#maybe i'm being a bit dramatic but i think i'm allowed to be considering i'm now blind

[flwrkid14]

The Great Camera Crisis of Tim Drake

note: based on me losing my glasses, my current biggest tragedy

So, Tim Drake has one prized possession (aside from his zesti stash)—his favorite camera. It's the one he’s had for years, the one that's captured everything from the Bat's rooftop jumps to candid moments of the Batfam (not that they ever knew he was snapping pics).

But today? That camera is gone. Missing. Disappeared without a trace.

Cue Tim absolutely losing his mind.

He's checked the Batcave a hundred times, torn apart his room, interrogated Alfred (who is too polite to laugh in his face), and even considered asking Damian if he "borrowed" it (though he knows better). Tim's on edge, pacing the manor, muttering under his breath about "years of memories" and "perfect lighting." No one is safe from the fallout. Steph tries to help him retrace his steps; Dick is offering to buy him a replacement, which only earns him a death glare. Even Bruce is side-eyeing the situation like, "Is it really that serious?"

Yes, Bruce. It is.

At this point, Tim’s considering pulling out his detective skills and setting up an official investigation with case files and everything. The bats think he's being just a little dramatic, but this camera? It’s a piece of him.

He might be Gotham’s best detective, but apparently, solving the mystery of his missing camera is his greatest challenge yet.

[kenobers]

pride & periods | Jason Todd x Sionis!Reader

but first free palestine !! Your regularly scheduled hook-up session with Jason Todd is rudely interrupted by the arrival of your period. As tragedy strikes, you have to ask Jason to buy you pads, perhaps throwing a curveball in your still emerging relationship. this installment comes before this one; you don't know jason is red hood in this one (not that it really matters to this particular story) tw: periods, mentions of drugging, reader having issues with acts of service, afab readera/n: i'm writing additions to this story completely out of order because i can. don't worry - you're gonna be the one comforting jason soon, just stay tuned. and if you're following me for the obi-wan content, i promise you'll also be fed soon. the sionis!reader concept was inspired by this ask on gilverrwrites' blog! In hindsight, it might've been kinda weird of me, but i couldn't get the concept out of my head. thank you to gilverr and anon! please check out their blog!

Yo

You cringe at your choice of words, wishing you'd thought harder before sending the text. Well actually, you cringe at the entire situation. You despise having to ask for help, but you're more than a little desperate.

Would you-

Too entitled.

Would you mind-

Passive aggressive.

Will-

Your phone buzzes before you can finish typing.

yo.

That was fast.

You take a deep breath. Jason was coming over anyway and it wasn't like you were in any position to have sex like you were planning to. And this constitutes as a bit of an emergency, considering you're currently sitting on a wad of toilet paper.

Can you pick me up some pads?

You hit send and drop your phone on your bed. This is so embarrassing for no reason. Jason's a good guy, he isn't going to judge you for being on your period of all things. He's not going to hold it against you if you can't have sex either.

It was just that you weren't sure your relationship was...like that. Acts of service and all that. A month ago, you wouldn't have even considered asking him to do this. But you'd been a lot more personal with one another lately. Making dinner, staying the night, being physically affectionate while your clothes were still on.

Your phone vibrates and you frantically feel for the purple case in the grey and white sheets. You'll deal with that giddy feeling later.

i don't know, can i?

Fucker, you think, glaring at your screen. You start furiously forming a response about how you aren't in the fucking mood for this when your phone buzzes again.

yeah, of course i can. need anything else? painkillers? chocolate?

You eye the empty bottle on your nightstand. Your stomach cramps painfully.

I'm out of ibuprofen

Then you consider for a moment. With a sigh, you bite back your pride. Well, if he's offering.

...and maybe some ice cream.

you got it babe.

Babe. Heat rushes to your cheeks as the corners of your mouth twitch upwards.

Ten minutes later his name flashes on your screen again, along with a photo of a wall of pads.

which kind

Damn, he was kind of good at this. A flare of jealousy burns through you at the thought of Jason doing this for some other girl. Another feeling you'll deal with later. You circled your preferred brand and send it back.

check. headed your way shawty.

After another ten minutes, the rumbling of a motorcycle echoes through your street. Nine minutes and 45 seconds later, the sound of your living room window sliding open lures you from your bed.

You fight back a goofy grin at the sight of Jason's large-than-life frame slipping through the window, two plastic bags balanced in one gloved hand. Leaning against your kitchen island, you allow yourself a second to admire the curve of his ass in those joggers.

"Hey," you greet, shivering as a gust of wind followed the man. He gives you a toothy grin, sliding the window shut. With a dramatic flourish of his arm, he presents the drugstore bag to you.

"Your essentials, m'lady."

"Oh, my hero," you giggle, taking the bag gratefully. You eye the second bag suspiciously, although the telltale red thank you print and the smell of fried rice give the contents away. "Chinese?"

"Chinese," he confirms. "And before you say anything, I was already picking it up when you texted."

You purse your lips. He was starting to know you too well. You would've said something, would've lied about how you weren't hungry. The idea that he'd already thought to do something nice for you before he even knew about your situation makes your stomach twist.

Jason takes a step closer, trapping you between him and the island. He reaches behind you to set the food on the counter, green eyes trained on your face. It's hard not to shrink below his quizzical gaze. Goosebumps cover your bicep as the leather of his jacket rubs against your bare arm.

Bastard.

"That okay, pretty girl?"

Fuck, he's handsome. He knows it too, know to flick his dark hair just so. Knows how to look at you so that any "oh, you shouldn't have" argument you can conjure up falters before it can reach your tongue. It certainly doesn't help that he's flexing the arm reaching behind you just so.

"Perfect, even," you purr, uncrossing your arms to play with his jacket zipper. "How much do I owe you?"

"Don't worry about it." You try not to roll your eyes at him, reminding yourself that you were opting to be nicer to him tonight. He is your hero after all. His hands fall to your hips, his thumbs running along the bone. "How you feeling?"

You shrug, suppressing another shiver as his pinkie pokes below the length of your shorts.

"Shitty. Like everything hurts," you answer honestly. Your lip twitches and you abandon his jacket zipper in favor of the strings of his sweatshirt.

"'m sorry we can't, y'know, do what we planned." The apology floods abruptly from your lips. "I would offer to do it anyways, but I just, I-I can't with these cramps." Your hips twinge with pain to emphasize your point. "But, I mean, I can blow you if you really want-"

"Hey."

Two fingers tilt your chin up, tough leather juxtaposing soft skin. You hadn't even realized you'd stopped looking at his face. He's smiling at you.

"Don't worry about it," he says for the second time. "Lemme make you feel better. It'll piss Roman off just as much."

You both look pointedly at the bookshelf you're fairly certain your father had hidden some sort of recording device.

"Besides," he continues with a wolfish smirk. "I've become accustomed to a certain level of performance from you and I'm not sure if I'd receive that if you're not at your peak."

"Fine, only because you insisted," you sigh. "And I'm gonna do you a favor and ignore that last part." You turn away from him, fishing the package of pads and the ibuprofen out of the drugstore bag. "I'm gonna go...yeah."

You wave the package in the air as you head for the bathroom. With your back turned, you don't catch Jason saluting you.

When you return, you notice one of the books on the shelf has been inconspicuously placed over a Wonder Woman knick knack. Part of you is relieved to know your father can't spy on you tonight. Another part of you feels a pang of anxiety knowing that means tonight is just for the two of you to enjoy each other's company. As people. Not fuckbuddies.

This is still casual. Professional, you tell yourself. It's not like he's my boyfriend.

You turn to the kitchen, where Jason is pulling plates out of a cupboard, and ignoring the smaller voice that wouldn't mind him being your boyfriend.

He hands the plates to you, letting you dish the both of you up.

Jason sidles up behind you, pressing his chest to your back. You lean into him, letting him support your weight.

"Chinese was a good call," you say. He hums in response, dipping his hands under your shirt to rub your sides. You yelp in alarm as something wet hits your skin.

"Dude! What the fuck!"

Jason backs up, holding two cream covered hands in the air. He looks apologetic enough, but still smirks at the way you glowered at him over your shoulder. It's an awful cute look when it isn't coming from behind an ugly ass skull mask.

"It's just CBD."

You spin around, pointing your spoon straight at his heart.

"CBD- what, are you trying to get me high?"

It's all Jason can do not to double over laughing. He'd take a picture if he wasn't certain you would find a way to lodge that spoon in a major artery.

His laughter has you fidgeting nervously, trying to maintain your hard stare.

"Don't laugh at me."

To his credit, he stops immediately. He straightens his posture and gestures to a small round container on the counter.

"It's just a lotion. Helps with joint pain, I use it all the time. I thought it might help with cramps."

You blink. That was...incredibly thoughtful of him.

"Oh."

You turn back to the food, continuing your task sheepishly. All you ever do in front of this man is embarrass yourself. And orgasm.

He creeps back to his spot cautiously. You glance over your shoulder, briefly meeting his eyes.

"You can...continue," you tell him, your tone much softer now. He presses a kiss to the exposed junction of your neck and slides his hands back under your shirt.

It does feel nice to have him massage the cool lotion into your aching body. His fingers seem to know exactly where to go, undoing the built up tension and leaving a light buzz in its place.

"I'm sorry I snapped like that," you whisper. "I overheard some of my dad's idiots talking about some kind of lube that's infused with LSD or something. Apparently it's becoming a popular method for people to get what they want so...little on edge."

There’s a tense pause. From the corner of your eyes, you can see Jason’s jaw twitch, like he’s chewing on a question. You consider changing the subject, but after a moment, he speaks again, "I wouldn't drug you like that, you know."

"What, topically?" You scoff, dividing the orange chicken equally.

"Without your consent."

You pause. You suppose you hadn't given much thought to how much Jason respected you in that regard. To be fair, you'd never really been around men that respected you at all.

"Well, that's good to know." It's not the most sensitive response, but you're not sure what else to say. The conversation desperately needs to move on before you start oversharing. "Let's eat, big guy."

After dinner, Jason applies the lotion again. This time, you're sat on the couch between his legs as he drives the stuff into a knot on your hip. The TV drones with some black comedy series the two of you have been watching at the recommendation of one of his brothers.

"Do you get a lot of joint pain?" You ask suddenly, looking back at him. He doesn't tear his eyes away from the screen.

"Huh?"

"You said you use it a lot on your joints. The CBD stuff, I mean. Do you get a lot of joint pain?" Now he looks at you, one slitted eyebrow raised. For a moment you watch him try to remember when he told you that. Then he smirks, a silly view from upside down.

"I do whenever you get through with me," he chuckles, his chest vibrating under you. You give him a look. "Sometimes after the gym, yeah."

You're not quite sure you believe him, but you let it slide, turning back to the TV in time to see your least favorite character earn a smack to the face.

"It was nice of you to bring it."

"'s helping?"

"Mmh," You sigh as he works a particularly tough spot. Your relief is short lived however as the small of your back cramps up. A small gasp escapes you and you squirm and swear in Jason's arms.

He pauses his work on your hips.

"Where's it hurt?"

"Back," you whimper, turning over so he can get to it. He obliges immediately, rubbing the butt of his palm into the sore spot. You groan into his chest, melting beneath his magic hands. "The fuck did I ever manage this shit before you?"

He snorts, "very bravely, I'm sure."

You smile at his answer. Clever boy. You reward him with a kiss, pleased when he returns it in kind. His hand doesn't stop its work on your back as his soft lips move gently with your own.

"You sure you don't want a blowjob?" you murmur against his mouth.

Jason nods, giving you another chaste kiss before pulling away. "You're in pain, sweetheart. Let yourself rest."

He moves his lips to your ear, lowering his voice.

"Now, how about that ice cream, hm?"

[66stitches]

Marigold (II)

𑁍 best friend!abby x reader

𑁍 Summary: Abby loved you in a way she believed you could never reciprocate. Per her friend's advice, she began to avoid you in hopes of healing her aching heart.

𑁍 CW: sfw, angst, a little bit of fluff, unrequited love, happy ending yippe, jealousy, friends to lovers, hurt/comfort, reader neither described as masc nor fem, no physical description of reader besides that she is able-bodied, fighting, swearing, violence, ellie mention, a lot of crying, pet names.

𑁍 WC: 4.4k

𑁍 Daily click - Palestine masterpost - TLOU and israel

𑁍 divider creds

𑁍 Chapter 1 - Chapter 2

You buried your cold hands deep within the pockets of your maroon-colored jacket in an attempt to ward off the biting cold, each breath you took formed a slight cloud in the crisp air.

"Don't you think it's a little cold for ice cream?" You spoke, looking over at your friend walking alongside you.

"Maybe you'd enjoy it more if you actually got a good flavour."

You and Ellie wandered through the familiar town, your thoughts running as you dragged your feet across the pavement beneath you.

You tried to focus your thoughts on anything besides Abby: the cold breeze of winter stinging your nose, your coffee-flavored ice cream that, according to Ellie, tasted like burnt shit, the fallen leaves and the sound they would make when you'd step on them.

But she always managed to find her way back into your thoughts, contaminating your brain with the presence of her memories. The memories that once brought you joy were now nothing but painful.

Your steps came to a halt as you stopped by the town's bar. Wooden panels adorned with colorful string lights and a paper that read "winter dance" stapled on the entrance.

"Oh, I almost forgot about the dance tonight," Ellie spoke as she finished the last bite of her ice cream. She tossed it in a nearby bin. "You're going, right?"

The town hosted dances and gatherings quite often. It was never really your thing, but it was Abby's, being the social butterfly she is. She always dragged you along, and you were happy to follow.

But Abby was no longer with you, and now you had no reason to go.

"No, I don't think so," you replied. "Are you?"

"Yes, I am, and so are you." She said it as if you had no choice in the matter, her tone leaving no room for argument.

"Come on, don't just say no because of Abby. This is the perfect opportunity to get your mind off her," she sighed dramatically. "It's also the perfect opportunity for me to show off my dance moves."

You sighed, and though you were not yet convinced, you allowed yourself to consider it. "I don't know, Ellie.”

"Please? If not for yourself, then go for me. You're not really gonna let me go to this thing alone, are you?" she pleaded.

"Stop that. You know guilt trip always works on me."

She grinned. "I know."

"Alright," you said as you threw your hands up in defeat. "I'll go."

Ellie was right, you needed this. It was unfair for you to miserably lay heartbroken when God knows Abby was probably already out having fun, relieved to be rid of you at last. It wasn't fair for Ellie either who came a long way to see you.

𑁍

Nora slipped on her last layer of clothes and started combing back her dark hair.

"You're awfully quiet," she spoke, looking over at the blonde resided beside her, currently styling her hair into her signature braid.

Abby offered no response for a moment, simply going back to her task.

"Uh, you okay?" Nora asked.

"I'm fine, Nora," Abby replied, speaking without a glance at her friend's way. It was clear that she was lying, Nora could see that. Abby had been evidently troubled for weeks, her distressful demeanor was something no soul could miss.

Nora sighed as she placed her hairbrush down. "No, you're not. Tell me what's going on with you," she asked, though she knew she didn't need to. She knew it was you who's causing her this sorrow. In truth, that had always been the case, even long before you two had stopped talking.

"I don't know, I'm just a little worried about her, I guess," she said. Merely talking of you was most difficult for her. She had been trying to avoid the topic of you for quite some time now, always shutting her friends down when they tried to ask what happened between you and her.

"You don't have to worry about her, Abs. She's got that redhead friend of hers to keep her company." Nora tried her best to be comforting.

Abby almost had to physically stop herself from rolling her eyes at the mention of Ellie. Of course she had noticed the two of you spending time together quite often, and as happy as she was that you had someone to keep you company, she couldn't help the seeping feeling of jealousy that contaminated her to the core at the first sight of you two.

“Please, don’t talk about Ellie,” she practically groaned, not doing much to conceal her obvious jealousy which earned her a slight grin from Nora.

“Jealous, much?” Nora asked.

That’s when Abby really rolled her eyes. “Nobody said that, Nora,” she said, albeit she knew she didn’t exactly give much room to conclude otherwise.

Abby didn’t want to admit truly how jealous she was of the red-headed girl and how badly your falling out had affected her.

She no longer wept, though she always felt as if she was on the verge of doing so. She tried to distract herself with the gym, but what once brought her happiness and contentment now felt like a chore. She didn’t need a distraction, she needed you.

She envied Ellie: she envied the way she got to hold you without that awful feeling of sheer guilt in the pit of her stomach; without that nagging voice in her head telling her what a disgusting person she is.

She envied the healthy relationship Ellie had with you, how comfortable she was in sharing affection without feeling as though she was fulfilling some perverse fantasy.

She was constantly plagued by the urge to go back to you, always having to remind herself of what a horrible idea that would be, as well as Nora’s persistent lectures which stopped her from doing something so foolish.

She was happy that you had someone to keep you company and comfort you, but she still couldn’t help the way she felt about Ellie. Her jealousy eating away at her every time she saw you together, doing things you once did with her, and she felt endlessly guilty for being jealous.

“Do you think she’s going? You know, to the party?” Nora inquired.

Abby considered it. She was unsure whether she wanted you there or not.

The sight of you would dim her mood, that she knew for certain, but she missed being in the same room as you.

“Probably not. T’was never really her scene.” She sounded different whenever she would speak about you. Her tone would change significantly. She sounded softer. Sadder.

Nora considered her next words for a moment before speaking. “Do you want her there?” She asked.

Abby zoned out for a moment, contemplating.

“I don’t know.”

𑁍

You stood beneath the cold wind staring at the town’s bar. You could hear everyone inside. Dancing, talking, yelling, singing along to the music. You took a deep breath and walked in, your eyes immediately scanning for Ellie.

You found the redhead standing by the bar with two drinks in hand. She met your eyes from across the room and gave you a smile as you walked up to her.

“So you came.” She handed you a drink.

“Yeah,” you responded as you fiddled with the bottle. “You were right, I’ve got to stop moping. This is good for me.”

Ellie tilted her head and smiled. “See? Told you. I’m always right.”

Moments passed, and you mostly followed Ellie around like a lost puppy while she socialized and met some new people.

That’s something you always envied about her: how she can make friends so easily and how confidently she carried herself most times.

You two then sat at the bar, allowing yourself to rest a little as you indulged yourself in conversation.

A conversation you were no longer paying attention to, Ellie’s voice slowly beginning to sound faded as your eyes were locked on someone else across the room.

And that certain someone was watching you right back. Deep blue eyes locked onto yours, keeping you connected from the other side of the room. Her brows were furrowed. She looked pained, tired, and yet still as beautiful as ever.

You didn’t think you would ever be in the same room as Abby again, but there she was, in all her glory.

She wore a tight green shirt that hugged her strong figure in all the right ways, along with some faded brown pants that accentuated her thighs.

“Stop looking at her.”

Abby was first to break eye contact, snapping you out of the trance that were her eyes. You averted your gaze from Abby and back to Ellie.

“Again, I am so sorry. I seriously didn’t know she’d be here,” Ellie apologized for what seemed like the millionth time.

“It’s fine, Ellie”, you reassured her, but you both knew it wasn’t fine at all. You sought a fun night to distract you from the ache in your heart that was Abby, only to have her come and bring that ache with her.

You were unsure whether you were surprised to see her here or not. You knew that she enjoyed these parties, but you assumed she wouldn’t be attending this time after what had happened. Perhaps you should have known better.

“There she goes staring at you again,” Ellie groaned and rolled her eyes. “Come on, let’s just get out of here.”

“Way ahead of you.” You were already throwing the remainder of your drink and getting ready to leave. Ellie followed shortly after, but not without bidding her new friends goodbye.

You stood in the sidelines waiting for her as she moved all around the room.

You then found yourself praying to whatever god there is up there to allow the ground to open up and swallow you (or Ellie) whole, because with all of her careless wandering, she mistakenly bumped into Abby, nearly spilling the last of her drink on her. Nearly. That part you were grateful for.

“Oh shit, man, my bad,” Ellie chuckled. She did not sound the least bit apologetic. In fact, she only sounded proud of herself. You wondered if it had even been accidental at all.

Abby recognized Ellie immediately, of course she did. She was not only looking at you the whole time, but as well as glaring holes into the back of Ellie’s skull.

“Oh please, don’t pretend like that wasn’t deliberate,” Abby said harshly. Ellie grinned mockingly, glad that she managed to get such a reaction from the blonde.

“Aw, what’s making you so hostile, Abby? Makes it seem like you’ve got a personal grudge against me.” Ellie just kept pushing Abby’s buttons, speaking in the most condescending tone she could muster. If there was one thing Ellie was good at, it was riling people up.

You practically sprinted to them, grabbing Ellie’s hand and gesturing for her to leave.

You met Abby’s eyes once again, but this time was different, because now you stood close enough to really look at her again; close enough to get another hint of her intoxicating smell.

Once again, she broke eye contact.

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but I think someone’s a little jealous,” Ellie pushed again, trying to get another reaction from Abby. She wrapped an arm around your shoulder. “You’re jealous that she’s got me now.” Ellie grinned again, enjoying the sight of Abby’s scowling face.

“Ellie!” You yelled. You were getting upset as well as embarrassed. Whatever Abby was mad at you for, she was definitely never forgiving you now. You pushed Ellie’s arm away and tried to grab her and leave once again. You were ignored.

“Jealous?” Abby scoffed, she was the one grinning now. “You’re just a replacement. You realize that, right? If it weren’t for me leaving her, she wouldn’t even spare your desperate ass a glance.”

You were left aghast at Abby’s words, Ellie clearly was too. She tried to hide it, but it was clear Abby’s words had hurt her.

You opened your mouth to defend Ellie. You loved Abby, that would never change, but you would not stand for anyone talking to Ellie like that and speaking lies about you. But Ellie interrupted you before you had the chance.

“Yeah? ‘Least I never fuckin’ ghosted her or made her feel like shit the way you did; at least she’s happy with me. So yeah, got your girl now, bitch,” Ellie retorted, looking evidently proud of herself for that last sentence. Clearly she still found this fun.

Abby’s clearly had enough of childish banter. One thing about her is that she was never afraid to get violent.

She took a step forward and shoved Ellie, nearly knocking her off her balance. You were ready to interfere, until Ellie shoved Abby right back with the same amount of zeal.

Everyone’s attention was on them now, not including those who were black out drunk. The entirety of the bar went quiet, staring at the two women in excitement. As if you thought this couldn’t get any more humiliating.

“You both are fucking childish,” you yelled and tried to get in between them.

Quite the dumb move on your end. The punch Abby threw was meant for Ellie, but with your careless action of stepping in, you were the one taking the hit, your head snapping back.

What you didn’t expect, though, was for Abby to hastily grab your face, softly cradling it between her hands.

“Fuck, marigold, are you okay? I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to hit you,” she spoke quickly. The tone in her voice was scared and replete with concern. It was evident on her face.

She seemed surprised by her own actions as well. She didn’t think nor intend to hold you like that. When it came to her, protecting you almost felt like a natural instinct.

The feeling of her hands on your skin and her face so close to yours nearly made you forget the aching pain on your cheek.

You snapped out of it swiftly and pushed her hands away from you, sending her back.

“You don’t get to call me that anymore,” was all you said. It was bitter, laced with venom. Abby looked hurt, but mostly ashamed of herself. She didn’t speak.

“Now can we just leave already?” You groaned and turned to Ellie.

“Yeah…” she breathed, still glaring holes at Abby.

You grabbed Ellie’s arm and finally left. It took everything in you not to look back at Abby. You wished you didn’t care about her so much.

You were now back at your house, examining the swollen area on your cheek which you knew would soon be a shade of purple.

You spent most of your time in your head, replaying that incident continuously.

What you truly could not manage to get out of your head was how Abby had reacted when she’d accidentally hit you. That name she called you: you were certain you would never hear her utter that word again.

You were both confused and comforted by the gesture, but you tried not to dwell on it.

“God, she’s even worse than you described. What a bitch.” Ellie had been ranting and moaning about Abby for what felt like all night.

You tried to tune her out, not wanting to think about Abby so much. Is this what Ellie felt with you?

“You should’ve let me fight her. I mean, she’s big as shit, but I could definitely take her on.” She took a moment to observe herself in the mirror. “Definitely,” she repeated.

“Ow!” You flinched as you poked your swollen skin. That got Ellie to stop her ranting and come to your aid.

“You okay?” Ellie held your jaw and observed your cheek.

“I’m fine, it’s just…” you trailed off. “You started that fight on purpose, didn’t you?”

Ellie raised her brows at your question and smiled slightly. “Nah. Trust me, if it was deliberate, I would’ve spilled my drink on her. This was just a happy accident, as Bob Ross once said.”

“Yeah, well your happy accident got me a punch to the face, but I’m glad you found it fun.” You rolled your eyes and stepped away from the mirror.

“Actually, you jumping in between us is why you got punched. Seriously, what were you thinking?”

“I wasn’t thinking. I just wanted you guys to stop.”

Ellie frowned and crossed her arms, an expression of remorse scrawled upon her features. “Shit, I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. She’s just… she’s so fucking confusing, Ellie,” you said and buried your face in your hands.

“I know,” Ellie empathized. She wasn’t the best at comforting, always getting awkward in serious situations. But what she offered was her ear, and that was all you needed.

“I mean, what the hell was that? Did you see how she grabbed me? What she called me? Why does she think she can just do that after everything?” You were trying to remain calm, which wasn’t easy with Ellie staring at you so sympathetically. “Why does she still act like I mean something to her?”

“Maybe it’s ‘cause you do,” Ellie suggested, placing her hand on your back and offering you some much needed physical comfort.

It really did not make any sense, Abby’s actions only managing to confuse you more. Could she really have cared about you? Was there still something there, or did she merely feel guilty for hurting you?

Now what you had planned to uplift your mood and ease your sorrow had been ruined by Abby’s presence. It seemed as though she haunted you everywhere, bringing nothing but ache and destruction alongside.

𑁍

Abby felt weak.

She had tried to avoid you, as she usually did, but the memories of what had occurred the other night played endlessly in her mind, fueling her with guilt.

She’d tried to make herself stop caring, convincing herself that you meant nothing to her and that what had happened the night prior did not affect her, but to no avail.

She cared about you, and that would never change. She could avoid looking at your face as much as she wanted, but your image was forever seared into her mind.

Today was a particularly gruesome one. You did not bother to hide the bruise that formed, and Abby didn’t fail to notice.

She had tried to walk up to you and apologize, each time cowardice and shame taking a hold of her and turning her back around.

The idea of speaking to you again after everything intimidated her, which was quite unusual for someone like Abby. She never anticipated a time would come where she would be apprehensive about facing you.

Unfortunately for her, you did not lack discernment. You noticed her reluctance in making her way to you; noticed the way she was internally battling herself.

You stood outside, bidding Ellie goodbye as she left to go back home.

When Ellie was finally gone, Abby walked up to you again, and you hoped for what seemed like the hundredth time that this time she would not turn back around. You didn’t know whether you planned to forgive her or not, but you still wanted her to speak to you.

When she noticed you looking at her as she made her way to you, she stopped at a halt and turned back around.

Her actions and timidity were beginning to frustrate you, but right as you were about to speak up, she turned around once again and walked towards you, this time faster, as if she wanted to get it over with before her apprehension got a hold of her once more.

“Hey,” she spoke, her voice laced with discomfort.

The gleam in her eyes changed as she got another look at your bruised cheek, feeling infinitely more guilty.

You didn’t reply and simply waited for her to get to her point. You wanted it to seem like it was because you were mad at her (and you were), but in truth you were at a loss for words.

Because she was here. She was speaking to you; she was looking at you. It took everything in you not to break down into tears at that seemingly insignificant act.

“So…” she trailed off, eyes scanning everywhere timidly. “I just wanted to say that I am so, so sorry. For hitting you, I mean. I swear, I meant to hit Ellie but you got in the way— not that I’m saying it’s your fault, because it wasn’t—” she was rambling now, her nerves getting the best of her. If you were any less hurt, you would laugh and call her cute.

“What the hell do you want, Abby?” You interrupted aggressively, which earned you a look of both shame and bewilderment.

“To… apologize?” She said it more like a question. She was slightly rendered uneasy by your anger, but she did not blame you in the slightest nor was she surprised. It only made the guilt grow into something more unbearable.

“Apologize, huh? Don’t you think you have other things to apologize for? You think this—“ you pointed at your bruised cheek, “is what hurt me?”

Abby took another look at your cheek. She didn’t reply. She looked down and crossed her arms, hugging her sides. Your eyes followed her hands and noticed the way she dug her nails into the skin of her hips, her knuckles slightly turning white.

You remembered all the times where you would scold her for that bad habit of hers, asking her why she’s so nervous and having her brush you off and ask you not to fret.

“Just let me-“

“No, Abigail. I don’t wanna fuckin’ hear you right now,” you interrupted. “You said you never wanted to see me again, so why don’t you just stick to your word?” Your heart broke into a few more pieces at the mention of that night, remembering all the things she had said and that distant tone in her voice. Her heart broke as well, remembering how cruel she was and the painful look on your face.

“Why do you have to be so damn confusing? Why are you contradicting yourself by saying you never want to see me again, only to keep looking at me with those fucking eyes, starting childish fights, calling me marigold, and now you wanna try to talk to me and expect forgiveness?” You were yelling at this point, letting everything spill out with no control or filter.

And Abby was quiet, understanding. She was listening. Her knuckles were turning whiter with every word you spoke, her eyes slightly glistening.

“You left me without a word. You never tried to talk to me about what happened, maybe we could have fixed it!”

“You wouldn’t-”

“No!” You interrupted again, not wanting to hear her voice and only spilling what has been bottled up inside you. “Don’t speak and let me finish! You didn’t talk to me, Abby. Do you have any comprehension of how terrible I felt? Did you enjoy knowing that I spent nights wondering how the hell I was supposed to fix what you destroyed?”

“I-”

“I’m not done! What made you think that you could just walk up to me and-”

“Stop!” She was the one to interrupt you this time. “I love you,” she said before she could think. It was said quietly, softly, and this time she was looking you in the eye.

That definitely shut you up. You stood there, gawking. You were trying to form words, but none came to mind. Your head was empty, but your heart was heavy, filled with emotions you couldn’t quite place.

Abby was clearly getting anxious by your lack of response, so she spoke again.

“I don’t know if you’ll accept my reasoning for what I did, but that’s it, and I’m sorry. I did it because I loved you. Because I love you.” Her voice was shaking slightly. She was afraid. It was painfully obvious.

“Why- why didn’t you tell me?” You stuttered, dumbfounded. Of all the possibilities you considered that might have been the cause of what happened, this was something that would have never crossed your mind. Not in a million years.

“Isn’t it obvious?” She laughed, though her voice held no humor in it, laden only with pain. “I didn’t wanna lose you. I was afraid I’d ruin what we have,” she said, digging her nails even deeper into her skin. “But now I already did.”

The last part was quiet, spoken slightly above a whisper. She no longer met your eyes, detaching herself from you almost completely. She was sure this was the last time you would ever speak to her again. This is where you would let her go.

It undoubtedly hurt and scared her to reveal herself to you; to finally speak the words that were sure to cause you to let her go, but she didn’t want to be selfish anymore.

She would face her feelings and allow you to leave because of it. The words you had just screamed at her did not fall on deaf ears and she would no longer leave you ignorant to the truth and pained from the untold.

You offered no response. Endless words and confessions played in your head, but none left your mouth. You felt frozen, but you also wanted to know what else she had to say.

Abby’s apprehension only grew at your silence. “Shit, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I knew you wouldn’t take this so kindly but I just needed to get it off my chest and I am so, so sorry. I understand if you don’t wanna talk-”

Her profuse rambling was interrupted by your lips on hers. Your mouth didn’t move, only feeling the soft plush of her lips against your own.

The kiss ended as quickly as it came. Her eyes were wide and she was left gawking. “So that’s how I get you to shut up,” you joked.

“Fuck, come here,” she breathed. She grabbed your face and swiftly pulled it to hers, meeting your lips in another, more passionate kiss.

You pulled her in further by the collar of her shirt. You were so close that you could feel your hearts beating against each other. You could not imagine anything more intimate.

Her lips were slightly chapped, yet still soft and plush, and she tasted beautifully. It was as if the heavens had descended from the skies and given you a taste of its richest, most forbidden fruit.

You forced yourself to separate your lips so you could catch your breath. You pulled away and met her face, her eyes heavy and mouth slightly agape. She looked beautiful like this, all blissed out. The sun kissing her face reflected the gleam in her eyes like light beams in the sky. You smiled at the scene.

“I love you too, you idiot.”

“I love you, my marigold.”

𑁍

a/n: this took so fucking long I don’t even know if people are interested in reading it anymore but here it is

Taglist

@grey-jedi12

[hot-on-my-watch]

An "Always the Grown-Up" Rant

I know that a lot of fans are angry at Moffat and Gatiss for a lot of things, and most of all for Season Four.

I personally am mad at them for a few things. Mostly things that I can easily let slide given the immense enjoyment I've had and continue to have from their BBC Sherlock series.

But THIS FUCKING LINE!!!

A woman's wedding ring is dirty even though the rest of her appearance is carefully curated? I'll handwave it and maybe google when we started using soap.

Man wears same large thick coat outdoors in all seasons? Fine. It's England. And I have an old (autistic) friend who actually does this.

John's eyebrow says that he hasn't rung his sister, and Mary's a bread baking disillusioned Guardian reader with a secret tattoo? Hahaha why not?

Sherlock has to use his incredible mind over matter to restart his heart but also "it was surgery"? Bit much, but I'll overlook it. For you.

Evil genius simultaneously hacks every screen in the country? Eh, ok.

Secret island prison? Sure. Let Sherlock live his pirate fantasy. Let John point his gun at someone. Let Moriarty play Queen while dramatically disembarking from a helicopter.

Predicting multiple terror attacks at lightspeed from Twitter? Well, we've come this far.

I do not watch Sherlock for 'slice of life' realism and dear lord I hope no one else does. I do not WANT realism. I want to forget that I am vast majority bedbound and that people are out there having coffee and going for a pint and working at normal jobs with payslips and lanyards and spreadsheets. And generally speaking, BBC Sherlock has helped a lot with that!

But WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK were they THINKING WITH THIS LINE???

SERIOUSLY?!?!?!

Sherlock is barely a fucking grown-up on his own, but I'd allow it. Especially after the "baby" jokes John, Lestrade and he himself have previously made at his expense.

But COMPARED TO MYCROFT?!?!

WHAT. THE. ACTUAL. FUCK. LADS?????

WERE YOU HIGH? WERE YOU OUT OF YOUR GODDAMN MINDS? WHAT THE FUCK???!!!

See, after I first heard this, I quickly recon headcanon-(is this a thing? Is there a name for this soecific thing?) -ed it into Mrs Holmes the mad genius being completely out of touch with the social reality of her children- especially as she's been so harsh to Mycroft in this scene and not massively had to look after adult Sherlock herself. Because, y'know, Mycroft was doing it!

Then I complained about it on Reddit.

To my HORROR, another user told me that Steven Moffat had said in an interview that it was meant to be taken as true. But y'know, we're all just randoms on the internet and people get things wrong.

Then another user told me they theorised that Eurus had reprogrammed her parents to favour Sherlock, which is an interesting theory.

But clearly in the script, everyone... including Sherlock and Mycroft... just quietly agrees.

What....

What is the reasoning for this?

I know some will say "mate, welcome to all of season four" or even "three and four" or all of it.

I know some people consider Mycroft a bully, but I really don't. Certainly not after the scene on the plane and the 'Redbeard' reveal.

I'm open to persuasion though. If anyone has any thoughts on this, feel free to share! I might well not agree, but I won't attack you either.

Or the writers. But again, if I ever end up trapped with them in a lift or some such... I WILL have questions!

/rant.

[cripplecharacters]

Hey, first, thank you for the work you do here. Second, I'm a bit stumped and I'd like some opinions.

There's a character in the game Darkest Dungeon called "The Leper", who's based on the movie Kingdom of Heaven's depiction of Baldwin IV (also called The Leper), so he has a dramatic facial difference and all the stuff you'd expect from the disease in medieval times. There's a lot one could discuss, but my question is more about how to approach the character in a modern AU.

In our times, Hansen's disease is highly treatable and it's unlikely someone outside of poor isolated areas would suffer so severely from it. So I'm stuck between two options: 1. Make a nod towards the fact the character did get sick but got treated 2. Attributing his facial difference and other potential disabilities to another cause. Neither feel ideal. Option 1 makes him abled, but 2 kind of treats this highly contextual element as interchangeable with other forms of disability? Do you guys have other ideas, or maybe either could be fine with the right execution?

Hey!

I'm familiar with game but played the first one years ago so I might misremember some lore of that one. And there is definitely a lot to say about Baldwin/The Leper (both good and bad) but I'll just get to the questions.

I think that option two or secret option three would be better here. Since being ill is a major part of his character I don't think just having him be cured is the way, even if it's the realistic option for a modern AU - and to be honest, whenever I see a canonically disabled character get cured in a fanfiction my mind immediately goes to "author didn't want to deal with a disabled character" (since that's usually the case) even if it's a rare scenario like here where it would actually be the realistic option.

Option two would be giving him a different condition with matching characteristics (mainly the facial difference and partial? blindness) and that obviously raises some issues. However, I genuinely think there is some wiggle room to make it make sense.

"Whether by some affliction of lineage or by direct transmission, symptoms of incurable disease..."

...is what the second game says. It considers it to be some Disease with an Unclear Cause.

To the player it's obvious that it's Hansen's disease just because of his title, but it seems to be at least somewhat unclear in-universe if it's actually that or a genetic disorder of some sort. I'm mostly bringing this up as an argument that could back up option two, but I also always found it unusual that they didn't specify it and went with the "it's ambiguous" explanation, especially since the character's title is literally The Leper, which seems almost inconsistent. This brings me to a second point:

People with conditions that are categorically not X but look like X from the outside can and are wrongly categorized as having X. Could Baldwin have something else and be called a leper by others as either a pejorative or just a case of misidentification? I don't know, maybe. It could be me projecting the amount of people I've seen get accused of having monkeypox while they literally just have genetic conditions, which I guess is the modern version of that happening with someone being accused of having Hansen's.

Either way, there is at least this one (1) line that allows for reading Baldwin as having some other condition. He is of course based on the Leper King who did have Hansen's disease, but there are a lot of things that the game changes - the situation where he contracted the disease, his age when that happened, his symptoms (the actual king was supposedly unable to walk), his ethnicity, etc... It's definitely not 1:1. And in a modern AU it's going to be even further from the original inspiration anyway.

I'll also say that him having Hansen's disease isn't actually that consistent with what his backstory implies - specifically the infection-to-symptoms speed that Baldwin is shown to have is very unusual for Hansen's disease. He is implied to experience changes in his appearance etc. extremely fast after the infection (or "infection"), but the shortest time for that to happen in actual Hansen's disease is around 9 months from what I've read, with the more common timeline being around 5 years - that's for first signs, not the very severe end that he is shown to be experiencing. The real life king first contracted the disease as a child but allegedly his disfigurement only started after he became a king (so in his teens). It also requires much more contact to actually contract Hansen's than Baldwin is ever shown to have with the sick people he's comforting, so that doesn't really match either (in real life, you need prolonged, frequent contact with an infected person's droplets, it explicitly doesn't spread through touch).

For Baldwin to still work as the character, I think he'd need a similar set of symptoms rather than the actual diagnosis of Hansen's. My first idea here was noma, which probably fits Baldwin's actual symptoms (and their onset speed) more than Hansen's disease, but it'd be heavily dependent on where he'd be from in the AU since it's primarily a tropical disease. Second option could be neurofibromatosis (type 1), it's genetic, it'd be realistic to have severe symptoms even with modern medicine, and it can start somewhat suddenly (e.g. less disabling signs often appear early and progress slowly, but a larger tumor can be triggered by an injury). Third option could be congenital syphilis since it's very common in the modern times (rare to have it so severe nowadays, but possible) and fits a lot if not all of Baldwin's symptoms, aside from the onset and progression speed.

Now, the issue with all of these is that they, unlike Hansen's, aren't contagious from person to person. That's something that you would have to change - messing with a disability's "contagiousness status" is one of those things where I always have to say no because it's related to actual stigma that affects people. Since it's already a modern AU I assume you're going to change how he got his disability in the first place, but as a rule of thumb: if it's not contagious in real life, don't make it so in fanfiction either.

Third secret option is making him have Hansen's disease and be from one of those regions where it does actually occur to that severity. The two options here are really just India or Brazil since those are the only places with a relatively high number of cases (out of these two Brazil would make more sense for Baldwin since he's shown to be Black in the second game, but there are Black Indians too). You'd probably have to redo a lot of his backstory for all of it to make sense, but it is technically an option; people still get Hansen's in modern times.

Thank you for the question and I hope the answer helps,

mod Sasza

[imsofuckingscaredofskeleons]

just finished cinderella's castle and i have at least one million things to say

overall i LOVED it. i don't agree with a lot of the hate it's receiving. i will say that prince charming had a couple of jokes that made me laugh here and there but the constant sex jokes got annoying.

HOWEVER i do NOT agree with the general opinion that this show is worse than the other starkid shows simply because of its humor. although i love starkid humor, it was really refreshing to see a work from them that contained humor but was not centered around being a comedy. i think it shows another side of what starkid is capable of. i know that their reputation is almost entirely built upon their unique comedy, starkid is not the same as it was when it first started. its grown much further and gained much more talent, skill, and funding that allows for different creative pathways. i think people too often expect for starkid to release comedy gold after comedy gold, and for each show to be funnier and more 'starkid-esque' than the last. i personally didn't go in with the expectation that this would be a highly comedic show, which is maybe why i didn't mind that it wasn't all that funny. i do see what people are saying about the humor maybe falling flat as a whole, though. most of the humor was just sex jokes, and there are other times when you can tell they were trying to be funny but even the live audience didn't give much reaction. even so, i much much MUCH prefer this show being more serious and dramatic with bits of humor than the other way around!

as for the story itself, i really liked it! i do think that it's a bit rushed at points, but it didn't take much away from the show for me personally.

one tiny (and highly controversial opinion, i know) is that i just wish jeff blim sang more in his range. that's not to say i despise his falsettos! i just wish he didn't rely so heavily on them because he's shown in the past how good his singing skills are and i'd really like to see him dip into his natural range more and just incorporate the falsetto rather than rely on it.

also was really hoping ella and tadius would get married at the end of the show :( but i suppose i can headcanon it until my brain just excepts it as canon. on the note of tadius, curt did AMAZING!! honestly all of the actors did such a fantastic job. angela was beyond crazy good at the evil role. kim whalen made that singing look so natural and effortless. bryce was of course killing it vocally the entire time. it was really nice to see bryce who is so beyond talented get to play the lead role!! the score was a bit odd to me but i dont hate it, and the mixture of classical and contemporary choreo, especially during the ball, was really nice! i think one of my favorite parts about the performances was all of the accents, they were terrific and just scratched my brain every time

my BIGGEST outake from the show was the sets. like oh my god it was so beyond gorgeous. when the tree came down??? amazing. and it was so refreshing considering the hatchetfield shows don't use many props or set pieces (which is great for those shows!! it's apart of what makes them hatchetfield shows rather than just any other starkid shows) so this felt like the first time really seeing starkid lean into the whole set and prop thing. and the PUPPETS??? so fucking spectacular. and beyond that, the puppeteer work was out of this world. i loved that you could still see the actors behind the puppets. angela's movements with the puppets along with her still evil performance inside the puppet was amazing. and jon and joey KILLED IT with their physicality and facial expressions, i'm so happy they were dressed up and obvious behind the puppets. their outfits, especially the long braid wig and the bowl cut added so much to the characters and the performance. in fact, all of the outfits in the show were so so so good, i especially loved tadius and sir-hop-a-lot's outfits. i also liked how the evil sister's outfits looked like rapunzel and belle's outfits, both the dresses and the wigs. it was a really nice but subtle touch!

so overall this was one of my favorite starkid shows. although it had its flaws, i think it got wayyy too much hate. it was ambitious and it was so refreshing to see starkid try something out of their usual comedies, and to put more into the sets, props, and outfits. a solid 8/10 for me!

[graytodd]

Hi, hello (,, ･∀･)ﾉ゛!! Just wanted to write and tell you what a joy your art is; it's absolutely gorgeous and always so lovely to see! ♡♡♡ Also, I was wondering if you have any favorite dickjay tropes or headcanons? Your dynamic of them in your art is always so appealing so I'm very 👀 !! about any thoughts you have (୨୧ ❛ᴗ❛)✧

Hi !! thanks for this message, you're my favorite writer and let's face it, the only dickjay juicy source here ~ thank you for inspiring me daily ! and thanks for appreciate my art, it really means a lot to me 🙏 I do love drawing dickjay, especially soft/cuddling tropes, trying to catch an hidden romantic/sexual tension between the lines. I try my best lol I'd say that my favorite tropes/headcanons are mainly based on the introspection into their dynamics and the misunderstanding! hate to lovers fits them so well ❤ come on, they do not 'hate' each other: Dick was an only son who finds himself to be the older brother and mentor of a little punk lol when his attraction to jaybin grows to such an extent that Dick feels like a deviant, a creep, he pushes Jay away and loses him definitely (at least he thinks that). A good one is also Dick losing it over Jay from your #monstrous!dick grayson agenda // Self-control is a characteristic of Dick's character, getting his hands dirty for Jay, beating the shit out of Joker and challenging B's authority, must mean a lot. Dick being a jealous, possessive shit! the urge to remind people he is the only one who can take care of Jay, the only one allowed to cuddle, kiss, fuck his little wing and Jay inexperienced (a virgin? maybe??) in dating, too focused on anger and revenge after returning as Red Hood to worry about sex, which was never his priority until he met Dick again, and memories and desires have resurfaced; from his huge crush on a young!Dick when baby!Jay saw him at the circus, to Dick as mentor to become Robin ❤❤❤ I refuse to think of bottom!dick, because Richard Grayson is the most experienced, cocky, sensual man Jason has ever dealt with. Jason just acts like it, flirting back with sarcasm without pushing himself too far: many are his insecurities, his desire to be loved presses as much as his fear to open up, which is why I can't imagine Jay randomly hooking up with strangers, especially women !! I like to think hookers as those who Jay occasionally chat with, to feel some 'motherly affection' he never had as a child. Yes, I am dramatic af. I've many other tropes I love about dickjay, like age gap !! Jay is a baby ;w: and must be protected and pampered by proud daddy!Dick hu-hu and there's also something about Dick's perfectionism and the pressure to achieve those too-high-standards he set for himself to become 'the hero' that fascinates me! maybe his failed relationships are also due to his fear of being judged, seen as who he is, as a man who considers sexual chemistry too important in a relationship. But Jay is free from these imposed constraints, free to be and Dick admires him for this (and wants to be free, like with him huhu) I went on a bit too long, maybe lol I'm not a good writer but I hope I was able to explain my intentions whenever I draw dickjay ❤

[bangtanficsforyou]

Home Sweet Home (JJK)

Pairing: (Bunny hybrid) Jungkook x Reader.

Genre: floof

Word count: 1.5K

Warnings: curse words ig?

Au: established relationship au.

Based on this request.

If you enjoy my writing consider supporting my patreon!

You're oddly surprised when a warm body doesn't collide with yours upon your arrival. Looking around the living room you find no trace of the man that regularly greets you with a wide bunny grin and warm bear hugs. 

He must be asleep, you deduce and decide to head over to his room. 

When you swing the door open, your previous thought is proved right when you notice him peacefully sleeping with blankets wrapped all around him. 

You walk inside the room without making a sound and for a few moments, silently observe his features. He looks so cute and precious sleeping like this, without a worry about the world. You only wish to keep him this content as long as he will allow you to. 

Without even realising what you're doing, your hand gently brushes a few strands of his hair from his face. However, when the body moves suddenly to cover their head with the blanket, you're taken by surprise and yelp, not having expected the sudden movement. 

Is he not asleep? 

"Jungkook?" You call his name out and recieve a grunt in response, confirming your suspicions. "Hey baby, are you not feeling well?" 

Jungkook doesn't answer and only tightens the blanket around him, which makes you frown in concern. 

"Baby, are you okay?" When he still refuses to answer, you shake his body softly urging him to respond. 

Jungkook grunts once again to show his displeasure. "You do not have to worry about me. You can stay at office all you want."

Your hands pause when you register his words. So this is what it is about. He hasn't been asleep at all. If anything, he had probably made his way to bed when he had heard your foot steps approaching. 

You snicker silently at the thought of him doing that to show his protest. Just when you think he cannot get any cuter. 

"The very least you could do is to not laugh," Jungkook's muffled voice greets your ears, immediately halting your laughter. 

Sometimes, you tend to forget that he's a hybrid which means he can hear even the slightest of sounds, your silent laughter not being an exception. 

"I'm sorry," you apologise, genuinely feeling bad for laughing. "What can I do to earn your forgiveness?" 

Jungkook remains quiet for a few moments and maybe you know him a little too well to know that he isn't actually mad, he never actually is, when it comes to you. He only ever decides to be a little bit dramatic when he feels like you haven't been giving him enough attention. 

"Kookieee," whining his name you tickle him over the blankets. Despite the thick layer of protection, Jungkook squirms and soon scoots away from you. 

You huff. "Fine, I will sit here as long as you don't talk to me."

Saying so you take a seat on the now empty side of bed. 

A few moments later a pair of hands make their way out and he peeks at you with only his eyes and the messy mop of his curls visible. 

"You can make up to me by getting under the blanket, right now," he grumbles cutely. 

Fighting off the urge to smile, you remove your jacket and get rid of your belt to be more comfortable. Jungkook loosens the blanket enough so that you can get in and the moment you do, you're instantly pulled closer by a pair of limbs. 

"Much better," he whispers, his nose skimming gently across your cheek. 

You chuckle at his actions and wrap your arm around his torso. "I'm still in my work clothes."

Jungkook looks at you for a second before breaking into a wide grin, no longer pretending to be angry. "I couldn't care less about anything with you in my arms like this."

"Such a drama king you are," you mumble softly, placing a small kiss at the juncture of his neck. 

"Sometimes you gotta be like that if the love of your life isn't giving you enough attention," whining cutely, he complains and places several kisses on any expanse of skin he has access to. 

You giggle and squirm at the tickling sensation but it only causes Jungkook to hold you tighter. 

"Stop squirming," he nibbles at your neck causing you to laugh even more. 

"I can't help it, it tickles."

His actions slow down and he simply buries his face in the crook of your neck, "this feels nice."

"I know," you hum. "I'm sorry I have been busy lately and that we have barely got any time to spend."

You feel him softly smile against your skin. "It's okay. I missed you but now that you're here, it's all okay."

You're aware that Jungkook knows how heavy the workload has recently been. You're grateful that he understands and is always so willing to do whatever it is to make things easier for you. But you won't lie, sometimes you too wish you could work from home like Jungkook does and be in his presence more. Admittedly, these feelings only ever occur to you when your work simply doesn't allow you to make time for anyone or anything else, like the last few days. 

"I missed you too," you mumble into his hair, the soft smell of his shampoo enveloping you in immense amounts of comfort. 

"Lies," he scoffs. "If you had missed me, you'd have smothered me with kisses by now to express exactly how much you missed me."

You scoff right back at him. "You know you can just ask if you want me to kiss you."

"But where's the fun in that?" 

"You're such a brat, you know?" Laughing in disbelief, you run your fingers through his hair.

"Yeah? Want me to teach a lesson or something?" His body shakes with waves of soft laughter and warm puffs of breath hit your skin. 

"Maybe, I should," you say in a thoughtful manner, taking his words into consideration. "Maybe I won't kiss you, that should sure teach you a lesson."

Jungkook's laughter stops immediately and he looks up at you with offence written all over his face. "You do not mean that." 

"Maybe I do," you shrug softly, trying to hold yourself back from smiling. 

Jungkook levels his face with yours and looks at you as if he were a sad kicked puppy. "You really won't kiss me?" 

"Nope," you pop the 'p' and watch in amusement as his face contorts into pure disbelief. 

"Heyyyyyy," he whines and somehow you know this time he isn't being dramatic. He really doesn't like the idea of you not giving him kisses. "This is not fair."

"What isn't?" 

"You not kissing me," he complains. "I was waiting the whole day for you to come back home and this is what I get? No kisses?"

You chew on your bottom lip to hold yourself back from kissing him right at that very moment. Jungkook is adorable, he always is. But there's nothing more tempting to you then when his plump lips protrude to form a pout. 

"Baby, my sweet girl, darling of mine," he presses his lips against your cheek and gradually, almost as if magnetically he inches closer to your lips. Pressing a soft kiss at the corner of your mouth, he retreats. "Kiss me. Please."

You wanted to continue teasing him a little longer. But you should have known better. With Jungkook looking at you like that and with his lips hovering over yours, nothing in the world could stop you from closing the gap. 

The moment your lips meet his, Jungkook sighs in relief. His lips mold against yours and he matches your pace with one of his hands now resting on your hips. 

You place your palm on his face and your fingers gently rub across the skin of his cheek. Jungkook is gentle, soft, sweet and everything nice. You kiss him with a tenderness that is delicate yet one which sets his soul on fire. He isn't sure what is it that you do but everytime you kiss him, his soul feels a little more alive, he feels a little more like himself and he feels love in a way that makes him want to drown in it. 

He spends most of his day in the apartment doing his work on his laptop. It's absurd but to him this place without your presence is just that to him, an apartment. It's only when you are with him, that it feels like home. You're home. You're his home. 

"I love you," he whispers, a little breathless but not from the kissing, rather from the warmth that's flowing through his veins.

"I love you too, baby," you smile and place a small peck on his lips. "Now let me get changed and take a shower."

"Five more minutes," he says and doesn't give you the chance to protest for the next thing you know he's laying with his head on your chest, enjoying the soft thumping of your heartbeat. 

You close your eyes and relax because when have you ever been able to say no to him. 

[monsieuroverlord]

Hellverine #5 Thoughts:

That's the first story arc finished, and what a ride!

This issue, we got some sweet delicious Auraki angst, Akihiro reclaiming his autonomy, and character growth! Also, a helluva (no pun intended) lot of body horror for an American comic book, I gotta say. It's not even a red band book, either. So I'm both impressed and mildly grossed out.

Spoilers below:

Plot Summary:

We pick up where we left off last issue -- Akihiro is sent to Mephisto's domain, where the demon Bagra-Ghul is extracted out of him.

Naturally, Mephisto monologues his evil plan to subtly take control of mutantkind because, as the next stage of evolution, their power will help him take over the world and succeed as the ruler of hell on earth -- making his power limitless!

During this, Akihiro is all sorts of strung about and dismembered. Like I said, I am kinda impressed an American comic book got away with this much. At minimum, it's really pushing the envelope with just that teeny-tiny "Parental Advisory" warning on the cover.

Anyway, after giving Akihiro a "reminder of his place," Mephisto offers him a choice -- stay in hell or live on earth as his servant.

Akihiro considers his options:

(and we get some sweet, subtle Auraki :D )

Akihiro approaches Bagra-Ghul, and then dramatically scratches a sigil into his chest -- a lil something he picked up from Dr. Strange's giant-ass book.

That sigil was a possession cipher, allowing Akihiro to take control of Bagra-Ghul on his own terms!

A battle then ensues between Mephisto and the newly rejuvenated Akihiro/Bagra-Ghul hell-fueled warrior combo! Using his magical illusion tricks, Mephisto makes Akihiro think he switched places with Aurora, causing some serious fucking stress on my part, by the way:

(Christ almighty, was that necessary? But also, sweet, sweet angst)

Don't worry, it's not Aurora. It was Mephisto in disguise, who then yeets Akihiro back to earth -- specifically back to Genosha (Or I guess, Gigosha now?), the site of his drowning.

Aki then reflects on what transpired -- he won the battle, but not the war. Mephisto is wounded and in retreat, and no longer in control of Akihiro.

As Akihiro comes to, Project Hellfire shows up! Specifically Dr. Spivey (See the Hellverine mini from last year if you don't know what I'm talking about) and she says she's got special orders from the President himself to extract the Hellverine to face the Hell Hulk!

The end. Until next issue.

My thoughts:

So yeah, I did enjoy this issue quite a bit. It was a fun fight sequence albeit a little predictable, but fun! The omamori has not come in clutch yet, but there is still time.

I don't think I've touched enough on this, but I am really digging the inner monologue Percy writes for Akihiro. It's very nice being able to read his thoughts again. And I think it does a pretty good job at showcasing the character growth from Krakoa to present day, you know? I mean, at the very least, it does feel a lot more natural than the stark character shift we got when Akihiro joined Krakoa (and everything was magically "fixed" off panel), so I gotta commend Percy for that. It's not an easy thing to consolidate all these various facets of comic book history into one character while also trying to tell a fresh, new story.

I also really enjoyed the fact that we FINALLY touched on his relationship with Aurora! FINALLY!

Now, we need her for real. I miss her :(

I'm sincerely hoping she shows up by at least this 2nd arc or maybe right after. Now's a good time! Aki has control over the demon now. He's no one's puppet.

Also, listen. Listen, it would be fun to have her join up and appear regularly once things are relatively settled for Akihiro. She's a former nun. He's got whatever the current situation with Bagra-Ghul is. She's got pretty light powers. He's got hell vision (is that what we're calling it?) She's got speed. He's got hellfire. She's got the flight, while he's got the claws. They'd make for an unstoppable demon hunting team! Do you see my vision?!?? It'd be great. I'd buy 50 issues of just that.

Anyways.

This marks the end of the first arc, and the 2nd arc of the story kicks off the hunt for this new Hell Hulk. Based on information we have at the moment, We'll see at least the Hellfire Warriors/Destroyers and the Pentangle crew.

If you enjoyed it, and enjoy my summaries, please go buy the comic book. It needs all the support it can get, and also, I need it to run long enough to make all my little dreams come true. Please and thank you.

[glitterrosesnzz]

Cat in a Box

@hachiibun happy birthday!!! i hope i'm not too late to it shdflkjsldfs.

here's a 1.8k words long Lyney fic ft. various hcs

Aether silently stood leaning over Lyney’s shoulder as the magician went through the process of loosely explaining his newest trick.

“Now, I can’t tell you everything, of course-” Lyney said, tapping on the side of the magic box they were standing in front of. “But this box here is going to be somewhat of the main event for the show tonight.” 

“Boxes again?” Aether asked, “This is like, the third time you’ve used one. Is it like your cat instincts jumping out?” 

“My ca- I’m afraid you must be mistaken, Traveler.” Lyney laughed, “It’s only Lynette who got the cat genes. Although, I suppose I have been called cat-like by some people… in the mysterious and charming way, of course.” 

Aether rolled his eyes, wishing that Lynette was here at the moment, knowing that she at least would give a more truthful answer. But, she was currently off in one of the side rooms of the Opera House with Paimon, indulging in some sweets, and Aether didn’t feel like interrupting the two of them for something so minor. 

“So.” He said instead, “What exactly is so different about this box?” 

“Well you see, I’m going to change my dear sister Lynette, into a charming little bunny.” 

Aether blinked slowly. Then, he shifted, leaning against the door of the box slightly. 

“A bunny.” He deadpanned, “...Now that I think about it, despite it being one of the most well known tricks, to the point that I know it, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you do a trick with a bunny. Do you- do you even have a bunny?” 

“Why of course!” Lyney gave an overdramatic little bow, gesturing for Aether to move out of the way, before dramatically knocking three times on the box’s door. On the third knock, Aether could hear a slight thump, and when Lyney opened the door- 

There was a small black bunny sitting on the floor of the box. 

“Traveler, allow me to introduce you to Lapin.” Lyney said, moving out of the way as the Traveler stepped into the box, bending down to gently pick the bunny up. “Ah, but don’t tell Paimon or Lynette about him. This is going to be a surprise for my siblings as well.” 

“So Lynette doesn’t know that you’re going to ‘turn her into a bunny’ then?” Aether asked,gently petting Lapin and pushing himself up against the wall of the box as Lyney subconsciously stepped in as well in order to speak face to face. There was barely enough room for the both of them to stand in the box without brushing together. “Why wouldn’t you tell her-” 

Aether’s question was cut off by the sound of a click- and they both tensed, but neither of them was fast enough to react as the door to the box swung closed. 

Aether’s elemental vision activated automatically, acting almost like night vision. It was through this that he only just barely caught the brief flash of panic on Lyney’s face. 

“Well!” Lyney’s voice held an amount of practiced calm to it that, if Aether didn’t know better, he wouldn’t even realize was faked. “This is certainly unexpected.” 

“...Can you get us out?” Aether asked, tilting his head slightly as Lyney’s nose twitched. 

“Welllll… no. There is, unfortunately, no switch on the inside of this box! There is a failsafe though, it should open on it’s own in about ten minutes.” 

And, well, Aether was pretty sure that was a bold-faced lie, considering he was quite certain he could feel what seemed like a switch or other sort of mechanism pressed up against the center of his back. It was in a position he couldn’t quite reach on his own, especially with a bunny in his arms, but Lyney would only have to just reach around him… 

Maybe he didn’t want to get too close? Now that he was staring, it did seem like Lyney was pressed as close against his side of the box as he could be, slightly tensed up. It had never really seemed like Lyney had much problems with physical touch before, but maybe this was just a bit too much. 

Still though… 

“We could just call for Lynette and Paimon to get us out.” Aether suggested, “I’m sure they’d hear us if we yelled, this place isn’t that big, and the sounds from the stage echo everywhere-” 

“There’s no need for that.” Lyney sounded slightly breathless, which was strange, considering they were doing no physical activity at all. “Lynette isn’t meant to know about our little friend Lapin here anyways, remember?” 

“And why is tha-” Aether stopped himself mid-sentence, watching as Lyney’s expression twisted slightly- which was strange. Lyney didn’t normally allow so many different facial expressions to slip through his mask. Albeit… he might not know that Aether could see him right now, the box would be pretty dark for the average person after all. “...Are you okay?” 

Almost instantly, the strange expression vanished from Lyney’s face, replaced with his usual calm and collected composure, but still, Aether couldn’t help but feel like there was something slightly off. 

“Perfectly fine as always!” Lyney said. Aether narrowed his eyes in suspicion, lightly scritching at Lapin’s head as he thought- 

Only to be startled as, without any pre-warning, Lyney suddenly jerked his head to the side, hat sliding slightly askew as he half stifled a sneeze. 

“Heh’KSh-!!” The half-stifle was extremely ineffective at preventing the other side effects that happened to come with a vision user sneezing, the entire box briefly lighting up with tiny sparks of pyro. But that wasn’t what surprised Aether the most. 

No, that honor went to the cat ears and tail that suddenly and mysteriously appeared on Lyney’s body. 

“Oh darn…” Lyney muttered, before clearing his throat. “Apologies, that kind of snuck up on me.” 

…Should Aether ask about the ears? Would that be rude? It was clearly something that Lyney wanted to hide. 

Aether didn’t get the chance to ask, as the next moment, Lyney’s expression twisted, and he was jolting to the side with another failed half-stifle, the box lighting up with pyro sparks one again. One of said sparks lightly brushed up against Aether’s cheek, and he quietly hissed at the slight sting. Lyney muttered a quiet apology under his breath, holding one finger against his nose. 

Right. Random cat ear generation aside, something told Aether that Lyney’s sneezing was not going to stop anytime soon, and Aether would rather get out of the box before he got burned, thank you very much. 

“Lyney.” Aether said, watching as Lyney quietly sniffled, suddenly looking slightly nervous. 

“Yes, Traveler?” 

“I know the switch thing was a lie. I can feel it up against my back.” Aether deadpanned, and, for some reason, Lyney almost seemed to… relax? Strange. “So hurry up and get over here and get us out before you end up burning one of us.”

Ah, and Lyney was tense again. 

“Oh, right.” One of Lyney’s cat ears twitched, and it took all of Aether’s strength to bite his tongue and keep himself from commenting on it. Slowly, Lyney moved closer, until they were almost face to face, his hands moving to reach behind Aether’s back to find the mechanism. Lapin seemed curious about the new proximity, the bunny’s ears twitching. Lyney slightly twisted his face away from it. “Sorry, it’s slightly more complicated than a simple switch, it might- might take me a momen- hH-” 

It was with near-lightening speed that Aether’s hand shot up, pinching Lyney’s nose shut. Based on Lyney’s past two attempts at stifling, this was not going to end well if the magician was left on his own, and Aether was not going to get burned today, thank you. 

Lyney almost seemed startled for a second, but the sudden action was clearly not enough to chase the urge to sneeze away. 

“Hih’NKsh!” There was no sparks this time, but based on the way Lyney’s breath continued to audibly hitch afterwards, his cat ears pressed back against his head, and how, through his glove, Aether could feel Lyney’s nose twitch, Aether could tell this wouldn’t be the last sneeze. “Tr-Traveler, wh-hIh- what-” 

“Just focus on getting the door open.” Aether said. Lyney seemed to follow that instruction, Aether could just barely make out the sensation of the magician’s hands moving behind his back, surprisingly steady even as Lyney’s hitching breaths turned desperate. 

“Hehh…hh…hiHH–!” Lyney seemed to only just barely choke back a sneeze. Aether rolled his eyes. What, was he embarrassed about sneezing into Aether’s hand, now? 

He was just about to tell Lyney that he was being ridiculous when there was a resounding click, the door of the box swinging back open. 

Wasting practically no time, Lyney forcibly pulled himself away from Aether’s grip, rushing out of the box. Aether followed behind him at a much slower pace, wiping his hand off on his clothes before going back to gently petting Lapin, but he still was just in time to see as Lyney finally succumbed to whatever itch had overtaken him. 

“Hi’KISHiew!!” Bright sparks appeared around him, some small outright flames appearing as well as Lyney’s hat outright fell off this time from the force of him doubling over, the sound of it hitting the stage covered up by the sound of Lyney’s fit. “Heh’SHii! H’EKShiew!!” 

“Lyney.” The sound of Lynette’s deadpan voice made both Aether and Lyney jump, Lyney forcing himself back upright to face her. She did not look impressed. 

“Ah- Ly-Lynette- hIH-hEH’KSHiu!!” Lyney doubled over with another sneeze, fit clearly not done. “Hh’ISHkiew!!” 

“So.” Lynette said, her hands on her hips, tail swinging back and forth in disapproval. “The little guy over here in Aether’s arms is the reason you’ve been sneezing your head off the last few nights.” 

Lyney was too busy doubling over with another sneeze to give a response, and Aether blinked down at the bunny that was snuggled innocently in his arms. 

Oh. So Lyney was allergic to bunnies then. 

…Pinching his nose shut with a hand that was likely covered in bunny fur probably hadn’t helped Lyney’s current condition in the slightest then. 

Well, whatever. Wasn’t like he could do anything to change it now. This information wasn’t even the most shocking thing Aether had learned today. 

Speaking of which… 

“So like, are the cat ears… real?” Aether whispered to Lynette. She blinked slowly in response, before sighing. 

“He just thinks they show too much of his real emotions.” She responded, and Lyney somehow managed to pause mid-hitch to give her a horrified look. 

“Lynette! Do- hIH… don’t tell- tell him tha-hAH- H’KIShiew!! Heh’SHIew!!” 

Lynette sighed, walking over to her brother and grabbing him by the shoulders, starting to lead him off stage. 

“C’mon, let’s go get you cleaned up so that you’re not still sneezing like crazy by the time the show starts.” She said, before looking over her shoulder back at Aether. “Traveler, find someone to take care of that bunny, we’ll find a replacement for tonight’s show.” 

Aether glanced down at the bunny in his arms. Lapin stared silently back. 

Hearing Lyney sneeze again from somewhere offstage, Aether let out a sigh. 

He supposed he could keep the bunny in his teapot for now…

[aoyama-division]

The Hegemony Wedding Ceremony (Jet Set Trio Voicelines Ver.)

— Tomi

"...You know, when my younger brother mentioned he had already gotten married, I... I kinda envied him a bit. I always dreamed of being able to have my own wedding, but... I kept telling myself that I don't think I would ever find a woman that I would want to spend my life with. My brother would tell me that I just had to keep searching. Eventually, I got so tired of it that I wanted to quit. But... I'm glad that I didn't. Cause if I had, I'd have never found Miho-san. I am... really grateful for that."

(To Karada) "Karada. I won't ask how you managed to get Luis, of all people, to attend my wedding. When I asked, he swore up and down that he wouldn't come. But... maybe he felt if it came from you, it would be better. I don't know. Anyway, thank you for convincing him to come. Thank you for being here. And... thank you for being one of the few people I can call a friend."

(To Luis) "Kōkyū. ...I won't ask why you chose to deny my invitation, but accepted Karada's. Perhaps, you felt it would be better if it came from him? Well, regardless, thank you for showing up. And thanks for not putting your squabbles with my wife off to the side for just one day. ...Oh, and thank you also for the wonderous wedding cake. Your skill at cooking never ceases to amaze me."

(To Ritsuko) "...Okada-san. I won't ask how you managed to infiltrate this event, so I'll chalk it up due to you being my darling wife's closest confidant. ...You need not threaten me to prove your point, Okada-san. The last thing I'd ever want is to hurt Miho-san. I'd sooner hurt myself than do anything that would inflict harm upon her. Now, if you're quite done being dramatic..."

(To Sumire) "...I'm not even going to pretend that I'm happy to see you here. You don't care for me, and you know I don't care for you, you menace to society. It's only because you are my darling wife's niece that I'm allowing you to stay here. But rest assured, if anything goes out of place here and I get even the slight feeling that you are involved in some form or manner, I won't hesitate to have security throw you out. Now then, if you'll excuse me, I do not wish to be in your presence any longer than I have to."

(To Miho) "You look as beautiful as the day I first laid eyes on you, my queen. I know I said this before, but… a man could spend a lifetime searching for a good thing, and he could never find it. Either because he wasn't looking hard enough, or because he wasn't paying attention. …Fortunately for me, my eyes were open when I laid sight on you, my beautiful wife. Words can't express how I feel about you, and how happy I am that you will be in my life. So... thank you, my queen, and my love."

— Karada

"Man, Tomi and Miho-san sure went all out for this wedding! I guess it's no surprise considering their two of the richest people in Japan. But man, would you look at this place? I haven't been to too many weddings before, but... wow! ...Oh, they got those little hot dog wieners in a toasted bun! ...And a chocolate fountain?! Man, they hooked this place up!"

(To Tomi) "Hey, Tomi! Congratulations again, man! I'm really happy for you! You and Miho-san are gonna make a good couple, I know it! ...Ha, don't mention it! I know what to say to Lu to get him to relent, so don't you worry! ...Aw, Tomi, man. You're gonna make me cry, dude. Today's your big day, not mine! ...But thanks, man. I'm glad you're my friend, too."

(To Luis) "Man, Lu! Sick wedding, don't you think? Miho and Tomi really made this place their own! ...Aw, come on, Lu! You can't at least, pretend, to be happy for the two of them? This is their big day, man! ...Look, I asked you to come because, believe it or not, Tomi was really nervous about this, man. I figured, what better way to show his support than having his two best bros by his side to help him. So... can you just show your support for him, this once? Please? ...Great! Thanks a lot, Lu!"

(To Ritsuko) "Ritsuko! How are..." *Looks at the spider in her hand, and screams out loud, running away from her*

(To Sumire) "Sumire! Surprised to see... oh, uhh... okay. I'll... I'll just leave you alone then. Sorry... Small-dick? Yeah right. Bet the closest someone like her has seen a penis is through a T.V. screen or something..."

(To Miho) "Hey, it's the Lady of the Hour, herself! Congratulations, Miho-san! I'm really happy for you and Tomi, both! I hope you both make each other really happy! Well, I don't want to take up too much of your time, so I'll get. But congratulations again!"

— Luis

*Inhales some nicotine from a cigarette before exhaling* "Seriously, why did Karada have to drag me here to this? Not that I'm not happy for the "happy couple", but there are plenty of other things I could be doing right now. Plus, and this is probably just because of my homelife, but I don't see the point in weddings, exchanging vows. I mean, I know there's an order to everything, but what's the point? I don't want to say Tomi and Miho are anything like my parents, but... well, I'll just leave it at that."

(To Tomi) "...Chōten. ...You can ask why I denied your invitation. I can't guarantee you'll get a reply, or at least one that you'll like, though. ...Your welcome, I guess. ...Yeah, you have Karada to thank for that cake. If not for him begging me, I wouldn't have made it. But don't worry, I'll send you an invoice for it later."

(To Karada) "Hey Karada. ...Yeah, whatever you say. ...What do you mean? I am happy for them. ...What do you want me to do? Jump up and down, yelling, 'Congratulations, Tomi and Miho! May you have a long and healthy life together!'? *Sighs* ...Fine, okay. I'll deign to be more approachable, but that's all you're getting out of me. ...Yeah, sure."

(To Ritsuko) "...Okada-san. ...Glad you enjoyed it. I'll try to remember to send you the recipe for your birthday next year."

(To Sumire) "Hey, Sumire. ...Meh, she's still not one of my favorite people, but... well, I promised I'd be courteous on her special day, so... yeah. ...Ha, Tomi? Blackmail me? He can certainly try. ...Yeah, good to see you too. Later."

(To Miho) "...Kobayashi. ...Yeah, glad you liked it, I guess. ...And congratulations and all that."

[ectogeo-rebubbles]

trick or treat! 🧛 (also edith just did a dramatic meow so i think she is saying "trick or treat" as well)

Hehe thanks for the ask! And, awww, hi Edith! 🥺

(for this ask game)

Here's the start of a soft hurt/comfort wip that I have mostly written (but I'm stuck on like the final paragraph and I still haven't titled it), about Julian asking Garak to cut his hair on the runabout after they escaped from Dominion prison together:

There hadn’t been any mirrors on the asteroid. He hadn’t thought much about this at the time, escape and survival being the more pressing matters weighing on his mind.

But, in the runabout on the way home, Julian caught his reflection in the bathroom mirror, and for a moment he couldn’t breathe. The scruff on his face and the greasy bits of hair curling down to poke his forehead didn’t just feel bad, they looked it too, and the dark circles under his eyes were evidence of the impossibility of a restful sleep on those cots in the barracks. 

He turned away, feeling incongruous with himself, unable to stand the haunted stare of his own reflection. He knew he’d eventually have to look at himself to finish grooming, but he could at least put it off until after a shower.

The water pressure wasn’t very strong on these runabouts but at least it was an option. The sonics on the asteroid had been put on the highest setting so that they didn’t need to allow the prisoners more than a few moments each to shower. It always left his ears pounding for hours afterward, and he never quite felt clean. 

But now he could forego the sonic setting and stand under the pleasantly warm spray of water for as long as he wanted. Even until his fingers pruned and the damp seemed to seep down into his bones, if he so chose. So after washing up, he leaned against the wall, eyes closed, letting the water just wash over him, letting the humid air fill his lungs and drown out his thoughts for a little longer, before finally shutting off the water. 

“Doctor?” Garak said from the other side of the refresher door, startling him out of his daze. He realized that the shower had been off for a minute maybe, but he hadn’t yet moved to leave the stall.

“Yes, Garak?” he called, while starting to towel off.

“Are you all right? You’ve been in there awhile.”

“Just finishing up,” he said. “I’ll be out in a moment, I…” He looked at the dirty uniform, still lying crumpled on the ground from when he’d stepped out of it. “Actually, wait— Are you still there?” he asked through the door, wrapping the towel around his waist.

“Yes.”

“Well, if it’s not too much trouble, could you replicate me a new uniform?”

“The kind with the blue shoulders or the gray?”

He flinched. He’d forgotten about the recent changeover. He’d forgotten, yet again, that time had passed normally for everyone else even while it had been frozen in stasis for him. His lookalike would have been wearing gray. Julian himself had only tried it on once before putting it away in his dresser until the change became mandatory.

“Personally,” Garak continued, filling the silence left by Julian’s indecision, “I find the gray ones much more offensive than the more colorful ones.” 

“Offensive?” He felt off-balance. What was he talking about?

“Mm. The quilting and the color on the shoulders are both clearly meant to evoke the elegant shoulder ridges of a Cardassian.” Julian pictured him rolling his shoulders as he said it, letting the scales ripple and slide past each other. “I know you Federaji consider imitation the highest form of flattery, but this mimicry is so crude that you really shouldn’t have bothered.”

Julian let out a huff of laughter and shook his head. It really was amazing how just hearing one of Garak’s ridiculous rants about fashion or Cardassian superiority (or in this case both) could cheer him up.

“Well, maybe you’d better just get me some civvies then. Whatever you’d like. You have my measurements. Surprise me.”

“As you wish, Doctor.” He heard Garak move away from the door.

Julian ran his fingers through his hair, brushing the encroaching curls off of his face. Maybe he could get Garak’s help trimming it. Then he wouldn’t have to face himself in the mirror just yet.

[dragonmasterhiccup]

Slightly shrugging, Freya gave a satisfied nod for his answer. "Yeah, we'll go with that." Briefly poking his shoulder, her voice was a bit playful, yet sincere all the same, "Then I'm glad that just being myself didn't hinder you from loving me either…" Glancing away, she mumbled to herself, "Because you sure must have a high tolerance if you were able to handle my attitude from before.."

Proudly lifting her chin, a jubilant smirk placed itself on her lips as she faintly huffed. "Even if it's only a little, I'm happy it works somehow..!"

Fighting off another chuckle, she spoke to him while still hanging onto Blaze, who waddled closer to the Chief's son and his Night Fury. "I'm kidding. You should've seen the amount of times Ayla has tripped on the snow!"

---------

Squinting her eyes to pretend as though she were carefully examining the hut, her tone was airy, "Hm. Maybe I should check the corners for any dust. That'll really prove it or not."

Blaze settled himself down behind her, cozily wrapping his tail around himself since his rider happily accepted the blanket, securing it on her as she concurrently made some of the fur cover half of her face, leaving only her eyes and forehead visible. "Definitely, thank you!"

Languidly sinking on the floor, she also let out a tranquil sigh, gently intertwining her fingers with his. 'Nothing can get better than this..' Freya mused, leaning her head on his shoulder as the lambency of the fire calmed her.

Her eyes fluttering shut, the corner of her lips tugged into a smile - one that was brimmed with such a fondness, she didn't even realize she'd been smiling. Remembering what Hiccup told her yesterday, she spoke quietly: "Y'know, if someone came up to me a year ago and said I would be doing this, I'd probably try and punch them."

Freya chuckled lightly, the warmth the fireplace provided alongside the blanket and her boyfriend together bringing her an elation of comfort. "I'm just being honest. But..now that I'm actually here, with you, I…can't imagine how I might've turned out if we hadn't gotten to really know each other."

Opening her eyes once more, she muttered: "Geez, look. You're making me become cheesy.." Stifling a snort, she tilted her head to glimpse at him. "See what I mean by you having these abilities?"

Gazing towards his hand that was interlaced in hers, she scooted over ever so slightly to let her other hand begin to trace wandering symbols on his knuckles. After a few seconds, she mumbled: "You have a couple of scars here..? I'm assuming they're because of the forge, right?" They were hardly noticeable if someone wasn't observing it up close, basically invisible from afar, but she was able to catch that small detail.

"…I like them, actually. It shows what you've been through..in a way." Leaning back, her attention shifted to his face. "Now that I think about it…I probably would've stayed in the forge a lot longer like you did if I hadn't got so…dramatic over everything that happened." Freya pursed her lips, considering what might've occurred if she simply allowed herself to at least be around Hiccup during such a time.

"I am fine with the fact I got to avoid a lot of Gobber's, uh…lessons, though." She quipped, shrugging nonchalantly before finally giving in and tittering at her comment. "He can talk just as much as Ayla if he wanted to!"

Grateful that no one else was there to hear her fit of laughter, Freya glanced towards the kettle, unhurriedly standing up once she acknowledged it was probably finished boiling the water. "Mind showing me where you keep the stuff for your tea?"

---

As soon as the drink was done being made, she wasted no time in serving them both, delighting herself in the aroma it carried. "Here's yours.." She quietly replied, filling her cup last. "And here's mine..!" Blowing away the steam, she slowly took a sip, humming in content.

Going to comment on how good it tasted, she paused for a moment, a sudden idea forming in her mind that caused her to suppress a playful smirk. "…Hey, mine doesn't taste very sweet.. Could I try yours? Just to see if I'm right or not.."

Extending her hand, Freya gestured at his cup, making it appear as if she were going to take it. Instead, she swiftly leaned in, quickly closing her eyes as she delicately kissed him. While doing so, she couldn't resist the smile that formed on her lips before pulling back just as fast. "Hm, nevermind. Guess I was wrong."

Giggling softly to herself, she took another drink of her tea. "Sorry, I just had to do it!" Teasingly eyeing him from the side, she added: "Happy Snoggletog!"

"It didn't, that's what made me fall for you. Seeing you, with Blaze, with Ayla, when you thought no one else was watching? It really helped me see you, who you really were...at least, who you were when you weren't particularly irritated by me..." He finished with a light laugh, not bothered at all by how their friendship accidentally began.

"Ayla falls in the snow a lot?" He asked her, his head tilted in confusion. "Hmm... maybe she could use something to help with that..."

---------

Waving a hand, he practically dated her to, knowing full well that he cleaned the day before. "Help yourself. You won't find anything. But," he held up a hand, "don't move anything on my desk, okay?" He had things spread out a bit, working on another new project.

He smiled warmly, his eyes full of love as she covered part of her face with the fur, finding that a cute mannerism of hers. "Good, I was worried you were getting too cold..."

Sitting there on the floor, wrapped in blankets and leaning on their dragons with their hands intertwined, Hiccup was a little taken by surprise at her comment. "You'd--you'd punch them?"

Shaking his head, he exhaled sharply. "Wow. Me, I'd have thought they'd had some bad mead or something, but...yeah, no, that uh, that checks out. Given how things were, you definitely would punch them..."

Turning to face her, he asked, "Wait, what do you mean? You'd still be you...sure, you'd probably still hate me, but I don't think anything else would have changed, would it?"

Except...

"Well, I suppose there was that one time you stood up to Ragnar..."

Smiling innocently at her, he gave a small shrug. "What can I say? I didn't realize cheesiness was contagious!"

"I do?" Looking down at his hand, he could see she was right...but they weren't all from the forge. "Uh...more or less." Inventions going wrong. A few falls here and there through trees... His general clumsiness as a child.

His eyes found hers, finding himself surprised a second time at her words. She...liked his scars?

He wondered if she'd feel the same if she knew just how many he had.

There were the obvious ones: burns scars, from the Red Death, lightning scars, various ones from the forge, and a few from his scrapes with dragon hunters. Others that even he didn't know the origin of.

Snapping back to reality, he barely registered what she'd said about Gobber. "Hm? Oh, yeah. He uh, he sings sometimes, too. Even Grump tries to cover his ears, but he can't exactly reach them. I made him some moss earplugs though, so I put them in discreetly when Gobber starts up."

Standing with her, he said, "Sure," and led her towards the kitchen.

---------

Breathing in the scent of the freshly brewed tea, he took his cup gratefully, holding it in both hands. "Thanks! Smells great!"

Letting it cool a little, he took a sip, letting out a hum of satisfaction. "That's, that's really good..."

Tilting his head at her, he said, "They should be the same, shouldn't the---" he was abruptly cut off by her kissing him, his eyes going wide in surprise briefly before closing, kissing her back.

He was in a slight daze as she pulled away, and he found himself leaning forward a little before resigning himself to the fact that it was done. "That was...yeah, uh, the--the tea is sweet, yeah..."

Regaining his ability to think, he gave her a playful look, setting his cup down and pulling her close again by her waist. "C'mere, you..."

Kissing her again, he pulled away, and whispered, "You can't just leave me hanging like that, I wasn't ready for it to be over, you know..."

[vibingandsimping]

Hey hey, I hope ur having an amazing week!! I would like to get a baldurs gate 3 matchup. I am a bisexual with a preference for men. I'm an average guy, pale as a ghost, cause of me staying mostly inside. I present myself as friendly, quiet, preserved, just a guy who gets along w everyone. But sometimes ppl are weirded out or intimidated by me (being goth in a small Slavic town isn't best). I'm really awkward and anxious w many/new ppl. With friends I'm open, dramatic, a bit of a rambler and love to prank/scare them. I hate physical touches very much, I don't even let my friends hold hands or hug me, the most they are getting is a hand on shoulder or a handshake. But to ppl who are really close to me, I love cuddling and just sitting near them. I am really patient and understanding. I hate talking about feelings and am just horrible at comforting ppl, that's why I don't usually argue and just agree with a person and avoid expressing feelings (can't even say simple 'I love you' without big struggle). I have a self isolation problem too, when I get emotional. I love music and art in general, I play guitar and also am an artist, and once in a while I try myself in poetry, I consider myself a bit of philosophy nerd. Also love going to the park/forest for alone quiet time, I love hanging out there, or even exploring some abandoned buildings. I love to listen to people ramble on their interests, also I like to give presents to the person I like. I'm super obvious on any romantic hints, and get really blushful and nervous once I finally get them. Damn, I hope it ain't too long, anyway thanks, I love ur work and I think ur really talented!! Have a nice day/night!!

Thank you for the sweet compliments. <33

I feel Astarion would be fond of you.

Astarion has gone through too much trauma to have to adjust heavily. He can adapt, of course, but to find someone who shares similarities with him would be great. You two have a lot in common. Easy enough to bond over but it could cause some simple arguments or disagreements. I can really see you two chatting over wine and discussing topics of life. Also, maybe gossiping over something.

The tree bark under the back of your knees was a dull burn each time you shifted. It was something you grew accustomed to during your adventures. Next to you sat Astarion as he poured you two a glass of wine. His fingers cold as they brushed yours handing you the glass. He sighed and tilted his head back; enjoying the forest air. You smiled softly and took a sip as the crisp environment settled into you. The camp was stuffy and being surrounded by so many grew tiring. So, you both trailed off for some much needed alone time. “As much as I enjoy the company we’ve kept…” Astarion began, your eyes darting to him. “I really don’t think I can handle hearing everyone squabble over simple issues.” He sighed in exasperation. You laughed a little and rolled your shoulders back to allow yourself to relax. “Imagine having to lead that group.” You chirped and Astarion rumbled in amusement. There was a silent understanding of comfort between you two. Whatever romance blooming was new and unexplored territory. So, you really relished moments like this even if little words were spoken. Inching closer minute by minute. You felt the sharp cold of his hand against yours, instinctively wanting to flinch away. Inhaling shakily, you allowed him to sit close enough to rest hands together. Sipping the wine and making casual conversation. Despite the advancement, you felt no pressure to do so. You both knew you could back out if it became too much. It was nice.

[my-castles-crumbling]

hi cas!!

im gonna rant at you for a bit if you dont mind :)

Im a minor that lives in a super tight night, close minded community. Super religious, super homophobic transphobic ect. Seeing as im a teenage girl whose questioning their gender and is definitely attracted to women thats kinda problematic lols. Honestly idek how to explain the situation without a bunch of details, but basically, theres a fifty-fifty chance of me being sent to conversion therapy or just cut off from any internet access (and i mean ANY. i have a flip phone for fucks sake.)if my fam finds out im queer, i have no support system outside of some internet friends who know nothing about my situation, and within the next few years(so like once i turn 20ish, thats in like 4 years but whatever) my family is going to expect me to get married to a man and start popping out babies asap. Btw thats whats expected of me in this community, marriage under the age of 25, have like as many kids as physically possible and god forbid higher education. And im not okay with that . Ffs i want to go to college, major in fine arts, meet a person i like and fall desperately in love or maybe not just have a bunch of close platonic relationships i want cats and a dog and a cute studio in a big city where i can dye my hair whatever color i want aand get an obsene amount of piercings, i want to wear pants!! I just want to live. Without expectations or limits or people who love me hating everything they dont know about me. Is that truly so much to ask for?

And im incredibly dramatic cuz i literally have the dream life. My family loves me, my parents are upper middle class, theyve never hurt me before(besides for all the anti everything rants haha) i literally have a full sized bed, which for some reason i see as the peak of being spoiled idk why. I go to school, not even public, a private religious school that prob costs thousands of dollars, i have friends(who are all part of this community btw and id bet my entire savings that most of them think gay is only a word that ppl use to mean happy lol) close ones even!! I have adorable neices and nephews(my 3 sisters all were married by the age of 20, so i have 11 niecesand nephews while my oldest sister is 31) im living the dream life. But i hate it and i have no way out. No hope of college to get on my feet and find someway out, no people that'll help me fucking run away or some bullshit like that, hell ive considered it and then felt like shit, cuz what am i even running from? Im probably attracted to men it wont kill me to marry one. And i like kids, i wouldnt mind having any either. But.... i dont want to be trapped anymore. Cuz ill be honest thats what i am.if some one asked me to run away with them rn i would, no hesitation.

God im a mess😭😭 anyway this was me ranting in my notes app, im just apologizing for dumping this on a complete stranger(we're moots actually!!) albeit a very kind one :) i dont know what im looking for, but ill take whatever your comfortable giving ig.

I love and appreciate you<333

And hey this has been oddly cathartic so lmk if its okay for me to do this again sometime :))

"im living the dream life. But i hate it and i have no way out."

Hon, you're not living the dream life...there's a difference between financial privilege and being happy, you know? It's pretty clear that this isn't what you want.

I'm not sure if you're asking for my advice here, or if you just want to vent. But I care about you, and if you want me to research some things to try to help you, I'm more than willing to (that way it's not on your search history.) Just say the word!

Until then, you are ALWAYS allowed to vent to me.

I'm naming you venting anon in case you write again!

[sombra-conlangs]

TLDR; I'm gonna change the pronunciation of Osrican and Kxërt'exo starting next year to make them more distinct, nothing too dramatic hopefully but it will be noticeable

more details below the cut

I just had an unfortunate realization (╥﹏╥) all 3 languages that I'm currently working on (Osrican, Kxërt'exo, and a new third one) sound too similar to each other, they each have some unique phonemes that the others lack but I wouldn't blame anyone for confusing them based on their pronunciation 'cause they share so many sounds in common, they all have something similar to [x], [ɬ], [r], [t͡ʃ], [ə] and more than a couple palatals, plus the first two also have [ø] and [y], and of course they share all the typical sounds like [a] [e] [i] [o] [u] and consonants like [p] [t] [k] and so on, so I'm thinking of making some changes

I guess this is what happens when you just pick the sounds you feel fit a certain vibe without thinking too much about making your languages different from each other, all 3 of these are meant to feel kind of magical and fantasy-esque, and I guess those are the sounds I associate with that kind of aesthetic, but it comes at the cost of making them a bit too similar to each other (especially cause the phonotactics of all of these languages allow for lots of clusters everywhere and they all have lexical stress, so that adds two more similarities)

Since I'm doing Lexember with Osrican and Kxërt'exo I'm gonna keep those languages the same for now, I wanna keep the entries consistent all the way through the month (I've actually already finished all my entries cause I scheduled them in advance, so changing them now would be a pain) but once the year is over I'm going to make some revisions to each language so hopefully they become a bit more distinct from each other, and I might post the updated Lexember entries with the new sounds somewhere else (to avoid cluttering up this blog too much), I'll be sure to post the link

As a sneak peak I think it's mostly the allophones that are going to change, but I might get rid of some sounds and introduce a few new ones to each language, I'm considering changing the [r] sound in Kxërt'exo to a uvular trill [ʀ] since I always liked that sound, though I'm not sure I will, it might just lose the [r] entirely, maybe it will also gain a few more emphatic sounds on top of [pˠ] [tˠ] and [q] (I'm slightly considering turning the emphatics into ejectives cause that'd be badass but that feels like too dramatic of a change, I'll think about it)

As for Osrican, it might lose the lateral fricatives [ɬ] and [ɮ], plus I think I'll mess with the vowels a bit to have a more complex system, but I think it won't actually change too much from how it is currently

And of course I'll also experiment with the sounds of the 3rd language, since I haven't posted about it anywhere I feel like I can make more drastic changes, though I feel like it's the one that needs the least amount of change since it's already got a bunch of unique sounds, I still want to change some things though

But anyway, that's basically it, I'm feeling a bit bummed out about this because, I mean, what a coincidence that the 3 languages I choose to post online are super similar to each other despite being completely unrelated, I have other conlangs with tone or minimal inventories and CV syllable structure, retroflex sounds, vowel harmony, etc. but it's fine, I guess I can always go back and make changes, just because I posted these online doesn't mean they have to stay fossilized forever in their current form