#man you draw such fun sparring!

[court-jobi]

Hi, is there any Headcanon of a Married relationship between Izuku Midoriya and the reader? Could you write based on the Canon? Although the Reader, besides being a heroine (Izuku the teacher), is a model for clothing brands, cosmetics, etc! like any celebrity.

The reader is female!

ooooo~ how fun, anon! Let's see what I got... first headcanon request, here we go!!

A/N: I've gotten several fun asks recently, and am moving those larger works to the top of my WIPs as time allows. This is so fun, and you all suggesting prompts like these make it a joy!

For my My Hero Academia Masterlist, check it out here!

Pairing: Izuku Midoriya x Fem!reader (SFW)

MARRIED HEADCANONS!

Married!Izuku who -even though you're coming up on your third wedding anniversary- still crams love notes on index cards into your e-reader before he leaves for the day. You have it plugged into the side table of the living room and will pick it up as soon as you come home from work to wind down; so even though he will have a later arrival home than you, you'll hardly feel alone with Izuku's words of affirmation pouring out their surprise greeting.

Izuku writes in the middle of the night when he wakes before you- whether by an overactive mind or a nightmare he'd sooner forget. Rather than disturb your much needed rest, will channel reflective thoughts towards you onto paper- and sneaks their secrets around the house where you'll least expect them. Just when you think you know all his hiding spots, he picks a new one to surprise you. Once satisfied with his "journaling" tactic, he'll scoop you back up against him and settle into sleep.

Married!Izuku who chooses a travel tumbler for you every morning and fills it every time it's empty. Car ride ahead? It's crafted with your homebrewed coffee to keep you awake. Got a photoshoot ahead? Water it is, keeping his love hydrated. You are his beloved beverage goblin and though he finds your car to be a tervis graveyard, what's one more dish to wash if it makes you happy?

This man, who will hiss when your hands are too cold against his, getting ramped up far too easily when it comes to worrying over your health... meanwhile Izuku toughs through the worst of allergies himself with a hundred sniffles (and an aversion to cough medicine.) It's one of the first big arguments you had as a couple: you forcing him to take better care of himself when his self-preservation streak peeks through and nearly wears him into the ground during grad school. He'll start to defend himself, only to be caught by flashbacks to the last time he tried managing things on his own, and rightfully apologize. You are a team, and Izuku tries his hardest to let you step in and give him the same care and caution he gives you. It's a hard lesson, managing pride when it comes to taking care of someone so selflessly, and Izuku is still unused to this treatment when turned to himself. You're doing your best, armed with a world of grace to set him straight.~

Married!Izuku who is a phenomenal teacher. One of the most patient souls you've ever met, which is a large draw that led you to date him! You're encouraged to stretch your ways of thinking, listening to his alternative points of view... and find yourself marveling that a man who's so closely engrossed with training the next generation of heroes is still so happy to watch the news at the end of the day in hopes of learning more!

You've gifted him a notetaking tablet that's meant to replace his waning supply of favorite notebooks, but if you find that blue Campus brand in a shop that's selling your brand deals somewhere, you are absolutely picking it up for him. He cries every time you make him close his eyes and hold out his hands, producing your surprise in giddy silence. "They don't make this edition anymore!! H-HONEY!!"

^^^After a day of sparring with his students -giving them a run for their money- you'll be the one patching him up out of sight of Recovery Girl, everything from a lightly busted lip to each blooming bruise he's gonna feel in the morning. You're surprised he's getting hit as much as he is when he's still renowned as one of the heartiest teachers at UA- quirk or not, he is no lightweight. You may worry over him just as much, but with your honorary brother-in-law 'Kacchan' running drills on him on the weekends, you know Izuku is in tip-top shape. No one is invincible, after all.

Will gladly talk to your mom on the phone~ welcomes it, actually! Izuku wants to learn every little tidbit and creature comfort he can about you, so any nerves he had about meeting your family when you began dating dissolved once he kept that goal in mind. (This mentality won your father over well, to a comical degree once Izuku showed him the notes folder on his phone with your die-hard favorite secret pleasures only a loved one would know...) Allmight makes his trip to your dinner table every other week or so, becoming a ready and available father figure to you while yours lives hours away. It does your heart a world of good sitting in his nurturing company.

Married!Izuku will carry your luggage to and from the airport without a single grunt or complaint (That's what he continues to work out for, even as a teacher!) A few tears upon departure and arrival, sure, but will always ground himself steady in his pride over the hard work you're putting in. He's the one who calls to wish you a goodnight when you're on location for hero support, and a sends a text for every morning and lunch break. Regardless of timezone, he's going to make sure you are part of his routine like nothing's changed. You rely on this consistancy more than life. Living apart -even short term- is expected at this stage of your career where you're needed more than ever to help fund your hero ventures through sponsorships... but Izuku will forever be your biggest supporter.

///Little does he know, you are cramming in twice as many roles to help fund a certain someone's hero suit development, per Bakugou's discretion. It's the one, solitary lie of omission you keep from your husband, but one you trust is going to be worth it in the end to see him shine where he wants to once again. He'll always be your hero, but you'll help him see that realized self any way you can.///

Married!Izuku will be flooding the groupchat with every single advertisement that features your face. Every last one. And there are many. The girls will share you on each of their socials in support of whatever you are sporting, while the boys will... look respectfully and congratulate Izuku on his absolute knockout of a girl. Izuku is just insanely proud of his wife and will make it everyone's problem~

He may be operating on a teacher's salary, but is the most thoughtful gift-giver. Married!Izuku will choose experiences over 'things' when it comes to you, like vacationing to the largest library in the world where you can spend hours holed up on a loveseat somewhere, taking notes on all the old tomes you find, using those classic academia desks as if you were still at the 'study abroad' college where you met... Trip planning gives you both something to look forward to amidst your busy schedules, and takes the financial pressure off you both as well. Not that he won't still treat you to just about anything you ask for when you're giving him that sweet, small 'please' standing in the checkout line at the corner store...

Married!Izuku, who misses you adorably when you're not home. He runs a fairly typical working schedule that lines up with yours for the most part-- makes him the happiest, coming home to you! You adhere to a few sacred rules in your shared home: you always go to bed together, you can occasionally go to bed angry- but always remain in each other's corners, and you know giving him head scritches is the easiest way to make Izuku pliant enough to sleep. He'll nurse your migraines that aren't so pretty, you'll give his hands massages when the phantom pains make them ache. Whatever you can do to give your man some ease into his life, you give wholeheartedly.

You'll kiss Izuku's every trouble away; and the ones that linger, you'll tend to as gently as you can until you can replace the thoughts with something sweeter, kinder, delicately on his still-healing heart when the embers remind him of old hurts you weren't around to see. You care for Deku just as you do your darling Izuku- as they are two sides of the same coin. You polish and affirm them both, strengthening all the parts that have made your life partner the man he is today. That made him him.

Married!Izuku: your darling husband with eyes that light up when you enter a room, mist up when they see you down, and stare eternally grateful on you as you listen and take in every word he has to give and through every promise shared-- just like your vows.

[neverheroes]

Here’s a bunch of stuff in the MM Tales of the TMNT comic-con sneak-peek I thought about too much!

They’ve cared so much about showing how differently they each react to and process the same situation.

Through the scene Raph is excited to tear things up and true to every iteration ever tries things his way until it doesn’t work, Don’s flight response pings into analyst mode and you just know he’s figuring out how to break stuff, Mike is thriving in team-mode and keeping them all on track, and Leo flails around like a giant ball of chronic anxiety before figuring out a plan. They’re original formula with gently new toppings and I’m ready for this slice.

Raphael

This guy! We get so much. He’s rearing to do some fighting that isn’t sparring and be free to do some actual damage. So we know he’s bored fighting is brothers and wants a challenge. He can’t handle this one and in figuring that out is “open to suggestions” which is quite the overlooked Raph quality, he’ll listen he just has to work through that impulsive reactive streak first. He’s strong and knows it, and that robot gets a harder fight. The Raph highlight for me was taking time while fighting to honour the time-old tradition of making fun of Michelangelo. <Sobs in last ronin.>

Donatello

This kid, man! It’s a long standing opinion of mine that everyone should be more scared of Donatello. His interest in understanding the threat overrides most of his fear. Cerebral af. This is his face most of the time while a robot programmed to obliterate him is directly behind him. On the surface it looks like he’s running away a lot, but he can’t exactly press pause on it to figure out how they work. His gentle heart characterisation is well intact, apologising to the robot when he damages it having already personified the thing. I honestly believe he would take it home like he’d found a new pet if that were an option.

Michelangelo

What a show of Mikey magic. He’s got the comedy relief on a casual setting with subtle jokes and unintentionally antagonistic observation style. Mike has a tiny attention span but is 100% in every moment and they draw a lot of attention to his speed and agility. He shines doing what Mikey is known so well for; keeping the family together. It was awesome to see him effectively orienting his brothers into the situation, and see them listen to him so readily. He still calls to Leo for guidance when he feels out of control, but we might be in for a more surprising personal arc than ~nobody takes me seriously~ this time around.

Leonardo

This is a blessing for Leo fans because MM Tales Leo sucks /srs. Not in the way Raph fans say it on Instagram posts, in the way that his flaws are so disparate from other versions that a mastery arc is screaming his nervous muppet name. The giftedness is still sewn in; even flailing around he has more advanced weapon control, is observant enough to be the right level of stressed when a threat shows up, and jumps into strategy finding a vantage point to make a plan like a good little Leo, but instead of our usual Leo trauma ball we (at least for now) get to watch a Leo with the confidence of a processed cheese slice be terrible at things because he’s just some kid…

Pfffffffahahhhahhahba

The Mutant Mayhem kids are the most realistically green (and by that I mean inexperienced) we've ever seen them and it's continued into Tales. With detaching from source origin and establishing a much more grounded reflection of teen life in the current world, the growth arcs over Tales and the next MM movie have such immense unburdened potential that it really could lead anywhere and I don’t know what to expect.

(Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will air in August 9th 2024 on Paramount+)

[gatorbites-imagines]

Ghost x Reader who is basically his scary shadow. Like yeah Ghost is big and scary, but reader is bigger and scarier.

Simon “Ghost” Riley x male reader

Headcanons

I love big scary reader, I was imagining König sized reader (you know, the 6’10 the fandom makes him). I was imagining the reader wearing one of those sniper ghillie hoods with one of those masks that cover the lower part of the face and the neck.

They call you Hydra or Kraken as your callsign, because your big, scary, and no matter how many times you go down you come back stronger.

If Ghost is scary because of the stories about him, you are terrifying. Together the two of you make an image that would give many nightmares.

Cadets and even other high ranking military people have almost pissed themselves when speaking to Ghost and you seemingly appear out of nowhere and loom over his shoulder, staring down at them with unblinking and cold eyes.

You wear a sniper ghillie hood, so you look almost like a swamp monster with the hood up, since you also wear camo fabric over the lower half of your face and paint what little skin is visible with warpaint.

Where Ghost is scary but can be fun to be around as he likes to crack jokes and speaks to others if needed, you are a big silent shadow, mainly responding with nods, shakes of the heads, grunts or with your eyes.

The 141 don’t fear you though, they know your as much of a softie as Ghost. Though they were on edge the first time you met, and the Los Varqueros were also quite intimidated by you.

Soap calls you Nessie, since you lay low in swamps and other wet areas to snipe or do sneak attacks. It ends up sticking and becomes a nickname only your team calls you.

You regularly use your size to your advantage, be it to intimidate or harm enemies, since you can easily pick grown men up and crack them over your knee like a stick.

Gaz makes a joke about not ending up on your bad side, whilst Soap chuckles a little nervously as he sees you throw a man bigger than himself like he weighs nothing.

Ghost just hums in reply, finding you very hot as you go about your business on the mission, he loves to crawl you like a tree when its just the two of you, not that he would ever tell anyone that.

Ghost and you call each other by your real names when you are alone, wanting to separate from your callsigns and just be yourselves for a while.

He loves just how much bigger you are since you can wrap yourself around him and hold him close. Ghost also likes to be picked up and cuddled though he will never admit this.

The two of you spar together a lot and wrestle, and its 50/50 who wins most of the time. Your sparring always draws a crowd because you both are two of the best and have heavy stories hanging around about you, making the two of you almost seem non-human.

There have been multiple times where you have covered Ghost with your own body during battle, taking bullets for him or taking the brunt of an explosive. You are so large you can cover him with most of your body and keep him safe.

Ghost despises this since it means you get hurt, and its lead to arguments before and even the two of you not speaking for a while but you always end up making up and holding each other.

You both aren’t much for speaking about your emotions, but you but try to have communication in your relationship, though its taken quite a while to have gotten to the comfortable point you are at now.

[billythesimp]

hello wonderful writer! may i humbly request a fem reader who's very independent and strong-willed cow!thiren with lycaon? she works with the victorian housekeeping crew, and generally takes combat related jobs.

I'm so sorry if I butchered this. I could not for the life of me figure out how to write this. But Cow thirens sounded so cute wahhhh!

Watch the Horns, Master

⋘ 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑎…

I love thiren's they are all so cool. I think my favorites from the game are these two office ladies who you can find in the afternoon in front of the flower shop in Lumina square. They are like sister's kinda and are just full cats. I think they are cats at least.

Lycaon x Cow-Thiren-fem!reader

𝑃𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑖𝑡…⋙

tw: none

✦ Being a cow thiren, people consider her to be very cute and very fragile, just one glance of her and people don’t assume anything other than a sweet, little maid who only wants to please their master. When in reality, the horns on your head are nothing more but a part of your deadly weapon, turning cold and stern once her true purpose is revealed. Her whole personality is what draws Lycaon in. 

✦ Lycaon adores how efficient and committed she is with her commissions. No matter the mission, the client, or the hollow, they never back down and hold themselves on a higher pedestal that nothing can hurt them. Just because they are smaller and more vulnerable, they aren’t a being to look down on. No upset guest who threatens their work or filthy ethereal who hungers for her life will stop her as she is an impenetrable force. So Lycaon puts many expectations on her, having them take up the more complicated tasks at her own request. 

✦As a reward for her well done jobs, he often treats her to her favorite snacks and obviously a well-off paycheck. He’s taken time to get a better understanding for his employees, but with her he takes the time to make her feel welcome and included. Despite her denial of having no interest in joining the crew in their daily interactions and activities, he can tell that she does long to be included and join in the fun, drowning herself in work and managing Corwin and Ellen as a supportive older sister figure. 

✦ In combat, she makes an effort to ensure everything goes to plan. Keeping a close eye on her team while providing a shield of sorts that will protect the girls and man from any danger. She’s very much a more physical fighter as once again, benign a cow thiren makes her a lot tougher than most so she’s worked out to gain that sleeper build. A routine that she’s sometimes worked with alongside Von in the gym or their own private sparring sessions. So every battle, she gives it her all, fighting hoof and nail to take out any imposing figure in her path, in a graceful manner if you will to upkeep the image of what a maid from Victorian Housekeeping is really all about.

[sprite-writes-fanfic]

hey so how do you think the tmnt 2003 boys would deal with their s/o coming to them just to have fun and cuddle cuz they’ve had a shit day? It’s one of those: crying in solitude and then come see bf when calmed down shit day and need cheering up?

Ohoho, I’m gonna have fun with this. *rubbing hands together, wholesomely.*

Comforting you after a bad day.

🐢💙❤️2003 TMNT x Reader💜🧡🐢

Word count: 838

CW: Reader is gender-neutral, reader being comforted, and as usual, nothing but turtle fluff. 🫶

🐢💙Leonardo💙🐢

💙 When it comes to cheering you up, Leo offers meditation first. It’s always helped him clear his mind, so he’ll meditate with you, enjoying the calm and quiet.

💙 If meditation doesn’t work, he’ll brew a pot of tea and cut up some fruits. He’ll sit with you and listen to you when you lay out your problems to him, letting him know how your day went and all the built-up stress that went on that day.

💙 He’d even offer a bit of sparring! It’s a good way to get out any anger, and he stays on the defensive side, just letting you work out your stress.

💙 If that’s not what you want, he’s okay with having you sit in his lap, his hands massaging your muscles, working out any knots and the stress. You do it for him when he’s stressed, he can at least return the favor.

💙 Will also sit there and read with you, reading out to you while you relax. He most likely chose Dune because he’s just that kind of guy, but you don’t mind either way. You love that nerdy side of him.

🐢❤️Raphael❤️🐢

❤️ Raph’s good at reading your body language and telling how you’re feeling and he’s quick to ask what’s up. When you just say you need cheering up, he understands very well and does a lot to try and cheer you up!

❤️ One thing he does is doing push-ups while you sit beside him, counting for him, before he slyly drags you underneath him to press kisses to your face, lips and neck, just to get giggles out of you.

❤️ He also likes to take you on the occasional rides around the city on his Shell Cycle, and if you’re into beating criminals, the two of you are fighting some goons on the streets.

❤️ If that’s not your style, he’s just fine with sitting on the couch, or on the bed in his room cuddling away. He has an arm around your shoulder, your head resting on his chest, and his hand gently rubbing up and down your arm in a soothing manner while he listens to you vent, or just in pure silence, enjoying each other’s company.

❤️ Either way, he’s here for you, and he’s good when you need some emotional support. He deals with a lot of his own emotions, he’ll help you feel better the best ways he knows he can.

🐢💜Donatello💜🐢

💜 When you come in looking exhausted, Donnie is already standing up from his desk and making his way over to check up on you, asking if you had gotten any sleep, all that jazz.

💜 When you explain what happened, he’s listening intently, before he pulls you over and sits you in his lap to cuddle. Holding you close as he’s massaging your scalp, using techniques he’s learned that’s made you feel better when you’re upset.

💜 He’ll listen to you talk, but if you’re feeling nonverbal, he’ll fill in the silence with his own ramblings. His hands caressing your back as he does so, turning back to his work table as he continues on.

💜 He’ll put on some music, like jazz to help relax you. He’ll tinker with his inventions, even let you do some of your own tinkering if you’re interested! Anything that makes you feel better!

💜 He knows you probably need some time to relax and destress, so if you’re not up for sitting at the lab table, he’ll scoop you up, take you to his bunk to cuddle in bed, or even draw you a bath to relax together in. Whatever he can do, he will do. He’s a man with many solutions.

🐢🧡Michelangelo🧡🐢

🧡 You’re sad?! Not on Mikey’s watch. He’s cheering you right up! When he sees you’re down, he’s hugging you so tight! He’s kissing all over your face and asking what’s wrong. He doesn’t understand that he might be overwhelming you a bit, but don’t be afraid to tell him to back up a bit, he’ll understand while offering a sheepish apology.

🧡 Will actually sit down to listen about your day, but not with either being sad or mad with you. The type of guy who will gossip with you and go, “gasp, oh no she didn’t!”

🧡 He’s a bit silly with it, and in the end, you’re laughing about it and he’s smiling widely. He’ll offer you watch some of his skating tricks, before he casually eats shit at one mess-up.

🧡 After that he’s suggesting video games and pizza. That’s more relaxing and less crashing into walls. He’ll be sitting beside you, letting you win most of the time because he likes when you cheer at your own victory. It makes him happy to see your smile again.

🧡 After that, you guys will watch some TV. He’ll be laying back on the couch, and having you lay on top of him. He’s playing with your hair until you’re both snoring loudly on the couch. Splinter was kind enough to place a blanket over the both of you so you guys aren’t cold.

[porraaharkness]

Blood pact, soulmates and the creation of Nicholas - Agathario

There’s this book I read a long time ago that bring this aspects of soulmates, blood pacts and creation of life through rituals on a crescent moon night, and it feels like something witches would do, I can’t stop imagining something like that with Agathario, so this is me having some fun (more like a headcanon and personal fanfiction). In the books there’s is the concept of a breedmate, some humans that can bond and get pregnant from magical creatures, but for that a ritual needs to happen. I will use some parts of the book.

“One day, you’ll find a worthy person and take them as your mate. They will drink from you alone, and you from them. Blood will bind two of you as one. It’s a sacred vow among our kind.”

“If we share a blood bond, I will be draw to you for as long as I have breath in my body and you in yours. You would never be free of me because the bond will compel me to seek you out wherever you run”

Soon after Wanda’s death, Rio could find Agatha shortly after, both in Westview and later in The Road.

Here is Kathryn talking about Agathario’s bond. Even with Wanda’s spell still up, they were draw to each other.

“She knew this person, deeply, again, like a real complicated history, and I think that’s a testimony of how strong that bond is, that can reach through the spell and find each other there, and she really is responsible, and Teen, for getting Agatha out of the spell.”

WEDDING

Coming back to the book:

“There is no true wedding among breedmates. The blood bond and the binding ceremony are the closest they have to the human equivalent of a wedding. There are no papers, religion, or legalities involved, only a heartfelt commitment and a pledge to share the rest of their lives together - a sacred eternal vow sealed with blood. This is an intesely private, intimate affair between the mated pair only. It isn’t until after a formal binding is complete that the couple announces to others. The binding is a cause for celebration ,and given it’s intense sexual nature.”

Kathryn: “The reason that they stayed in contact like this had been because she’s been the most formidable sparring partner…but there’s something about Rio’s energy that just feels as equal. I think that was kind of like a turn on for her."

“The binding ceremony is a symbolic and literal declaration that the mated pair intends to live for each other from this night forward.”

“The ceremony is conducted during the eve of a crescent moon, with that the mated pair sneaking off to some undisclosed location where they will make love beneath the crescent moon, exchange blood (may or may not for the first time) and pledge their undying devotion)

BLOOD BOND

“The deep, unbreakable physical and emotional connection that forms between a breedmates upon the exchange of ingested blood. A blood bond gives added strength, healing power and immortal longevity. Blood bond couples can sense their mate’s presence and proximity in their veins. A blood bond initiates upon the first drink and is sealed when the other member of the pair drinks from the other, completing the connection.”

Just with the Darkhold Agatha could hide from Rio, just with dark magic.

“A blood bond is severable only by death, even if only half of the bond has been initiated”

And here is Rio, being Lady Death herself.

PREGNANCY AND NICHOLAS

“Only blood bonded pairs are capable of conception. It takes something more sacred than simple sex for us to conceive. The fertile time for blood-bonded Breedmates revolves around the crescent moon. During this crucial period, if we wish create a child, our bodies must have our mate’s seed and his blood floowing within us. It’s a sacred ritual that no mated pair goes into lightly”

Here is another part of Kathryn interview talking about how witches can procreate without a man, that they can have children through magic. So yes, this is me in my delulu time strongly believing that Nicholas is Agathario’s son, that they made on some witch ritual.

Kathryn Hahn: “They didn’t need men, their babies are born, there was no men, males mentioned, it’s all these women and queer groups that feel adjacent to the mainstream that can identify with witches"

The book is “Kiss by midnight - Lara Adrian” and the lore about the universe appears in “The Midnight Breed series companion”.

Kathryn Hahn interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRa-Rrm6jDk

I’m not saying it will happen, i’m just having fun with their history elements and this book I remembered. I found their relationship so soulmates coded, I love it.

[forestshadow-wolf]

Soap likes danger.

Not like he's running head first into it- well ok he does, it's his job to- but like he's not looking to get hurt. he'd be lying if he said the danger didn't send a little thrill through him though.

He just simply doesn't run from danger. he listens to his COs, doesn't take unnecessary risks, especially with civilians around. He does his job and he does it well. But that's not where it rears its head.

No, it's found during mundane moments on base. Like training, when he spars he wins alot sure, but it ends in a loss or a draw just as often if not more. Always 2-1 or 3-1 or some other combination to make it a proper challenge. When he spars with the lieutenant, the grin on his face never wavers, like he's having fun. When the bull-headed recruits get angry that they lost to one man, that's a head shorter than them, he smiles when they get in his face.

Team building exercise with another military base included rugby once, it teaches motor control, and technique for hand to hand takedowns. Teams lost, things got heated, people got shoved. When he feels the force on his back, he follows the movement and uses it to push back up. When he sees the big Australian storming over he can't help the toothy grin the slides into place. A hand grips his shoulder, but he grabs the shirt and pulls the man down to his level so the man hears him laugh, which only seems to anger him more. Before it gets too far, the lieutenants are pulling them apart, and soap goes easily, adrenaline warming his veins pleasantly.

And it's not that he's arrogant, or that he lets his ego take over for him, though he is confident in his capabilities. And it's not that he doesn't see the danger. He just simply doesn't get intimidated by it, after all why speak for your ability when it could speak for itself? Isn't that a better show of what you can do?

Ghost thinks it's, perhaps, the hottest things to see. Sure at first it was annoying, having built his entire military persona on being too intimidating to interact with. And then this annoying bitch just come up to him, punches him in the shoulder, and refuses to leave him alone. Smiles even when threatened with a fight, and that smile says "please do".

And they did fight about it. Many times. and somewere in the middle of one of those fights, locked together, forhead to forehead, shoulder to shoulder. That ghost looks into those stark blue eyes, and the too perfect grin, and his face screams "give me more". And it's then that ghost realizes that seeing a face like that, so full to bursting with life and joy, it puts a feeling in him, like being pleasantly full for the first time ever. Or feeling the morning sun on his face after a decade in the dark. And ghost can't help but give in, to push harder, to fight back. And christ alive if he isn't absolutely whipped and waiting for that expression that he's only ever seen grace one man's face so properly, the way it does for soap.

[spruzu]

THROWING SOME SONIC HEADCANONS ON U

Sonic

-He always has a bruise or scratch on him somewhere even if he hasnt fought eggman in a few days. there. is. always. one.

-He's also COVERED in scars. Theyre either covered up by his fur/quills or theyve faded over the years.

-When sonic showers he uses a bottle that can be used for shower gel, shampoo, conditioner, moisturiser, mascara, ketchup, pepsi and a microwave.

-Sonic only really likes physical touch like hugging when he's seriously injured or in pain (example A. sonic prime and frontiers). Also he doesnt mind it when he's doing it to someone else.

-Sonic paces when he's worried, thinking or waiting for something. (Shadow does this too just less)

-Sonic fidgets in his sleep a LOT. He'll falls asleep on his back and wake up with his legs half off the bed and the duvet on the floor.

-Sonic cant cook so he gets tails to make him dinner (he knows how to make chilli dogs tho dw)

-Sonic used to hum tails to sleep when there was a storm

-This ties in with the one before it. SONIC IS A FANTASTIC SINGER. This man is angelic. Also no one can tell me Rouge can't sing coz she defo can.

-Sonic has a draw of all the stuff from his past adventures (chips bracelet, this upgrades from sa2, etc.)

-He smells like man deodorant (Lynx)

Shadow

-He takes notes on how to be a ''real mobian'' since he was brought up on the ARK he doesnt really know how to fit in so he'll stalk sonic and take in how he acts.

-Shadow and Rouge have ''girl nights'' where they stay up, do face masks, eat pizza and watch movies. Just a sleepover pretty much. (Omega is sometimes involved to)

-Shadow sleeps like a vampire

-Shadow and sonic spar often (3-4 days a week)

-And if sonic doesnt show up to the sparing session he'll go find him and make sure he's ok that they are still sparing

-His bedroom is lit up by lamps, no big light at all just lamps and the window.

-He's INSANELY good at cooking and baking. Gordon ramsey ahh hedgehog

-Can speak every language fluetly, this includes few ones that are dead (this is smt gerald gave him when he was in the 'creation' sage oin the ARK)

-He smells fucking fantastic 24/7. Lavendar, rlly nice perfume (probably Rouge's), deodarant, anything! This man smells great.

Knuckles

-He has a really low spice tolerance, one SPECK of spice and this dude is like sonic in tmosth.

-He gets bothered by Rouge trying to steal the master emerald at least once a week.

-Works out everyday, maxes out the machines and just goes at it like it's at the lowest setting.

-Sometimes he'll ask if sonic wants to spar for the fun of it if he's not on Angel island.

-FEMINIST! (He loves women)

-Denise he loves rouge but will just get flustered if she makes on single flirtation towards him.

-Has tubs of frosting and a spoon at nearly all times (WHAT IF HE GETS HUNGRY ITS A GOOD SNACK)

Tails

-Tails puts on cooking videos for background noise when he making/designing a new invention.

-Tails info dumps about planes and nerdy stuff to sonic and sonic just pretend s like he knows what tails is going on about because he knows it makes tails happy.

-Tails uses his tails for pillows sometimes.

-Getes his little hair ruffled by everyone (mainly sonic)

-Likes making gifts for people as a way to say thank you

Amy

-Amy plays dress up with cream.

-Herself and her room smells like roses/flowers in general.

-Loves watching mean girls with rouge.

-Doesnt look it but is STRONNGGGG. Your telling me that she would swing a punch and wouldnt send someone FLYING?? SHE CARRIES THAT MASSIVE HAMMER FOR VRYING OUT LOUD!!!

-Crystals.

Rouge

-LOVES to gossip

-Ayesha Erotica listener

-Does shadows makeup sometimes (Omega watches)

-Has a perfume collection that she lets shadow use to

-Has the most BEAUTIFUL dresses in her wardrobe for different occasions

-Loves to wear rings

there u go, have fun with those.

[demialwrites]

Rufus x Pet Reader HCs

Pet play HCs, smut, references to rough sex, dysfunctional relationship

Prefers to mainly keep you at his home

He'll take you out sometimes but he will pick what you wear, among your own clothes

If you wear a collar or a brand, he wants it hidden. It's not that he cares that people would know and judge you or him, but it might clash with your outfit. And it's important to keep up appearances for his reputation as a new president. Plus, he wants to keep you and what you mean to him to himself as much as possible

If anyone approaches you while out, he will intervene himself, or if need be, have a Turk remove the poor, oblivious person. It would be preferable to avoid a Turk step in, especially above the Plate (again, to maintain his reputation)

At home, he would prefer you to be naked (he's only a man, after all) but he understands if you want to be comfortable and might want to wear clothing or a set of underwear. Just wearing a collar would drive him crazy, so be careful with that. It wouldn't be long before he's seated beside you, giving you a heated stare, his fingers gliding lightly over your skin, hoping to start something ;)

He's not too picky about how you maintain yourself. As long as you don't let yourself go too much or make sure to put effort into pleasing him, he won't complain. It's only when he occasionally takes you out that he expects you to put the most effort into your appearance. If he intends to fuck you a lot in a short period of time, he does expect you to shower more often but he can just join you in there for an extra fuck

Though he generally expects obedience, he enjoys when you test his control. But only to a point, because he still needs to know he is the one ultimately in control. It excites him when you want to test him physically, such as fighting back, giving him mild injuries (as long as he can hide them under his clothes or easily explain it away), or taking control during sex. It riles him up and makes him look forward to taking control back later on. He is most turned on when you verbally spar with him. As much as he enjoys when your eyes are glazed over and pliant for him, he also enjoys a pet that entertains him a little

He may not say so out loud but it pleases him if he knows you trust him to take good care of you. He expects you to take good care of him, too

When he gets home and wants to fuck, he dismisses all the staff. If anyone gossips about it, they are immediately fired

He prefers to be the one in control during sex and wants to be on top. If he's had a tiring day at Shinra, he will still want to maintain some control by having you blow him while he holds the back of your head and possibly fucks your mouth. He will feel well-served if you do this while he's already in bed so he can fall asleep right after

If you draw blood during sex, he will want to take care of the wound himself, or even better, have you do it. It's no one else's business what lead to the injury and again, for appearances. It turns him to be able to go about his day with marks you gave him hidden under his clothes. Plus, it makes him want to ‘punish’ you in a fun way later on. Slapping his face hard is not allowed because he can't hide it. Marks on the neck is pushing it and should only be done if he's in an especially good mood

If it's the opposite, and he injured you, he will want to see you wear it proudly around your shared home, if possible. Expect him to smirk and touch it or near it, thinking I did this. This is especially the case if it's something mild like bite marks, hickies, or impact marks

One of the downsides of being Rufus Shinra's pet is that he will expect you to wait obediently at home when he is away from Midgar. You cannot leave home during these times but he will make sure the staff provides for your needs. If you know him well enough, you can misbehave a little, within limits, but only with the goal of riling him up and putting you in your place, again

If he comes home injured or generally in rough shape, he enjoys if you fuss or worry over him a little. But don't extend that to demanding he be more careful or anything of the like. He secretly enjoys that you care enough to go that far but he prefers to have his freedom more

What he prefers that builds between you is not love but trust. Especially, your trust in him. It may feel the same as love or resemble it, but it's not quite the same. It's not a love between equals and it doesn't require him to look deep within himself to properly examine his feelings for you. You might fall in love with him but it's a real possibility he won't return your feelings like you crave. If he falls in proper love with you, he may admit it to himself or he may not. And does it matter? Maybe not. Everyone decides for themselves what their happiness is

What he requires along with that trust is loyalty. With no loyalty from you, there is no relationship of any kind. But he will return that loyalty to the best of his ability

[amazingmsme]

Do you have head canons for how the different gods laugh?

(Besides Hermes lmao, his bird laugh is as iconic as it is well known💀)

Love your blog!

ABSOLUTELY! Decided to throw in everyone from god games as well as Hades, so this got a lil longer than expected lol. I always love doing these, & the gods are such fun characters that I’m dying to see more of! & of course I bully my faves

& Hermes is so iconic, I love his shrill cackle, that man loves a good laugh & never really holds back!

We also kinda got a canon laugh from Calypso when she giggles right after saying goddesses can’t die. I think she has a very light & airy laugh, almost like the twinkling of a bell. Very cute & feminine

Likewise, we heard a bit of what Aeolus sounds like, but that’s more of a snide, condescending laugh that she likes to use when toying with someone. Her more genuine laugh is higher pitched & more of a giggle

For everyone else, I’m going off of pure vibes

I think Athena tries not to laugh because she has a badass image to maintain, & tbh most of the other gods aren’t that funny, or at least they don’t appeal to her sense of humor. She likes more clever & dry witty comedy, which is probably why Ody’s jokes work well on her. He likes to use a lot of fun word play & his timing & physical comedy is just perfect, & catches her off guard enough to draw out a real laugh. She laughs with her full chest, it’s loud & is honestly such a bright, happy sound, probably because it’s so rare to hear. Much to her chagrin, she snorts when she laughs hard enough. When she’s trying to mask her laugh it gets quicker & higher pitched, & she usually tries to muffle it behind her hand

Apollo’s laugh is pretty similar to Hermes, but it’s a bit deeper & not as erratic & sounds like he has more control over his voice. Idk it probably sounds so pretty & smooth, almost like his laugh alone is a song & more than a few gods accuse him of faking it because it just sounds a lil too “perfect.” If you really get him going tho it does tend to take on a more unhinged & frantic pitch, & it gets real hard to tell the difference between the 2

I just know Hephaestus has a really deep & rich laugh, but he doesn’t laugh often. He’s pretty serious & he doesn’t always get every joke tossed his way, but when he does, it’s this really deep, amused chuckle that slowly gets louder the longer he laughs

Aphrodite has the prettiest laugh, it’s not as high pitched as you’d expect from her & almost has a purr to it, but that could just be her infectious, bubbly giggles

So uh, I love Ares way more than I was expecting to from his part in gg & I’m gonna simp for a sec cause I can. But Ares actually loves to have a good time & let loose! His version of that may look a lil more bloody, but he still enjoys a good time! He can still laugh & tell jokes! So I think he wouldn’t bother holding back & just belts out this deep belly laugh that can make you jump if you’re not expecting it. Funnily enough, I think he also would snort a lot when laughing, so maybe it’s a war god thing lmaoooo. He’s also prone to laugh when he’s sparring or in the middle of a fight, & that’s more of a different sound. He gets this crazed look in his eye & his laugh raises an octave & gets a lil faster until it’s this really menacing, crazed cackling that is just as scary as it is endearing

Hera doesn’t laugh as much as she used to, but when she does, it’s this sly sounding, amused chuckle. Even when she’s being sincere, it lowkey sounds like she’s making fun of you. If something actually gets her going, she’ll throw her head back & her laugh actually sounds authentic, but it still has a more smooth, controlled tone much like Apollo

Now for the big 3

Hades doesn’t laugh much, obvi, but when he does, it’s this really low rumbling from deep within his chest, & you don’t really think he’s laughing until you see his shoulders shaking & notice the smile beneath his beard. But it something’s legit funny, he’ll let out this hearty laugh & lean back & will either hug his stomach or slap a knee

Oh Poseidon, you’re gonna fucking hate me for this. But he usually has this calm, really snide snicker/chuckle he does when he’s mocking someone which is like all the time. It’s such a smug sound you just want to slap the shit outta him because it’s so obvious he’s laughing at YOU! But his real laugh has a rich tenor to it, & is way louder than he’d like. & if something really gets him laughing, it starts to get higher pitched before it starts to morph into more of a bubbly, gurgling sound until it sounds like he’s laughing underwater

It’s no surprise that the thunder bringer himself has a downright booming laugh that can shake the heavens themselves if he really lets himself go, but much like his bitch of a brother, he only really does that if he’s laughing at someone. Otherwise, it’s still really deep & loud, it just doesn’t have as much bass to it. If you listen for it, you can hear claps of thunder when he lets out unbridled belly laughs, & when he’s just chuckling you can hear a buzzing static sound like lightning

[lgbtqasacrew]

Could you please do Izzy with pirate reader who loves to draw? (Not like Lucius just drawing landscaped and non naked people lol)

Summary: Izzy has liked reader for a while but doesn’t think you’d ever him like back, reader is an artist who spends a lot of time drawing landscapes and people, and also daydreaming about Izzy Hands. Sharing a moment together, you both realise that maybe your feelings aren’t actually unreciprocated like you first thought.

Relationship: Izzy/gn reader

Word count: 1.8k+

Warnings: none I can think of

You chuckle to yourself as you watch Izzy stomp across the sand barking orders at the other crew members, not that they paid much attention to anything he was saying. The others find him irritating and demanding but you, you see beneath all that, how dedicated he is to his role as first mate, how he’s just trying to keep everyone safe. Although you had been a bit sceptical of him when he’d first joined The Revenge, you’d soon realised that maybe he wasn’t quite as bad as everyone thinks he is.

At first he’d wrongly assumed you were as incompetent as other members of the crew, you had found it quite amusing to prove him wrong. You remember the first time he’d come to check your knots, ready to shout at you about how useless you were and make you do them all again. But when he’d approached and seen how good they were he’d stopped in his tracks, he didn’t say anything to you, he had simply mumbled that at least someone on this ship was halfway competent as he’d walked off to shout at the next person, from him that was a compliment.

When he’d been asked to train the crew in sword fighting, you’d been excited for your turn, to finally give Izzy some competition, and you had. You remember the way his eyebrows had quirked in surprise when you’d got your first hit, the way the rest of the crew had started cheering you on, happy to finally see someone who can match Izzy. But the man didn’t seem annoyed, he actually seemed quite pleased he had someone decent to spar with. The fight had ended in a draw, he had looked at you and muttered “not bad” before walking away. You like to think that you’d earned some of his respect that day. Since then you’ve sparred with the first mate just for fun several times, you enjoyed spending time with him, and deep down you hoped he did too, you suppose he wouldn’t spend time with you if he completely hated it.

You continue to daydream about the man as you continue your sketch, totally unaware that said man is now standing in front of you. He observes you for a while, the way your brow furrows in concentration as you continue your work. He’s not one to give praise but he must admit that you’re pretty talented, not that he understands why you waste your time with this stuff when there’s so many jobs to be done.

He could watch you all day, has done on many an occasion much to his own annoyance. At first he’d wrongly assumed you were like the others, but unlike them you were actually decent at ship work, didn’t complain when he gave you an order, and as reluctant as he was to admit you were pretty amazing with a sword too. He’d come to enjoy your sparring sessions, it was nice to have someone who could match him, although more than once he’d gotten distracted by you and almost lost. There was something mesmerising about the way you hold your sword, your stance, the fluidity in your movements. It was like the grace and beauty you put into your art was constantly pumping through your veins.

The way he feels about you was becoming an issue, so much so that Lucius has started to pick up on his feelings, stupid Spriggs has taken to teasing him about it. Luckily right now he’s too preoccupied with Pete to witness how Izzy’s hopelessly fawning over someone that will never reciprocate his feelings. Realising how much of a creep he must look right now, he clears his throat to alert you to his presence.

You jump slightly at the sudden intrusion which he finds slightly amusing “You’re lucky I wasn’t someone sneaking up to kill you” he grumbles, trying to keep any genuine concern out of his tone.

You know he’s right you had been distracted, in your own little world, but you’re just glad he doesn’t know what you were daydreaming about. “Yeah I s’pose I’m lucky it was just you” you quip back, missing the way blush starts creeping up his neck.

“Right well shouldn’t you be doing something more useful than just sitting around drawing” but he doesn’t use his normal commanding voice he’d used with the rest of the crew, it’s more just to keep up appearance than expecting you to actually do anything. He knows you’re a hard worker and would’ve finished your chores before taking shore leave, unlike Spriggs who had tried to sneak off with Pete before either of them had done their duties.

You quickly confirm his suspicions “I’ve already finished all my chores, so until we set sail again I shall be here drawing if you need me”

He was going to retort about why would he need you but he has to admit that it’s quite nice to know where you’ll be, there’s something comforting about it. “Right then I’ll leave you to it”

He’s about to walk away when you speak up again “why don’t you join me?”

His brow furrows in confusion, why would you want his company, everyone else tries to avoid him as much as possible, with Ed as the exception but even then it’s mostly so he has a soundboard for his stupid ideas. But you seem to genuinely want his company when you could have the company of anyone on the ship, all the crew adore you and would be happy to spend time with you if you asked, but for some reason you’re asking him. “Why would I want to do that?”

“Because we’re on shore leave and you should relax” you know it’s a lost cause, you’re pretty sure Izzy Hands has never been relaxed in his life but if anyone can get him to then maybe it’s you. After all you’re the one that persuaded him to sit in on one of Stede’s storytimes, even if he did grumble the whole time you still took it as a win.

You can’t help but laugh a little at the confusion on his face as if he’s never heard of relaxation before “I’m too busy”

“Doing what, shouting at the crew? All the chores are done now, let them have their fun”

“I need to debrief Ed and Bonnet”

“Good luck with that, they’ve forbidden anyone from interrupting them for the next 48 hours”

Izzy wrinkles his nose at the implication, realising he doesn’t have any other excuses and sitting next to you wouldn’t be the worst thing, he relents. “Fine just five minutes” lowering himself next to you on the sand, leaning against the rocks. “What you drawing?”

“Just the view” you shrug, always feeling a little awkward at showing your work to others, even to those closest to you.

Izzy leans in closer to get a better look and you can’t help but inhale his scent, he smells like the ocean and something herbal, maybe he’s been borrowing Stede’s soaps. “Not bad” he comments, what he really wants to say is that it’s one of the most beautiful things he’s ever seen but he can’t say those words aloud, not even for you.

“Thanks” you nearly left it there but you were feeling brave “maybe I could draw you one day?”

He rolls his eyes “No way, Spriggs has already asked me a dozen times, I don’t do things like that”

“Oh no, I don’t draw like him, my models are always fully clothed” you assure him, flipping through your sketchbook to show him a sketch you’d done recently of Frenchie as he had sewed up one of your shirts for you.

Izzy admires all the details that go into your art, the way you brought it to life as if he had really been there. “definitely a lot more tasteful than what Spriggs does” he scoffs.

“So?”

“So what?”

“Can I draw you?”

Izzy huffs “Why would you want to draw me anyway, I’m not much to look at”

You were slightly shocked by his admission, to you he was the hottest pirate on the seven seas, you could see why people would be put off by his grumpy demeanour but you just found it endearing. “I think you’d look beautiful on paper” you were going to stop there but then you saw the red tinge creeping into his cheeks. “I mean right now the way the late sun is illuminating your features, the gentle slope of your nose-“

“Stop it” he grumbles “no need to make fun, I already know how I look, I’m not like Edward”

“I mean Ed’s alright if you’re into that sort of thing” you shrug

“You’re not?”

“Nah I have my eyes on someone else” you couldn't quite believe you were actually saying it out loud.

“Oh” Izzy’s face drops “who?” damn this man really is oblivious, but somehow it just makes him even more endearing to you.

Instead of answering his question you move closer, asking for silent permission to kiss this wonderful man. He nods, eyes closing as you gently hold his face in your hands, closing the gap between the two of you until your lips meet. At first he doesn’t move as if he still can’t quite believe it’s happening, frankly you can’t either, but he soon kisses you back. His lips are softer than you expected, his touch gentle as his fingers tangle in your hair, pulling you closer desperate for more.

You find yourself lost in the moment, everything around you quiets, which is probably bad for a pirate but in that moment you can’t find it in yourself to care. As you pull apart you take a second to look into his eyes, drinking in this shared moment together. After a while he breaks the silence “I- um, that was good” you’d never seen the man so shy, it was sweet.

“Yeah, maybe we could do it again sometime?”

Izzy smiles, it was so precious you immediately want him to do it again. “I’d like that”

As the sun sets, you put your sketchbook down to drink in the view whilst Izzy’s head rests on your shoulder. There’s something so peaceful about this moment together, you hoped there would be many more to come.

[robsterskellington]

So the first snippet you all wanted was for Soukoku, so I guess we shouldn't have been surprised that you all wanted Shin Soukoku next!

Context: Vanitas has been in Yokohama for over a month now, still has amnesia, and has managed to cure some of the Vampires created by Bram's Ability by using the Book of Vanitas (disclaimer: that is *not* Vanitas' Ability, its just something the book can do- instead of curing Vampires of malnomens, it turns Vampires created by Bram back into Humans). Akutagawa is slowly healing and wants to know exactly how he feels about Atsushi, so now that he's human again, he has been trying to spend time with Atsushi. This is one of those times. Vanitas is not in this piece, but he is mentioned a bit.

Enjoy!

*Ugh, it's the full moon again tonight...* Atsushi was grateful for the affects of All Men Are Created Equal, however the one thing that it couldn't stop was Byakko coming out completely every full moon. It was difficult to lock himself up or hide, though he was always grateful that Dazai had that storage container for him to use. He was mostly moody because...

Atsushi wasn't stupid, obviously he knew at some point Akutagawa and he would have to fight properly, but he couldn't deny that hanging out with Akutagawa outside of everything had been fun. They would spar, they would discuss things about work, though talking about the past was difficult for both of them. They both had their scars, but that was okay- it was a sign that they'd survived so much terror.

As if his thoughts had manifested the man in his thoughts, Akutagawa had sent him a text; Atsushi had wanted to keep in touch officially, since when they weren't fighting each other, they actually defended one another, Akutagawa's neck was proof of that claim. Shaking his head, ridding himself of that nightmarish image, Atsushi opened the text:

*Jinko, I know what tonight is, but I still want you to meet up with me today. If you trust me enough, meet me at the teahouse near the Red Brick Warehouse, in one hour.*

"You should trust him," Ranpo said before Atsushi could even gather his thoughts- he just looked towards the detective, who had a pocky sticking out of his mouth, and was looking through some drawings that Vanitas had made, "Akutagawa's obviously up to something, and I can confirm it's nothing nefarious. Even if it was, you'd still go, right?"

"I don't need to confirm that, you already know you're right." It was like Ranpo was a mind-reader. *Not Gifted, my ass.* Still, he was right, of course he was. If Akutagawa asked to meet, then he'd go, even if nobody else trusted him. The deadline was now four months away, but it didn't matter to him- he could only live in the present for the time being, so he wouldn't let the thoughts of his and Akutagawa's inevitable fight to the death bother him.

Besides, he wasn't needed at the office anyway. Vanitas was probably at the café with the Tanizaki's, the President was at a meeting with Special Operations, and Dazai was likely causing problems. Kyouka and Kenji were enrolled at the local school, so they were likely at their apartments doing their homework. Though Ranpo essentially gave him the go-ahead, Kunikida frowned at him, "Akutagawa's just trying to get you to drop your guard, make it easier for him to kill you."

"No, he isn't. Even if he was, he's still gotta keep his promise for another four months, he won't fight me until then..." Wait, was he actually *defending* the guy who was going to turn him into a tiger skin rug? Atsushi had caught himself but cleared his throat, "I don't believe there's malicious intent. Besides, I can handle myself. I promise, Mr. Kunikida."

Kunikida looked at him from over the top of his glasses and sighed, "Fine. I may not trust that wretched dog, but I trust *you*. Try and stay safe."

"I will!" He ran off after that, though he had the sense to keep his location on his cell in case anything did happen. He doubted Akutagawa would break his promise and kill him early, but one can never be too careful.

*****

The teahouse was one that Akutagawa frequented with Gin, since it was a nice halfway point between the Port Mafia base and their apartment. Akutagawa felt a bit more relaxed than usual- Vanitas had found that despite his Ability being unrelated to the book, which apparently showed illnesses and maladies in Vampires, he could still use it- Vampires were turning back to human, though it was a slow process, since Vanitas was only one man, and Fukuchi had turned about 38% of the entire world into Vampires.

He saw Atsushi heading in his direction and gave him his full attention, "Weretiger. How are you feeling?"

"...same as I always do on days like this." Akutagawa gave him a look of pity; the full transformations weren't something Atsushi had control of, and containing a wild tiger was about as easy as it sounded. Byakko never hurt anyone, but it would break into places that had food, or rummage for scraps. It was a good thing that the Municipal Police and the Military Police had agreed that he wasn't a risk, otherwise he'd be shipped off to Mersault, or put to death.

Morbid thoughts aside, Akutagawa just nodded sympathetically, "I'm going to help you with that. For now, let's get something to eat so you're not suffering later. What's your favourite?"

"I, uhh... chazuke... wait, why are you help-"

"Chazuke. Alright, I'll order us a few bowls, you're going to need the energy."

That *always* happened. Atsushi would ask Akutagawa why he was being nice, or why he was helping, or even why he was so determined to wait for months before they fought to the death, but there was never any answer. Akutagawa had changed since Vanitas reversed the Vampirism... though he also changed in a few other ways. Lungs aren't able to be healed completely once damaged, but the pain could be eased and living with painful lungs could be fine if handled correctly.

Vanitas had apparently been a doctor in his world, and had developed some herbal medicines and remedies, since his world was more advanced in some ways, less advanced in others. Astermite meant that Vanitas' world had a more advanced fuel source while this world would be royally fucked eventually. While hospitals were more advanced here, some of Vanitas' medicines were far better for so much, including a remedy to soothe Akutagawa's lungs, chest and throat.

It wasn't difficult to see all the changes. Akutagawa's coughing had all but subsided, and because of this, he was going out more often since the air didn't feel like smoke was filling his lungs every time he breathed, though he still wore a face mask whenever he went to the beach. The sun was having an affect on him as well, as he'd actually been going out and walking, so he'd developed a slight tan. Finally, the most obvious change was that he'd put on a slight bit of weight- who knew it was easier to enjoy food when you weren't constantly coughing up everything you swallowed?

Atsushi could finally see just how much Akutagawa could eat in a sitting now, and despite him obviously not gorging himself, it was apparent that it was more than he'd usually eat. They both ate until they had a small pile of bowls each, then Akutagawa paid the bill. The time was going faster than Atsushi had liked, since he honestly just wanted to sit here and talk with Akutagawa. It was like they could be normal kids for once. Akutagawa may point out that at 20 years old, he was no longer a child, but Atsushi wasn't buying that.

Once it had evidently reached the right time, Akutagawa stood up and held his hand out to Atsushi, "Are you willing to trust me?"

He shouldn't. Akutagawa had hurt him so much, and yet... when everything looked bad, and Atsushi was at his lowest moments, Akutagawa was the one to help him. Sure, Dazai had done a lot, but that was more because he must have felt obligated, Akutagawa didn't have that same issue.

Atsushi took his hand.

****

"I didn't know you could drive!" It took around an hour, but Akutagawa had driven them both to what looked like a forest just outside of town. Akutagawa had a simple black car, complete Mafia style, and Atsushi had wondered how he never knew. After all, most of the Port Mafia of a higher station, like Akutagawa, Kouyou, Chuuya and obviously the Boss, were normally driven around.

"It's a skill that a lot of people need to learn, Jinko. I learned to drive at 14." He smirked when he watched Atsushi grow pale and simply nodded, "Illegal, of course. But we are the Port Mafia for a reason. The Boss and some of the execs teach any young recruits the basic criminal stuff, like how to kill, steal, manipulate. However, we are also taught first aid, how to drive, how to cook and to protect ourselves and the Port Mafia."

"...did Dazai skip the learn to cook tutorial? And the driving one?" Atsushi winced at remembering the slop Dazai once served to them, calling it his *Super Stamina Hot Pot Curry*. Yosano's Ability worked overtime that day. And Kunikida had told Atsushi about Dazai's driving- his eyes still looked haunted by the memory, and he ended up throwing up. Driving so bad that even the memory causes motion sickness? Impressive, if not horrifying.

Akutagawa failed to hold back his laughter this time, and Atsushi stared at him; this was the first time he'd ever heard the sound of Akutagawa's laugh, and it was enough to make him smile. In that moment, with him holding his stomach and shaking with a grin on his face, Akutagawa looked younger. It was truly a sight, though Atsushi hid concern over the fact that his heart had skipped a beat, and he wasn't quite sure why his thoughts turned to just how *beautiful* Akutagawa looked with-

"No, he tried to learn," Akutagawa said while wiping a few stray tears from his eyes, continuing to giggle, "However, it was quickly decided that some things shouldn't be taught to some people. Meaning, only Dazai. Is he still bad?"

"Less said the better." Atsushi laughed, wincing at the memories. He looked around, at all the trees, flowers and listened to the birds chirping from above. It was so peaceful here, and the setting sun kept them warm for the time being. Akutagawa had picked up a backpack from the trunk of his car before they had started walking, and Atsushi knew better than to ask. Eventually, they reached a clearing, where there was a giant tree, lying on its side with its roots revealed. Atsushi glanced at Akutagawa who just stared at the tree before asking quietly, "Akutagawa, what is this place?"

"...we've known each other a long time. Obviously things are a little strained between us, but I know I can trust you. So, you can call me Ryū, if you'd like." That had made Atsushi flinch, but he couldn't deny that being told he could use not only Akutagawa's given name, but a shortened version to make it more casual, felt really good.

"Ryū. Okay, deal... though I don't think I'd get used to you calling me Atsushi. That freaked me out enough when you had the flu." They both looked embarrassed at that and Atsushi rubbed the back of his neck, "Weretiger and Jinko are fine."

"Agreed. And to answer your question... this is where I met Dazai." Atsushi froze and stared at Akutagawa, who had a warm smile on his face, "I was 14 years old. I came here, tracking down some men who had attacked Gin and I's street family."

It wasn't a secret that the Akutagawa siblings grew up in the slums, mostly the ones in Suribachi City, but to hear Akutagawa openly recounting the memories was strange. Atsushi wasn't sure he could ever actually tell anyone about his time at the Orphanage- the burns, the stabbing, getting nails hammered into his hands, the time he was nearly crucified? He ignored his thoughts as he continued to listen:

"One of the boys had stolen a diamond from those men, and Rashōmon proved that it was real. We were all so excited, thinking about where to sell it, knowing that with that money, we could buy a place of our own and enough food to live off until we could heal, get cleaned up, and find jobs to continue living a decent lifestyle." Even as desperate, starving children, they weren't willing to be stupid or wasteful with money. "However... those men hunted us down, and attacked."

"All for one diamond?!" That was disgusting. He winced and looked at Akutagawa, "How many of you were there?"

"Seven. Then suddenly, it was just Gin and myself. When I'm afraid or panicked, I can't control Rashōmon properly, so I was unable to avoid getting shot in the stomach. Gin was the only girl, and the men saw it. So they took her with them when they couldn't find the diamond, with the intent to sell her." Atsushi's body went cold, yet he couldn't imagine how Akutagawa must've felt.

A 14 year old boy, who had watched his friends die, got shot, and had his only family stolen from him. Obviously he would have wanted revenge, acted like a rabid dog who had lost too much and decided to go truly feral. Atsushi understood now why Akutagawa made sure to keep as calm as possible with fighting- if Rashōmon can't protect him, nothing can.

Again, thoughts manifested as Rashōmon took a small form, appearing as a demonic head on Akutagawa's shoulder, nuzzling its master's cheek, which made him smile. Not many people understood that Rashōmon was a Living Ability: a Gift that was literally alive. Capable of its own thoughts and feelings, but still under the control of it User. Demon Snow was an example of this, and while Byakko was as well, it was more independent and didn't do what it was told when fully out.

"I tracked the men down, to here. They didn't have Gin with them, so I demanded to know where she was. That was when they made the mistake of lying to me. They told me that she had been killed on her way to the person who bought her." He took a breath, trying not to let the memories consume him completely, "I hurt them, screamed obscenities, demanded to know who killed her. But they only screamed, or told me to kill myself if I wanted to see her again. I killed them all."

Atsushi found himself walking over to Akutagawa and putting his hands on his shoulders, "Ryū, if this is too much, I-" He watched as Akutagawa put a hand on top of his, before shaking his head.

"I'm okay, Jinko. Anyway, after that, I heard a voice from behind me. It was a boy, a little older than me, his eye wrapped with bandages. Rashōmon thought he was going to hurt me, and lashed at him, only to be dissipated by his Ability." Dazai, of course. Atsushi tilted his head and Akutagawa smirked, "The men were jewel smugglers for the Port Mafia, but found out they could make more profit by selling them to other organisations. Dazai came to eliminate them, but saw that I had done his job for him. I was lost, a scared child with nothing left. So I asked him: *can you give me a reason to live*? And he did. He lead me to the Port Mafia."

That explained Akutagawa's earlier jealousy. Dazai had saved Atsushi, too. Though the circumstances were very different. Atsushi concentrated on the story though, "Did he also lead you to Gin?"

"He did. She'd been sold to a child fighting ring." At the sight of Atsushi's jaw dropping, he sighed, "*Yes*, that's a thing. *No*, the Port Mafia doesn't allow that. We train children to work with us, we'd never force them to fight to the death for profit."

"Okay, thank God." He took a breath to relax then nodded towards the backpack, "Sorry to change the subject, but..?"

Akutagawa answered by removing the backpack and emptying its contents: a few blankets, some food, hot tea in flasks, and some spare clothes. He looked towards Atsushi and spoke gently, "There's a second reason I brought you here. I know your Tiger causes issues in town, so... now it has a whole forest to explore. I'll stay with you, make sure you don't wander off, and you can transform without fear."

Atsushi moved without thinking. He wrapped his arms tightly around Akutagawa, feeling as if he could cry. This beautiful forest was perfect for Byakko to wander and explore, and with nobody around, there was zero chance of anyone getting hurt. Akutagawa could easily protect himself if the Tiger was hostile, but he doubted that it would be. Mostly because...

Fun fact: tigers aren't able to purr like cats do, and yet- here Atsushi was, a soft rumbling sound coming from his chest, that only got louder when Akutagawa wrapped his arms around Atsushi. He made no comments about the purring, and Atsushi suddenly understood why as Rashōmon began to make a similar sound. The Tiger and Rashōmon purred together, and they made their Users want to laugh, but they were also getting their Users to relax.

After a little longer, Akutagawa pulled away, to set up the blankets. Atsushi also noticed that he'd brought a book about birds, seeing that some of the birds on the cover were actually in the forest. It would be good to see what birds they could spot while the sun was still providing light. He also had another book for entertainment- Atsushi recognised it as one Kyouka read, and while he thought the language used was a little vulgar for her, he saw that it was obviously a love story and let it slide.

They ate snacks and bird watched, but then Akutagawa decided to ask: "Do you remember how you got your Ability?" At his puzzles look, Akutagawa elaborated, "Were you born with the Tiger, or did you inherit it? Or... did the Orphanage experiment on you, or traumatise you enough that the Tiger was the result?"

Atsushi frowned to himself, having to really think about that. The first option of being born with the Tiger made sense, though it was certainly an unusual Gift to be born with. Not unheard of, just unusual. The only experiment that he went through was with Shibuzawa, but he already had the Tiger by that point. Maybe the trauma did create the Ability, but at the same time, weren't they beating the shit out of him *because* he could turn into a Tiger? He had nobody to inherit the Gift from, so that was out of the window. "...I have no idea. If I had to guess, I'd say I was born with it."

"I see. Forgive my curiosity, I just couldn't help myself!" Akutagawa wanted to know more about Atsushi, it felt better to. The boy had tried to save him so many times, even when he was verbally and physically assaulting him. Even when Fukuchi killed him, the last thing he saw was Atsushi trying to reach out to him. The mind may trick people, but eyes don't lie- Atsushi had been devastated by his death, and Akutagawa would have been as well if their positions had been switched. Not that he could admit that, yet.

"...what about you?" He found himself asking meekly. When he saw Akutagawa's face drop, he hurriedly spoke while waving his hands, "You don't have to answer, I just-"

"Inherited." He said with a soft voice. Atsushi blinked and Akutagawa sighed, "Well, I took Rashōmon from its original master- mistress, actually- though it chose me to wield it."

Atsushi found himself sitting up and giving Akutagawa his full attention. He chuckled and looked up at the sky- once he'd verified that there was enough time, he told his story:

*****

When Gin and I were young, I think I was about 6, so Gin was 4, our parents decided that they didn't want kids anymore. So they dumped us at our grandparents doorstep, and we never saw them again. Our grandmother was Gifted with Rashōmon- a Living Ability that turns cloth into a blade, armour, and a beast.

She didn't want children, nor grandchildren, she wanted servants. So Gin and I were forced to take that role. Our grandfather wasn't any better- we couldn't even call them our grandparents, we had to refer to them as Master and Mistress. So we became their help, having to cook, clean, go shopping. We weren't allowed to spend a penny on ourselves, and we could only eat the scraps that they didn't eat.

Years were spent like that, but things changed one day; the Master had developed a lung disease, one I found out later that the bastard knew he would develop and pass on to any offspring. He didn't bother to get treatment, refused any medication Gin and I bought... we hated him, but we still didn't want him to die. But he perished. That was when the Mistress decided she was done with "being nice".

She sought out any excuse to beat us, and slash us using her Gift, but what she didn't count on was the fact that Rashōmon was *alive* and had morals of its own. One day, she was whipping me, I think I didn't scrub the floor well enough, but Rashōmon just... wrapped around her wrist and stopped her. That was when I learned that it was alive.

Tachihara once made the joke of me being vulnerable when naked, but the truth is, Rashōmon is a part of *me* not just my clothing. I just can't use the Ability with no cloth. However, Rashōmon does take a while to transfer from cloth to nothing, so if I have Rashōmon in my coat and take it off, it takes a few moments before I can use it on my shirt. Thats what happens when we use Kokko Zessō, I make sure that Rashōmon stays with you, Weretiger.

The Mistress was so angry at Rashōmon for refusing to hurt me, that she stripped naked then and there, so that Rashōmon was still in her kimono. From there, she cast it into a fire. That's the thing with Living Abilities- they feel pain just like us. And it's screams were horrible to hear. She just watched it burn, and left. That... was how I developed a bond with it. I saved a scrap of the burning cloth and managed to douse the flames. It was such a relief to see the beast's tiny head rise from the cloth, and I assured Rashōmon that it would be okay. It reformed back on the Mistress later, but something had obviously changed.

The beatings were mine to take, but clearly the Mistress had enough. She decided that I'd never be perfect, no matter how many beatings I took, so she decided she'd take away the one thing that mattered most to me: Gin.

She'd grabbed a kitchen knife, and went to stab my sister, but Rashōmon made her sleeve so tight that her wrist broke. After she dropped the knife, I grabbed it. One stab to the chest was all it took; I was furious, I wanted her to suffer, but I also wanted to be *better* than her. She laughed at me, even when she was dying, calling me weak and pathetic. My weakness in that moment died, and I finally spoke, words I'd never needed to use before, but it was fitting now.

"*Rashōmon: Jaws of Endless Gates!!*"

There was nothing left of her. I thought Gin would think I was a monster, but even she had a moment and spat on the bitch's remains. Rashōmon had purred, calming us both down. That was the day I became Gifted.

****

"After that, we stole everything we could and ended up living in the slums." Akutagawa was sat, holding his knees to his chest, and he saw that Atsushi had no expression on his face, "I'm sorry if I look more like a monster to you now, I and my Little Beast."

"No, you don't. You look like a caring brother who just couldn’t handle any more abuse." Atsushi held out his hand, summoning his Tiger's claws, "Besides, I can't judge. If I knew what I was capable of when I was younger, I probably would have killed the Headmaster myself, and I admit that I don't regret killing Shibuzawa. Both times, I didn't actually feel bad."

Taking a life was never easy, not even for the Port Mafia. Assassin's, mercenaries and usurpers, but still human. Sure, one can become distant and indifferent, but at some point, stomachs turn and you can't handle it. Even the Agency carried guns, but actually shooting someone was a different story. Shooting, slashing, hurting in general, everyone is physically capable, but not mentally.

Atsushi shivered as he realised that the sun had set, and the moon had begun rising, though he felt... calmer. Byakko was calm, this forest was peaceful. Maybe being able to run around, stretch its legs would do him the world of good? It didn't take long for it to become a reality.

White fur, bright yellow eyes, and giant claws formed, with a mouth filled with razor sharp fangs. But Byakko didn't growl or roar, it... sniffed.

The fearsome, supposedly man eating Tiger, was holding its head down, sniffing the ground like a puppy! It prowled, smelling the air, scratching trees, before breaking off into a run, climbing aforementioned trees or rolling around on the soft grass.

Akutagawa watched with a stunned expression, he couldn't help but take some photos and videos, completely awestruck. Atsushi was likely buried deep inside, and Byakko was the one completely in control. He briefly imagined that this must be what it's like for Chuuya using Corruption, having to let Arahabaki take the wheel as it were.

Hours were spent like this: Byakko explored the forest, not hunting since the only pray were the birds, plus because Atsushi had eaten a lot, the Tiger didn't feel the need to eat. Akutagawa went between watching, filming, taking pictures and reading his book.

He'd gotten a little *too* relaxed, he realised, when Rashōmon suddenly hissed- the Tiger had strolled up to them, though it seemed calm. Akutagawa trusted Rashōmon to protect him, as he held his hand out. Byakko seemed to recognise Akutagawa as someone that it's User cared about, and placed its head in Akutagawa's hand, letting out a soft purr.

*Incredible...* Akutagawa thought to himself as he pet the Tiger, feeling the soft rumbling of its chest. Byakko eventually laid down beside Akutagawa, falling asleep. It was really late, at least for them, it was about 3am now. Akutagawa didn't know how well this would turn out, but he laid beside the Tiger, pulling a blanket over himself and letting sleep consume him.

*****

Atsushi woke up the next morning feeling *warm*. He was still a little sleepy, but he became aware that he was wrapped in a blanket and... being held? But the only one with him was-

His eyes snapped open as he registered the fact that he was with Akutagawa last night. And right now, Akutagawa was asleep, *holding Atsushi in his arms*!! Atsushi tried to stay calm, and to not panic, trying to think about how to explain all this, when he felt his chest rumbling. Oh, did the Tiger decide to betray him?!

No, apparently not. Akutagawa's arms held him a little tighter, keeping Atsushi warm and secure. It was nice, *really* nice. He found himself yawning, and snuggling into Akutagawa's embrace completely.

Maybe five more minutes wouldn't hurt?

[bullet-prooflove]

Prey!Series Part Three: One in Five - OA Zidan x Reader

Tagging: @trublu2u @mrspeacem1nusone @greenies-green @rosaliedepp @whateversomethingbruh @anime-weeb-4-life @daydreaming-belle @burningpeachpuppy @scarlettsakura @divergent146 @upsteadlogic @malindacath @skyesthebomb @ @kilikonakapamana @yezzyyae @redpool @stxrryswvrld @district447 @soultrysworld @reneejett4

Prey!Series:

Part One: Trafficking - It's during a human trafficking case that Omar meets you.

Part Two: Mentality - Omar learns more about human trafficking.

You’re used to being underestimated. The men you hunt see women as prey, objects that yield to their strength, that bend and break under the violence that’s cast upon them. When they look at you, you know what they see. You’re an older version of their target demographic.

What they don’t see is the years of training.

The boxing, the krav maga, the improvised weapons.

They don’t know about the countless sparring sessions you’ve had with men who outweigh you, because you got caught out once and you won’t let it happen again.

Snake doesn’t know any of this when he literally runs into you in the stairwell. He just sees a woman, weak, pathetic, alone. When his muscular form slams into yours, you hit the wall with enough force that it dents the plaster upon impact. The dust erupts in a plume, showering the both of you with the gritty residue.

You ball up your fist driving it directly into his kidney. His knees buckle, his hand grasping your vest as he goes down, yanking you with him. He draws his arm back, smashing his fist up into your stomach and the air rushes out of your lungs. You end up on your hands and knees, gasping for breath as he scrambles to his feet.

You barely get your own underneath you when he lashes out with his boot, kicking you right in the face. Agony erupts in the left side of your face, the skin splitting as blood leaks into your eyes. His fingers thread through your hair, gripping it tightly at the roots before he slams your head against the wall. You black out for a second, the world shifting as you hit the tiles.

You’ve learned from experience that a second is all it takes.

You find yourself underneath him. His massive hands locked around your throat, his fingers dig into your flesh as he flexes them, squeezing as hard as he can. The oxygen leaves your lungs, and you scratch at his arms as he stares down at you with that look in his eyes. You’ve seen it before, the thrill of the violence, the excitement that comes with holding another person’s life in your hands. Darkness twinges at the edges of your vision as you clench your hand into a fist before striking the inside of his elbow joint with as much force as you can muster.

A scream tears from his throat, his grip loosening before you hit him again, this time smashing the heel of your palm right up into his nose. The crunch of bone and cartilage resounds through the corridor as blood explodes onto your shirt. You drive your fist into his nose again sending his head reeling back. Oxygen floods your lungs, and you leverage your weight, shifting out from underneath him.

You don’t give him the chance to recover. You grab his arm, your fingers digging into the hollow of his wrist and twisting it back into a lock. The agonised sound that erupts from his throat is beyond satisfying.

“Not so much fun when they fight back is it?” You snarl as you snap your handcuffs onto his wrist wrenching the other arm back before securing it at the base of his spine.

You hear Omar’s shout go up behind you, his footsteps resounding across the tile as he approaches.  There’s a relief in his arrival because the adrenaline is starting to leave your body and you can feel that tremble starting in your muscles.

He hauls Snake to his feet, crimson running down the other man’s features as he fixes you that vengeful gaze of his. You can feel the weight of Omar’s eyes on you, and you know how you must look to him. Beaten, bloody, broken.

You don’t even know why it matters.

“I need a minute.” You tell him and he nods his head in understanding before he shoves Snake towards the stairs.

You’re sitting on the floor when he returns after handing Snake over to Scola and Tiffany. Your elbows are resting on your knees, you head bowed low as you focus on your breathing. He says nothing as he comes to sit in the space beside you. His shoulder nudges lightly against yours and you find yourself nudging him back. There’s no judgement in his presence, no pressure, just a simple reassurance.

“It’s me.” You say finally. “I’m your one in five.”

“I know.” He says softly. “The way you talked about their experiences…”

He’d laid in bed last night thinking about this case, thinking about you. The way he felt whenever you touched him, like he’d known you for a thousand lifetimes. He’d stared at the ceiling replaying your interactions and your words, the ones from the hospital coming back to him.

“With rape, the person you are is completely obliterated, you can pick up the fragments, but they don’t fit the same way they used to.”

He remembered thinking how insightful they were at the time, how personal they seemed. A friend or relative he’d assumed. It’s as he listened to the rain pattering against his window that he realised there was sense of conviction in your voice, one that comes with experience. He can’t imagine the immense personal strength that it takes to survive something like that, to have part of your soul ripped away and then come back to this job, facing that violence day after day.

“You’re a badass you know that?” He says into the silence between the two of you.

You laugh, it’s a surprised sound, one that resonates through your entire body as he tilts his head towards you and smiles.

“I mean it.” He tells you resolutely. “Everything about you…”

He trails off because he’s slipping into dangerous territory. He knows how he feels about you, the depth of it. You’re dedicated, compassionate, everything he could ever want in a woman but your also guarded and that means can’t get a read on you.

“I like you, Omar.” You tell him, your fingertips playing with the woven bracelet on your wrist. It’s talisman of sorts, a reminder to live your life no matter how scared you might be because you can’t let the man who hurt you win, you can’t let him keep taking from you. “The way you make me feel…”

Alive, you want to say because there are parts of you that died after what happened and now, they’re flourishing again. When you look at Omar, you see his kindness, his compassion. You imagine nights wrapped up in his sheets, his skin brushing over yours as he makes love to you, his eyes on yours as the climax builds to a crescendo. You’ve been so closed off over the years, your life so devoid of love, of physical affection. You want to give yourself to him, to share that part of yourself again.

“After this case is over, let’s agree to go for coffee.” He says softly as he clambers to his feet. “Low key, no pressure, just you and me in a place of your choosing.”

He holds his hand out to help you. He smiles as you take it and you can’t help but fall in love with him just a little, because Omar, he’s beautiful inside and out.

“I’d like that.” You tell him as he pulls you to your feet. “Really Omar I would.”

Love Omar? Don’t miss any of his stories by joining the taglist here.

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Like My Work? - Why Not Buy Me A Coffee

[yaut-jaknowit]

It's All About Size

Pairings: Mai'tuiudh (Male Yautja) x Male Reader

Warnings: very suggestive themes, HEAVY size kink, sprinkles of praise, mlm, horny reader

Word Count: 1981

Summary: You're new to the realm of living out in space, stuck with only one other person on the ship. A large, blue Yautja, who trains on a regular basis. He easily dwarfs you. You're tall for a human but not for this Yautja. It's been brewing within your mind for a while now, ever since he picked you up from earth. Mia'tuiudh isn't as oblivious as you may hope he is. You won't be complaining in the end.

Author Note: I was scrolling through the Yautja tag when I stumbled upon an amazing idea. Yautja's and size kink. It's a main thing about them. Also, if you guys got ideas, don't be afraid to shove them into my inbox. It's currently open. I'm happy to write!

P.S. I'm still new to writing same-sex relationship's. If you guys can give me help, that would be amazing! Thank you

Dedicated to @kissmyaft. Thank you for this wonderful idea! You should check out my masterlist, wink-wink. Most of my stuff is gender neutral, just look at the pairings :)

Masterlist

Ao3

The calming noise of a blade sliding through a sharpener washed over you. It’s handle held firmly within your grasp. You weren’t no hunter, compared to the bulky beast honing his skills before you. That didn’t stop him from teaching the ways to be a hunter. If you were going to be on his ship, share his bed and food, you were going to learn. That’s what he told you on the first day.

Said alien danced before you, knocking a drone away from him. Another came up to zap at his glistening scales yet the Yautja was already in motion. Your eyes watched as he easily defended himself from these sparring drones.

Blood started to head south within your body. Even as tall as you are for a man, Mai’tuiudh towered over you. You haven’t met any others of his kind. It made you wonder if he average or not for his own height. Not that it bothered you. Not at all.

Red dusted your cheeks once you felt your pants tighten. Curses already formed within your head as you spun around. You faced the workbench in the back of the sparring room and focused on sharping the hunting knife in your hand.

Mai stopped what he was doing when an ambrosial scent washed over him. A drone was able to zap him on the back. Pain shocked through his system, but he didn’t even feel it. The smell drawing him in.

With a short click of his tusks, the drones stopped moving. They quietly returned back to their holes in the wall. His eyes shot over to the only other being on his ship. A minute smirk growing on his mandibles. Mai has had theories about the ooman. But this sealed his fate to Mai.

Long strides of powerful legs carried Mai easily over to oblivious ooman. Mai was a Yautja of action. He wasn’t about to dance around the ooman. But at the same time, why not tease you? Have some fun along the way. Oh, that thought made his chest rumble.

You tensed at the impossibly close noise, head snapping towards the origin. A gasp almost tore at your throat. There, in all his glory, stood Mai’tuiudh. His navy-blue chest rising and falling with each deep breath. Moisture stuck to his scales like a second skin; not sweat but humidity from the ship. Burnt orange eyes set on you. Your lips pressed together at the sight before you.

It took all of your willpower not to let your knees collapse underneath you. That didn’t stop them from shaking. “Hey-hey, uh, hey. Um, so. What’s up?” God, you were a mess. Just at the sight of him and you were acting like you were asking a girl out back in middle school.

Yet, the blue Yautja didn’t say anything. Mai just kept watching you with those striking eyes of his. His mandibles barely twitched.

Confused, maybe a little worked up too, you slowly turned back around to the work bench. It wasn’t unusual for the Yautja to be silent. He was a hunter after all. Yet, you were suspicious of his actions. But, these knives and whatnot won’t sharpen themselves. He’ll either get bored or finally speak when he wanted to.

Hands rested on your hips. Warmth washed over your back as a blazing body pressed up into you. A gasp finally scratched at your throat. Your hands slapped down on the metal bench and try to grasp it. Heat raced through your veins at the feeling of him. “Ma-Mai, what a-“ his claws start to press into your skin. You force yourself to bite your bottom lip to stop from moaning.

Your growing erection jumped at the feel of Mai. Said alien made it worse. Mai tugged you flushed with his moist scales and placed his jaw on top of your head. One of his arms slid around your torso and held you there. Shit, he’s so big.

He tasted the heavy air and let his chest rumbled. You smelled divine, right for the taking. Yet, he stayed there. “Aren’t you suppose to be sharpening my weapons?” he purred into your ear. Your entire body trembled, one that he relished in. Mai felt his own body behave in return at yours.

“It’s, it’s really ha-hard to focus… when you’re pres-sed up against me,” you stuttered, hands shakily reaching out to grasp the sharpener. Paya, if he knew you were going to react like this, he should’ve done this a long time ago. He’s had his suspicions for awhile now. It was many rotations after you joined him.

Mai ignored what you had told him. “Tell me, why are you behaving this way? If you do, I’ll let you go.” You didn’t want him to let go. On the other hand, to save yourself the growing embarrassment, you would be forced to tell him. If only the ground would open up and swallow you whole. Worst of all, it had to be the truth as well. Mai could smell when you lied.

A short purr rumbled from his chest. The vibrations rolled over your sensitive skin before hitting your hardening cock. Your eyes rolled back, throat closing before any sounds could escape. You bite your bottom lip so hard you tasted blood. Oh fuck, you were in some deep trouble now. You couldn’t trust your voice now, without making a noise that would embarrass you.

The Yautja made a soft noise and peered over your shoulder to look you in the eye. When you absolutely refused to do that, head turned away, he purred again. Same reaction from your body.

Fuck! You had to get him off of you. Now. He was far stronger than you, had the height advantage, and skills to put you face first into the ground. God, that made everything worse.

With reddened cheeks and no dignity left, you spilled what you hidden deep. “Size kink!” you shouted at first, voice two notches higher. “I have a-a size kink, alright?” Those words were said with such defeat. At the same time though, it felt like a huge weight was lifted off of your shoulders. Though, the embarrassment now would kill you.

Since you finally exposed yourself to the only other being on this spaceship, you believed he would release you. No, he didn’t. Mai tightened his grasp and placed his chin back on your head. “Hmm, you like the fact I’m bigger than you? Stronger than you? The fact I can easily dominate you?” He was loving every second of this. One of your hands grasped at the one on your stomach. His claws biting into your skin when you did. How did he know? Those words…

“Ever since I’ve been to earth, I’ve done my fair share of reading. A smart hunter researches before the hunt,” he mumbled. The hand on your stomach petting at the skin there. Your hormones were going haywire at this point.

That means he’s known almost this entire time.

Since that day, things have changed. You had spilled your hidden secret to him, one he’ll forever tease you about. You, a ooman, loving his size and strength. Though, nothing happened afterwards. You were nervous on the whole ordeal. That doesn’t stop him from randomly coming up behind you, hands skating over your skin. Purrs vibrating your skin. It makes you ache for him. But you never had the balls to ask or even suggest such a thing.

Water dripped down the toned body of Mai’tuiudh. The blue Yautja shook his head, droplets splashing about in the washroom. His dark tresses slapping against his hide. Your eyes refused to move away from his handsome frame; no matter how hard you tried. Everything about him screamed power.

His perfectly shaped ass was facing you as the Yautja bent over to pick his discarded loin cloth up. You would happily take a bite out of it. Your eyes widened at that thought. With a disappointing huff to yourself, you refocused on the tablet before you. Sometimes you could be unhinged.

The familiar musk Mai produced washed over you. You took in a deep breath at that and softly closed your eyes. It’s heavy and fills the room due to the humidity.

There was the soft pitter-patter of Mai’s wet feet as he moved around. Mai dropped his loin cloth somewhere to the side then headed towards you. You didn’t think much of it as you opened your eyes and continued screwing about on your tablet. A simple game pulled up for the fun of it. You have to keep yourself busy or else you’ll go made out here in space.

Two blue legs appeared in the edge of your vision. A brow was softly raised at this but you held strong. If you happened to look up, you might get caught looking. He would tease you all over again.

Mai just stood there, burning eyes set solely on you. His hands twitched at his sides. He wanted you to want him the same way he does. The ache that resonated deep within his bones. It made him want to touch you, tease your softer skin, lick it. Draw out those light noise you believe he doesn’t hear while you’re in the bathroom alone. He wanted to fill you, keep you close in his arms. Be his mate.

With two easy strides down further into the concave bed, he knelt down between your open legs. You kept your eyes glue to the device in hand. Your body tensed, hands grasping the tablet a little too hard. What in the world was he doing?!

Blue fingers wrapped around the top of the tablet and pushed it down. When you still refused to look him in the eye, he used that same hand to tilt your chin up at him. Your eyes locked onto his almost immediately, biting your bottom lip at the sight.

He continued to crawl forward, staying on the balls of his feet. As he did so, you were forced to lay back on the pelts around you. “Good boy,” he whispered and placed his free arm next to your head. At those words, your brain short circuited. All you could hear was him chuckling.

When a warm palm touched your thigh, you snapped back to reality, gazing up at the large Yautja. Mai snaked his hand up, pushing up the hem of your t-shirt. Claws skated over your sensitive stomach before stopping. His entire paw covered almost all of your belly, thumb gently stroking the skin there. He leaned down, creating a curtain with his tresses around the two of you. “Tell me to stop if you don’t want this. I’ll stop,” he clicked lowly, eyes boring into yours.

You took great notice of him. His bulky body hovering over yours, easily swallowing you in his shadow. Hand able to take up almost all of your stomach. If he wanted to, he could easily pin you down and fuck you with his size alone; plus his strength, you would never stand a chance against him. No, instead, he was asking.

One final look into his burnt orange eyes. You reached out, discarding the tablet to the side, and hooked your arm around the back of his neck. “Please don’t stop.”

[nykuna]

THE IRONY OF FATE

Chapter 2 : Prey.

pairing : Ryomen Sukuna x fem reader

cw : angst, mention of drugs and alcohol, slow burn, romance

summary : After a long night's work, you've met a man whose name you don't yet know, but the threads of fate seem to be drawing you together.

jjk alternate universe : no jujutsu sorcerers, everyone is human.

The music feels louder than ever, the bass seems to vibrate every organ in your body, the lights flicker and you feel your mind slowly getting intoxicated by the alcohol you've consumed.

Lily's not back yet, she's been gone for a while. Already intoxicated by the alcohol in your veins, you decide it's time to have some fun. You get up, pushing aside the stranger still sitting next to you whom you've been trying hard to ignore, and walk over to the rest of the group who are playing a game of poker it seems.

The table is covered with piles of bills and empty glasses. Around the table, about 5 people are concentrating, but you notice that their eyes are red and slightly hooded, now you wonder how they can bet such large sums of money while under the influence. The rich really do have funny ways of entertaining themselves, and you can't help but judge them silently.

Lost in your thoughts again, you feel a hand come to rest on your waist causing you to shiver in surprise, you hurriedly turn around to find out who it belongs to and stumble backwards in your panic.

"Careful, I know I'm hot but you could still try to keep your balance." Damn, that's a pretty voice. You look up to see who's addressing you. Your gaze is greeted by a piercing green stare. You continue to explore his face as you come to your senses and realize that he's probably a boxer too, given the scar that adorns his lips.

"Sorry, I think I might be a little drunk," you murmur. "But would you mind taking your hand away? As far as I remember, we've never met." You say, holding his gaze.

"I just wanted to get closer to the table to watch the game, I bet quite a bit of money on Naoya. But I have to admit, you're not too bad to look at after all." He says, stepping back. Everything about this man screams red flag, the way he talks, the way he grabs a perfect stranger by the waist or his visible interest in gambling. Yet you can’t deny that he’s extremely attractive. "Im Toji, what’s your name pretty drunk girl i’ve never met before ?" he smirks.

"O-oh sorry," you apologize, shifting away from the table to guarantee him a better view. "My name is-"

Before you can finish introducing yourself to the handsome stranger, the atmosphere that had become so light, becomes heavy and intoxicating again.

Unsurprisingly, you realize that the tattooed man from earlier is now standing next to Toji. How is it that the universe seems to collapse in on itself when he arrives in your space? His crimson red gaze sends a shiver down your spine, and he taps Toji on the shoulder, looking you straight in the eye and smiling sideways as always. Your drunken mind is playing tricks on you again, but you can't help thinking that, his expression mixed with heady music and reddish lights, he looks particularly charismatic, attractive yet disturbing, almost demonic.

"You really ignored me all night to go hit on that guy?" he raises his eyebrow and sits behind you.

"We can understand why, maybe she doesn't like tattoos too much, gotta admit you're scary dude." Toji retorts, still facing you.

They continue to spar but you couldn't care less. At this point, all you can think about is the fact that you're caught between two particularly attractive and imposing men, bickering for your attention. And to be honest, you don't mind in the least.

It's time for you to order a new drink, you can enjoy yourself freely tonight as you look forward to spending the day in bed tomorrow. Completely ignoring the two men, you jostle them to make your way to the stairs.

With every step you take, you realize that you should surely have eaten something before feasting. Each step requires unwavering concentration, and the music pounding in your ears doesn't help you in the least. When you reach the steps, you take a breath to prepare yourself to go down, which in your current state seems almost impossible.

Finally breathing, you open your eyes and look at what's going on downstairs, despite the time, everyone seems to be enjoying their evening, and that's one of the things you love the most about your job, even if it wasn't uncommon to serve jaded or depressed customers at the bar, the dancefloor was always filled with groups of friends laughing out loud, couples seducing each other tenderly in the dim lights, their eyes always brimming with joy, love or envy.

Contemplating the scene, you feel a hand rest on your shoulder, the warmth of that hand against your skin brings you unprecedented comfort, you don't even bother to look at who it belongs to and you feel a breath close to your ear.

"Look, I know I've behaved like shit tonight, but at least let me help you down, you're in no condition." His low voice sounds divine in your ears, you must really have been drunk, but the mix of the touch of his hand, his presence so close enveloping you in his bewitching perfume, his voice so deep and yet surprisingly soft... Fuck, you can't fantasize about a complete stranger, especially not this one.

"I guess I could use the help…What's your name? Might as well introduce ourselves since you can't go 5minutes without me" you straighten up and give him a playful smile. You don't have the strength to fight him anymore, besides, he's far too hot for that.

"Everyone calls me Sukuna, but you, lucky girl, can call me Ryomen" he leans over to put his arm under your shoulder and supports you to make sure you don't collapse down the stairs, his gestures surprisingly gentle and considerate.

"Even though you didn’t ask, my name is y/n" you smile gently.

With that, you've finally arrived downstairs, and you spot Lily sitting at the bar laughing out loud with Suguru, which warms your heart as they seem to be getting along really well.

Ryomen asks you what you'd like to drink as you approach the bar, but you grab him by the arm and pull him towards Lily and Satoru.

He raises an eyebrow at the sudden contact, given that you've been avoiding him all evening, but he's happy to oblige.

"Oh my gosh y/n you're just in time, I was just telling Toru that you made me a cocktail so strong one day that I had to run to the bathroom after just one sip!" Toru huh? The evening seemed fruitful for Lily, more so than for you, that's for sure.

"Fuck yeah, I remember! I've got to say, no one could drink that without flinching..." You laugh with her. "Do you like challenges?" You turn to Ryomen and Satoru with a hint of mischief in your eyes.

"You looked at us? Bring it on, baby." Ryomen says as she sits down next to Satoru and Lily.

You call Shoko with a wave of your hand, and when she arrives at your level, you ask her if you can go behind the bar to prepare your « drink ».

"Oh my God, you're going to do it again..." she sighs with a smile, then opens the door for you to pass through.

Determined to make them regret the bet, you get out shot glasses and start mixing all the strongest alcohols you have on hand. Your condition no doubt makes the drink even more undrinkable than before, but you couldn't care less this was your way of getting back at Ryomen.

~

10AM, you're woken by the sounds of Lily, who has somehow found the strength to get ready for school despite last night's hectic pace. As you get up, a terrible headache takes hold of you, and you start to regret having partied so hard yesterday, especially as you have no memory of what happened after the cursed shot.

The sun shines brightly through your window and you hasten to close the curtain to avoid aggravating the dull pain in your skull. You finally decide to go to the kitchen to take some medicine and lots and lots of water.

Lily is already in the kitchen preparing her lunch.

"Damn y/n, you really look like shit today!" she laughs happily, you shoo her away and hastily ask her what happened at the end of the night.

"Honestly, I have no memory of it either, I just know we took the horrible shots too, so no wonder we don't remember a thing!" She finishes wrapping up her meal "Toru texted me that he'd ordered us an uber so we could get home safely."

"What a gentleman, you'll have to tell me all about it when you get home tonight!" you chirp before greeting her as she heads for the entrance to exit.

~

After a hot shower and several liters of water, you decide to go back to bed and enjoy your day off.

One thing's for sure: your brain isn't resting. Your thoughts can't help but revolve around him, Ryomen.

Everything about him intrigues you; if only you'd had less to drink yesterday, you'd know more about him. Now all you can do is imagine. But you do remember that he seemed to be friends with Satoru... maybe he was a famous athlete as well? Without further ado, you grab your phone to look up his name and hopefully some information about him, knowing that you won't be able to sleep until your curiosity is satisfied anyway.

When you unlock your phone, a notification catches your eye: an unknown number has sent you a picture, and you click on the mysterious message with a bit of anxiety, considering it was very unusual.

The photo is a picture of you taking a mysterious shot with Shoko and Lily...That bad huh? You can't help smiling, you look really silly, but you send it to Shoko to have a laugh with her.

When it's done, you go back to the unknown conversation and write a message, because deep down, you knew very well that only one very specific person could send you an unflattering photo without even introducing themselves.

[y/n] : Let me guess…

No less than 30 seconds later, you get a reply.

[Unknown]: Were you waiting for my text ?

[y/n]: Not rlly tbh :// How did you get my number anyway?

[Unknown]: I honestly don't even know anymore.

[y/n]: Wtv, you can delete it, yesterday night was fun but don't expect more.

[Unknown] : Come on i know you were thinking abt me all day long.

Of course you did, but you couldn't let it go any further, you still weren't mentally ready to commit to a relationship of any kind. Besides, everything about Ryomen screamed danger, from his profession to his looks to his behavior, you'd had enough with men like him.

[Unknown] : Wanna come over ? :)

Straightforward, isn’t he ? You know you shouldn't answer, but despite yourself, you feel this sensation in the pit of your stomach, begging for more. After him, you'd never spoken to the same man for more than one evening, choosing to protect yourself from all the dangers that come with feelings and relationships.

[y/n] : hell no, i was drunk last night, i must’ve confused you for a good guy :) wtv gotta go.

[Unknown] : Ah well we’ll see abt that :)

The fuck does he mean "we’ll see about that?" He's upset you again, but maybe that's a good thing, maybe now you'll finally be able to enjoy your day without having your thoughts polluted by him.

Despite all the good will in the world, you can't help but save his contact, "just in case".

~

After this brief conversation, your unfortunate fears about your own mind proved legitimate.

Even though you only spoke for 5 minutes, and not to say much of anything interesting, this little game of seduction had already gone to your head. Sure, it's a dangerous game, but you can't lie, feeling "wanted" again was particularly pleasurable. You knew that if you got back in touch with him, someone would end up getting hurt, because it seemed like fate was mocking you and had a nasty tendency to ruin all your relationships.

It was a mistake, and a big one. You should never have drunk yesterday, or even accepted his advances. It was a mistake you were paying for today by reminiscing about all your past mistakes, as painful as they were. All this without even having engaged anything with Ryomen, so you can't imagine the catastrophe if you decided to ignore the curse hanging over your head and follow your instincts.

No, you should protect yourself, you have to protect yourself, you can't afford another tragedy, you don't have the shoulders for it.

If you run away, you’ll never know.

More updates on AO3 : https://archiveofourown.org/works/56234707/chapters/142859620

Nyc <3

[mama-qwerty]

WIP Wednesday

Yes, I forgot, AGAIN.

Today's wip isn't necessarily a wip as in I'm actively working on it now, but something I wrote a while back that I'll likely never finish. It was my first time playing with Scarlett and Dread and I hadn't ironed out all the details on them yet. (Scarlett's species in this one is left to the reader's imagination, as I'd not quite hammered it down yet, and they'd shared a *ahem* romantic relationship. Referenced but not shown.)

Mostly I wanted to make Dread a jerk.

Rated T, I guess? I dunno.

~~~~~

Dread smiled at her, but the smile was sharp and mean, like the look in his eyes. It wasn’t a look she was used to seeing directed at her.

“I’m afraid I’ve grown bored with you, Scarlett,” he said with a shrug, turning away to stand with his arms crossed. “It was fun, but it’s over.”

Scarlett stood, her brows furrowed. “Bored with me? What are you talking about?”

He chuckled. “I just can’t keep up with the charade any longer.” He turned back, that insufferable smirk on his lips. “Pretending to care about you is so exhausting. It no longer interests me to keep it up.”

Icy shards stabbed into her heart, and Scarlett worked very, very hard to keep the tears that threatened from appearing. Dread loved seeing weakness in others, and she did not want to give him that satisfaction. “Pretending to care.”

“Oh, you were a good lay, one of the better whores I’ve had, but the upkeep is so tedious.”

That word was like a knife to her heart. Scarlett had never laid with a man for money, and she prided herself on being better than that. Dread knew that, which was probably why he used that word to begin with. “I am NO whore.”

He laughed a little harder, shaking his head. “Of course you are. Only instead of coin, your pay is pretty little words whispered in your ear.” Dread stepped closer, a look of pure malevolence on his face. “You’re beautiful, Scarlett. I’ve never felt this way about anyone, Scarlett. I would be nothing without you, Scarlett.” He stopped close to her and leaned in to whisper in her ear. “I love you, Scarlett.” He pulled back and laughed again. “Had I known how easy it was to bed you I would have done it a long time ago!”

Hurt and anger were sparring it out within Scarlett, and she let anger win. A deep, fiery rage built within her. How dare he. How dare this echidna stand here and laugh at her, betray her trust, and call her a whore. She wanted to scream at him, attack him, hurt him like he had hurt her.

But she stayed calm. Her face stayed stony neutral, betraying none of these feelings. She stared at him, her ocean blue eyes boring into his violet. The ones she used to love so much, but now wanted to gouge out of his sockets with her own hands.

She and Dread had been lovers for the better part of a year. It had taken time to build to that, as she had trouble trusting and lowering the defensive walls around her heart. But he had been persistent, and finally won her over.

And now it would seem it had all been a game to him.

The walls went back up. And Scarlett shut down.

“It’s a pity, really,” Dread said as he reached forward and caressed her head. “I always loved running my fingers through your hair.”

Without thinking, Scarlett pulled her little dagger from her belt. Dread drew back, his hand going for his cutlass, but before he could draw it, she grabbed her long braid and sliced off the last four inches. Her eyes never left his.

“Knock yourself out,” she said, her voice flat as she slapped the cut braid into Dread’s palm. “I have duties to attend to.”

And with that, Scarlett turned on her heel and stalked out of the captain’s study, back straight and head held high.

Dread watched her go, an honest look of pure shock on his face.

~X~X~X~

A week later, and Dread sat at the helm of the Angel’s Voyage, looking out over the sea. A soft breeze blew over the water, and the sun touched the horizon, turning the sky and ocean lovely shades of pinks and oranges and purples.

The crew lounged on the main deck below him, a rare night when all chores were done, and there were no pressing matters to attend to. The lot sat near the bow, chatting and sharing a bottle of rum between them.

His eyes kept wandering back to Scarlett. His first mate.

And the ache that had appeared in his chest a week ago gave a squeeze.

He was the great, legendary Captain Dread. Most feared pirate on the seven seas. Ruthless and cutthroat. He would kill without a second thought.

But the idea of being in love scared the piss out of him.

Which is why he had said those things to Scarlett. Those awful, terrible things. Things he knew had to have hurt her. She may not have shown it, but he knew. Every word was calculated, chosen to deliver the maximum amount of pain.

Because he was afraid of his feelings for her. Afraid they made him weak.

So he had to cut them out. Cut her out.

He thought it would be easy. Push her away from him and these weak feelings would go away. He’d feel like himself again. Be the fierce captain everyone feared and respected again.

But that’s not the way it worked.

When she’d walked out of his study that night, a pit had appeared in his chest. It was hollow, and empty, and felt like a wound that refused to heal.

And every time he looked at her, it got worse.

He contemplated kicking her off the ship entirely. Letting her go the next time they made port somewhere. But the thought, the mere idea that she would be completely out of his life made that pit in his chest feel like a gaping hole. His heart had hammered like a war drum, his chest tightening, and he felt for all the world as though he were dying.

Just at the thought of Scarlett leaving.

He didn’t like this. Didn’t like feeling like this. He had ended things with her to keep himself from feeling like this. But everything had gone wrong and now he felt as though part of him were missing.

Dread watched from his vantage point as the crew chatted. As they laughed. As she laughed. Her shorter hair barely brushed her shoulders now, and she pulled it back in a simple ponytail to keep it out of her way as she worked. It bobbed and swung with every movement of her head, and that ache in his chest flared.

He missed the long braid. It had hung down to the middle of her back, and she would sometimes pull it over her shoulder to squeeze if she was feeling particularly stressed. But it was gone, sliced off that night a week ago. He still couldn’t believe she’d done that. Just chopped it without a second thought, and slapped it into his hand. A parting gift, he supposed. A physical representation of how she cut him out of her life.

He’d kept it. After the shock wore off, he’d sat and stared at that length of hair for a long time. Then he carefully brushed and re-braided it, tying the loose end with a little strip of leather from his own quills. It now sat in the drawer of his night stand, carefully wrapped in a silk scarf.

Truth be told, it was soothing. The soft texture, the lingering scent of her skin and soap. He sometimes found himself just sitting and holding it, stroking it with a thumb. Thinking of her.

She was beautiful. She was fierce. She was stubborn and kind and infuriating and smart and insecure and clever and funny and brave and . . .

And now, she sat on the deck, patches of color burning high on her cheeks as she drank and laughed, and a soft smile spread on Dread’s lips as he watched her.

Memories surfaced. The two of them sitting on the deck, late at night, talking about nothing in particular and watching the stars move overhead. The look in her eyes as she gave him all of her attention and made him feel like the center of her world. The sound of her laugh as she let loose one that was loud and free and completely unhindered by any feelings of self-consciousness.

The feel of her hands on his muzzle, caressing him as she spoke softly into his ear. Her softness when she hugged him, her scent filling his nostrils. And when they made love, and the rest of the world melted away the moment he was in her arms.

He loved her.

He shouldn’t.

But he did.

And it scared him.

Her laugh broke him from his thoughts, and he flicked his eyes down to her. She leaned against their navigator, Liam Parker, as her laughter filled the air. Her eyes were closed tightly, and the patches of color on her cheeks turned darker as she blushed.

A flash of jealousy flared through Dread, and he swallowed. She used to laugh like that with him. Used to lean on him like that.

Now she shook her head, pointing at Batten Rouge. The bat snickered and waved a hand toward Scarlett, and Dread listened hard to pick out their conversation.

“. . . not how that happened, and you know it, Batten!” Scarlett said, her voice like the sweetest bell in Dread’s ear. “I did not start a war between ships!”

“I said ALMOST, sweetie!” Batten responded, a little laugh in her voice. “That was before Sails joined the crew, and I’m sure he’d love to hear it.”

Sails was the little two-tailed fox who’d come aboard a few months ago. Ironically, that was Scarlett’s doing. She had a ‘good feeling’ about the boy, even though he couldn’t have been more than 12 years old.

Now the fox turned with a smile to Scarlett, seemingly interested in the tale.

“Ugh, fine!” Scarlett groaned, before turning to the boy. “This was about four or five years ago, when we were at the port at West Island. Some big guy offered me a drink and, you know, free booze, so I accepted. We chatted a bit, before he started to get, shall we say, handsy, and I, being the polite lady I am, asked him to remove said hand from my leg. He refused, so I decked him.”

Laughter erupted at this revelation, and Dread smiled. He remembered that. Scarlett was usually good with people—she could read them like no other he’s ever known—and her wit usually kept her out of trouble. But when her ire was up, when she let her temper out, she was a force to be reckoned with.

Batten leaned forward. “Only it turns out Mr. Handsy was the first mate of the Black Pearl! Their whole crew surrounded us and wanted Scar’s head on a pike for ‘disrespecting’ him. Cap’n Dread had to get involved to keep them from tying her to their anchor and dragging her along the bottom!”

He remembered that, too. It wasn’t unusual for crews of rival ships to get into skirmishes, and in most cases he liked to let them handle it amongst themselves. But that night, he’d raced down to the pub and positioned himself between the rival crew and Scarlett. That was before they entered a romantic relationship, but even then, he felt unusually protective of her.

Dread watched as Scarlett’s laugh died at Batten’s retelling. The color was still high on her cheeks, and she flicked her eyes up toward him. His heart nearly stopped as their gaze locked.

The smile dropped from his lips, and he forgot how to breathe for a moment.

Scarlett blinked first, tearing her eyes away as she turned her head. She said something he couldn’t quite catch to the rest of them, and pushed herself up to hurry down to the crew cabins.

Dread’s heart clenched.

He turned to look out over the water again.

~X~X~X~

Scarlett stood in the captain’s study, her hands clasped behind her back. She was struck with a feeling of deja vu of that night a month ago, when he had ended their relationship.

Shattered her heart.

She’d done a good job of keeping herself under control while on the job. Staying professional when she had to deal with him, and never allowing her personal feelings to interfere. It was as if nothing had changed, as far as the crew knew.

But at night, it was a different story.

She cried herself to sleep most nights. His words—those hurtful, painful words—echoed in her head in the dark, and they still stung. They still cut through her and tore at her heart, ripping it to shreds as she lay there. And then she would fall asleep to carry through the next day, pretending she was okay.

The walls were back up now, and she regarded him as her captain. Nothing more.

“The crew would like to know when we plan to make port next,” she said, her voice even and polite. “Supplies are running low.”

Dread stood in a similar pose, his hands clasped behind him with his back to her, looking out the large window that faced out the back of the ship. He didn’t respond for a long moment, and Scarlett was going to repeat her question when he finally spoke.

“I hear you’re thinking of leaving.”

She wasn’t expecting the sudden lurch her heart gave.

“I have been considering it, yes.”

Another moment of silence.

“You’d abandon your ship? Your crew?”

“Neither are mine, Captain,” she said, and she almost slipped and let some snark into her voice. She pulled it back, and returned to the neutral tone. “I’m just the first mate. A ship can function without one.”

The echidna nodded, his back still to her. “That’s true, I suppose.”

Silence feel upon them again, and Scarlett’s heart began to race. She wasn’t sure what she felt so anxious about. They were done. He’d made that very clear. The things he’d said had very effectively killed any feelings she had for him.

But every time she looked at him, her heart twisted. She couldn’t stop thinking of the times they’d shared together. The long talks at night. The laughs. The love. He had made her feel like there was nothing else in this world he wanted but her.

And then he had crushed her heart beneath his boot.

She couldn’t stay here.

“Captain?” she called. “The supplies?”

Dread lowered his head, as if thinking. He still would not turn to her.

“I will take that under consideration.”

Scarlett’s brow furrowed. What was there to consider? Their supplies were running low. They needed to restock so they wouldn’t starve. He would have immediately charted the closest port at this news in the past.

There was only one reason he was stalling now.

“You’re not going to let me go.”

It wasn’t a question. Captain Dread was a man who kept what he wanted close. Almost obsessively so. And now, he still seemed to be possessive of her. Even though he didn’t want her anymore.

“Dismissed.”

For some reason, that single word answer squeezed her heart even tighter.

“Understood.”

Scarlett turned and walked out the door.

~X~X~X~

A month later.

Dread eventually did make port, but refused to allow Scarlett off the ship. He made up ‘important matters’ to discuss with her, and keep her occupied while the rest of the crew went to restock their supplies.

He was terrified if she left while in port, she’d never come back.

Their working relationship had devolved into nothing more than flat, toneless discussions, with none of the fire and energy they’d had before. There was no banter, no snarky back-and-forths. No joking. No life.

He was miserable. And despite her attempts to hide the fact, Scarlett was miserable, too.

Dread was barely sleeping. Every time he closed his eyes he saw her. Heard her. Felt her. His dreams were filled with her. In some they were still together, and the warmth of her against him made him cry in his sleep. In other dreams they were like now, strangers, avoiding each other and hurting all the while.

He often sat in his quarters, holding her cut braid for hours. Her scent was fading from it, and it hurt his heart to know that soon he would forget what she smelled like.

Agony. He was in agony.

But he couldn’t do anything to fix it. He’d hurt her too badly, too effectively. She hated him now, he could read her well enough to know that. And even if he decided that loving her was worth the risk, worth the pain and fear, there was no way she would agree to take him back. Not after what he had said. She wouldn’t trust him, and honestly, he wouldn’t blame her.

So Dread moved through life, feeling like a hollow shell. His heart was broken, and he had no one to blame but himself.

Now the echidna stood at the helm, watching as a storm rolled toward them. Thunder echoed over the increasingly rougher water, and lightning flashed in the distance. He could alter course, but it was a big storm, dominating the entire sky, and there wasn’t much he could do to avoid it. They’d just have to weather what they could.

Scarlett was on deck, readying the ship for the oncoming storm. Securing barrels and other supplies, checking the anchor, and keeping an eye on the dark clouds before them. But there was something about the look on her face Dread didn’t like.

She had an intuition about her, sometimes getting a bad feeling before trouble started. She had that look now.

“What do you feel, Scarlett?”

It was the first time he’d used her name since that night. It felt both foreign and like home on his tongue. She moved to the bow of the ship, looking out over the water, toward the storm. She shook her head, looking back at him.

“Something’s coming,” she said, her brow furrowed. “And it’s not the storm.”

Dread’s brow furrowed in response, and he stood taller, his senses on high alert. If Scarlett said something was coming, then they’d be ready.

“All hands on deck! Stay alert, crew. We won’t be surprised.”

Another five minutes passed, and nothing happened. Scarlett paced the deck like a caged lion, clenching and unclenching her hands in her agitation. Whatever was setting off her intuition, it must have been bad.

Dread wanted to go to her, to take her hands into his and calm her. But he resisted. She would not accept his comfort now.

Suddenly, she stopped in mid-pace, and hurried to the bow once again. She leaned over the rail, and for a split second Dread thought she was going to go tumbling over. Then she pulled herself back and turned to yell,

“KRAKEN!”

~X~X~X~

The ship rocked under the weight of the kraken’s tentacles. It reached from below, curling its long appendages over the railing of the Angel’s Voyage, searching for anything to drag down to its snapping beak.

The crew fought tirelessly. Krakens were unpredictable, but could sometimes be scared off if they received too much injury to their tentacles. So every available crew member hacked and slashed and bludgeoned the leathery hide of any they could get close to.

The storm hit as they continued to attack the monster currently trying to drag their ship to the bottom of the ocean. Thunder boomed overhead, and lightning flickered almost constantly. The Angel’s Voyage was under attack from both sky and sea.

Dread swung his cutlass in wide arcs, slicing at the closest tentacle of the undersea foe. A loud, low rumble of a growl reverberated all around the ship as the kraken gave voice to its displeasure at this reception. The massive tentacles smashed and splintered wood as they fell upon the ship.

Scarlett moved like a whirlwind, fighting the monster that threatened her ship, and working hard to keep the rest of the crew out of danger, especially Sails. She’d taken the boy under her care, watching over him as she taught him life on the open sea.

The beast thrashed, the crew fought, and the storm raged.

Finally, after an eternity of fifteen minutes, the kraken began to withdraw. One by one its giant tentacles slipped back over the side, into the churning water below. Only two remained on the deck, and the crew stood back to watch them vanish over the side.

That’s when a bolt of lightning struck the water nearby, and the kraken panicked.

One tentacle jerked at the sudden jolt, slamming across the deck and catching Scarlett in its path. It smashed her against the wall of the wheelhouse, knocking the air from her lungs and bringing stars to her vision as her head smacked against the wood.

“Scarlett!” Dread cried, and started working his way toward her when the tentacle curled around her legs, dragging her toward the rail as the beast descended into the ocean depths. “NO!”

She was hauled over the rail in a heartbeat.

Dread tossed his hat aside, clamped his cutlass between his teeth, and dove into the water a split second later.

~X~X~X~

Scarlett tried hard not to panic.

She hadn’t had a chance to get a good lungful of air before being hauled underwater. The kraken retreated deeper, away from the storm and pain it suffered on the water’s surface.

The light quickly faded the further down it dragged her, and she was soon plunged into complete darkness.

Her heartbeat pounded in her ears, fast and terrified. Her lungs burned. The cold water was making her numb. The tentacle wrapped around her legs squeezed tight.

She was going to die. Soon. There was no way she could get herself out of this. She had no weapon on her, and her muscles were not listening to her commands.

With one last prayer for her soul, sent up to whatever deity was listening, Scarlett closed her eyes, and exhaled what little air was left within her. Seawater rushed in to replace it.

Her body protested. It jerked and convulsed. And then was still.

~X~X~X~

Dread swam like a man possessed. His eyes reflected what low light there was underwater, and he watched as the kraken continued to dive deeper. Scarlett hung from its tentacle, her arms raised above her head as she trailed the beast.

Closer. He had to get closer. He swam faster.

He was going to save her. He had to. Had to. He would snatch her from this beast’s clutches and haul her back to the ship. She’ll be okay, and he’ll apologize, he’ll get down on his goddamn knees if he had to and beg her forgiveness. He can’t lose her, he just can’t, he couldn’t survive without her.

As he watched, Scarlett’s body jerked and convulsed.

No.

She went still. Limp.

NO.

With a burst of strength, Dread closed the distance in a heartbeat. He grabbed onto the tentacle holding the redhead, and pulled his cutlass from his teeth. With one mighty swing, he sliced the tip of the tentacle clean through, releasing black ichor into the water around them. The severed tentacle clenched for a brief second, before relaxing completely.

Dread yanked her free from the dead flesh, and turned to swim for the surface. She hung in his arms like dead weight, and he fought back the panic that threatened to overtake him.

It was too late. He was too late. She was gone, he’d failed her, he’d lost her, she was dea—

The echidna pushed those thoughts away. He refused to believe it. He just needed to get her to the ship. That was what he focused on.

Dread pushed himself harder than he’d ever done before, and after a few more agonizing seconds, he breached the surface and gasped in a breath.

“She’s not breathing!” he called up to the rest of the crew. “Pull us up, NOW!”

Sails and Batten flew down immediately to haul their captain and first mate back on board. Dread tossed his sword to the side as he gently lay Scarlett flat on the deck. He leaned in to listen to her chest, and his brow furrowed when he didn’t hear anything.

“Catfish,” he called as he rolled her over and grabbed her from behind. “Bring blankets. Lots of them. Move!”

The large cat hurried off, as Dread clasped his hands together beneath her ribs. He gave a few sharp squeezes, in a desperate attempt to bring up the water she’d inhaled.

He fought his panic back. If he wasn’t focused, if he wasn’t careful, he could snap her ribs like toothpicks with his strength as he tried to save her.

The rest of the crew stood back, watching with wide, fearful eyes as Dread tried to revive Scarlett.

Precious seconds ticked by. Dread kept his jerky, sharp movements. Scarlett didn’t respond.

“C’mon, luv,” he hissed, and the icy tendrils of panic began to wrap their way into his mind. The longer this went on, the less likely she was to come back. His squeezes became more hurried. “C’mon. Bring it up. C’mon, luv. Please. Scar, please.”

Still nothing. She hung in his arms like a rag doll, her hair plastered to her face, her skin cold.

Dread’s lip pulled up in a pained grimace. This couldn’t be happening. He couldn’t lose her. Not like this. Not like—

Her body jerked suddenly, a gurgling sound coming from her throat. She opened her mouth and vomited seawater out, splashing the deck with a horrible retching sound. Dread lowered her to her hands and knees, resting a hand on her back as she continued to hack and cough and spit out the water from her lungs and stomach.

“There ya go,” he said, his voice cracking slightly. “Get it all up. C’mon, luv. Breathe.”

She did. She pushed herself up, sitting back on her ankles and drew in a long, gasping breath as she opened her eyes. Another few coughs and she pulled in another breath, her chest heaving hard as her body shivered from the cold and shock.

Catfish had returned, his arms full of warm, wool blankets. Batten grabbed the first and draped it around Scarlett in a hurry.

“Let’s get you warmed up, sweetie,” she said, and grabbed another blanket to wrap around the shivering redhead. “We need to get her out of this storm.”

Dread moved in before anyone could say a word. “I’ll take her.” He scooped Scarlett into his arms in a bridal carry, looking over at Catfish. “Bring those to my cabin. The rest of you start getting the ship secured so we can weather the storm. I’ll be back quick as I can.”

The echidna carried the woman into his cabin, quickly laying her on his bed. Catfish dropped the pile of blankets on the edge of the bed before hurrying back to the deck to help the others. Dread pulled every blanket up and covered Scarlett with each one.

“Just rest, luv,” he said, his voice soft. He gently brushed her wet hair off her face, and resisted kissing her by sheer willpower. “You’re safe now.”

He didn’t want to leave her. He had barely avoided losing her just a few moments ago, and the thought of leaving her alone now made his heart clench.

But he was the captain, and he still needed to make sure the ship made it through this storm.

Without another word, Dread rushed back out to the deck.

~~~

And that's where I petered out. Mostly I just had these few scenes in my head and didn't know where to take it after that.