#look it would have been an ingenious plan

[solxamber]

Hi, love your writing. Have been lurking around here and I hope you're still available for the holiday event. Can I have Diasomnia, 3, fluff?👉👈

Guardian of Shenanigans || Malleus Draconia

For the Holiday Event! || Prompt: "I'll always be here" ; Genre: Fluff

It was a beautiful sunny day, the kind that seemed to inspire just enough mischief to keep things interesting. Malleus stood at a respectable distance, his ever-watchful gaze fixed on you as you prepared for your next "ingenious" idea.

Today’s experiment? A makeshift set of wings you’d cobbled together using fabric, sticks, and questionable amounts of enthusiasm.

“I’m telling you, Malleus,” you said, fastening the straps around your arms, “this is going to work. I’ve studied the flight patterns of birds for at least… an hour. I’m practically an expert!”

Malleus, regal as always, tilted his head, his emerald eyes filled with a mix of amusement and concern. “You know, Child of Man, I could easily grant you the ability to fly without all... this.” He gestured vaguely at the contraption, the faintest of smiles playing on his lips.

“But where’s the fun in that?” you grinned, stepping onto the edge of the cliff you’d chosen as your launch point. “Besides, I have my own personal dragon to catch me if things go south, right?”

His chest puffed up slightly, pride evident even as he tried to maintain his usual composed demeanor. “I would never let you come to harm,” he said, as though it were the most obvious fact in the world.

“Exactly!” you called back, and before he could protest further, you leapt.

For a glorious two seconds, the wind rushed past you, and you thought, Maybe this was actually a good idea! But then gravity did what gravity does best, and you felt yourself plummeting far faster than anticipated.

“Malleus!” you yelped, flailing as your "wings" betrayed you completely.

In a flash, strong arms wrapped around you, halting your descent. Malleus hovered effortlessly in the air, holding you close to his chest as though you weighed nothing at all.

“You truly are a magnet for chaos,” he said, his deep voice laced with fond exasperation. “Do you delight in testing my heart like this?”

You looked up at him sheepishly, the wind tousling his dark hair. “Maybe just a little,” you admitted, “but I knew you’d catch me.”

He sighed, though the corners of his mouth twitched upwards. “And I always will,” he said softly, his eyes meeting yours. “No matter what wild scheme you come up with, I’ll be there.”

The sincerity in his voice made your chest feel warm, and you couldn’t help but smile. “You’re the best, you know that?”

Before he could respond, you wriggled slightly in his grip. “Alright, great catch, big guy. Now let’s go test Plan B.”

“Plan B?” he repeated, sounding vaguely alarmed but already resigned to his fate.

“Yup!” you said cheerfully. “This time we’re gonna use a trampoline. It’s foolproof!”

He sighed again, but the indulgent smile on his face was unmistakable. “Lead the way, my reckless one.”

With you practically dragging him along, Malleus followed without hesitation. After all, every moment with you—no matter how chaotic—was a moment he treasured.

Masterlist

[biceratops7]

I’m gonna SCREAM-

We’ve already established as a fandom that Metatron could teach a masterclass on gas lighting, but I wanna talk about how he specifically validates the things Aziraphale cares for while simultaneously devaluing them under the surface.

First off, this moment?

Tells us everything we need to know. It sets the scene for exactly the games Metatron is playing. He makes Muriel feel important while openly insulting them (flat out calling them stupid), aka seamlessly reinforcing the idea that they’re less than to both them and anyone else in the room. He knows he can get away with this easily, he knows that Muriel, lonely, overlooked little Muriel, will be completely distracted by the fact that someone so important is taking an interest in them.

This is already horribly clever, but then later on you realize it’s doing even MORE heavy lifting when he appoints Muriel to run the bookshop. “See? What’s important to you is what’s important to me! I’ve graciously taken the time to ensure your beloved shop is looked after by Muriel. You know, the dim one!” …let’s suffice it to say he’s ensnared too birds with one net for this one, and that a pattern is already starting to arise.

So when Metatron says Gabriel came to Aziraphale because he’s a “natural leader” and “doesn’t just tell people what they wanna hear”? Yah he’s full of shit. Aziraphale struggles with his sense of purpose when he doesn’t have someone or something guiding him, and for thousands of years he’s been terrified of sharing his true feelings and opinions to 90% of people he’s known. Completely just trying to butter him up. Wanna know the real reason Gabriel seeks asylum with Aziraphale?

Exactly this. Gabriel just says so point blank. It’s not because Aziraphale is this person for him, it’s because despite knowing nothing, he has this instinct that Aziraphale is the only one who can possibly understand why Gabriel did what he did. He is, I mean as far as we know, the only other angel who has fallen in love. (In general, let alone with a demon.)

But nope, can’t have that. We can throw the promise of restoring Crowley in the mix to sweeten the pot, but we can’t acknowledge why he’d want that so badly in the first place. So now it’s cause they work so well together. We can praise the angel for the fallen archangel Gabriel himself coming to him protection and guidance, give him a gold star. But we couldn’t DARE imply that it was by virtue of Aziraphale’s courage to choose earthly love over heavenly. How Gabriel didn’t need a leader, but a friend who’s truly known the joys of adoring that “particular person” and the pain of needing to hide it.

Cause then Aziraphale would start getting crazy ideas, like that his silly little human feelings have a great deal of worth. That they have the power to inspire, form cracks in the institution, fundamentally weaken what has controlled and harmed him. We wouldn’t want him to know the true value of the cards he holds when he has the ace in a match against you, now would we? After all…

Metatron uses this ingeniously sinister tactic of taking away Aziraphale’s choice while giving the illusion that he’s actually opening up doors. Notice how he tells Aziraphale he would have the authority to do something as extraordinary as turn a demon into an angel, yet he never once puts the much simpler alternative of just working with a demon on the table? The sleight of hand here is that he’s being offered the opportunity to freely be with Crowley… but he’s already freely with him as is, no bargain to be made. In fact he fought to be. Metatron disappears this accomplishment right before our eyes, while seamlessly maintaining the illusion to Aziraphale that he (Zira) is in control.

He sets Aziraphale up for failure by only providing the option he knows Crowley will not only decline but be deeply hurt by. It’s all so cleverly planned. Once this plays out exactly how he wants, he delivers the finishing blow by diminishing Crowley and his “damned fool questions”. Suddenly doing a complete 180 and emphasizing how foolish and troublesome he is. Metatron was offering Crowley by Aziraphale’s side as The Carrot. Now he’s telling Aziraphale it was stupid of him to want The Carrot, un-heavenly.

Aziraphale’s life, love, happiness, it’s all not only a massive inconvenience for Metatron but a liability. He has successfully taken a weapon from Aziraphale’s hands he didn’t even know he had. Metatron sees the writing on the wall, and he wants it contained.

[celesterayel]

match made in heaven | coriolanus snow

pairing : coriolanus snow x scheming!reader

request: can I please have a mean!reader with snow whose absolutely obsessed with each other!!!!

IN WHICH — coriolanus snow isn't nice but neither are you. it's a match made in heaven.

"it was enchanting to meet you. all i know is, i was enchanted to meet you" - t.s.

w.c. 500+

warning(s) : snow being snow ✭・.

✩ ‧₊˚ authors note istg im so obsessed with this man and it's not even funny

you hated him. you absolutely loathed coriolanus. now, that’s not to say you didn’t applaud his little performances or the way he could manipulate others around him to get what he wanted–because yes, it was impressive–but you hated how absolutely enchanted everyone was with him. 

there was no one at this stupid school or in the capitol that didn’t give him the attention that belonged to you. hell, even dean highbottom, who could give you a run for your money on how much he loathed snow, spent all his attention on that: hating him. you didn’t see what they saw. what was so special about someone who was named corioANUS snow?

you were so much prettier than he was, smarter than him, better in every way that mattered. you knew how to work the crowd to do your bidding. when others threatened your place or standing, you knew how to get rid of them quietly and efficiently so that no one knew it had been you behind it. 

of course, you were the top of the top. you didn’t understand all the fuss about him. one of these days, you were going to snap if one more teacher preached about “how perfect snow’s essay was!” or “how handsome he was!”. 

of course, you don’t know that while you obsess over the man, he’s doing the exact same. because look at how perfect you are! all he can think about is the fact that behind every innocent smile and kind act you hide behind, he can see the callousness and manipulation that you are. 

the man’s practically in love with you because for once, he doesn’t necessarily need to pretend to be nice or sweet. add to the fact that you're the perfect match for him when he becomes president of panem. man has already bought the ring that he’ll propose to you with one day.

that is after he’s made sure you won’t tell others about how crazy he truly is. he cannot risk his plans falling down the drain even for you. so, when you're on your way home, he’s got you pinned to the wall starting a whole speech about what would happen to you if you said anything. 

that’s when you fall in love. hands pinned to the wall as he’s threatening your life. what’s more romantic than being told you’ll die if you say anything about him? Well, him pressing a rough kiss to your lips as you stare at him. 

“are you out of your mind?”

“only for you, darling, only for you.”

y’all, are both whipped for each other from then on. 

you both collude from there: you need someone gone? snow doesn’t need another word, he's already making sure they're gone. because nothing is going to bother his sweet, sweet girl. he’s slightly unsure of how to proceed with something? you create an ingenious plan so quickly the man kisses you to high heaven because he’s so in awe. 

when he does become president of panem, the man just cannot get enough of you. he’s never loved you more but now all he can think about is how good power looks on you. when you walk into a room, you instantly capture his eye. he swears he’ll die before you ever leave his side. 

he’s still not a good person though but neither are you. you’re both a match made in heaven.

[necstasy]

lisan al-gaib paul, dark vibes, & PAUL ATREIDES MDNI 18+

paul knows all about you.

he doesn't know much about your family. he doesn't know nearly anything about your background. but he doesn't want to. he doesn't need to. because he knows you in the ways that matter.

he knows you're a formidable fighter. he knows you're an exceptional listener. and he knows you're absolutely obsessed with him.

it's obvious because it's different. the disparity between your obsession towards paul and the other fremen's obsession with him is large. it's stark and blares in his face with an intensity similar to the arrakis sun.

you're not devoted to him and paul doesn't know if that's good or bad. you have not pledged your life to him in ways more extreme than the duties of the fedayakin. you do not look at him as if he is the one. you look at him with something different in your gaze.

paul doesn't know exactly what until it comes to him one night. a dream as hazy and brief as the lightest sandstorms, the effect remaining like spice carried in the wind.

a visual of you on your back, wearing your thinnest garments, allowing the morning light to seep into the fabric and illuminate your body. he had never seen you in that light before, but it truly was a beautiful sight. what you were doing was even more beautiful—your legs spread to make way for your hand. your delicate fingers—fingers he's seen kill harkonnen without any mercy—stroke your most sensitive parts with a gentleness he has never seen from you. your head tilted to the sky, your blue eyes hidden beneath sun-kissed eyelids, all as you moaned out his name.

"muad'dib," said like the voice of an innocent.

"usul," carried in the tone of birdsong back on caladan.

"paul," spoken with assertion and desire, above all.

in then in the day, when paul's eyes opened and his dream made way for reality, he wondered how much of it had been true. had he really been this blind, so focused on leading the way that he hadn't even allowed himself this pleasure, pleasure that was so easy to take. sitting right in front of him the entire time, permeating every single room the two of you existed in.

you wanted him, so bad that paul didn't even know how you were carrying out any other duty. he wondered because he was now in the same position.

he couldn't stop thinking about you and he wondered how you put aside your base desires and focused on anything else. how did you command the battlefield when you had been thinking of paul between your legs? how did you suggest ingenious changes of plans when you had your hand between your thighs just mere hours before, trying to satisfy yourself before you had commands to take?

it seemed impossible to paul. not only how you wanted paul and not the muad'dib, but how you managed to handle it all. he couldn't go without satisfying his desires, and he knew his hand would never compare. so he did what any reasonable man would do—he got the job done.

[birthfan]

I'll bring you the details:

Veteran vigilante, middle-aged woman.

Pregnant with large twins.

Fit and has a great figure. (That's inevitable)

A overdue pregnang belly but not oversized.

Birth denial and pushing baby back in.

Ending with a clothed birth in latex.

Water breaks while fighting.

"Evil wouldn't fight itself" is what the overdue Force-Push was saying to herself as she prepared herself for another night of crime fighting as she removed her skirt and civilian clothes and took out her latex suit.

Emilia Olway now 48 years of age and 9 months pregnant with her ex-husband's baby (she hoped singular at least) had been using her kinetic powers to fight crime for almost 30 years at this point, but these last few months had been the hardest with her aching belly and milky breasts slowing her down.

Kids were never part of the plan but she also realised that this was her last chance to have kids of her own and so decided to not end the pregnancy even if it would get in the way of her crime fighting.

As she slowly put on her black and purple Force-Push suit she felt a sharp pain in her massive belly "ooof you better stay put until sunrise little one" Emilia said to herself, it wasn't the first of the day, as her suit wrapped around her gravid but still toned body, her hands went to tie her red graying hair back before her masked cowl covered her face: it was time for the action.

Force-push had been tracking down the dirty business of a dangerous local gang, and if her information was correct tonight was the night. As she jumped from rooftop to rooftop her belly kept aching more and more but she kept ignoring it, she wouldn't let it get in the way.

As she followed the gangster's cars the pressure inside her belly kept growing uncomfortably. When the cars stopped near an abandoned warehouse she tried to sneak behind them before a contraction caught her off guard "hnnnng" luckily for her they didn't hear the groan, unluckily for her they did hear her water break immediately after.

As the criminals turned around they exclaimed "oh fuck it's Force-Push" and immediately pointed their weapons before being blasted away by the involuntary kinetic energy that her contracting belly started emitting without her waters to absorb it anymore.

The criminals were either knocked out or running away as Force-Push felt her baby's head press against her cervix "mmmmnnn no I have to keep going" she said before sending the police the address. As the still conscious gangsters ran away she began chasing them, unfortunately the continuous kinetic blasts of her contractions kept slowing her down.

"hmmmaaa haaa you're a real problem" she said to her soon to be born baby while she knelt to rest, then an ingenious idea struck her.

As the gangsters kept running they suddenly heard a gust of wind as Force-Push landed in front of them, she had used her contractions to propel herself forward, and so out of desperation they decided to square up.

The first criminal lunged at her as she ducked under his arm before punching him in the chin, another contraction hit her pushing the gangster backwards but also pushing her baby against her lips causing them to bulge "haaa haaa" she groaned as her left hand went to her crotch to prevent the baby from coming out any further.

As a second gangster approached she had to fend him off with a kick unfortunately the awkward position caused the baby to begin spreading her lips behind her latex suit. "Hmmmaaa not now baby" Force-Push said as she brought the head back in.

The third one approached hoping to catch the heroine off guard as she pushed her baby back, but unfortunately for him a contraction hit the masked woman causing another kinetic wave to throw him back several meters while her baby kept forcing his way out.

"huuuuuaa mmmn fuck baby please wait" she said as her hand pressed firmly against her crotch, as she looked up she saw two of the criminals on the ground, she quickly darted her eyes around for the missing one before being interrupted by a strong punch to her gravid mound.

She doubled over in pain as the criminal gloated over her "not so tough now are you super mommy" he said mockingly as he readied his gun, unfortunately for him his attack caused the biggest contraction yet as the heroine pushed involuntarily from the extra pressure causing the baby's head to come out halfway.

The kinetic blast from her contraction was so strong that Force-Push and the criminal were propelled in opposite directions, thankfully because of her position she was able to land on all fours while the gangster was pushed against a wall and knocked out.

She was struggling to get up from her position as her baby made a visible and prominent bulge in her latex suit "please hnnng wait baby" she said as her hand went to push the baby back, but all she could manage was to bring him to a full crown again.

"Hnnng alright, any of you mmmn fuckers still wanna fight?" She said as she slowly waddled towards them with her legs wide apart, as ahe reached them she saw that most were knocked out and one was on the ground groaning.

She quickly tied them with zip ties as she contacted the police "commissioner this is Force-Push I mus-gnnnnnnaaah" a contraction hit her almost launching her away as she involuntarily pushed the baby's head out into her latex suit.

"Force-Push is everything alright?" The commissioner asked "huuu huuu yeah, I was able to stop the deal between the Runners and the Braxtoners, come to the warehouse on 6th street" she immediately hung up as her hand cupped the bulge her baby's head made in her suit.

"huu alright, while I wait for them I guess it's best that I let you out" Emilia went to unzip her suit when another contraction almost sent her flying as she pushed her baby out into her stretchy latex suit.

"Hooo hoo fuck ok ok" she said to herself as she slowly unzipped until the zipper stopped "shit don't get stuck now!!!" She kept trying to force it as she felt another contraction, while still painful there was no kinetic blast so she assumed it was just the placenta.

As she pulled on her zipper she felt it break off "God damnit" another contraction hit her and while there was no blast it felt a lot more painful "Hhhaaaa shit haa" she groaned as she pushed feeling a familiar weight on her pussy lips "oh please no!"

Emilia squatted as she got ready to push her second baby out as she heard the first one cry in her suit "I guess you hmm don't have powers like your sibling" a powerful contraction hit her causing her to give a big push "mmmnnnaaaahh" she yelled as her lips started opening up again with a much more potent burn.

"I-I need to get it off hnng" she reached for the already opened part and pulled her suit apart, not caring about destroying her suit or her modesty, she just needed to get this baby out. As she ripped it off her milky breasts jiggled and her round belly was clearly hard as a rock as another contraction hit her.

With the remains of her suit now stuck at mid thighs she quickly grabbed her firstborn and started nursing him as she pushed "HNNNNNNGGAAAAAHH IT BUUURNS" she shrieked as the larger baby quickly crowned, her free hand on her bruised lips.

Emilia sobbed and groaned as she gathered her strength for the next push, hoping to get the head out, as she panted she could hear the distant sound of sirens "F-finally hmm".

As the contraction came she pushed with all her strength "hoooooo hoooooooooaaaaaAAAAAH haaa haaa" the baby's head popped with a splash of fluids as her free hand went to cup the head while she kept holding her firstborn as it suckled on her overflowing breasts.

Emilia took this chance to rest before giving her final push, she took deep breaths as she heard the sirens getting closer until the screech of tires stopping nearby, followed by police officers quickly exiting their vehicles drowned them out.

As officers swarmed the area taking some of the various criminals the commissioner saw Emilia "Oh my god Force-Push are you alright??" He asked worriedly, she didn't answer as the final contraction finally hit her and she pushed with all her strength "hnnnnnnnnnnggggggggggggaaaaaaaah haaa haaa" she groaned and panted as the baby painfully slipped out of her into her free hand, she knelt down to admire her second child before turning towards the commissioner to say "I am now".

[gayfordays2004]

Missing - KCC x reader (ish)

KCC’s pov -

“I cant find Harper!”Katrina shouts from across the pitch, I look up to see her running straight for me.

“What do you mean?” Leah puts her hands on Katrina’s shoulders to calm her down.

“I’ve looked everywhere, she’s gone.” I start to panic, my eyes scanning the almost empty stadium, hoping she’s just somewhere hiding like usual.

“Okay, deep breaths, we’ll find her. I’ll go tell security.” Leah being the reasonable one, calms Katrina with stern and determined eyes and jogs off to the nearest security.

“Kyra, what did we do?” Katrina looks at me with teary eyes. “We find her.” I reply, my teammates all split up into small groups with Katrina’s teammates and they all go off around the stadium shouting Harper’s name.

Y/n’s pov -

“No mate seriously, it’s a bad idea. She’ll be so mad.” I say to my best friend as we leave the cafe we work at. Bumping her shoulder playfully as she laughs at her ‘ingenious’ plan to prank her girlfriend.

“You think so? I don’t know, I think she’ll love it.” she shrugs with a smirk and I shake my head at her antics.

“Don’t be surprised when you’re sleeping on the so-” I pause the sound of a child crying hits me. I look around, sharing a confused and concerned look with my best friend.

“Can you tell where that’s coming from?” I shake my head at her question and we quietly look around, trying to find the source of the crying. I round a corner into a dark and damp alleyway and see a child curled up against wall. I slowly approach and her head shoots up when she hears me approaching.

“Hey pumpkin, are you okay?” I ask cautiously, not wanting to frighten her. Her bottom lip quivers as she shakes her head.

“Wan’ Kywa” she mumbles before sobbing into her knees again. I sit down next to her and wait patiently for her to calm down.

“Do you know where Kyra is?” She nods and wipes her face with her hands. “Stadum.” she says, I scurnch my eyebrows together in thought, the word not registering in my head until I spot the shirt she’s wearing.

“She’s at the Emirates?” The kid nods happily and I stand up. “Would you like me to take you there?” She nods again and stands up clumsily, stretching her arms up to me. “You want me to carry you?” Again, she nods. I pick her up and settle her on my hip, looking to my best friend who waited a little further away.

“This is Rayna, shes my best friend. Shes gonna walk with us, is that okay?” The kid whispers a small ‘okay’ and hides her face against my neck shyly. We start walking to the stadium, Rayna staying a few steps behind us.

“What’s your name pumpkin?” I ask her, she mumbles something against my neck. I smile, only just being able to make out what she said. “Harper, that’s a pretty name.” she giggles slightly and nods.

“Who’s Kyra? Is that your sister?” She shakes her head. “No, I don’ think so.” I look at Rayna with a confused look who just shrugs and smiles softly at the girl who had quickly popped her head up to look at her before hiding against my neck again.

I see the stadium and I tap Harper’s back gently. “Is that where you came from?” She looks up and nods excitedly. “Mummy and Kywa in there.” I smile as her face lights up the closer we get to the stadium.

We see a few girls frantically looking around the front of the stadium and I ask Harper if she knows them. “Kywa’s fwends.” One of the girls looks up and sees us walking towards them, she hits the girl next to her on the shoulder and points us out.

“They’ve been looking for you huh pumpkin?” I smile down at her as she waves to them. One of the girls comes running over to us and scoops Harper into her arms.

“Harper. Where have you been? You scared us.” The tone of her voice is relieved, holding Harper tight against her. “got lost.” She mumbles against the woman’s neck.

She looks up at me “She help.” She says to the woman, the woman looks at me and smiles. “Thank you so much for bringing her back, I’m Steph.”

“Y/n and Rayna. We didn’t want her getting even more scared and well the police can sometimes be a bit overwhelming.” She nods in understanding.

“Harper!!” Two women come running towards us and Steph passes Harper over to the shorter one. She hugs her like she’ll disappear if she lets go. “This is Y/n and Rayna, they found Harper. Guys, this is Katrina, Harper’s mum, and Kyra.”

I smile at them both, my eyes lingering on Kyra as she smiles at me. “It’s nice to meet you both.”

“You too, thank you for keeping her safe.” I nod and shake Kyra’s outstretched hand. Her touch sends shivers up my spine and I can’t look away from her eyes. Someone clears their throat and we pull away from each other and look away with red tinted cheeks.

“We should get going, thank you again for bringing her back to me.” I smile at Katrina. “Yeah of course, it was great meeting you Harper.” She pouts and shakes her head. “Don’ go.” I look at her with sad eyes, Katrina looking between the two of us and sighing with a smile.

“Why don’t you give me your number and I’ll message you? Harper would love to see you again.” She hands me her phone and I put my number in.

“Kyra would like your number too.” Steph says with a smirk, Kyra smacking her shoulder and blushing. “She can get it from Katrina.” I say as I walk backwards with a smile on my face. “Call me.” I say to her before turning around and leaving with Rayna, looking forward to hearing from them again. Especially Kyra.

[palajae]

hypegirl! | one.

PAIRING ▸ soccer player! niki x afab! reader

GENRE ▸ soccerl! au, roommates!au, romance, fluff, angst, humor

WORD COUNT ▸ 3.3k

SUMMARY ▸ all you want is to join the boys’ soccer team. all niki wants is to get minji’s attention. as roommates, what better than to strike a deal and help each other out? nothing really, except for one glaring issue: your blossoming feelings for said roommate. oh, and the fact that you’re technically supposed to be your brother, kim sunoo. 

AKA a hopefully more sfw version of she's the man? 

NOTES ▸ based off she’s the man (2006), reader is sunoo's sister and pretends to be her brother sunoo—let me know if there’s any typos!

masterlist. | next.

HE LOOKS JUST LIKE A DREAM.

so you’re practically drooling over your roommate, nishimura riki. a bit embarrassing, you know, but not as much as when you first started living with guys, in an all guys dorm, pretending to be… 

a guy. 

exactly how did you even get into this predicament? stuck hiding your feelings for your roommate that doesn’t even know that you’re utterly (and shamelessly) lying about your entire identity.  

ah. that’s right. technically, you weren’t supposed to be at an all boys soccer camp.

even worse, you’re not supposed to be posing as the opposite gender. especially not as your older brother sunoo.

as roommates with riki for the entire summer, you’re not sure what you’re supposed to do—as kim sunoo and as you yourself. 

growing up you always heard the same old remarks, about how much you and your older brother sunoo looked so much alike. 

while you weren’t twins, you supposed you could see the resemblance. but you were you. and kim sunoo was kim sunoo. 

along with the comments on your resemblance, you constantly remember hearing how sunoo was “so much more feminine” than you. sure you enjoyed more typical ”boy” activities, as the world defined it, but so what? what was with all the gender stereotyping? 

growing up, you learned to deal with it. all that mattered was that you had a somewhat good childhood and relationship with your brother sunoo. 

while your appearances may have been similar, your hobbies certainly weren’t. 

your mother tried to push you toward the more artistic and creative side, which you didn’t exactly have a knack for. those kinds of things were more of sunoo’s style. 

on the other hand, you were interested in more physical and hands on activities. 

you enjoyed playing sports like soccer, while sunoo enjoyed singing and performing. 

but there was one thing both you and sunoo inherited from your mother: stubbornness.

she constantly kept nudging you to those so called refined pastimes and away from said “dangerous” sports. 

so no surprise came to you in the summer of your junior year when your mother informs you of your summer plans (that she apparently decided on her own). 

you would be going to band camp, while sunoo went to soccer camp. 

was she crazy? 

your artistic skills couldn’t exactly be called skills—the last time you touched an instrument was three years ago—and sunoo could barely walk straight sometimes. 

yours and sunoo’s protest fell on deaf ears. 

“but mom! why can’t i go to soccer camp? you know our school has only a boys soccer team and i’ve been wanting to-“

she crosses her arms. “it’s a boys only camp, y/n. i want you to practice your musicality more and sunoo can make more friends at his camp. this will good for both of you. end of discussion.” 

once summer came, you would go off to your respective camps and come back at the end of summer, hopefully still alive. 

that was the plan—your mothers plan. 

but not yours. 

it didn’t take long for you to come up with what you thought (originally) was an ingenious idea. 

you’ll pretend to be sunoo—that was the easiest part— and act as him to attend the soccer camp. in place of you, sunoo will go to yours as he wished. luckily for him, your band camp was for anyone, so it would be easier for him to fit in. a win-win situation, no? 

this is the chance you’ve been waiting for. after years of disapproval from your parents and lack of formal soccer training and participation, you finally have a opportunity. in return, sunoo can just go as himself to your music camp and play it safe. 

you figure you could just switch on the last day and keep each other updated so mom didn’t get suspicious.

when you voice this plan to your brother, being the goody two shoes he is, sunoo’s uncertain until you win him over with constant begging. not only did you inherit stubbornness but tenacity. 

you figured you lived around and hung around enough guys to help you seem less suspicious. or at least, get by. if anything, you could text sunoo for help. 

you were practically counting the days until you left. and with your wig, drawn in eyebrows, and shoulder pads, off you went.  

you had to keep reminding yourself that from now on, you’re kim sunoo. it’s weird and a bit overwhelming at first, being surrounded by a bunch of sweaty, soccer playing guys who are obviously much more skilled and experienced than you. 

you completely forgot about the whole living situation with dorms and a randomly assigned roommate. all your clothes were borrowed from sunoo, and all your personal products were stored in an hopefully inconspicuous black bag. 

as you drag your heavy and totally not suspicious duffel bag into your given dorm, you soon stop in your tracks. you see a guy, as expected, but he’s—

shirtless? 

your eyes widen, and you choke. he turns and you really try your best to focus on his face (and not his defined body). was it hot in here or just you?

he holds out a hand and you look at it, startled. 

“hey, you must be my roommate. i’m riki but everyone calls me niki.” 

man, why was his voice hot as well? 

you clear your throat, finding it hard to focus around him. 

“sup. i’m s-sunoo.” 

“nice,” he nods. 

you realize at that moment how sweaty you are due to stress and paranoia over getting caught, and he must as well due to his next words. 

“you good, man? if you’re hot, i can turn up the air.”

you immediately shake your head, “no thanks, i’m good-“

“-dude,” you add as an afterthought. you cringe as niki shoots you a weird look before returning to his claimed bed. 

you huff and dump your stuff onto your bed. what a start to the day. 

after that, niki introduces you to his other two friends attending the camp as well who live across the hall—jungwon and jay. 

you think you’re getting the hang of it, being your brother, but something about jungwon still makes you keep your guard up. the way he looked at you made you want to shrink up inside and curl into a ball. 

as you finish unpacking your stuff, you hear the three of them talking out in the hall. it’s not loud, but still enough for you to eavesdrop. you can tell immediately by their strategizing that they’re good. and by default their team must be as well. they had to be—they even had a infamous name, for crying out loud. 

enhypen. at first, you scoffed—what, were they like a boy band or something? but as you observed them play together during unofficial practices, their special ones that others couldn’t join, it hit you. 

you knew you had to make their team. no matter what. 

you know how this camp works, as the actual sunoo told you. all the boys at the camp would be divided up into teams based off preference, training, and coordination. 

after teams were formed, they would practice together until the end of the camp where all teams would play off in a championship. 

phones weren’t allowed either, except after hours at night. that would be your only chance to keep in touch with sunoo. besides that, you were on your own. 

waking up at 6am everyday was tough. 

training for hours in the sun with players who were much more stronger, skilled, and overall better than you was tough. 

being surrounded by boys and having to be on guard all the time was tough. 

but sneaking into to shower at night after everyone else was torture. the stink you had to endure 24/7 was bad, let alone all the other guys who caught a whiff too. 

you’re sure most of the guys found you weird. it was weird learning how to live with guys, changing when niki wasn’t around or looking, sneaking all your personal hygiene care. there was a lot to get used to. 

also, why were men’s restrooms so dirty sometimes? 

you were stuck in hot, strenuous conditions outside almost all day. it was a norm, constantly getting yelled at by coaches and receiving harsh remarks from teammates. 

but it’s everything you wanted. 

you knew it made you better. you were getting better. but it wasn’t enough for niki’s team, you could tell. team decisions were coming up, and you needed to find a way to make the cut. 

soon enough, a week into the camp, you found yourself getting somewhat adjusted. even thought you had like close to no friends, you felt less insecure… and more confident. 

during a break while doing power shot drills,   you gulp down water as your eyes wander.  there were girls training on the other side of the field—lacrosse players. from then on, you observed that you would occasionally share the field with them. you usually watched them with envy, regretting picking up the first ball you saw when you were younger, a soccer ball. 

you also observed how your roommate’s attention would be completely stolen by a certain someone playing lacrosse yards away. 

his eyes would always follow her when the guys had a break, as his friends teased him and he blushed. 

your eyes hardened at ‘minji’ or whoever you heard the guys whisper about. no, you weren’t jealous. why would you when you spoke a total of ten words per day to niki (more than any other guy at the camp)? 

you were just irked. technically, you had no right to be jealous—since you weren’t even you. you were supposed to be your brother. 

it’s only a day or two later that you see the girls training again. but it’s different this time. one of the male coaches calls all the soccer players on one side and the lacrosse players on the other side, all crowded together in a rough circle. you end up standing next to niki and follow his gaze to who do you know, minji. 

the coach blows his whistle. “everyone listen up! we’re going to have a joint session today, with both the guys and girls. just conditioning today, but hopefully this will promote better teamwork and communication.” 

whispers and groans erupt, but the whistle is blown again. 

“one guy and girl will be assigned to each other, randomly. now find your partner and get to it!”

“you’re kidding. we have to train with girls?” you hear someone mutter and bite the inside of your cheek. 

you already know this spells out disaster. soccer boys and lacrosse girls? 

and it does, because your hear one of the assistants call out your (brother’s) name. you perk up, that is, until you hear who your partner is. 

“-and kim minji!” 

your mouth drops open. 

you soon feel a pair (or more) of eyes burn into you. one particularly close. 

“hey, sunoo…” 

you almost forget to respond. 

“…yeah?” you know what niki’s already going to say and it leaves a bitter aftertaste in your mouth. 

“i was thinking we could like, you know, change partners-“ 

“kim sunoo! hurry up! your partners waiting!” 

with helpless eyes, you have no choice but to jog over to said expecting person. 

“hi,” she smiles and holds out a hand. you swallow. 

dang, she was pretty. no need to explain why niki had a crush on her. 

surprisingly, practicing with her went well. maybe a little too well. all you could remember was her nodding brightly and laughing at your jokes? 

honestly you were just trying to ease the awkward atmosphere. 

meanwhile, niki stares at the two of you in envy. he feels a ball hit him in the head. 

“focus nishimura!”

that night, as you walk into your room freshly showered, you almost jump when you hear niki’s voice. you thought he would’ve been asleep by now, as you took your time waiting for everyone to leave the shower rooms.

“sunoo?”

you clear your throat, making your voice deeper. “what’s up?”

“i bet you already know, but i’m kinda into minji…”

you stifle the urge to roll your eyes. sure, she was pretty and all but why was he so obsessed? what was so much better about her than you? 

“oh yeah?”

you can hear him sit up from his bed. “i know you guys are assigned partners and all, but you think we could switch?”

you fumble for words, “sorry but uh, i don’t think we can. i overheard someone else asking but coach said no exceptions.” 

technically not a lie. 

“dang. well, you think you could help me with her then? as friends?” 

you raise an eyebrow even though he can’t see it. when were you guys friends? 

“it depends, man…” 

“all you gotta do is put in a good word,” he starts quickly. he keeps rambling on but you’re too busy laughing at his cuteness to pay attention to what he’s actually saying. 

then it hits you. this is an opportunity. 

“what’s in it for me?” you cut him off. 

he pauses and you know this is your chance.

“if you put me in your team, i’ll talk to minji about you,” you state firmly. 

“whoa, whoa, whoa!” you hear more shuffling and the lights suddenly turn on. 

niki stares at you with wide eyes.

“you’re serious?” 

you nod, crossing your arms. you feel uncertain, unconfident. 

“i don’t think i can. like, it’s not really fair. plus you gotta meet our standards, you know. i can’t just let you in, you know. i mean, i can try… but that’s still no guarantee.” 

you push your chin forward. “that’s not a deal, then.” 

he sighs, rubbing his face. “i guess there’s only one other option.” you wait for him to speak. 

he looks at you, as serious as ever. “i’ll train you. that’ll give you the best chance to make the cut. only if you’ll help me to the best of your ability too.” 

“but this stays between us,” he adds. 

you exhale. this was better than nothing. 

“you got yourself a deal.” 

the sparks when you shook hands were too much to brush off.

so began your late night practices with your roommate. something you couldn’t imagine doing the first week you got here. 

niki’s good. at playing and at coaching. 

he’s observant. he sees all your weaknesses and faults. and he isn’t afraid to call you out.

“get to the ball faster, kim.”

“ugly form. we need to change it.” 

“how did you even make this camp?”

panting, you collapse onto the grass. what did you find attractive in this guy again? 

you open your eyes and see a hand right in front of your face.

eyes fluttering, you take it as niki helps you up. but he uses a bit too much strength as you stumble forward into his arms. his eyes widen as you stare at him in surprise. you both take a few steps back. 

“my bad. you’re way lighter than i thought.”

you clear your throat, trying to see unaffected. “i get that a lot.”

an uncertain silence fills the air as you gulp down water. 

“it’s getting late, we should head back.” 

you nod as you gather your stuff and it’s quiet again. 

“good work today.” 

you turn to him again with raised eyebrows but niki’s back is already facing you, making his way back to the dorms. 

“you know niki?”

you ask in between breaths, tossing the medicine ball to minji. 

“uhhh, the soccer player?” 

she tosses it back to you. 

you nod, turning to point him out a couple yards away training with his own partner. 

“yeah. him.” 

she shrugs, eyeing you. “i’ve heard of him, why? is there something i should know?”

“no-no! just wondering. he’s my friend and all, and i think he’s pretty cool. honestly, you guys would get along pretty well.” 

“…okay?” she drags out the last syllable while shooting you a weird look. 

this was going to be harder than you thought. 

you sigh, patting the lotion into your face. at this point you had gotten used to the conditions at camp, being almost two weeks in. that also meant less than a week until team decisions.

you knew niki was skilled but as he teaches you tips and tricks the coaches don’t, you notice it. you can feel yourself getting better day by day as team selection day comes up. and others take note too.

but only you and niki share a smile. 

thoughts consumed, you soon see a head pop into your peripheral vision. 

an eyebrow of niki’s quirks up, “what is that?” 

you jolt. 

“skincare—it’s important for everyone!”

you defend quickly, and he laughs, causing your heart to stutter. “nah, i get it. i was asking because i need a better everyday sunscreen too.” 

“oh,” you falter. 

you show him unabashedly. “i heard it’s good- uh, from my sister.” 

niki seems a lot more intrigued and it makes you smile. 

“huh… how do they always find the good stuff?”

he snatches it from you and you roll your eyes. 

practicing at night got you a lot closer to niki. it almost made you believe that you could make his team. not only was he a great teacher but overall, he was just a good person. 

you learned early on that nishimura riki really wasn’t all that he seemed to be. he was much, much more playful than you originally assumed. 

and much, much, more shyer. 

especially around girls. especially about girls. that explained why he asked you—of all people—to help with minji. 

niki acted so differently around you and the guys than with the lacrosse players. you could see it now. he was outgoing, funny, and not to mention way too much of a prankster with jay and jungwon (who you felt a bit more comfortable with too).

after all, jay was the one to tell you that niki would never be the one to approach, let alone talk to a girl first. or that he never had a girlfriend before, which surprised you. 

you realize that niki is only acting like his real self around you because he thinks you’re a guy. it makes you wonder, how would he act around you as yourself? 

knowing who you truly were?

“so….” niki starts off the next morning and you quirk an eyebrow. 

“how’s it going with minji?”

oh, right. you almost forgot about that. you honestly didn’t want to mention anything about him to her, but a deal was a deal and you weren’t the type to go back on your word. 

you rub your hands together, seemingly disappointed. 

“i’m sorry man, but she doesn’t seem that interested. i’m not going to lie to you and sugarcoat things but i don’t want to pressure her too much either.” 

he sighs. “i know. it’s just hard. i’m not good with talking to girls or anything like that.” 

you hum, “i mean, i could help you if you want. like acting as a girl and taking you out to practice.” 

“what?” he glances at you incredulously. 

you quickly shake your head, “i mean- you know i have a sister. i, uh, kinda learned some things from her—about girls and stuff.”

he scratches his neck. “yeah, i guess so.” 

you look around nonchalantly, “she’s around your age actually.” 

at this point you can’t deny that you found your roommate quite attractive. in terms of appearance and personality. his true self was too endearing. and you liked it a little too much. 

the more time you spend together, the more you realize you’re developing feelings for niki. as yourself. 

and you’re supposed to be kim sunoo. 

the next day, minji gives you a gatorade during practice. “good work today, sunoo!” 

you nod back, “you too, minji.”

she looks around before deciding to sit down next to you. “you know, i think your tip really helped. i feel so much less sluggish and puffy in the morning.” 

you zone out as she keeps going on. 

“i don’t know how you know so much, but it’s really cool.” 

she smiles her bright smile again as your eyes wander across the field. everyone else was still practicing, including niki. 

you embarrassingly can’t keep your eyes off of him as you see him wipe the sweat off his face, shaking his hair free of the wetness. 

“—sunoo?” 

“huh?” you jump back to reality. 

“did you hear me?” her big eyes blink back at you. “i was wondering if you wanted to hang out with our group tonight. you can invite some of your friends too.”

like the idiot you are, you reluctantly think of how great of an opportunity this is for niki. 

“sure!” 

“are you positive i look okay?” 

you’ve never seen niki this nervous, not even on the first day when the coaches were screaming in your faces. 

“yes,” you roll your eyes.

but a stray flyaway catches your eye. 

“wait-“

you reach up to fix it and you hear his breath hitch. 

“there you go. all nice and ready for minji,” you joke. he blinks before following you. 

“sunoo!” minji waves excitedly at you while niki trails awkwardly behind. occasionally on the weekends, everyone would have free time to go into town and hang out. today was just your (un)lucky day to be with minji and her friends. 

you can see some of them giggling and whispering behind her, and you figure it’s because of niki and jungwon. but they keep sending you looks, making uncomfortable shivers run down your back. 

“what’s up?” 

“we’re going to eat, and then maybe head to the arcade after?” you barely manage to nod before she happily grabs your hand out of the blue and drags you along. 

you don’t think it’s going to plan, however. minji spent most of her time with you while you were trying (quote: trying) to be with niki. all while niki was trying to get closer to her. 

minji was cool and all but you didn’t realize truly how much she talked to only you. she definitely wasn’t that friendly with everyone else, let alone niki and jungwon. so why did she keep such a close distance to you? 

by the end of the night, you wave a halfhearted goodbye to her and her friends as they laugh and walk off. 

sighing, you turn to niki who faces you with a skeptical look. “so… how was it?”

he shrugs, “it was nice, i guess. i feel like i didn’t get that many chances to talk to her, though.” 

“no way, man. i think you guys hit it off pretty well. you just need to spend more time together. trust me, she’ll like you.” 

you cringe internally at the words that leave your own mouth.

“you think so?” his eyes sparkle with hope. 

it’s cute. 

jungwon eyes you two warily. “you sure about that? i feel like she was spending a lot of time around you, sunoo.”

you’re quick to deny, “that’s just cause she’s known me longer. of course you’d be more comfortable with someone you already talked to.” 

you nod at niki for reassurance. for him or for yourself, you’re not sure.

it’s dark out. you had to wait for everyone else to head to bed before answering your mother’s call.  

“-so late?”

you roll your eyes, lazily kicking the grass with your foot outside on campus. 

“practice ran later today.” 

you hear her sigh from the other end. “whatever. i’m sending it to you then.” 

“mom,” you whine, “i don’t want to wear a dress for the performance.” 

“i have work that day sweetie. you know i won’t be able to see you, so please just wear the dress. pictures are getting taken. okay? i’m getting it sent to your camp so no more arguing.”

you stomp your foot.

“fine. and no, i will not wear high heels.” 

unbeknownst to you, a hidden figure crouches in a near bush. 

taehyun always felt like there was something fishy about you. from the first day on the camp when he locked eyes with you. 

the way you immediately looked away—you simply seemed so skittish, so out of place. there was just something fishy about you and he began to do more research. 

not only that, he saw how close you looked with kim minji. the girl he had liked for years, having come to the same respective camps previously. your new face was too suspicious to not investigate.

after hearing some parts of your conversation with what sounded like your mom, he vows to do more work to find out the truth. 

whatever the truth was about you, kim sunoo. 

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[rarepairdumpster]

Firelight Viktor AU Part 1

Inspired by THIS ART

Pairing: Viktor/Silco (Arcane) Rating: M C/W: Trauma Discussion, Hint to previous SA, Honestly this AU is a lot of politics with underlying sexual tension

Firelight Viktor taking full advantage of Silco's bad depth perception to race circles around him.

Silco eventually grabbing him and pinning him down and snarling in his ear about choosing the wrong person to be toying with.

And then Silco hears the sound of something priming, and he looks down to see a freakishly advanced pistol a hairs breadth from his belly.

"You sure about that?" Viktor asks, voice carrying an almost mechanical overtone.

Silco smirks and releases Viktor, holding his hands up. "That's quite the weapon you have. Fascinating engineering."

"Keep moving. Don't stop until I say," Viktor orders 

Silco complies, but he's endlessly amused.

Finally, Viktor is back on his feet, gripping something to keep his balance. The pistols aim never wavers though.

Next thing Silco knows, a blast of energy hits him. He wakes up a while later, groggy and sore from where he'd slammed into the ground.

"A stunner," Silco growls, anger chasing away his grogginess. And then he laughs. "Ingenious, Viktor." 

Because he already put 2 and 2 together.

The next time Viktor comes home from the lab, Silco is sitting on his couch smoking and drinking brandy.

"Do sit down, Viktor. I thought we might finish our conversation."

Viktor can't get over the audacity of Silco inviting him to sit down in his own fucking house.

Viktor chides himself for not grabbing his stunner before he left the lab. "I'm not interested."

"No?" Silco smirks. "Then I suppose there won't be an issue when Chief Marcus arrives in ten minutes."

Viktor freezes. "You wouldn't."

"Wouldn't I?" Silco's gaze sharpens. "As far as the firelights are concerned, I'm an unscrupulous monster; isn't that so?" 

Silco takes a sip of his brandy, casual as fuck.

Viktor looks down and his grip on his cane tightens. "You flooded the Lanes with Shimmer. You're constantly sending your enforcer dogs after us. What else am I supposed to think?"

"Flooded the Lanes with Shimmer?" Silco laughs at that. Actually, full-body laughs for about 3 seconds. "As powerful as I am, I can't force an entire city to become addicts."

Silco pushes a hand through his hair, laugh fading to a resigned smile.

"I don't make anyone take Shimmer," Silco continues. "It fills a medical need that Piltover has both caused and neglected to treat. Addiction....I can't control that. All I can do is help mitigate the torture of withdrawal."

"It-Its not medicine," Viktor repeats what he's heard Ekko say dozens of times before. "No one has ever been helped by it. Just hurt."

"It is medicine." Silco taps the side of his face and chuckles, without mirth. "Without Shimmer, I'd be dead on the side of the road. I was the first person to use it. To be helped. And I fought to make it available to others. And the firelights have been trained to look at me like I'm an animal with no compassion. Because that boy, the saviour, carries a personal grudge against me."

"He said you killed Benzo and Vander," Viktor spits. "I don't blame him for having a grudge."

"Did he also tell you I killed the enforcer that Benzo and Vander were about to sell us all out to?" Silco raises an eyebrow. "Sit, boy, and I'll tell you my side of things."

Viktor purses his lips, but sits, as far from Silco as he can

"You seem older than the others. Where were you during the Day of Ash?" Silco asks once Viktor has settled in.

"Hiding," Viktor answers, frowning severely, "with my mother. We lived on the Entresol. She was ill and I'm...."

Viktor gestures to his leg. "But we heard the screams. The gunshots."

"We orchestrated it, Vander and I," Silco explained. "Our plan was to take control of the bridge and if we could, the port. If we had something Piltover required to survive, they would be forced to listen and negotiate." Silco's fist balls up and his jaw tenses. 

"We had a mole. Within our organization. I had been so careful with who we let in, but I was distracted." He thinks of Vander and Felicia and the kids. All liabilities. All weaknesses.

"Topside knew we were coming," Silco sighed. "We were out manned and outgunned before we even stepped foot on that bridge."

Viktor bows his head, listening. It had been a massacre. He remembers seeing all the bodies piled up the next morning, waiting to be buried. Remembers the flies buzzing around, crawling between parted lips and over open eyes locked in terror. He remembers the smell. He almost smells it now, thinking about it. 

"The enforcers cut through us like paper," Silco says quietly, voice little more than whisper now, as if his words might disturb the past. "We never stood a chance. Most of us were slaughtered without mercy. And those of us that survived.....we were hunted like animals, chased through the Lanes so hard we thought we'd never make it. We had to split up, try to separate their numbers,  give someone a chance to live and keep fighting."

Viktor is enthralled as he listens, unconsciously leaning forward a bit as Silco speaks. He had never heard this before, from anyone. No one talked about it and now he knew why.

"I ran to where Vander and I said we would meet if things went south," Silco swallows thickly and his fingers trail down the side of his face. "But he had gone mad. He blamed me for all the death. Said that I was the one responsible. His own hand did this to me."

When his fingers trail down the side of his face, some of the foundation/concealer is rubbed away, leaving patches of sickly grey skin visible.

It also reveals how deep the gouges from Vander's nails really are, like craters almost. He looks like he was mauled by an animal. A large cat or a wolf or something.

To think this was inflicted on him by a man?!

"I got away, barely," Silco goes on. "If it hadn't been for the Doctor and shimmer, the river toxins would have taken far more from me than just my eye."

"I...I don't know what to say," Viktor says softly, mind reeling.

Silco smirks. "You don't have to say anything." He finishes his brandy and sets the glass down before standing up. "You're smarter than this, Viktor. Just think about what I've said."

"Wait," Viktor says, raising a hand. "What did you mean when you said Vander and Benzo were going to sell us out? You've explained why you were at odds, but not that."

Silco sighed. "When the rebellion failed, Vander became weak. The only reason the lanes were saved was because he made a deal with topside." Silco's expression turned sharp. "He peddled our lives like tokens in the name of 'peace' when all it did was allow Piltover to keep their boot on our necks."

Viktor hesitates, uncertain.

"And Benzo encouraged him," Silco spat. "An insidious voice whispering in his ear. I don't have proof of who betrayed us on the Day of Ashes, but I have my suspicions."

Silco took a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair. 

"I don't blame Ekko," Silco finally says, causing Viktor's eyes to widen in surprise. "He didn't know what Benzo really was like. I doubt many people did."

his mind flashes back to a time in the last drop where Benzo was too drunk and cornered Silco and wouldn't take no for an answer

"At the end of the day, Ekko is just a misguided child looking for someone to blame for his heartache."

Silco can see that Viktor is lost in thought, so much information overloading him a bit. "You know where to find me," Silco finally says, tossing a card with a neon symbol that resembled an eye onto the end table.

Silco is gone before Viktor emerges enough to say "Hm?"

Part 2 Arch + Woods

[raayllum]

The Celestial Elves & Aaravos' Plans

Going into s6, there's been two big questions at the forefront of my mind: what can we expect from the Celestial elves, and what exactly is Aaravos' plan?

I've speculated briefly on the former, so I want to clarify further what I mean when I say the latter.

Aaravos' plans, seemingly, have at least two pretty clear steps, if you will:

To be freed from his pearl prison

To get revenge on the Startouch elves for his banishment / some other wound

This was as much spelled out to us in TDP's short story, Patience, before S4's release:

I have not seen the stars in centuries. But when I see them again—when the stars are forced to look upon me, their dark brother—they will know how I have waited. And when everything they have built lies shattered, I will savor their fall from the sky. For I have been patient.

I don't think Aaravos has much of a plan beyond revenge, as the Cycle is thematically and literally unsustainable in comparison to rebuilding and the Narrative of Love. What would be left for him, after all, besides seeing his 'family' (and Xadia) suffer further for what they've done to him? And I'm not here to say that there's a secret third step or anything (though there might be).

What I want to talk about is Aaravos' Plan timeline in regards to getting what he wants.

We know that around 1,000 years ago, humans were exiled from Xadia for dark magic use. It isn't clear if Aaravos was banished before or after this event, but given that Ziard saying "one of the Great Ones" doesn't seem to immediately give away Aaravos' identity, there seem to have been a few still kicking around, although this contradicts the Midnight Star poem, which clearly indicates the Stars leaving ("Elarion, unworthy whelp, / Wept as the stars turned black the sky, / They donned their masks / They turned their backs, / And left Elarion to die") and then humans receiving dark magic ("‘till the last star / Reached from afar / His touch: a blaze, a gift, a spark / [...] Elarion, black-eyed child, / her twisted roots spread deep and far, / The humans’ might").

It is possible, of course, that the Startouch elves could've left but hadn't actually expelled / cut contact with Aaravos directly, but that gets even dicier timeline wise.

Either way, to stay on topic: there's roughly a 700-1000 years, if not more, between Aaravos' banishment from the First Elves and achieving his final aims (which we'll likely see the beginning of in late S6).

Why?

Why does this period of time in between Banishment and Revenge exist? If Aaravos is so powerful...

Even after [Zubeia] and Avizandum allied ourselves with the other Archdragons, we could not risk a direct confrontation. We had to beat Aaravos as his own game. [...] We had to conspire and plot, and deceive this deceiver so that at the exact right moment, he would lower his guard, and we could imprison him forever.

then what could've possibly existed that he couldn't just take outright? Why even make nice with the Archdragons at all, and not stay focused on using his human mages in the west? And what, why, was he using them in the first place pre-imprisonment?

A young human girl uncovered a great secret of history. A dangerous deceiver was revealed: it was one of the Great Ones, the Startouch elf, Aaravos. For a thousand years, Aaravos had been pulling invisible strings like a puppet master. Every great crisis the world faced had seemed the work of some ingenious and powerful leader, but in each case, it was secretly Aaravos, whispering in their ear.

Now, of course Aaravos just could be a sadistic bastard who enjoys messing with people (and I'm sure there's spades of that) as well as ideas of being "elegant and efficient" in that why take things by force when you can convince other people to do stuff (and take the fall) for you. But in my mind, there's one main reason to maintain secrecy around people you're trying to use or convince: you want to maintain their trust, and you want their trust because you want their Knowledge.

Additionally, the more I've thought about it, the more sure I am that Aaravos was ingredient collecting for Something before his imprisonment (300 years ago, and still a thousand years at least into his grand plan). We see two powerful figures disappear close together — Luna Tenebris, who "mysteriously died" and Queen Aditi, who vanished — and we already know Aaravos "swallowed" the latter.

We know from Viren and Claudia that dragons, particularly archdragons, are incredibly powerful. Zym, just as a baby and with the staff as a conduit, would've been enough for Viren to "transcend his moral form" and presumably let Aaravos out of the mirror permanently by... taking over Viren's body, maybe? The details are fuzzy, but the intentions and initial endgame stage (freedom) was probably plain.

Moreover, if Aaravos did need a Powerful Sun Object and a powerful Archdragon (moon? sky?) Object to get things underway, it'd also explain the choice to go to Lux Aurea to get the Sun staff and corrupt it, as that choice inadvertently led to another 'downfall' (if he and Viren hadn't gotten the staff, their army probably would've had enough time to take the Storm Spire before the dragons even arrived; they were only held off so long because the Sunfire elves were there).

Like before, with Aditi, there's also a potentially powerful Sun source in both the sun seed itself and in Sol Regem, particularly if either or both become corrupted. Zym still exists as a possible source of energy to exploit, and there could be something Moon wise with Luna Tenebris' unsuitable heir or even Rayla.

I'm also not going to pretend to have definitive answers. That said, given that everyone else has been on a perpetual chase for knowledge throughout arc S4 and S5 ("I don't even know if she's alive" / "How do you know?" / "Having knowledge isn't the same as knowing it" / "If Akiyu knows helped make it, then she must know where it is" / "To love is simply to know this...") it wouldn't surprise me if the Mystery of Aaravos is about him, yes, but also one he's been trying to 'solve' all this time.

And on the one hand, this has also already been sort of true, given that despite his powers, Aaravos genuinely seems to 1) have no clue of where he was imprisoned or 2) in what (the pearl). The idea that his powers and foresight as a Fallen Startouch elf weren't extended far enough for him to be able to go back to the 'Heavens' whenever he wanted, that the Startouch elves are somewhere currently beyond his reach... That would kind of track and explain the 1,200-1,000 year interim and Why it's taken him so long to figure certain stuff out.

If he doesn't need Objects (which might play into the lack of coercion or construction, perhaps?) or at least not entirely, then Knowledge of something he's missing may be partially the clue needed to go back Home and wreck shit up. Not needing objects per se could also explain why things that may be useful to him — like the Nova Blade, if he wants to kill his own kind; or potentially the cube (but who knows) — weren't confiscated as it were before his permanent Fall to earth.

This is where we get to the Celestial Elves.

The Celestial Elves, in spite of being a late stage addition to TDP's lore in comparison to most other elements, have always felt very purposeful. As laid out in my post above, there's some very particular choices made about them that seem Obviously intentional in a way that say, other design choices regarding the elves aren't necessarily.

For example, original concept of Aaravos featured him bald, in robes, and blindfolded, but were scrapped for being "too obvious" / on the nose, leading to a very different final design. While blindfolds in TDP don't have much of a negative association largely thanks to Lady Justice and Harrow, the idea of not being able to see clearly (hi Viren!) is absolutely a motif the series returns to over and over until it reaches fruition: "I finally see the truth."

As mentioned in my linked post, the fact that all the Celestial elves are Skywing elves feels intentional as well. Sky (freedom) in the series is the opposite to Star ('destiny') if we're just going by primals and not looping in dark magic. The choice to make the Celestial elves Skywing specifically, when they could've been any kind of elf or even a grouping of different kinds of elves living together (which we haven't seen before) is probably because their understanding of the Sky arcanum and the concept of Star magic is going to be radically different than Callum's; I wouldn't be surprised if they've partially turned their back on the idea of "nothing is pre-determined" by instead saying everything is, which is his ongoing worst fear with the possession plot line.

Then there's the fact that they are devoted to Stars, and Startouch elves have had (as far as we know) little to no contact with anyone since they all left a thousand plus years ago... except for Aaravos, who would have an interest in the Nova Blade at the very least (and maybe the Corona of the Heavens belonged to him, too). The way they're called "an ancient sect" of Skywing elves is also not a point in their favour given that outside of Ancient Draconic, everything else that's been labelled that way has been negative ("the relic staff" / "the cube is an ancient relic" / "wounds from an ancient and disturbing practice" / "Infantis sanguine. It's one of the old spells").

Furthermore, the true sight serum Viren poured in his eyes in 2x02 is also what inspired the bulk of today's thinking meta, as the season two novelization states:

He held the last of an unusual liquid that he had inherited from Kpp'Ar. The liquid was a rare serum that the Oracles of Ophidia were said to have used long before the fall of Elarion in order to see through the illusions of the world. They would harvest venom from the fangs of eyeless vipers; and it was said that the venom had to be extracted on a moonless night. All it took was a single stray beam of moonlight to taint the serum and bring out its most dangerous qualities. Instead of clearing one's illusions, a dose of tainted serum would drive a person into a permanent, irrevocable madness.

Oracles are fortune tellers, which is already very Star arcanum-y adjacent. Ophidian is derived from the Grecian root for snake, which is very dark magic-y accordingly. We know that the Oracles were ancient if they predate Elarion, and we don't know whether they were humans, elves, or both. The fact that this lore is 1) here and 2) connected to Kpp'Ar, who it seems Viren likewise 'inherited' the staff from AND who had a perfect twin box that matched the one Aaravos has in his mirror... None of it bodes well, and I think there's reasonable speculation that the Oracles had some connection to a Startouch elf at least, once upon a time, and possibly ties to the Celestial elves as well.

All of this to say is that whatever the Celestial Elves stance on Aaravos is will inform their practical role in the story, yes, but will also inform what he's been Waiting patiently for all this time, I think.

If the Celestial elves are largely against Aaravos, then them hiding themselves and hiding these powerful and dangerous objects makes sense; cloaking themselves from him would take time and effort and if he's not willing to go back to 'Heaven' without being able to kill people, then maybe he's been waiting all this time to locate the Nova Blade (which Callum is now taking him directly to; great!) or one of the quasar diamonds is his missing piece, or whatever.

This would give me more pause as 1) said info was found in like one afternoon of searching in the Great Bookery, which Aaravos presumably would've had access to and 2) the Starscraper is probably the Star Nexus if there is still one, so I'd imagine Startouch elves would know where it is. That said, Callum and Zubeia never made the mirror connection (Callum had no reason to think it was stolen, and Zubeia had no reason to think that if Viren still had it Callum wouldn't have noticed upon inheriting the mage study right away, so wires got crossed) so who knows. Sometimes story's gotta story so reality's gotta bend a bit!

If Aaravos has been looking for information and/or an object outside of the Starscraper's walls (a spell? the cube?) then the Celestial elves pivoting to being a more antagonistic force makes more sense to me. If they have no reason to hide from him, then they have significantly less reason to be narratively Opposed to him. That doesn't necessarily mean they're exclusively evil or anything (though they could be!), but I could see internal fracturing and having our one named Celestial elf, Astrid, be a contrarian force for good as things go to shit (much like how Ethari is our one Silvergrove villager because he breaks the Ghosting spell, or we spend more time with N'than because he's willing to go against drake rider traditions).

We know regardless of anything else Callum and Rayla can't just waltz in and have everything they want immediately handed to them on a silver platter without a hitch, so at best there might be a trial or two to pass (which speaks to some ambiguity about the danger Aaravos poses) and at worst, they might lure the two in with a false offer of help and security / trials only to actually just rip the floor out from under them.

Conclusion sort of

The good news is that by the end of S6 we will probably know most of these answers, excitedly enough! Given that the Merciful One has their stardust quote to Aaravos in 6x01, and that 6x09 is called Stardust, Aaravos referencing that line while he gets some of his vengeance would track accordingly (especially because know he says it at one point, thanks to the first teaser trailer).

Additionally, it's likely that since the end of S6 is the most 11th hour "worst possible things ever are happening" moment, Aaravos getting to have some of his revenge is I think a fair expectation to close out the season, and give us lots of high stakes for S7. Whatever he's been patient over, his waiting will finally be over, and the apocalypse of sorts will start, for the Stars that he's finally strong enough to 1) return to and 2) wreck havoc upon but also for everyone else, too.

But yeah - this was definitely a more rambling meta than most and I hope it got you thinking! It's hard to believe that in under two months we'll have answers to some of these questions we've been asking for so long, and I can't wait to find out what they are!

[beardedmrbean]

A California store developed a unique security system to stop the brazen, heartless thieves who have been breaking in recently, causing damage to the business.

Roman Gonzales, the owner of Fresno-based DripOnDrip, was heartbroken when a group of robbers broke into his old shoe store in November 2023, looting armfuls of merch.

So he implemented a simple yet foolproof plan to stop his merchandise from falling into the hands of the unwanted late-night guests.

Instead of locking the store up with military-grade mechanisms, Gonzales clears out the store’s display floor each night and moves the empty, open cash registers to the front of the store in view from outside.

On Dec. 30, two white sedans pulled up to the front of the store just after 4 a.m., as one of the drivers rammed through the storefront, creating a hole for several masked and hooded menaces to run inside.

Security cameras throughout the store recorded the brazen robbery and captured the unidentified raiders’ shock when they discovered there was nothing for them to steal, according to video obtained by KSEE.

Gonzales ridiculed the attempted thieves’ thoughtless actions for destroying his storefront.

“If they would have looked through the window, they would have saved themselves some time and energy,” the store owner told the outlet. “They would have noticed that there is nothing here on the floor for them to take.”

Gonzales intentionally leaves out a wall display of right-foot shoes.

“There’s no value once you take this shoe. I mean, you can’t just buy a left-foot shoe online either. So you’re not going to be able to use that item or even resell it. It’s just pointless,” Gonzales added.

The thieves did snatch a few backpacks that had been lying around and two of the valueless right-foot shoes.

Although Monday’s break-in wasn’t the first time Gonzales’ store was damaged by thieves, he still hasn’t gotten used to it.

“Seeing the building that you’re working out of almost every day … just be damaged. It’s shocking,” he said.

An alarm was triggered by the thieves, alerting security at the River Park shopping center, and agents immediately responded to the store.

By the time Gonzales arrived at 6 a.m., the store had been boarded up.

The gracious owner credited the complex security’s quick response as their presence made him feel safe enough to continue operating in the area, the outlet reported.

Additional security would be implemented to patrol the shopping center overnight, River Park confirmed to KSEE.

The placement of safety poles has been considered in front of Gonzales’ store to stop cars from driving on the sidewalks. ___________________________________

Install a few claymores and booby trap a few of the right shoes

[sproouts-jpeg]

dude i WIIIISH i had more one piece art to show off. but ive been busy with school, so ive just been drawing school art. life is cruel :(

actually wait idk if this came from someone on twitter or on here… cause i don’t post on twitter but do have my strawpage linked… ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

ok anyways ig ill post old doodles or unfinished stuff! here:

here’s some parts of my usopp redesign planning! this is from months ago now… i don’t know if anything is subject to change, probably yeah. i’m quite satisfied with how it generally looks, but if anyone else has ideas i would appreciate it!!

soul king brooook!!! being obsessed with undertale at age 12 has payed off!! i can draw skeletons!!

pls someone give me advice for how to dress him ;-; i wanna combine 50’s men’s dress (since that’s the era of soul music) with glamrock and some halloween-y vibes, but idk nothing i do feels right ;-;

some planning for redesigns of both yamato and ace!! i just like the little doodles i made :)

also cause i think making yamato “oden-shaped” was pretty ingenious :)

the ace one is definitely subject to change i think my idea is kinda lame he looks like a loser lol i need to fix that XD

and last but certainly not least!! carrot!! i don’t know anything abt her except that she draws the wci team like super bishōnen at some point for some random reason and i respect her for that

definitely not my best work since i don’t know much abt her to take into account personality and role into her clothing choices as i usually do, but she’s cutie patootie what can i say!! (also the color contrast is kinda ass sorry)

that’s all i got i hope yall like it!

[lovinthelivin7]

first try at a microfic (?) not really first try, just first time in this account.

@wolfstarmicrofic - prompt: dumbledore's office - 708 words

Remus was exhausted waiting around in Dumbledore's office for Sirius to come out. James and Peter had gone to McGonagall's office to do their part of the plan and Remus was now stuck with Sirius. He hadn't meant to involve himself in their shenanigans, but he had opened his mouth and now all three of them had dragged him to their preparation.

Sirius jammed the lock in Dumbledore's office, trying out a variety of spells along with other colorful expletives when he was wholly unsuccessful. Remus rolled his eyes and bent the paperclip in his pocket to open the lock, surprisingly easily. You'd think they'd keep better locks in the headmasters office, wizards were too smug for their own good.

Remus shoved the paperclip back in his pocket and saw Sirius looking at him with, a perfect eyebrow raised shock. That was an infuriating thing about Sirius, his eyebrows were an art of their own. Each raised could display an array of emotions, no words needed to make his judgement clear, though that never stopped Sirius from ever voicing them.

"Get on with it then." Remus argued.

"You're just full of surprises, huh?" Sirius continued his actions, pouring several layers of a jello-like substance in all of the teacher's drawers.

"Dumbledore doesn't even teach, why are you doing this to him too?" Remus asked, trying to undo his actions as some guilt rose in his chest.

"Why should he miss out on the fun?" Sirius said before taking off the gloves over his hands far from his body, stretching out his limbs far as he can and dropped them in the bag Remus was holding open.

"Touching it won't kill you, you know?" Remus stated blankly,and eyebrow raised in judgement. He thought back to Sirius and his eyebrows, he thought if his looked as animated as his.

"If you wanna be itchy for two days you're welcome to touch it Lupin." Sirius stated, eyes over his eyelashes, head still down to check on any spills.

Remus rolled his eyes again, annoyed at what seemed like everything. Sirius was greatly perturbed by this. The moon had dragged itself near, as much as Remus tried to wish it away. Tomorrow it will be a moonlit night, and if contributing to prank would mean he wouldn't have to come up with bullshit excuses for his absence, then all be damned. He can deal with a little guilt.

But it seems the moon would keep its promise of being the enemy because when Sirius and Remus turned around, they saw Dumbledore, quietly observing their actions.

"What ingenious masterplan had you all devised this time gentlemen?" Asks Dumbledore, a small smile hidden under his beard.

"Sir, We only came here because Remus wanted to talk to you about his uhh- his unexplained visits to nowhere, didn't we Remus?"

Remus grit his teeth together, his anger soaring. He glared at Sirius but he was only met with a tilted face, smug smile playing on his lips, his eyes winning.

Sirius slapped Remus' back rather loudly and he stumbled forward, composing himself instantly with a cough, as if that would cover it up.

"The lad won't tell us where he goes off to, it's all very mysterious." A faux innocent look adorned his face, all too very convincing, though Remus doubted it was effective on Dumbledore. His hesitance to not punish us must only depend on the fact that Dumbledore cannot speak of his lycanthropy.

Dumbledore only chuckled and said, "I will handle all of Mr. Lupin's grievances. You may excuse yourself Mr. Black."

Sirius basically pranced out of the room, hopping along his path but turned around give Remus a wink before leaving.

Remus only closed his eyes in frustration, taking a deep breath. Months into their first year, this was the first time Remus had any real interactions that weren't just small talk. It had been an offhand comment, a thought that had popped up in his head while he heard James lament about their unsuccessful pranks. It was hard to say no to Sirius when he pays attention to you. He wouldn't be here if he hadn't dragged him here.

It was an agonizing thing. Sirius Black really does get what he wants, doesn't he?

[lorkai]

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ A/N: I wrote this a while back and recently was thinking "hey maybe tumblr folks would like this", I'm not used to write character x character, but these two are adorable and have my whole heart. I loved Venti at first sight when I started playing genshin and wrote tons of fics for him that I probably gonna post later. You can also read this fic on AO3.

Warm gusts of wind blew across her face, sending beads of sweat down her forehead as she ran up the hill, the smell of sunflowers dancing over her messy bangs as she forced her weak legs to keep running.

Normally Lumine would fight the monsters chasing her with the greatest pleasure. Fighting was what she had been doing since she woke up, but today her whole body was screaming for mercy and rest and she wasn't going to deny herself that, after having spent the day fighting hilichurls and abyss sorcerers, doing guild missions and entering multiple domains. All she could do now was run, run and hope her glider worked, any other time she would laugh at the way the stiff wings over her back made her feel. Now she just wanted those same wings to carry her to the safety of solid ground and away from these creatures.

Her heart beat quickly inside her chest as she spared one last look back. Everything was a mess, but she hoped Kaeya's ingenious plan would work - she was the bait everyone was chasing up the hill, but what the monsters didn't know was that a huge siege had been set up to defeat them.

"Don't worry." Paimon muttered.

The fairy pointed to Amber and her bow ready under one of the branches, to Kaeya and Jean hidden in the shadows of the leafy trees. The little fairy knew that Lumine's soft and empathetic heart wanted to continue fighting alongside her friends, but she would stop her this time. Her little hands gently pushing her friend's shoulders to encourage her to keep going.

"They'll be fine, come on, you promised Paimon we'd eat sticky honey roast." Paimon let out a small scream, making Lumine let out a long sigh and massaging her sore ears.

But she couldn't disagree with the fairy; her friends were strong. From all sides, Favonius' knights were attacking without mercy. Lumine's eyes followed every blow of cryo, pyro and anemo that flew everywhere. The ingenuity of the hilichurls and metachurls had cost them a lot and, if by chance, one of them survived the attack, they would certainly think and plan better next time.

Tired, the girl approached the cliff with slow steps, the tall grass brushing her ankles in a way that made her laugh softly. She would meet them down there anyway according to plan. Her job was done and she could leave without worrying about one of her friends getting hurt.

Lumine observed the way the terrain spread out in cobblestones, mud puddles still present due to the recurring rain that had ravaged Mondstadt these last few days. For a second she almost wanted to stand and admire the view, but finally she jumped. Paimon following closely behind her.

The wind enveloped her completely, as if it hugged her and invited her to glide without ever touching the ground again. The feeling of being in the air was freeing, freeing from the pressure of continually having to look for her brother without ever finding him, from the pressure of helping everyone just because she could and was strong. Lumine was a warrior, one who had been fighting forever, traveling world after world, one who had seen and defeated many monsters with her brother. And a warrior only stops fighting when no one needs them anymore; people still needed her - but now, the girl would rest.

When she reached a safe distance, Lumine activated her glider. Its long, white wings spread like those of an eagle, but instead of gliding they do nothing to stop its free fall. It's desperate; Her eyes widen, filling with tears as the wind whistles loudly in her ears and slaps her face repeatedly. As she sees herself quickly falling towards the abyss, Paimon screams and tries to grab her arms.

But it is flawed. The little fairy is unable to stop her friend from falling. And there is no one who can help now.

As she fall, shaking, Lumine thinks about her brother and how alone he will be. She think about the little fairy at her side, about all the Genius Invokation TCG rounds she won, about all of Venti's bad performances, about the archery lessons she took with Amber, about looking for Diona's cats, about the games with Klee and the incredible drinks that Diluc offered her after a tiring day. She remembers Jean's smile and Kaeya's silly comments.

Lumine opens her teary eyes, puts her hands together and uses her Anemo energy in order to stop her fall. She is moving too fast, falling as fast as the tears that soak her amber eyes, the wind that invited her was now the wind that carried her to her death, somewhere above she hears loud noises. Maybe, screams.

The ground is close now. Nothing and no one can stop it; or better said, the only person who can command the wind to his will would be Venti. The young woman's heart sank knowing that he was far away and that again he would lose someone he loved; her eyes close, the breath is lost in her lungs and she waits. She waits to fall and hit the ground, waits for a second of pain before disappearing from this world. But nothing happens.

"Come on, open your eyes!" A familiar voice whispers in her ears. And she feels herself shaking from head to toe.

Despite his small and graceful figure, Barbatos holds her in a gentle grip, hands entwining the young woman's waist as he looks at her with great care.

Lumine looks at Venti in surprise, grateful for his quick intervention. In his arms the girl trembles slightly, fear and apprehension, and gratitude flooding her chest as she realizes the gravity of the latest events. Beside her, Paimon flies over them both, unable to chant any words or make any sound, which only makes everything even more serious.

"Thanks." Lumine whispers with a shaky voice. Death is something that naturally surrounds her, but even for someone like her, death is scary. "Thank you, Venti. You saved me." She repeats, wiping her eyes as she hugs him tighter to herself.

There are things they share through their complicit looks, fear was the main emotion. The hug becomes stronger, suffocating, but neither of them moves away from the other for even a second as Venti uses his powers to slowly bring them to the ground. The bard looks at her tenderly, caressing her cheek with one of his hands and he speaks, his tone full of affectionate mockery. "I would be more than happy to reciprocate your feelings, Lumine. You didn't need to fall for me."

The girl smiles and rolls her eyes.

"How did you get here?"

It was a silly question. But for more than two hours he had been playing his harp and drinking as he always did, Diluc had sent her a bloody look when she left the tavern in the company of Kaeya and Amber. It didn't make sense for the bard to be there at that moment, he would have to travel for at least forty minutes to get there. Either way, she was happy he was there.

"I'm here, I'm there, I'm everywhere," Venti smiled for a brief moment. "I am like the wind and the wind told me that someone I care about was in danger."

The traveler nodded, seeming satisfied with the answer. Her feet finally touched the ground after a few seconds, but Lumine was still clinging to his green cape and refusing to leave his personal space. She was like a little leech invited to stay and Venti didn't mind that at all, letting her rest her face on his shoulder, breathe the fresh air again and, most importantly, feel alive, free from fear.

For someone who always made so many jokes and always had a smile on his face, Venti was quiet now, slowly taking Lumine with him to sit on the soft grass and lean against an old oak tree. The whole time he was holding her. The anemo archon deep inside was also afraid. He was afraid of losing Dvalin, of losing Mondstadt and losing her, the girl who slowly made him lose his barriers and saw him like no one in a long time had been able to.

"Everything will be fine." He assured her gently. One of his hands found its way to her blonde hair, playing with it as she looked at him completely exhausted. "I'm here now, nothing could hurt you."

Lumine forced a smile, her eyelids slowly closing. If exhaustion was consuming her before, after seeing her entire life flash before her eyes and imagining a future in which she would not be present, Lumine would need to hibernate for another five hundred years in order to recover from such past emotion. Sweat stuck to her complexion, mud stained her dress, but she could only feel a comfortable warmth as she continued to spoon the bard.

Beside her, Paimon hugged her arms, half trembling, half trying to appear stronger than she really was, and Lumine pulled the fairy closer until she was in the middle of the two. Like a child. Like their child.

"I know." She whispered.

Lumine knew that she would always be safe and sound if Venti was by her side. She knew that he would take care of herself, her injuries, that he would listen to her anxieties and fears, and that he would then motivate her to get up another day and try again. She knew she had a home in him just as he had one in her, she knew she could wake up after a nightmare and seek comfort in his arms, in his lyre and his singing, she knew that his husky voice after waking up would make her smile as much as the his messy hair. It was the little things that showed her that no matter what happened, Venti would be there for her.

For now, however, they could enjoy the rest and the silence, and the fact that they were still together and would be together for many years to come.

[abbysimsfun]

From the (Crowded!) Inbox: My Least Favourite Sim(s)

One, I'm sorry I'm so terribly bad at these and for my delay in replying! Two, I like my characters - even the high drama ones (because of the drama!), so this was tough. Three, thank you so much to @perolesims and @matchalovertrait for this tag that made me think too hard!

I couldn't even pick one, so feel free to get to know the erratic ex with Fatal Attraction vibes, Ximena Bonilla, and Heather's childhood best friend and (reformed?) sleaze, Everett Pancakes, after the cut...

(Forgive this shot of Rafa. I believe he was quite literally juiced when I took it, and I don't have anything better of the two of them. For now.)

Ximena is the obvious choice for least favourite sim. She's been stalking Conrad and his family for years, lived in Conrad's old apartment to sleep on his old furniture, and she traumatized her little brother and dragged him into a life smuggling for a dangerous cartel.

She had a really difficult upbringing and chose smuggling over being trafficked, but what she's done with her ingenious self-preservation skills are borderline terrifying.

Plus she's smug. And yells nonsense from time to time. And I gave her a quirk to change her hair colour a lot, which just made it harder on me, the CAS-laziest, to change her up so often! 😂

Irrationally, I used such great poses in her flashback episode with Conrad that she peeved me off for looking good with him! And she gave him non-canon crabs.

The second least-favourite sim is less obviously a villain, but he sort of became one. And I hated it so much because the guy was supposed to be deeply ingrained in Gen 2, father the heir, etc (I will throw out an entire generational plot sometimes, yes) - and all those plans fell out the window because he was always happy to cheat on his gorgeous wife, Spencer - the family he chose to have when Heather was pining for him all through high school, and he knew it.

He wasn't supposed to become a heel, and his trauma totally stems from the tragic death of his mother, Eliza, in a housefire when he was really young, but even after he and Heather officially called time on their feelings, their mistakes, their whatever, Spencer asked him point blank about his feelings and he lied and said there was nothing there - immediately after coming home from a trip he made alone to see Heather in Brindleton Bay (when she found out she was pregnant with Malcolm Landgraab's son), and they would've autonomously woohooed if I hadn't stopped them.

That said, he underwent counseling with his wife, Heather was a surrogate for his and Spencer's second child, and he and Heather's lifelong bond is unbreakable. I don't see him sneaking around in the background doing anything nefarious, so while I don't prefer him and kicked him out of Heather's legacy plan, I don't totally hate the guy. It's not like he doesn't try, and he's a good dad!

In the shot above, Everett poses with his in-laws, Eric and Alice Kim-Lewis, his wife Spencer, children Greyson (in glasses), Jett, and toddler Violet, with their dog JJ. Clipping is my fault because I was blending poses again and didn't really care about perfection.

Honourable Mentions: Townie bartender Diego Vazquez-Chopra for unceremoniously cheating on Bella Goth and eloping with widower Rahul. Henford mayor (and eventual wife of Bob) Annette Pancakes, who spent the entire time I brought her to Selvadorada for Spencer's bachelorette self-woohooing in front of everyone in their shared accommodations. I never even mentioned it because it was literally rabid and I hated how much it upset everyone else! She never even went outside. Some premades in my save would make this list, but I didn't think they belonged in this answer!

I think I'm supposed to send these to inboxes, but I'll tag absolutely anyone else who feels like doing this one!

WCIF: Everett and his family are posed with the Say Cheese posepack by @simmerberlin and it's missing someone on Spencer's other arm but oh well, I like it! Added in Greyson with the Random Emotions for Kids posepack by LiBet, and JJ with Large Dog poses, also by @simmerberlin.

[tea-potato-gt]

The Biggest Heart Story: Stør’s Job (Part 2)

Summary (2): The continuing story of a blossoming romance between a Water Nymph and a Giant. Mizu joins Stør to work on the farm, she meets new friendly faces who are quite greatful for the pair’s help. While, Stør continues to be nervous around Mizu.

Kæmpe Stør (Giant (17yrs - 36ft)) & Mizu Rivers (Water Nymph (18yrs - 5’6)) 🤭🥰

Part 1 here

More of “The Biggest Heart” here

***

3k words

***

Soon, Old Briar’s farm house came into view. It had a lovely little brick house with a big red barn next to it. What was odd about it was that to the right of the barn, were several large and deep holes in the earth, evenly spread apart and too uniform to have been made by nature.

Sitting on the porch of the house, Mizu could see an older male with large pointed ears, pale green skin and white stringy hair. Old Briar was a Nymph like Mizu, but a different kind. He dressed like he had just come back from a renaissance festival, but more than likely this was his regular wear. Most of the Tree Nymphs Mizu knew sported this look and it seemed Old Briar was no different.

Owning a giant farm and being a Tree Nymph was an ingenious idea, Mizu thought. His agrokinesis would allow him to help influence plants and crops to grow multiple times a year, both in and out of season.

Finally, stepping in front of the barn, Stør gently pulled the trees from his back and set them on the ground.

“I can see you found a little flower in my garden, Stør.” Old Briar called out to the giant. He looked up at her quizzically, immediately clocking Mizu as a Water Nymph.

Stør slowly raised a hand to his shoulder, inviting Mizu to get off, she did, and with a practiced hand she gave two slaps on his palm to indicate she was ready, and he slowly lowered her to the ground.

Old Briar met her after she stepped off the giant’s palm. Once Mizu was off, Stør pulled himself back so as to not crowd the pair. Old Briar reached out and shook Mizu’s hand and gave a brief introduction.

Watching them, Stør noticed Mizu’s left hand stayed in the air, her fingers wiggling. He still felt the stream of water flow along his neck continuously keeping him cool. Mizu was multitasking, conversing and keeping a constant flow of magic at her fingertips. Stør was touched that she worried about him. She is always caring. Always present. That’s the Mizu he knew.

“You should meet the wife.” Old Briar said before he turned and yelled towards the house, “Rosie!”

“What?!” A shrill voice came from inside.

“Rosie, we have another guest!” Old Briar yelled back.

A window slammed open and an old Tree Nymph woman’s head popped out. Her skin was dark green and her hair was made of leaves that would have reached to her shoulders if she didn’t have it in a bun. She caught Mizu’s eye and groaned at her husband, “Why do you never tell me BEFORE people are coming? I look dreadful, like I haven’t been in the sun in days!”

“You look lovely as always, my blossom.” Old Briar said robotically, as if he had to reassure his wife constantly. Rosie huffed and slammed the window shut.

After a few moments, Rosie walked out of the house clearly annoyed with her husband. She too was dressed for the Renaissance fair. She wiped her hands on her white apron as she walked past the other two Nymphs and straight to the Giant boy kneeling before the house.

“Stør! It’s always good to see you, how’s your father doing, still writing that cook book?” Rosie said as she got closer to Stør, ending up in his long shadow, but the older woman didn’t seem to mind looking straight up to meet his eyes. She wasn’t intimidated by his looming figure.

“Yes, he’s fine!” Stør’s smile widened at the spunky old Nymph lady. “Apparently, he’s planning on publishing it this spring.”

“Oh wonderful! Tell him I’ll be first in line for an autograph!”

Mizu listened politely as they chatted, but her mind started to wander. It was always jarring to see a ‘normal’ sized person next to Stør. Rosie was a little shorter than Mizu’s 5’6 frame.

Mizu wondered if that is really what she looks like next to the giant teenager. Rosie was absolutely dwarfed just by Stør’s hand alone. Standing on the ground, Rosie was a little taller than his ankle. Even kneeling, Stør is tall, large and intimidating. No matter how much he tries to accommodate others, he can’t change that fundamental fact.

In this moment, Mizu realizes how rare it was to see someone— outside of Stør’s family and friends— to confidently talk directly up at him and maintain eye contact. Even most of the teachers in their school won’t even talk to him at ground level, they’ll have their conferences on the roof of the school to be at eye level with the giant.

“And who might this be?” Rosie said. Mizu finally snapped out of her wandering thoughts to see Rosie looking directly at her.

“This- This is Mizu,” Stør stuttered. “She’s my…”

“I’m his friend.” Mizu walked to Rosie and shook her hand. She looked up at the giant to see him practically beaming. Mizu knew Stør didn’t have many friends, so to hear her say those words out loud clearly made him very happy.

Rosie studied Mizu. The older Nymph stared long enough to make the teenager feel self conscious. “You’re a Water Nymph, right?” Rosie asked, then quickly corrected. “Stupid question, I know, but you’d be perfect! I need your help in the kitchen.”

“But what about Stø–”

“Oh hush darling, let the boys get back to their work, I need you now!” Rosie said as she ushered Mizu inside the house.

“W-wait!” Mizu twisted out of Rosies way, she held her hands up and collected the water from Stør’s neck. He instantly started sweating again, missing the cool feeling Mizu’s magic provided.

All three watched in amazement as Mizu formed a giant bubble of water in front of her, and concentrating very hard, she thrust her hands forward and the bubble dropped into a solid block of ice. It was about as tall as Mizu, and perfectly see through. Mizu smiled up at Stør, his mouth still wide open in shock, “There, in case you need to cool down while I’m gone.” And with that, Mizu followed Rosie into the kitchen.

The first thing Mizu noticed was the trail of dirt coming in from the backdoor that led to a small potted lemon tree in the middle of the kitchen, as if it had been dragged inside the house. The next thing she noticed was a long green hose from outside sticking into the pot, watering the tree.

Seeing Mizu’s confused expression, the older Nymph explained, “I’m trying to make enough lemonade for Stør.” Rosie gestured to a large washtub near the tree that only contained a few inches of the yellowish liquid. Mizu realized Rosie intended to fill the tub and offer it to the giant.

“You know he has those potions for food and drinks, right?” Mizu pointed out. “You could just give him a pitcher of Lemonade and call it a day.”

Previously, Strega had explained that her mother, a powerful witch, had developed a potion to make human size food nutritionally proportional and filling to Stør, though the food size stays the same. This ensures he doesn’t starve and that he doesn’t eat a ton of food each meal. He eats about as much as an average human every meal but he usually finishes in one bite. This potion must be added to his drinks or food before he eats it. Stør mention to Mizu that the potion leaves an unpleasant aftertaste.

“I know dear, but it’s not the same. A glass would be like only a single drop to him, just doesn't feel right,” Rosie said.

Mizu deeply understood. The accommodations and loopholes Stør has to jump through just to live were mind boggling. She wished the world would change for Stør and not the other way round. With Rosie’s kind eyes, it seems others also shared this ideology.

Rosie turned to the lemon tree and placed her hands on the trunk. “If you could get the rest of the juice in those lemons and put it in the tub that would be great.” She nodded to a small pile of cut lemons that had been squeezed. Mizu could sense the liquid still trapped in them. “And in a second I’ll have more so if you could be a doll and use your powers on ‘em, you’d have an easier time getting all the juice out of a lemon than me trying to squeeze ‘em with my bare hands.”

Mizu did as she was asked, she hovered her blue hands over the lemons, calling the moisture within to her grasp. She made quick work of them, Leaving the lemons as flattened, hollow versions of themselves. She pulled out enough juice to fill one cup, she guided the bubble of liquid to the tub and let it drop inside.

Mizu looked at Rosie and her eyes grew wide. The older Nymph was using her power to make the tree produce lemons at a rapid pace. Little white flowers bloomed and in an instant lost their petals, then they became small green balls, only to grow rapidly and change color to yellow. It was magnificent.

When she was finished, Rosie wiped her brow, this process clearly took a lot of energy. The older woman turned to Mizu and spoke as if she had just run a mile, “Be a dear and help me pick them, Mizu?”

Mizu did as she was asked and soon the pair found themselves making lemonade quickly. Rosie cut the lemons and Mizu dehydrated them and filled the tub with their juice. When they ran out of lemons, Rosie would turn back to the tree to grow more.

They continued this till they felt they had enough juice to rationalize adding the water and sugar to the tub. To which Rosie happily boiled the sugar and water to add to the mixture.

Finally finished, Mizu and Rosie took a glass each to taste test all our hard work. Mizu wasn’t a fan of lemonade, but to her it tasted fine enough and Rosie seemed satisfied.

Now the hard part, transporting several gallons of lemonade outside without spilling it. Rosie and Mizu grabbed the handle on either side of the tub. Using her free hand, Mizu focused on keeping the liquid in the basin, ensuring the contents didn’t spill out with every uneasy step to the front door.

Eventually, the pair made it out the door and down the porch stairs. Mizu quickly spotted Stør hunched over near the barn, his back turned to them.

Mizu noticed her ball of ice wasn’t in the dirt where she left it last. Hm.

“Stør!” Rosie called out, waving her free hand over her head, “Over here.”

At the sound of his name, the giant turned, his large eyes locked on the two female Nymphs carrying the tub. Mizu’s suspicions were answered as she saw her ice ball in his large hand being rubbed on his neck to help cool himself down. Mizu smiled.

They set the tub on the ground before the giant boy. Both women took a few steps back out of sheer respect for the giant hand coming their way. Stør carefully picked up the large wash tub. It suddenly became laughably small in his hands. After all that hard work, it was about as much as a mouthful of liquid to him.

Raising it to his face, his eyes widened. “Is this Lemonade? Y-you really didn’t have to—”

“Well, it’s a gift,” Rosie’s spunky personality showed through again. “So no take backs.”

“Yes ma'am, thank you so much!”

“Don’t just thank me, Mizu here helped.”

His eyes landed on the Water Nymph. She nervously fiddled with her blue hair as she began blushing from his intense eyes.

“Thank you, Mizu.”

“O-of course, anything for you.”

Stør blushed a little too. He cleared his throat and sipped on the lemonade hoping to make it last. He savored it to the last drop. He thought he could taste the faintest lingering of magic from either Mizu or Rosie. It wasn’t uncomfortable, it was kind of… pleasant, an added sweetness and love to the flavor.

When he finished, he handed the tub to Rosie and once again thanked her for thinking of him. The older Nymph hushed him and went back into the farm house.

Meanwhile, Mizu was talking to Old Briar about using her Hydrokinesis to help reinstall the trees Stør pulled out of the earth.

Old Briar had hired Stør to rip out the trees from the forest on his property so they could extend their crop feilds. Instead of hiring an entire crew to cut down the trees, killing them completely, Old Briar realized he could just ask Stør to uproot them and transport them to a new location. Saving time, money and the trees themselves.

Now, the plan was for Stør to do the (literal) heavy lifting and hold the trees in place as Briar helped the trees grow new roots, and while Mizu would water them to make them grow stronger. They could do this without her help, but it would definitely go a lot faster if she was there watering the trees. Without watering the trees it would take a lot more energy for Briar to keep his powers going and for Stør to hold the trees in place for a long time. So, Mizu’s talents were greatly appreciated.

Before they started, Old Briar ran back into the farm to get something, but he told the pair they can begin without him.

“You heard the man, pick up those big-ass trees and let’s get to work!” She rubbed her hands together getting ready to summon a large quantity of water from the earth and air.

Stør was silent and he didn’t move.

“What are you waiting for?” Mizu asked.

Stør debated if he should say what’s on his mind. “It’s just— I’m uncomfortable doing this with you—you watching…” he finished lamely.

“Do I make you uncomfortable?” Mizu’s eyes grew wide. Was her coming here a mistake? Did he not want to see her in the first place? Would things have been better for him if she never showed up at all? These worries buzzed through her mind and she felt herself (literally) melt a little.

“No! No! Never!” He frantically shook his head.

“Then what’s the big deal?” Mizu said. “I already saw you pull up one of those trees earlier.”

Stør sighed, “I was kind of hoping you didn’t see that…”

“Why?”

“I-it’s not just you… I wouldn’t want to do this in front of ANYONE. Not my friends or my parents… and especially not in front of you… I don’t want to-to… freak you out…”

“Stør, can you look at me?” Mizu asked as she walked closer to his large hand laying in the dirt.

He cautiously looked up where she stood. His eyes widened to see how close she got to his hand. A hand that was as tall as she was. She had no fear in her eyes, though she knew fully well that hand could spring to life at any moment and grab her. But she had known Stør long enough to never have to worry about that.

Stør had always been afraid of what he was capable of, but it was that fear that ensured Mizu’s safety. Not just her own, but everyone around Stør. He was always conscious and aware of the power he had over people. Ever determined to prove that he wasn’t the monster people (and himself) worried he might become.

Mizu placed her small blue hand on his knuckle, “I don’t want you to feel like you have to hold back around me anymore, Stør. The Gods know you already do it so much for everyone else.” She spoke earnestly. “If it’s just the two of us, you shouldn’t have to hide yourself from me.”

The contact from such a small appendage sent lightning through his hand, up his arm, and straight to his head. His brain short circuited for a moment and his cheeks flushed a little. The power this girl had over him was… overwhelming.

“Please Stør, I really am your friend.” Mizu looked at him with her big puppy eyes.

Gods, he could never say no to those eyes. “Alright,” Stør spoke softly. Softer than she had ever heard him speak before.

She gave a squee of delight and threw her arms around his pointer finger. It was half her height but almost as thick as her torso. It was the closest approximation to a proper hug a giant could hope for. Sure, his family or some of his friends had hugged him like this before. (If it was his little sister, Sunday, he’d start swinging his finger back and forth.)

But this was Mizu Rivers, a girl who had never tried to hug him before this moment. The Water Nymph who he met in his English class freshman year. The girl who once stuck her head out the classroom window, to talk to him, and almost fell out. She was clumsy and caring. She was one of a kind. To Stør, she was everything.

She let go of his hand and quickly spun around. She raised her arms, and with a devilish grin she called the water from the earth and air. Stør watched with amazement. She looked up at him, “let’s get to work!”

“Yeah, let’s get to work.”

***

Several dozen holes filled and tree roots reinstated later, Mizu and Stør were once again in front of the small farm house.

Old Briar had run inside the house to retrieve Stør’s payment for his work. He returned with several large bills. Now that they were finished, Stør placed his hand in front of the farmer and thanked him as Old Briar placed the money in his hand.

It was comical to see the small flecks of paper laying in his hand. They seemed to get lost in the folds of his palm. Stør carefully counted the money, and when he was satisfied, he placed them in a wallet that was about as tall as Mizu, and put it in his back pocket.

“Here you are, Miss Mizu, for your work today.” Old Briar handed her a crisp $50 bill.

“Oh no, I couldn’t, I-I didn’t expect anything.” She handed it back to Old Briar.

“Nonsense, you helped out a great deal, you deserve it.” Rosie took the bill from her husband and placed it in the Water Nymph’s blue hands.

“I-I don’t know, it-it doesn’t feel right—“ Mizu started.

“It’s best just to take the money, Mizu. One time I found cash stuffed in my shoe.” Stør shook his head at the memory, “I still don’t know how Mrs. Rosie managed that.”

“Same way I get my husband to do things, sheer stubbornness.” Rosie said mischievously as she bumped into her husband’s side. He lovingly wrapped an arm around her.

“You two should get home before the sun sets.” Old Briar held out his hand for Mizu to shake. “It was a pleasure meeting you Mizu, and you’re more than welcome to come back and help anytime. We can always use talents like yours on the farm.”

“Thank you. I really enjoyed my time here.” Mizu said and she meant it. She usually doesn’t get the opportunity to use her hydrokinesis powers to its full extent, this was a nice change of pace. She briefly considered taking them up on the offer. She turned and looked up at the neiling giant, maybe she will. “Stør, can I get a lift?”

He smiled gently at his dear friend, “Of course.” He said as he lowered his large hand, Mizu quickly stepped on it. She patted his palm twice, and he slowly raised her up to his left shoulder and waited til she sat down. He felt two taps on his neck to inform him she was ready for him to move.

A few more goodbyes later and Stør was walking down the dirt road to his house. Normally this walk would take only a few minutes with his long legs, but he found himself going slower and taking the scenic route.

Stør listened as Mizu excitedly pointed out rock formations in the distance or that she could sense a stream not too far from view. Seeing the world from this high up was normal to him, it was mundane, but having Mizu here with him, it was like seeing his world through new eyes. She pointed out the littlest details in the horizon he would have overlooked.

Stør’s home was finally in view, he wanted to ask the question he’d been wondering since Mizu showed up on Old Briar’s farm.

“Mizu?” Stør said softly.

“Yes?”

“N-never mind, it’s not important.” Stør quickly backtracked. Internally he kicked himself because he lost his courage and crumbled instantly.

“It’s okay, you can ask, I’m sure it is important.” Mizu leaned forward on his shoulder trying to catch his eye.

Stør glanced at her briefly and looked away. Gods she was adorable.

“I-is there a reason you came to find me on the farm?” Stør asked nervously. “N-not that I don’t like your company! You’re always more than welcome to-to tag along…” he finished lamely, cheeks turning bright red.

Mizu paused for a long moment. She had come to ask how they were going to split the research portion of their project, but it was a dumb excuse anyway. She didn’t have a real reason to hang out with him. But did she really need one? All she knew is that she wanted to be here with Stør.

“No… No reason.” Mizu said as she placed a small blue hand on the heart shaped birthmark on his neck. It was the size of her hand with her fingers spread. “I just wanted to see you.” She practically whispered in his ear.

Her light touch on his neck and the sound of her voice sent energy bursting through Stør’s entire body and soul. His brain was on fire. He felt he could die happily right now.

Mizu didn’t know why or when or where it started, but in these moments, between a Water Nymph and a giant, she was truly happy.

***

That’s all folks! 👋🫡

For now 😏🫣

This is my first (published) short story. I usually don’t write stories, I like drawing comics, so any critiques and suggestions are welcome! Thanks!

But if you want more of “The Biggest Heart” click here! To meet other characters and learn about the world! Or if you want to see more of Stør & Mizu being absolutely adorable! (Like this drawing featured below)🥹🤭

[themourningfox]

Crosshair x GN!Reader

Warnings: Suggestive musings from reader about the Batchers' physiques. Jealous Crosshair.

Crosshair and you have a love/hate relationship.

You hated Crosshair.

Well, not really hate. To be completely honest, you had the biggest crush on the quiet sniper. You weren’t sure why, but it was something about his cool, stoic demeanor that pulled you in.

But damn. He was a pain in the ass sometimes.

Like right now.

“I had that shot!” Crosshair yelled at you, his lithe and lean form looming over you. His eyes were on fire with a deep-set rage that you had stoked.

Despite his intimidating stance, you refused to back down. Seething at the clone, you jabbed your finger into his chest. “You asshole! You know we’re not supposed to kill anyone in this mission. If you had shot them, you would’ve alerted the entire village.”

His hand snatched your wrist and squeezed. “If I had taken that shot,” he hissed, leaning down close to your face. “This mission would have been over already.”

“Actually,” Tech chimed in at this point. He didn’t seem to notice the pointed glares both you and Crosshair shot him for interrupting. “There was a guard around the corner. If Crosshair had shot the target, we would have been caught.”

You smirked. Wrenching your wrist out of Crosshair’s grasp, you shot him a sneer. You were right. You loved it when you were right.

A muscle in his jaw twitched, but he didn’t say anything else, deciding to put his effort into sulking instead.

More than an hour passed of this tense silence before Hunter, Wrecker, and Echo came back with the target properly tied up and cuffed.

“Let’s go, boys,” Hunter said, as he and Tech took control of the ship.

For the rest of the week, you and Crosshair avoided each other. It didn’t go unnoticed by the other members of the Bad Batch.

That’s when a secret plan was formed.

Two missions later and the team was on a wintery planet. The mission was to destroy an Imperial base and possibly rescue any captives.

“Crosshair, you’re going to stay here with her,” Hunter said after the end of the mission briefing. “We need someone to watch the ship.”

“Stay here?” You cringed when he hissed out the words like they were poison on his silvery tongue. He looked like he’d been slapped across the face with a mallet.

“Don’t worry, Crow,” you chimed in, rolling around in your chair to look at him. You could barely contain your triumphant smirk when he glared at you for using your ingenious nickname you had coined for him. “I’ll make sure to stay out of your way. You won’t see hide nor hair of me until they return.”

Maybe he just hated your presence that much, but he almost looked relieved. Were you that much of a burden to him? And if you a burden to the low-key clone...were you a burden to the others as well? Shaking your head, you looked up at Hunter and gave him a small smile. “Don’t worry about us, we’ve got it covered.”

Hunter narrowed his eyes at you, then nodded. “Good. Let’s head out, men.”

You sighed, leaning against the chair as you watched them all walk out one by one. Man...you loved to watch them. Hunter, with his broad shoulders and lean hips. The first time you had ever seen him, you had been memorized by the sway of them as he walked with confidence. Tech, with his slightly hunched walk, had almost fooled you at first but you had soon realized he was more than capable of carrying his own weight. Beneath those blacks were sinew and rolling cords of muscle. Lean, but fierce. Wrecker, too. Beefy, bulky, Wrecker. Despite how hard he looked, you had learnt that he was as soft as a marshmallow. The perfect cuddle buddy. Echo...he was part machine and man. You would think he would lose his physique but oh how you were wrong. You had seen him catch Omega when she jumped into his arms.

It wasn’t until Crosshair cleared his throat that you realized you had practically been staring at Hunter’s ass as he walked away.

Blinking, your gaze pulled up to Crosshair’s, cheeks turning a light shade of pink out of embarrassment.

His upper lip curled back into a disgusted sneer. “See something you like?”

Oh Maker, help you and keep you sane. Despite your crush, sometimes you just wanted to break Crosshair’s pretty face. You were done with his attitude. Jaw ticking, you slowly rose up out of your chair and squared up to the tall sniper. Just a couple inches shorter than him, you still had to tilt your chin up to meet his eyes.

“If you weren’t such a prickly cactus all the time, maybe it would be your ass I was staring at,” you said, not quite caring anymore. “But no. Every time I turn in this damn ship, you’re ripping me a new one about one thing or another. I liked you, Cross. I wanted your approval. But nothing I do seems to change your mind about me! I’m done, asshole. I’ll stay out of your way and you won’t have to deal with me again, all right? Great, perfect, don’t talk to me or even look at me.”

You had turned away, getting ready to stalk off to the other side of the ship.

Crosshair had, rightfully so, been caught off guard by your sudden change in demeanor (judging by the wide-eyed look he gave you), but he quickly recovered and smirked.

“I could give you several things to look at, sweetheart,” he crooned before his tone took on a bitter flavor. “If you weren’t such a blasted fool.”

What. What did he call you? Anger trickled up your spine. You saw red. Whipping around, you opened your mouth to yell at him--

But stopped short when he was right there in your space, chest brushing against yours, amber eyes melting your soul. O-oh. He seemed to notice the effect he had on you, watching as the anger ebbed into excitement and maybe a dash of embarrassment. His tongue ran along his teeth, lips or pulling up into a wolfish smirk. Gloved fingers brushed down your arm and you shivered at the contact. He hummed, pulling the toothpick out of his mouth.

“If you had been trying to get my attention, doll, all you had to do was say something.”