a lot steadier than a few moments ago. Aubrey snatched the phone easily out of the air when it was tossed her way and glanced at the screen.

It was a video and she angled it so Stacie could see too. Her fiancée pressed play and sighed. Beca could be heard in the background giving a lot of very specific direction to the two women practically fucking on a pool table in a disgusting looking rathole of a bar. Aubrey was pretty sure the women were hookers and the corner of her mouth quirked in amusement. Stacie took the phone out of her hand turned it to face back to the detective.

“Really Beca?”

“I thought it was pretty good for my directorial debut. But your gutter brain is making you miss the real show.”

Aubrey took the phone back and focused on the whole scene. Behind the women in a shadowed booth two men were clearly having an animated discussion. One was further into the shadow than the other but his gestures were strong and decisive. She watched as the other, younger seeming, man’s gestures became conciliatory and submissive the longer the conversation went on. In the foreground a flurry of noise and activity caused the camera to shake and wildly as if it were being swung around. There were glimpses of rough faces and snatches of shouts and curses. At one point there was a good stretch of scuffed flooring where she assumed Beca had been crawling away from the obvious brawl happening around her.

The camera came up again in time to catch the men leaving their booth in a hurry. Each of them caught in the neon blue glow from beer signs on the walls. Stacie snatched the phone out of her hand and hit pause. Long legs dropped down to the floor from the sofa and she stood in shock.

“Bree…this is Senator Grant. The guy he’s with is his son Kodie, we went to high school...Jesus Christ…”

“You know him?”

“Weston stole his money.”

They looked at each other then turned twin green-eyed gazes on Detective Mitchell. The small woman’s brow was furrowed in thought, her lower lip caught between her teeth as she worried it.

“The kid is on the videos.”

Mitchell didn’t have to say which videos, they all knew. Even Doc Beale. Stacie looked away from them, uncomfortable with the knowledge that she had been in some of those videos. Aubrey let out a long settling breath and stood. She gently took the phone from Stacie’s shaking hand and brought it to lips to brush a soft kiss over Stacie’s wrist. It gave her a wan smile but it was something. Stacie would be okay. Aubrey looked down at the phone and watched the video again. And again. And once more. She studied every gesture, every twitch of posture, every unconscious expression she could make out.

“I want the kid. He’s the weak link.”

Beca grunted and limped around the desk to grab her keys and helmet, ready to go back to work with a hole in her ass nearly as big as the one in her pants. It wasn’t going to happen that way and Aubrey reached out to snag both items from the sidebar and hand them to Stacie who easily placed them on a shelf far too high for Detective Mitchell to reach without finding a stand on.

“White she devil.”

“Sorry, Bec. Can’t have you half-assing anything.”

She didn’t like it and Aubrey could tell but Beca sighed and grunted. “Solid burn.”

Aubrey gave her a quick grin then turned to eye the Doctor who was watching them all curiously. Her gaze met Aubrey’s and a brow went up. Honestly, she almost felt a little bad about needing to have the Doc take Beca somewhere safe. She didn’t ask, she didn’t need to. Chloe knew what she was thinking and started to shake her head no until Beca tried to drag a chair over to the get her stuff.

“I really hate you, Aubrey Posen.”

“No, you don’t, Doc.”

“You WILL be making a very large donation to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.”

“Absolutely.”

“And vacation for my office girls. Two weeks!”

“I’ll buy the plane tickets myself.”

“And if she pisses me off just once I will trank her and leave her on a park bench.”

The last was a bluff but Aubrey treated the threat seriously. “Understood. Anything else?”

“….I’ll think of something!” Aubrey bit back another grin and nodded seriously. She slipped her hands into her pockets as the doctor steeled herself mentally to take on Beca. “Come one Detective, as much as this pains me to say…you’re coming home with me.”

Beca dropped the helmet she had finally just retrieved on the ground and left it like discarded trash to limp over to Chloe. “Okay.”

“God…you’re so easy.”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing, Doc.”

Chloe gave her a final glare and slung the detective’s arms over her shoulder to help her limp out of the office. Stacie settled the length of her body along Aubrey’s back, hands coming up to finger the buttons of her vest.

“How well do you know this Kodie, joker?”

Stacie hmmm thoughtfully. “Not as well as I did in high school. Edith told me he got caught up in some trouble recently. I think I know how we can get to him though.”

“How?”

“He likes cocaine and paying for his um let’s call them dates. I had Happy make some calls for you.”

The smile came to her face easily and she leaned into Stacie’s embrace. This wasn’t anything like what her mom and dad had. Her mother had never been this involved in what her father did for work. She had kept as distant from it as she could, turning her nose up at the family that protected them, running from the darkness of the business. Stacie would never do that to her. She knew it all way down to the bottom of soul. Aubrey turned in her arms and brought their heads together.

“You got more cards up your sleeve than a Vegas croupier, you know that?”

“Hmm. I learned from the best.”

Aubrey closed the distance, her brushing softly over Stacie’s. There were a lot of words she could say about how she felt about the woman in her arms. She could probably write pages on it, but words didn’t matter half as much as action did. She was going to marry this woman and spend her life giving her the best of everything. They were going to be happy and she didn’t care who she had to kill to make it happen.

“Let me take you home?”

“Aubrey…in your arms? I’m already there.”

#queen of hearts #staubrey #pitch perfect au #the debt collector series

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poptod · 3 years

Text

Pretty, Little Doll (Merriel Shelton x Reader)

Description: Merriel makes friends with the pretty little doll serving ice cream.

Notes: jus thinking about ice cream. implied female reader, but this.. is too much. theres just too much here. youve been warned. edit: wait no u havent. the warning is that theres suggestive themes and such WC: 2.3k

After working long hours in the broiling sun of the south, what felt best down his parched throat was a beer––a bar where many of his friends and coworkers drank at, and the waitresses wore low-cut dresses with short hems and long stockings. That sight went down wonderfully with several drinks, but what drew his attention today was a newly opened shop.

There was no sign, but the large, pristine windows gave a good view of the inside. Clean, white walls with several tables and chairs to the left, and a counter to order at on the right. Behind it stood you, dressed to the nines in ruffles and bows as you opened up the shop, displaying buckets of ice cream.

Merriel grinned. Lopsided and toothy, and he jogged inside, sweat and dirt still trailing down his skin and clothes. With his shirt slung over his bare shoulder, he met your eye and his cocky smile returned as his chin tilted high.

"Afternoon," he drawled as he approached the counter, barely grazing over the different flavors before returning to you.

"Good afternoon," you said in a much quieter voice, though you did mimic his smile, just more politely. "How may I help you?"

"You new here?" He asked, gesturing generally to the shop.

"Oh, yes," you said. "My grandmother always wanted an ice cream parlor, so.. I thought I could help her."

"That's awful sweet of ya," he said as he leant on the counter, tilting ever closer to you. "This ice cream sweet as you, boo?"

Your mouth fell open, eyes widening as you did a double take. For a moment you were at a loss for words, but you quickly attempted to stammer out a response, a blush burning your face.

"Well, um, we have, uh, strawberry, and um.. chocolate, vanilla, cherry, and uh, banana. And bourbon."

"Bourbon?" He said, a single brow kinked upwards.

"It's my grandma's favorite," you said with a sheepish chuckle.

"Damn, girl. Grandma knows how to have fun," he laughed.

"Would you like to try it?"

Only if I can lick it off you, he thought, his attention drifting to the soft skin of your neck. The thought of it melting down and pooling in your clavicle. While usually he didn't bother to censor himself for anyone, you seemed a little fainthearted. His chances with you would probably be ruined after one too-strange comment.

"Sure," was what he said instead. "Long as it's cold I don't care."

"I understand that. I moved here recently and it's certainly something to try and adapt to the heat," you rambled as you stuck a tiny plastic spoon in the bourbon ice cream, giving him the single bite. "Are you a local?"

"Been here long's I remember," he said, taking the spoon. "What time do ya get off today?"

"Oh, um," you fixed the ruffles on your collar, "I won't be finished till late. We're not all set up yet."

"If y' need some help, I'd be happy to offer my expertise. I do a hell of a lot a' nailin' things ta the wall."

You stared at him again, once more losing your words. He hadn't quite meant what he said, but the fluster he left you in had him grinning, humored by the connotation you'd incorrectly understood.

"That – that'd be very nice of you," you said, wringing your hands. "I don't want to bother you. You look.. busy."

He didn't miss how your eyes raked up his body, from his wrinkled, dusty pants up his bare waist and chest still gleaming with the sweat of morning work. His jaw could cut hearts and he knew that very well; accented it whenever he could as he cocked his chin upwards, watching carefully as your breath froze.

"I won't be busy tonight. How 'bout this." He walked up right to the counter, pressing his hips into the edge of it. "I come after I finish up ma' own job, and I'll give ya' a hand. Don't even gotta pay me."

"Really? But –"

"Don't worry 'bout it. 'S nothin' for a pretty doll like you."

"At least let me get you a cone? It's hot out today," you offered, reaching for the largest waffle cones you had.

The guys wouldn't really take well to him eating ice cream instead of drinking, but he figured they'd eat their words when they saw you.

"Won't say no to that."

As much as he wanted to boast about you, how pretty and sweet you were and how he so easily slid his way into your life, he didn't want his friends finding your shop and vandalizing it with their own dirty boots and flirtatious looks. Only he could do that.

In the evening he returned as promised, having walked from his house on the outskirts of town to your shop on the main street. The build, decorum, and location of the shop screamed rich family to him. No one in his state would be able to afford a business on main street, much less fully renovated and repainted. He could ask you, he decided, about your family, your grandmother, and of course you.

Inside, you were closing up the tubs of ice cream, hauling them out of the display case and into a back storage room. He knocked before he entered, earning a muffled 'come in!' from you.

Before either of you could speak, both the buckets in your arms began to slip, and he ran round to the other side of the counter to help. He took one from you to ease the load.

"Careful, cher," he said, grabbing another bucket in his other arm. "Don't wanna break yaself."

"Thank you," you said, mostly ignoring his comment. "My grandma is in the other room, so just, um.. be polite and proper."

Fat fuckin' chance, he thought in his head, but fortunately did not say aloud as he followed you.

The door swung open into a freezer room, where an old lady stood in the corner, covered head to toe in coats as she stirred.

"I keep telling you to let me do that," you sighed, setting down your container before rushing to her side.

"I can do it quite well myself. I'm not useless, you know," your grandmother said, staring you down with a glare. You hesitated, gauging her carefully, before you relented with another exasperated sigh.

"Fine, alright," you said quietly. "I'll go work on hanging up all the paintings and such."

"Thank you, dear."

You motioned to him as you passed by, pushing open the door and heading out of the freezer. He once again followed you, watching your ass with a grin you never saw.

"We need to hang up these," you said as you brought him to one of the circular tables, each of which carried a small pile of paintings, license plates, or tin posters.

"You got a ladder?" He asked, glancing to the high walls.

"Yes sir," you said, sorting through the different posters. He quirked a brow, intrigued by the possibility of that nickname.

"I neva did get ya name," he said as he leant on one of the tables.

"(Y/N). What's yours?"

"Pretty name for a pretty doll," he half sung, the same, one-sided smile stretched lazily across his face. "My name's Merriel."

"Also a pretty name," you said, picking the largest poster to start with. A pin-up girl in a sailor's suit. "Our ladder isn't all that steady. Will you hold it for me?"

He opened his mouth to offer himself up, but with one look to the ruffled skirt you wore, he shut himself up.

"'Course," was what he said instead.

Everything was a bit of a game––one you were unwittingly a part of, and one where you played your role rather well. A sweet, unassuming little thing, essentially a toy for him, accepting his help and letting him in. He hated to act the predator, but when it came to you he couldn't help it.

That was how he saw it. Hunting you down and taking you for his own at the end of a long chase. However, to any outsider, it appeared in a much simpler way; a young man doing anything for someone he'd developed a crush on. That was how it truly was, though the innocence of his crush was abruptly stripped away as he held the ladder, staring shamelessly up your skirt.

"Merriel?"

"Huh?" He said, broken out of his dreamy trance.

"I said could you hand me another nail," you said, pointing towards the package of nails with your hammer.

"Oh. You sure ya ain't gonna fall if I leave?" He asked with a grin. You chuckled, shaking your head.

"I'll be alright."

"If you say so, boo."

After a little while he supposed he ought to offer some more help than holding a rickety ladder, and took your place at the top with a hammer in his hand and nails in his mouth. As promised, his experience with nailing things to the wall (nails specifically, not women) made him much faster than you, and the entirety of the wall behind the counter was covered within fifty minutes.

"Thank you for your help, again," you said as you put away the hammer and nails.

"My pleasure," he said, the image of your thighs still fresh in his mind. "If y' ever need help.. I'm happy t' to be of service."

"Well, thank you. Come stop by again soon. On the house," you said as he left, peeking your head out the door and giggling.

"You know I'm stoppin' by again, get two things done in one trip. Some'in sweet for th' eyes and the tongue," he laughed, watching your face light up with a blush.

And it ain't just the ice cream, he thought.

Over the course of the coming summer, he left drinking for the evening, and instead visited your shop over his lunch break. You insisted on giving his cones for free considering he continued to help you out, but he usually found ways to sneak you the money anyway. You were not, as he assumed earlier, a very rich family.

His favorite activity, which he found rather early on, was to sit outside on burning hot days, his shirt draped over the back of his chair as he ate. Through the pristine glass, he spied you watching him often.

You couldn't help it either. Most of your life was spent in your family cabin, cutting you off from many teen and early adulthood experiences. People flirting with you was a lot to deal with, especially when it came from someone as pretty as him, the smooth dips and ripples of his lean muscles shining with sweat and dirt from his construction site.

His tongue. Ever since he made that comment on that first evening you met, you hadn't been able to get it out of your mind. How it rolled and drawled between his puffy lips drawn backwards with his teeth, in a very specific method you'd pinned down to 'the Tongue Thing'.

Your heated, embarrassed blush only worsened as ice cream dripped down his fingers from the heat, cleaned up by a sharp and precise tongue. You could hardly breathe watching him like that, but as he caught your eye you turned quickly away.

His bravado had clearly earned a huge boost from catching you mid-drool, prevalent in his step as he waltzed back into your store. You hardly met his eye, pretending to clean up the counter, but that didn't stop him. He walked right up to you, leaning down with his elbows on the stone, forcing you to stop and look at him, which you did with incredible reluctance.

"You been watchin' me, cher?" He asked, close enough to see his reflection in your wide eyes.

"No," you said quietly.

"A' think you're lyin'," he said, leaning in closer yet. "Betta' not do that. Could land you in some trouble."

You raised your brows.

"Are you threatening me?"

"Not with anythin' ya can't take," he said as he raked his eyes purposefully slow down your body. When you appeared to be at a loss for words, he said, "I'll ask ya again. Were you watching me?"

"... and if I don't answer?" You tested carefully.

"Well then, I think there's too much space between us," he said, grinning cockily as he jumped the counter, crowding you suddenly.

You drew in a sharp breath, backing up as he continued to step forwards till he pinned you to the wall with his hips.

"Tell the truth, baby." he drawled, carefully setting his hands on your hips and pulling you in. Something hard poked you.

"I – I wasn't staring, I –"

He half-grinded into you, pressing you tighter against the wall as his hands drew upwards, resting at your waist.

"Such a pretty thing," he mumbled beneath his breath, watching your stumbling reaction closely.

By pinning you with his hips, he had free roam to move his hands, one of which toyed with the hem of your skirt. It was wrong, certainly, and it was also illegal since you were in plain view of main street, but he lost control the minute his fingertips brushed the soft, supple skin of your thigh.

Your breathing hastened, hips yearning for something, though you didn't know what. When the rough skin of his fingers suddenly brushed inbetween your thighs your hands shot up to steady yourself on Merriel's shoulders. He laughed, running a finger through your lips, finding you already soaked and not wearing underwear. Instantly his laugh faded, devolving into a long, needy moan as his hips once more pushed up into you.

"Th – there's someone – someone coming," you said, eyes darting to the front door.

Immediately he was off you, stepping to the side as you straightened yourself out. You walked forward with shaky legs, which he most definitely noticed, and took the mother and son's orders as usual. When you finished you glanced to him, your heart stopping at the sight of him licking your slick from his fingers.

"I guess your ice cream is as sweet as you, boo," he murmured in your ear, giving you no chance to react before rushing back out to return to his construction job.

#snafu x reader #merriel snafu shelton #the pacific hbo #rami malek #rami malek character

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