#like they don't even look old enough to be able to get a tattoo without a parent's permission but here they are givin em to other people

[byanyan]

actually ngl, i have been playing with the idea of byan, at some point in their fledgling verse, probably years down the line, eventually coming to work at some shitty little 24 hour tattoo shop

[vicorices]

★ cupid carries a gun.

open up your skull, i'll be there climbing up the walls.

cw # 18+ mdni, modern au, mentions of marijuana, dealer+loser!ellie, blink and you miss a slight pervert behavior, sub!reader, switch!slightdom ellie, pussyslapsyum, pet names, fingering, public sex.

wc: 4.9k (idk how this happened) // request more ellie shit pls.

the first time she saw you, she called you bro by accident.

it happens unexpected. ellie's been selling weed for a while now and she's used to get random text messages from unknown numbers: a friend of a friend, a recommendation from some old client — of course when she got your text you're not going to receive special treatment, not when she greets you like she would greet a guy, asking you where to meet since the club's big.

you're friends with cat, that's how you got her number. your usual provider is being insane with ridiculous prices you cannot afford not even by chance, so you're searching for someone else, a reliable source you can buy your weed from without getting into much trouble.

she’s perfect for the job.

it's a surprise either way when you tell her to meet you close to the main stairs in the first floor, and you think you saw her by the time you get there, but before you can approach your phone lights up with a new notification from an unknown number you now recognize.

you like it, making them think you’re a man, confuse the people you buy weed from. it's funny cause it's not the first time it happens, matter of fact, it's really common as you approach the auburn haired girl, noticing she's far less intimidating than your last seller, less tattoos on the face to instead, be covered in freckles and green eyes.

and to ellie — it's clear you aren't a bro too.

you don't pay much attention since it's a quick interaction, but to ellie its enough to make her spiral. too much weed, too much booze that night made her look at you like you're most beautiful girl out there, barely illuminated by the sporadic lights that changes time to time as you approach to her in a nice top of a band she also hears.

"hey. sorry to make you wait" you're too kind to her rough heart, yet from up close she's able to look at your face properly: where the fuck did you know cat from? why she hadn't seen you before too? was she hiding you from her?

"ellie," she presents herself like you do and she's almost a little shy to ask you to walk with her to a less crowded space, cause it sounds different from when she usually asks, slapping herself mentally for being so lame when she meets a pretty girl in a situation like this: don't be a fucking pussy. "do you mind if we move to a quieter place?"

"no, no problem" you reply "i was going to ask you the same, actually. don't want to get kicked out from here."

and you must be really trustful person, cause ellie could be a bad person and you're following her willingly, entering a dirty, small bathroom only to lock the door beneath her not really knowing her true intentions. you know she's not going to do anything when she's nervously speaking to you as the space got way reduced.

"so, you're friends with cat" what's she even doing? trying to pull off some small talk she sucks for? either way your nodding as ellie gives you a small bag with an smiley face on it, letting you see the weed she's going to sell you out first — "you study here in this university?"

"yeah, it’s my last year" you say inspecting the weed with a pleased look, sure you're buying when you take a deep breath and it seems like actual weed and not a fucking rock so tight it seems it came in somebody's ass, good smell, some purple there between different shades of green "film school."

"sick," she looks at you for a moment since you're too busy looking at the product. under the white lights ellie can see the details on your face now, the small moles, the scars, things she wasn't aware of as she wasn't so close as she is now — "it's okay? you like it?"

“smells real good, my last supplier was pretty shit and always had the same strain" you find her concern cute, sure she must take pride in selling good stuff, maybe that's why cat shared her number so reluctant to it, you'd gatekeep a good dealer too.

“that’s lemon haze” ellie explains as a subtle layer of red spreads right over her nose, must be the weather inside the bathroom or something like that, but it's hot as she stares at your eyes and she's betting you must be thinking she's the weirdest girl in the planet. her flannel's too fucking tight, too thick. "it's a nice sativa, wont leave you stupid nor like a hungry animal."

girls like you may be out of her league, but even when ellie's brain saying the same, it does not matter when your fingers brush against hers and you're laughing at her bad joke, giggling like she's oh so funny and it's enough. it may be a tactic she's falling all the way in when saying a lower price than regular and your eyes widen cause you don't believe it: why would such a good quality be cheaper than the usual shit?

"you study in this university too?" you curiously ask as if you're trying to catch the trick, clever girl. she’s selling you cheaper to secure you.

"forensic science" you seemed a bit surprised by it since you didn't talk much to stem girls in general, being in two different fields: hot— "it’s my last year too."

"that sounds cool, never met someone who study that," you say as you're pulling out 20$ for at least 3 grams of top-graded-weed: she's fucking stupid for selling that quality for less than $30 "well nice to meet you ellie, if i don't get poisoned with your weed, you'll be definitely hearing more from me."

and she wants to say something flirty, something with her usual witty charm and her sarcastic replies she loves by heart, but instead of saying something clever, ellie ends up stuttering, tripping in her own words as she nods.

"i- uh- yes sure. save my contact and text me anytime."

fuck it, cause it does get her to know you'll be talking to her again someday, maybe this week, maybe the next, tomorrow. her weed is hella good and her own brain is feeding her delusions cause as far as she knows you might as well be the biggest heterosexual girl in university, but you're there waving her goodbye with a warm smile and your perfume lingers in the air for a while even when you're not there.

so ellie stays in the cubicle for a minute. the longest minute of her life when she takes a deep breath at the scent, discovering the fruity notes, the damn strawberries sweet as ever now impregnated under her nose.

fucking cat cause she must have kept you all to herself, pure selfish reasons — ellie thought they were in good terms.

it's crazy to say she would've done the same if you were her friend too.

the second time ellie sells you weed you're talking with your friends seated in a secluded spot of the main quad and the sun hits your skin just in the correct way to make her mouth go dry.

you're using this straight sinful sundress in blue and white, covering from the fresh air in a denim jacket and it looks so good she needs to check you actually messaged her in the first place and didn't imagined the whole thing.

she politely greets everyone but her attention drifts back to you when ellie's sitting close like you're friends with her before the people you’re hanging out with.

"was it good?" she asks, blatantly checking you out you're resting over your elbows, letting the exposed parts of your body fill out with vitamin d after being trapped in class for what it seems an eternity, and ellie feels trapped too, slightly different cause she's experiencing the victorian era on the flesh when only a glimpse of your ankles is enough to kill her — "guess it was if you're texting to meet up again."

"yeah, seems like you got the best weed in the whole place" you laugh, each time warming up to her as you reply under a pair of black shades that make you look so fucking attractive: her weed, the best. "good job, ellie."

awfully good price. outstanding for you, only loses for her.

the third time, you're meeting her outside class and her friends joke calling you her girlfriend as ellie quickly walks away hoping you didn't hear them: do you talk to her about dinosaurs too, williams? you're too polite to say you find it cute.

by the fifth time you're on her car and the silence is so damn loud as the music sound softly in the speakers, some song you say you like as ellie turns up the volume so you can hear it better. you're humming to the tune, a two-minute song as she pretends to be searching for the weed on her bag, taking more time on purpose.

"are you going to take the same three grams or you feel generous this time?"

"no, just three" you reply to her question. you've become quite aware of her consistent gaze on you now after weeks of selling you grass, personally giving you the best, making the moment linger without you noticing until you actually do catch on her subtle tactics— "that way i can text sooner and see you again this week."

ellie’s clueless most of the days but with that? anyone would notice you're flirting, blatantly as you look up to her and your dealer struggles to resist the need on her hands to pin you against the passenger seat and lean all over the console to go on and kiss you until you clearly state what you want. no playing around the bushes this time. demand, as her stomach turns, what do you mean by that.

do you want to see her more? that's why you buy three grams and talk to her every three or four days? are you, by any chance, not straight?

“if you want to see me during the week, you might just ask” ellie says mirroring your tone “like you ask to buy weed from me, s’not that hard.”

you’re the one who's nervous now, and she considers on giving you the weed as a gift before you’re paying. loses, you only mean loses in her economy at this point — and it's driving her hella mad when you get out the car and ellie’s left there with the need to have you as closer as you possibly agree to.

silk fabric slipping through her fingers.

the sixth time, ellie decides she's going to do something about it. about her needs. there’s no actual way you’re not flirting with her, the image of you in the passenger seat still sealed freshly on her mind even if it was a week ago, repeating it over and over again — you got her staring at your profile pic, debating if she can or cannot masturbate with the pictures you’ve shared on instagram from spring break in fucking california, liking your post cause it’s the only way she dares to interact, a way of saying she’s there.

in the middle of a saturday night, thinking about you. two in the morning and it’s all fucking you.

she should make up her mind. you’re a good buyer, and she wishes to keep it that way. you don’t ask for later payments, you constantly buy and don't share her number with weirdo friends like everyone else does, you're a reliable source surely: so why does her heart stops in her chest cavity when her phone's buzzing and ellie's reading the name she saved your contact with?

right. her pathetic crush on you.

her fingers move on their own before she considers to delay her response five minutes to seem busy.

she wont charge you double.

shit. it's two in the morning and she's selling you weed driven by the desire to see you again, using this gray hoodie to protects herself from the cold autumn breeze as she's pulling up to this party totally uninvited, passing the open door like it's her own house as zeta phi seems to be fully loaded now as the music sound loud and strident as all her hopes of catching you alone goes to the trash can.

no she’s not going to charge you double, she’s just guilty she’s so into you without you having any idea of it.

where you waiting for her arrival? fuck. her brain is acting up like a backstabbing bitch and ellie cannot help it as you appear radiant under a sea of people. you're not saying a word either when you're lacing your fingers with her's and you're pulling on your dealer upstairs, feet moving on their own as she don't make a single effort to resist your magnet-like influence in her very self.

ellie’s hand are sweaty cause she's so fucking nervous but you don't seem to care about it, looking back at her from over your shoulder only to offer a smile she cannot wrap her head around for a moment.

"can i ask where you're taking me?" she questions you, hoping her voice doesn't sound like that really, so strained and rough from just see you around — "or am i your hostage now?"

"we need a more private space to buy" you state like it's obvious "duh, the rooftop's empty. i stole the key."

ellie should've know you were a walking hazard.

cause it really seems like an achievement when you're opening the rooftop door, mischief grin as you look twice behind your back paranoid as ever someone can see what you're doing; and ellie chuckles at the sudden adventure, how you're closing the door when you invite her to step in with a subtle head movement, quickly shoving the key back to the pocket in your skirt.

cute. she thinks you’re cute.

it's empty like you said, and the knowledge makes every hair on her arms stand on their own even when she's wearing this thick hoodie that protects her from the cold.

"cannot risk my dealer of getting in trouble down there" you explain now that you can talk to her at a decent volume, and she fully eats it even when it's a clear lie and you're making up excuses to get her away from the noise.

"very kind, gonna name you my knight in shinning armor if you keep this up."

you're panting the spot right next to you as you take a seat in the over-used lounge chair with a tiny wooden table in front of it, and like a trained animal, ellie follows cause it's the perfect spot to leave her backpack as her brain keeps buzzing at the name you used to call her seconds before— my dealer.

she is, by all means, your dealer. it makes her chest fill out with a different kind of emotion, sound so fucking intimate, so nice.

"gonna buy the usual three grams, princess?" your knee brushes against her, and ellie's breathing hitches cause you're wearing this black-sheer stockings all the way to your upper thigh and she becomes aware of it when the material slips down as you're seated, skirt raising slightly upwards against the muscles of your legs: one movement and she swears she'd be able to see your underwear and ellie has to once again, remind herself how you quickly reduce her to this behavior; this state, shoved in a sea of pure filth — "or did you just call me because you wanted to see me tonight?"

she's feeling lucky tonight even when she never feels that way, a strike of confidence ellie feels as a rush on the blood: you give her a sight of your legs and now she's all over the damn place? loser behavior.

"is it that obvious?" you want her to kiss you. it's a need that installs deep down in your chest, and if you're not making it obvious by then you're definitely doing it now: you're not straight, you're not bulletproof to the holes her eyes make on your skin every time you have the pleasure to be left alone in her company, you're not giving up on this constant game of seduction you like to play "i'm buying weed too, so coming up here actually matters for you."

"haven't we state that already?" ellie asks, looking up to you as she drinks in the sight of you under the almost invisible light of the stars up in the sky "if you want to see me during the week-"

"might as well just ask" you completed for her as ellie grabs her bag so she can pull your weed from it. the best three grams she has in her power "i know that- thank you."

"it's a gift" she finally dares to say it now — "don't pay me this time."

has she ever felt this way before? never. the overwhelming pull, the reminder you're not her's? stings on ellie's skin like tiny needles. it's not a big deal, once again she's losing money all reckless, but fuck- it's worth it, worth it when ellie see you malfunction for a long moment, brain short-circuiting cause you don't expect it.

"that's not the deal."

"i don't care what our deal is, you're my best client, and i take care of my clients” it’s simple as she says it “sides. the weed does not matter, seeing you was payment already.”

"don't go yet," you add before she's making a movement to get up, hands cold wrapping around her arm as you pull her down to the lounge chair you're so comfortably seated — "smoke with me. let's talk for a while."

and she knows it's dangerous, but you're batting your eyelashes, looking at her with this sly smirk on your face she wants to kiss away and ellie has no option but to stay there buried in your side, your fingers still tight against her arm muscles as you make her stay.

"okay, but i need you to let go of me baby- i can't roll a joint with you all over."

liar.

she just want to see you get all flustered because of her as her fingers swiftly roll a joint without much effort, allowing the smoke to fill the air seconds after before you’re sneezing and she notices how you shiver on her side, turning her face to look back at your pretty face she’s been avoiding to stare so much.

"you cold?" she asks, and you do not want to admit it, but ellie's taking her hoodie off and it's a fucking sight when she's wearing this white tank top she does not care about until she can physically feel the shift of the air between you and her, caught up with your eyes checking her out as she lights up the joint.

"thank you," and for being a stoner, it's smells surprisingly nice as you relish on the warmth of it, comfortable now as you watch her smoke "i'll gave it to you downstairs."

"go home with it. you're going to catch a cold like this."

the silence it's imminent for a moment before she's passing you the joint an you're holding it between your fingers.

"i like your tattoo" is it also an excuse? not really, but ellie's bringing her arm closer to you as she's showing it under the flashlight of her phone cause she likes it too, showoff — "can i touch it?"

any other time she'd be denying it mumbling something stupid about hating random people to go on and touch her scarred arm but you're not a random girl. so she's whispering a barely audibly yes, and your fingertips are tracing the pattern etched on her skin, taking your time in doing so.

"it suits you," you praise as you touch, and she's fucking melting there under simple caresses, under something so simple as your fingers tracing her inked flesh, invisible shapes as you just want to keep your hand on her "did it hurt too much when you got it done?"

"yeah, sort of" it's not really like she's trying to sound cool, in all honest, she's just trying to be coherent now as you keep touching her skin as you smoke. invested in questions she's answering in full auto-pilot.

you're high after a while, and it's her weed that makes you look like that. half lidded, a lazy smile on your lips as you keep talking to her, red eyes, slower than ever: shit. she'd devour you all.

“have you ever shotgunned smoke into someone’s mouth?” you ask curiously, and the question comes out of nowhere as you stare at her blowing the smoke, a warmth creeping upon her neck as she notices the way you’re staring at her, ellie’s blushing.

selling you weed and not be able to get high with you every single time must be named one of the most horrible crimes in humanity.

“when i was like, 17?" ellie replies thinking for a moment "i dunno, thought it was the hottest thing ever- have you?”

“no, not really."

and to be fair, ellie's high too. she's testing a new strain with you and the words roll out of her tongue so easily she has no time to regret it, not when you're looking at her like you want her to get handsy there in a damn lounge chair, to hell if it’s in the middle of nowhere or not.

“want me to do it for you?” she asks, a gentleman as usual “i’ll gladly be the first.”

it takes a moment for you to consider it before your voice is all low and husky — "mhm."

“come here then miss,” ellie says using a finger to call you out, the joint already on her lips before she takes a long drag — “sit on my lap and open your mouth f’me.”

it's devastating.

your weight on top of her, your ass in her leg as she can see again, those transparent sheer stockings that must be damn useless against the cold, and her hand rest on your upper thigh there where she looked before.

you're so obedient. your skirt is a sinful invitation to touch further, and you're parting her mouth for her so she can get closer, and as she smokes, ellie does get closeto you. closer than she’s ever been — more than the car, the bathroom in the party she met you, mere inches before she's shotgunning the smoke in your parted lips and you're smoking from the same weed that was in her lungs.

"17-years-old ellie was right" you reply, not really moving to give her space as ellie's fingers squeeze your leg like a reminder you're there still, sated on your dealer's lap, her hands on you — "it is the hottest thing ever."

it's almost a chronicle of a death foretold, cause ellie's kiss does not surprise you at the slightest. it's demanding and sloppy cause she's high, you're high, and she's a victim of this force she cannot escape near you.

so she keeps on kissing you until your lips are swollen and you're simply there, slowly wanting more, squeezing your legs together cause you don't want to be a slut now — no. you don't want her to know you're soaking over a few kisses, at ellie's fingers pulling on your high stockings down till they are no longer there anymore.

"you're a fucking menace" she says between kisses, breathing heavier now by the seconds: ellie already noticed— "a menace to me, to my weed and my economy, you know that? how you make me sell out my stuff at half the price cause i want you as my secured client?"

despite her words, she's pushing you closer to her so you can feel her rib cage pressed against you, the goosebumps you produce just from being close to her, red lips and messy hair.

"it’s your loss ellie, cause i'd pay for the full price."

"mmhm well shit, you're really lucky cause you do give damn good kisses" she murmurs, fingers toying with the hem of your skirt now and she has the damn audacity to keep on smoking cause she's now confident on her effect, how you’re all affected by her touch — "and if you give damn good kisses, i'm betting all my money that you have an even better pussy for me."

the sounds you're making? fuck. she’s creaming her panties already when you're letting her touch you so freely and it’s not near enough.

"what is it going to be then, huh?" she asks curiously, her mouth already following the path down to your collarbone, your cleavage before she’s taking her time in leaving red-purplish hickeys there hidden beneath her own gray hoodie "should we make it to our seventh selling or you're going to let me play with your needy cunt as a much deserved reward?"

shit. shit. shit. you're so fucking wet when you're parting your legs further apart to give her a nice view of your underwear, a damp spot already there between your legs who’s enough to make her mouth water with the thought of burying her face between your thighs, intoxicate with the smell you're emanating and she feels already under her nose.

good fucking girl. she wants to praise you, let you know you're doing a great job there letting your skirt roll up to your stomach, so easy to get rid of it ellie's sure you did it on purpose now so she can let her hand slip between your legs to feel how soaked you are.

your cunt makes this sound when her finger’s taunting you she just happens to love, and your underwear clings to your pussy lips, hips buckling up to meet her fingers already wanting more.

greedy.

"shh-" she tries to reassure you — "you're comfortable there baby? want you to feel good when i touch you yeah? you'll let me know anything cause you're my well-behaved girl, aren't you? my best client here.”

ellie’s making you shake her head, coaxing you to say out loud you are comfortable there, ass in her lap, spread legs as her fingers push against the fabric right against your entrance, noticing how the cotton soaks at the motion.

"look at you all desperate" she chuckles — "have you been thinking about this a lot like i do?"

her fingers pull on your underwear to the side and there it is: glistening cunt, swollen lips and neglected clit that's just begging to be touched, filled, discovered by her hands, her mouth, tongue. nothing she fucking wants more.

who she is to ever deny anything to you? to stop selling you weed? the joint falls to the ground now as she's using her entire hand to touch you, fingers rubbing against your minor and mayor labia, circling against your engorged clit as you arch your back and she has to use force to keep you still, taking what she has to give like a champ.

"you're fucking soaked-" there's a slap sound that fills the air, and even when there's people in the garden they don't seem to hear your whimpers as her hand comes in contact with your pussy and she's slapping it once again, just enough to apply some pressure in your clit, just enough to make your legs shake "so responsive to me, gonna let me stuff this cunt full tonight? fucking finally huh? you've been haunting me like no one else."

and you giggle, giggle cause you cannot fucking believe it: fucking your dealer? are you so for real right now? you're deep under a cloud of haze you're unable to control, disheveled state when your skirt is all the way to up and your underwear being pulled to the side at her mercy and you can only answer:

"yes- ngh yes please ellie."

"shit- your clit is all puffy baby, all needy for me."

you're squeezing her already so hard when she’s working on you. a wet schlick that fills the air and combined with your incoherent words of praise and moans will send her to the grave.

ellie’s knuckles-deep and fuuuck. you're so tight she needs to ask if you're doing right, cunt engulfing her' fingers until there’s no more and she's curling them right to the spot so you don't care about the drunk fucks in the garden anymore, about anyone who can hear whats going on in an empty rooftop.

ellie’s using a hand to keep your legs spread when your free will collapses like paper cards, pulling them apart only to add a third finger in your used hole and reduce you to pieces now, clenching tight as she rubs on that special spot inside and you're mumbling something about feeling so full, so good with her inside.

"this pussy must be made for me baby, fits me like a fucking glove," ellie’s doubling her efforts, her palm colliding against your clit, fingers thrusting against the right spot over and over — "gonna let me see your pretty face when you cum? i know you're close."

you are. fuck you so are. your movements are erratic, your legs shake, and ellie's kissing on your shoulder, leaving a path of wet kisses on the exposed skin on your neck, biting on your earlobe, anywhere she can get.

"i can't-" you cry out, moving yourself in quick, sharp movements, it’s overwhelming — "fuck i can't hold no more-"

"let go" she replies, holding you tightly against her body — "let go. i got you."

it's hot. messes up ellie's jeans with a damp mark on them, turning the fabric darker when you finally cum and you're gushing on her fingers, leaking through trembling legs.

"fuck yes. drench me like that," your dealer moans, stealing a kiss from your parted lips, keeping the last glimpses of air in your lungs for her benefit "use me, baby, don't stop."

ah. ellie's in trouble after all, cause it don't seem she’ll be selling weed to you now. not when she's mixing business with pleasure and she's making you bend against the top rail of the old lounge chair cause she's not able to wait any longer to lick you clean until you have no other choice but to cum again.

truth be told she once heard cupid's cruel, but she didn't believe it fully, not until now since ellie knows, first hand — the little fucker shoots to kill.

[margotw10bis]

Friendly Marriage.JJK Drabble 2

bestfriend!Jungkook x female reader

Genre: drabble; fluff (non-idol Jungkook)

Words: 1.8k

Synopsis: You accompany your best friend for his first tattoo because, well, he can't take an important step in his life without you.

"Precious and Inked" drabble from Friendly Marriage (this takes place before the main story)

You clearly remember when Jungkook's appeal for tattoos appeared. You were six and it was summer. It was a hot day, almost unbreathable which spurred your parents to drive to the beach, willing to enjoy the faint breeze from the sea.

Obviously, you weren't the only ones seeking to cool down and the beach was full. But as your parents were settling your stuff, Jungkook grabbed your hand and urged you to go near the salty water to play with the wet sand. It's when your best friend saw him. The man was about twenty year old and he had a confidence that made people look at him with curiosity — or envy. Moreover, his black swimsuit allowed the crowd to have a full view on his numerous tattoos, something that was quite rare to witness in Korea at the time. His torso, arms and back had some ink patterns here and there, without a real coherence but the whole was harmonious.

Jungkook's doe eyes grew bigger than normal and a whispered 'wow' escaped his lips. It wasn't too hard to notice his admiration and this fact was confirmed by the uncountable times he talked to you about 'the cool drawings' the following days. 

Annoyed by his sudden lack of attention to your sand construction, you slammed his arm and yelled at him to focus.

And thirteen years later, here you are.

You should have known your best friend enough to know that he would, one day, get a tattoo on his own. Somewhat you hoped he'd wait a little longer as an unconscious fear — of this decoration on his body changing his personality — has been growing bigger and bigger even since he shared the date of his appointment.

"You know that your mom is going to kill you, right?"

Your remark provokes a laugh from your best friend. You know that there is no point in trying to convince him right now, as Jungkook has been bawling about getting a tattoo for months, strategically waiting for his nineteenth birthday to finally put ink on his skin. It's not that you don't think he hasn't thought seriously about it but you know him: sometimes, he tends to make decision too quickly and you're afraid he'll regret.

"With the look in your eyes, I feel like it's you who's going to kill me" He teases you, his wide bunny smile on his adorable face

You sigh as you don't understand how chill he is about such a big commitment while you, a mere witness, are stressing. A lot.

"Kook"

"I know, I know" He reassures you — just like he is able to read your mind — and wraps his arm around your shoulders "I swear I'm not going to change my mind. And it's just a tiny tattoo, I'll stop after that"

You both know that he won't — and the future will give you right. You throw him a doubtful glance but how can you resist his cute pout? You cannot. And Jungkook knows it way too well.

You don't have time to argue as the tattoo artist steps in the small and dark room you've been waiting. He calls out your best friend's name and a single look at him tells you how excited he is. Just to see him as happy makes all your worries vanish and in one second, you don't care if Jungkook decides to cover his whole body with black ink if it means he'll get to smile like that.

"You wanna come with me?" He offers right before entering the room at the back

You hesitate but finally accept in case Jungkook would like to squeeze your hand if the pain is too much. Yet, you regret when you move the black curtain away and discover a dark room filled with a chair similar to the one in medical centers, a small stool with wheels and a table full of small cup of inks — black, blue, red, pink and every other colors. The walls are covered with sketches and the skull ones are terrifying, sending shivers down your spine.

"You want one?" The tattoo artist asks you when he notices you are looking at his art pieces

You have no problem admitting his talent, yet you absolutely don't want a skull on your skin! You are quick to shake your head and take place next to your best friend who has taken off his shirt. You are trying your best not to look at his defined torso, not that you haven't seen it already anyway given your numerous afternoons at the beach but Jungkook has been hitting the gym very diligently lately and well... he is hot — and this is a thought that you should absolutely not have about your best friend so you choose to focus on the material the tattoo artist is preparing.

Jungkook and the tattoo artist talk for a while, trying to find the right spot and size for the tattoo and they finally settle for the junction between the shoulder and the biceps. With that, Jungkook is pleased to lay down.

"Are you okay?" He asks and you suddenly feel stupid: you should be the one asking

"Are you?" You reply

"Yep!" He exclaims, offering you one of his reassuring smiles

The tattoo artist informs your best friend that he is going to start and the buzz sound of the machine fills the room. You are watching with attention his movements, trying to detect any unusual thing — just like you know anything about tattoos. You just want to take care of Jungkook, he is your best friend, that's normal.

Jungkook, on the other hand, doesn't seem to care at all about the needle in his skin. He is looking at you with an amused smile, especially when you wince as the tattoo artist stretches out a spot to apply more ink.

"Can I hold your hand?" Jungkook asks you

You immediately squeeze his fingers, worried that he is in pain.

"Does it hurt a lot?" You can't help but question

"Yes"

Your heart tightens in your chest. However, Jungkook is not in pain at all — he only feels a mere tickling on his skin. He can't even explain why he lied. He simply noticed that he has looked for any opportunity to hold your hand lately. Maybe it's just because he is stressed about leaving Busan to head to the capital with you, afraid that something will change between you two, that you won't be as close as before even if you attend the same university.

You bring Jungkook out of his thoughts when you gently pat his head, trying to soothe the imaginary pain away.

"I swear I won't tell anyone if you cry" You whisper to him, deadly serious

If Jungkook didn't want to expose his lie, he would have scoffed to that. Instead, he nods and thanks you. Actually, his gratitude is real: he does feel lucky to have you by his side. He knows that you are always here for him, even when he is in trouble. And most importantly, you are always here when he faces a new important step in his life.

You stay for a few hours next to him, holding his hand, caressing his black silky hair from time to time when you notice that the tattoo artist insists on one particular spot. What you don't notice is that your best friend has not once looked at the tattoo artist: his eyes were left on you. He can't explain — neither does he want to. He just wants to appreciate your presence next to him while he is taking such a big decision as marking his skin for life.

Turning off the machine, the tattoo artist states that he is done and he invites Jungkook to look at the artwork in the mirror. At this moment you realize that you were so focused on your best friend's well being that you didn't really look at the tattoo itself.

You try to tilt your head, contorting your upper body to have a peak too but Jungkook's body is way too imposing for that. It's only when Jungkook says that he is very satisfied and turns around that you finally get to see the freshly made tattoo and your eyes grow big.

"Kook" You whisper, breathless

"You like it?"

Jungkook notices that he really, really wishes that you do. Growing up, he's learned not to bother about people's opinions but you, it's not the same. It's not that he is seeking for your approval but he knows that he is disappointed with himself when he disappoints you. Equally, he tends to like something more if you like it too. And for this tattoo, his first tattoo, he truly hopes that you like it as it is very important for him.

"It's... stunning!" You say after trying to find the right word but you are too moved for that

The ink piece is very delicate, objectively very beautiful but what touches you so much is the pattern: a crane. The top of its head is red, just like the one saw with Jungkook when you were young. It is one of your most previous memories. The winter of your five years old, your and Jungkook's parents took you to the mountains. It was the first time you saw snow and you were so excited that you couldn't sleep the first night. You spent hours looking through the window, watching the tiny snowflakes falling from the sky. At some point, a huge white bird appeared and landed close to the window. You wanted to wake up your parents so they could see but you were afraid to make too much noise and scare the bird away. And when you turned your head to spot anyone with whom you could share the show, Jungkook was there, all sleepy, rubbing his eyes with his tiny fists. You guested that he wanted to go the bathroom and you whispered-yelled his name, urging him to join you but in silence. Your best friend was amazed, just like you. His black doe eyes were so wide and shiny that you could almost see the reflection of the crane in them and, for the first time, you found your best friend cuter than all the other boys you knew. You watched the crane together, elbows touching each other's, until it flew away. The next day, you told the story to your parents but they didn't believe you, stressing that cranes only come rarely to Korea and even less in winter. Since then, the crane was like a secret between Jungkook and you, a precious, almost intimate moment you two shared together outside the rest of the world.

"I don't even know what to say, Kook, it's just... perfect" You add with tears in your eyes and reaching out to squeeze his hand to share your gratefulness to have immortalized this ephemeral and secret instant

"I think it was the most magical moment of my life, and it was with you. It's always with you, Y/N" Jungkook says with a voice thick of emotion "Thank you for coming with me today" 

Read "Steal My Girl" Drabble here

I'm sorry for being inactive, this is just a little something to thank you for your patience 🩷

[slvthrs]

ALL THE THINGS WE NEVER SAID | vinnie hacker

— MINORS PLEASE FUCK OFF FOR UR OWN GOOD —

after 3 years you finally reunite with vinnie but it's not how you would like

OLD BSF!VINNIE X FEM!READER

WARNINGS: NSFW CONTENT MINORS DNI, ANGSTY, + some fluff, sex, alcohol ment, drug use (weed), making out, grinding, praise kink, emotional cheating idk, slight possessiveness

word count:  2.5k <3

The air is so salty on LA beaches.

It burns the inside of my throat whilst chlorine fills up my nose and salt in my eyes but the waves are nicer than Seattle. Warmer too.

I can feel the sand bed on my toes and shells scraping the sides of my legs as I float out peering and the sky and the way the shades of orange and yellow melt away at the baby blue and how the sun looks so majestic at this time.

I’m still slightly tipsy from the drinks we had earlier but I'm not incapacitated, it's just a nice buzz, it reminds me of when I lay my head down in the grass and I can hear the tiny shuffling of ants.

But apparently I’m still drunk enough to not hear my friends shouting from shore for me to come back until I feel a hand on mine pulling me out.

“Jesus, I thought you were gonna drown out there.” It’s Harvey, I love Harvey. He always smells like strawberries and smokes with me without judging.

“I wasn’t, let me like the ocean in peace you guys are assholes.” I retorted but I didn't stop walking with him back to the shore with my friends.

I fall back onto the plush of the towel as Harvey joins everyone else in a game of beach volleyball.

Well everyone except me… and Vinnie.

Vinnie, the same guy that I was inseparable for 10 years, now seeing him for the first time in 3.

The same guy I fell in love with at 13 and who broke my heart at 17. 

That Vinnie.

He’s sitting right in front of me in his shorts leaning back looking at everyone playing.

He has tattoos now and is much bigger. His hair is darker and face is more aged. He dresses better now and looks a lot happier but besides that he's still the same Vinnie.

I tuck my legs into my chest and rest my head on my knees, letting myself take in everything that changed about him to distract me from the cold wind tangling up my hair.

He finally looks back at me and something about it makes me still smile after all these years.

“M’ sorry I didn’t know you were gonna be here.” I mumble and then look away from him.

“Why are you sorry? I love seeing you.” He still has that same warmth in his voice that I fell in love with all those years ago.

“Just… I don’t know, I figured it’d be weird for you and her.” There's a maliciousness in my voice that I didn’t even know I could muster.

“Right… Allison.” He takes a deep breath, “ She likes you, don't worry!”

Allison, Vinnie’s new girlfriend of two months, she’s really sweet and a genuinely kind person but I can’t bring myself to like her.

I feel so pathetic, being in love with the same boy who hurt me all those years ago and who was able to move on whilst I stayed where I was. The same 17 year old stuck in bed the night Vinnie told me he loved me.

“Do you wanna go smoke?” 

I don’t think I’ve ever said no to that question from Vinnie but now it’s different.

“Shouldn’t you ask her first?” I say averting my gaze from him and playing with my nails.

“She hates when I smoke so probably not,” He gets up and walks to me giving me his hand, “Get up.”

…

“Get up!”

“Vinnie fuck off this shit is broken.” I stand up and shove the skateboard into his chest.

“C’mon you barely even tried it’s actually very fun, please I wanna teach you!” He says beaming in the sun and smiling at me whilst I try to clean the cuts on my legs.

“You're a shit teacher, Hacker!”

We’ve been at this skatepark for four hours and the only thing I can do is go in a straight line and wiggle a bit and Vinnie knows how much I hate things I don’t get the hang of quickly.

“You're torturing me Vinnie, I’m gonna leave here with a cut off leg or something!” I cry out

“You're gonna be fine, I'm not gonna let you get hurt.” He pouts in a faux puppy dog face

“I hate you so much.”

“Stop being a pussy!”

…

“Stop being a pussy Vin.” He’s been dragging me to this secluded part of the beach for 5 minutes

“My girlfriend hates smokers, I really don’t wanna get into another fight tonight.” He sighs

Another?

“Why don’t you try to quit? I know you want to, you hate smoking.” 

“It’s easier said than done- See we're here, you're just lazy!”

“Tell me something I don’t know, genius.” I half-joke

The view is nice, like really nice. It's so much quieter and less people means you can see the ocean without any distractions.

I lay down on the sand forgetting about the fact I'll be covered in it when I get up- That's a problem for me in the future.

He takes out a mini bong and packs it whilst I lay there and close my eyes.

This is nice, it reminds me of when we were younger. I was actually the first person to introduce Vinnie to weed and it kinda became our ritual, he would get the bing ready and I would wait patiently for him.

I can hear the bubbles and turn to look at him as he turns his head up, flexing his jaw and blowing the smoke out. 

He always looks so pretty smoking.

“Do you ever miss it?” I ask, purposefully vague.

“Miss what?” 

Us

“Seattle?”

“Yeah, especially during the summer. It’s hard to miss it that much when I come back every month to see my family.” He replies by passing the bong to me along with the lighter as I sit up.

“But you never come visit me?” I turn my head and he looks away into the ocean

“I know… I wanted to but everytime I mustered up the courage something would get in the way… Plus whenever I saw your pictures you looked happy, I didn’t wanna fuck that up.” 

“So your solution was to invite to to the beach with your new girlfriend and all your old friends instead of I don’t know, talking to your fucking bestfriend instead of ignoring her for 3 years making her feel like she fucked up?” It come out in a condescending tone

Every sour emotion that I held against Vinnie is bubbling up. Every emotion I felt when I saw a picture of him with his new friends, when he got his first girlfriend in LA, when he won that stupid fucking match and didn’t even reply to my dm congratulating him. 

“I know I fucked up trust me,” The bong is still in my hands, lying their idly like a forgotten childrens toy, “But even if I did talk to you whenever I would come back I wouldn’t even know what to say to you.”

“Oh fuck off Vinnie, you could have said anything, I was waiting for you to say anything. Apologies are two words but you couldn’t even muster that up? God I hate you so much.”

I don’t.

“I’m sorry,” He breathes in, “I’m sorry I stopped talking to you, I’m sorry I fucked everything up, I’m sorry I never actually told you how I felt, I’m sorry I made you feel like it was your fault, I’m sorry I ruined the friendship, and I’m so sorry I never said this earlier to you. Your my favourite person and I fucked everything over cause I was to scared of loving you.”

He breathes out.

We both just sit there in silence, I’m getting colder by the minute but I don’t move. The apology I waited 3 years for finally arrived but I don’t feel any better. I just wanted Vinnie to say something to make all the pain feel worth it and then everything to go back the way it was.

“It wasn’t entirely your fault for ruining the friendship.”

…

“You promise this won't ruin our friendship Vin.”

“I promise you, and you trust me so relax.”

His lips slot in between mine, he pulls me closer to him as my hands thread through his hair. 

It’s rough. I should have bought him new shampoo for his 18th.

“Your lips are so soft, I love them.” He whispers to me in between kisses as I lay my body over his and he guides my hips over his dick, rutting into him.

“You suck as dirty talk.” I giggle before going back to make out with him.

I let my lips trail down to his jawline leaving faint kisses there as he holds me close to him so I can feel the way his chest rises and falls. My hands drag down his torso and then up inside his shirt. My kisses falter as they reach his neck and I start sucking love bites into them and hear his hiss and whimper above me.

“Feels s’ good baby.” He breathes out, letting his hands rest at my waist as his thumb circles the area soothing the skins there.

When I’m done he flips the two of us over so now he’s above me with my hands pinned to my sides. 

He locks his lips into mine again, my whole body melts into the kiss, I lean into him, shutting my eyes, letting myself save the memory. I moan into his mouth as he pulls the kiss closer to him in a tantalizing fight for more dominance. 

As he pulls back, his eyes meet mine and I get lost in the honey brown, I study the features on his face at this moment, intent to not forget a thing. He looks back at me with a small smile.

His hands free mine and let me hook my hands around his neck. I pull him closer to my body as he kisses down my neck whilst his hands go under my shirt.

“Say you want this baby.” His gasps 

“Please, I need you so bad, I want you bad.” I beg

His hand undone my pants pulling them off leaving me in just my shirt and panties. 

Vinnie lifts himself up to take off his shirt, letting my hands graze through his body as he undoes his belt and pants and throws them on the floor, then taking his dick out of his boxer, pumping it up in his hand whilst reaching over into his dresser for a condom.

I lean my head back and stare into the ceiling waiting for him before he pulls my panties to the side and slowly lets his cock stretch me out as I arch into his touch.

His pace is relenting, I clutch his shoulder for stability and cry out into his neck, his thumb is circling my clit, his free hand holds us up and his eyebrows are knitted together in focus even though his lips keep kissing my body to make sure I’m okay.

“Feel good, you're not hurt angel?”

“No, fuck, god no, feels good Vin.” I say, barely able to make any full sentences.

It’s not long until I cum under him, I drag my nails across his back and scream into his neck to make sure I’m quiet enough and Vinnie rides me out through my high as a gasp and falls back into his bed. 

It’s not long after Vinnie comes and places a kiss on my forehead before getting us a towel and me some water to clean up. He gave me my favorite sweatshirt of his, a red Seattle shirt that I ended up cutting the collar off so it wouldn’t stay on my shoulder. 

“I love you.” He whispers before laying his face into my shoulder.

I end up falling asleep in his arms as he pulls me closer to him.

In the morning I’m alone in his bed and in his house and I end up going back to my own, lying saying I was with a friend.

It wasn’t until that night until I got a call from Reggie telling me that Vinnie had left for LA last night.

I ended up giving Vinnie’s sweater back to Reggie.

…

“It might not have been my entire fault but I still left in the middle of the night, in my bed, in my shirt, without telling you.” He reminds me, snapping me back from reality.

I lie back down into the sand taking a hit of the forgotten bong and then placing it on my side, Vinnie copies me.

It’s quiet, I like it. 

Back home me and Vinnie would always sit in the same room doing our own things, he would game whilst I’d play with Poncho or message my friends. Being in the same atmosphere was relaxing for each other.

Now it’s just tense.

“Vinnie,” I look at him, “Do you ever miss me?”

He laughs.

“Everyday, every time I go to the beach, every time my friends talk about love, every time I remember home you're always there. I don’t think I could ever not miss you.” He turns his head to look at me.

I really do miss him. I miss going to his house after a long day, I miss skipping classes together and smoking weed, I miss telling him everything. I miss him so much it hurts.

“Everything could have been so different.” I chuckle

“Yeah, we could have both still be in University together, we could have both still be in Seattle. Hell could have actually gotten together.” He laughs but I finally look back at him.

We fall back into our comfortable silence letting the ocean waves wash over us. It's dark out now and you can see the moons and the stars. It’s calming.

It’s a short lived calm however since his phone rings and he jerks up to pick it up.

I don’t listen until I hear him call the person on the line ‘baby’. It’s Allison… his girlfriend.

Our time ’s up, so I pick up my things which are just myself and a bong whilst Vinnie ends the call and we walk back to where everyone is in silence.

We get back and Allison runs into Vinnies arms placing kisses all over his face and tugs him down to sit at the bonfire. 

I lean my head on to Harveys shoulder as I zone as I eat the burger he made for me but as I look up I see Vinnie staring at me but as soon as he sees me looking back at him he looks down at his plate.

Before we realize it turns to 1 in the morning and I’m ready to go to sleep. Harvey is dropping me off and Chloe is coming with us. 

Vinnie is leaving with Allison as she drags him away but he stops as he sees me.

Before Vinnie leaves he gives me a bag with something inside and hugs me without saying a word. 

It’s a hoodie. The hoodie. A red Seattle crewneck with a cut collar. The hoodie he gave me the night he told me he loved and then left. And he left again. Leaving me with nothing but his stupid hoodie and all the things we never said.

[soundbord]

this took a lil longer than i wanted to but... here is milo's intro !

                                   the basics.

NAME: milo mendoza

AGE: twenty six

GENDER: nonbinary

PRONOUNS: he/they

ZODIAC: scorpio sun, libra moon, sag rising

SEXUAL ORIENTATION: bisexual

TV TROPES: not in front of the kid, brilliant but lazy, used to be a sweet kid, the charmer, getting high on their own supply

                                    about.

parentified to the max. milo's parents never really raised him, he knew that. they gave him just what he needed to survive and plopped him in front of a tv. they knew exactly why they turned out the way they did; why they didn't learn to floss or tie their shoes until embarrassingly late in life. moving forward, milo made sure their siblings didn't have those same problems. they'd eat consistently and as healthy as a preteen could get access to, they'd have hobbies and join clubs, they'd be taken to school on time even if it meant him missing school instead. he's proud, honestly, to have his siblings be as cool as they turned out. the two oldest starting college, over five years younger and about as close to graduation as he was. it wasn't about his future anyway, it was always about theirs.

fashion, piercings, and tattoos quickly became his thing once he was old enough to realize everyone was already judging him by the integrity of his shoe soles. it felt good to be able to customize his avatar, look however he wanted loudly in the view of judgmental eyes. when he figured out how easy it was to bleach and dye short hair, it was over to them.

milo's always been big on music. any genre, you name it, he's collected what he believes to be the masterpieces within them. from electronic to rock to big booming movie scores, he is never without something to listen to. might be the only person in this world who doesn't get in music slumps.

they should just drop out. they know that at this rate they may never graduate, but something about the concept of college, an acceptable inbetween, makes them feel like they aren't completely wasting their life away. when old teachers back at their hometown ask what they're doing nowadays, they can say they're at university, and there's no pitying looks. so, yeah, they're sort of blowing a lot of money for a degree they don't know they'll ever get, but maybe after enough years it'll all fall into place. it seems to for everyone else by the time they walk the stage, at least.

it wasnt a hard decision when he started selling. there was a demand, he needed money, and it wasnt like it would be a shock to anyone. milo liked the connections that being a dealer made for him. and yeah, maybe he is a bit too soft, a bit too sweet, but he genuinely believes hes formed a lot of friendships from this. (take luke sinclair, for example, who milo still wants gone from his memory and brushes off whenever he comes up. it's easier to live with the loss that way) the community that forms around you when you have something that people want is unbelievable. in a few short months he went from having a handful of friends to being beloved. the attention is addicting. almost as addicting as what was always going to come next when you give someone like him access to copious amounts of drugs.

i had nowhere else to put this so here's a big vibe shift. milo's current dnd character is a lightfoot halfling wizard girl named xanthe dunn. unlike milo, xanthe is a well off, cunning, and scholarly girl. her personality is very similar to hermione from you know what.

                                   a look inside.

mannerisms.

FACE: one look at milo's expressions will tell you all you need to know about how they’re feeling. they have a tendency to overexaggerate reactions. but, this is just the conscious expression, things taught from raising young children and wanting to help them better emote. when he wants to hide things, he can easily behind a smile

HANDS:  he isn't a big hand talker, surprisingly. milo's usually preoccupied, fidgeting with a zipper or a lighter in his pocket as he talks or has to pay attention to anything.

LEGS/FEET: they're always in some sort of lounging state. milo's feet are constantly propped up somewhere. 

EMOTIONAL OUTBURSTS: hasn't happened in a few years, since getting into a fight with his sister's boyfriend over one christmas trip. usually, he can keep things in check. even arguments he has to slip some humor in to show he isn't emotionally affected, but when it does happen...

HABITS: chronic napper i fear. he can and will sleep anywhere, no matter who's around or what is happening.

POSTURE: oh, it is dreadful. just the worst. 

personal.

INTROVERT/EXTROVERT?: milo is an extrovert when their energy is matched, but they struggle to speak to people who are more introverted. often they just try to avoid pushing and seeming too overbearing

OPTIMIST/PESSIMIST: they've never been an optimist, but milo won't admit that. at least at face value looking at everything in a sort of glass half full way can help with morale, even if he doesn't believe it himself. he's especially pessimistic about this luke business (milo has from the start believed that luke is dead) but will only admit to it in ways that can seem like he's kidding... just incase it makes their friends sad

INSECURITIES: the volume of their voice is a big insecurity. milo had always been an excitable kid, and was always the one being shushed. worst was when people would cringe while he talks, indicating to tone it down. since, he's tried to take on a more laidback persona, voice lazy and low. still, whenever they're excited they have their moments.

relationships.

FAMILY: empathy win! your messy stoner brother who wears the same beat up old jacket everyday is a girl dad! of milo's 5 younger siblings, 4 of them are girls. he's been sewing, weaving perfect plaits, and patting pink blush on cheeks for years now. it's a strange picture, seeing them all piled into his beat up old car. his younger brother, not a smudge on his eyeglasses and hair perfectly parted down the middle, the girls in a rainbow of club uniforms ranging from cheer to band, and milo in a stained white tank, swatches of liquid lipsticks lined neatly on his forearm. their parents are another story entirely. milo keeps their cool as much as possible, but when they visit home from school to find their older siblings taking care of the littles instead of the parents, that anger threatens to spill out. he keeps his composure, pays his share of the rent, and doesn't say a word to his parents.

FRIENDSHIPS: connection is the single most important thing for milo. friendship is where he gets to have fun, drop the responsible attitude he has to keep at home and just do things because he wants to, despite the consequences. this leads to him being a bad influence more often than not, and at worst a nuisance. 

LOVE: from one failed relationship to another, milo never considered love very much. that was, until things started getting serious with camille. their relationship exists in a pocket universe separate from real world things like family. upgrading from a hookup situation to a full blown relationship was a big step, and somehow felt more important to take care of than every other relationship where he had been careless. they're a pathetic wife guy deep down, even though on the surface they just seem sort of toxic. milo does what he can to be a good partner, but they're a tactless mess, and often find themselves ruining things. with this recent breakup, they've upped the pathetic by a thousand. it's why they're even joining along on this project; to spend time together, try and repair their relationship.

                                   & luke

BAD INFLUENCE : the king of letting loose, milo seemed like the only person luke could truly lower his walls around. with him, there were no ulterior motives or potential for scandal. the two could simply chill. but smoking cigarettes became smoking weed, & that turned into shrooms which then became pill-popping. while milo was opening luke’s eyes to the wonderful world of recreational drug abuse, luke was single-handedly funding milo’s deadbeat lifestyle.

THE SECRET : late into the night, hours after he’d disappeared into the woods, milo found luke. the two talked for a while . . . smoked a little. only, milo had been cutting corners & settling on cheaper products to better afford the comfortable lifestyle he’d become accustomed to on luke’s coin. at some point he must’ve fallen asleep because, when he awoke, luke was gone — as was the remainder of his ( laced ) drugs.

[wayfayrr]

👾 anon here

Sage kinda would have to be a house husband since he is from hyrule and not from here making him not have any documents of his birth, pretty much making it harder for him to get a job or anything that has to do with people needing to know of his birth and I doubt people would believe that he came from a video game especially knowing how his ears look more human than hylian and half of his arm is missing and people would question that and look at reader thinking their suspicious and they have done something terrible to sage like kidnapping and sage wouldn't want that. Sage would probably have an interest of true crime shows because he would be able to pick the bad and good habits that killers did to or get caught and find the things that would kill a person more efficiently. Because of him now only having one arm he is gunna need help for some tasks like the ones where you need both arms altho he wants to prove that he is perfect to be a house husband for reader which the hole needing help to open a jar might break that to him but that is a plus cause that means reader would have to be with him as it can be used to bond and to get their attention to him instead of the chain. Being at reader's world now would Legend's hair be turn more normal he would probably have only few streaks of pink hair and twilight marks look faded like their old tattoos and much for the favor of sage those two would not turn into their animal forms as much and I think hyrule would feel much weaker as he is a fairy. Hyrule would probably try to learn modern medicine from shows and twilight would probably tag along sage when he is farming or going to the farmers market. Maybe one of them becomes a influencer to help reader with the bills since now there isn't just two people living but more than twelve if you count the others and reader.

@neverchecking, @lovanmari MORE HOUSE HUSBAND SAGE!!!

AKSMSDKCVM BECAUSE WARS AS AN INFLUENCER 💀 It'd have to be him of any links, He's already got the looks. wild could be his camera man since he'd be hopeless with tech. And you're so right, reader would be DONE with how they're having to provide for everyone now. If any of the links offered to help, they'd be readers new favourite instantly - much to everyone else's jealousy.

as for some of the other points 👾, Sage very much volunteered but at the same time reader would be in so much trouble if he was found without any ID, there's a chance he'd try to forge some just to make it easier on them so they don't have to be as stressed about him going out or getting arrested themselves there isn't a single way he'd let that happen after all. But Wind would be the real issue - adults can somewhat slide, excuses for loosing things sure. but a kid? Reader is fucked if that ever got picked up on, and school is a whole different problem to deal with.

As for legend and the others, his hair would probably stay the same - sure the magic has gone, but it's not like hair dye doesn't exist here. The same could go for Twi's markings since they could be written off as a tattoo permanent without the magic so you're right about how they'd fade over time. It's less like the looks are the issue, it's just the magic isn't there anymore and anything - like their ears, Hyrule's fairy side and sage's arm have no way to fit into the real world so they get lost over time. ALSO POOR HYRULE, He's going to be bed sick for at least a week while his body adjusts. DO YOU THINK SAGE IS BAD WITH JUST AN ARM MISSING?? RULIE CAN'T MOVE AND HE'S NOT PLAYING IT UP AS MUCH AS HE COULD. While I do like the idea of Sage losing his arm within the real world as well, I feel like it wouldn't be completely lost. Reader would be constantly reassuring him that he's good enough and perfect as he is, only encouraging him to do it even more ✨✨. But if it was he would play it up for so many sympathy points, begging reader to open jars, to have them dote on him when he gets phantom pains and suspiciously only having it play up when the others want reader attention.

[acewithapaintbrush]

I just realized that I have never actually shared the end result of my tattoo. I love it every day a little bit more, least of all because it's actually got some hidden meanings and nods to some important things in my life. It got a bit long (and pretty emotional, oh my) so more under the cut if you wanna know

The colors, rather, the brush strokes in the background. Red, blue, purple and orange. If you know me, you know that I am a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Fan. But that is not a big enough word tbh. The turtles have accompanied me all my life. My first pajama was turtles themed, I wanted to learn to ride a skateboard because of Mikey pretty much all my teen years. But most importantly, and most emotionally for me, I distinctly remember watching a turtles episode from the 1987 cartoon at a friend's house while my mother attended my father's funeral. I don't remember much of that time, only being 5 years old, but I remember crouching behind a sofa and looking over the back of it to watch the turtles have adventures. Maybe that's where it really started, who knows. I just know that these funky guys mean a lot to me for reasons I might not even be able to explain to myself properly. These colors bring me joy, so they had to be there.

And then, the sunflower. I wanted that there because of Mob Psycho 100, an anime that has not just changed the way I look at the world and at myself. I am the protagonist of my own life. My life is my own. If I can change then others can change too. It's easy to want to be easily palatable (is that the word?) for others, to get their approval, to get them to like you. It's taken me some odd 34 years to realize that I only have to be palatable for myself. I have to look in the mirror and see someone that I can get behind, a person worthy of love and friendship and I am worthy of it, everyone is worthy of it no matter who you are, how you look or what you can do. You are worthy already by just being you and even if you aren't quite there yet you are still worthy. We are all worthy of being happy. I am allowed to be silly and cringe and not act like my age. I live my life the way I want.

Because I am the protagonist of my own life and if I don't write the story, who will?

The last one is the crows feather with the green accents. This is a bit of an obscure one. As some of you know, I have written fanfiction for years. It got me through some tough times during high school. Then adult life hit and I stopped. I stopped writing my original stories too. I can't even say why it just felt like a chore, probably because I got so discouraged with my own skills and my own expectations for myself. Then I slowly got back into it, writing a real short one shot for Monkie Kid and realizing that I have missed it quote a lot. And then Encanto came along. This movie that has inspired me so much that it felt like I suddenly couldn't stop writing even if I wanted to.

And then I got the idea for "A place for crows" and the rest is history I guess? The love and encouragement I received where phenomenal. That story made me fall in love with story telling again, it consumed me for pretty much a complete year. And it brought some of the most wonderful people, beloved friends from all over the world, into my life. I am so greatful to this Fandom, to this story, or rather the things this story has brought into my life.

So the feather symbolized my love for writing and just fandom spaces in general, this wonderful microcosmos I can call home.

The brushes and pencil are a given, my love for art and drawing which have also been big factors in rediscovering myself

This text got long, I just typed it down without pausing and I'm not gonna go over it again for spelling or something like that. Take it as it came out of me, with all my love and emotional bloodletting.

Love you all.

[curecraftedarch]

𝙲𝙰𝙽𝙾𝙽 𝙳𝙸𝚅𝙴𝚁𝙶𝙴𝙽𝙲𝙴 ::

Hate to say it but sometimes I find myself agreeing with the horny side of the fandom when they lament the fact that Kai doesn't have cool intricate Yakuza tattoos because oh yeah the aesthetic rips but also can understand why he doesn't both because thats not really a thing for modern Yakuza and also it probably wouldn't be a stretch to imagine Kai's extreme mysophobia makes him less than enthused about being prodded with a needle for hours in a dingy establishment. But, do it for Pops, Kai. ( Then he would, lets go with that. ) We are nothing if not slaves to the aesthetic here.

ANYWAY, another note about him, I'm thinking about AUs / canon divergence and want I wanna do with him post Overhaul Arc beyond what canon did. We know Hori wasted him in an extreme way like make your eyes water type way that almost reduced his insane godmod quirk to a plot hole ━ UNLESS .... Though it is NEVER spoken or really expanded upon in canon, the reason the overhaul quirk could have been written off was because Kai was the only one who could use it. This isn't entirely out of the realms of canon possibility because we have seen there are several quirks that can't be copied or used outside of the bodies of their original owners. In fact, the only two people that seem to have been SMART ENOUGH in the entire MHA world to engineer a way for these type of quirks to work outside an owners body is Kai ( With Eri's rewind ) and Kyudai Garaki with the rest of his shit. Though this being said, it seems not even Garaki was able to successfully make a copy of Overhaul useful outside of the broken version of it Tomura apperently received. ( which is something I still don't think I'll be keeping as a fact in my canon because its one of those things that ended up kind of unnecessary. )

So we could also say that Kai's intelligence and scientific knowledge helped play a part in him being able to use his quirk so well. Without these things, his quirk is useless to everyone else. So yeah, I'm going to say BOTH things to make sense of why his quirk was so underutilized in canon, at least !! But that doesn't fix the armless problem and this is where the canon divergence I've been playing around with corfides comes in.

Pretty much the whole Nagant thing ended up useless. So we're going do some canon divergence and change the prison break situation for Kai. Instead, Kai is going to be found by Hari and Stain during the prison break and they're going to become a hilarious bumbling threesome of guys who have beef with the heroes AND the villains. Kai wont have gone with Nagant, she'll have gone and done all that on her own since his presence makes literally no difference either way. Kai ends up getting his arms back thanks to Hari and Stain. We've decided this would be as easy as reattaching one because canon has even stated Kai can use his quirk with someone else's hands. We're not going down the prosthetics route because its cliche to me, instead. Hari offers one of his arms to Kai. So we get to do a fun nod to monsterhaul here with Kai having his arms back but having them look distinctly inhuman. Cause this said.... Kai isn't his old self. Its not exactly clear what happened but Kai appears to have some type of brain damage from his fight. And I'm not one to erase disabilities. This is something thats not really explained in canon outside of an offhanded comment that he "has some screws loose." And other characters wondering what is wrong with him. The running theory is Kai lost it after the LoV cut his arms off but if you actually look back at canon Kai seems to be out of it BEFORE the LoV got to him. Which leads me to think maybe Kai's uh... Distant / scatted, near catatonic state of mind wasn't just brought on by "grief" (which I'll say def worsened it, as I'm also headcanoning he was told Hari was dead so thats on top of him knowing he wouldn't be able to heal pops thus him believing he'd completely lost everything ) but that Kai might have actually been suffering side effects from taking multiple 100% punches to the face from Deku's superpowered OFA and that this is actually whats "wrong" with him post Deku fight. Though we know he was rewound by Eri at least twice, the logic of her rewind seems inconsistent. For whatever reason Kai was rewound enough to undo his mergers with his minions but was apperently not rewound enough to heal his injuries ? Thats what we seem to be shown in canon as it doesn't really make sense for Kai to have lost otherwise, because though he would have been separated from his mergers, he wouldn't have been out of fighting condition but rather quiet the opposite. So we're just gonna go with Eri's rewind being inconstant at times, especially cause her power was very untrained at this point and her intentions weren't to heal Kai, but rather to stop him, so maybe it was a result of her unconscious wishes shining through that he wasn't healed but just stopped. SO YEAH. ANYWAY. Kai is suffering some type of brain damage. Which is going to effect his memory + other things and how proficient he is with using his quirk. He wont be able to use it as perfectly as he could before. But he can still use it. And he'll be practicing to try and get it at least good enough to fix pops. This leaves his situation with his arms on the Horror TM side of things because though he has his arms back, thanks to his use of his quirk being less effective, his attempts to restore his other arm haven't been entirely successful and his arms now have a distinctly inhuman appearance, looking more like his arms in his monsterhaul form.

This without the second set of arms on the back lol. We've also talked about Kai and Hari accompanying Stain in his fight against AFO in aide of All Might. Stain's doing it because he's gay for All Might, but Hari and Kai ? They see an opportunity to get in societies good graces and also fuck the League of villains / AFO. So they help with the fight. The outcome is however roughly the same with Stain getting "killed" by AFO but in THIS canon divergence, Kai is able to use overhaul to restore Stain from death. This is a big success moment for him, showing he can indeed heal pops.

This results in Kai, Hari and Stain being offered a type of "pardon" at the end of the war along with other villains / criminals who helped out like Gentle, La Brava and Nagant, though Stain is quirkless. This gives the heroes the opportunity to have Kai use his quirk to do a bit of good for everyone, like not just healing pops and getting chewed out by him, but also help heal some of the more severely injured during the war.

[m-feline]

To adapt, to survive, to live - ch 24

Silco x Freader

Tags: mention of tattoos, business, rumors, magic powers, snakes;

Masterlist

Previous ->

The next day I woke up alone in bed. Silco had gone early to work as he had to make a few inspections of the factories and go up from there. For one part I was happy he wasn't there when I woke up. I knew my day was going to be a busy one. Besides visiting three houses for the children, I also had a meeting with no other than Councilwoman Medarda. She had expressed very enthusiastic interest in some of my products that weren't on sale yet. Her plans for them were different from what I had intended. Though, I was still wondering how she heard of those products before I was going to launch them, this was an opportunity that I wasn't going to let pass. 

The snake in me wanted to remain in the warm and soft bed. But I knew that I had to get up and get dressed before Jolynn would come and get me. However, someone else beat Jolynn on coming to get me.

“Hello,” Jinx sang as she opened the door to Silco's and my room without knocking. There was a time when I used to give her a lecture about knocking first, but I had dropped that topic a long time ago. I didn't even bother with the “I’m-still-changing” excuse.

“Morning, PJ,” I said as I slipped the long frock dress over me that left my back open. When it was just Jinx and me and I wasn't in a bad mood, I always called her by a nickname.

“Where are you going?” Jinx asked, trying not to sound probing yet failed at it.

“I have a few errands today, mostly checking the businesses,” I said.

“Will it take long?” She asked.

“What do you need, Jinx?” I asked as I did my makeup. She was obviously wanting me to come with her. The question was, was it for food, a new gadget, or she wanted something from my stock. Please let it not be the last one.

“I finished something,” Jinx said.

“Oh, does it say boom?” I asked teasingly as I put shadow to my eyes.

“No. But once I don't need it I could make it say boom,” Jinx joked.

“Is it a new gun?” I asked as I added mascara.

“No. I said it won't go boom,” Jinx said as she walked a bit closer.

“Guns don't go boom. They go bang, bang, bang,” I said and shot with my fingers at the mirror.

“Okay, fine. It won't go bang, boom, ka-boom, or…” Jinx said as she got right next to me.

“Ra-ta-ta-ta-ta-ta,” I half shouted and began to tickle her. We both laughed and sat on the bed to calm down.

“You always do that,” Jinx said giggling.

“Cause you love it,” I said.

“When I was a kid, I'm a big girl now,” Jinx said.

“Oh, well I guess you are too old for my peanut butter and jelly sandwiches then,” I said as I got up.

“Nooo! Never,” Jinx said dramatically and clang to me. “I'm never old enough to let go of you or any food with jelly.”

“And that's why you will always be my PJ,” I said as I booped her nose.

“Madam, are you ready to leave?” Jolynn asked as she slowly peeked inside the room.

“Okayloveyoubyebye,” Jinx said hurriedly, kissed my cheek, and rushed out of the room. But returned to peek behind the door. “But really, come later to check my design.” And then she was gone.

“If she wants another tattoo I refuse to take any sides this time,” Jolynn said sourly.

I laughed at her comment. Yes, it was quite a scene when Jinx wanted to get a tattoo.

***

Silco and I both were sitting on the couch in his office drinking coffee when Jinx dropped down from the roof behind the coffee table and simply dropped the “bomb”.

“Can I get a tattoo?” She asked as innocently as she could. Silco just glanced at her and resumed drinking his coffee, expecting me to handle this.

“You know what I say about tattoos,” I said sipping my coffee.

“Yes,” Jinx said, pouting.

“Good. Now, will I like it?” I asked.

“Hmmm, yes,” Jinx said after considering it a bit.

“Will you be able to hide it if I don't like it?” I asked. Jinx seemed to ponder again and look around herself before she gave an answer.

“Yes.” 

“Is it your own design?”

“In a way.”

“Will you get it done in a proper tattoo parlor and not some cheap joint?”

“I hoped you could recommend one that uses your ink.”

“Will you pay for it and stand still enough till it is done?” I asked.

“Yes.” That answer came fast.

“Sure. Go right ahead.”

Silco almost choked as he spat his coffee when he heard my answer. Fortunately, he managed to keep the couch clean.

“Yesss!” Jinx cheered and before Silco managed to catch his breath the girl was already at the door. “Loveyoubyebye.”

“Wait Jinx…”Silco tried to shout after her but his coughing made it difficult. Jinx however didn't get out of the door, when she crashed with Sevika. 

“Hey, where are you running?” Sevika asked.

“I'm going to get a tattoo,” Jinx said happily.

“Oh hell no, not another freaking moving tat,” Sevika sighed.

“It will be a regular one, but she gets to use my new inks,” I said while I patted Silco on the back as he tried to clear his throat.

“Oh well, in that case, go crazy,” Sevika said and was about to leave it at that, but she saw the face Silco had, so she corrected herself. “But nothing big, okay.”

“Oh come on,” I let out. “It’s a tattoo, not a signia. And everyone in the Lanes has one. Or hopes to have one.”

“Are you serious?” Sevika asked.

“Yup. Go ahead, honey. Jolynn has a list of parlors that are responsible enough to use my stuff,” I said and waved at Jinx.

“Got it,” Jinx said happily and left.

“You really don’t care if she gets a tattoo?” Silco asked.

“I had this rule with kids before, if they answer even one no to my questions, they won't get any tattoos. She said yes to every question so she is free to do so,” I said as I set down my coffee cup.

“She didn't say yes to one of your questions,” Silco said.

“Even better, she asked for me to recommend a place, meaning she isn't going to some shady unhealthy joint but a proper place to get her tattoo. And it is partly her design so I know there is a fifty percent chance that it will turn out nice,” I said.

“But you are cool with the whole concept of tattoos on your kid?” Sevika asked.

“Again, we live in the Lanes. Besides, even if I say no, they do it any way but make it in haste and secret, and it turns out horrible,” I said. “And for someone who already has a snake on her back, I can't say anything against her getting her own.”

“You could have at least tried,” Silco sighed.

“Oh please, are you telling me you don't have a Tattoo?” I asked him.

“No, not even one,” He said.

“Sevika?” I asked.

“Okay, I see where this is going, and I'm going to stop it here,” Sevika said. “If the girl wants a tat and you are fine with it then all should be fine.”

“Is that so?” Silco asked, sounding a bit irritated.

“If she has had this thought before then she knows best,” Sevika said and turned to leave the room. When she opened the door she almost bumped into Jolynn. Both women avoided each other just fine and soon Sevika was gone and Jolynn entered the room.

“Jolynn, I need a list of the best tattoo parlors that use my inks,” I said.

“Why do you need that?” Jolynn asked curiously. 

“Jinx is getting a tattoo,” I said and immediately Silco gave me the most sour look.

“Good for her,” Jolynn said.

Yeah, she regretted that choice of words for a long while. In the end, Jinx got a cool tattoo of smoke clouds on her right arm and side with the blue ink I made for tattoo parlors. And I have to admit, in a way, it did look nice. As for the rest of Jinx's look, she had this loose and wild appearance. I had to modify her favorite pants a couple of times and get her new shoes, but she always wanted to have her vibe on them. And she now had this long two braided hair look with modified weights as bands. Completely erratic look compared to Silco and me. Since we both were leading figures in our own companies, we had to keep up with certain decorum. Me especially since I had caught the eye of a very influential person.

***

“By the way, ma'am, we received an invitation for lunch,” Jolynn said as I finished my makeup.

“From who?” I asked.

“From her,” Jolynn said. She knew not to mention any names in the Last Drop. Even if I lived here, and I still owned the place, this was still Silco's workplace. In order to keep his people away from my businesses I told Jolynn and my other workers to avoid using names here. Silco just needs one misunderstanding and if he knows their name, I could lose a client, a worker, or in worse cases a protégé. That almost happened already and it took a lot of convincing to get Silco to release the boy alive. But I had no problem knowing who Jolynn referred to when she said “her”.

“See I told you she will contact us first,” I said.

“Still, I don't trust her. She invited us to a restaurant at the top,” Jolynn said.

“A little power play. She simply tries to test our metal,” I said. “Let's bring some samples, shall we?”

--

“I'm sorry, madam, but I can't find you on the reservation list,” The butler said. I mentally rolled my eyes, his voice and manner of speaking didn't show it but he was clearly looking down on me and Jolynn. The very few people that went in and out of this restaurant weren't wearing anything flashy or something that my own outfit lacked, but sadly the same couldn't be said for Jolynn. Her outfit was neat and decent, but she always had that air that she was from the sumps. And no matter how nice I dressed up they would use her as an excuse. Which is why I decided not to even try to please these people.

“There isn’t any reservation, I'm expected there,” I said calmly. “You don't believe me then send someone to inquire about it.”

“Ma'am, I cannot send someone to bother our customers while they enjoy their afternoon tea, that would be so disrespectful,” Butler said, still trying to sound polite about it.

“Then get us a table then,” I said, still calm and polite.

“We are full,” Butler said. That was a fat ass lie, I saw at least three tables free from the doorway. I was sure Jolynn was now either feeling guilty for causing me trouble, or she was getting angry, and she was now perhaps considering using her pens as something to stab the guy. From what I saw from the side, Jolynn was about to simply use words to stab the Butler. However, I was better than that. I knew who I was going to meet and I knew how to make this man regret his words.

“Fine then,” I said as if I was giving up. The Butler looked surprised but not as surprised as Jolynn.

“Madam?” Jolynn asked.

“Let’s go, Jolynn. Why should we stay in a place where we clearly aren’t welcome?” I said as I turned to leave and said my next words just loud enough for the certain someone to hear. “I’m sure we can offer someone else our products. It's a good thing I brought samples with me. Maybe we will find someone who is ready to start something entirely new.”

“Wait.”

That was too easy. I expected to reach the door before we were stopped but instead, I simply needed to take one step. The one to call us to stop was a woman I had met a couple of times already. Elora, assistant of the council, especially assisting Mel Medarda.

“Please, do come in, we have been expecting you,” Elora said courteously.

“Oh, really?” I asked as I turned to face her. “And here I thought we were not wanted here.” I enjoyed seeing the Butler going pale as he saw Elora asking me to come with her. He was even more worried when he saw me glance at him with cold eyes.

Elora guided me and Jolynn to the dining hall full of tables. Some had patrons sitting and enjoying their afternoon tea. At the end of the hall, where there were fewer tables and no patrons at all, only one table was occupied. And a woman with a dark skin tone sat enjoying her drink. By the look of the cup, it wasn’t tea but a Turkish coffee. When she saw us coming, she set down her drink and rose to greet me.

“Madam Industrialist,” Mel Medarda greeted me.

“Oh, please, do not call me that way. My husband is the Industrialist, not me,” I said. “Just Madam will do.”

“I meet many madams, it will be awkward if one day I get you mixed with someone else,” Mel said.

“Madam Snake then. Or do they perhaps have an astonishing snake on their body like me?” I said proudly. For this meeting, I wore my favorite green backless, long-sleeved frock and nice leather pants. I liked the frock because it showed so well my snake on my back without making me look too indecent.

“No, I haven’t seen anyone with that sort of mark, even the style is entirely different,” Mel said. “Where is the design from?”

“I’m afraid I can’t say,” I said smiling. “Are we going to keep standing or shall we sit?”

“Let’s sit. Your companion can wait at the side,” Mel said. Ah, we’re doing this again.

“But of course, she can wait with your assistant,” I said smiling.

“Elora stays with me,” Mel said.

“So will Jolynn with me then,” I said. There was a moment of silence. If anyone would have seen this they’d say a cold war would erupt between us. But the only thing that erupted from Merdarda was a delicate and genuine laugh.

“Oh, how refreshing it is to talk to you,” Mel said as she wiped a nonexistent tear from her eye. “Anyone else would try their best to flatter me or feign being interested. But you, you barely greet me, and you already make sure you aren’t looked down upon.”

“If I do that, then my products aren’t that good,” I said. 

“Please, do sit,” Mel invited. “Elora and Jolynn can share the next table.”

We all sat down, Jolynn kept the bag where my samples were. So she made sure she chose a place where she could see when I needed anything. Once we were all seated the Butler came to our table, trying to look as if he had done nothing wrong. Yet, I could smell his discomfort.

“Ah, Jefferson. Right on time. I would like a refill for my coffee, and…” Mel said and left her words hanging to offer me something.

“Just plain water from the tap,” I said without even looking at the man.

“Really? Did you already have something before coming here?” Mel asked curiously.

“No, I just lack the pallet that you Piltoverians have for tea and coffee,” I said as if I was apologizing. 

“Oh, come now. No need to be modest,” Mel said. “This place also has a good collection of liquors.”

“Do they now?” I said as if I was pleasantly surprised and turned to the Butler. “Then a Bilgy whiskey between years 13 and 15, would be easy to find.”

“I-I will check what we have,” Butler said nervously. I detected a flitch of discomfort when I said “whiskey”. They mustn’t have it then. Good. It would embarrass them even more. The man left, while another waiter asked Elora and Jolynn for their orders. I didn’t pick what Elora ordered but I knew what Jolynn always asked when we got to this side of the bridge. A Cappuccino, size large, if they had it. I’m sure they have at least that. If they can’t bring that then… they were screwed. 

“Now, what can I offer you, miss Medarda?” I asked after both the Butler and the waiter were gone.

“Right, to the point,” Mel sighed, smiling. “Aren’t you going to wait for the order?”

“If they can’t get Jolynn her Cappuccino then I will never come here again,” I said. “As for the whiskey, well… I know my husband already bought all of it from years 14 and up.”

“Poor Jefferson,  he is going to have a hard time finding one,” Mel pitied him.

“That’s what he gets for looking down on paying patrons,” I said proudly.

“Come now, he didn’t know you were invited here by me,” Mel said.

“Oh, so it is normal for other kinds of people to come here for tea?” I asked sarcastically. “Or then I’m right when I say he is stupid to think I would come here by my own choice.”

“Where else would you have liked to meet?” Mel asked, smiling.

"Well, that nice place a block from the bridge is nice. Not much great coffee, but they have delicious treats. Especially the sweets,” I said reminiscing. 

“Alright, we can meet there next time,” Mel said.

“You tell me. Will there be a next time?” I asked.

"You think I asked you here just to freshen up the conversation?” Mel laughed. “No, I want to invest in your products.”

“Oh, I think you misunderstood me,” I said. “I’m not looking for investors. I’m looking for buyers.”

“Don’t you need more money to mass-produce your products?” Mel asked curiously. “Especially that oil many use here at Piltover.”

“Two notes, one, my husband is my primary investor. If there were others, he would have their heads. And nuts,” I said, and Mel had no problem understanding what I meant. “And two, I don’t need to mass-produce anything. The oils are sold now because of the Progress Day. Time after that, no one buys it. Except for someone who wants to make something even bigger for the next year.”

“Well, I’m that someone,” Mel said confidently. 

“I didn’t take you for a tinker, miss Medarda,” I said surprisingly. 

“Not me precisely, but I know people who are going to take the progress to the next level,” Mel said.

“Some competition to the Talis boy?” I asked.

“No, he will be in it as well,” Mel said.

“Is that so?” I asked sarcastically. “And what are you going to do? Shoot my products to a faraway land faster? I can just pay the cargo fee, and my inks get to the Bilgewaters.”

“That’s not all Hextech can do,” Mel said.

“What else has it done except shoot an airship to the distance?” I asked. 

“Talis is still studying it. Whatever comes next will be big,” Mel said.

“And we at the Undercity have already made our own big thing,” I said proudly. “Our people can now get augmentations to fix whatever they have lost. We have fresh air even at the bottom of the sumps. We have discovered new types of flora and fauna that can be used either to heal us or to feed us. And we have used that, to make fuel that powers your machines, and pigments to your decorations. Do tell me, what is it that you want from me? And most crucially, what can you give me in exchange?”

“Let's start with the second topic. You talk as if Undercity doesn’t need us anymore, but that isn’t true. You still need us to look after you,” Mel said with her diplomatic voice.

“You mean looking after us while sending enforcers to our streets and abusing defenseless kids, women, and the sick? Or do you mean looking after us by sending us to mine and taking all the labor’s work, while we choke on gas that eventually kills us?” I asked. Mel was silent for a moment. She didn’t look offended, or that she felt bad. She simply looked as if she was bracing herself for even more accusations. “You said, that we act like we don’t need you anymore. That is exactly what me and my husband are doing. We are becoming self-sufficient. We don’t need the support that never comes to the Undercity. We don’t need your pity. And maybe one day, we shall no longer even be attached to you. To prevent such a day from coming too soon, you just need to show us other kinds of benefits in exchange for our products and services.”

Mel gave a sigh, and I saw her fumbled her ring. By the looks of it, it was some mark of family, group, or other affiliation. Whatever it was she stared at it for a moment while fumbling it before she turned to face me.

“How does it sound if I can give you special protection? Not just from criminals but from Enforcers as well?” Mel asked.

“Why would I want that?” I asked surprisingly. “All my guys need is a drop of deluded Shimmer, and they can even throw gorillas out of my premises.”

“Not necessarily to you but to your…other project,” Mel said. “Most of your product’s income goes to support houses for children in the sumps, correct?”

“True,” I said.

“But besides ‘your guys’ what other protection do those children have?” Mel asked.

"They are looked after by some selected individuals, who see that children are fed, clothed, and have a warm bed to sleep in. Once at a certain age and if the children want to they even arrange work for them,” I said.

“But besides that?” Mel asked. “What other protection do they have?” I quirked my eyebrow at her question. I was truly getting interested in her offer.

“What exactly are you offering?” I asked.

“Your guys, as you said, can only protect the children to a certain level. But what about their rights? What if someone comes and starts to abuse them? Someone… dare I say this… from Piltover?”

I was now genuinely surprised. It takes a lot of guts to even admit that, even for a Pilty. But for a Councilwoman? She was aware of what the Undercity was going through. And she knew one day we could become strong enough to rebel again. But this time, it wouldn’t be an attack on the bridge. It would be simply growing apart from them. Only by keeping us happy could they prevent such things from happening.

“You do realize it’s not just any Pilty who would dare to go after these children,” I said, lowering my voice. “I know because I saw four of them at this very side of the bridge when I still lived here with my mother.” Mel knew my past. She had made her investigations before we met the first time. And she knew about the four Enforcer officers who murdered my mother. She knew that it was thanks to me and my husband, Silco the Industrialist, who made sure Enforcers never came across the bridge again in groups. Maybe one or two, but never in groups. The Shimmer had done its job. Now, we have become free of their leash. If they wanted us to behave and not bite them, they had to be smart and careful. 

“With my power, no one can touch them,” Mel said seriously.

“Not even a council member?” I asked. “I doubt any of them indulge such vile desires but some of their relatives or acquaintances might.”

“Yes, if I were to give you my protection, no one, not even a council member, can touch them without first facing me,” Mel said. That sounded very good. Ever since I made the houses, no child has faced trouble with Enforcers. There were some squirming with some Shimmer junkies, gang fights, and a couple of incidents with the workplaces, but nothing serious. But once Silco starts his independence campaign for the Nation of Zaun, things will be different. There will be war. And my resources might not be enough. Having the protection of a Councilwoman will become handy.

“How much oil do you need?” I asked. “In exchange for your protection.”

“For now all you have left,” Mel said. “After that, I can give the certificate that you are under my protection.”

“Is there anything else you wish to get from me?” I asked.

“I heard that you had something new coming up,” Mel said.

“Indeed I do,” I said. I motioned to Jolynn, and she quickly passed me the bag with my samples. “These little beauties are meant for massages.”

--

Mel didn’t show much interest in massage oils and aromatherapy oils that I had. But she had a small glint in her eyes as I explained the properties of the oils. What really had her attention were the two bottles of oils used for lubing augmentations and other machinery. With that as a clue and her previous words regarding the Hextech, I believe she has plans to be part of something else. Is the Hextech going to be expanding its uses? Then, the reason she wants my oils is to help produce them. Already, my oils were well used in many inventions about to be presented on Progress Day. She wanted more of it. Well, then, in that case, I better show something new.

“And to finish with a cherry top, I have a new product to show,” I said. “You are first to see it but I also do hope you will keep quiet about this till we launch the production.” Mel didn't show it but she was curious about what I was about to show. I brought out a bottle that was slightly bigger than other bottles. The liquid inside didn't look much different from my oils for augmentations.

“The oils I made before were meant to lubricate the gears of augmentations and make them easy to handle and fix when they… wear out. But later as new type of augmentations were made and new type of tech came to market the same oil needed to adapt to that. So after several attempts I have managed to make an oil that not only lubricates the gears, it also cools off the machinery, making it less probable to catch on fire. With this sort of oil, the machines can work faster without the risk of overheating too fast. For this to even catch on fire it requires a very high temperature,” I explained.

“What uses could this have?” Mel asked, looking at the bottle.

“We already tested with the automobile of a friend of my husband's. The car worked normally, on foul smell, no overheating even if we made the car go several laps with unthinkable rounds. The engine was still working, and the car made no unsafe sounds, indicating that it was damaged. I made this mostly for the machines my husband uses in his factories to avoid any accidents happening for the workers.”

“Any other uses besides that?” Mel asked.

“Let me say it this way, if there is any machine that has trouble overheating or is dangerous for excess use of power, this thing will make it safe again,” I said. “Or at least the other one under work will.”

“The other one? You are already making another?” Mel asked.

“Similar to this one, but it also can be used as fuel for certain types of machines,” I said. 

“What? The same thing can be used as fuel and lubricant?” Mel asked with shock.

“Why yes. But I would recommend not trying it at the same time. If you use it as lubricant you have to make sure that the machine or a certain part of the machine never gets heated to a certain point. Because then the substance evaporates and creates energy needed as fuel. If you use it as fuel you need to keep the machine at a certain temperature for the fuel to activate and create the energy that is needed to keep the machine moving.”

“But otherwise, the same thing works for both uses?” Mel asked.

“Only if the machine is right,” I said.

“So if there is a different source of fuel for the machine, this can be used as a lubricant,” Mel said looking at the bottle.

“And the best kind of that,” I said smiling. “This will only keep the gears moving, it will also cool off the part exposed to air, and it does not catch fire easily. Unless you force it, of course.”

“Do you have it ready?” Mel asked.

“We still need to determine the correct temperature for the fuel properties. But as a lubricant it is already confirmed to work as good as the one in your hands,” I said.

“When will it be ready?” Mel asked.

“Not too long, in a week maybe,” I said. “If we get the right resources to expand our tests, then we could get it done faster.”

“Then what about this, is this for sale?” Mel asked. I smiled internally as I knew she was hooked.

“Oh, that? That is a sample. I'm not going to sell anything for now. As I said, it is for my husband. He needs it more now,” I said as if I had no better to offer.

“Aren't you interested in selling it?” Mel asked.

“I am tempted, but as I said, my husband needs it more. For now, everyone in Piltover isn’t even building anything that truly needs it,” I said. 

“What could be something that needs it?” Mel asked.

“Something small yet very powerful. Something like…”

“The Hextech?”

“Your Hextech is very big for needing my products,” I said and glanced outside the windows where the big tower stood. “But if the Hextech is the fuel source I believe my substance will make a great lubricant as it keeps everything going on and cooled down. But who am I kidding, we don't know what else we could do with Hextech yet.”

“We don't, but I know someone who does,” Mel said. She looked calm, but I sensed that she was excited.

“Something else than shooting an airship to the distance?” I asked as if I didn't believe her.

“That was just the beginning. I'm sure you too are curious as to what else we can do with it,” Mel said.

“Curious, yes I am. But I'm also a realist. For now, Piltover doesn't need my newest products but styles for my usual offers,” I said as I slowly gathered the sample bottles into the bag. “I apologize for taking your time, Councilwoman Medarda. I had hoped that maybe you too would wish to buy my products. But I'm afraid I go now with the demand, which is my husband and the Undercity. But once we get news of Hextech's new inventions, I will happily meet you again. Maybe by then, we will have something better to offer you.”

“Hold on, there is no rush,” Mel said. “You still haven't received your order.”

“Which is to blame for the poor catering of this establishment. At least, they brought the Cappuccino to Jolynn. But I rather remain thirsty than drink some cheap wannabe whiskeys,” I said and got up. “And now, if you excuse me, I need to head back. I need to make sure my husband has a meal when he gets back home.”

“Just a moment,” Mel said as she got up from her seat. “If there will be new inventions and other uses for Hextech, will you join me and others to sponsor them?”

“Only if they actually invent something,” I said. “Otherwise, I keep selling my products the same way as before. But I will keep bringing my best and newest products to you for early picking.”

“Could I have that sample?” Mel asked.

“But of course,” I said, using my sweetest tone as I finished the bottle from the bag. “Do pass it to your 'someone who knows about Hextech' person. And remember, this is only for lubricant. I'll bring you a sample of the other one once we confirm it passes all tests.”

--

Soon, Jolynn and I were out of the establishment, escorted with heavy apologies from the butler for failing to bring me anything. I knew my order was outrageous but I wanted to make that butler squirm after offending us. But I knew Silco had a bottle of good quality whiskey in his office for me to indulge. He did tell me that now I should only drink the best kind of drinks and nothing cheap to ruin my palette.

Once Jolynn and I were in the Undercity, I was feeling more at home and content with my visit to the top. Medarda had ambitions, no doubt about it. And she knew how to use all sorts of resources. When she first contacted me, I was surprised but also doubtful of her intentions. It took five meetings to learn that she was genuinely interested in my products.

“So are we selling her our new product?” Jolynn asked curiously. She had heard most parts of the conversation, but she still wasn't sure if I was playing all the cards.

“Of course, we sell it to her,” I said happily.

“But you said you made it for…” Jolynn hesitated.

“She doesn't know what Silco does in his factories. And unless she comes down here herself, she will never know,” I said.

“Is it faulty? The new product, I mean,” Jolynn asked.

“Of course not,” I fake gasped as if I was offended. “I never sell anything faulty. But if she believes there is competition  for the product she wants it more, and she pays more.”

Jolynn finally caught on to what I meant as she made a silent “Aah” and followed me. We went to stop in a couple of parlors that used my products to see and hear comments about it. Nothing to report regarding the products only if we could make inks of other colors. We were visiting the last shop for tattoos when something very disturbing happened. 

“Ugh, it's those guys again,” Jolynn said quietly while we sat and waited for the manager to appear. This was a tattoo and piercing shop that used my inks. So surely eccentric people visited this place. But it also meant the loudmouths from the café of yesterday were here. Well, unlike then this was not a place to calm and relax. So if they want to make noise of their hookups then go right ahead.

“You lie, dude,” One of the guys said.

“No, I tell ya, I totally did it,” Other said.

“You say that you fucked the Snakewife?”

Instantly, I felt a vein pop in my forehead. And I saw Jolynn almost rise up but she remained seated as she felt how tense I went. People of the Undercity always had a way to put nicknames for people who were somehow famous or infamous. For example, Vander, when he was alive, was called the Hound. Silco had now gotten his own names such as the Industrialist but in the Undercity, he was also known as the Eye. And of course, after becoming the second most productive business in Undercity, and the only one not affiliated with the Chem Barons, I too got myself a name. The Snakewife. The name hit off as I began to wear the green frock and the eye-catching snake at my back drew attention. And when they saw it move, oh, then they lost it. But I wasn't as big name as the Eye, since my dealings were limited for certain types of people, and I rarely made appearances. Which made it more disturbing for some loudmouth to use my name as a hookup story.

“Hey, she got the snake on her, what does that make her?” The second guy spoke. 

“You could get killed if the Eye hears that you are fucking his wife,” The third one said. “Actually, if anyone hears of this…”

“Ma'am, just say the word, and I will silence them for good,” Jolynn whispered to me. As tempting as that sounded, I needed to remain calm. I could feel the snake on my face as it came towards my eye. But as it did, so did my sense. These guys had to be some wannabes who thought about getting a score while bragging about their hookups. Many people knew Silco from his reputation, but I wasn't that well known. They thought using my name would make them become big leagues. They needed a lesson. And Silco also had to make an example of them. He would never believe that I would do something like that, right? But how to make these pigs scream? Then, an idea came to me.

“Jolynn, give me a knife,” I said quietly.

“Here. If you want I can go and block the entrance,” Jolynn said.

“No need,” I said. I had wondered when to test this trick. When I got the book from Zain, I learned through it that I could do more with my signia. Many signias gave abilities to the one wearing it. But legendary signias, such as mine, could do so much more. Not only did I gain resistance to poisons, a young look, a healing factor, and other snake-like abilities, but I could do something entirely different. But to do the thing I was about to do, I needed to learn two things. One, my snake may move depending on my mood, but it remains on the left side of my body. I can move it consciously but only to the right side. Two, my snake is also connected to me more ways than the one. If focused enough, I can actually see behind my back, as if I was seeing through the eyes of the snake itself. Once I learned to control these two aspects, I could do something else.

I focused on moving my snake to my right wrist. Once there, I slowly moved it to the palm, and as it moved, I cut my palm with the knife. Right as it came closer to the wound, a smaller snake came out of my cut. Since it was my palm, the cut wasn't too wide, but wide enough for a snake to come out of my wound and curl around my wrist. Jolynn looked at my hand with a mixture of horror, shock, and surprise. I made a quick sign for her to be silent as I gave her the knife back. My hand hurt like hell, but I ignored it as I watched the small living snake coiled around my wrist. If someone were to see the snake, they would mistake it as a bracelet. I closed my eyes and focused to sense the little snake. It felt weird, I felt my body numb, but mostly, it was weird to look at myself through the eyes of the little snake. I didn't have more time to test these new sensations when I opened my eyes and faced the snake.

“Follow them,” I whispered. I don't know if the snake understood me or not. But since it was now part of me one way or another understood its mission. The snake slithered away from my wrist, and after I set it down, it went quietly, and unnoticed by others to the three guys who were still talking. I focused to make sure the snake followed the fool who had claimed to fuck me. The snake was so small that it easily slipped into the bootstrap of the person and remained there while looking like a little ring hanging there. I didn't get to check anything else as the manager came to see me. He saw my bleeding hand and immediately asked if I was okay. I dismissed his worries and left for his office to talk about businesses. 

--

After my visit, I went back to the Last Drop and made meals for everyone. I had to apologize to Jinx as I didn’t have time to visit and see her newest project. But she quickly forgave me when I gave her favorite meal with a promise of desert. Once everyone was fed, including me, I went to my room and laid on the bed. For me to follow the snake, I had to close my eyes and focus on locating my snake. According to the book, this will be easiest when I have only one snake out there. If I have made more it gets more difficult to follow everyone. When I closed my eyes, I had no trouble connecting to my snake’s eyes. Even less, did I have trouble recognizing where I was. That disgusting pig had gone to a brothel, once again. It took me a good while to learn which one it was from all the places in the lanes. Once I focused more I could get the hearing and smells from the snake. The sounds I wish I could block, but it did give a clue that this was the place where the pig came to fuck the Snakewife. But it was the smell that gave me the clue where it was. Many places use different musk and perfumes to elevate their services. I know because I made a couple of them. But this wasn’t mine, yet it was familiar. It was familiar because I always smelled it on Sevika. And there is one place she frequents regularly. Babette’s. Hers is the most secluded and only lets in certain types of people. But now I had to make the visit and make a couple of things clear before something catches on fire. 

I was about to try and get a sniff from who was this fake Snakewife when the door to my room opened, and Silco walked in. I opened my eyes, and the connection was lost to the snake. I turned to look at him and saw a very annoyed frown on his face.

“What is it?” I asked.

“Nothing,” Silco said, sounding vexed. It can't be nothing with that tone. I got up from the bed and walked to him as he pulled the cravat off. I helped with the vest, and he just stood but faced away from me. He was mad.

“Tell me, what happened?” I said calmly.

“I don't want to talk about it,” Silco said with a low voice. Wow, somebody screwed up big time. Hopefully, not someone I know.

“Bad day?” I asked. Silco didn’t answer, so it has to be it. “Is someone going to die?”

“Maybe,” Silco growled.

“Well, make sure they know why they are going to die. And make sure others who will see it know why as well,” I said as I removed the vest.

“Oh, I will make sure they know,” Silco said. “I will do so personally.”

Poor fellow, whoever they are. Silco can be cruel when he is angry. And he rarely is. He can be annoyed and vexed, but when he gets angry it is something to be reckoned with. I set the vest away and turned back to place my arms around his neck before I kissed his cheek.

“Anything I can do to make things better?” I asked sweetly. Only then did he face me and chuckled before he put his arms around me.

“You can do a lot of things to make things better,” He said, smiling his charming smile. “One would be you joining me in the shower.”

“Good,” I said and kissed him on the lips. “Just remember to shower again once you actually kill them. I would rather not smell their nasty blood on you.”

“Deal,” He said and kissed me again. Tomorrow proved to be a long one for both of us. I didn't know that it was going to be a complicated one as well. 

Next ->

[oneatlatime]

The Winter Solstice Part 1: The Spirit World

I'll be watching this two part episode as two separate episodes.

Starting strong with some stunning pastoral views.

I like how Appa's shadow undulates over the clouds.

Is Aang passively airbending at all times when they're on Appa? Otherwise how do they hear each other? Unless it's a windless day and they're flying at walking pace there's no way they would be able to have a conversation.

Can you imagine the freedom of being able to throw yourself into the air with no consequences? Imagine how being able to ignore gravity since (presumably) a very young age would shape your worldview. Aang must look at the world in a fundamentally different way.

Blow dried Momo.

Could Katara stop babying Aang for five minutes?

The perspective is so funky in this shot that Appa looks Momo sized.

Did Gyatso say that Roku specifically would help Aang? He said that someone in that special room would guide him, but the only living creature in there was Momo.

Emotional support Momo. Maybe the help Gyatso spoke of actually was Momo.

Every time Iroh appears I become increasingly convinced that the creators of this show are fans of The Big Lebowski.

I love Iroh weaponizing teenage awkwardness to get himself five more minutes in the tub. I think I can also now declare myself officially used to Zuko's voice. I no longer find it muppety.

This is the environmentalism after school special.

The way this guy talks about flying Bison and airbender tattoos, is he actually old enough to have known airbenders?

Katara blindly trusts this guy because... he's old?

Pretty.

"It is the greatest honour of a lifetime to be in your presence." "Nice to meet you too." Yep, those greetings are definitely in proportion to each other.

I love the lighting in this scene. Everything has this golden glow.

The winter solstice sounds a bit like Halloween. The walls between worlds thin to almost nothing and things can cross over which shouldn't.

Aang's eyes are brown in this episode.

I love this attitude. Optimistic, upbeat. "I have to try, don't I?" is so true.

Is it just me, or is Sokka's ponytail weird this episode?

I think this is the Bumi guard voice guy again.

This episode appears to be taking place in a part of the Earth Kingdom that hasn't been taken over by the Fire Nation (unlike last episode). So for Zuko & crew, this is enemy territory. Iroh, who is a general with a fancy title, the brother of the leader of the fire nation (so I guess the next in line to the throne?), and so recognisable to the enemy that they can identify him without a single piece of insignia or even clothing denoting his country of origin, thought it would be a good idea idea to have a solo, unguarded spa day here? I bet the fire nation is happy the other brother is the one in charge.

More pretty.

Sokka racking up some major Big Brother points this episode. Aang may be the Avatar, which makes this kind of stuff his responsibility, but he's also 12 and clueless. He shouldn't have to face this alone.

This village must be close to the Avatar world's equator because that sun set ridiculously quickly.

You know, if I turned around and saw that thing following me, my first impulse would be to scream and run away, not introduce myself. This is why I'm not the Avatar.

If that's their water tower gone, this village is done for with or without the Avatar's help.

This spirit is throwing a proper tantrum. I love the way it moves too fast to see. I did not see Sokka getting kidnapped coming. I actually had to rewind and watch it again because it happened so fast that I did not see it at all the first time through.

I think the fire nation solider here is the Bumi guard voice too.

This is an insane shoulder to waist ratio. Also nice to see Zuko figure it out so quickly. This show has given me the impression so far that he's kind of stupid, but I guess not.

It's a panda! Black and White spirit, plus the environmentalism stuff from earlier, I really should have put that together sooner.

"I Failed." yeah you kind of did. So pick yourself up and try again.

Bird horses? Also those earth soldier helmets are probably really effective, but they look so stupid.

Proof that Katara is used to relying on Sokka to do all of her thinking and planning like I said last episode. If Sokka was the one left behind and Katara the one missing, he would not be so passive.

"All I have to do is figure out what I have to do. But once I do that, no problem." Even the most impossible tasks can be broken down into manageable steps. I love Aang's attitude.

It's so painfully in character that what gets Katara out of her funk is looking after someone else.

Where's Momo in all this?

In the spirit world, the avatar is just some guy? Can't bend. So what makes him uniquely qualified to be the guy who deals with spirits?

Dragons can talk with their whiskers. I'm sure I've seen that somewhere before.

Iroh can see stuff in the spirit world? Maybe it's an old people thing?

How stupid are these earthbender guards? Nice call back to the water heating trick. This show is really good at set up and payoff like that.

This dragon is very fluent at talking in pictures. Also the sky in the accelerated days and nights animation is actual live action footage of sky, right?

Earthbenders can skate on their bare feet. That's beyond cool. Imagine having an inborn ability to sock slide at will. I'd never walk anywhere again. Only slide.

Comforting Appa really did get her out of her funk and inspire action. Neat.

Aang and Zuko's stories do intersect this episode after all. Also I had no idea the two parties were this close to each other. Zuko showing this episode that in addition to deductive reasoning, he also has long-distance tracking skills.

I want to visit this village just to see the sunsets in person.

Iroh was right, they were clearly outmatched. These guys are just the worst. They're on a dirt floor in a dirt cave with the advantage of numbers and actual pants, and they still lose. Did Iroh even firebend?

I take back what I said earlier about Iroh being stupid for going off alone in enemy territory. If this is the calibre of soldiers he knew he would possibly run into, then he was perfectly safe all along. Although the last minute rescue from Zuko was a nice touch. Did anyone really believe that he would choose chasing the Avatar over his uncle? I didn't.

I like the creepy spirit whispering at the gate.

Did Katara yelling to Aang attract the spirit's attention to that main building? Because it seemed to be ignoring it before.

Chekov's acorn!

When Aang went to the spirit world, his body stayed behind on the statue's head. But when Sokka went his whole self was stuck there? Also that bathroom joke is payback for all the denied potty breaks.

Sokka's practicality and bluntness is just so perfect this episode. A nice counter balance to the spirity stuff. Just spent 24 hours in the Spirit world? That's nice. Can we have supplies?

Momo's back in these final scenes, but where was he the rest of the episode?

How does Aang know the island is in the fire nation? From the temple architecture?

Final Thoughts

I really like this episode! There is so much that is good: -beautiful visuals (so many sunsets!) -interesting sound design (that whispering was neat, and the single wind chime in the last spirit attack was so eerie) -so many well-executed set ups and payoffs (acorn, firebending heating stuff, how the spirit does relate to the burnt forest from the beginning) -So much good dialogue, from Zuko especially ("Now would you please put on some clothes?!?" / *sniffs* "Yeah, that's Uncle Iroh.") -relationship stuff (Sokka being big brother, Katara being lost without him until someone else needs her to be strong, Aang's relationship to his responsibilities both internally within himself and externally with how the village sees him and what it expects of him, the exasperated teenager and secretly amused parent dynamic between Zuko and Iroh switching flawlessly into a fighting team, then flawlessly back) -Everyone feels in character (optimistic sweetheart Aang, practical protective Sokka, caring Katara, super chill yet super skilled Iroh, Zuko just so fed up with everything) -The humour was downplayed this episode but the few jokes that were there were genuinely funny. Sokka getting hit with the acorn in particular. I'm thinking that there must have been a rule in the writing room that it's not a proper Avatar episode unless Sokka gets to be the butt of the joke at least once. -Zuko and Iroh finally getting fleshed out a bit. I feel like this is the first episode where Zuko hasn't come off as an asshole. -Worldbuilding (this is the first time the avatar's done his job as per the job description) -How it's supposed to be the first half of a two part episode but it doesn't feel like set up at all. It's a self-contained story with actual stakes, a conclusion that matters, lessons learned all around, and ALSO set up for next episode.

Once I had gotten a good look at firebending in the Southern Air Temple episode I started wondering how the fire nation hadn't completely decimated all their enemies. After I saw Bumi's bending skills I understood how the earth kingdom had resisted the fire nation for a century, but Bumi really was the exception to the rule, wasn't he? If these earth kingdom soldiers are typical of the earth kingdom army, I'm going to have to switch back to my original opinion and wonder why the fire nation didn't win the war 85 years ago. Because these guys are bad. They are surrounded by their element. Their prisoner is standing on their element. Just make the ground grab his feet! He'll be a sitting duck and they'll be able to do whatever they want to him. Better yet, just bury him completely. Or make handcuffs out of rock instead of metal. That being said, the soldiers' stupidity set up a really cool fight scene. How did Zuko not break his foot with that kick?

Everything is woven together so well in this episode. Almost nothing feels contrived - you can't tell me that Zuko didn't wait behind a bush somewhere so he could time his rescue of Iroh to have maximum drama. But otherwise this episode feels organic - like we were actually watching a couple of days in the life of these people.

I really liked this one.

[erika111111]

This will likely be my last post about the remake, but since it came out today and I was actually able to skim through a playthrough, I'll give my final thoughts.

First, the bad stuff, besides the millions of things I already mentioned in my previous post about the remake and why I hate it...

They call THAT an extended prolouge? There was like, 2 minutes worth of new content, they really played it out like it was going to be actually extended and fleshed out, showing Hannah and Beth as actual individual characters and not just "Josh's sisters" and show the roles they played in the friend group. This so-called extended prolouge did NONE of that. A couple of cute pics in a camera roll does NOT cut it. I thought we were gonna see the pre-party, I thought Hannah and Beth would have new lines, I thought it would be the length of a full chapter. You know, I thought it would do everything they said it was going to do, but go figure, they lied about that too...

Why did they make Jessica's breasts so big??? Nevermind, I know exactly why. Because Jess is supposed to have a great body and the assholes who made this don't think women can be attractive if they don't have giant boobs. That's absolutely disgusting, ESPECIALLY because she was quite literally modeled/mocapped after Meaghan Martin so they're literally insulting her body saying she wasn't attractive enough. What a dick move.

The music is a little off. Some say it's just for the streamer mode like how they have in The Quarry, so I guess I'll refrain from total judgment on that one.

I really don't like how they changed the character's traits. It seems like something simple and stupid to complain about, but the traits actually helped me understand the characters more, especially the ones without a lot of screentime/playtime. It's a change I'm not sure why they made, honestly.

Bro, did they leave an old picture of Hannah in there? At like, her most prominent scene in the entire game? I'm pretty damn sure the picture it shows of her/her tattoo after Josh recognizes her as a Wendigo is from the original. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but the picture didn't look updated. This isn't like, something I'm passionately furious about, it just adds to their incompetence.

I can't believe they changed Ashley getting Chris killed, as I expected based off the new trophy. Just leave the characters' negative traits in. Honestly, Ashley getting him killed as so much more to her character that a lot of people don't appreciate or understand. Which is obviously why they changed it but damn, I really wish they didn't cave in to all the negative feedback. It doesn't even really add up anymore, there wasn't even a flashback to Chris shooting her so you're kind of left wondering why she hesitated at all in this version. Like, she still cares about him all the same based on her reaction after he dies, so what the hell even just happened? They made it really sloppy and hard to understand. Everybody just wants Ashley to be a simple good girl because they hate complex female characters, but it was so much better that she actually was multi-dimensional. (And this is coming from a huge Chrashley shipper, btw, so I prefer the option where he doesn't shoot Ashley, but the alternate version helps showcase other sides to her very well.)

Some stuff I'm neutral about would be... some changes to the dialogue that doesn't really make a difference. The character's pictures in the Dr. Hill book are different but they had to do that because of the changes to the character designs/graphics. Shaking the snowglobe was cute, was it a reference to Rush of Blood actually?? Not sure how to feel about the new Wendigo sounds, they're less threatening but a little more human so it evens out. Also I liked the idea of the Hunger Totems but I couldn't find them all, I only saw three which all seemed pretty repetitive but I won't judge because I haven't seen them all.

Now to the very minimal good stuff...

I stand by my initial praise of the game, which I'm now mostly embarrassed to remember I once praised this disaster of a remake, but the graphics are absolutely gorgeous. That's undeniable, I don't care what anybody says. You know, that's why I wanted a remaster so bad, but instead I got a shitty remake...

Hannah reacting to the prank was actually pretty good. I liked the slow-motion zoom-ins of everybody before she runs off.

I'm happy they included the DLC scene with Matt and Emily. If this remake can do one good thing in its life, maybe it'll show people more sides to Matt and Em who couldn't see that content originally.

The pictures in the camera were cute. I'm particularly glad it showed Ashley and Matt hanging out because I thought they were supposed to be friends but they don't have a lot of screentime together regardless.

I don't know why but I really liked Emily playing the little instrument thingy. It was cute, lol.

Fuck it. Don't really have much more to say that I didn't already in my last post and I don't think I even have it in me to keep talking about this. Since day one it seemed like they just caved into every nonsensical complaint the fanbase had and just turned it into a complete mess due to pressure and incompetence.

And for context, before anybody talks shit, I watched the prolouge in full and then skimmed through the rest (that I didn't already see beforehand). As toxic as the Supermassive Games fanbase already is, I'm not surprised at all that the remaster defenders are extremely nasty and toxic already. Don't get me wrong, the haters in the beginning who hated it before there was anything more than an announcement were just as bad (and even some modern now haters too), but now there's actual reasonable criticism to be had and not a whole lot of reasons to like it. And this post isn't trying to force anybody to dislike or boycott the remake or whatever, you can have whichever opinion you want to have. But I personally need to vent about this. And maybe it can also shed some light on the changes in the remake for other people too. I'm just really sad because the graphics are beautiful and you can play it on different systems now, literally EXACTLY what I've wanted for years now, but they just ruined so many other things about it so I can't properly enjoy it... Maybe it'll grow on me or maybe I'll be such a slut for the good graphics, I'll give it a try, but for now, I'm just a real sad girl.

[whats-wild-to-you]

Hellooo! I hope you’re doing well and healthy :)

Can I request you write a smut if you’re comfortable and when you have time

So the reader is playing with herself to Reply by Jay and he catches her

Thank you 🫶🏻

Goddamn! 🥵🥵 THAT SONG !!! It’s been a while since I wrote a smut 🫣🤭

Also, why are Jay’s sexy songs always so damn descriptive. They’re like a manual on how to seduce him 🥵

________________________________________

With Jay being away so much, it gave you an opportunity to declutter your shared home. You had wanted to do it for a while but always procrastinated.

Your phone beeping startled you, and you almost spilled your coffee.

Baby, I’m coming back early! Did you miss me? Tonight, you are going to be all I’ll be concentrating on 😊

Even though he attached an innocent looking emoji at the end, your cheeks almost immediately heated up.

Right. No more delays. You’d clean up and prepare his favorite dish for him.

It was past 10pm and you still waited for Jay, barely able to keep both eyes open. The food was cold and your outfit felt uncomfortable. All you wanted was to take off your clothes and lie in bed.

But just in that moment, another text lit up your screen.

I’ll be home in 30 minutes 😏

You chuckled, staring at the flirty message. Immediately you felt alert and went to the kitchen to get some candles. With the mood set, you looked through your CD collection for some slow music to put on but no song seemed fitting.

Then you remembered how you found some of Jay’s old albums earlier today. Without thinking too much, you decided to put on EYW.

First, lock the door girl

Cus this song is rated R

Focus now

Listen baby to what I am trying to say

Take off your T-shirt first

Take your pants off too

Don't take off your underwear

Leave your bra and underwear on

“Good Lord!” You chuckled, but felt the heat rise to your cheeks.

You leaned back on the sofa and closed your eyes. It had been 9 weeks since Jay left and you missed him terribly. His voice, his laugh, his touch. His body weight on you.

Driven by an all-consuming desire, you slowly unbuttoned your jeans, shimmying out of it and dropping it on the ground. Next it was your cropped top that landed unceremoniously on the floor.

You wore your fanciest, sexiest underwear today, your lace panties caused an arousing friction. Getting rid of them first, then lastly taking off your bra, you laid there completely naked, letting Jay’s voice slowly caress your body

Don't move and close your eyes

Imagine my tattoos touching your body

I'm standing here so keep looking at my body

Tonight, I wanna make your bed into an ocean

Automatically, your hand landed on your pussy, as you started playing with yourself, not surprised at all that Jay’s voice was enough to get you wet.

You moaned loudly, your other hand massaging your breasts rather roughly, imagining that Jay’s fingers caressed your body, touching every inch of you.

[Jay’s POV]

Completely exhausted, I punched the numbers on the keypad and watched the door spring open. Dragging my luggage inside, I was startled when I heard one of my songs playing.

I noticed the lights were turned off. Instead, candles dipped the place in a soft light, creating a sensual atmosphere.

I chuckled. I missed my girl and wanted to nail her to the bed. Judging by the setup, I guessed she was feeling the same way.

I was just about to call her name when I stopped dead in my tracks.

I was marveling at the sight in front of me, my mouth dropped open, my eyes glued on her.

There she was, laying naked on the couch playing with herself, while my song was playing on repeat.

Her eyes were closed and her head thrown back. I knew she didn’t hear me coming in, otherwise she would’ve panicked. Who knew a sexy vixen laid dormant inside her?

Debating whether I should make my presence known or slip past her to the bedroom, the choice was taken away from me when she suddenly opened her eyes, realizing she was no longer alone.

She stared at me in shock, her fingers still on her swollen pussy. I realized what was happening. She was close to climax. Throwing her head back again, she moaned loudly, making my dick twitch.

Covering herself with a blanket, she got up rather clumsily, I assumed because her legs were still wobbly, and walked towards the stereo. Turning the music off, she looked at me with her best poker face on.

“You’re late.”

I wanted to protest, say that I hadn’t given her a specific time window, therefore I couldn’t be late, but my throat was dried up.

“I made dinner. You can wash up while I reheat it.”

Am I being punk’d?

We had dinner in silence, when I finally put the fork down, sighing from all the pent up sexual frustration.

“Are you for real? We’re not going to talk about what happened earlier?”

“I thought we did! I told you you were late.”

A glint in her eyes, she yelped when I picked her up and threw her over my shoulder like a sac of potatoes, taking her to the bedroom.

“You know I’ve made a playlist full of songs like this. Buckle up honey, it’s going to be a long night!”

[curecrafted]

𝙲𝙰𝙽𝙾𝙽 𝙳𝙸𝚅𝙴𝚁𝙶𝙴𝙽𝙲𝙴 ::

Hate to say it but sometimes I find myself agreeing with the horny side of the fandom when they lament the fact that Kai doesn't have cool intricate Yakuza tattoos because oh yeah the aesthetic rips but also can understand why he doesn't both because thats not really a thing for modern Yakuza and also it probably wouldn't be a stretch to imagine Kai's extreme mysophobia makes him less than enthused about being prodded with a needle for hours in a dingy establishment. But, do it for Pops, Kai. ( Then he would, lets go with that. ) We are nothing if not slaves to the aesthetic here.

ANYWAY, another note about him, I'm thinking about AUs / canon divergence and want I wanna do with him post Overhaul Arc beyond what canon did. We know Hori wasted him in an extreme way like make your eyes water type way that almost reduced his insane godmod quirk to a plot hole ━ UNLESS .... Though it is NEVER spoken or really expanded upon in canon, the reason the overhaul quirk could have been written off was because Kai was the only one who could use it. This isn't entirely out of the realms of canon possibility because we have seen there are several quirks that can't be copied or used outside of the bodies of their original owners. In fact, the only two people that seem to have been SMART ENOUGH in the entire MHA world to engineer a way for these type of quirks to work outside an owners body is Kai ( With Eri's rewind ) and Kyudai Garaki with the rest of his shit. Though this being said, it seems not even Garaki was able to successfully make a copy of Overhaul useful outside of the broken version of it Tomura apperently received. ( which is something I still don't think I'll be keeping as a fact in my canon because its one of those things that ended up kind of unnecessary. )

So we could also say that Kai's intelligence and scientific knowledge helped play a part in him being able to use his quirk so well. Without these things, his quirk is useless to everyone else. So yeah, I'm going to say BOTH things to make sense of why his quirk was so underutilized in canon, at least !! But that doesn't fix the armless problem and this is where the canon divergence I've been playing around with corfides comes in.

Pretty much the whole Nagant thing ended up useless. So we're going do some canon divergence and change the prison break situation for Kai. Instead, Kai is going to be found by Hari and Stain during the prison break and they're going to become a hilarious bumbling threesome of guys who have beef with the heroes AND the villains. Kai wont have gone with Nagant, she'll have gone and done all that on her own since his presence makes literally no difference either way. Kai ends up getting his arms back thanks to Hari and Stain. We've decided this would be as easy as reattaching one because canon has even stated Kai can use his quirk with someone else's hands. We're not going down the prosthetics route because its cliche to me, instead. Hari offers one of his arms to Kai. So we get to do a fun nod to monsterhaul here with Kai having his arms back but having them look distinctly inhuman. Cause this said.... Kai isn't his old self. Its not exactly clear what happened but Kai appears to have some type of brain damage from his fight. And I'm not one to erase disabilities. This is something thats not really explained in canon outside of an offhanded comment that he "has some screws loose." And other characters wondering what is wrong with him. The running theory is Kai lost it after the LoV cut his arms off but if you actually look back at canon Kai seems to be out of it BEFORE the LoV got to him. Which leads me to think maybe Kai's uh... Distant / scatted, near catatonic state of mind wasn't just brought on by "grief" (which I'll say def worsened it, as I'm also headcanoning he was told Hari was dead so thats on top of him knowing he wouldn't be able to heal pops thus him believing he'd completely lost everything ) but that Kai might have actually been suffering side effects from taking multiple 100% punches to the face from Deku's superpowered OFA and that this is actually whats "wrong" with him post Deku fight. Though we know he was rewound by Eri at least twice, the logic of her rewind seems inconsistent. For whatever reason Kai was rewound enough to undo his mergers with his minions but was apperently not rewound enough to heal his injuries ? Thats what we seem to be shown in canon as it doesn't really make sense for Kai to have lost otherwise, because though he would have been separated from his mergers, he wouldn't have been out of fighting condition but rather quiet the opposite. So we're just gonna go with Eri's rewind being inconstant at times, especially cause her power was very untrained at this point and her intentions weren't to heal Kai, but rather to stop him, so maybe it was a result of her unconscious wishes shining through that he wasn't healed but just stopped. SO YEAH. ANYWAY. Kai is suffering some type of brain damage. Which is going to effect his memory + other things and how proficient he is with using his quirk. He wont be able to use it as perfectly as he could before. But he can still use it. And he'll be practicing to try and get it at least good enough to fix pops. This leaves his situation with his arms on the Horror TM side of things because though he has his arms back, thanks to his use of his quirk being less effective, his attempts to restore his other arm haven't been entirely successful and his arms now have a distinctly inhuman appearance, looking more like his arms in his monsterhaul form.

This without the second set of arms on the back lol. We've also talked about Kai and Hari accompanying Stain in his fight against AFO in aide of All Might. Stain's doing it because he's gay for All Might, but Hari and Kai ? They see an opportunity to get in societies good graces and also fuck the League of villains / AFO. So they help with the fight. The outcome is however roughly the same with Stain getting "killed" by AFO but in THIS canon divergence, Kai is able to use overhaul to restore Stain from death. This is a big success moment for him, showing he can indeed heal pops.

This results in Kai, Hari and Stain being offered a type of "pardon" at the end of the war along with other villains / criminals who helped out like Gentle, La Brava and Nagant, though Stain is quirkless. This gives the heroes the opportunity to have Kai use his quirk to do a bit of good for everyone, like not just healing pops and getting chewed out by him, but also help heal some of the more severely injured during the war.

[11919815125]

3/27/24

in regards to the phone call about the future/my ambitions

i think the reason it strikes a nerve when you bring stuff like that up is because like. my entire self-worth is built on choosing to accept my shortcomings rather than fight them or feel shame about them. when you're upset that i "don't care" it's because it was a choice that i had to make in order to cope and survive. when i was 24 years old, i was living with my parents, unemployed for almost a year and a half, no intent to use the degree that i went thousands of dollars into debt for, smoking weed every day, barely even leaving my bedroom, no goals or ambitions. i was a fucking loser. i couldn't look my parents in the eye because i saw disappointment looking back at me. i cut off almost all of my friends because i didn't want them to see me like that. the embarrassment of it all nearly drove me to suicide.

i had to decide that it was okay. that i didn't need to be successful in the ways other people define it, that i didn't need a career, that i didn't need to make my parents proud, that i didn't have to be special, that i didn't need people to like me, that i didn't have to achieve my dreams. i just needed to survive and try my best to be happy; anything beyond that is just a bonus.

it's not that the things you're asking me for are unfair, but they pop that bubble. they knock down the jenga tower i've stacked up so carefully. caring so much about those pressures and goals and ambitions genuinely ruined my life and almost ended it, and now you're asking me to make them a priority again, and suggesting that if i don't it's because i don't care enough about you or that i don't care about myself.

i feel that i am successful!!!!! with my worthless degree and my shitty kitchen job and everything i have going on now!!!!! this is not failure to me! i am so unbelievably proud of myself! i am paying my bills, living independently, working full time, doing my best to maintain the relationships i have, traveling when i can, cooking delicious meals and trying new foods, going out and making memories on the weekends, spending so many of my days with you. that's a life that's worth celebrating and i really hate that you seem to see it as the bare minimum. of course i can do better, i can invest more into the things that matter to me.......i just don't know if those are the things that matter to you.

saying that "a career is not a priority to me" is really the polite way of saying, "i do not want a career, and if i can find a way to keep living my life without having to do that, i absolutely will." you dedicate years of your life building marketable skills, going to school, interning, networking, busting your ass and stressing yourself out to get...what? your life looks exactly the same with a little more cash in the bank and a few more rooms in your apartment. it's so cliche but i really really don't care about the "rat race." i don't feel the impulse to keep up with other people, i don't value most of the things that you gain from playing the game, and i definitely don't give a fuck what anyone else thinks about how i choose to live my life.

i value freedom, autonomy, authenticity, and honesty above anything else. i value working as little as possible while still being comfortable and happy, and maximizing the time that is mine and mine alone. i value the people that love and embrace me and being able to share this life with them. i value experiences over anything material; nice houses and fancy dinners and expensive clothes and flashy gifts mean absolutely nothing to me. i want to go bungee jumping, i want to see the northern lights, i want to visit every country in the world, i want to cover my body in tattoos and sleep under the stars and get married to somebody i love and learn to play guitar and create beautiful things with my bare hands and hope that one day i wake up and see my life as a beautiful thing too.

and you wanna ask me about a fuckin job lol

[lilacastar]

KDA 18: Familiar patterns

Small pricks in the back of his neck reminded Kalrick he didn't shower after cutting his hair.

He sat up, dizzy and needing food, but lighter. His phone read 3:06, and hundreds of unopened messages. God it'd been so long since he was able to check his phone in the morning. The top message was from a new group chat Randal and 5K started that morning. He replied back he was fine, and would keep them updated.

Everything else was pretty old. A lot of people asking where he was, how he was doing, if he was alright. All of them unanswered. Eventually people had completely stopped trying to contact him it seemed. There were more messages at the bottom, and the fresher the date, the less frequency.

Until he reached January, two years ago.

Jan 12

Haven: Awesome! I've booked you for next week. Do you have the design you want inked?

You: image.png

Haven: Looks good, I can definitely do that :)

Jan 15

Haven: What you up to?

Jan 19

Haven: Wanna come over?

Jan 20

Haven: Right. no one talks to you, you come to me or something emo

Kalrick starred at the image he sent. The same sigil on his body. He didn't remember sending this at all or even who Haven was. But it had to be him, since the demonic didn't use his phone at all. There must've been a period of time right before the possession that would make things clearer.

Anyone with mild information about occult knew better than to tattoo a demons sigil on themself. Just as bad if not worse than getting your boyfriend's name on your arm, and he still didn't know who was on his body.

A quick flip through his grimoire didn't show previous signs of working with that demon. He'd worked with Azazel, Vassago, Dantalion, and Astaroth. He didn't have the patience for Lucifer or anyone like that, but it didn't matter. He'd never work with someone enough to tattoo their sigil on himself.

But this was progress. He had someone to find, a name even. A quick internet search could probably even find this tattoo artist. Now he needed to confront his mom.

Down the hall, he stepped into the living room where she peered through her cateye glasses onto her phone.

"You were out late." She said without looking up.

"I was." He replied.

"What time did you get back?"

"Late. I wanted to spend the night but I'm not ready."

"I don't remember saying that was ok."

"Well, mom, I'm also 26 and still am on the lease to the apartment under my name, so there's that."

"Oh, well excuse me for caring."

"Mom, that's not what I wanted talk about." He sighed. "I know you're into Jesus, but did we used to go to church when I was a kid?"

Her attention broke from her phone, immediately facing him.

"Oh-" her voice cracked. "You're hair!" Her hands fluttered and motioned, but she didn't touch it.

"Yeah, I cut it. But did you take me to church when I was little?"

Her hands finally found a place over her mouth, attempting to quiet her instant tears.

"Your hair," She cried and shook her hair. "It was so beautiful."

"It wasn't for you." he said flattly.

"You used to have it like that as a child, it was so pretty and I just got you back," She whined.

"And I also cut it as a child."

His words only made her cry harder, and she removed her glasses to wipe the tears away.

"Did I go to therapy as a kid?"

"Your hair... I had my baby back and- you seemed happy again. I just-"

She mumbled something Kalrick couldn't make out.

"It's not about you." He said softly. But her reaction didn't get worse or better. She probably didn't hear.

"I don't want to lose you again," She sniffed.

The guilt that had kept him calm all 5 minutes evaporated in the same sentence. Making her cry was never his intention, he didn't cut his hair to make her sad or get back or anything. It made him feel sorry for asking anything relating to the past at all.

But the match of anger struck back.

"Why are you afraid of losing me?" He snapped and she flinched at the sudden change of volume. "You didn't even notice anything was wrong!"

He stormed out of the house, chest and fists burning. The bright sun only reinforced the heat that flushed to his cheeks, blazing into his walking ritual.

Why did she deserve to miss him when she didn't even notice he was gone all that time? Why did she get any opinion on his body when the only times she liked the way he looked, he was at his worst? It wasn't her hair, it was his, and everyone felt entitled to him.

He completed the ritual, and immediately felt the desired calming effect. The sickness from last night retreated from high tide, and embraced the wave of peace.

Back to the house, he showered away the stray hairs, completed the ritual once more, and closed his bedroom behind him. He browsed through the grimoire, refreshing his memory on visualization and protection. He needed it now more than ever.

His mom knocked softly three times on the other side of the door. He paused, refusing to speak and she knocked another set of three.

"Kalrick?" She called gently. "You know I love you, and I always will. "

He said nothing, but instead put the book inside his bag and texted the chat he'd be on his way to the apartment.

"I didn't mean to upset you," She continued. "And I'm sorry..."

He held his position, waiting to zip up the other half of the bag.

"I'm so sorry I made you feel like I don't."

He resumed the motion, and visualized a barrier of protection along with the same sensation of falling. Falling like he did off the roof, falling through the motion of leaving the gate out front. He concentrated on drawing the same energy, and visualized the sigil crisp and vibrant.

The energy pooled, and like surface tension breaking, overflowed and burst out. The room around him folded like oragami and with a pop inside his ears, the pressure changed and tore through. His knees gave out and the rest of him crashed against his apartment door.

He tumbled through, backpack weighing him down stomach first on the carpet.

"What the fuck!" 5K Shouted, dropping the blunt he was about to light and nearly falling off the couch. His face was so gaunt, he'd probably seen less scarry roaches.

Something ticked from the back of Kalrick's skull into his sense of direction, and his orientation loaded in all at once. The coordinates locked and instantaneously became aware exactly which way everything was faced. He knew exactly how and where to do the ritual from his position.

"I'll be right back," Kalrick shoved himself up and walked right out the door without closing it.

His mind screamed for sleep, but he knew better now to trust his body's instinct. It was the ritual that gave him energy, the ritual he couldn't function without. And using magick to teleport actually helped him reorientate. It was just like his spells in his grimoire, all he needed was to practice a little and it sparked right back.

Just like at his mom's home, his body knew exactly what to do and followed its instinct around the apartment complex.

"Get back here, fucker!" 5K shouted after him. "Where you going?" He panted, catching up to him.

Kalick continued the ritual, completely ignoring his roommate. 5K tugged at his arm, hoping to grab his attention but instead all he got were strange looks from the passersby. He didn't have the capacity to care what people thought of the two strange kids- grown men stumbling around the apartment. His choppy hair and strange walking pattern, his friend chasing him down in his socks.

He looped, circled and followed the correct way until landing back at his door, letting out a sigh of replenishment. He blinked, becoming able to concentrate on more than the need to balance himself.

5K stared at him.

"I'm good now." Kalrick nodded.

"What the fuck was that?" 5K said.

"Don't worry about it," He entered the building and let 5K catch the door after him.

"How did you get here?"

"Teleported. I don't know how soon Randal will get here, but I sent it in the chat I'm ready to bounce as soon as we're all here."

"Where are we going?"

"Tattoo shops." He gestured to his wrists, where the disrupted sigils marked his skin. "Let's find out who gave me this shit."

"Ok, but I need to smoke first." He nodded.

That was an oddly instant agreement. Kalrick's memory of the past was distant and foggy, but he doubted 5K being like this before. It's not that they were especially close or anything, but he was certain this wasn't the same. Nothing was the same, but his character and mannerisms had slid in a direction he couldn't see.

"Make yourself at home," 5K said. "Fuck- this is your home. Uh, you know what I mine. Mean."

"It probably didn't feel like it, since you said I wasn't here most of the time. I feel bad that you got the shit end of the stick in all this."

"Nah, you're good, honest." He shook his head. "I'll get you some water."

He took out a red solo cup from a stack, and next the pitcher from the fridge. Kalrick watched curiously, as he placed the plastic cup in the sink before pouring the water. He gripped the pitcher with both hands, but they still shook unsteadily. Roughly one-third of the glass worth missed, draining into the sink.

Once full, he refilled the pitcher, returning it to the fridge and stiffly gave Kalrick the cup.

"Um, thanks." Kalrick responded, both taking a seat on the couch.

The skinny, tattooed friend finally picked up the blunt he'd dropped.

Kalrick sipped the water, pretending as if he weren't eagerly waiting to see how 5K would light up. The previous night his fingers weren't able to unwrap the newspaper well, and just a moment ago he couldn't pour water normal. How would he be able to flick a lighter?

5K brought out his lighter but did not snap his wrist or flick the mechanism. But instead pressed down a button and the flame awoke. He drew a long breath, settling into the indent on the couch.

The smell brought back fond memories and unwinding anxiety, when his friend extended his arm. It was shottily stick'n poked in several places, and spots near his wrist were burned from ciggerets.

He accepted the offering, inhaled, then passed it back. Two years of a T break was going to feel so good. Within a few minutes of passing it between each other, Kalrick's fear of social inadiquacy subsided. 5K was a chill guy, he'd understand his curiousity.

"Hey," Kalrick started.

His friend nodded in agckowlagment.

"I know my body went through a hell of a lot of things without me recently. And right now I'm trying to make sense of all that. But..."

5K looked up at the ceiling and exhaled more smoke, displaying his large adams apple. Had his nose always been crooked? It seemed to have been broken and rehealed wrong.

"But?" His grey eyes glanced at Kalrick's dark ones.

"But what happened to you? I'm not trying to be rude, but you're not the same."

"Yeah," He sighed. "I havn't been completly honest with you."

[casspurrjoybell-28]

Alpha's Temptation - Chapter 27 - Part 2

*Warning Adult Content*

When I get home, I'm not prepared to see Daemon, talking to an Alpha I've never seen before on the driveway.

He's got auburn hair, tattoos along his arms much like Daemon, disappearing into the sleeves of his shirt.

He smokes a cigarette, blowing out after a long drag.

He leans against a black motorcycle.

When I walk up, immediately their conversation stops as they both turn to look at me.

My eyes widen in alarm, clutching my bag tighter as I look down, wanting to avoid eye contact.

I find myself speeding up, quickly walking up the steps of the porch and rushing inside without acknowledging them.

I know it was weird, not subtle at all.

Ugh, why is he here?

I peek out the window, seeing they've gone back to talking.

I kind of want to hear what they're saying so I open it a crack, just enough to pick up some of the conversation.

"Is that the kid Lucien picked up from Blood Creek?" Tristan is saying.

"Yeah."

"He seems shy."

"He is."

"Cute, too."

Daemon grimaces, sending the guy a glare.

"Yeesh, Daemon. Fix that temper of yours."

Daemon scrubs a hand over his face, looking tired.

"I'm trying."

"Yeah right. By the way, where did you go last night at the bonfire?"

Daemon shrugs.

"Nothing important. Just left."

Nothing important? So that's what I am to him?

I shoot him an angry look, though he can't see me.

"Donovan and the others were looking for you."

Daemon shrugs.

"Well, they wanna talk Theo with you. He's been insufferable lately, apparently."

"Isn't he always? Why do they need you to tell me for them, Tristan?" Daemon asks.

"Because you're in one of your moods. You're always in your fucking moods, dude."

"Fuck off," Daemon pushes him roughly as Tristan laughs, coughing on the smoke of his own cigarette.

"You have to smoke that shit in my face?"

"Can't smoke at home anymore. My cat hates the smell."

Daemon sighs in annoyance.

"But seriously, have you talked to Lucien?" Tristan asks.

"Theo's been doing some shady shit. Drug shit."

"You think I don't know? Lucien has other stuff to worry about right now. Dark Moon's been a fucking pain. They wanna expand into our territory."

"It just doesn't sit right with me, dude," Tristan shakes his head.

"That Theo's the next Alpha. It should be you."

"That's impossible. Theo's his son, it's just how it goes."

Tristan frowns.

"You're his son too."

"Barely."

"C'mon. You're not still beating yourself up over that, are you?"

"Tristan," Daemon's voice is filled with warning.

"I'm just saying," Tristan backs off, hands up in defense.

"Well, I gotta head out. Mr. Whiskers is gonna piss all over the floor if I don't feed him soon."

"You're so weird." Daemon shakes his head.

Tristan pulls on his helmet, flipping Daemon off.

"And you have anger issues."

"Get home to your cat, prick," Daemon shoots back as Tristan slings a leg over the bike, turning the gear and speeding off.

I quickly close the window before Daemon turns back to the house, so he won't see it's opened.

I sit underneath it for a while, processing all the information.

So the reason Dark Moon has been a problem is because of territorial expansion, not because of me.

Well, that's a relief.

That means Alpha Ferix doesn't know I'm here.

And that's a good thing.

But I don't get the other stuff they were talking about.

What would Daemon be beating himself up over?

Ugh, so many questions.

But I can't even bring myself to talk to him.

And I'm disappointed Daemon didn't say anything about me.

Like agree with Tristan that I'm cute or something.

Or say 'I was with Ash' not 'nothing important.'

Does that mean I'm not important to him?

These thoughts keep me lying awake in bed that night.

Another unopened message from Daemon lies in wait on my phone and I'm too scared to see what it says.

When I'm finally able to fade off to sleep, it's early morning.

********

I'm back in my old house.

I'm sitting by the fireplace, playing with a dirty one-eyed doll.

My mom sits in the kitchen, rhythmically slicing potatoes.

She keeps at it.

It seems like hours go by.

I watch as the pot she throws them into overflows.

"Mommy," I go over to her, confused.

"Mommy you're done. He said to the top is enough."

She looks up at me, her eyes red with blood.

"It's not enough. It will never be enough for him," her voice is distorted and I flinch back, scared.

That's not how mommy sounds.

The kitchen fades away and my mom is swept up into the darkness.

I'm back down in the basement.

I'm so hungry.

I'm so so so hungry.

I need food.

********